A Pawn's Passage

After quite some time, Qi Xuansu finally said, “Whether it’s the White Lotus Sect or the White Cloud Sect, it’s all the same. You must be the Holy Maiden, right? Let me introduce myself first. I’m Qi Xuansu, and my courtesy name is Tian Yuan. You can simply call me by my courtesy name. May I ask for your name?”

Under normal circumstances, when introducing oneself, one would also give one’s courtesy name. Thus, when Qi Xuansu had mentioned Gong Fu earlier, the woman knew that Gong Fu was Su Yuanzai.

The woman said, “Sage Qi, my name is Tang Ling. I come from a humble family and have no courtesy name. I hope you will forgive my lack of refinement.”

Before Qi Xuansu could respond, Tang Ling immediately followed up with another question. “Sage Qi, may I ask what position you hold within the Daoist Order?”

Compared with the old man Qi Xuansu had encountered earlier, Tang Ling clearly knew much more about the outside world. Su Yuanzai had probably told her all of this, so it was hardly surprising.

Qi Xuansu answered truthfully, “At present, I have the honor of serving as the Palace Master of the Daoist Order’s Wanxiang Daoist Palace.”

Tang Ling was visibly startled. “In that case, are you one of the 36 Omniscient Sages?”

Qi Xuansu raised a hand and pointed at the white jade lotus crown atop his head. “Only Omniscient Sages are permitted to wear a white jade lotus crown. Ordinary Sages wear golden lotus crowns. I had thought you were asking despite already knowing the answer, Miss Tang.”

Tang Ling could not help but smile wryly. “Sage Su is the only Sage I have ever met, and it was from him that I learned about the Daoist Order’s Nine-Rank System. How could I possibly know such subtle distinctions? After all, Sage Su normally wears this same kind of white jade lotus crown. I thought all Sages wore one.”

Perhaps the others here did not understand just how much weight the title of Omniscient Sage carried, since they had no idea how vast the outside world truly was. But Tang Ling was a high-ranking member of the White Cloud Sect and had spoken extensively with Su Yuanzai. She had opened her eyes to the wider world, so she naturally understood just how enormous the Daoist Order was and that Omniscient Sages were the highest tier in the Daoist hierarchy.

What was more, he was such a young Omniscient Sage. Anyone with the slightest sense would know that this young man had a boundless future ahead of him.

When two people held equivalent positions, the younger one naturally possessed the greater advantage.

With this thought in mind, Tang Ling came to a decision. She simply needed to humble herself and avoid offending Sage Qi. Although this place was not connected to the outside world, an entrance would still open from time to time, so it was not completely isolated. If they truly offended someone in power, the Daoist Order would have plenty of ways to deal with them.

Qi Xuansu asked, “Miss Tang, apart from Sage Su, has anyone else come to this place?”

Tang Ling thought back carefully for a moment, then shook her head. “No.”

Qi Xuansu said, “Over the past decade or so, quite a few scholars have accidentally wandered into this place. Have you never encountered them?”

Tang Ling said, “Perhaps the other branch halls have encountered them, but we have never seen any near our Main Altar. After all, our White Cloud Sect isn’t the only presence in this place. There are also many wild beasts, such as rhinoceroses, crocodiles, and so on. I’m afraid they may have...”

Qi Xuansu understood what Tang Ling was implying. If those people had been transported somewhere inhabited, they might have survived. But if they had been transported into the wilderness, they had most likely ended up in the bellies of wild beasts. The rhinoceros Qi Xuansu had encountered had been powerful and extremely hostile. An ordinary person who encountered it would have no chance of survival.

He dropped the subject and said, “Sage Su and I are not the only ones who came here this time. There is another person whose cultivation is incredibly high, far surpassing both Sage Su and me. But she harbors sinister intentions and is most certainly no benevolent sort...”

