Chapter 566 - 312: Heart of Spiritual Light Acquired, Black Tuo’s Goal

Chided, the young men fell silent, though they were clearly still skeptical. Abilities were incredibly diverse. Some purely affected the user and showed no outward signs, so how could external devices possibly detect them?

"Sigh, you all..." the middle-aged man said helplessly, pointing at the massive virtual screen.

"Forget aiming high. If we could just scrape into the top 100 on that list, it would be a miracle from our ancestors. It could bring in tens of billions of star coins in investments for our martial arts hall."

"Master, you’re underestimating us."

"It’ll be a piece of cake!"

"Get lost!"

The group walked and talked as they went. A wistful look in his eyes, Ming Lin withdrew his gaze, set his own course, and quickly headed toward a nearby building.

DING—

Stepping out of the elevator, Ming Lin paused for a moment. He walked down the hallway, scanning left and right, and stopped in front of a room. Taking a deep breath, he knocked on the door.

"Who is it?" The door opened to reveal a brawny, middle-aged man. When he saw Ming Lin’s inspection team uniform, the scrutiny in his eyes softened. "Who are you looking for?" he asked.

"I’m looking for Zhao Cheng."

"You..." The middle-aged man hesitated. Before he could say more, a voice from behind him said, "Let him in."

The middle-aged man stepped aside, and Ming Lin entered. It was an enormous suite. Standing in the doorway of a room deeper inside was a tall, slender figure.

The figure’s gaze was fixed on him, dark and unsettling. For some reason, Ming Lin’s heart began to pound.

Black Tuo stared at the man in the inspection team uniform, already having an inkling. His voice was cold. "What are you here for?"

"To pick something up," Ming Lin replied cautiously, just as Su Chen had instructed.

’This must be him,’ Black Tuo realized. "Follow me."

He turned and entered the room. Ming Lin swallowed hard, gritted his teeth, and followed him inside.

"Take it." As soon as he entered the room, Ming Lin saw the man hold out a metal box about the size of a human head.

Ming Lin took it instinctively. It felt heavy in his hands. He didn’t ask what was inside, nor did he say a word. He just turned and walked away, a chill creeping up his spine as he felt the man’s eyes fixed on his back.

Once outside the room, Ming Lin finally let out a breath of relief. ’This is strange,’ he thought. ’When did Su Chen connect with a power outside the Sect?’

He didn’t understand, but he didn’t dawdle. He left quickly, taking a Flying Device straight to Copper Heart Floating Island and messaging Su Chen on the way.

"You got it?"

Ming Lin had just stepped off the Flying Device when he was met with Su Chen’s face right in front of him. Already on edge, he jumped in surprise.

"Mhm."

Ming Lin reacted a beat too slow, then took out the small metal box.

A glint flashed in Su Chen’s eyes as he reached out and took it. He opened a thin crack to peek inside, and a brilliant radiance shone out before he quickly shut it again. Noticing Ming Lin’s uneasy expression, he asked, "What is it? Did something happen?"

Su Chen frowned. ’My plan was very simple. That’s precisely why there shouldn’t have been any surprises. The more complex the plan, the greater the chance of something going wrong.’

Although he had sent Ming Lin to pick it up in person, his plan accounted for contingencies. Even if "Zhao Cheng’s" identity was later exposed, he could claim Ming Lin had only gone to investigate because he was suspicious.

In fact, he had originally intended for Ming Lin and Teng Liang to be the ones to expose him.

"That guy, Zhao Cheng... he felt really creepy," Ming Lin said hesitantly. "On the way back, I kept seeing his eyes in my mind."

"Oh?" Su Chen grew more cautious. ’Black Tuo didn’t pull something on Ming Lin, did he?’

’But news of the Ancient King’s recovery has already spread. Black Tuo hasn’t achieved his goal yet, so it’s unlikely he’d take such a risk.’

Su Chen instructed, "Don’t go out for the next few days. If you feel anything unusual, tell me immediately."

"Okay." Ming Lin nodded.

After watching him enter the main building, Su Chen went into the Nether Tower. He switched to his Black Tuo High Priest state, opened a crack in the tower door, and briefly scanned the area. He didn’t detect any aura related to Black Tuo.

’It should be fine. It was probably just the attention from Black Tuo that unintentionally affected Ming Lin. He is a Great Deceitful God, after all.’

Once certain, Su Chen opened the metal box. Fluorescent light spilled out, swirling around him like tassels. He reached in and grasped the object inside; it was warm to the touch—

[Heart of Spiritual Light: A rare item from the Nether Realm that provides immense benefits to a Spirit Body.]

