San Xiao Set Sail, Turning the Tables

Looking at the San Xiao sisters arriving arm in arm, each with a distinct yet equally radiant aura, Xuanwei's lingering anxiety instantly subsided by more than half. It was replaced by a trace of... guilt, like being caught red-handed doing something wrong? After all, he still had a "love child" hidden beneath his medicine garden, something that couldn't see the light of day (literally).

"Senior Sister Bixiao, Senior Sister Qiongxiao, Senior Sister Yunxiao." Xuanwei quickly put down his "watering can" (mentally) and stepped forward to pay his respects, forcing a look of surprise (and innocence) onto his face. "Why have you come? Are you also concerned about the situation in the East Sea?"

"Nonsense!" Bixiao, being the most impatient, spoke first. "Those bald... guys from the Western Teachings ran all the way to our doorstep to set up a formation, calling it 'Guiding the Fated'? Do they think the Intercepting Sect is just for show? Eldest Sister said we can't just stand by and watch; we have to go give them some trouble!"

Xuanwei's heart bloomed with joy. It was like needing sleep and someone handing you a pillow! He was just worrying about how to subtly shift the blame... ah, no, how to unite forces to sabotage the Western Teachings, when three powerful reinforcements (who also happened to be the epitome of beauty) showed up on their own!

He cautiously cast his gaze towards Yunxiao, who had remained silent. The steady anchor of the three sisters, her cool gaze was thoughtfully sweeping over his medicine garden, lingering slightly on the area he had secretly covered with the "Low-Tier Chaos Barrier."

Xuanwei's heart skipped a beat. No way? Senior Sister Yunxiao's senses are that sharp? She can detect anomalies even in a low-tier Chaos Barrier?

"Junior Brother Xuanwei," Yunxiao finally spoke, her voice still cool but with an undeniable certainty, "you seem unusually concerned about the Western Teachings' actions this time?"

Here it comes! The soul-searching question, late but present!

Xuanwei's mind raced faster than the currents within the Chaos Bead. On the surface, however, he displayed a perfectly calibrated "worry." "Senior Sister, you see clearly. I merely find the Western Teachings' actions quite peculiar. If they were truly searching for something, they could have done it discreetly. Why make such a grand display, even setting up a formation so obviously aimed at 'guiding'? I worry... their intentions might not be simply to find an object, but something else entirely, perhaps even... a scheme targeting us disciples of the Intercepting Sect."

He skillfully broadened "I" to "us disciples of the Intercepting Sect," attempting to slip by unnoticed.

Yunxiao gave him a deep look, a gaze that seemed capable of piercing through his immortal qi form and seeing the Chaos Bead in his sea of consciousness, pretending to be an ordinary bead.

"Your concerns are not unfounded," Yunxiao said, not probing further. "Maitreya's previous words about 'Karma/Fate' at Biyou Palace were not baseless. The Western Teachings are accustomed to using such methods to subtly influence, cloud people's minds, and forcefully forge karma. Their current formation might indeed be intended to use it to forcibly 'guide' disciples who have 'karma' with our sect... or rather, those they deem to have 'karma,' to the West."

Xuanwei felt a chill down his spine. Good heavens, forced teleportation plus mental manipulation? That's even more ruthless than human traffickers!

"Then we absolutely cannot let them succeed!" Bixiao waved her small fists, indignant. "We must go tear down that damned formation!"

"Second Sister, do not be hasty," Qiongxiao gently restrained her, analyzing. "The opponents are prepared, with at least one Quasi-Saint (Maitreya might be hidden) and several Grand Unity Golden Immortals. Rushing in to fight them head-on is not the best course of action."

"Senior Sister Qiongxiao is right." Xuanwei quickly chimed in, throwing out his (revised) plan. "I also feel a direct confrontation is unwise. Perhaps we could... 'turn their plan to our advantage'?"

"Oh? How so?" Yunxiao's eyes flashed with interest.

Xuanwei cleared his throat (mentally) and began to deceive... ah, no, to explain. "The Western Teachings want to use the formation to 'guide the fated,' so they must rely on some form of 'marker' or 'induction.' If we can find the core of their induction, or... create a fake 'fated' target for them, diverting the formation's power in the wrong direction, or even... causing it to create trouble for them, wouldn't that be better than directly dismantling it?"

"A fake 'fated' target?" Bixiao's eyes lit up. "Sounds fun! How do we do it?"

Xuanwei chuckled, his gaze "inadvertently" sweeping over the few "mutated" Spirit-Nourishing Grasses in his medicine garden, which had grown exceptionally robust due to his cultivation with Chaos Qi, even faintly exuding a trace of Dao Rhyme.