Before he could finish speaking, Qi Xuansu suddenly received a warning from the Guizang Lantern. With no time to think, he grabbed Tang Ling and flashed to the side.

The next moment, a leaf drifted past and sank into the forehead of the Guizhen-stage guards’ leader. He looked completely bewildered as he collapsed dead on the spot.

It did not stop there. The leaf continued onward without losing momentum, drifting through the air and killing every guard there. None of them were spared.

Had the Guizang Lantern not warned him, Qi Xuansu might not have died, but he certainly would have been injured. However, the Holy Maiden Tang Ling would have had no chance of survival.

Although Tang Ling could hardly be considered weak, possessing the cultivation of a Heavenly Being, compared with the person who had launched the attack, she was still far too weak.

Tang Ling felt both lingering fear and a sense of helplessness. She had only felt her vision blur and the world spin around her after Qi Xuansu grabbed her by the back of her collar.

She felt like a toddler still learning to walk against a grown man, unable to withstand even the strength of a single finger.

When other heroes rescued beauties, they would usually wrap an arm around the woman’s waist, letting the beauty experience a hint of masculine presence and set her heart fluttering like a startled fawn.

However, Qi Xuansu was accustomed to carrying Little Yin around by the back of her collar. So just now, out of sheer habit, Qi Xuansu had picked Tang Ling up in exactly the same manner, which looked utterly inelegant.

Just then, a woman’s voice rang out. “You rebellious disciple! Is this how you talk bad about your master behind her back?”

Qi Xuansu’s expression changed slightly. He knew that what he had feared most had finally come to pass. Zhou Mengyao had arrived ahead of Su Yuanzai or Long Xiaobai.

He released Tang Ling from his grasp and looked toward the source of the voice.

At some point, a figure had appeared atop the gatehouse of the fortified settlement. The person was draped in a black cloak with a hood pulled over her head, revealing only a chin. It was none other than Zhou Mengyao.

Tang Ling paid no heed to her disheveled state and asked quietly, “Sage Qi, is this the person you spoke of, the one whose cultivation is extremely high?”

Qi Xuansu did not reply, nor did he take his eyes off Zhou Mengyao. He merely nodded.

Tang Ling asked again, “She’s your master?”

Qi Xuansu replied casually, “She used to be.”

Tang Ling opened her mouth but said nothing.

She had wanted to say, “Wouldn’t that mean you betrayed your sect and turned against your own master?”

But when the words reached her lips, she swallowed them back down. After all, she could not afford to offend Sage Qi, who had just saved her life. She thought to herself, Sage Qi’s master would kill at the slightest disagreement. This woman could not kill Sage Qi, so she would take her anger out on me instead! Sage Qi was right. This woman is no benevolent sort... Thankfully, Sage Qi left such a master.

Perhaps Zhou Mengyao somehow sensed what Tang Ling was thinking, as she let out a cold snort and struck again.

This time, it was not a leaf, but a flying dagger. It arrived in an instant, stopping abruptly right between Tang Ling’s brows.

The blade of the flying dagger gleamed like a mirror, clearly reflecting Tang Ling’s eyes. She had not even had time to react, so there was more bewilderment than fear in them.

At this moment, the flying dagger was almost touching Tang Ling’s skin, yet it could not advance another fraction.

That was because Qi Xuansu had intervened once again. He kept the flying dagger suspended where it was, not allowing it to advance farther.

Strictly speaking, it was not Qi Xuansu himself who had stopped the dagger, but the Heluo God.

The moment Qi Xuansu confirmed Zhou Mengyao’s appearance, he released his Corpse Liberation Incarnation and chose to have the Heluo God control it, standing fully prepared for battle. He could hardly wait until Zhou Mengyao made her move before hurriedly summoning the Corpse Liberation Incarnation. By then, it would be far too late, and doing so would be grossly underestimating Zhou Mengyao.

