This Isn't Even Forgotten to Say Pleasantries

The Yin God Talisman erupted with a roar. It was an extremely evil artifact, refined from the resentful souls of cultivators in the third realm! It contained the immense resentment and Yin Sha energy from their dying moments, specifically designed to erode a cultivator's Dao body and defile their divine soul!

As Li Xiao's right arm touched the talisman, the entire limb was instantly covered in black frost, its flesh and blood withering and shriveling at a visible rate!

"Chh--"

A burst of blood light appeared!

But his reaction was swift. He formed his left hand into a blade and, with a "Chh" sound, severed his own right arm. At the same time, a low growl escaped his throat: "Yuan Protector's Decree, Divine Illumination Flawless!"

"Weng--"

The cinnabar mark on his brow suddenly lit up, transforming into a crimson barrier that enveloped his entire body, temporarily blocking the encroaching chilling Sha Qi.

But this was only the beginning. The true killing move of the Yin God Talisman was not merely the erosion of the physical body!

"Ughhh--"

Li Xiao suddenly let out a muffled groan, blood seeping from his seven orifices, his face contorted.

The myriad resentful souls within the talisman were now backlashing along his divine sense, frantically assaulting his Purple Mansion!

At this moment, he felt as if he had fallen into an unending abyss--

In his ears were the wails of countless wronged souls, and before his eyes appeared countless bloody scenes, fragments of what the third realm cultivator had seen and felt before his death!

Even with the toughness of his Yin God, he couldn't withstand the shock to his Dao heart, and his protective barrier fluctuated violently.

"Crack!"

He stumbled back three steps, the bluestone beneath his feet shattering. The flesh and blood at the severed limb writhed, slowly beginning to regenerate.

"Chen! Xu!"

Li Xiao's eyes were bloodshot, his face as ferocious as a demon's, utterly devoid of his usual gentle demeanor. He stared intently at Chen Qing, his killing intent almost solidifying: "You dare use such an evil artifact to ambush me?!"

Chen Qing said seriously, "Just looking at your hypocritical face makes me uncomfortable all over. Not to mention, you're a riddle-speaker who won't say anything when asked. If I truly let you leave calmly, leaving behind a dashing figure, I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to sleep."

In the distance, the sound of breaking air could already be heard from the direction of Yujing City. Clearly, the patrolling Yujing Guards had detected the abnormal spiritual energy fluctuations here and were rushing over.

Li Xiao's expression shifted between uncertainty and gloom. He suddenly let out a sinister laugh: "Good! Very good! You think you can turn things around by defecting to Princess Xiyao? She can barely protect herself. Let's see how long she can protect you! Once the Princess falls, we'll settle our scores!"

Before his words had even finished, his figure had already vanished into a wisp of black smoke. Only the chilling Sha Qi remaining in his place continued to silently erode the surrounding vegetation, causing it to quickly wither and decay.

"You're quite decisive. I thought you were actually going to swallow your pride and let that person be arrogant." Xu Zhaoying retracted her sword light and landed beside Chen Qing. "This person's cultivation is profound. If it weren't for the surprise attack of the Yin God Talisman just now, and the fact that he was wary of the Yujing Guards and didn't dare to go all out, even if I had used the Qingqiu Seal, I might not have been able to resist."

"Looking so disheveled, yet still managing to say something grand." Chen Qing gazed at the black smoke where Li Xiao had disappeared, sighing softly. "Unfortunately, I couldn't keep him. Thirty years have passed, how did he progress to this point?"

The residual ashes of the Yin God Talisman on the ground were scattered by the night wind.

Though this artifact was powerful, it could ultimately only be used once.

"However, judging by his words, he's clearly waiting for the Princess to fall before dealing with me!"

Thinking this, his gaze swept across the ground and suddenly focused--

A Jade Slip lay quietly on the ground.

"Perhaps Elder Lü's pursuit of your Spiritual Bone's whereabouts alerted someone, which is why this person suddenly appeared." Xu Zhaoying drew her sword finger, and a green light circled the Jade Slip three times, severing the attached Yin Sha energy before telekinetically pulling it over.

