Chapter 275: "Cooperation"

"Hahaha! Excellent!"

Wang Xunzhen laughed aloud as the blood-colored mist surged around him. A sharp gleam of appreciation hid in his eyes.

"I have always preferred working with capable, intelligent Daoists. It saves far more effort than dealing with dullards like those from earlier," he said. "Since you possess such clear-headed tact, I will see this through to the end. I shall personally slay Yuan Huang and deliver his primordial spirit to you as a show of my sincerity!"

The moment he spoke, the blood mist filling the air abruptly retracted. Not a single wisp escaped as it twisted and condensed, instantly transforming into a tall, slender figure.

The man wore a loose crimson Daoist robe woven with flowing dark patterns that faintly exuded a vicious, bloody aura. Fine, eerie blood-red lines covered his forehead and cheeks, giving off a sinister air that warned away the living. His long crimson hair hung loose, faint traces of blood mist drifting between the strands. His unfathomable aura was far beyond what any ordinary Lower Realm cultivator could possess.

Straightening his robes, Wang Xunzhen looked on with a placid expression.

"Let us formally introduce ourselves," he said flatly. "I am Wang Xunzhen. I am no demon cultivator, but a human of the Upper Realm, hailing from Wangzhou City in the Returning Spirit Domain."

Jiuyou remained perfectly calm and gave a slight nod.

"Jiuyou, a cultivator of the Heavenly Abyss Sea," he replied, his voice cool and indifferent.

Wang Xunzhen's expression remained unchanged, appearing completely indifferent to this Lower Realm title.

Beside him, however, Xuan Zhenzi's expression suddenly twisted. His eyes went wide with shock and fury as he glared fixedly at Jiuyou.

"You brat!" he snapped, his tone thick with aggrieved anger. "You've been using a fake name to deceive me this whole time! I poured my heart into protecting you so you could reach Deity Transformation. I wasted two or three hundred years of my time and expended countless amounts of mental energy, and you wouldn't even tell me your real name! Where is your conscience?"

Jiuyou helplessly lifted a hand to his face and gently shook his head. He looked completely unruffled, showing not a hint of panic.

"Names in this world are nothing but empty titles and codes," he said. "If you are used to the old name, Grandmaster, you can simply keep calling me Qing You. It matters little."

Xuan Zhenzi's stifled aura calmed slightly. He waved a hand, the anger in his eyes largely dissipating.

"Forget it, forget it," he muttered, his tone turning both melancholic and firm. "I've endured tens of thousands of years; why should I obsess over such a minor thing? But you absolutely must not forget the promise you made me."

"You certainly trust me entirely, Grandmaster," Jiuyou said, his gaze and the topic of conversation shifting with an imperceptible depth to his tone.

"Nonsense! You are the only descendant of my legacy left. Who else could I trust?" Xuan Zhenzi replied casually, his expression open and candid. "We've been together for so many years, and you act with measured calmness. You're reliable enough, so I can at least set my mind at ease."

Just as he finished speaking, his eyes suddenly lit up with a burning, sharp gleam.

"Speaking of which," Xuan Zhenzi added bluntly, "once the two of you join forces to slay Yuan Huang, that bastard's physical foundation isn't bad. I'd like to try using his body for body seizing to revive myself."

Jiuyou's expression remained unchanged as he slowly retracted his leaking spiritual energy. He cast a faint glance at the scheming look on Xuan Zhenzi's face, a shallow smile pulling at the corners of his mouth.

"Why be in such a rush, Grandmaster?" Jiuyou asked. "I have already found an opportunity to open a path to the Upper Realm. Once I succeed, I will bring your soul with me to cultivate there. When that time comes, you can easily choose a native Upper Realm cultivator for your body seizing and reincarnation. The innate foundations and Dao potential of Upper Realm cultivators far exceed those of Lower Realm cultivators. It would be a much better deal than Yuan Huang's body."

Xuan Zhenzi froze at those words. He lowered his head and pondered for a moment. He already understood what Jiuyou was plotting, but having boarded this pirate ship, it wouldn't be easy to get off. Finally, he let out a helpless laugh.

"You are absolutely right," he said. "I also want to see exactly what makes these uniquely blessed Upper Realm cultivators so strong, and whether every single one of them truly possesses heaven-defying foundations."

As the two secretly murmured their plans, Wang Xunzhen, who had been waiting quietly to the side for a long while, finally interjected. His tone carried a hint of impatience, yet he maintained his superficial peace.

"Daoists, now that your private matters are settled, shall I make the first move?" he asked. "Since I promised Daoist Jiuyou that I would finish off Yuan Huang, I will absolutely not break my word."

Jiuyou nodded slightly. His expression was poised, his calm gaze fixed on Wang Xunzhen.

"You make a fair point," Jiuyou said, every word steady. "However, empty promises are flimsy in the end. No one can guarantee that you won't change your mind halfway through and go back on your word. For this cooperation, I need to see concrete sincerity before I can be at ease."

