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Novel: [The Primordial Law]
Volume 6: [Battle for the True Inheritance]
Chapter 18 (559): [Zhongwu Envoy, Qin Zhengyang]
(18th of Volume 6)
Translator: Shadow Knight AK
Editor: Shadow Knight AK
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On his way back to the Heavenly Pavilion, Li Weiyi deliberately listened in on the conversations of Martial-Mystic Cultivators.
He overheard them discussing the Tai Yin Sect and the Dead Spirit's assassination attempt on Zhuang Shiyan, their accounts detailed and seemingly credible.
"The Nether Realm of the Dead has always coveted the Immortal Dao Dragon Vein. First, they'll deal with the Calamity Crossing Temple alongside the Rice Palace. Then, they'll turn on the Rice Palace and the East Sea Demon Clan, defeating them one by one."
"Rumor has it that a high-ranking figure from the Rice Palace personally visited the Dragon Island Daoist Temple of the Calamity Crossing Temple to offer an explanation. They vowed to tear apart anyone spreading these rumors and have already launched a thorough investigation."
....
Li Weiyi returned to the Heavenly Pavilion at the first quarter of Hai Hour (9:15 PM).
Lu Jingchen's carriage was already waiting at the entrance.
The carriage was drawn by two Dead-Soul Spirit Beasts, its silver-white body adorned with Formation Scriptures.
"Shall we depart now?" Li Weiyi asked.
Lu Jingchen nodded gently, handing Li Weiyi a black pearl while holding one himself.
"The sooner we leave, the better."
"Second Brother Lu, please lead the way," Li Weiyi said.
"We won't be taking the carriage."
Lu Jingchen instructed the Elder driving the carriage, "Don't hurry. Just reach the West Sea by midnight."
The empty Dead-Soul Spirit Beast carriage rolled out, leaving the Heavenly Pavilion and heading west.
"Whoosh! Whoosh!"
Li Weiyi and Lu Jingchen activated the black pearls in their hands, and a phantom-like invisibility cloak enveloped them.
They then departed Dragon Island from another direction, heading toward the West Sea.
Li Weiyi trusted Lu Jingchen implicitly.
Not because of Lu Jingchen himself, but because he believed the Ten Thousand Mile Tower wouldn't choose the wrong person.
Knowing Li Weiyi's extraordinary relationship with Yu Yaozi, coupled with the Mist Heavenly Sovereign's return, Lu Jingchen could have easily forged a deep friendship with Li Weiyi.
If he were to betray that trust for no reason, Li Weiyi would only conclude that he'd been kicked in the head by a donkey.
Lu Jingchen was clearly shrewd; no donkey could kick him in the head.
At sea, the two men moved swiftly, concealed from sight.
Li Weiyi, disguised as Lu Jingshen, asked, "Second Brother Lu, do you not trust the Tai Yin Sect?"
"The Ten Thousand Mile Tower indeed wishes to avoid conflict with the Tai Yin Sect. However, I am now the universally recognized chief scribe of the Earth Ranking. If the Tai Yin Sect were to harm me, both Thousand Mile Mountain and the Ten Thousand Mile Tower would be compelled to respond, even if only to save face."
Lu Jingchen continued, "Weiyi, you must understand that every situation has two sides. While Thousand Mile Mountain has vast holdings and fears retaliation, they are also immensely wealthy - wealthy enough to hire Transcendent experts, even the Martial-Mystic Dao Heavenly Emperor himself."
"My reason for abandoning the carriage was to avoid ceding the initiative to others, as if I were being led by the nose. If he claims to want to dispel our grievances, and I obediently go along, what kind of man would that make me?"
Half an hour later, the two men entered a sea shrouded in the darkness of the Netherworld.
Here, the sea's surface showed a distinct boundary.
On one side lay the golden mist emanating from the reviving Immortal Dao Dragon Vein, while the other was pitch-black and strange, punctuated by the distant, mournful roars of Malevolent Demons.
After landing, they proceeded along a dark, dense forest.
The forest's plants and trees were all highly poisonous.
The tree trunks had mutated, sprouting countless iron-hard spikes.
Strange creatures and Deac Spirits darted through the darkness, their movements rustling through the undergrowth.
Li Weiyi extended his senses, searching for traces of the Tai Yin Sect's Martial-Mystic Cultivators, while Er Feng quietly sniffed for their Vital Energy.
However, the dense miasma and potent Yin energy severely weakened their perception.
If they could find their opponents first, they could deliver a preemptive strike.