Chen Qing nodded.

Xu Zhaoying continued, "Once we enter Yujing, you'll go and meet with the Princess first. I'll go and contact old acquaintances in Yujing to confirm if the Holy Emperor is truly in seclusion, and who exactly issued the decree recalling the Princess to the capital to receive rewards this time."

Chen Qing's eyes narrowed: "You suspect the Empress orchestrated this?"

"When the resettlement policy was first implemented, there were numerous obstacles." Xu Zhaoying suddenly changed the subject, her tone growing colder. "But after the Princess overcame them one by one, coupled with your policies showing results, the various factions in Yujing praised the Princess. However, in such a situation, the Empress might not be pleased."

"What conflict is there between the Princess and the Empress?" Chen Qing pressed.

Xu Zhaoying's gaze sharpened. She glanced around at the night, then said, "This is not a place to talk. Let's return to the inn first."

Chen Qing nodded.

Xu Zhaoying then handed the Jade Slip to Chen Qing: "Take it. Since it's your old inheritance, you might as well examine it. Now that your Destiny Talisman has been formed, you can condense other spiritual talismans. However, be careful. That person seemed to deliberately leave this item behind; I don't know if there's some scheme hidden within."

Chen Qing's heart trembled upon hearing this.

In the reality outside of dreams, although there were occasional rumors that cultivators could indeed condense multiple spiritual talismans, they were mostly hearsay, or said to be secrets not to be passed down by major sects. He hadn't expected that this dream world would actually contain such a wondrous method!

He took the Jade Slip. The moment his fingertips touched it, the Destiny Talisman within his body suddenly vibrated, as if resonating with the Jade Slip. A wisp of starlight flowed out from the slip and entered Chen Qing's brow.

"This is..."

In a daze, he seemed to see a vast starry sky, with countless stars revolving according to profound trajectories. Each star corresponded to the prototype of a talisman.

Seeing him lost in thought, Xu Zhaoying said softly, "Legend has it that the Cosmic Star Tribulation is a secret transmission of the ancient Star Sect. If cultivated to great mastery, one can condense three hundred and sixty-five star talismans within the body, corresponding to the number of the heavens..."

Several sounds came from the distance. She suddenly stopped speaking and turned to say, "Let's talk about it when we get back."

"Okay!"

As the two figures moved, golden light suddenly filled the sky on the official road ahead.

Twelve Golden Armored Divine Generals descended from the sky. The one leading them held a jade tablet and his voice boomed like a bell: "Which cultivator is engaging in combat here?"

Xu Zhaoying immediately revealed the Princess's Estate token: "Xu Zhaoying of Princess Xiyao's Estate, Chen Xu. We were ambushed while en route to the capital."

The Divine General examined the token, his pupils shrinking slightly as his gaze fell upon Chen Qing. He then nodded: "No private duels are allowed within or outside Yujing City. This incident occurred due to extenuating circumstances, so we will allow passage. What did the assailant look like?"

"That person is skilled at stealth; we likely won't find them for a while." After a brief exchange with Xu Zhaoying, several Divine Generals departed to search for the assassin's tracks.

Once the Divine Generals were gone, Xu Zhaoying drew a sword gesture and said, "Let's go!"

After the two returned to their room at the post station, Xu Zhaoying cast a soundproofing restriction and then said in a deep voice, "The Princess's and the Empress's grievances stem from the Princess's mother. Back then, the Saintess of Qingqiu's Heavenly Fox lineage combined with the Holy Emperor and mysteriously perished after giving birth to the Princess. The Empress has always viewed the Heavenly Fox bloodline as an outsider, and whenever the Princess displayed her talent, she would find an opportunity to reprimand her."

Chen Qing's gaze flickered, "Is it because of bloodline, or a dispute between the legitimate and illegitimate?"

"It's more than that." Xu Zhaoying shook his head, picking up the teapot and teacups from the side. "The Princess inherited her mother's will and advocates for the coexistence of the Hundred Races. Over the years, some in the court have advocated for treating the Northern Cold Hundred Races kindly, and the Princess has been very supportive, which has touched the interests of many. Therefore, some people would go to the Empress to spread slander."

