Ninth In the World

Jia Ao took a deep breath. Just as he was about to speak, he sensed the deadly aura. His lifespan was almost up, so he was extremely sensitive to the aura of death. Even if this aura occurred only for an instant, or less than half a second, he would still sense it.

The deadly aura was like a bucket of cold water splashed all over him. He immediately shuddered and became clear-headed.

He would definitely get killed if he spoke with the True Form Realm Cultivator of a sect. However, the outcome would still be the same if he spoke with the experts of the five large sects at the same time.

Jia Ao felt sorrowful. Was he too blind to find several True Form Realm Cultivators from top-notch sects and gain some benefits? Doing such a foolish thing would be no better than committing suicide.

If he had calmed down first and thought things through clearly, would he still have done this? The answer was no. Definitely no.

However, he had been unable to think clearly back then. The lifespan of a Golden Core Realm Cultivator was 500 years. He was going to turn 499 years old soon, so he was really anxious and desperate to find a way to advance. That was why he had done such a foolish thing.

“Don’t worry. Speak slowly. You have contributed a lot in this matter. No matter the outcome, I will ensure that you break through to the Essence Soul Realm and gain 300 more years of life.”

An Essence Soul Realm cultivator could live for 800 years, which meant that Jia Ao would live for 300 more years.

Had he not sensed that deadly aura, he would have been too excited to remember anything else. However, he now knew that he would die regardless of whether he told them everything or not.

In other words, the moment he used the news about the Book of the World to obtain any kind of benefit, he would step into his own grave.

He knew that this deadly aura meant that there was someone there who wished to kill him. If he was a Sect Master of the five large sects, he would definitely not allow a weakling who knew the whereabouts of the Book of the World to survive.

“It’s a long story,” Jia Ao said calmly with a sigh. “The reason I know about the Book of the World is…”

As the five Sect Masters were absorbed in Jia Ao’s words, Quintessential Essence shot out of Jia Ao’s hand. The first-stage Golden Core Realm Cultivator he was carrying in his hand died immediately and his Spiritual Sea shattered.

Meanwhile, Jia Ao killed himself. The remaining Spiritual Force pulverized his own Spiritual Sea. Since he would die no matter what, he might as well let these Sect Masters wonder over the whereabouts of the Book of the World.

The Sect Masters reacted as soon as Jia Ao stopped speaking. The Sect Master of the Purple Thunder Sect, Yan Xueyi, immediately rushed to Jia Ao’s side. Before he could physically grab a hold of Jia Ao, his Quintessential Essence had already completely restrained him.

Yan Xueyi knew that he was a moment too late. Jia Ao had killed himself just a moment ago.

“What happened?” The remaining True Form Realm experts had extremely ugly expressions on their faces as their combined Spiritual Force landed on Jia Ao’s body.

“He committed suicide right after killing the first-stage Golden Core Realm Cultivator he’d brought along…” Yan Xueyi looked gloomy. He was certain that Jia Ao’s suicide had not been an impulsive decision. There must have been someone around who had made Jia Ao understand that his death had been set in stone. The killing intent that had targeted Jia Ao for an instant had only been sensed by Jia Ao himself.

The five Sect Masters present were all True Form Realm experts with similar strength, so Yan Xueyi could not demand to know who had done such a brainless thing and caused Jia Ao to commit suicide.

Shu Haolan, who was the Sect Master of the Genesis Sect, looked even gloomier than the other Sect Masters. He was filled with regret, as he was aware of the reason Jia Ao had committed suicide. It was because he had thought of killing Jia Ao the moment Jia Ao had mentioned the Book of the World.

However, that thought had only formed for an instant. Logically speaking, the average cultivator would not have been able to sense his killing intent. He had not expected that Jia Ao would only have a few years left to live. Cultivators who were at death’s door were the most sensitive to this deadly aura.

This was something he would never admit. Once he did so, even if the other Sect Masters did not confront him, he would still be at a disadvantageous position.

“It’s still not too late to search through the Spiritual Sea,” said the Palatial Lord of the Ocean Monarch Palace, Ao Huang, anxiously.

Yan Xueyi shook his head. “It’s no use. This man was very experienced. He even remembered to shatter the Spiritual Seas as he was killing people and committing suicide. Anyway, there must have been no news on the Book of the World. Unfortunately, we don’t have a clue. The only thing we could confirm is that the Book of the World is indeed within the Small Central World.”

“Investigate Jia Ao first. The first-stage Golden Core Realm Cultivator he brought in should also be investigated. If my theory is right, this first-stage Golden Core Realm Cultivator should have known the real whereabouts of the Book of the World instead of Jia Ao,” said the Mirage Sword Sect’s Sect Master Xiao Wu in a frosty tone.

If the Book of the World was found, they would most likely be able to leave the Small Central World and get a chance to reach a higher cultivation realm. No one would be pleased if imminent information disappeared so suddenly.

…

Di Jiu did not know that the fella that could have exposed the fact that he had been close to the Book of the World had been killed. He could not stand the questioning, so he had fled anxiously right after exiting the Five Continent City.

Five days later, when he had no more Spiritual Force and Quintessential Essence left, Di Jiu finally stopped. He did not know how far he had travelled during these five days, yet he estimated that he must currently be really far away from the Five Continent City.

After constructing a cave abode in a hidden mountain valley, the first thing Di Jiu did was refine Dharma treasure.

