Chapter 434 - 410: Parting Ways

Chapter 434: Chapter 410: Parting Ways

"Please, Palace Masters, don’t misunderstand. My name is Zhang Chi, and I’ve come only to discuss a potential collaboration," Zhang Chi said with a faint smile, appearing by himself from within the Supreme Profound Immortal Mansion.

"Zhang Chi? I know of you. You’ve provided us with intelligence on the Beast Alliance and the Heaven-defying Alliance more than once, and you’ve even saved disciples from our Divine Palace. I suppose that makes you an ally. But you’re only at the Nascent Soul Peak. What makes you qualified to collaborate with us?"

The three Palace Masters had been ready to strike, but they relaxed slightly upon hearing his words.

Still, they looked at Zhang Chi with considerable disdain, and couldn’t resist sizing up the Supreme Profound Immortal Mansion behind him.

They could all tell that the Supreme Profound Immortal Mansion was a Spiritual Treasure, its quality no less than that of their own Desert Divine Palace.

"Heh. I hear the Grand Palace Master is skilled in divining Celestial Secrets. If so, surely you can see that I am no ordinary Nascent Soul Peak cultivator? Furthermore, this mobile cave mansion of mine is the Supreme Profound Immortal Mansion. The very fact that I obtained it and can control it should be proof enough of my qualifications, don’t you think?"

At that moment, Qin Yushan and the others were hiding inside the Immortal Mansion as instructed, not daring to peek out. Zhang Chi, however, remained perfectly calm and composed as he replied with a smile.

"The Supreme Profound Immortal Mansion?"

"Does this mean you’re connected to Master Taixuan? Or perhaps... you *are* Master Taixuan?"

"You are indeed extraordinary. It seems you were the one brought by that golden light that descended from the heavens several hundred years ago. Fine. Our time is limited, so get to the point. What kind of collaboration do you have in mind?"

Upon hearing this, the three Palace Masters immediately began to take Zhang Chi seriously.

Evidently, they had long ago deduced that it was Master Taixuan who had saved Qin Yushan and the others from the Divinity Transformation Cave Mansion, and that said cave mansion was, in fact, the Supreme Profound Immortal Mansion.

They had also heard of Zhang Chi before.

They simply never imagined that he would have actually obtained the Supreme Profound Immortal Mansion, which meant his combat power was clearly far greater than they had anticipated.

And now, after a moment of calculation, the Grand Palace Master immediately discovered that Zhang Chi’s true strength far surpassed his Cultivation Realm.

"Here’s the deal. I have several companions who need to use your Teleportation Gate to get to the Demon Abyss. I hope you can grant them passage. In return, I am willing to draw away the bloodhounds of the Great Qian Immortal Dynasty, buying you enough time to take this Desert Divine Palace with you."

Zhang Chi, unsurprised, immediately laid out his plan.

It turned out he had come here precisely to borrow their Teleportation Gate.

"Agreed. However, your Supreme Profound Immortal Mansion should be able to traverse the void. Why not just take your companions to the Demon Abyss yourself?"

The three Palace Masters exchanged a glance before the Grand Palace Master nodded in agreement, though their confusion was evident.

"It’s simple. While I could do it, it would consume a great deal of my Magical Power and time. I have other important matters to attend to. Besides, you should know that the Power of Space around the Demon Abyss is far more chaotic. It would be very troublesome for me to go there. If I were to make a mistake, the consequences could be disastrous—my companions could be killed, or I might attract a Tier Five Demon."

Zhang Chi explained, and he was telling the truth.

More importantly, while he was no match for the three Palace Masters, he was confident he could retreat unscathed. He knew they didn’t have time to get entangled with him, so he had nothing to lose even if the deal fell through.

"That makes sense. In that case, let’s establish a Spirit Contract and begin."

The three Palace Masters nodded, asking no more questions. They immediately took out a Spirit Contract, drafted some terms, and signed it. Then, with a wave of her hand, the Grand Palace Master sent the contract floating over to Zhang Chi on a current of Magical Power.

