Venerable Yuanshi was truly furious.
He might have been able to endure losing a disciple.
But the one who had died was Guangchengzi!
Guangchengzi was his most valued and beloved eldest disciple, the future heir to his teachings, and his choice to lead the next generation of the Sect of Explanation!
And now, he had died just like that, for no clear reason!
It was no different from someone slapping him hard across the face in front of every great power in the Primordial Era!
He immediately began divining the Heavenly Secrets, trying to find the killer.
But the Heavenly Secrets were a chaotic blur, obscured by a mysterious and vast power. He could only vaguely sense that Guangchengzi's death was connected to Zhao Gongming, the Sea Calming Divine Beads, and... an exceptionally strange "misfortune."
What shocked him most was that Guangchengzi's True Spirit had not been drawn into the underworld's cycle of reincarnation, nor had it dissipated between heaven and earth. Instead... it had gone onto the list!
Onto that damned Investiture of the Gods!
"Tongtian!!"
Venerable Yuanshi practically spat out the name through clenched teeth.
In his eyes, only Sect Master Tongtian, a fellow saint, could have the means to obscure the Heavenly Secrets and force his disciple onto the Investiture of the Gods!
"Good! Very good, Tongtian! Very good, Interception Sect!"
"You think I can't do anything to you just because you're holed up on Golden Ao Island? You killed my beloved disciple. This enmity is irreconcilable! I'll make sure every immortal in your Interception Sect ends up on the list—not one will be spared!"
Venerable Yuanshi's killing intent had nearly become tangible.
Just as he was about to disregard everything and go to Golden Ao Island himself to settle the score with Tongtian—
"Master, please calm down!"
Daoist Randeng stepped forward "just in time," his face arranged in a fitting expression of grief and alarm.
"Master, I'm heartbroken by Nephew Guangchengzi's death as well! But I fear there may be more to this matter than meets the eye!"
"More to it?" Venerable Yuanshi's icy gaze swept over him.
Randeng quivered under that look, but still pressed on. "Master, think about it. If Junior Brother Tongtian had truly wanted to act, he would have struck like thunder, with Immortal-Slaying Sword Qi at the gates. Why would he use such a bizarre method, making Nephew Guangchengzi die by his own magic treasure? That isn't his style."
"Besides, I, too, was attacked before. I sensed a force secretly manipulating 'luck.' Nephew Guangchengzi's death may have something to do with it as well. This whole matter is riddled with oddities. If we go to war with the Interception Sect before the truth is clear, we may play right into someone's hands!"
Randeng's argument was reasonable and well supported. At last, it cooled Venerable Yuanshi's rage-addled mind a little.
Indeed, Guangchengzi dying beneath his own Sky-Turning Seal was far too strange.
Sect Master Tongtian was an arrogant man. If he wanted to kill someone, he would use his Qingping Sword or his Four Immortal-Slaying Swords, and slay them openly. He would never resort to such an underhanded, sinister trick.
Could someone else really be responsible?
"Master! Whoever did this, Senior Brother Guangchengzi can't die in vain! We must avenge him!"
Taiyi Zhenren, True Man Yuding, and the other nine Golden Immortals knelt on the ground, their eyes bloodshot, and cried out together to be sent into battle.
"We will avenge him, without a doubt," Venerable Yuanshi said, his voice still cold. "But first, we must get to the bottom of this. Who was the killer? And what role did Zhao Gongming play?"
He looked at his disciples, his gaze passing over each of them in turn.
Randeng's thoughts stirred, and he spoke again. "Master, I believe the most urgent matter is to send someone back to the Eastern Sea. First, we must retrieve Nephew Guangchengzi's belongings, especially the Sky-Turning Seal. That treasure must not fall into an outsider's hands. Second, we must uncover the truth."
"However, Zhao Gongming has the Sea Calming Divine Beads and is exceptionally fierce. An ordinary disciple sent there would likely... be no match for him."
He deliberately paused, putting on a troubled expression.
"Master, I'm willing to go!"
Chijingzi stepped forward. He had been closest to Guangchengzi, and they were as close as brothers. Now, his heart filled with grief and indignation, he wanted nothing more than to go avenge his senior brother at once.
"Junior Brother Chijingzi, don't act rashly!" Randeng hurriedly "cautioned" him. "Your Daoist skills are profound, but Zhao Gongming is no ordinary opponent. It would be too dangerous for you to go alone."
