Five Thunder Temple's Li Cunyuan: Just Follow My Arrangements

"Crackling!"

Sparks flew everywhere, and the relentless flames devoured everything around them, even igniting the fallen Formation Flag.

Just a quarter of an hour ago, it was still in Elder Jia's hands, representing the highest authority of the Yin Corpse Sect on this Lightless Island.

But just a quarter of an hour later, it had turned into a pile of brocade ash.

The battle ended so suddenly that many viewers didn't even get a clear look at the specific details of the fight.

From their perspective, Xiao Chen seemed to have effortlessly flattened the Fourth-tier Defensive Formation while strolling around.

Some cultivators even saw him slap the center of the formation once, and then the entire formation collapsed with a roar.

"Snap!"

Feeling the blazing flames that were only three zhang away, a disciple of the Five Thunder Temple panicked and his hands trembled, causing the bamboo chopsticks in his hands to slip from his fingers and fall to the ground.

The entire Lightless Tavern had fallen into silence.

At that moment, the sudden sound, like a thunderclap, startled everyone, but they quickly regained their senses.

One of the disciples was already ashen-faced, almost unable to breathe due to the pressure from the Spiritual Power fluctuations generated by Xiao Chen's actions.

So he instinctively asked for help, "Senior Brother Li, the Yin Corpse Sect's great formation seems unreliable."

"How about we sneak out the back door first?"

Another disciple urged, "Senior Brother Li, the fire is about to spread along the roof; you'd better make a decision quickly."

However, Senior Brother Li, who was in the lead, had fallen into a complete daze.

As the saying goes, the layman sees the spectacle, while the expert sees the details.

As Golden Core True Disciple carefully nurtured by the Five Thunder Temple and destined to become one of the sect's future pillars, he received extensive training and instruction.

One of these tasks involves, in the absence of one's own True Lord, cooperating with fellow disciples to use Fourth-tier Defensive Formation to delay the True Lord, who is the hypothetical enemy.

To buy sufficient time for the overall victory in the battle.

In the overall planning of Five Thunder Temple, this time should not be less than two days.

Therefore, the words he chose to say when comforting his Junior Sister were already quite conservative.

But what did he see now?

Let alone two days, even if you add in all the talking time, it wouldn't even amount to 25 minutes.

Where the hell did this monster come from?!

"Daoist Zhao, didn't you say that going it alone would take at least ten days to half a month?"

On the other side of the Lightless Tavern, the other cultivators were also panicked. "You actually spouted nonsense on such an important matter!"

"Daoist Zhang, this... that's how it's written in the books."

The Daoist Zhao who had spoken earlier was also completely bewildered. "I don't know why things have turned out this way either."

"Oh, I see. It must be that the Array Master within the Yin Corpse Sect were incredibly audacious and created a mere imitation!"

"They're all heartless, I'm not lying!"

Lacking experience, this fellow Daoist Zhao instinctively judged others by his own standards and immediately thought of his favorite pastime—taking kickbacks.

So they naively assumed that the reason this was happening was because there was something wrong with the outer formation itself.

That's not the case. The fact that this Defensive Formation has held up for so long is actually quite impressive.

Among all the Fourth-tier Grand Array that Xiao Chen had experienced, it was enough to rank in the upper-middle range; it was not just for show.

If it were another Newly Promoted True Monarch, following the normal procedure of gradual probing, it would really take several days to break the code.

However, it's true that the Yin Corpse Sect is heartless.

With the great formation destroyed, Xiao Chen's Divine Sense had already bypassed the walls and entered the interior of the camp.

They soon discovered a large number of rogue cultivators imprisoned in iron cages.

Among them were cultivators of all ages, men and women, and almost all of them had been tortured beyond recognition.

Moreover, the number is far more than the hundreds that Red Tassel True Person had previously mentioned.

With just a quick glance, Xiao Chen saw at least six or seven hundred people.

More than half of them were Qi Refining Cultivator. Due to insufficient cultivation, they were unable to heal their wounds on their own, and they looked even more battered and bruised, which was truly shocking.