Zhang Chi glanced over it. The contents were simple, stipulating that the Palace Masters would help him, and he, in turn, would help them by luring away any enemies that might appear. He signed it immediately.

Of course, he didn’t actually care about the contents; he just didn’t want the Palace Masters to become suspicious.

BOOM!

Then, the three Palace Masters took out the Teleportation Gate and activated it. Chen Bufan, Chen Ling’Er, Junior Sister Wen, and Zhong Yu flew out from the Supreme Profound Immortal Mansion. They gave Zhang Chi a reluctant farewell salute before entering the portal.

The Palace Masters could tell at a glance that these people had some connection to the Desert Divine Palace, but they didn’t concern themselves with such trivial matters. The Grand Palace Master even went through the portal with them.

SWOOSH!

Once on the other side, the Grand Palace Master waved her hand, and the group instantly vanished from the Demon Abyss, reappearing in a remote, safe area in the northern part of the Great Abyss.

Only then did the Grand Palace Master return and close the Teleportation Gate.

"My thanks to you three. We shall meet again. Also, reinforcements from the Great Qian Immortal Dynasty have arrived. As promised, I will lead them away. You can focus on collecting the Spiritual Treasure."

Zhang Chi, having sensed the situation with a Secret Technique, nodded in satisfaction.

Then, the Supreme Profound Immortal Mansion trembled. The light around it instantly twisted and distorted, and the Immortal Mansion transformed, taking on the appearance of the Desert Divine Palace and the solitary peak beneath it before flying off to the east.

"We’re in your debt, fellow cultivator!"

"Take care, fellow cultivator! We shall meet again!"

Seeing that Zhang Chi possessed such an illusion technique, the three Palace Masters were overjoyed. They quickly nodded in response, then raced against time to continue the Refinement process.

"It’s the Desert Divine Palace! After them! Don’t let them get away!"

"Right!"

In the blink of an eye, Zhang Chi had flown a great distance, but suddenly, streaks of rainbow light gave chase with ferocious speed.

Within the lights were the heavily armed and armored powerhouses of the Great Qian Immortal Dynasty.

The leaders were three Divinity Transformation Celestial Monarchs, each radiating Magical Power comparable to the Tiger Demon.

Unfortunately for them, Zhang Chi had no intention of fighting. He simply used the speed of the Supreme Profound Immortal Mansion to lead them on a chase. After flying for several hours without any real trouble, he suddenly accelerated and shook off the three Divinity Transformation Celestial Monarchs.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

But he didn’t leave. Instead, Zhang Chi used the Supreme Profound Immortal Mansion to traverse the void and circle back for a surprise attack. He soon appeared before the Great Qian Immortal Dynasty’s Nascent Soul Powerhouses and went on a rampage, mowing down a huge number of them.

Only when the three Divinity Transformation Celestial Monarchs were about to close in did he activate the Supreme Profound Immortal Mansion and traverse the void to escape once more.

’So much time has passed. The three Palace Masters must have left by now. It’s time for me to get on with my own business.’

He then brought Qin Susu and Lan Xuan aboard, had Qin Yushan and Qin Yuyan gather the Qin Family cultivators, and finally went to the Canglan Oasis to pick up his two disciples and Fu Yuan before leaving the Endless Desert Sea.

As it turned out, when Zhang Chi had previously sensed things were going south, he’d sent a message to Qin Susu and Lan Xuan via a Secret Technique. The two women had immediately taken a Teleportation Array from the Red Sand Oasis back to the Central Continent.

As for the Qin Family cultivators, they were all descendants of Qin Yushan.

After all, Qin Yushan was quite old and had naturally become the family’s old ancestor.

Qin Yuyan, on the other hand, had always been alone.

Of course, Zhang Chi didn’t reveal much to the Qin Family cultivators, his two disciples, or Fu Yuan.

Before bringing them aboard, he simply knocked them all unconscious with his Magical Power and then brought them into the Immortal Mansion.

