White Beard's Madness, Universal Salvation Temple's Bewilderment

In the blink of an eye, we've already arrived at the first month of the lunar calendar.

Most cultivators, especially lower-level cultivators, are enjoying this annual festival.

However, in the In-Between Sea between the Cloud Pool Sea and Dragon Slaying Sea, several Golden Core cultivator have been acting strangely.

They arrived from different directions and gradually gathered together.

They even specifically chose a cave on a small, Desolate Island island as their meeting place.

The first person waiting inside the cave was a Golden Core Great Perfection, who held a white whisk and wore Mysterious Iron Mask to conceal his true appearance.

The second person to arrive was a young man dressed in a scholar's robe, carrying a paper fan in the dead of winter.

Then came a Late-stage Golden Core cultivator who was completely wrapped in black cloth and wore a bamboo hat.

Finally, a Qingyi cultivator in green robes arrived, her face veiled and carrying a sword at her waist.

She had just arrived at the back of the cave when she looked around with slight surprise. "Wow, you called so many people over at once?"

"Big Brother Bai, what big deal are you up to this time?"

That's right, the Golden Core Great Perfection cultivator who first gathered everyone here was none other than White Beard, the Bandit Cultivator with the highest bounty in the entire Storm Sea.

The other three.

The order is: sixth is the White-Faced Scholar, fifth is the Black Heart Boatman, and third is the Qingyi Swift Sword.

Outsiders might assume that they are all solitary Bandit Cultivator who do not communicate with each other.

But in reality, not all Bandit Cultivator are lone wolves.

At least they cooperated quite a bit to hunt down more difficult sect cultivators, but those who were more profitable after a successful hunt.

There was even one other person in this small circle, namely Ghost Face Qing, who was ranked tenth.

But that guy was unlucky. He secretly went to the Lightless Sea to have some fun, but he was caught red-handed by the enraged Yin Corpse Sect and died on the spot.

"Haha, I've received an absolutely reliable message."

A rough, abrasive voice came from beneath the White Beard's Mysterious Iron Mask: "It concerns the whereabouts of at least four World Breaking Stone!"

"We're all old friends, so I don't need to go over the rules."

"The detailed information is all here; take it if you want to see it."

As he spoke, he took out a Sound Transmission Flying Sword and placed it in front of him.

The other three people's eyes widened immediately upon hearing this.

These individuals were unlike ordinary Golden Core cultivator; they all knew about the Three Mountains Grotto-Heaven and the existence of the World Breaking Stone.

As an essential consumable for entering and exiting the cave, this thing has always been highly valuable since ancient times.

In special times, such opportunities are priceless.

Let alone for them, a group of Golden Core cultivator, even for Nascent Soul True Lord, it would be considered a priceless treasure.

Therefore, after hearing that it concerned at least four World Breaking Stone...

They immediately understood why White Beard had rushed to summon everyone at this time.

How could I not be anxious!

This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, unlike any other business transaction.

If we miss this chance, who knows how many centuries we might have to wait to experience it again?

The Qingyi Swift Sword immediately stepped forward and picked up the Sound Transmission Flying Sword.

However, after learning the specifics, her expression immediately changed.

Then her lips moved slightly, but no sound came out. Instead, she handed the Sound Transmission Flying Sword to the White-Faced Scholar beside her.

Seeing her strange reaction, the White-Faced Scholar suddenly became curious.

However, when he learned of the situation, he was stunned and speechless for a moment.

"What's wrong with you guys today? You seem really strange."

The Black Heart Boatman glanced at them curiously and then reached out to take the Sound Transmission Flying Sword.

His expression immediately changed drastically, and he exclaimed in shock, "What? Big Brother Bai, are you crazy?!"

"Are you really planning to harm the disciples of Universal Salvation Temple?"

The Black Heart Boatman paced back and forth a couple of times, his brow furrowing deeper and deeper.

Unable to resist, he continued, "If we mess with these little bald monks, won't those old bald monks dig three feet into the ground to avenge them?"

"Even if we manage to evade the search, we'll probably have to lay low for several years."