Deep inside, there are several specially made prison cells.

Among them were seven Golden Core cultivator, two of whom looked somewhat familiar to Xiao Chen; they were none other than the companions of Red Tassel True Person.

To be honest, the reality is even more exaggerated than expected.

This single Lightless Island alone has imprisoned so many Golden Core cultivator; how many people must have been persecuted throughout the entire Lightless Sea?

Seventy?

One hundred and seventy?

Conversely, of all the rogue cultivators who barely escaped from the Compassion Sea to this place, how many have survived to this day?

They were from no sect or faction, and had come from afar, having no foundation in the Lightless Sea.

Even if he disappeared without any apparent reason, it wouldn't cause any stir among the local cultivators.

If Xiao Chen hadn't happened to come along and witnessed this heinous act...

It's estimated that this matter can be suppressed quietly and remain unknown to outsiders.

Even the stories that circulated later.

It's possible that the Yin Corpse Sect actively combated evil sects and promptly discovered the lurking evil cultivators within its borders, successfully eliminating this large group of potential demonic cultivators in their infancy.

"Hongying, the person is inside."

Xiao Chen waved his hand to disperse the fire, but instead of entering the prison, he waved behind him and said, "There are no guards in the prison anymore."

"Go in and see for yourselves the details."

With the main objective of rescuing people achieved, the remaining trivial tasks such as opening the prison door and treating injuries can be left to them.

Secondly, Xiao Chen had an even more important task while staying outside: to quell the unrest.

Indeed, with the destruction of the Yin Corpse Sect Sect's Stronghold, chaos has broken out on Lightless Island.

The Core Area is fine; no one dares to cause trouble near a True Lord.

However, on the island's edge, many independent cultivators seemed to misunderstand the current situation.

They actually believed that the island had lost its order.

So he drew his Flying Sword Incarnation into Bandit Cultivator, attempting to take advantage of the chaos and rob the other rogue cultivators of their possessions.

If it were a cultivator filled with hatred, they would probably only be focused on dealing with the Yin Corpse Sect and taking stock of their wealth, and wouldn't bother with them.

However, since it was Xiao Chen who came, he naturally wouldn't tolerate these Bandit Cultivator murder and arson.

He first enveloped the entire island with his Divine Sense, carefully identifying which of the people on it were Bandit Cultivator.

Then, they unleashed the Yin-Yang Twin Swords, wiping them out completely.

Finally, a warning was sent via telepathy. "The Yin Corpse Sect is gone, but that doesn't mean this place has become a lawless zone where anyone can act with impunity."

"Anyone who dares to take advantage of this opportunity to cause trouble will be met with zero mercy from this True Lord!"

After intimidating them, Xiao Chen secretly scanned the island twice with his Divine Sense to confirm that peace had been restored.

Then they entered the rear of the Stronghold and found the Yin Corpse Sect's Warehouse on the island.

Since this was just a Stronghold, there wasn't much of value in the Warehouse.

There were only some low-level spiritual items and nearly 790,000 Low-grade Spirit Stone.

Xiao Chen first patiently and carefully screened through the items to make sure he didn't miss any rare spiritual items that might be among them.

Of course, as it turned out, there were no special spiritual items mixed in for anyone to snag.

However, he didn't mind and put all these things into two empty small Storage Ring.

Xiao Chen no longer needs to worry that these miscellaneous items will be troublesome to deal with in the future.

All we need to do is send them to the New Cultivation World, and then give them, along with their Storage Ring, to Zhang Cunfu to deal with.

Many independent cultivators have been freed from their shackles and released from prison.

When they saw Xiao Chen come out of the Warehouse, many people immediately came forward to thank him.

"Thank you so much for your great kindness and virtue, senior. I will never forget it in my lifetime!"

"Senior Xiao is kind and benevolent, saving us from dire straits. I, this humble woman, thank you in gratitude!"

"Thank you so much, Senior Xiao, for saving my life. I have no way to repay you, so I kowtow to you!"

