Su Chen was not the least bit surprised by the Remnant Spirit's compromise. If they had reached that most crucial step, the other party might still have had the possibility of playing a ga of chess with him.
But this was only the beginning. No matter what this fellow was thinking in its heart—whether it wanted to seize the initiative, attempt a counter-kill, or offer bait before seizing his body again.
No matter the situation, it had to demonstrate its own value first.
'To the Remnant Spirit, using so thod to make The Chosen is its most important card. But to , I rely want to see the Profession Requirents.'
Su Chen mused to himself. As long as he kept a tight grip on this point, he could slowly play along with it.
Wiping this fellow out would be very simple, but extracting what it knew and squeezing out its value bit by bit would inevitably require so thought and effort.
"That would be for the best."
Leaving behind that single sentence, Su Chen severed his communication with the Remnant Spirit.
"Su Chen?"
The Remnant Spirit called out tentatively a few tis, but received no response.
"He grasps the limits of propriety far too well." It couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief inwardly. It had thought that this concession would cause Su Chen to intensify his efforts and extort even more secrets out of it.
It had even prepared counterasures, yet it hadn't expected the other party to end the exchange so decisively.
Although it had avoided a potential conflict, it also made the Remnant Spirit feel that the situation was becoming increasingly thorny.
"This kid is too cunning. He completely lacks the ntality soone his age should have. He won't be easy to fool. I can only take things slowly."
In truth, it didn't really care much about this concession in its heart.
Morning Star Artifacts and whatnot were entirely irrelevant to the bigger picture.
Entering the Flare Realm was also just a beginning. Only by gaining as much of Su Chen's trust as possible could it execute a 'one-hit kill' at the optimal mont.
"It's just..." It then couldn't help but think, "To think this fellow actually obtained the Recognition of the Three Dragons... It truly is Unimaginable. And then there's this Space."
It raised its head and looked up. A massive red-gold figure was standing right in front of it, and it was currently resting in its palm.
Flas and lightning burst forth in the surroundings at all tis. In the distance, it could vaguely make out a pile of things of various shapes gathered together.
Whether it was a burly, blood-gold figure or a hazy, transparent orange cluster of light, it couldn't see clearly.
"...Just what exactly is this place?"
Su Chen naturally had no idea what the Remnant Spirit was thinking. His gaze had already fallen upon the ceaselessly rotating gears around him. The tempering ti for the Flash-Shadow Body had only just begun. He would still have to stay here for a very long ti.
...
"Senior Brother Qin, please stop here."
At the main gates of the Qin Family estate, Zhou Yunyang waved his hands repeatedly, pushing back and forth with the burly Qin Lie. However, Qin Lie disregarded his protests and insisted on seeing him off all the way to the main gates.
"You're being far too polite." Zhou Yunyang could only offer a Bitter Smile as he cupped his hands and took his leave.
"Deacon Zhou."
On his way back, many people greeted him. Zhou Yunyang responded to each of them with a smile, feeling quite pleased with himself internally.
'My skill at navigating social situations from all sides has already reached the pinnacle of perfection. I've maintained a good relationship with Su Chen. And even after Qin Yun's power waned and everyone began cutting ties with the Qin Family, I still maintained contact with them in secret a few tis. Qin Lie's impression of is extrely good.'
'Who would have thought? Venerable Qin Yun actually saw the error of his ways when facing death, going so far as to bow and scrape before Junior Martial Uncle. Junior Martial Uncle also possessed the magnanimity to forgive and forget, lting the ice of their past grievances.'
'Relying on the Incense and Offering Sentint of the past, the Qin Family's future is still promising.'
'As for Junior Martial Uncle's side, I also need to visit more often.' Zhou Yunyang thought of Su Chen. He naturally knew that his act of playing both sides couldn't be hidden from others.
But he hadn't intended to hide it in the first place. All he wanted to do was build good relationships, not beco soone else's absolute confidant or subordinate. It wasn't that he didn't want to, but rather that it was impossible.