This would give Lu Jingchen a significant advantage during the upcoming negotiations to resolve their grievances.
The two traveled swiftly, scaling six or seven treacherous mountains in succession.
Finally, Er Feng communicated with a local Fierce Insect and obtained a clue.
"Lord Insect, it was terrifying! A giant rooster - huge! - chased us, pecking relentlessly. All the brothers in Insect Valley were terrified!" the Fierce Insect recounted in insect language, which only Er Feng could understand.
Upon hearing this, Li Weiyi suspected it was likely the giant rooster raised by Yin Envoy Luo Pingdan.
He instructed Er Feng to ask for the location of Insect Valley.
Before long, Li Weiyi and Lu Jingchen arrived at a deep mountain valley seventy miles away.
The valley entrance was littered with insect corpses, stained with blood.
Deep claw marks, each over a foot long, scarred the ground.
Sensing the Vital Energy of the Tai Yin Sect's Martial-Mystic Cultivators, the two men, cloaked in invisibility, moved silently and deliberately toward the valley, which was thick with malevolent Qi and miasma.
At the base of a cliff deep within the valley, a fissure dozens of meters long stretched into the earth's depths.
Li Weiyi raised his arm to stop Lu Jingchen, transmitting a silent message: "The enemy is an Immortal Realm expert. Getting too close will alert them. Finding the location is enough. Let's leave."
Lu Jingchen pondered for a moment before nodding in agreement.
Stumbling upon some secret might only invite unnecessary trouble.
As they turned to leave, Seventh Phoenix, reduced to the size of dust motes and still invisible, flew into the fissure.
Deep within the fissure of Insect Valley, Luo Pingdan stood beside a blood pool, imbuing an Immortal Corpse at its center with Spiritual Light Puppet Inscriptions, performing some kind of ritual.
Qin Zhengyang, his robust frame clad in dark crimson armor, stood with his hands clasped behind his back at the edge of the blood pool.
A vivid circular mark, the Tai Yin Seal, blazed between his brows, and his sharply defined features exuded an aura of unyielding authority.
His mere presence radiated an unshakable force, as if he could single-handedly support a collapsing mountain.
Chou Envoy Xie Wumian transformed into a silver streak of light, emerging from the stone wall and approaching Qin Zhengyang.
His eyes held a hint of apprehension as he said, "Lu Jingchen is almost here! Our informants report that his carriage is only three hundred miles from the coast."
Qin Zhengyang raised an eyebrow in surprise: "Lu Jingchen isn't someone to be trifled with. He's ruthless, eliminating his rivals root and branch. If not for his ruthlessness, even the True Disciples wouldn't have given him such deference, actively seeking reconciliation. Why would he suddenly become so obedient?"
"Returning his commission was already a great honor - no one else has ever received such treatment. He understands the True Disciple's power and knows better than to defy him. It's only natural for him to act accordingly."
Xie Wumian continued, "Dragon Island has activated many of its Defensive Formations. The major powers are on high alert, and our operatives are being systematically purged. Envoy Zhongwu suspects someone is spreading rumors about the assassination of Zhuang Shiyan. Who do you think is behind it?"
Qin Zhengyang replied, "It's the thief crying 'thief'! The Calamity Crossing Temple is the prime suspect. Even the recent meeting between the Rice Palace's True Disciple and the True Disciple was twisted into a narrative of collaboration. They're trying to isolate the Rice Palace and drive them out of the East Sea. These Daoist cultivators are the most treacherous of all."
Xie Wumian hesitated: "Could it... be true?"
Qin Zhengyang fell into deep thought: "This isn't a question we should be pondering!"
"My apologies for speaking out of turn," Xie Wumian quickly replied.
Beside the blood pool, Luo Pingdan withdrew the Spiritual Light from between his brows, his face showing exhaustion.
"Envoy Zhongwu. It can now release blood and soul mist."
Qin Zhengyang strode forward, slit his wrist, and released a stream of blood.
The blood transformed into intricate crimson patterns that flowed toward the battle corpse puppet at the center of the pool.
Gradually, crackling sounds emanated from within the puppet's body, and its features rapidly morphed into Qin Zhengyang's likeness.
"Sizzling sounds"
As Qin Zhengyang released a wisp of soul mist, the puppet's eyes snapped open within the scarlet pool.
It strode out of the blood-soaked water.
Qin Zhengyang gazed at the battle corpse puppet across from him, which bore his exact features, and smiled.
