Chapter 403: The Dao Field's Secret, A Third Party!

Acting on the thought, Wang Ping immediately began the refinement.

Fortunately, it required little actual effort on his part. Luo Chang had prepared all the prerequisites while alive, and even in death, his yin soul could continue the work on Wang Ping's behalf.

As a result, the refinement process went seamlessly.

A moment later, a treasure box as crimson as blood appeared in Wang Ping's hands. Inside the box lay a cluster of mesmerizing, dreamlike radiance reminiscent of a nebula.

Yet within that magnificent, shifting display of colors, nine human faces could faintly be seen roaring and howling, occasionally letting out shrill, wretched wails.

Nine-Nine Mysterious Art Immortal-Felling Sand.

Looking at the item Luo Chang's yin soul had ultimately refined, Wang Ping couldn't help but ponder: 'Why does it feel like these ancient dao lineages aren't exactly benevolent either?'

That being said, this Nine-Nine Mysterious Art Immortal-Felling Sand was indeed something else. Wang Ping could sense extreme danger radiating from it. The substance clearly did not distinguish between friend and foe, and not even its refiner could touch it directly. It could only be guided by divine sense, and the slightest misstep could easily backfire and ensnare the user.

Its power, however, was absolutely top-tier.

'If necessary, I'll scatter this stuff everywhere and escape in the chaos. I doubt that Dao Field's sect master will be able to stop me.'

After all, the substance was incredibly corrosive.

If a qi refining practitioner was tainted by even a speck of it, their dharma body would instantly suffer damage. Furthermore, it struck directly at their foundation and could not be expelled. Even if a Dao Field came into contact with it, its very foundations would risk being destabilized.

Thinking of this, Wang Ping felt much more at ease.

Only then did he ride his escaping light, descending toward the Wuwei Buyi Dao Field.

...

Wuwei Buyi Dao Field.

Although it was called a Dao Field, it was actually a magnificent planet. It possessed several continents and over a hundred Mortal dynasties, nurturing over a hundred million living beings. It was practically a vast world unto itself.

As for the main body of the Dao Field, it was located on this planet's highest peak, piercing straight into the clouds in a display of transcendent detachment. Dozens, if not hundreds, of pavilions and towers could faintly be seen surrounding the mountain, some even suspended in midair. With people coming and going and streaks of light soaring through the sky, it presented the grand atmosphere of a true immortal sect.

However, at the center of the Dao Field...

Inside an ancestral shrine, the atmosphere was suffocatingly oppressive. A middle-aged man in crimson robes stood before the altar, his expression dark and somber.

"Soul lamps growing dim..."

After a long silence, the middle-aged man finally spoke in a muted voice. "Luo Chang, Luo Zhen, Luo Wei... Three full qi-nurturing practitioners went out, only to end up like this."

After speaking, he pointed at the lamps on the altar.

The flames within three of those lamps were dim, resembling sputtering candles in the wind. This was a devastating blow to the already precarious Wuwei Buyi Dao Field.

"Why did this happen?"

The middle-aged man was grief-stricken. "Did I not say it? The Dao Lord has already issued a decree. As long as we hold the Dao Field and wait for the right time, a turning point will naturally present itself."

"Sect Master..."

Hearing this, a cultivator standing beside the middle-aged man shook his head, but he cut himself off and shut his mouth, not daring to speak further.

'After all... there is no hope in sight.'

'How many years has it been? The Dao Lord has always just watched from the sidelines, inactive and unchanging. I'm afraid he never cared about us at all. If we die, we die.'

'If you ask me, it really can't even compare to the Immortal Gates outside. I've heard the Dao Lords and True Persons out there at least occasionally promote lower-level cultivators.'

This was the current Wuwei Buyi Dao Field. The hearts of its people had long since scattered. As for the middle-aged man—the current generation's sect master, Yi Xuangong—it wasn't that he didn't understand. Seeing the apathy of the person beside him, he sighed helplessly. "Regardless, we have lost three qi-nurturing practitioners. The original plan must be scrapped."

"Contract the formation. Pull the formation cores further back."

"Understood."

The Daoist priest nodded and was just about to leave when a Dao Field disciple suddenly bolted into the shrine, his face filled with shock.

"My Lord, outside the Dao Field..."

"What's going on?"

Yi Xuangong hurriedly stood up and asked sternly, "Have the three major Dao Fields attacked?"

"No." The messenger disciple shook his head and hurriedly explained, "It's an unfamiliar lord! He says he came under the Dao Lord's orders to assist the Dao Field!"

"...What?"

Yi Xuangong froze in place.

...

Wang Ping entered the Wuwei Buyi Dao Field and, under the guidance of a disciple, arrived at a towering great hall in the very center of the sect.

To his disappointment, the legendary Supreme Dao Lord Xuangong didn't give him the slightest sign throughout the entire process, as if he didn't even exist.

It wasn't until he stood inside the great hall and saw the crimson-robed cultivator at the head of the room that Wang Ping's expression turned serious. To his divine sense, although the other party possessed a human form, he felt like a mass of manifest true fire. Within that fire, the qi of earth and wood intertwined—chaotic, yet inexplicably orderly.

He was different from a qi refining practitioner.

When an ordinary qi refining practitioner revealed their dharma body, an auspicious cloud would manifest above their head. The crimson-robed cultivator before him, however, kept all his profound mysteries contained within his own physical form.

His eyes gleamed with gold, his brow was tinged with red, and his skin appeared solid and flawless.

The imagery of fire, earth, and wood qi all seemed to manifest upon him, granting him a distinct and extraordinary might. Even his gaze seemed to carry physical weight.

Wang Ping stepped forward and cupped his hands.

"This junior Kunyun greets Sect Master Yi."