"I am not talented, but I have some experience in cultivating spiritual plants. Recently, I happened to create a... little something." He feigned mystery. "Due to my unique cultivation technique, these spiritual plants have a different aura from ordinary ones. Perhaps... they can simulate a 'Karma/Fate' fluctuation that would interest them?"

His words were half true, half false. The true part was that these spiritual plants had indeed mutated from absorbing his Chaos Qi. The false part was that his real trump card was the Chaos Bead! He could completely use the Chaos Bead to simulate any aura fluctuation he desired to "deceive" the formation! Using a few plants as a cover was merely to conceal the Chaos Bead's existence.

Yunxiao's gaze swept over the mutated Spirit-Nourishing Grasses again, then looked at Xuanwei. A faint, almost imperceptible smile seemed to flash across her cool face.

"This method... is not entirely unfeasible," she nodded slightly. "Using their own methods against them. If successful, it would be enough to make the Western Teachings suffer a silent loss."

"Eldest Sister, you agree?" Bixiao jumped up excitedly. "Then let's go quickly! I can't wait to see those bald donkeys' dumbfounded expressions!"

Qiongxiao also smiled and nodded. "Junior Brother Xuanwei's plan is excellent. It avoids direct conflict while also blunting their edge."

Plan successful! Xuanwei gave himself a mental thumbs-up.

Without delay, the four made some preparations and quietly left Golden Ao Island. They took to the sky, heading directly towards the direction of Liubo Immortal Island in the East Sea. To avoid alerting the enemy, they did not use large flying artifacts but instead employed their individual escape techniques.

Bixiao, being impatient, rode the Golden Flood Dragon Scissors, transformed into a golden light, flying at the forefront. Qiongxiao rode a auspicious cloud, neither fast nor slow. Yunxiao remained her usual cool self, the faint glow of the Primal Chaos Golden Dipper enveloping her, as if merging with the surrounding space. Xuanwei, however, grumbled internally as he operated his Heavenly Immortal-level Five Elements Escape Technique, barely managing to keep up with the speed of the three peak Mysterious Immortal senior sisters, lamenting again that low cultivation meant no rights.

Along the way, Xuanwei was not idle. While flying, he secretly communicated with the Chaos Bead, adjusting the parameters for simulating the "bait" signal. He decided to go big – since the Western Teachings were interested in "Chaos" and "Primordial" auras, he would simulate the aura of a "weak but extremely high-quality, as if injured and fleeing, Primordial Chaos Spiritual Treasure"! Such a "big fish," they wouldn't be able to resist taking the bait!

Several days later, the four quietly arrived at the outer sea area of Liubo Immortal Island. As expected, from afar, they saw several golden Buddha Lights flashing at specific points around the island, faintly forming the outline of a massive and mysterious formation wheel. The air was filled with a gentle yet forcefully attractive peculiar fluctuation, the power emanating from the "Guiding Formation."

"The formation is not yet fully formed, but its core has been activated," Yunxiao observed for a moment, her voice cool. "The ones presiding over the formation are Pharmacist, Sunlight, and Moonlight. Maitreya... has not appeared, perhaps lurking in the shadows."

"Who cares if he's here or not!" Bixiao rubbed her fists. "Junior Brother Xuanwei, quickly take out your 'precious grass' and let's give them a surprise!"

Xuanwei nodded and took a deep breath. First, he took out a mutated Spirit-Nourishing Grass from the medicine garden that looked the most "ordinary" but secretly contained a trace of Dao Rhyme (a smokescreen). Then, he fully activated the Chaos Bead in his sea of consciousness!

Buzz!

An extremely faint, yet extremely high-quality, ancient aura from before the primordial chaos, weak yet possessing supreme allure – the "Chaos Spiritual Treasure" fluctuation – centered on that Spirit-Nourishing Grass, rippled out quietly like a stone dropped into a calm lake!

To make it convincing, Xuanwei deliberately made the fluctuation appear intermittent, waxing and waning, as if a damaged spiritual treasure was unconsciously emitting its aura.

The moment this fluctuation appeared—

Rumble!

The massive golden Guiding Formation in the distance, like a shark smelling blood, suddenly lit up! The formation's power was no longer emitting indiscriminate guiding force, but like a searchlight, it precisely locked onto the "Spirit-Nourishing Grass" in Xuanwei's hand... or rather, onto the "bait" signal simulated by the Chaos Bead!

"It's reacting!" Bixiao exclaimed in a low voice, her tone filled with excitement.

The golden light at the center of the formation blazed, and a gentle yet irresistible guiding Buddha Light, as if crossing space, instantly shot towards their location! Its target was directly aimed at that "Spirit-Nourishing Grass"!

"Now!" Xuanwei roared, and just as the guiding Buddha Light was about to envelop the "Spirit-Nourishing Grass," he abruptly cut off the Chaos Bead's simulation output. At the same time... he secretly gave that poor Spirit-Nourishing Grass a boost, making it shoot towards the source of the guiding Buddha Light – the formation core – as if grabbed by an invisible hand!

