"But now, I want you to stay here." The black-robed Daoist stretched out a withered right hand from his wide sleeve, lifting Lu Chen's chin. "I suddenly have a feeling that, if I keep you here, I can seize way more treasures when the mist surges than I would otherwise.
"I don't know why this idea ca to , but a cultivator's intuition is rarely wrong."
He let out a hoarse, grating laugh, like nails scraping across a blackboard. "Hehehehe... You may only be at the Qi Regulation Realm, but you must have heard as much. Trusting one's intuition shouldn't be a difficult concept to understand."
"Senior, this won't do. I'm only at the first level of the Qi Regulation Realm. I doubt I'd even survive the mist," Lu Chen said, panic rising as he listened to the Daoist's laughter. He had no intention of staying and tried to talk his way out, rattling off his shortcomings.
The black-robed Daoist barked, "Low cultivation, yet you're able to resist my aura? Low cultivation, yet you wield such a formidable weapon spirit? You little brat, you lie the way you wipe your ass—wipe it clean and throw it away."
Releasing his spirit qi, he swept up Lu Chen and the others and carried them to the front of the Scripture Hall. "Kid, weren't you here to gather resources? Go inside. For the next month, you'll remain here. Step out once, and your friends die."
"What are you planning?" Lu Chen slamd his palms against the ground, pushed himself to his feet, and stepped in front of Jun Laoye, planting the Hunyuan Greatsword firmly before him. "You may be strong, but I won't let you harm them."
"Weren't you just about to swear an oath? Then watch how to threaten people effectively, rather than ntioning the Heavenly Dao that has now vanished."
The Daoist shoved Lu Chen aside, crouched beside Jun Laoye and Nantian Yijian, and pressed a blood-red mark on their foreheads. "This is a Heavenly Dao Mark. It only imitates the Heavenly Dao's power, but both its thod and force are nearly the sa as a true oath. If they move three hundred ters away from the hall, the marks will detonate."
"You..."
Hearing the black-robed Daoist's threat, Lu Chen instantly dropped the Hunyuan Greatsword and pulled Nantian Yijian into his arms, sending his spirit qi against the mark on his forehead in an attempt to erase it. Yet despite his efforts, the mark showed no sign of fading.
"What do you an by 'you'? Don't believe ? Test it yourself. And wasn't there a girl with you? Where did she go?" The Daoist snatched up the Hunyuan Greatsword, glanced around, and sneered. "No matter. Let her run. As long as you don't, that's all that matters."
"How do I remove the Heavenly Dao Mark?" Lu Chen asked, watching the Daoist toy with his sword. "Tell first, or how do I know you're not lying?"
"Removing the Heavenly Dao Mark is easy," the Daoist stopped toying with the sword. "Just find soone stronger than . Or obtain a Heaven-Born Treasure. Or better yet, find the Heavenly Dao itself."
"Uh... each of those sounds harder than the last," Lu Chen muttered softly, eyeing the Daoist. "You're basically just making things impossible for ."
"Exactly. How else would I keep you here?" The Daoist suddenly furrowed his brow. "Strange. Why has the mark on this boy vanished?"
He flipped Jun Laoye over and narrowed his eyes at Lu Chen. "Who is he? Why doesn't the mark work on him?
"No Heaven-Born Treasure, with cultivation only at Qi Regulation... The only ones in this world immune to the Heavenly Dao Mark are those of my clan. Tell , boy, what's his surna?"
Standing beside Jun Laoye, Lu Chen replied cautiously, "His surna is Jun. Why? Is there a problem?"
"Jun? That explains it." The Daoist tossed the sword back to Lu Chen. "If I'm not mistaken, this one has an uncle here nad Jun Wudi."
Lu Chen caught the blade, scratching his head. "Uh... yes, he does. Why?"
"No matter. Since he's part of the Jun Clan, the mark won't work. Even if I forcefully engraved it, it would still be useless."
The black-robed Daoist pulled back his hood, revealing an aged face, and burst into laughter. "I don't know which branch he's from, but long ago, I too bore the na Jun. I shared a fine relationship with Jun Wudi."
"Huh? Senior, you're also from the sa clan?" Lu Chen studied the faint resemblance to Jun Laoye. Recalling how the Serene Void Academy's disciples had called Jun Laoye the Second Young Master, pieces began to fit together.
Lowering his head, Lu Chen's mind raced. With Jun Laoye's family ties, we might manage to escape coercion. Or even use this chance to gain access to the cliff and reap so benefits.
