Chapter 204: Escaping Daoyang

"You're a natural-born actor, kid," Xuan Zhenzi said, his voice unhurried, as if he were recounting an old tale that had nothing to do with him.

"You infiltrated the sect using your status as the successor to those two disciples, gaining their trust step by step until you finally found your way here. After Linghu Shou met you, he even entertained the thought that once he became the artifact spirit of the Heaven and Earth Ring, he would choose you as the next Supreme Great Elder. Then, relying on this Heaven-grade Spiritual Treasure, he would nurture another Deity Transformation expert for the Daoyang Sect."

As he spoke, his tone remained indifferent, as if he were flipping through the pages of a yellowed book.

"The Five Elements Heaven and Earth Ring is extremely sensitive to ambient spiritual energy. Though your aura-concealing art is exquisite, the moment you reveal even a sliver of spiritual fluctuation, it will detect you. When Linghu Shou sensed someone sneaking close, he initially thought it was Zhou Chengshan coming to stop him. But once he saw it was you, no matter how muddled his mind was, he understood—why would an uninvited outsider sneak into the deepest part of the sect just to bring glory to the Daoyang Sect?"

He spoke without a trace of anger, instead sizing Jiuyou up with keen interest. "However, it seems you were unaware of this item's existence before now. Your true goal is most likely the method for Deity Transformation, right? Otherwise, why would a Nascent Soul Late Stage cultivator risk being hunted down by the entire sect just to sneak in here?"

He paused. "To obtain a single cultivation manual, you were even willing to hand over an imitation spirit treasure like the Heavenly Spirit Ring. I may not approve of your methods, but I do admire your nerve."

Jiuyou cupped his fist toward Xuan Zhenzi, his tone neither humble nor arrogant. "Martial Ancestor has guessed correctly. I do indeed want the Deity Transformation method from the latter half of the Ten Palaces Art. However, I am also fulfilling my late master's dying wish by returning his legacy to the sect on his behalf."

"Alright, alright, are you still putting on airs here?" Xuan Zhenzi waved his glowing golden little hand as if swatting a fly. "Reaching the Nascent Soul Late Stage at your age makes you the one with the best chance of touching Deity Transformation among our descendants. I'm not going to bicker with you over such a trivial matter. Besides, you almost finished off that brat Linghu Shou, which counts as cleaning house for me."

He blew at his beard as he spoke, seemingly unbothered by the whole ordeal, as if he had already turned the page on it. "Right, did you manage to get the rest of the Ten Palaces Art? If not, I can just recite it to you directly."

Jiuyou replied that he had already obtained it easily from Senior Brother Zhou, and briefly outlined how it happened.

Hearing this, Xuan Zhenzi coldly snorted. "Easily? Do you really think they would hand the complete Ten Palaces Art over to you?"

Jiuyou's expression shifted slightly.

Xuan Zhenzi continued, "It seems you truly don't know. To break through to Deity Transformation while cultivating the Daoyang Ten Palaces Art, there is one absolutely crucial condition. Without this item, no matter how extraordinary your cultivation base becomes, you can forget about crossing that threshold in this lifetime."

"What item?" Jiuyou pressed.

The corners of Xuan Zhenzi's mouth curled up slightly. The small golden figure casually sat cross-legged atop the Five Elements Heaven and Earth Ring and gently patted its surface. "This right here. Otherwise, why would that brat Linghu Shou sit here withering away for hundreds of years? Later on, seeing that his own prospects were hopeless, he came up with the idea of becoming an artifact spirit. He wanted to completely control this treasure to secure a sliver of a chance at Deity Transformation for his descendants."

He chuckled, his laugh carrying an indescribable mix of smugness and sentiment.

"What a pity. Even after calculating a thousand times and figuring ten thousand times, he still couldn't outcompete his old ancestor."

