Two Traps

Although Wen Zhong looked only a little over fifty, he had spent fifty years studying under Golden Spirit Mother at Biyou Palace. His actual age was far greater than his appearance suggested.

He had seen and heard much, studied a wide range of strange arts and divine abilities, and gained considerable knowledge. When he heard Lady Yunxiao ask about the matter, he thought it over briefly and made a guess. He couldn't help feeling shaken.

"Could that person have used a secret technique to break free of divination?"

Breaking free of divination was practically the same as concealing the secrets of Heaven. It required an immense sacrifice as well as exceptionally powerful abilities. Ordinary members of the Daoist Sect simply couldn't do it.

Even Lord Tongtian had to pay a price to perform divination, so under normal circumstances, he never did it for anyone lightly.

Divination was also a way of peering into the secrets of Heaven. Only matters of the utmost importance warranted it, which was why Lady Yunxiao had personally gone to Biyou Palace. If it had been anyone else, Lord Tongtian might not have acted at all!

Lady Yunxiao nodded gently. "That's right, Fellow Daoist Wen. You guessed correctly. But according to the sect leader, there's another possibility that would also make divination impossible."

Wen Zhong asked in surprise, "There's another possibility? Forgive my ignorance."

Yunxiao gazed toward Chaoge. "That's right. The other possibility is that someone is involved who possesses Human Emperor Fortune. Such a person exists beyond the reach of divination, and nothing related to him can be divined."

Wen Zhong gave a helpless, bitter smile. "As for the Great King, I'd stake my life on this: he can't possess Magic Power. Is there anyone in this world who knows the Great King better than I do? He lacks the aptitude. Even if he cultivated for a hundred years, he wouldn't achieve much."

Zhao Gongming suddenly interjected, "Fellow Daoist Wen, earlier you said the thief might have escaped underground. Yang Jian, a disciple of True Man Yu Ding, was there at the time. He has a heavenly eye and had already considered that possibility, so he searched the underground areas nearby. He found no one hiding beneath the surface. And his blood essence test did indeed confirm that the thief was nearby. There's no doubt about that."

"Then, after what happened at Tiger Head Cliff, the Great King's suspicion should be cleared, right?" Wen Zhong was truly at a loss. These people were all senior fellow disciples, of the same generation as his master, Golden Spirit Mother. If they continued to suspect the Great King, it would be difficult for him to intervene.

Neither Yunxiao nor Zhao Gongming spoke. They both looked to Bi Xiao and Qiong Xiao.

Lady Bixiao considered the matter before speaking. "At Tiger Head Cliff, Di Xin drove off a tiger and fell from the cliff. Neither when his own life was in danger nor when the Crown Prince's life hung in the balance did he show any sign of possessing Magic Power. If he really could conceal his abilities so well, that would be terrifying. He would have to care nothing for his own life or his son's. Besides, we intervened at the very last moment. Had we arrived any later, Di Xin would certainly have fallen onto the rocks and died. From what we saw, he was prepared to sacrifice his life to protect the Crown Prince. Given all that, he should no longer be under suspicion."

Wen Zhong let out a long breath. "Good. It's a relief to have his suspicion cleared completely. There's one more matter I'd like to discuss with you fellow Daoists. After everything that's happened, the Great King feels his strength is too weak and wants to improve it so he can protect himself. During my visit to the palace, he asked me to teach him some cultivation methods. What do you fellow disciples think?"

Zhao Gongming smiled. "Fellow Daoist Wen, you needn't ask us. You belong to Golden Spirit Mother's lineage; we have no reason to overstep."

"Since none of my fellow disciples object to the Great King cultivating Daoist arts, I needn't seek my master's approval either. I'll just find some cultivation manual from an unaffiliated cultivator and give it to the Great King, then this won't create much entanglement with our Interception Sect."

Wen Zhong replied, then mounted Ink Qilin and rode southeast.

"Elder Brother, now that Di Xin has been cleared of suspicion, we've lost our lead again..."

Watching Wen Zhong leave, Lady Yunxiao looked somewhat dejected.

Zhao Gongming said, "It's too early to draw conclusions. Let's hold off on testing him for now and keep an eye on everything happening in Chaoge. Yang Jian and the two disciples of Goddess Nuwa are also doing their best to find clues."

After seeing Wen Zhong off, Di Xin didn't return directly to Shouxian Palace.

Instead, he went to inspect the construction site of the Imperial Study.

He went there once every day without fail, enough to show how much importance he placed on the project.

"Greetings, Great King!"

You Hun, the project manager, saw the Great King arrive and hurried over to welcome him.

After exchanging a few perfunctory remarks, Di Xin asked, "How much longer until everything is finished?"

You Hun hurriedly replied, "Your Majesty, we're working during the day and resting at night. There are eight hundred people on the site, and we've scheduled two months to complete construction."

"No. Two months is too long."

Di Xin was displeased as soon as he heard that. He was waiting for Deyue Tower to be completed so he could have an underground Secret Chamber of his own and do some private things there. He couldn't wait two months.

"This is already the fastest we can manage!" You Hun hastily explained.

Di Xin thought for a moment. "If I give you another hundred thousand gold and a thousand Imperial Guards, and have everyone work around the clock, how long would it take?"

"In that case... we could cut the time in half. One month."

You Hun calculated briefly and gave his answer.

"Good. One month, then. Take my order to Prime Minister Shang and have him release the funds."

Di Xin made the decision on the spot. He spent some time preparing all the necessary paperwork for You Hun, then left the construction site and headed for the Imperial Garden.

He hadn't yet taken a close look at the puppet materials the system had just rewarded him with, and now he had some free time.

The Imperial Garden was beautiful, with fragrant flowers and singing birds. It was cool, pleasant, and peaceful—a good place to think, too.

The palace attendants followed at a distance. Di Xin strolled alone, looking relaxed.

Suddenly, his leisurely steps came to a halt. He frowned and turned his gaze toward a patch of flowers.

A little white head had poked out between the blossoms and was watching him.

Di Xin knew that look all too well. That was the little beast that had bitten his finger.

Had Yang Jian come to test him again?

That was Di Xin's first thought. Then he saw the little dog crawl out from the flowerbed and stand on the flagstone path, looking his way. Its little tail swished gently, making the flowers around it sway.

Was Yang Jian addicted to turning into Sky-Howling Dog?

Couldn't he turn into something else?

Did he really think Di Xin couldn't recognize him?

Di Xin was pretending to be a coward, but Yang Jian was the real dog!

Just as Di Xin was figuring out what to do with him, two options suddenly appeared before his eyes.

[Option One: Turn and run. Mission reward: Immortal Beast Azure Ox.]

[Option Two: Draw your sword and fight the puppy. Mission reward: Top-grade spirit treasure, Universe Ring.]

Damn it, both options were traps!

Di Xin couldn't help cursing inwardly.