Take Su Chen, for example. He had been in The Order for so long, but who could truly pledge their loyalty to him?
Ding Fan? They rely had so friendship. In terms of growth rate, how much better was he compared to himself?
The people Su Chen constantly employed were still those from his own ho planet.
'Maintaining this kind of relationship is enough. A future Ancient King... What a pity, I don't know if I'll live to see it.'
Humming a little tune, Zhou Yunyang made his way back to the Artifact Hall. He had a shift in the afternoon, and he was accustod to arriving early.
However, just as he turned the corner, his expression shifted slightly. Amidst the continuous stream of sect personnel passing in front of the Artifact Hall, a young boy with a sowhat tender and immature expression stood there, looking left and right.
Upon seeing him, the boy's eyes imdiately lit up. He quickly walked over, bowed deeply in a grand salute, and respectfully called out, "Deacon Zhou."
Zhou Yunyang furrowed his brow. "Why is it you again? I've already told you, I am not accepting any students."
Hearing this, the boy's face remained expressionless, but he appeared quite resolute. "As long as you do not accept , I will co to visit you every day. I have already paid my respects to Deacon Zhou today. Goodbye."
The boy spoke decisively, turning sideways to leave.
Zhou Yunyang's eyes flashed slightly, and he called out to stop him. "Wait."
The boy halted his steps and turned around, a look of joy on his face. "You've agreed?"
Zhou Yunyang felt a slight headache coming on. He raised a hand and said, "Hold on a mont. Your na is..."
He seed sowhat hesitant. The boy hurriedly provided, "He Peiting."
"He Peiting." Zhou Yunyang slowly nodded. Just as he was about to speak, his gaze drifted to the side, spotting a middle-aged man walking out of the Artifact Hall.
Seeing the boy, the middle-aged man was also sowhat taken aback, then teased, "Old Zhou, this kid has been coming here for days now. You should just accept him."
"Get lost," Zhou Yunyang scolded with a laugh. After his colleague left, he finally led He Peiting into the Artifact Hall and up to his office on the second floor.
After closing the door, he had the boy sit down while he turned to brew a cup of tea.
The boy looked flustered and reached out with both hands to accept it.
Zhou Yunyang chuckled. "There's no need to be nervous. Sit down, sit down."
He pressed the boy down into the chair. "I am actually quite curious. Why do you insist on acknowledging as your Teacher? You possess a Dual Profound Purple talent, and your foundation isn't bad either. You were able to enter the Holy Hall, and you have no entanglents with those large families."
"Logically speaking, more than one large family within the sect should have already approached you."
The boy before him cradled the teacup, lowering his head in thought for a mont. Then, he looked up and said firmly, "You are different from them. Your lineage has no heirs left."
Zhou Yunyang's face darkened, and he sneered, "No heirs left? What do you an by that?"
The boy spoke sincerely, "Since I wish to acknowledge you as my master, I naturally must speak plainly. You are a descendant of a Morning Star lineage, but your family mbers have withered away. Upon reaching your generation, the line has completely been severed. If I can beco your student, you will definitely devote all your efforts to cultivating . Your Resources and connections will all be used on ."
"As for those large families, they are not lacking a single person like . I would rather be the head of a chicken than the tail of a phoenix."
As his voice faded, a faint black glint seed to flash across his eyes.
"The head of a chicken?" Zhou Yunyang's expression was icy as he stared at the resolute-looking boy before him. In his heart, however, he was sowhat surprised. He had thought this person would spin so sort of excuse or reason, but he hadn't expected him to be so straightforward.
He had ambition, and he had talent. Put like that, it didn't seem as though he couldn't be nurtured.
Of course, what truly moved him was that, for so unknown reason, he could faintly see a shadow of his past self in this child, giving rise to a sense of unprovoked intimacy.