With one person taking the lead, the rest immediately knelt down, chanting various words of gratitude.

One of the Golden Core cultivator even burst into tears on the spot, shedding tears of relief.

It wasn't that he lacked resolve; it was simply that fate played a cruel trick on him.

Almost everyone present had survived the Kunpeng Sea by the skin of their teeth, and they thought that even if they couldn't get through the hardship, they wouldn't suffer any more great disasters.

Unexpectedly, they were targeted by the dominant force of the Lightless Sea and arrested under the pretext of being evil cultivators, subjected to various forms of torture.

Some cultivators, in utter despair while in prison, even took their own lives to escape the humiliation and torture inflicted by the Yin Corpse Sect disciples.

The rest of the people also persevered through all the difficulties, hoping for a miracle every day.

Now that it has finally seen the light of day again, how could I not be excited?

However, aside from those who were overjoyed and celebrating having their lives saved,

Some cultivators also witnessed their relatives and friends being taken away or brutally murdered on the spot by the Yin Corpse Sect.

Overwhelmed with grief, he burst into tears on the spot.

In an instant, some were happy while others were sad.

"This junior pays respects to the True Lord!"

Suddenly, a group of cultivators walked in from outside and bowed deeply upon meeting. "Li Cunyuan, the current True Disciple of the Five Thunder Temple, is fortunate to pass by this place today and witness the divine might of the True Lord."

"I have brought my fellow Junior Sister to pay my respects to the True Lord."

"The True Lord is compassionate, the True Lord is unparalleled in the world!"

Several Five Thunder Temple following behind him also shouted, "True Lord, you are compassionate! True Lord, you are unparalleled in the world!"

Um?

Xiao Chen glanced at them with some surprise, a hint of curiosity in his heart.

Five Thunder Temple?

He doesn't seem to be familiar with the Five Thunder Temple either, does he?

If that's the case, what are these Five Thunder Temple disciples doing here?

However, as the saying goes, one doesn't hit a smiling face. Since the other party was clearly there to praise him, he naturally wouldn't put on a cold face.

Xiao Chen responded gently, "So you are a esteemed disciple of the Five Thunder Temple. No need for formalities, please rise."

Then he asked, "What brings you here at this time?"

Upon hearing this question, the other disciples all looked at Senior Brother Li, who was in the lead.

Li Cunyuan took a deep breath and then looked up to reply, "Reporting to True Lord, I was merely leading my fellow disciples on a mission when I happened to pass by this place."

"However, the Five Thunder Temple has always taken it upon itself to slay demons and eliminate evil."

"I just heard that the Lightless Island a den of iniquity, with even a demonic being among its inhabitants. That's why I've come here specifically to offer my humble assistance."

"If there is anything we can do to help you, please just let us know!"

To be honest, Li Cunyuan actually fine.

However, since such a special opportunity has come up, and after observation, it has been found that Xiao Chen does not seem to be a bloodthirsty person, but rather a kind-hearted one.

So naturally, he wouldn't let this opportunity slip by, and instead took the initiative to step forward, hoping to become a familiar face to the other party.

In the Cultivation World, fortuitous opportunity rarely come knocking on your door.

Therefore, astute people tend to seize every favorable opportunity and bravely take action to create opportunities for themselves.

For Li Cunyuan, this was an opportunity to strike up a conversation with a stranger True Lord.

Even if today's efforts are in vain, and all that's left is to become a familiar face, or even if the other party forgets about him in the blink of an eye.

But what if?

Nascent Soul True Lord have long lifespans; if you can make a good impression on them today, you might find it useful someday in the future.

Often, not all efforts yield results.

However, Li Cunyuan was still willing to seize every possible opportunity and strive for that one in a million chance.

"Help?"

Xiao Chen smiled and said, "It's good that you have the intention, but I'm afraid you can't help much right now."

"Hmm, you could go and talk to Hongying and the others to get a good understanding of the true nature of the Yin Corpse Sect."

"If we can promptly report the evil deeds that have occurred here back to the Inner Sea, then we can consider it a good deed."