"Remarkable! Truly remarkable! Even its Vital Energy and gaze are identical."
With a clang, Qin Zhengyang stripped off his armor.
The battle corpse puppet immediately donned it.
"Now it's even more convincing!" Qin Zhengyang declared.
Xie Wumian said, "The Envoy Zhongwu's plan is brilliant. By sending the puppet to meet the Rice Palace's True Disciple, we can complete the True Disciple Master's mission while avoiding any personal risk. That vile creature truly humiliated the True Disciple Master last time, inflicting an unprecedented loss."
Qin Zhengyang replied, "This matter is of utmost importance and cannot afford any missteps. The puppet can deliver the item. But the Tai Yin Seal... I must personally retrieve it to ensure its security. If anything goes wrong, the True Disciple Master's methods..."
Xie Wumian and Luo Pingdan's faces paled.
The memory of the punishment for their failed mission to capture Lu Jingshen remained a harrowing experience they never wanted to relive.
Li Weiyi and Lu Jingchen sat on a blue stone at the mountain peak, overlooking the valley below, feeling the eerie tranquility of the Netherworld.
"Weiyi, you know, human nature is incredibly complex," Lu Jingchen said with a hint of helplessness, "The higher one's cultivation, the less freedom they truly have. Because they understand the difficulty of cultivation, they know there are realms beyond realms. The more one possesses, the greater their fear of losing it. The higher their cultivation, the more they fear a single misstep that could destroy their progress. And the longer their lifespan, the greater their fear of death."
Li Weiyi listened quietly with his left ear, while his right ear remained attuned to Seventh Phoenix's reports.
After a long silence, Lu Jingchen fell silent.
Li Weiyi asked, "Second Brother Lu, have you ever heard of the Tai Yin Seal?"
"It's said to be the token of authority held by each generation's True Disciple of the Tai Yin Sect," Lu Jingchen replied, "With this seal, one can summon the Dead Spirit armies from any Netherworld. Why do you ask?"
Li Weiyi didn't know how to answer.
Hearing a commotion, he glanced at the valley below.
"They're coming out!"
Lu Jingchen composed himself, his gaze deepening.
He retracted his illusory invisibility cloak into its pearl, revealing his true form.
The moment he materialized, Qin Zhengyang sensed his presence from miles away.
He immediately halted and fixed his gaze in Lu Jingchen's direction.
"Shouldn't he still be at sea?" Xie Wumian's pupils contracted in shock.
Luo Pingdan said calmly, "How did he find us so silently?"
Lu Jingchen called out, "Gentlemen, Lu Jingchen has arrived!"
Qin Zhengyang stepped forward with his left foot, scriptures shimmering across his leg.
His figure transformed into a streak of light, instantly traversing several miles of mountainous terrain to appear atop the peak, where his foot gently landed.
This was a true stride that spanned miles.
Even Li Weiyi, when activating the Governor's Official Robe in the Dao Seed Realm, could only achieve this level of speed, and even then, he might not have been as fast.
Qin Zhengyang stood enveloped in a cloud of Spiritual Qi, his Vital Energy as deep and unfathomable as a pitch-black abyss.
"As expected of the Earth Ranking's chief scribe," he said, his voice echoing through the mountains, "Your methods of deceiving the heavens are truly masterful. I, Qin Zhengyang, have experienced your 'welcome' firsthand! How many experts from Thousand Mile Mountain have arrived?"
Xie Wumian and Luo Pingdan arrived shortly after, standing in the distant forest.
Li Weiyi, disguised as Lu Jingshen, stood behind Lu Jingchen, glaring at Xie Wumian and Luo Pingdan with hatred.
He noticed that Xie Wumian's severed arm had miraculously regrown.
'Martial-Mystic Cultivators in the Immortal Realm are truly extraordinary,' he thought.
"Xie Wumian, Luo Pingdan!" Li Weiyi roared, "Return Uncle An's life! Return the lives of my guards and maids!"
Luo Pingdan smirked mockingly, completely disregarding "Lu Jingshen."
Instead, black mist billowed behind him, summoning the Dao Seed Realm guards and maids Lu Jingshen had brought with him.
These Martial-Mystic Cultivators, now corpses due to the Silver Rain Corpse Poison, emerged one by one from the black mist, their bodies cold and lifeless.
Among them were Ning Xuan, the maid Li Weiyi recognized, and An Zhiruo, Uncle An, his head missing.
"Very well," Luo Pingdan said, "I'll return them all to you."
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END OF CHAPTER
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