Chapter 235 - 232: An Old Acquaintance

Chapter 235: Chapter 232: An Old Acquaintance

For a moment, Chen Qingyang couldn’t discern the Qi Mechanism, so he didn’t make any rash moves.

A moment later, Senior Brother Tong returned, holding a brocade box.

"Everyone, the Xuanji Star-Attracting Wheel is right here."

He opened the brocade box, and a gentle radiance scattered out, like a burst of starlight—utterly magnificent.

Chen Qingyang also felt a Qi Mechanism unique to Star Maps.

The Xuanji Acupoint, in addition to cultivating Gang Qi, could also cultivate Star Power. The power within this object was exceptionally pure, truly living up to the name "Star-Attracting Wheel."

But as the starlight faded, its true form was revealed. It was only a few inches square, its main body the color of bronze, exquisitely carved, with a piece of translucent white jade embedded in the center.

Senior Brother Tong held it in his hand. The delicately carved bronze object began to rotate, layer by layer, with a certain mechanical beauty. It was strikingly similar to when Chen Qingyang had first seen the Golden Lotus.

The Nine Nether Mechanic Divine Palace truly lived up to the "Mechanic" in its name.

"Junior Brother, have you seen it clearly? I’ll hand the entire brocade box over to you now."

The man from the Divine Palace immediately nodded. "Thank you, Senior Brother Tong. I prepared a gift before I came. I’ll present it to you in just a moment."

"Haha, we’re all friends here, Junior Brother. There’s no need for such pleasantries."

The Star-Attracting Wheel was in Senior Brother Tong’s hand. Just as he was about to place it back in the brocade box, the figure in the darkness moved.

The figure shot out a short staff that, with incredible speed, snatched the Star-Attracting Wheel right out of Senior Brother Tong’s hand. It then fled outside at an equally astonishing pace.

No one had anticipated this sudden turn of events. Senior Brother Tong panicked. "Who is this thief? How dare you act so brazenly on the True Demon Sect’s territory!"

He circulated his aura, which erupted in a Profound Gold radiance shrouded by a lustrous, glassy sheen. This aura was incredibly powerful—as indestructible as the Five Elements Essence, yet uniquely blessed like the Wood of the Five Elements.

There was no trace of the Netherworld, no Yin Fiend, and none of the blood-red light forged from human flesh. Among Demon Sects, this True Demon Sect technique could be considered quite orthodox.

In an instant, he shot off in pursuit of the black-robed figure.

The remaining few people sprang into action, and in almost no time, all of them had left the Mountain Foot Palace.

’A good show is about to start.’ Thinking this, Chen Qingyang also hurried to follow. After snatching the treasure, the black-robed figure fled in another direction across the Demon Sect’s territory, covering a hundred li in a mere moment.

The mountains here were tall and the forests dense; the black-robed figure was nowhere to be seen.

The twelve of them gathered to confer. The few from the Divine Palace were especially frantic. "Senior Brother Tong, this is unacceptable! The item wasn’t stolen from my hands, but from yours. This doesn’t count as a successful delivery!"

Hearing this, Senior Brother Tong grew visibly annoyed. "Hmph, you don’t need to tell me that. I’m well aware of the situation. Someone dared to pull this stunt on the True Demon Sect’s turf. Do you really think I’d let them get away?"

As he spoke, his hands formed a hand seal.

As the Qi Mechanism around him surged, a vertical, glassy eye seemed to materialize in the center of his brow. It pulsed with a Profound Light, gleaming an intense, lustrous black.

After only a moment, he said, "Trying to snatch something from me? It’s not that easy. He can’t have gotten far. We’ll split up. One group will search from south to north, and the other from north to south. We can corner him."

The man from the Divine Palace was suddenly overjoyed. "Ah, Senior Brother Tong, you can actually sense the Magical Treasure’s location? Incredible!"

But Senior Brother Tong couldn’t be bothered with him. "Junior Brother, let’s just get moving."

With their instructions given, everyone set their routes and began to search the mountains.

’I have to admit, this Senior Brother Tong is impressive,’ Chen Qingyang thought. His judgment was correct; the dark figure was indeed somewhere in these mountains. Chen Qingyang had been able to sense the person’s Qi Mechanism the entire time.

’They probably won’t be able to escape.’

What puzzled him, however, was that the True Demon Sect didn’t seem to be enveloped by a massive Array like the Tai Xu Sect or other major Demon Sects. If it had been, the black-robed figure would have never gotten away in the first place.

Senior Brother Tong ignored everyone and took off on his own, heading straight in the direction of the black-robed figure.

The other groups he had dispatched effectively blocked all the figure’s possible escape routes. It seemed his connection to the Magical Treasure was crystal clear.

The black-robed figure was also remarkably cautious. Fearing their movements would be tracked, they darted about the mountains erratically. But no matter which way they turned, they were eventually cut off.

"Stop running. You can’t escape!"

Senior Brother Tong stood calmly in mid-air, his arms crossed. He seemed utterly confident in his cultivation, certain he could cut down his opponent.

The figure said nothing, simply striking out again with the short staff. It commanded a thick, dark brown qi that shot straight toward Senior Brother Tong.

Senior Brother Tong once again used a True Skill of the Demon Sect. His body took on a glassy, gem-like sheen as if he had become a Magical Treasure himself, and he shot forward to meet the attack.

With a thunderous BAM, he knocked the Magic Staff back. For someone at the Fourth Realm Cultivation level, he was truly powerful.

But after losing the Magic Staff, the black-robed figure remained unruffled. They produced an object shaped like an Incense Burner, glinting with brilliant silver light, and immediately sent it smashing down toward Senior Brother Tong.

Senior Brother Tong threw a punch, his robes fluttering wildly as his True Essence surged to its absolute peak. As the two attacks collided, the powerful force of the impact tore the mountain ridge apart.