He originally intended to refuse outright.

However, seeing the other party's serious expression, he simply recommended him to Red Tassel True Person.

Besides, no matter what, the Five Thunder Temple is considered one of the major sects.

If we can get the information about the Yin Corpse Sect's Demonic Connection out through Li Cunyuan and his group...

This will make it easier for other forces to understand what exactly happened in the Lightless Sea.

This would inevitably seem more credible than what Xiao Chen himself said.

Furthermore, by having Li Cunyuan and his group spread the word about the situation here, they can also dispel any misunderstandings from other sects.

Although Xiao Chen had already decided to eradicate the Yin Corpse Sect.

But if we can avoid being misunderstood in advance, why not?

"This junior obeys!"

Li Cunyuan was overjoyed by the result; his eyes lit up and he was filled with delight.

His worst fear was that his uninvited arrival would directly anger Xiao Chen.

Fortunately, based on the initial analysis, the other party was both rescuing people and stopping the Bandit Cultivator from causing trouble, so they shouldn't be the kind of person with a strange temper.

In hindsight, it was indeed the right gamble.

Not only were they not met with a cold shoulder, but they also successfully struck up a conversation.

So Li Cunyuan quickly led a group of his fellow disciples to the side to consult with Red Tassel True Person and the others to learn more about the specific situation.

However, Junior Sister Wang was still staring intently at Xiao Chen, her face flushed and her eyes filled with longing.

He looked like he really wanted to come up and talk, but he didn't dare.

However, she was destined to be disappointed.

Because Xiao Chen didn't pay any attention to her situation at all, instead he turned and went to a shop next door.

It's quite a coincidence.

Who would have thought that here, you could actually find a spirit medicine with the name "Jade Leaf Commerce Association" on its signboard?

Xiao Chen was curious, so he decided to go and find out what was going on.

Despite the fact that on the other side of the Compassion Sea, the sects led by Cloud Wave Sword Abode have already regarded the Jade Leaf Commerce Association as deserters and listed it as an unwelcome target.

They are no longer welcome to return.

However, Xiao Chen personally had a pretty good impression of the leader, Withered Leaf True Monarch, and the familiar appraiser, Old Master Kuang.

Since we've come across a branch of the Jade Leaf Commerce Association, we might as well take this opportunity to inquire about them.

Hopefully, they haven't joined forces with the Yin Corpse Sect during this time.

"Reporting to the True Lord, the shopkeepers are not currently in the Lightless Sea."

Upon hearing Xiao Chen's question, the shop manager who remained behind honestly replied, "Six months ago, we received intelligence from the Inner Sea."

"It is said that a Ten Thousand Immortals Grand Competition will be held in the Ten Thousand Immortals Archipelago, inviting all Golden Core cultivator from across the land to participate."

"So the shopkeeper took all the veteran appraisers with him to the Inner Sea."

"However, judging by the time, the competition should be almost over."

"If there are no unexpected delays along the way, we should be able to get back here in about a month."

To be honest, this is a bit strange.

Xiao Chen asked, puzzled, "Since you're going to participate in the Ten Thousand Immortals Grand Competition, why take all the appraisers with you?"

"Are your appraisers also responsible for going on stage to compete?"

What's the main point?

The appraisers have all left, so are they just going to stop doing business in the Lightless Sea?

"So that the True Lord may know, our Chamber of Commerce has only opened a few spirit medicine shops and one Spirit Tool Shop in the Lightless Sea for the time being."

The manager gave a slightly wry smile, "The shopkeeper had originally acquired an island and made contact with quite a few local chambers of commerce."

"As a result, when we held our first auction two years ago, I don't know what we did wrong, but we violated the rules of the Yin Corpse Sect."

"As a result, we faced suppression from the other side."

"Although we didn't directly take action against them out of respect for the shopkeeper, we never stopped using various overt and covert methods."

"The other side has a large number of people and is a local strongman, so the shopkeeper can't do much."

"Now we've gradually moved our business to the Inner Sea."

"As for this side, well, we don't need an appraiser anyway."