"A long, long ti ago, I truly was part of the clan," the Daoist said, rubbing his hands with a smile. "But now, it ans nothing to . Tell , what exactly is your connection to Young Jun?"
"Senior Jun, I offer my respects. I am the new personal disciple Uncle Jun recently accepted. May I ask about your relationship with him?"
Lu Chen addressed the black-robed Daoist with the deanor of soone seeking kinship. He stepped forward, dropping to one knee with both hands to the ground in a proper junior's bow. "Besides Jun Laoye, the other is also my junior brother. His na is Nantian Yijian.
"The girl from earlier is Nantian Wan'er. She, too, shares a deep connection with Uncle Jun and will return shortly."
"So you are the new disciple Young Jun has taken in? Impressive." The black-robed Daoist stretched out a hand, clapping Lu Chen heavily on the shoulder as he muttered to himself. "Six hundred years without taking a disciple, and now you've accepted two at once. One is a prodigy, and the other is from the Nantian Sect. Young Jun, your eye for talent is remarkable.
"Since you are my juniors, I won't make things difficult for you. You may enter and search for secret manuals, and I'll lift the Heavenly Dao Marks that would have bound you. But you must promise not to leave. When the mist surges in a few days, I'll guide you down, and we might reap so benefits then."
"I understand. Senior Jun, since you've spoken, we naturally won't leave. Who would refuse such a fortunate encounter?"
Lu Chen bowed again, a faint smile tugging at his lips as he prepared to carry his two unconscious companions into the Scripture Hall.
"Wait!"
Lu Chen turned back with a smile at the call. "Yes, Senior Jun? Do you have further instructions?"
The Daoist waved his hand and tossed a command token to Lu Chen. "Take this. I'm not the only black-robed Daoist here. With it, it will be easier for you to enter the Scripture Hall. But rember, trust no one. Even within the Scripture Hall, factions are divided."
Lu Chen caught the token and felt a sudden wave of dizziness. He bit his tongue and recited the Ice-Heart Command, forcing his mind clear. "I understand. Thank you, Senior Jun."
He bowed once more, stored the token, and swiftly carried Jun Laoye and Nantian Yijian into the Scripture Hall.
The black-robed Daoist laughed heartily. "Not bad. This token has been with for nearly ten thousand years. It carries so of my spirit qi and pressure. Even a Core Breakthrough cultivator would collapse before it, yet that brat manages to withstand it with only Qi Regulation Realm cultivation."
When he looked forward again, Lu Chen had already left. "Already inside? Was he that eager? And...that Nantian boy still carries the curse marks. Reckless, but a once-in-a-millennium prodigy indeed. With the marks as connections, at least I can intervene if needed."
The Daoist chuckled, returned to the cliff's edge, and released his spirit qi to scan the mist below. After so ti, unable to gauge when it would surge, he muttered to himself before soaring into the clouds.
Monts after his departure, dozens of other black-robed figures appeared along the cliff, each inspecting the mist. Though dressed alike, their movents and speech carried entirely different airs.
***
The vast chamber on the first floor of the Scripture Hall stretched nearly a hundred zhang in every direction. It was so silent that even a pin drop could be heard. Since the announcent a month ago, no one had set foot inside, leaving only Lu Chen and his two companions here.
"Wind Dragon, co out. We're safe now," Lu Chen gently laid his two unconscious companions on the ground, brushing his hand across Nantian Yijian's brow. The Heavenly Dao Marks flickered faintly, seeming as though it was about to vanish. "As I thought, they were already fading earlier. Luckily, that black-robed Daoist didn't notice, or it would've caused even greater trouble."
"You did well, Little Lu. Having that awareness shows you've matured as a cultivator," Wind Dragon erged from the Hunyuan Greatsword and said softly. "Never lower your guard before a stranger, or the price will be heavy."
"I can't allow what happened at the village to repeat. I'll have to be more cautious now," Lu Chen said, sighing and leaning against the wall beside Nantian Yijian. "Wind Dragon, check on Little Jian. Why did the Heavenly Dao Mark lose its effect on him?"
Wind Dragon hovered above, examining carefully. "Alright. But I suspect it has to do with his Wish Power. The strength of the Heavenly Dao itself is a kind of Wish Power, so it makes sense that he could dissolve the mark. Hmm? Strange... the Scripture Hall seems to block divine sense."
Patting Lu Chen's head lightly, Wind Dragon murmured. "I can only extend mine to fifty ters. Well then, this is the perfect ti to release Miss Wan'er."
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