"Why don't we just rob those rogue cultivators? We can kill them as much as we want and nobody will care. Why do something so dangerous all of a sudden?"

"This is clearly a risky and unprofitable endeavor, why bother going through all that trouble?"

White Beard looked at the rambling, Black Heart Boatman in front of him, and a murderous intent immediately rose in his heart, but he quickly suppressed it.

According to the information he received.

Both messengers sent by Universal Salvation Temple this time possessed Late-stage Golden Core cultivation.

Considering their powerful backgrounds, and the fact that almost all Golden Body Arhat are treated as Body Cultivator.

To deal with them, we need to find more skilled fighters and rely on numerical superiority to achieve a swift victory.

If the fight breaks out and drags on for too long, allowing reinforcements to arrive, then it will be these Bandit Cultivator who suffer the consequences.

Given the gravity of the matter, hiring someone from outside at the last minute is likely to be even less reliable.

It's not advisable to directly confront the Black Heart Boatman yet; we should try to persuade him to join us in taking action first.

Thinking of this, White Beard adjusted his mindset slightly.

Then he laughed three more times, "Hahaha, they say the older you get in the martial arts world, the more timid you become. I never believed it before."

"I never expected that the once fearless and Black Heart Boatman would become so hesitant and timid in his actions."

"If you're afraid of risks, then don't do this kind of work where you're constantly putting your life on the line."

"It would be so much better to rent two acres of Spirit Field Hundred Herbs City and become a proper Spirit Farmer. If anything happens, we can just hide in the city nearby; there's nothing safer that way."

Upon hearing this, the Black Heart Boatman immediately felt insulted.

He immediately retorted loudly, "What utter nonsense!"

"Back when I was on the Spirit Boat, I met True Disciple of the Five Thunder Temple, and I still treated him to noodles."

"If I'm a coward, then there's no one brave in the Storm Sea!"

He was about to continue explaining, but then he felt something was off.

Firstly, he has indeed rarely attacked disciples of major sects in the past two years, and has mostly been searching for lone rogue cultivators.

After all, the two are vastly different in their combat abilities, and the troubles that follow are on completely different levels.

Secondly, if he continues to argue about the risks of robbing and killing disciples of Universal Salvation Temple, wouldn't it just make things worse and make it seem like he has changed?

So the Black Heart Boatman simply snorted, "Hmph, you idiot, what do you think?"

"And Sister Qing, do you guys think this business is viable?"

"If you say yes, then I, Old Black, will absolutely not back down a single word."

"Just fucking kill him!"

Upon hearing the Black Heart Boatman's question, the White-Faced Scholar frowned slightly.

This guy heard the term "bookworm" one day and has been calling him that ever since.

This always annoyed him, and he secretly thought to himself: I think you're the idiot, a complete moron!

"Sigh, such a big matter is really hard for me, a woman, to handle."

The man in Qingyi Swift Sword also spoke up, asking, "Scholar, what's your opinion?"

Despite her history of violence, she wouldn't hesitate to call herself a woman and pretend to be weak when necessary.

"Sister Qing, please don't make fun of me."

The White-Faced Scholar waved his hand, lowered his head to think for a moment, and then carefully said, "Actually, I also think this is a bit risky."

"World Breaking Stone are extremely precious, let alone four of them."

"However, the difficulty and consequences of ambushing and killing disciples of Universal Salvation Temple are also considerable."

"All things considered, it doesn't feel like a very profitable deal."

"Of course, my thoughts may not be comprehensive enough in this haste. Let's hear what Big Brother Bai has to say."

"I believe that Big Brother Bai must have his reasons for having this idea."

As soon as he finished speaking, all three of them turned their gazes to White Beard, waiting for him to give a reasonable explanation.

Although they are all Bandit Cultivator, they are different from ordinary Bandit Cultivator who only think about making a big profit.

Even after learning about the precious spiritual items, people not only focus on having the life to obtain them, but also place even greater emphasis on having the life to enjoy them.

"Since everyone is curious, I'll say a few more words."

Seeing this, the White Beard had no choice but to explain, "I can't go into too much detail, but in short, a major client urgently needs World Breaking Stone."

"He wants a large quantity, and he's asking for a higher price."

