Chapter 705: Authority (I)

At Yanwu City, inside the Profound Light Tower.

"You brat, you are finally back. You disappeared for so long that I thought something had happened to you in the demon cave."

When Lin Zheyu arrived, Qiu Kun stood up with a hearty laugh to greet him. After resolving Xu Ruichen's issue and securing the token for the Heavenly Derivation Sect's Formation Dao Exchange Gathering, Lin Zheyu also took the chance to assist Kong Yujing and several new demonic cultivators in dealing with the yao will within them. He then returned. Upon his return to Yanwu City, Qiu Kun and others invited him to the Profound Light Tower for a gathering.

Lin Zheyu sat down beside Zong Linjing and asked curiously, "Where is Bai Lin? Did he not return as well?"

After the stronghold in the demon cave fell, the Martial Alliance had no further role to play there. Logically, Bai Lin should have returned as well.

"Uh..." The corners of Qiu Kun's mouth twitched, and he looked unsure whether to laugh or cry.

"Let me explain. While we were retreating, we were inadvertently caught in the aftermath of a battle between a Deity Transformation realm expert and an eight-pattern yao. Fellow Bai suffered some injuries while protecting the weaker martial artists and is still recuperating," Zong Linjing explained.

Lin Zheyu was rendered somewhat speechless upon hearing this. No wonder Qiu Kun had made such an expression. He did not know whether to call Bai Lin lucky or unlucky. Both times Bai Lin had entered the demon cave, he had been caught in the aftermath of a battle at the Deity Transformation realm and injured. His luck could hardly have been worse. Yet the fact that he had survived both times made his good fortune equally astonishing.

Those were battles between Deity Transformation realm experts, which even Nascent Soul realm experts dared not approach. As a mere Shackles realm martial artist, Bai Lin should count himself exceedingly fortunate to have survived being caught in the aftermath.

"Those who survive a great calamity are bound to enjoy good fortune afterward. Fellow Bai is surely destined for a brilliant future," Lin Zheyu joked with a smile.

"I never expected something so major to happen just after I left. What a shame I missed it and lost the chance to earn a great many contribution points," Ji Haozhong said with a smile from the side.

He had heard that with Xiao Yu present this time, Zong Linjing and the others had encountered almost no danger and suffered no casualties.

After the group chatted for a while about their recent circumstances and the current situation, Qiu Kun suddenly asked with a smile, "By the way, there is a mission coming up. Would any of you like to join me?"

"What kind of mission? Let us hear about it." Zong Linjing immediately became interested.

However, she soon shook her head. "Forget it. I will be entering seclusion soon to see if I can break free of my second shackle, so I will not be joining."

After cultivating the Circulating Heavenly Radiant Light Guiding Art, Zong Linjing's stagnant strength had begun to improve slowly once more. She had a feeling that she was not far from breaking through the bottleneck and freeing herself from her second shackle.

"What? Are you about to break free of your second shackle already? So soon?" Qiu Kun could not help exclaiming.

It had not been long since Zong Linjing broke free of her first shackle, yet she was already preparing to break free of her second. Her progress was simply astonishing. As expected of the former foremost genius among the Martial Alliance's younger generation, she had lost none of her brilliance!

"This is all thanks to Fellow Xiao's help," Zong Linjing said with a smile, touching only briefly upon the matter without explaining further.

After all, the technique belonged to Xiao Yu, and with the man himself present, it was not her place to explain it on his behalf.

"Oh? That is hardly fair of you, Fellow Xiao. The two of us spent so long together in the demon cave, yet you never shared such a good thing with me!" Ji Haozhong put on an aggrieved expression, leaving Lin Zheyu rather speechless.

Lin Zheyu smiled and said, "It is nothing particularly special, just a technique I happened to acquire."

He glanced at Qiu Kun and Ji Haozhong, who were both staring at him expectantly, then smiled and took two jade slips from his storage pouch before tossing them over.

"Here. Do not spread it around. I still intend to place it in the Library Pavilion and exchange it for some contribution points," Lin Zheyu reminded them.

