Chapter 495: Top-Secret Operation

The Violet Gold Marquess had made his move!

Chu Liang and the other two immediately reported this news to their respective sects.

At that time, they had used various methods to obtain the Soul Subjugator Token, with their ultimate target as undercover agents being the Violet Gold Marquess.

They had waited a long time for this Guardian of the Dark King Sect to recover and emerge into the open.

He was finally going to show up.

[Fifty-Ninth]: "The Marquess is taking action personally? That's fantastic! We've been waiting day and night for this moment. The Marquess has no idea what we've endured during this time..."

[Sixtieth]: "Noted."

[Fifty-Eighth]: "Congratulations to the Marquess on emerging from closed-door cultivation. Do you happen to know what valuable item Granny Meng stole?"

[Eastern-Route Guider]: "I can't tell you much, but I can say it’s a valuable item related to the Jiuli Hidden Realm, which is extremely important to our sect. Therefore, whoever captures Granny Meng will be greatly rewarded. The Marquess aims to regain his footing before the sect leader, so failure is not an option this time."

Jiuli Hidden Realm?

Seeing these words, Chu Liang immediately recalled the incident outside Kaoshan City.

At that time, an official from Kaoshan City had discovered the Jiuli Hidden Realm in the mountains. The imperial court wanted to bring him to the capital of Yu immediately, but he was ambushed along the way by a group of diabolical cultivators and a group of demons. If the group dispatched from the diabolical sect hadn't been the Ghost-Face Chamber, to which Chu Liang and the others belonged, the ambush would have succeeded.

Later on, the official was successfully escorted to the capital of Yu. What happened afterward remained unclear to Chu Liang. He only knew that the imperial court had taken over the Jiuli Hidden Realm. The enchanted tools for the demon soldiers inside were better suited for military use and held little value for the immortal sects, so no one contested it. In the end, Zhang Chen, representing Ascending Dragon Academy, expressed his gratitude to those who helped, and that was the end of it.

Could it be that something shady was happening behind the scenes?

[Fifty-Ninth]: "The Jiuli Hidden Realm? No wonder White-Bone Hall suddenly sent us to intercept that official who found it. So, our Dark King Sect discovered the hidden realm first?"

[Eastern-Route Guider]: "Don't ask questions you shouldn't. It's a complicated situation. Just remember to report any information right away. If you make valuable contributions, the Marquess will reward you generously."

With that, there were no more messages from the Eastern-Route Guider.

Chu Liang reported this information to Venerable Wen Yuan, who immediately sent a message to the Imperial Supervisory Bureau, inquiring about matters related to the Jiuli Hidden Realm.

Only after receiving a reply from the Imperial Supervisory Commissioner did they learn that there was indeed a valuable item within the hidden realm. The Dark King Sect had likely mobilized such great forces because of that item.

In the Jiuli Hidden Realm, there were not only enchanted tools from the Jiuli era, as found in other hidden realms, but also a legendary treasure of heaven and earth—the Breath of the Yellow Springs.

According to legend, when the primordial chaos first split open, a spring containing a blend of yin and yang qi emerged at the center of the heavens and earth,, capable of reversing life and death. However, as the heavens and earth took form, this spring gradually dried up.

Although the spring water had evaporated, if one could find the spring’s location and condense its essence using Heaven-Reaching Enchanted Powers, the resulting qi would still possess miraculous effects. This was known as the Breath of the Yellow Springs.

In ancient times, ninth-realm Eminent Ones, who existed long enough, would have the chance to condense the Breath of the Yellow Springs.

The Jiuli Hidden Realm was initially discovered by White-Bone Hall of the Dark King Sect. They had been secretly extracting the Breath of the Yellow Springs. However, when an official from Kaoshan City stumbled upon the hidden realm, White-Bone Hall promptly sent agents to hunt him down.