Jiuyou still harbored doubts. Just as he was about to ask, Xuan Zhenzi tipped his chin toward him, cutting him off. "Enough, we shouldn't linger here. That brat Zhou Chengshan is already rushing over with his people to see if Linghu Shou succeeded. It won't end well if you bump into them. Leave first."

He paused, the golden figure lifting its eyelids slightly.

"Although this Five Elements Heaven and Earth Ring is esteemed as a Heaven-grade Spiritual Treasure, it doesn't possess many direct methods of attack. I just swallowed Linghu Shou's Nascent Soul, so I'll need to slumber for a period of time. I won't be able to help you. Given your current condition, I'm afraid you won't be able to escape if you get surrounded."

Before his voice even faded, the five-colored halo that had previously blotted out the sky began to rapidly shrink. In the blink of an eye, it transformed into a ring the size of a millstone and gently landed in front of Jiuyou.

Sensing more than a dozen auras rapidly approaching from the direction of the Daoyang Sect, Jiuyou didn't hesitate any longer. He snatched up the Five Elements Heaven and Earth Ring and transformed into a golden sword shadow, streaking away in the opposite direction. The sword light tore through the wind and snow, vanishing into the vast night in an instant.

A moment later, thirteen streaks of golden light exploded almost simultaneously. Thirteen figures flashing with brilliant golden pupils hovered above the ruins. Even the weakest among them was at the Middle Nascent Soul Stage. Over a dozen streams of divine sense unfurled at once, sweeping back and forth across the shattered ruins.

Looks of alarm and uncertainty appeared on the faces of those Middle Nascent Soul Stage elders.

"Strange. This place is only a few thousand li away from our Daoyang Sect. When was an underground structure of this scale built?" someone murmured, their tone laden with obvious confusion.

"To be able to construct an underground palace like this right under our sect's nose... and looking at it, it seems to have been here for quite some years. Who in this world would have such capability..." Another person picked up the sentence but left it unfinished. However, everyone present understood the implication.

Many gazes turned toward the leader, Zhou Chengshan, waiting for him to speak. Ge Jingyuan, Song Wan, and several others also looked at him. No one spoke up to explain.

Wind and snow swirled above the ruins, falling between the overturned rubble and the fractured rock walls. A lingering trace of spiritual energy still hung in the air.

Wang Zhiheng glanced around, his gaze pausing briefly in the direction where Jiuyou had vanished. Finally, he was the first to send a mental transmission to Zhou Chengshan. "Senior Brother, are we not going to give chase?"

Zhou Chengshan's spine trembled slightly, as if he had been gently struck by the question.

He pondered for a moment before slowly speaking. "Chase. Of course we must chase." His voice wasn't loud, but it was as heavy as a stone. "Eldest Senior Brother has failed. I tried to warn him from the very beginning... but some words are useless even when spoken. Never mind." He closed his eyes for a second, and when he reopened them, his gaze had returned to a cold calm. "The Heaven and Earth Ring must be retrieved. That is the future hope of our sect; it is a Heaven-grade Spiritual Treasure and absolutely cannot fall into the hands of outsiders."

He paused, sweeping his gaze across everyone present before finally sending a mental transmission to three of them. "Let today's events rot in your stomachs. To the public, just say that Eldest Senior Brother met with foul play at the hands of wicked scoundrels during his secluded cultivation, and we are currently hunting down the perpetrator. You are not allowed to breathe a single word about the Heaven and Earth Ring."

His gaze fell once more in the direction Jiuyou had fled, the spot between his brows twitching slightly. 'Qing Youzi, oh, Qing Youzi. What a fine sole successor to Patriarch Zhiyang. I completely believe your identity now...'

A moment later, he took the lead and transformed into a streak of golden escape light, giving chase in that direction. The other three remained silent for a moment before closely following suit. Several streaks of golden light sliced through the night sky, leaving long, slender trails of light amidst the wind and snow.

At the same time, a secret order quietly circulated among the Supreme Elders of the Daoyang Sect. The contents were brief and the target clear—hunt down the Sixth Supreme Elder, Qing Youzi, with full force.