The Heluo God did not disappoint. After all, she was a true deity. Even though she was constrained by the Corpse Liberation Incarnation and could not unleash her full strength, her vision, insights, and techniques remained intact.

On the other hand, Zhou Mengyao was no longer at her peak and was likewise limited in strength. Thus, the gap between them had been greatly narrowed.

Qi Xuansu said, “Zhou Mengyao, if I wanted to speak ill of you, would I need to do it behind your back? I’d say the same thing right to your face. In fact, I’d point straight at your nose and tell you this. Zhou Mengyao, you should have died long ago. But perhaps it’s good that you didn’t. That means I can kill you with my own hands.”

Zhou Mengyao let out a cold snort, once again provoked by Qi Xuansu. “You want me dead? I think you’ll be the one to die first. Did you really think I hadn’t noticed you earlier when you were hiding off to the side? I knew you would follow us in. I left you a way out, but you refused to take it. You insisted on throwing yourself into hell.”

Tang Ling had never imagined that the moment master and disciple opened their mouths, they would immediately start cursing each other to death. What kind of master and disciple relationship did they have? They were clearly mortal enemies! She could not begin to imagine what sort of bitter grudge lay between them.

At its core, Qi Xuansu hated being deceived by Zhou Mengyao. He felt emotionally betrayed.

Qi Xuansu said no more. With a single thought, the Heluo God immediately sent the incarnation into motion and struck first to seize the initiative.

Zhou Mengyao recalled her flying dagger and paid Tang Ling no further attention, deciding instead to settle once and for all who was superior between herself and Qi Xuansu.

She shot into the sky with the Corpse Liberation Incarnation controlled by the Heluo God, soaring straight into the highest heavens.

Qi Xuansu’s true body followed a step behind, but he had already taken out the Taiji Eight Trigrams Mirror. The moment Zhou Mengyao revealed an opening, Qi Xuansu intended to shine the mirror on her to trap her in place and let her experience the might of an immortal object firsthand.

In the blink of an eye, the Heluo God had already begun exchanging blows with Zhou Mengyao. Although the Heluo God could only wield the strength of a Pseudo-Immortal, Zhou Mengyao was likewise far from her peak and was even somewhat weaker than Chen Shuhua had been back then. The Heluo God’s current state was comparable to a divine descent of Wu Luo. Even if she was no match for Zhou Mengyao, she would not be defeated within a short span of time.

That was enough time for Qi Xuansu. He rose into the air after them, holding the Taiji Eight Trigrams Mirror with both hands and shifted it to its concave form. The patterns around its edge began rotating on their own.

The moment Qi Xuansu spotted an opening, a beam of light shot from the mirror and fell upon Zhou Mengyao, instantly freezing her in place.

The Heluo God seized the opportunity and summoned nine spheres of light, sending them crashing into Zhou Mengyao one after another.

Zhou Mengyao was struck nine times in succession. Even with an Immortal’s physique, her face flushed red as her blood and qi surged violently within her.

“This is not a technique of the Daoist Order. Where did you learn such unorthodox arts?” Zhou Mengyao demanded.

After breaking free from the mirror light’s restraint, Zhou Mengyao was both shocked and furious. She had a feeling that this Corpse Liberation Incarnation was not Qi Xuansu at all. It was clearly an entirely different person.

Qi Xuansu had only recently entered the Pseudo-Immortal stage, so he certainly would not possess this level of cultivation. This person was only a hair’s breadth away from becoming an Immortal. How could an incarnation possibly be stronger than the true body?

Zhou Mengyao wondered if this could be Qi Xuansu’s companion.

Back at Yunmeng Marsh, Zhou Mengyao had sensed not only Qi Xuansu but also Long Xiaobai hiding nearby. She had merely pretended not to notice and refrained from probing too carefully, for fear of alerting them prematurely. Now that Long Xiaobai was nowhere to be seen, Zhou Mengyao mistakenly assumed that the Heluo God was Long Xiaobai.

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