Chijingzi's expression was resolute. "Teacher Randeng, there's no need to dissuade me! My senior brother died a tragic death. If I can't get justice for him, what kind of fellow disciple would I be? Even if I die, I'll die on the road to avenging him!"
His words rang with righteous conviction and stirring resolve.
Venerable Yuanshi looked at Chijingzi, a trace of approval in his eyes.
What he needed now was precisely this kind of fighting spirit.
"Very well," Venerable Yuanshi said. "Chijingzi, since your mind is made up, I grant you permission. You've always been cautious. Remember, don't fight Zhao Gongming head-on. Your first task is to uncover the truth and retrieve the Sky-Turning Seal. If things become impossible, withdraw at once. I'll decide what to do next."
"This disciple obeys!" Chijingzi bowed deeply.
As Randeng watched, a smug sneer flashed beneath his lowered eyelids.
Another one.
Inside the Investiture of the Gods Space, Shen Zhaochi had watched the entire "audience between ruler and ministers" at Jade Void Palace.
"Not bad, Randeng." Shen Zhaochi could hardly resist applauding him. "That acting, that eloquence—he could've won an Oscar. A few words were all it took to con Chijingzi into walking right into it."
He looked at the three characters "Chijingzi" on the Investiture of the Gods. A sinister black aura had begun to spread around them, though it was not as dense as the one that had surrounded Guangchengzi. Clearly, he too had become entangled in the aura of calamity.
"The second client has come knocking of his own accord."
"But this time, I'll need a different script."
Shen Zhaochi rubbed his chin, pondering.
Zhao Gongming had just fought a great battle and was surely still with Wang Mo and the others. If Chijingzi went straight to them, there would inevitably be another clash.
Chijingzi wasn't as powerful as Guangchengzi, but he had plenty of magic treasures. The imitation Taiji Diagram in particular could both attack and defend. Zhao Gongming would still have to work hard to defeat him.
If Chijingzi got away, that would spoil everything.
"I need to give them a chance to 'duel' one-on-one—and make sure Zhao Gongming has every advantage."
Shen Zhaochi's awareness swept across the Primordial Era.
Soon, he came up with a plan.
He once again used his divine power, turning it into an extremely subtle hint from the Heavenly Secrets, which he sent into the heart of Zhao Gongming, who was celebrating with Wang Mo and the others on Nine Dragon Island.
It wasn't a direct message, but a vague premonition, a sudden impulse.
As Zhao Gongming raised his cup with his friends, his heart stirred without warning.
For some reason, he felt that the Sky-Turning Seal left behind by Guangchengzi was somehow fated to be his. The treasure was immensely powerful; if he could refine it, his strength would surely rise to a new level.
And the best place to refine it did not seem to be Nine Dragon Island, but a deserted island deep in the Eastern Sea called Fire Dragon Island. Its abundant earth fire could help him erase the divine sense imprint Guangchengzi had left on the Sky-Turning Seal.
The thought had come so suddenly, yet so clearly, that even Zhao Gongming found it a little strange.
But then he thought it over. He had just slain Guangchengzi, and his fortune was at its peak. Perhaps this feeling was the Heavenly Dao guiding him.
So he took his leave of Wang Mo and the others.
"Four fellow Daoists, I've had a sudden intuition and must go somewhere to meditate and refine the Sky-Turning Seal. Rest well here. If the Sect of Explanation comes seeking revenge again, don't fight them head-on. Send word to me at once."
"Go without worry, Brother Gongming. We'll take care of ourselves."
Zhao Gongming nodded, put away the Sky-Turning Seal, mounted Black Tiger, and flew in the direction of Fire Dragon Island that he had sensed.
He didn't notice that, not long after he left, another figure slipped quietly away from Nine Dragon Island and followed him from a distance.
It was Chijingzi, who had come to investigate.
He had arrived before Zhao Gongming and had been lying low outside Nine Dragon Island the whole time. He had watched Zhao Gongming leave with the Sky-Turning Seal, and his heart leaped with joy.
Heaven is truly helping me!
Zhao Gongming had been separated from the others!
He immediately followed quietly, ready to find an opportunity to reclaim the Sky-Turning Seal and avenge his senior brother!
A perfect ambush and counterambush was about to unfold, all arranged in secret by Shen Zhaochi.
Chijingzi thought he was the hunter. Little did he know he was already prey caught in someone else's web.
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