At these words, Wang Xunzhen's expression shifted imperceptibly. A flash of reluctance and apprehension darted through his eyes, but he quickly concealed it, once again donning a genial smile.

"It seems Daoist Jiuyou still harbors doubts. Very well. Since you and I are determined to join forces, I will present enough sincerity to completely set your mind at ease."

He looked toward the depths of the mystic realm and slowly revealed the crux of the matter.

"You have traveled a long way, Daoist, so your goal must be this Heavenly Abyss Sacred Tree. This tree is the core source of the Mount Tianyuan Mystic Realm. Controlling the sacred tree is equivalent to mastering the entire mystic realm. This treasure was originally planted here to suppress me. My spiritual energy source naturally conflicts with and repels the Heavenly Abyss Sacred Tree. Even though I have occupied this place for a long time, I have never been able to completely refine and control the mystic realm's source. As a result, my combat strength is restricted, preventing me from fighting at full power."

"But you are completely different," Wang Xunzhen said, shifting his gaze back to Jiuyou with a sincere tone. "You are a native human of the Lower Realm who practices orthodox Great Dao techniques. Your compatibility with the sacred tree's origin is extremely high. Controlling this object will be far easier for you than for me. I am willing to cede half the control of the Heavenly Abyss Sacred Tree to you, so we may co-rule this supreme treasure and split the opportunity equally. Is this level of sincerity to your satisfaction, Daoist?"

Having spoken, Wang Xunzhen stood with his hands clasped behind his back, his aura steady as he quietly awaited Jiuyou's reply. He looked magnanimous, selfless, and entirely poised.

Before Jiuyou could answer, Xuan Zhenzi beside him couldn't hold back any longer. He immediately transmitted his voice into Jiuyou's ears, his tone rushed.

"Brat, you absolutely must not blindly trust this man..."

"You need not say any more, Grandmaster. I know what I'm doing," Jiuyou replied via mental transmission, keeping a perfectly straight face. His tone was resolute. "This person's mind is deep, and he is full of schemes to the point of being freakish. This so-called equal division of control is nothing but a stalling tactic to feign goodwill. He has no real intention of yielding it; there are definitely hidden plots behind this..."

He had intended to continue deducing the other party's schemes, but Xuan Zhenzi's secret transmission abruptly interrupted his thoughts. The old man's tone carried a bizarre, solemn weight.

"Listen to me first!" Xuan Zhenzi said. "The moment I awakened, I sensed something wrong. A highly peculiar, strange fragrance is lingering on your body. Just now, when you activated your flame technique, the scent grew even stronger. And it's not just you. This entire Tianyuan Mountain, and even this Heavenly Abyss Sacred Tree, is permeated with an indescribable, bizarre fragrance that fills me with an uncontrollable desire to devour."

Jiuyou's gaze focused slightly, layers of shock instantly rippling through his heart. He secretly transmitted a question back.

"Are you serious, Grandmaster? I haven't noticed the slightest strange fragrance on myself. In this massive mystic realm, you are the only one who can perceive this scent. Could it be that I share some unknown, common origin trait with this Mount Tianyuan Mystic Realm?"

He concentrated his thoughts, suspicions sprouting wildly in his mind.

His only connection to Tianyuan Mountain was the Life-Extending Fruit he had consumed in his early years. The Heavenly Abyss Sacred Tree's only unique trait was its ability to produce the wondrous Life-Extending Fruit. Could that strange fragrance stem from the origin aura of the Life-Extending Fruit?

But the moment that thought arose, he immediately dismissed it.

A thousand years had passed. The residual aura of the Life-Extending Fruit inside his body had long been completely washed away and refined by his own spiritual energy. Not a drop remained, so it was absolutely impossible for it to linger until today. Moreover, Xuan Zhenzi had accompanied him for hundreds of years and had never mentioned a hint of a strange fragrance before. To suddenly notice it right here in this mystic realm, right at this moment, was simply too bizarre.

Even more suspiciously, in the entire Tianyuan Mountain range, only the sacred tree could bear the Life-Extending Fruit. The rest of the mountains, rivers, vegetation, spiritual veins, and earth energy lacked any shared origin aura. There was simply no way for them to produce such a unique scent.

Layers of doubt swirled in his mind. Jiuyou ran through the possibilities over and over, yet he remained entirely baffled.

He raised his eyes and cast a faint glance at Xuan Zhenzi beside him, a hint of inquiry in his gaze.

Xuan Zhenzi understood the doubt in his eyes and gave a slight shake of his head, indicating that he couldn't figure out the source of the fragrance either. He immediately transmitted his voice again, his tone carrying an unquestionable intuition.

"Don't worry about the reason, brat," he said deeply. "Just agree to Wang Xunzhen's terms for now and use the chance to get close to the Heavenly Abyss Sacred Tree. I have a powerful, inexplicable premonition. As long as we get close to the sacred tree's main body, we can take the opportunity to invade its origin core, secretly devour and strip away the magical imprints Wang Xunzhen attached to it, and seize control of the entire sacred tree in one fell swoop! We could even completely devour and refine this wondrous worldly tree!"