In the stagnant atmosphere, his dark expression gradually lted away, and he let out a laugh. "Hahaha! You certainly are straightforward, without any attempt to hide it."
The boy's expression shifted slightly. Seeming both probing and excited, he said, "In the presence of my master, I wouldn't dare hide anything."
"Hah." Zhou Yunyang first shook his head, then nodded. "Then for the ti being, I will accept you as my student."
"Yes, Teacher!" He Peiting's face was filled with great joy. He quickly backed away, moved the chair aside, and kowtowed three tis on the spot.
"Get up, get up." Zhou Yunyang waved his hand. "Under my tutelage, there is no need for such tedious formalities."
He pondered for a mont. "You have only recently arrived at the sect, so you probably don't have a place to live. How about this: I still have a few properties in Yinshan. You can go and stay there for now."
He Peiting did not yet have the qualifications to live on the Floating Islands near the Bronze Core. Even Zhou Yunyang didn't have them, having to commute back and forth from the nearby Satellite City every day.
"Thank you, Master!" He Peiting had an excited look on his face. He then asked cautiously, "I heard that Master has an extrely good relationship with Star Seed Su Chen?"
"I wouldn't exactly call it extrely good." Zhou Yunyang cast a glance at him and said plainly, "But we can barely manage to hold a conversation. What, do you want to et him?"
He Peiting hurriedly shook his head. "No, no, no. On my way here, I watched the live broadcast of the Peak Star Tournant, and a feeling of reverence was born in my heart because of it."
"It is only right to feel reverence." Zhou Yunyang smiled. "Once so ti has passed and there's an opportunity, I can take you to et him."
He Peiting was overjoyed. "Thank you, Master!"
The master and disciple exchanged pleasantries for a mont before Zhou Yunyang had him take his leave for the ti being. In his heart, however, a montary doubt arose—'Did I really just take on a student just like that?'
When He Peiting was present, he hadn't felt much, but now he was faintly beginning to regret it. Yet having just accepted him, refusing him now...
"Forget it. I'll observe his temperant first." Zhou Yunyang shook his head.
He Peiting walked out of the room and went downstairs, faintly feeling gazes sizing him up.
Stepping out of the Artifact Hall, his expression reined itself in, and a black glint flashed across his eyes before vanishing.
This Zhou Yunyang was indeed not simple. There was a probability he could learn of that information.
He Peiting was naturally the Advent Body of Black Buddha. He had expended quite a bit of effort to enter this Bronze Sect.
He had sought out Zhou Yunyang at the very first opportunity. He ca with several objectives in mind. The first was to determine whether this Zhou Yunyang was deceiving him; this held a priority even higher than his other goals.
He had asked around and found that this Zhou Yunyang was well-connected in many places. It was entirely possible that the information from before had been discovered by him.
After that ca Su Chen.
However, he raised his head to glance at the dazzling Starfire overhead. "I didn't expect those few fellows to have all entered the Flare Realm. Originally, I thought there was no hope for the Falling Fire, but right now, it doesn't seem entirely impossible."
"I don't know what went wrong with that Believer either. To think he hasn't prayed to for so long."
The power this Advent Body of his could mobilize was limited. Just slightly influencing that Zhou Yunyang a mont ago had nearly completely drained him.
Moreover, this was the Bronze Core. If he used abilities that were too powerful, he would be discovered instantly.
If he truly wanted to take action, without the help of that Believer, the ti and effort expended would increase massively.
"This Zhou Yunyang can strike up a conversation with Su Chen. For the short term, I still need to keep him around..." Black Buddha mused as he rged into the flow of people.
...
In the Bronze Core, Su Chen's eyes seed both unfocused and intensely concentrated as he stared fixedly at the Status Panel. It wasn't until the mont the three words 'Completed' appeared at the end of the observation requirent that he finally let out a long sigh of relief.
"It's finally completed..."
Stowing away the Status Panel, his gaze swept over his surroundings. The rotating gear structures continued to click and clatter incessantly.