"Add this amount to the normal market rate!"

As he spoke, he extended his index and middle fingers and gently shook them. "This isn't the total price, it's two million Spirit Stone added to each piece."

"He also promised me that he could help me get a batch of Top-grade Three-Pattern True Essence Convergence Pill."

"In other words, as long as we get the World Breaking Stone, we can not only immediately make a move and exchange it for a large sum of Spirit Stone to share, but we can also each get a Top-grade Breakthrough Spirit Pill."

Generally speaking, a World Breaking Stone can be worth anywhere from a million to several million depending on market conditions.

Of course, this is just a convenient reference for calculation; most of the time, people will directly exchange it for an equivalent Fourth-Order Spiritual Item.

Given this, it's not surprising that one could obtain True Essence Convergence Pill with three patterns in exchange.

Actually, for them, getting a regular Breakthrough Spirit Pill wasn't a big problem at all.

After all, there are quite a few Third-tier Alchemist will work as long as there is money.

However, it is extremely difficult to invite Fourth-tier Alchemist to refine Top-grade Breakthrough Spirit Pill with Pill Mark.

Firstly, Fourth-tier Alchemist hold a high status and are often difficult to persuade to join.

Secondly, they are Wanted Notice Bandit Cultivator and dare not show their faces in public.

Therefore, upon hearing such favorable terms, all three were immediately tempted.

"Big Brother Bai, is this big client of yours reliable?"

The Qingyi Swift Sword- sworded, couldn't help but ask, "Don't try to fool us later."

With an extra two million Spirit Stone for each World Breaking Stone, it means that after they split it equally, each person will receive more than two million Spirit Stone.

What does this amount of money represent?

It should be noted that a typical True Disciple of a major sect would only carry around two or three hundred thousand Spirit Stone.

Moreover, they wouldn't dare to rob and kill disciples of major sects every day.

To put it bluntly, the profits from this one job, just from the World Breaking Stone, are equivalent to going out and doing dozens of other jobs normally.

If we also consider the Golden Body Arhat who emerged from the Three Mountains Grotto-Heaven, and the fact that their Storage Ring might contain other precious spiritual items, the potential gains would be unimaginable!

"Of course you can rely on him!"

White Beard almost without hesitation, "The specifics must be kept secret, but I can guarantee they won't let us down."

This wasn't the first time these people had worked together.

Seeing that things had come to this point, the Qingyi Swift Sword immediately agreed, "In that case, I will follow Big Brother Bai's arrangements for the next few days."

The White-Faced Scholar hesitated for a moment.

But after a brief moment of thought, he agreed, "It does seem like a good deal. At worst, we can hide for a few more years after this trip."

Upon hearing this, the Black Heart Boatman shouted in agreement, "Alright, let's do it then!"

"They're just disciples of Universal Salvation Temple. It's not like it's the first time I've ripped off a monk."

In reality, he had only robbed ordinary Buddhist Sect disciples, but no one would delve into such matters.

Seeing that the three had agreed, White Beard immediately took the lead in finalizing the specific action plan.

He took out a large nautical chart and unfolded it. "I've already decided on the time and place to make my move."

"Let's each prepare what we need on the island first. Six hours later, we'll take the spirit shuttle together to the area between the Dragon Slaying Sea and the Wind Stop Sea to guard it."

"Qing Mei and the scholar will guard the left side, and the two of us will guard the right side."

"As soon as you see a spirit ship bearing the banner of Universal Salvation Temple approaching, contact them immediately and we'll take them out together."

"I've calculated it all. From receiving the news to arriving at the nearest Soul Division Sword Pavilion, it will take at least half an hour."

"If we can resolve this within two quarters of an hour, even Nascent Soul True Lord won't be able to pursue us."

To be fair, his battle plan was somewhat rudimentary.

However, often the simpler something is, the less likely it is to go wrong. The simpler the plan, the less likely it is to deviate from its intended course.

The four men each memorized the nautical chart and its location.

Then they immediately began to busy themselves on the island, hastily preparing some Talisman and elixirs for battle.

I also took the opportunity to review my Law Technique and calm myself down.