This way, even when they woke up, they wouldn’t know where they were, much less that they were inside the Supreme Profound Immortal Mansion.

In what felt like both an instant and an eternity, the Supreme Profound Immortal Mansion finally finished traversing the void, carrying the cultivators out of the Endless Desert Sea.

"Third Brother, take care!"

"Brother Zhang, we’ll meet again!"

"Mm, take care, everyone. We’ll meet again!"

At that, the Qin Family Siblings left the Supreme Profound Immortal Mansion with the Qin Family cultivators, who had been knocked unconscious by Magical Power once again.

Xiao Yunhong, Fu Yuan, and the Li Sisters also emerged with them.

They all clasped their hands in a farewell salute to Zhang Chi, then, under Qin Yushan’s lead, boarded a Floating Airship and disappeared over the vast sea.

The Supreme Profound Immortal Mansion was located on a stretch of coast at the southern edge of the Endless Desert Sea.

This vast sea was the Xingluo Sea.

It also served as a natural barrier between the Great Qian Immortal Dynasty and the Endless Desert Sea.

The sea was boundless, its area dozens of times larger than the Endless Desert Sea.

It was dotted with countless islands, like stars scattered across a chessboard, which is how it got its name.

Most of these islands contained Spiritual Veins, and were therefore home to Demon Beasts or human Cultivators.

As for the Demon Beasts in the sea itself, they were even more numerous.

Originally, the Qin Family Siblings had planned to remain in the Endless Desert Sea. But since Zhang Chi had the Supreme Profound Immortal Mansion, which could traverse the void, they were naturally more than willing to leave the Desert Sea entirely to truly escape the Great Qian Immortal Dynasty.

They should be safe for at least the next few hundred years.

Xiao Yunhong had already planned to come to the Xingluo Sea, so he was happy to develop his future here alongside Qin Yushan.

As for Zhang Chi’s two disciples and Fu Yuan, they hadn’t really wanted to leave the Endless Desert Sea. They had grown up in the Canglan Sect, and their sense of belonging to their Sect was incredibly strong.

That was precisely why they chose the Xingluo Sea; it was at least closer to the Endless Desert Sea. In the future, when the situation stabilized and their Cultivation grew stronger, they could find a way to return.

For now, however, it was clearly unsuitable for them to remain with the Canglan Sect.

After all, their relatively close relationship with Zhang Chi would likely make them targets within the Canglan Sect.

In fact, Zhang Chi had wanted to bring along other familiar sect-mates from the Canglan Sect, but they had either exhausted their Lifespan and passed away or had long since perished during the centuries of pioneering and expansion.

The few acquaintances who did remain were old and nearing the end of their Lifespan, so they didn’t care about life or death and couldn’t be bothered to leave.

"You two, are you sure you don’t want to go back to the Great Abyss?"

After the other Cultivators had departed, the Supreme Profound Immortal Mansion fell silent once more. Only Flying Dragon No. 1, Lan Xuan, and Qin Susu remained by Zhang Chi’s side.

"We’re not going back. From now on, wherever you go, we’ll go."

"That’s right. If we run out of Lifespan in the future, you can just seal us in the Profound Ice God-Sealing Coffin. Wake us up when you find a way to extend our lives. In short, we’re sticking with you."

The two women shared a beautiful smile, then snuggled up against Zhang Chi, one on each side.

Clearly, both women were very clever; they knew that sticking with Zhang Chi offered the most promising future.

The others were, at most, fellow sect members or friends to Zhang Chi. They had no reason to follow him forever, but the two of them did.

Moreover, Qin Susu had no family or close friends back in the Great Abyss, and while Lan Xuan did, her relationships with them had long since grown distant. The clan members of her generation were already dead.

Thus, Zhang Chi was the closest person they had.

"Alright, then! I’ll take you with me, and we’ll make our mark on this Immortal Cultivation Realm!"

Zhang Chi, whose mood had been slightly dampened by the partings, couldn’t help but laugh aloud at their words, a heroic spirit surging within him.