Chapter 1048: The Heavenly Intelligence Pavilion’s Methods

Unbeknownst to Gu Yong, Li Guanqi sensed the spirit mark being forced out of Shen Feng the moment it happened.

“Hehe, so my little smokescreen was discovered.”

Li Guanqi sat in his study for a long time, deep in thought. The candle flame wavered, and a thin trail of incense smoke rose from the burner before him. At last, he shook his head with a bitter laugh, pulled out an old jade slip, and rubbed his nose. “Grandpa, Gu Yong stole the Heavenly Intelligence Map from me. Now he’s trying to swallow up my Guanyun Pavilion.”

He sighed. “I know you’re busy, but your grandson’s getting pushed around out here every single day. I’m not saying this to complain. It’s just that I can’t beat that old guy. Some Mahayana Realm cultivator stole my sword coffin too. Forget it. You’re busy. I’ll handle it myself.”

Li Guanqi set down the jade slip with a faint smile. It was worth a try. If his grandfather could step in and deal with the Heavenly Intelligence Pavilion, all the better.

Li Guanqi’s priority was to grow stronger as quickly as possible. The rivalry between the two pavilions didn’t interest him. In fact, he thought it was pointless. Gu Yong had an ulterior motive, while Li Guanqi stood to gain very little beyond wealth.

In the Seventh Territory, a slightly pale Su Xuan listened to Li Guanqi’s message and shook his head with a bitter smile. “That little brat has come crying to me… But your grandfather really can’t spare anyone right now…”

He looked up at the terrifying barrier sealing the entire Seventh Territory, his expression grim. His robes were so heavily stained with dried blood that they were almost entirely dark red. He let out a breath, put away the jade slip, and continued slowly across the mountains of corpses and seas of blood.

Four powerful cultivators followed him, covered in blood, their faces stern. They were heading above the seven territories, the only place where they could break the sealing barrier. However, the attempt would be extremely dangerous. Up there, the immortals’ power was less suppressed, allowing them to wield far greater strength.

Back in his study, Li Guanqi sat motionless for a while after setting down the jade slip, then pursed his lips and muttered, “I figured I wouldn’t get any help, but I didn’t think he’d completely ignore me!”

Despite his grumbling, he frowned with worry. He hadn’t heard his grandfather’s voice in a long time, and the prolonged silence left him uneasy. He’d also tried every way he could to contact Peng Luo, but received no response. That, however, was a good sign. It meant no one had breached the space inside the sword coffin yet.

Meanwhile, in a mysterious spatial fragment within the Ethereal Immortal Territory, Zhang Qixuan frowned at the sword coffin hovering in the middle of a canyon, enveloped in countless eerie lights. “Will this ancient altar of yours really work?”

Yu Changbo smiled faintly and produced a fingernail-sized shard of the sword coffin. “If you’re right about something else being hidden inside, our Yu clan’s altar can definitely open it. At the current rate, though, it’ll take at least several decades.”

Zhang Qixuan waved a hand. “If it’s only a matter of time, I can afford to wait.”

He cast a sidelong glance at the man and sneered. “Heh, I didn’t think you’d actually never come looking for me. In the end, I had to make the first move myself.”

Yu Changbo’s expression grew a bit strained. “You know how it is. The Yu clan isn’t mine to command alone. Sometimes I simply don’t have a choice.”

Zhang Qixuan turned his back to the altar. “Actually, the Yu clan could be yours alone.”

Yu Changbo’s eyes widened. He stared intently at Zhang Qixuan’s back as a flurry of thoughts raced through his mind. After a long breath, he said, “Don’t say things like that again.”

Zhang Qixuan laughed and left it at that. As he turned to leave, he said, “Pick up the pace. Don’t worry about the resources. I’ll bring them next time.”

Once Zhang Qixuan was gone, Yu Changbo turned back to the sword coffin in the canyon, frowning. “What’s hidden inside that sword coffin to make Zhang Qixuan go to such lengths? He’s determined to open it even at the risk of being killed!”

Yu Changbo knew he was already in the same boat as Zhang Qixuan. He knew full well who stood behind Li Guanqi. Zhang Qixuan had also placed safeguards on the sword coffin to keep Yu Changbo from secretly probing its secrets. The entire spatial fragment was concealed, so no one knew what was happening there. Yu Changbo was the only member of the Yu clan who even knew Zhang Qixuan had come to their domain.

Yu Changbo’s eyes flickered as he murmured, “If we don’t fight and take risks, the Yu family will never rise!”

The other clans still had their ancestors, while the Yu clan alone was weak. It wouldn’t be long before the others moved against them. Yu Changbo had gambled everything because he’d seen who backed Zhang Qixuan. That was the most important reason he’d decided to get involved.

Back in his study, Li Guanqi put away the jade slip. His thoughts turned to how he could absorb the Heavenly Intelligence Pavilion entirely.

He stared into space for a long while before murmuring, “Once Gu Yong dies, the Heavenly Intelligence Pavilion dies with him!”

The Heavenly Intelligence Pavilion would endure as long as Gu Yong lived. Whatever its losses, he could slowly rebuild it. Without him, none of the Four Tower Lords could keep it together. He alone controlled a sliver of nearly every senior member’s divine soul.

It was no different for Su You. Li Guanqi held his soul lamp and could kill him at will. Gu Yong held the same power over the Heavenly Intelligence Pavilion’s middle and high-ranking members. His death would leave no one in control of their divine souls, and the organization would fall apart.

Yet once he’d worked this out, Li Guanqi’s expression changed again. If he could see it, surely Gu Yong could too? Perhaps the old man still feared the forces behind Li Guanqi and could only use the rivalry between the two pavilions to crush the Guanyun Pavilion. Whether he attacked its reputation or something else, all he needed was to make the pavilion disappear. He didn’t have to kill Li Guanqi.

Li Guanqi sighed and leaned over his desk, rubbing his aching brow.

A slightly panicked voice reached him through a transmission. “Pavilion Master, Qian Qiusui just went into seclusion to break through!”

Li Guanqi shot to his feet, sensing trouble, and appeared in the main hall of Yunding Auction House. Qian Qiusui was hovering in midair. Frowning deeply, he rushed over and pulled her into his domain. The forces surging inside the woman’s body were on the verge of tearing her apart.

Yu Hua’s voice came through again. “I checked. There’s something wrong with the pills Qian Qiusui received a while ago! They don’t contain any toxins, but there’s enough energy in them to force her to break through as soon as she takes them!”

Li Guanqi narrowed his eyes. Damn it!

The auction was only days away. Forcing Qian Qiusui to break through now would disrupt all sorts of plans.