They then rode the Lingshuo ahead of the messenger from Universal Salvation Temple and ambushed him on his inevitable route.

Begin to patiently wait for the prey to arrive.

On the other hand, ever since the Kong Xing Ming Wang ordered that they bear the cost of the World Breaking Stone to invite Xiao Chen to the temple for a chat.

The disciples quickly selected two Golden Body Arhat with the cultivation of the Golden Core Great Perfection realm to act as messengers.

They carried the invitation and the World Breaking Stone to the Storm Sea to invite the person.

Actually, there wasn't anything wrong with this arrangement.

After all, this is just a messenger job; it's not like we need to send Fourth-Order Zen Master to do such a trivial errand.

In some respects, sending Golden Body Arhat would appear more moderate and more in line with the style of a powerful force.

Firstly, although Xiao Chen's Cultivation Realm was not high, his strength was already quite high.

If a Fourth-Order Zen Master were to bring him back with an invitation, it would seem somewhat like using his power to intimidate him.

Having a younger person invite someone, while the essence remains the same, simply appears to be a more gentle approach.

Secondly, Universal Salvation Temple is, after all, a powerful force possessing a fifth-rank Bright King a high-ranking deity).

They didn't want outsiders to see their Zen Master personally going to invite someone, as if he were currying favor with Xiao Chen; that would be too undignified.

Things that affect one's reputation should not be discussed, even if they can be done, and certainly not known to outsiders.

In conclusion, Universal Salvation Temple ultimately selected two Golden Body Arhat to serve as messengers.

Carrying the World Breaking Stone with him, he went to the Cloud Pool Sea to find Xiao Chen according to the pre-arranged intelligence.

However, when they arrived at the Cloud Pool Sea, they found that Xiao Chen was no longer at the Heavenly Sound Sect, but had gone to the Golden Haze Sect.

So the two of them followed the same route and arrived at the Golden Haze Sect.

But they were, after all, just two Golden Body Arhat, and even piloting the spirit ship, their speed was quite limited.

So they arrived three days late and naturally couldn't find Xiao Chen.

They had no choice but to change their route back to the Ten Thousand Immortals Archipelago, and then chased all the way to the Soul Division Sword Pavilion.

Clearly, they were late again, and this time they were a full four days late.

After making inquiries from various sources, they learned that Xiao Chen had later appeared at the Jade Leaf Commerce Association in the Lightless Sea.

So they continued sailing the spirit ship, preparing to head to the Lightless Sea.

As a result, the two were walking down the street, reciting the Heart Sutra and chanting Buddhist prayers, when they were suddenly robbed by bandits.

They naturally fought to the death, while also seeking help from nearby righteous sects.

Unfortunately, the group that made this move was arguably the most powerful group of Bandit Cultivator in the Storm Sea.

Even though they both had Buddhist treasures issued by Universal Salvation Temple for protection, and were also physically strong due to their martial arts skills.

However, two fists cannot fight four hands in the end, and under the siege, they only lasted for fifteen minutes before being quickly defeated.

Ultimately, his golden body was shattered, and his Storage Ring was stolen.

When True Lie Que True Monarch of the Soul Division Sword Pavilion received the message and rushed to the scene, the cultivator who Bandit Cultivator had already fled.

There were no cultivators left within a radius of several thousand miles.

In this respect, White Beard and his crew were truly professionals, each of them having experienced being hunted by Nascent Soul True Lord more than once.

Needless to say, their bounties subsequently increased significantly.

The crucial point is that the invitation and the World Breaking Stone that were originally intended to be given to Xiao Chen have all disappeared.

"What did you say? Our people have been kidnapped?"

Great Universal Salvation Temple in the Three Mountains Grotto-Heaven, the Zen Master in charge of arranging this matter was completely stunned when he heard the relevant information.

He checked the information repeatedly in disbelief. "How could this be?"

How dare they do such a thing?

It wasn't that he didn't understand that there were many Bandit Cultivator in the Cultivation World.

However, for many years, no disciple who acted openly and honestly in the name of Universal Salvation Temple had encountered such a problem.