But in his eyes, it was a completely different scene. The rotational speed, angle, and even the interlocking timing of every single gear flowed through his mind.
The Mimicry speed of the surrounding environnt had already been cranked to an extrely high level, but in the span of a few flowing thoughts, Su Chen's mind had already reproduced the trajectories of these gears' rotations countless tis over.
Not only that, but the Conceptual Requirents had also been completed so ti ago.
In other words, the Sacred Class—Shadowstep Form was now almost only lacking the final step of Job Entry.
Su Chen naturally felt a sense of impatience. Upon exiting the Bronze Core, Ku Boye was lying in the corner as always. Su Chen went up and offered a familiar greeting, and the other party replied with a barely audible "Hmph."
Only then did he walk out of the Grand Hall and open his Comm-Bracelet to check his ssages. During this period right after the Ancient King's disappearance, people's hearts were unsettled. There was no telling if so major event might have occurred.
Sure enough, he quickly scanned a ssage that Chu Ran had sent him not long ago—
"Holy shit. Han Xingliu was attacked. It's said his life or death is unknown."
Han Xingliu was attacked?
Su Chen was astonished. Narrowing his eyes, he swiped through a few pieces of information. Chu Ran had only given a rough overview.
Ever since the conclusion of the Peak Star Tournant and the disappearance of the Ancient Kings, it could be said that dark undercurrents were surging through the Dust Star Sea. All sorts of rumors of unknown veracity were flying everywhere, leaving people dazzled and confused.
This was news from a month ago. Han Xingliu had encountered an ambush and assassination attempt on his journey back to the Royal Court.
The assassin had been smacked to death on the spot by the furious King Peng.
"Tsk..." Su Chen was also quite surprised. This was the son of the Vast Sea Emperor and a Star Seed of the Royal Court.
For a fellow of this caliber, let alone encountering an assassination attempt, others wouldn't even dare to look at him too many tis.
Who exactly had made a move to attack and kill Han Xingliu was currently a matter of concern for the entire Dust Star Sea.
Opinions were divided. So pointed the finger directly at the Longriver Clan.
There were also those who said it was the work of people harboring ulterior motives stirring up trouble in secret.
So even claid it was infighting within the Royal Court. Yet, despite suffering such a provocative humiliation, the Royal Court still had not shown any reaction to date.
"To be in such a rush, soone with a grudge against the Royal Court... Could it be one of the Five Great Sects? It shouldn't be..."
Su Chen muttered to himself as he walked toward the Port. Before he even reached his destination, a figure suddenly blocked his path. "Star Seed Su..."
Su Chen's eyes flickered. Standing before him was none other than Qin Yun's son, Qin Lie.
"Junior Martial Uncle..." Qin Lie kept his attitude very low, appearing even more respectful than the last ti he went to the Floating Island to invite him. "It's like this. The last ti my father hosted a banquet, because he was bound by restrictions, he was unable to have a long, heart-to-heart talk with Your Excellency."
"After the banquet ended, he brought it up several tis, repeatedly urging to invite you over for a chat with him."
Qin Yun inviting ... Su Chen grew thoughtful. He was probably truly treating him as that Remnant Spirit.
Should he make the trip?
Su Chen understood in his heart that Qin Yun had already co to view the Remnant Spirit as his final lifeline. If the Remnant Spirit he believed him to be failed to fulfill its promise, there was no telling what this fellow might do.
Hmm, leaving everything else aside, if Qin Yun were to expose the matter of the Remnant Spirit himself and present so evidence, even if Su Chen could prove his innocence, it would likely cost him quite a bit of effort.
'Should I go under the guise of the Remnant Spirit to pacify him a bit?' This thought rely flashed through Su Chen's mind before he abandoned it.
Even though he still had his trump card, 'Great Sovereign, Save ', he didn't want to take the risk. Contacting the other party under the identity of the Remnant Spirit would only leave behind more leverage against him.
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