Oh, that's alright then.

The Yin Corpse Sect is indeed domineering; they can't stand others stealing business from the Lightless Sea.

Yes, that's a good thing!

After leaving the branch of the Jade Leaf Commerce Association, Xiao Chen had originally planned to leave.

Since the others have already been rescued, there's no need to continue taking Red Tassel True Person and the others with us.

Firstly, they would be of little help in the subsequent battles and might even become cannon fodder.

Secondly, taking them with us would reduce our escape speed, so there's no need for that.

However, just as Xiao Chen returned to the Stronghold, preparing to give some instructions and then say goodbye and leave...

Red Tassel True Person spoke first, "Reporting to Senior Xiao, the Yin Corpse Sect may very well have a hidden dungeon here!"

As he spoke, he pushed forward a female cultivator who had been rescued from prison earlier. "You explain this to the senior properly."

The other person knelt down with a thud and kowtowed three times.

Then, with swollen eyes, he spoke, "Reporting to Senior Xiao, my sister and I are born of the same mother."

"Perhaps that's why, from a young age, we could generally sense each other's emotions as long as we stayed within a certain range."

"Last night, those beasts from the Yin Corpse Sect forcibly abducted my sister and we don't know where they took her."

"But I could sense that my sister was very scared, extremely scared."

"Even now, I can still feel that fear, but after searching the entire dungeon, I haven't found my sister."

"She must still be alive, and she's on the island, just hidden by the Yin Corpse Sect."

"Please, senior, lend a helping hand and rescue my sister."

ah?

Twins, can they sense each other's emotions?

Xiao Chen had heard of similar things before, but this was the first time he had actually encountered one.

To be honest, this sounds a little far-fetched.

However, in this kind of matter, the other party probably wouldn't dare to lie, nor would they have any reason to lie.

In other words, there is actually another place on the island that previously evaded his Divine Sense detection, but could still be used to hide people.

In a way, could this be considered a case of good deeds being rewarded?

After all, if Xiao Chen hadn't come to rescue them, he wouldn't have encountered one of the twins, and he might have missed this place.

It's important to understand that blocking the Spiritual Sense Probe of Nascent Soul Stage is no easy task.

This place sounds extraordinary.

Who knows what good things might be hidden inside, or perhaps a great secret about the Yin Corpse Sect?

Thinking of this, Xiao Chen immediately perked up. "Stop crying, control your emotions, and calm down as soon as possible."

"Since you say you can sense your older sister, besides knowing she's scared, do you have any general sense of her location or direction?"

Even if it's not that precise, just give me a general location.

Unfortunately, the female cultivator in front of him gently shook her head. "Reporting to senior, I can only roughly sense my elder sister's emotions; I can't do anything else."

You could tell from her expression that she was very anxious.

However, they are truly powerless when it comes to specific locations, even just directions.

Judging from this, the so-called "sensory connection" isn't actually very effective and can't achieve the kind of telepathic connection that's rumored.

At least for them, the only function is to experience emotions.

"I see."

Xiao Chen thought for a moment, then asked again, "Have you tried to gauge the range of your mutual sensing capabilities?"

"In particular, is the distance of this mutual sensing range fixed?"

The female cultivator was taken aback by what she heard, not quite understanding what it meant.

But she still answered honestly, "My older sister and I tried it before, and it was about a thousand miles."

"But sometimes President, sometimes it's shorter, and so far no specific pattern has been found."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Chen immediately understood. "If that's the case, then it's much simpler. Just follow my instructions."

He has already come up with a good idea.

Since the approximate sensing range was fixed, he simply carried the other party around the entire Lightless Island.

The furthest sensing distance was measured from the four directions (north, south, east, and west) or even from eight directions.

Finally, by connecting the dots with a straight line on the map, you can directly pinpoint the location of the dungeon.

Even with some margin of error, it can greatly narrow down the scope of the search.

Once we can pinpoint a small area, we can simply start digging.

First dig three feet into the ground, and if that doesn't work, dig three feet; eventually you'll find it.