After clashing head-on with that move, it seemed neither had gained an advantage.

The black-robed figure clutched their chest and coughed a few times, appearing to suppress a mouthful of blood.

Senior Brother Tong, having used his body as a Magical Treasure, was left with tattered clothes. The exposed flesh beneath had transformed into an indestructible, glassy substance. However, a trickle of blood from the corner of his mouth revealed that he, too, was far from unscathed.

"So, it’s a technique from the Divine Palace," Senior Brother Tong’s voice boomed as he questioned the figure. "Don’t drag me into your internal squabbles! Why didn’t you wait until after I handed it over to try and steal it?"

The black-robed figure opposite him didn’t answer, simply launching another attack. There wasn’t much time left; the earlier commotion had been too great and would surely attract the others soon.

"Hmph! You’re courting death!"

Senior Brother Tong snorted coldly. His entire body transformed into that glassy, gem-like color as his aura suddenly surged severalfold. The sheer power of it was enough to stun the black-robed figure.

This black-robed figure was quite skilled as well. In addition to the Magic Staff, they could simultaneously control three other Magical Artifacts. The artifacts—one gold, one white, and one black—orbited them majestically, a testament to the power of their Divine Soul.

Just at the critical moment when both were about to go all out, a brilliant flame suddenly exploded on Senior Brother Tong’s back. It took the shape of a dragon and was immensely powerful.

Out of nowhere, Senior Brother Tong was smashed heavily into the ground, his status unknown.

The black-robed figure froze, stunned by this development, especially when they saw Chen Qingyang appear.

Chen Qingyang retracted his technique and hurried over, saying softly, "Junior Sister Lin, let’s go!"

He grabbed her hand, and their figures vanished from the spot. When they reappeared, they were hidden in a canyon.

Small golden words floated before his eyes: [Only stole Immortal Seedling 2456]. Just now, he had only severely injured Senior Brother Tong; he hadn’t dared to kill him.

Based on the might displayed by the Golden Core True Monarch that day, he knew that if Senior Brother Tong had died, the True Monarch’s overwhelming pressure and Divine Sense would have swept across this land in moments.

"Senior Brother Chen, how can you be here?" Lin Qingxuan was far more shocked to see Chen Qingyang than he had been to see her.

This was Demon Sect Land, and he was from a Daoist Sect. Moreover, the last time she’d seen him, he had only been in the Qi Refining Realm. Now, his cultivation was actually higher than hers.

A pace like that was equivalent to breaking through an entire realm each year!

Chen Qingyang didn’t answer, just stared straight at her. A thought seemed to strike Lin Qingxuan, and she removed the black veil from her face, revealing a delicate, pretty, and slightly pale face.

Her expression was just as he remembered from the Four Golden Peaks: gentle and frail. Though her slender figure was wrapped in black robes, she still exuded an air that was both cold and fragile, as if she might shatter at any moment!

The only difference was the conspicuous piece of Armor behind her ear. He remembered seeing it last time and knew it extended all the way down to her chest.

Chen Qingyang was now completely certain. This was, without a doubt, Junior Sister Lin.

"Junior Sister Lin, I didn’t expect we’d meet again under these circumstances."

In his heart, however, Chen Qingyang knew this wasn’t a complete coincidence. When he’d decided to head toward Duling City, the thought of Lin Qingxuan had already crossed his mind.

Lin Qingxuan looked him up and down. She felt that her own changes paled in comparison to his. The world-weary air he once had was gone, replaced by a youthful, gentle warmth. Yet, the moment he attacked, he possessed the sharp lethality befitting a Sword Cultivator.

He was no longer the cautious, rule-abiding old man she remembered from the Four Golden Peaks, nor was he the man she’d last seen trailing behind the other Inner Sect Disciples.

"Senior Brother Chen, this is Demon Sect Land! Why are you here? It’s too dangerous!"

In truth, Chen Qingyang had recognized her much earlier. He had hesitated before intervening, considering that people can change.

Hearing her say this now brought a sense of familiarity. "Before you ask me," he said, "you should tell me what you’re doing. Do you have any idea that if I hadn’t been here, you would have almost certainly died today?"

It was just like back at the Four Golden Peaks. This Senior Brother always spoke in a level tone that carried an indescribable authority, especially to new Miscellaneous Task disciples like them.

Today, it felt like he was interrogating her, too.

"I..." Lin Qingxuan stammered, then sighed. "If I told you I’m fighting for my own path to the Great Dao... would you believe me, Senior Brother?"

Chen Qingyang nodded without hesitation. "Of course, I believe you. How else would you have achieved your current level of cultivation?"

The last time he had seen Lin Qingxuan, she had already changed drastically, becoming utterly ruthless and willing to do anything to achieve her goals.

Coupled with the fact that she possessed the Profound Nether Storage Body, her Divine Soul was naturally stronger than an ordinary person’s. Otherwise, Master Xuan Gui would never have used her as a tool for his ’Golden Cicada Shell’ escape plan.

A constitution like hers was one in ten thousand. She had a natural affinity for Divine Soul Techniques, allowing her to cultivate at an incredible speed.

In theory, as long as her Divine Soul advanced quickly enough, she could continuously embed all sorts of Armor-Protecting Treasures into her body until she eventually became a Foundation Establishment Master.

"Give me the Star-Attracting Wheel." Lin Qingxuan didn’t understand his intentions, but she handed over the item she had risked her life to steal.

Chen Qingyang took it and, using the Nanming Red Emperor’s Method, performed a Sacrificial Refinement to erase Senior Brother Tong’s lingering traces from the artifact.

"Here," he said, handing it back. "Let’s find another spot first. Then you can tell me everything."

"Okay."