"Oh?" Hearing this, Yi Xuangong slightly raised his red brows. "I rarely step out of the Dao Field. You've traveled from afar, yet you've actually heard my name?"

"Of course."

Wang Ping smiled. "Before I came, Fellow Daoist Luo Chang specifically mentioned your name to me, Sect Master. He said your cultivation is second to none in the current generation of the Dao Field."

"He overpraised me." Yi Xuangong shook his head, his gaze deepening. "You said earlier that you came under the Dao Lord's orders to assist the Dao Field. From the sound of it, you've already met Luo Chang and the others. I wonder where they are, and why they didn't come here with you?"

'Oh, they came. They're right here on me.'

Wang Ping casually replied, "The three fellow Daoists said they would give their all for the Dao Field until their dying breath. They suffered severe injuries and are currently recuperating in seclusion."

"If you have any instructions for them, Sect Master, just tell me. I will pass the message along. They trust me quite a bit now."

Yi Xuangong's expression grew even more peculiar at those words.

Very quickly, however, his expression returned to normal—because Wang Ping suddenly reached into his sleeve and pulled out the newly refined Nine-Nine Mysterious Art Immortal-Felling Sand.

"This is what the three fellow Daoists asked me to bring back."

Wang Ping wore an amiable expression.

"They fought outside, nearly sacrificing their lives, and finally managed to refine this box of divine sand. They asked me to bring it back to contribute their share of effort to the Dao Field."

Yi Xuangong: "..."

Wang Ping naturally knew he was spouting nonsense, but he had a far more important piece of evidence. With a thought, he activated the True Monarch's verbal decree within his mind.

Supreme Dao Lord Xuangong.

An ancient Dao Lord held a status comparable to a True Person of the immortal dao. Their Dao title was not typically spread among lower cultivators; only direct disciples would know it. This was his most solid proof.

Rumble!

In an instant, the entire great hall began to tremble slightly, as if resonating with some unseen force. This caused the originally composed Yi Xuangong's eyes to widen in shock.

A moment later, the sect master finally let out a long breath, a smile breaking across his face. "So you are someone hand-picked by the Dao Lord. Then please, stay a while in my Dao Field. I will arrange a Cave Abode for you. During the upcoming siege by the three major Dao Fields, I hope you can contribute greatly and not disappoint the Dao Lord's mandate."

Hearing this, Wang Ping narrowed his eyes.

He didn't say anything else, however. He merely cupped his hands, said, "Thank you for the trouble, Sect Master," and left the great hall under a disciple's guidance.

...

The moment Wang Ping stepped out, the smile on Yi Xuangong's face vanished. The atmosphere in the great hall grew heavy and oppressive once more. A moment later, a voice finally rang out.

"Who is this person?"

Yi Xuangong asked in a low tone.

Inside the great hall, the lamp flames flickered and shadows swayed. Soon, a voice replied, "If I'm not mistaken, this person's Dao title should be Kunyun."

"A qi refining practitioner of the Immortal Gate who broke through recently."

Hearing this, Yi Xuangong's expression relaxed slightly. If he had just broken through, he was only at the Qi Refinement First Layer. That meager cultivation wasn't enough to threaten him...

"He cultivates water qi."

"You should have said that earlier!"

The moment the mysterious shadow finished speaking, Yi Xuangong instantly lost his composure, gritting his teeth. "Why would demonic cultivators interfere with the Dao Field? Why didn't you warn me in advance?"

"Don't panic," the mysterious shadow remained calm. "He's just someone who joined the water qi faction recently. Fundamentally, he is still an orthodox cultivator of the Immortal Gate. You should be glad that the one the water qi faction sent to the Star Grave Sand Sea is him, rather than Dao Child Xuanyi, who has been making waves in the Immortal Gate recently."

"Hmm... let me calculate where he is."

The shadow flickered. After another moment, the voice rang out again, laced with confidence. "Hmm... he is currently still in the Eight Trigrams Furnace. There's no problem."

"Are you sure?"

Yi Xuangong frowned deeply. "Could your calculations be wrong? That's water qi, which excels at obscuring karma. Let alone a Dao Child! Can you really pinpoint his location?"

"Water qi isn't invincible."

The shadow chuckled. "Not long ago, a qi refining practitioner of my lineage died at the hands of that water qi Dao Child. Among all karma in the world, the karma of taking a life is the heaviest."

"I calculated based on that. In all likelihood, even water qi cannot cover it up."

"...That's good, then."

Only then did Yi Xuangong breathe a sigh of relief, though he soon gritted his teeth again. "Someone from the water qi lineage, and operating under the Dao Lord's orders... This isn't what you agreed upon."

"You claimed that the Dao Lord was already powerless to interfere with the mortal realm."

"In theory, that is the case."

The shadow paused before continuing, "Regardless, while this person isn't the water qi Dao Child, he might not necessarily be Kunyun either. He could be wearing a different face."

"As for the specifics, I'm afraid we'll have to test him to find out."

Hearing this, Yi Xuangong took a deep breath. "Is it possible that the demonic dao discovered your existence and reached an agreement with the Dao Lord?"

"And that's why they sent someone to interfere?"

"Impossible."

At this point, the shadow sounded very confident. "We've acted with the utmost secrecy and left no flaws exposed. How could we inexplicably be targeted by the water qi faction?"

...

Meanwhile, on the other side of the Dao Field.

Wang Ping made his way to the Cave Abode Yi Xuangong had arranged for him. He sat cross-legged, the half-smile that had been playing on his face rapidly fading.

'Hmm... Interesting.'

'It should be the Immortal Gate.'

Wang Ping half-closed his eyes, pondering for a moment before quickly reaching a conclusion: 'There are qi refining practitioners of the Immortal Gate secretly collaborating with the Wuwei Buyi Dao Field.'