By the time the imperial forces took over, White-Bone Hall had already extracted the Breath of the Yellow Springs from the hidden realm, leaving behind only traces of residual qi. This greatly concerned the Imperial Supervisory Bureau, which has been investigating the matter ever since.

This was particularly concerning since the Dark King Sect possessed one of the top ten legendary artifacts listed in the Catalog of the Mortal World’s Ten Thousand Treasures—the True Form of Ksitigarbha!

...

The reversal of yin and yang by the Breath of the Yellow Springs was far from omnipotent. If a complete corpse came into contact with it, the person would be resurrected. However, once the spiritual energy within the Breath of the Yellow Springs was depleted, they would immediately die again. Moreover, the higher the cultivation level of the resurrected individual, the shorter the duration they could remain alive.

In the hands of most, this item posed little threat. However, if it were to fall into the hands of the Dark King Sect's leader, it would become immensely terrifying.

The True Form of Ksitigarbha was like the corpse of the Evil Ksitigarbha in the living world. Even though it had been suppressed by countless seals, it could still display such great power. If it were to come into contact with the Breath of the Yellow Springs, the consequences would be terrifying.

It could potentially attain the combat power of the ninth realm!

No one fully understood the true extent of the Breath of the Yellow Springs' power. Regardless, even if it contained only enough spiritual energy to revive the True Form of Ksitigarbha for a brief moment, that would be more than enough time for it to wreak havoc and bring destruction to the world.

Such a terrifying power in the hands of the Dark King Sect's diabolical cultivators could spell disaster at any moment.

Upon receiving this news, the higher-ups of Mount Shu Sect, Buddhist Cloud Monastery, and the Valley of the Three Absolutes convened for an emergency discussion. They decided to prioritize finding Granny Meng over eliminating the Violet Gold Marquess.

First, they needed to confirm if the item she had stolen was indeed the Breath of the Yellow Springs. If it was, they absolutely could not allow the Dark King Sect to reclaim it.

As a result, the burden on the three undercover agents grew significantly heavier.

Chu Liang had never expected that the undercover mission that he started accidentally would lead to such remarkable achievements time and time again.

Previously, they had uncovered the Dark King Sect's plan to attack Mount Shu, but if they could find the Breath of the Yellow Springs this time, the merit and recognition would be even greater than before.

The three of them were naturally brimming with ambition and enthusiasm.

...

The next day at noon, the three undercover agents arrived at the usual spot right on time.

Ghost Face was already waiting. He looked at them solemnly and said, "This mission is for your ears only. You must not reveal it to anyone."

"Understood!" the three responded in unison.

"Granny Meng has a son who died years ago. She kept his corpse on Fengya Mountain in the Northern Regions. The sect leader suspects that she might head there after stealing the valuable item. Powerful men have been dispatched there to monitor the area. Our task, as members of White-Bone Hall, is to search outward from Fengya Mountain and track her down."

"This operation is top-secret, so be sure not to leave any traces," Ghost Face reminded them once more.

"Understood!" the three responded once more.

With that, Ghost Face rose and flew toward the Northern Regions. At the same time, the three quickly began sending messages to their sects using their enchanted items through their divine senses.

"Fengya Mountain in the Northern Regions."

"We can confirm the valuable item Granny Meng stole is the Breath of the Yellow Springs."

"Hurry to Fengya Mountain in the Northern Regions. The Dark King Sect's forces have already arrived."

Suddenly, Ghost Face turned back, startling the three who were secretly sending messages. They immediately stopped and looked at him.

"One more piece of top-secret information," he said. "The other three halls are unaware of this information. The person who carries the valuable item will emanate a dense aura of death, like a ghost. When you search for the item, be on the lookout for this. Keep it a secret from the other halls. We must ensure that Granny Meng falls into the hands of White-Bone Hall. Understood?"

"Understood!" the three echoed loudly.

As soon as Ghost Face turned and flew away again, the three resumed sending their messages.

"The one carrying the Breath of the Yellow Springs will emanate a dense aura of death, just like a ghost!"