Chu Xuan stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Han Yiren and Yang Feixiong's deaths are most likely closely related to Xin Changqing. From his behavior during the day, he probably wanted to kill as well, but I refused the task and stayed in the city, so he couldn't make a move. I intentionally left a clue, handing him leverage. It seems to have played right into his hands. Now that he has sothing on , he hasn't reported it but instead gave treasures, clearly with another plan in mind. Perhaps he intends to use the leverage to control , forcing to do things for him."
A smile crept onto Chu Xuan's face.
"Desire is a good thing. It's the people with no desires that are truly frightening. At least I can see now that although Xin Changqing is from the Majestic Sword Sect Sect, he's no longer aligned with the righteous path. As for what exactly he is up to, I'll just have to keep watching."
In the following days, Chu Xuan adhered to a regular routine. He spent most of his ti in the warehouse, repairing the damaged puppets. Perhaps because puppets shared a commonality with corpse puppets, his understanding of puppetry improved by leaps and bounds. At first, he was clumsy and slow, but after just ten days, he was already able to swiftly repair lightly damaged puppets. He estimated that in another month or two, he'd be able to repair moderately damaged ones as well.
Looking at the freshly repaired puppet in front of him, Chu Xuan smiled with satisfaction. "I guess I'm sowhat of a half-baked puppeteer now?" He chuckled softly.
Just then, footsteps echoed from outside.
"Ancestor Gao! Sothing big has happened! Ancestor Xin asked to summon you!"
A voice called urgently from the door.
For Foundation Establishnt cultivators, Nascent Soul cultivators were considered ancestors.
Hearing the ssage, Chu Xuan couldn't help but chuckle.
'Xin Changqing, you're moving quickly, but this might draw the attention of the Deity Transformation cultivators.'
"Alright, I'll be right there."
With that, Chu Xuan strode out of the warehouse, heading directly to Xin Changqing's residence. Soon, he arrived and saw Xin Changqing, who appeared serious and tense.
"Junior Brother Gao, sothing major has happened," Xin Changqing said gravely "Heaven-Four City and Heaven-Five City have both fallen in the past three days! Also, your Senior Brother Luo has died!"
Chu Xuan was stunned. "Fallen so quickly? Senior Brother Luo is dead? How did he die?"
Xin Changqing's voice grew darker. "We don't know. It's very likely they used a large number of forbidden-breaking talismans. When Fellow Daoist Bai from the Feiry Sky Cloud Pavilion and I arrived, that dium spiritual stone mine had already been destroyed by the demonic cultivators. Not a single spiritual stone was left."
Chu Xuan's shock deepened. "Demonic cultivators are truly despicable! To fight against us, they're even willing to use forbidden-breaking talismans!"
The Reincarnation Divine Sect had gained the upper hand largely due to their use of puppets. To control puppets, they required a vast amount of spiritual stones. Even when not in use, these stones had to be consud for maintenance. For the Reincarnation Divine Sect, spiritual stone mines were incredibly important.
Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.
Chu Xuan then asked, "What about Master Miaoyong from the Celestial Sound Zen Temple? How is he? Does he need rescue?"
Xin Changqing lowered his voice. "That's exactly what I wanted to talk to you about. Our sect has given us orders to kill Miaoyong!"
Chu Xuan was taken aback. "Kill him? He's a Nascent Soul mid-stage cultivator, I'm no match for him."
Xin Changqing spoke again in a low voice. "I'll go with you!"
Chu Xuan shook his head. "But I don't want to go."
Xin Changqing frowned. "Junior Brother Gao, I still haven't spoken about the matter of you killing Feng Qian. Now, when I need you to do sothing, why are you hesitating?"
Chu Xuan smiled faintly. "What has Master Miaoyong done to warrant a kill order from the Reincarnation Divine Sect? As for taking with you, I suspect you want to use as a human shield."
Xin Changqing's smile faltered, and he imdiately swung a palm toward Chu Xuan's head. However, he suddenly realized that his hand wasn't moving.
After a mont of careful observation, he realized the truth. It wasn't that his hand wasn't moving—it was simply moving too slowly. His brain had already issued the command, yet his hand remained still, as if soone else were controlling his body.
"You poisoned ?!" Xin Changqing's face shifted through several emotions.
Chu Xuan smiled. "We're even now, aren't we? You've set up your own puppets in the dark as well. The poison I used is called the Broken Mind Powder. After so modifications, it's far stronger now."
Xin Changqing took several deep breaths and slowly withdrew his hand. For a long while, he stared at Chu Xuan, before suddenly smiling. "Gao Xuan wouldn't have such a sophisticated poison technique. Who are you?"
Chu Xuan smiled, "I once spent so ti in Heavenly Sword City and made so progress in pill refining. I'm sure Fellow Daoist Xin had your disciples investigate my background. You, Fellow Daoist Xin, once sent a few veiled words, advising to leave that extraterritorial battlefield. I still rember that advice."
Xin Changqing was stunned for a mont, then after deep thought, he suddenly realized and exclaid in disbelief, "He Liang!"
Chu Xuan nodded. "Indeed, it's ."
Xin Changqing looked at Chu Xuan for a long ti before sighing, "I didn't expect you to still be alive. True Master Tiancang went to Mystic Azure Star later on. I thought you would have been killed by him."
Chu Xuan raised an eyebrow. True Master Tiancang had been to Mystic Azure Star? He must have been cultivating on Blue Star at that ti, no wonder he hadn't known about it.
Cough cough...
"So, can you cure the poison for ?" Xin Changqing said helplessly.
Chu Xuan flicked a white pill towards him.
Without hesitation, Xin Changqing caught it and swallowed it, saying, "I trust you."
Chu Xuan smiled without speaking. It wasn't until several dozen breaths later that Xin Changqing began to feel his body returning to normal. He sighed deeply, "I never expected we'd et again like this. Co, Fellow Daoist He, please take a seat!"
The two of them sat down, both silent for a while. Eventually, Xin Changqing couldn't hold back any longer, forcing out a bitter laugh, "Fellow Daoist He, why don't you speak?"
Chu Xuan smiled, "It's you, Fellow Daoist Xin, who plans to defect to the demonic path. It's not that I'm the one switching to the righteous path. I'm not in a hurry, so why should I speak first?"
Xin Changqing couldn't help but smile wryly. This He Liang was indeed no pushover. He had seen through everything at a glance.
"I haven't completely joined the demonic path, though. Right now, I'm just sitting on the fence," Xin Changqing said with a grin. "I'll help whoever wins."
Chu Xuan casually replied, "Han Yiren, Yang Feixiong, Luo Yan—those were all your doing, weren't they?"
Xin Changqing nodded, "Yes, I sold their information to the demonic cultivators."
"Then, this ti, you want to join you in killing Miaoyong. Is it because you want to use as a human shield?" Chu Xuan casually remarked.
Xin Changqing chuckled awkwardly, "It's not that I want to use you as a human shield... I really do consider you one of my own."
Chu Xuan rolled his eyes inwardly.
You think I'll believe that?
Xin Changqing cleared his throat a few tis. "As for Miaoyong, the Reincarnation Divine Sect really did order his death."
"Oh? Why?" Chu Xuan asked in surprise. "He's a Nascent Soul mid-stage cultivator. Why would the Reincarnation Divine Sect not want him? Isn't this the ti when we need all the help we can get?"
Xin Changqing's face turned serious. "That formation he's involved with has a huge problem! If that formation succeeds, we might all beco sacrificial pawns for the Reincarnation Divine Sect's last-ditch effort!"
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