Chen Qing touched his Jade Slip and asked, "If the Empress truly intends to deal with the Princess, how should we respond?"

Xu Zhaoying pondered for a moment and said, "After entering the capital tomorrow, if the situation is unfavorable, you should leave! Unless it's an order from the Holy Emperor, they won't forcefully restrain the Princess. As long as you leave Jade Capital, there will always be a way to deal with it."

"In that case, this Jade Capital has become a dragon's pool and a tiger's den." Chen Qing said, "Then why go there knowing it's a dangerous place?"

Xu Zhaoying replied, "The Immortal Dynasty has summoned us; doesn't that give us the moral high ground, making it impossible to refuse? In any case, tomorrow... no, I'll send you to Qingwu Villa to meet the Princess later."

Chen Qing had already been warned, but something suddenly came to mind, and he asked, "Fellow Daoist Xu, do you know of any methods that can allow someone in the early stage of the second realm to suppress someone in the early stage of the third realm?"

Xu Zhaoying's hand, which was pouring tea, paused, and a few drops of tea splashed out.

"Are you alright?" She put down the teapot, her brow furrowed. "Could it be that dealing with that beast-skin man went too smoothly, and you've lost your head?"

She got up and paced a few steps, admonishing, "That was a surprise attack, plus I was suppressing him with the Qingqiu Seal. The difference in major realms is like a chasm; it's not something that can be easily crossed. If that person had manifested their Yin God earlier, we would have had no choice but to flee; there would be no other options."

Chen Qing's gaze shifted, "Is there truly no possibility?"

"Not entirely." Xu Zhaoying suddenly lowered her voice. "Legend has it that in ancient times there was a 'Life Burning Method' that could temporarily increase one's realm, but the price was extremely high. At best, it shortens one's lifespan; at worst, it destroys the Dao Foundation. Besides that, you would have to seize the initiative as we did before. But even then, it only works against cultivators who have just entered the third realm, haven't fully mastered their Yin God, and haven't mastered their Dharma Robe's illusory form."

"Just entering the third realm?" Chen Qing murmured, listening.

Xu Zhaoying suddenly leaned closer, "Why are you suddenly asking this?"

"The current situation is delicate," Chen Qing said, having prepared his explanation long ago. "If the situation becomes dire, I need a way to fight for my life, at least to avoid being killed with a single palm strike and to hold on for a moment to escape."

Xu Zhaoying's eyes flickered. After a moment of thought, she shook her head, "Your thinking is flawed."

"Hmm?"

"Instead of trying to fight head-on, it's better to specialize in a method of escape." She stated directly, "Your purpose in fighting head-on is to buy time to escape, so why not focus on this path from the beginning?"

Chen Qing was stunned.

"The Star Constellation Sect's Body Transformation into Starlight technique, you happen to have inherited it." Xu Zhaoying continued, "If you can comprehend this technique, you can travel a thousand miles in an instant. If you achieve great mastery, even a fourth-realm cultivator won't be able to catch up! Moreover, time is pressing now, and you don't have time to learn other methods. It's better to focus on this one."

"Body Transformation into Starlight?"

He touched the Jade Slip, feeling the starlight flowing within it.

Seeing his interest, Xu Zhaoying continued, "The escape techniques of the Star Constellation lineage are the most profound. If you can comprehend one or two, it will be enough to save your life. Additionally..."

She flicked two Talismans from her sleeve.

The jade-green Talisman glowed, while the black one exuded a cold Sha Qi.

"This is a Qingqiu Traceless Talisman; it can conceal your aura. If things go awry, activate this Talisman. As for this Yin God Talisman, it's of little use to me. Since your previous one is consumed, take another one. You must preserve your useful self and not take risks! Do you understand?"

"Thank you."

He carefully put them away, but then he remembered what Bai Shaoyou had said about "Heavenly Fox Xiyao."

"If the Tenth Princess is the sealed Heavenly Fox, is this current situation the beginning?"

The second update will be here soon