The pile of materials he possessed was as tall as a mountain. Everything had been obtained from the Qi Family’s Commercial Building. What he needed now was to improve his blacksmithing skills before refining a good disguise Spirit Weapon.

Di Jiu used up piles and piles of materials. Due to the existence of the Dao Fire Luminous Starry Sky, his blacksmithing skills improved drastically. Two months later, he became a Grade-Four Blacksmith Great-Master that could refine low-grade Spirit Weapons.

Di Jiu wanted to improve his blacksmithing skills even further, but he unfortunately had no more materials left. There were very limited materials over level five among the materials he had acquired at the Qi Family’s Commercial Building.

Blacksmithing was an extremely expensive job. He had used many level-four materials from the Qi Family’s Commercial Building to become a Grade-Four Blacksmith Great-Master. Thus, he would need just as many level-five materials if he wished to become a Grade-Five Blacksmith Great-Master.

Di Jiu chose the best disguise Spirit Weapon from the low-grade Spirit Weapons he had refined and disguised himself as an unassuming young man with a small mustache. Then, he refined a saber scabbard for his Heaven Aqua.

The Heaven Aqua needed to absorb Heaven Earth Dao runes before it could be upgraded. Otherwise, Di Jiu would have already placed it into his ring.

However, even after doing all these things, Di Jiu was still not at ease. Thus, he continued to temper his Spiritual Force even while he was traveling. The Spiritual Force escape technique would become more powerful as his Spiritual Force strengthened. Di Jiu attempted many times to repress his cultivation aura fluctuations at the early-stage Essence Soul Realm, so as not to attract attention.

…

Two and a half months after Di Jiu had left the Five Continent City, he arrived at the Twilight City.

Compared to large cultivation cities like the Sky Route City and the Five Continent City, the Twilight City looked a little rundown. Di Jiu let out a sigh of relief when he saw that there was no arrest warrant for him. He immediately submitted two middle-grade Spirit Stones and entered the city.

When he did, he noticed that the streets were mottled and rugged and the stores on both sides of the street were just as rundown.

After crossing two streets, Di Jiu saw a building with a unique appearance. This eye-catching building, which was located amid the surrounding rundown architecture, looked majestic.

At the entrance of the building was a sign with the words “The Prophecy Pavilion’s Mission Department Twilight Branch”.

When he walked into the building, Di Jiu discovered that there were more people there than out on the street. This caused Di Jiu to believe that the majority of the cultivators in the Twilight City went there for this building.

The moment he entered the building, Di Jiu heard several cultivators talking. He immediately stopped walking and pretended to be reading the gigantic mission tablet. However, his attention was fixed on the cultivators.

“I’m sure you don’t know this, but I just heard that Young Master Gun of the Five Young Masters ascended to the 72nd level. Second place did not go to Young Master Yan of the Mirage Sword Sect, but Young Master Mu of the Purple Thunder Sect. He was at the 69th level, which is a few levels lower than Young Master Gun.”

“This is only the beginning. Those who placed first at the beginning might not clinch the first position in the end. Plus, Gun Yantao of the Ocean Monarch Palace is more than 200 years old. On the contrary, Yan Tashan of the Mirage Sword Sect is rumored to be way younger than 200 years old. In terms of potential, Yan Tashan is stronger than Gun Yantao and the Five Young Masters.”

“He he… Is there any difference between cultivators below 500 years of age with a cultivation at or below the Ekayāna Tripod Realm?

“This is unfortunate. If it wasn’t for the mission on the Herald Night Lake, I would definitely have gone to the Five Continent Square.”

“That’s alright. We will still be on time if we head over right after we’re done here.”

…

All the cultivators talked about was the Five Continent Dao Pagoda Ascension. No one mentioned anything about the Book of the World or the arrest warrant. Di Jiu had not seen any arrest warrants while he had been outside either. Could things be different than he had imagined?

Once the fact that he had spent time beside the Book of the World was exposed, Di Jiu thought that there would be two possibilities. He either would be hunted down for a random reason, or the relationship between him and the Book of the World would be listed on the arrest warrant. Although the second possibility could expose the Book of the World, it would expose him more easily.

No one would want the Book of the World for themselves, even if it was clearly stated that it was in his possession. This was what would happen if top-notch experts or powerful powers issued a warrant.

However, Di Jiu was left speechless when he heard that a fella of several hundred years of age was still being called Young Master.

“Are you also thinking of going to the Herald Night Lake to pick the Roast Divine Herb, my friend?” asked a loud voice.

Di Jiu suddenly discovered that he was looking at a huge screen that stated that a team was forming to head to the Herald Night Lake. Anyone who wanted to join was supposed to meet in Room No. 7 on the second floor.

“Roast Divine Herb? What is that useful for?” Di Jiu could be considered quite knowledgeable. Even though he had yet to read the entire Book of the World, he possessed general knowledge. However, this was the first time he’d heard of the Roast Divine Herb.

The person who had asked this question was a weather-beaten middle-aged man almost at the third-stage Essence Soul Realm. When he heard Di Jiu’s question, he realized that Di Jiu did not even know what a Roast Divine Herb was. “You must have come from a faraway place. Did you arrive at the Twilight City recently?”

Di Jiu instantly put up his guard. What was that supposed to mean? His Spiritual Force immediately swept out. When he was ready to flee at a moment’s notice, he said slowly, “That’s right. Please guide me.”