Those Bandit Cultivator aren't stupid; they might even dare to attack Foundation Establishment Realm stage monk.

However, when people see Golden Body Arhat, they usually choose to walk around it rather than risk breaking their teeth by trying to tackle such a tough nut to crack.

Upon learning of the situation, the monks in the temple were initially stunned, completely bewildered.

They all felt somewhat incredulous afterward.

Then came righteous indignation. "This is absolutely outrageous! I think they're tired of living!"

"They dared to attack our Universal Salvation Temple! This is clearly no ordinary Bandit Cultivator; they must be dealt with severely!"

"How dare they kill my third and twelfth senior brothers! I think they're beyond redemption! Master, take me with you to redeem them!"

However, the Zen Master in charge of this matter only felt a bit of a headache.

An invitation can be rewritten if it's lost, but the problem of the World Breaking Stone is not so easy to solve.

It's not that Universal Salvation Temple doesn't have reserves, but the problem is that doing this will not only increase costs, but also force a delay.

Most importantly, they didn't know where Xiao Chen was, and there was no related information from the outside world.

Even if we reissue the invitation and prepare the World Breaking Stone again.

But where should we send it?

The only information we have so far is that Xiao Chen publicly promised Huo Xinghuai that he would attend the Exchange Meet.

Apart from that, Universal Salvation Temple knew absolutely nothing about his other whereabouts.

But that's where the problem lies.

The Exchange Meet scheduled for after spring, which is clearly not in line with the previous instructions of the Kong Xing Ming Wang.

Simply put, this matter has been botched.

Despite his reluctance, he honestly reported the situation back to Bright King.

"Ambush?"

Upon hearing the news Kong Xing Ming Wang was somewhat surprised. "The Bandit Cultivator of the Storm Sea have become so rampant?"

It was learned that even looking back ten thousand years, this was the first case of Golden Body Arhat being abducted and killed.

He was also somewhat taken aback, and felt a little dazed.

Wow, what a coincidence!

Over thousands of years, many Golden Body Arhat have died in battle, but this is the first time they have died at the Bandit Cultivator.

But this rare occurrence happened precisely on the way to deliver the invitation to Xiao Chen.

Was it an accident, or is there more to the story?

At first, Kong Xing Ming Wang only had some suspicions in his own mind.

However, during this time, he heard rumors that Xiao Chen was suspected to be a successor of the Divine Machine Sect, which made him even more curious about his background.

I also learned about what happened at the Nether Sky Sea.

I increasingly suspect that this is either settling old scores or a pretext for killing under the influence of Asura reincarnation.

Now that I've encountered this situation again, I can't help but start to overthink it.

"Didn't the intelligence say he would be attending the Hundred Herbs City Exchange Meet?"

The Kong Xing Ming Wang looked at his disciple. "This time, you will personally go and bring Xiao Chen back."

"Hmm, take my Demon Suppressing Purple Gold Bowl with you at all times."

"If any unexpected changes occur along the way, you should immediately use the skill to hide in the bowl for refuge, remembering that self-preservation is the primary concern."

In the room where the Kong Xing Ming Wang practices, several Buddhist Artifact are hung.

Among them are not only the purple-gold alms bowl, but also Buddhist Sect implements such as kasaya, Wooden Fish, Everlasting Lamp, and Prayer Wheel.

Almost every Buddhist Artifact imaginable to outsiders can be found here.

In addition, there are many handwritten Buddhist scriptures, all posted side by side on the surrounding walls.

Although these things had not been specifically blessed by the Kong Xing Ming Wang, they had been with him for a long time.

It possesses far greater power than ordinary Buddhist Artifact.

Under normal circumstances, at least a Fourth-Order Zen Master carrying the Demon Suppressing Purple Gold Bowl is capable of protecting himself even when facing a top-tier Nascent Soul True Lord.

If any abnormal situations are encountered, there's no need to test further; it's safe to conclude that there's something wrong with Xiao Chen.

"Disciple understands!"

The Zen Master immediately accepted the order and respectfully bowed to the Demon Suppressing Purple Gold Bowl.

Then he picked it up with both hands, carried it all the way out, and then put it into his Storage Ring.