"Haha, of course!" Qiu Kun and Ji Haozhong replied with smiles.

After catching the jade slips, they eagerly examined them. Their eyes grew brighter as they gradually became absorbed in the contents. Lin Zheyu and Zong Linjing exchanged a glance and smiled, leaving the two undisturbed.

"Has Senior Wang still not returned?" Lin Zheyu asked.

Upon returning to Yanwu City, he had originally intended to visit Wang Zhengtian, but had been unable to find him.

"Yes. The grand formation outside that space-time node was breached. A Nascent Soul realm cultivator is needed to hold the position and eliminate the unending stream of yao. Senior Wang remained there, and Senior Nie Ping has also gone to provide support," Zong Linjing said softly.

The area was now extremely dangerous. Even Golden Core realm cultivators who took part faced a considerable risk of death. Thus, only cultivators at the Nascent Soul realm or above were participating in the operation.

"What about those two eight-pattern yao? Were they captured?" Lin Zheyu asked curiously.

"They escaped. I heard that an expert from the Painful Holy Sect intervened and held off the Buddhist sect and Great Wei's experts, allowing the two eight-pattern yao to escape successfully," Zong Linjing said.

"The Painful Holy Sect? Why are those people involving themselves in this?" Lin Zheyu asked in puzzlement.

The sea clan and barbarians, whom he had once believed to be enemies of Great Wei, as well as the Nine Nether Sect and ancient yao who had seized the entire Southern Barbarian Region from Great Wei, had all set aside their former grievances with Great Wei in the face of the yao. In fact, those past conflicts had largely been driven by exchanges of interest and the desire to temper their forces rather than any genuine deep-seated hatred. The Painful Holy Sect, however, appeared to be different.

"The Painful Holy Sect's doctrine teaches its followers to embrace suffering and comprehend the true meaning of life through agony and death. They are a group of lunatics who delight in throwing the world into chaos. Both times eight-pattern yao successfully entered the demon cave through the space-time node, the Painful Holy Sect played no small part behind the scenes," Zong Linjing explained slowly, a cold glint flashing through her eyes.

"I see. Those people truly deserve to die!" Lin Zheyu exclaimed.

Even when the destruction of the entire world was at stake, traitors had still emerged among its inhabitants.

Qiu Kun exhaled softly as he emerged from his contemplation of the technique, curling his lips in disdain. "That is nothing. Some people have even pledged themselves directly to the yao and willingly become their puppets."

"Remarkable! This truly is a remarkable technique! With the aid of this technique of yours, I can finally see hope of advancing further. You truly are my benefactor! Fellow Xiao, please accept my bow!" Ji Haozhong exclaimed with immense gratitude after returning to his senses.

More than ten years ago, he had begun to feel that he had reached the end of his cultivation path and exhausted his potential in martial cultivation. Yet Ji Haozhong was unwilling to accept this. He had devoted his entire life to martial cultivation and did not wish to switch to another cultivation system.

Consequently, his cultivation had barely advanced over the past decade. Ji Haozhong had nearly reached the limit of his perseverance, and the approaching great calamity would soon have forced him to abandon a path that offered no hope and cultivate another system instead. He had never expected a miraculous technique like the Circulating Heavenly Radiant Light Guiding Art to appear at such a moment.

Lin Zheyu stopped Ji Haozhong from bowing solemnly and said with a smile, "There is no need for that, fellow friend. Martial artists should help one another. Is that not why we founded and joined the Martial Alliance?"

"Haha, what generosity! I am proud to call you my friend. From this day onward, I owe you my life! Whatever you may need, even if it means climbing a mountain of blades or plunging into a cauldron of boiling oil, I will not refuse!" Ji Haozhong thumped his chest and laughed heartily.

"Enough. What can you even accomplish with your paltry strength? Given our friendship, I will spare you the formalities. Everything I wish to say is in this wine. Come, let me offer you a toast!" Qiu Kun glanced at Ji Haozhong, raised his cup, and spoke with refreshing candor.

Lin Zheyu smiled and drained a cup with them.