Cultivation Online

Chapter 2249  Towards the Ninth Heaven!

”To make this fair, weʼll verify every single member, regardless of their status or when they joined,” Qiang Qing Yun continued. ”After all, thereʼs a chance this individual is in disguise or has assumed the identity of an existing member.”

”Sounds good. Weʼll start from those at the highest position and work our way down,” Old Man Bi said.

”Do I need to prove my identity?” Xu Jiaqi suddenly asked.

”Uh… no, I think youʼre fine—”

”Of course, you do.” Liu Yucang interrupted Qiang Qing Yun. ”It wouldnʼt be fair to the rest of the members if we, the leaders, donʼt do it first. Lead by example, right?”

Xu Jiaqi didnʼt argue with him and said, ”Then letʼs do it right now. Iʼll even go first.”

”Are you in a hurry to go somewhere?” Liu Yucang stared at her with narrowed eyes and a provocative smile.

”Isnʼt it obvious? I need to find that Outsider to question him,” she said.

”Are you sure youʼre not trying to hide him? Think how bad itʼd look for you if you left now,” Old Man Bi said.

”Moreover, weʼre not even prepared to begin the investigation,” added Qiang Qing Yun.

”...”

After a moment of silence, Xu Jiaqi said, ”Very well. I will remain here until every member has been verified.”

She walked back to her seat with her usual calmness, though the faint irritation on her face was impossible to miss.

Some time later, Old Man Bi spoke. ”Letʼs begin by recalling our members. Since Lady Xu insists on going first, weʼll start with the ones recruited under her banner.”

Every Celestial Overlord possessed a unique symbol they could pass down to their recruits. Anyone recruited by those recruits would also fall under that same banner, belonging to the Celestial Overlord who initiated the chain.

And as their leader, the Celestial Overlord could give them direct commands.

”Iʼll recall my members first, then,” Xu Jiaqi nodded.

”Make sure you do it right there where we can see everything,” Liu Yucang said.

Without hesitation, Xu Jiaqi ordered all members under her banner to return to the Celestial Overlordsʼ headquarters.

Once such a command was issued, her subordinates were obligated to comply. Anyone who failed to return within a certain time would be flagged.

If someone was occupied and unable to return immediately, they only needed to acknowledge the order. Doing so would grant them additional time to comply.

While the members under Xu Jiaqiʼs command started making their way to the headquarters, the others prepared for the verification, which required many pills and treasures.

Meanwhile, Xu Jiaqi spoke to Senior Bai using voice transmission.

”What do you think? Could Yuan really be responsible?”

Senior Bai sighed, ”I donʼt want to believe it, but itʼs very likely that heʼs involved.”

He proceeded to reveal that heʼd met with Yuan right before the meeting started, as well as their conversation.

He told her about Yuanʼs odd response to the news and that heʼd randomly apologized afterward.

”However, he was only at the True Immortal realm when I saw him. I cannot fathom how he managed to defeat the Second Squad of Heavenʼs Mandate with his level of cultivation.”

”Commander Wong mentioned Void Manipulation. If Yuan had really achieved Advanced Void Understanding, then it might be possible,” Xu Jiaqi said.

”I know heʼs good at defying logic, but there should be a limit… I also donʼt understand why heʼd even fight with Heavenʼs Mandate,” Senior Bai shook his head.

The others in the room were aware of Xu Jiaqi and Senior Bai speaking to each other via voice transmission, but nobody tried to stop them, allowing them to talk in private.

”Iʼm sure he has a good reason.” Despite the situation, Xu Jiaqi held faith in him. Of course, this was heavily due to Yuan being Tian Yingzheʼs reincarnation.

”Where is Yuan right now?” she then asked.

”I donʼt know, but he did say that he would be ascending to the Ninth Heaven soon.”

”I see…”

”What should we do about Yuan? Knowing him, he probably hid the truth so we wouldnʼt be dragged into this or be directly involved, but… I donʼt know what we should do now,” Senior Bai said in a perplexed tone.

On one hand, he wanted to trust Yuan, yet on the other, the uncertainty left him unsettled. And while he didnʼt feel betrayed, he was definitely disappointed.

”I will send someone to find him,” Xu Jiaqi said. ”Iʼll decide what to do once I hear the story from his point of view.”

”Alright…”

Time continued to pass, and one by one, the faction members under Xu Jiaqiʼs banner gathered at the headquarters in response to her command. None of them truly understood the situation, but they were certain it was connected to their sudden loss of karma.

Once enough members had gathered, Xu Jiaqi explained the situation to them in full, leaving many of them dumbfounded.

”I understand that this is highly irregular,” she said, her tone calm yet firm. ”But the circumstances are unprecedented, so I ask for your understanding and cooperation.”

Although the members were irritated by the situation, none of them blamed Xu Jiaqi. Instead, their anger was directed at Heavenʼs Mandate and its brazen behavior.

”Donʼt worry, Celestial Overlord Xu! We believe in you!”

”How dare those bastards ask for Leader Xuʼs memories?!”

Seeing their reactions, Xu Jiaqi couldnʼt help but feel a pang of guilt for lying to them, even offering a silent apology in her heart.

However, this was how much she valued and trusted Yuan, whom she firmly believed to be Tian Yingzheʼs reincarnation. Were it not for that, she would never dare to take such a risk.

Meanwhile, after meeting with Senior Bai and leaving the Myriad of Techniques, Yuan headed straight for the Stairway to Heaven, ready to begin his ascent toward the Ninth Heaven.

”It hasnʼt even been a hundred years since you began your journey in the Lower Heavens, and youʼre already heading to the Ninth Heaven…” Xiao Hua murmured as they approached the Stairway to Heaven, recalling their journey with a warm smile.