This move of his was equivalent to shoving a "fake bait" directly into the "fish's" mouth!

The next moment, a sudden change occurred!

The Guiding Formation seemed to have not expected the "fated object" to be so "cooperative." The formation's power instantly produced violent fluctuations! The originally stable golden light began to twist and shake! And that Spirit-Nourishing Grass, which Xuanwei had tampered with and contained unstable Chaos Dao Rhyme, upon entering the formation's core area, was struck by the immense Buddha power—

Bang!

A muffled sound, and the Spirit-Nourishing Grass actually... exploded!

Although the power was not great, the trace of Chaos Dao Rhyme contained within it fiercely clashed with the pure Buddha power, instantly triggering a small-scale energy disturbance in the formation's core!

"Pfft!"

The three, Pharmacist, Sunlight, and Moonlight, who were presiding over the formation, clearly hadn't anticipated this sudden turn of events. The backlash from the formation struck them, causing their bodies to falter simultaneously. Their faces turned pale, indicating they had sustained minor injuries. The light of the entire Guiding the Fated formation dimmed and became chaotic, and the powerful guiding force was greatly weakened.

"Hahaha! This is hilarious!" Bixiao couldn't help but burst into laughter upon seeing this. "Trying to steal a chicken only to lose the rice! Serves you right for messing with the guiding!"

Qiongxiao covered her mouth and chuckled softly. Yunxiao also had a hint of a smile flash in her eyes, but it quickly turned solemn. "They'll react soon, we..."

Before she could finish, another anomaly occurred!

Perhaps stimulated by the explosion of Chaos Dao Rhyme, or perhaps the disruption of the Guiding the Fated formation had touched something deeper—

BOOM!!!

From the deep sea beneath everyone's feet, a vast, ancient, and terrifying will, filled with extreme rage, suddenly erupted! It was as if a slumbering primordial beast had been thoroughly provoked!

Immediately after, a colossal claw, indescribably huge and covered in thick, dark scales, swept up torrents of murky waves and the terrifying power of Yi Mu Chaos Qi. It descended like a demonic hand reaching up from the deepest abyss, striking fiercely at the chaotic golden light of the Guiding the Fated formation!

It was that Mysterious Ink Turtle! It had been disturbed again! And this time, its fury was clearly directed at the formation that was "making noise" right at its doorstep and emitting a Buddhist aura that it detested!

"Not good!" Xuanwei's expression changed. "Quick, retreat!"

Without his reminder, the San Xiao sisters reacted even faster! The Primal Chaos Golden Dipper's golden light swept out, instantly enveloping Xuanwei, Bixiao, and Qiongxiao, transforming into a streak of light as they retreated rapidly!

Almost the very next second after they retreated—

CRACK! BOOM—!

That terrifying giant claw landed squarely on the Guiding the Fated formation!

Golden light shattered! Buddhist chants wailed mournfully! Pharmacist, Sunlight, and Moonlight were like fallen leaves swept by a gale, spitting blood as they were sent flying back in disarray. The Guiding the Fated formation, which hadn't fully taken shape, was utterly destroyed by this single claw strike, dissolving into a sky full of dissipating golden light!

A contingency left by a Quasi-Saint (Maitreya)? A formation presided over by Grand Unity Golden Immortals? In the face of an enraged peak Grand Unity Golden Immortal, a Primordial Remnant Species bearing Xuanwu bloodline, they were utterly vulnerable!

From a distance, Xuanwei and the San Xiao sisters hovered in the air, watching the apocalyptic scene. The cold, giant eyes of the Mysterious Ink Turtle, slowly emerging on the sea surface like a moving mountain range, filled them with lingering fear.

"We went too far... This time, it seems we've gone a bit too far..." Xuanwei swallowed (non-existent) saliva.

However, just as he thought the crisis was temporarily resolved and he could retreat with his three senior sisters, the Mysterious Ink Turtle seemed to have vented its anger. Its cold, giant eyes slowly turned, ignoring the three fleeing figures from the Western Teachings, and instead... sharply focused on Xuanwei, who had just regained his footing!

An even more precise, colder, and scrutinizing intent, with a hint of... confusion? It pierced through the void like countless icy needles, locking onto Xuanwei!

Xuanwei's entire body stiffened, his Immortal Qi core almost frozen by this intent!

He clearly felt that the reason this old turtle had fixated on him was not due to the previous offense, but rather... the residual fluctuation of the Chaos Bead's origin, which he couldn't completely conceal when he simulated the aura of a "Chaos Spiritual Treasure"! And, the power of the Remnant Seed of Jianmu, which was closely connected to his aura!

It's over! The real target has found me!

This was the only thought left in Xuanwei's mind.