One of the two main materials for ascending to the Divine Dawn Level was finally in his possession. A great weight was lifted from Su Chen’s shoulders.

’Compared to the Morning Star Essence, this Heart of Spiritual Light was the biggest uncertainty. It depended entirely on Black Tuo’s whims. If he had suddenly changed his mind, it would have been lost for good.’

’This went even more smoothly than I imagined. Then again, there was no reason for any surprises. I’m his High Priest, after all. How could I possibly deceive him?’

’In that case...’ Su Chen glanced at the time. ’It’s a bit too soon to contact that old ghost, Black Tuo.’

He put away the Heart of Spiritual Light and didn’t enter the Nether Realm again until the next day, just as the Flame Fire was about to reignite.

His timing was perfect. Just as he reached the edge, the Flame Fire blazed to life.

He prayed to Black Tuo. This time, it took much longer—a full half-hour passed before he faintly heard Black Tuo’s voice: "Did that Zhou Yunyang tell you?"

Su Chen quickly replied, "I was just about to report this to you. After receiving the Heart of Spiritual Light, Zhou Yunyang kept his promise and told me the name."

"Who is it?"

"Qin Tianlin," Su Chen uttered.

However, Black Tuo showed no sign of relief, nor did he sound like his questions had been answered. Instead, his voice grew much harsher. "This person may have Divine Dawn Level Talent, but he’s far inferior to Su Chen. Why would it be him and not Su Chen?"

Back in the room, Black Tuo’s eyes were pitch-black. The answer didn’t bring him any sense of clarity; instead, it fueled a deep suspicion.

Hearing Black Tuo’s interrogation, Su Chen was unfazed; he had anticipated this. ’Black Tuo doesn’t distrust me,’ he thought. ’He distrusts Zhou Yunyang.’

"I questioned him about that as well," Su Chen said. "But this Zhou Yunyang claims that Qin Tianlin is not as simple as he seems and that he harbors secrets related to his grandfather."

Su Chen explained in a low voice, "He investigated and found that Qin Tianlin can apparently use a type of purple flame to plunder the professions of others. And this change only appeared after Qin Yun returned."

"Plunder the professions of others! A purple flame! Are you certain?" Black Tuo’s voice suddenly grew shrill.

"Correct. That is exactly what Zhou Yunyang told me," Su Chen said firmly. ’The first time I purified the Fog Ashes was, in fact, after Qin Yun returned. The timeline matches up.’

’As for the details, Black Tuo has no way to verify them. And now that Qin Tianlin has the Sun Residual Fire, I can definitely use that to bluff my way through.’

"If you have doubts, I can seek further confirmation from him," Su Chen added.

"No need," Black Tuo interrupted, his voice growing distant. "I’m afraid it really was this Qin Tianlin after all."

’So Qin Yun really did bring something back from the Lost Flame.’ Black Tuo’s expression grew grim. Combining this with the information "Zhou Yunyang" had previously provided, he was now seventy percent convinced.

’Does Black Tuo know about certain Traits of the Lost Flame?’ Su Chen realized. He couldn’t help but feel a surge of curiosity, but there was no good opening to ask, so he had to let it go for now.

"Between Qin Tianlin and Su Chen, who should I move against first?"

Su Chen was startled to hear Black Tuo’s question. ’Is this old ghost asking me?’ he thought, his heart skipping a beat.

He reacted in an instant, feigning terror. "Your decision..."

"I need advice," Black Tuo cut him off. "You have been lying dormant here for a very long time, and I am no longer familiar with the Bronze Sect." ’Believers are fine,’ he thought, ’but sometimes their excessive reverence leads to a lot of pointless talk.’

’Old Hei is surprisingly cautious, even asking for a professional opinion,’ Su Chen mused. After appearing to deliberate for a long time, he finally offered his "sincere" advice with great difficulty:

"Su Chen is already second on the Holy List. There’s far too much attention on him, making it inconvenient to act. Qin Tianlin’s secret, however, is still under wraps. Not many people know about it, so he isn’t as conspicuous."

"Mmm..." Black Tuo responded. He already had a rough idea of how Qin Tianlin was purifying the Fog Ashes, so there was no need to investigate further. He could just eliminate this potential threat directly.

Su Chen’s case, however, required a more thorough investigation, which meant he’d have to be captured—an obvious impossibility.

With the Flame Fire’s condition improving, the Bronze Ancient King would be free to act. He would have only a split-second opportunity to make his move.

Black Tuo quickly made his decision. "Then I’ll choose this Qin Tianlin."