A Visitor (?)

While Qi Fei was pondering how to help Little Ma complete his Internal Qi transformation,

a subtle sensation suddenly came over him, as if someone were spying on him.

The gaze seemed to come from outside the military camp.

"Hoho, spying on the military camp without permission? You've got some nerve."

Qi Fei immediately sent his Divine Will along the direction of the gaze to investigate.

But he found nothing.

"Just as expected."

Qi Fei wasn't surprised.

After all, anyone bold enough to spy on the military camp would surely have some concealment techniques. That much was within his expectations.

Qi Fei immediately urged his will to conduct a more detailed search, while expanding its range to cover every area around the camp.

The several generals remaining in the camp all sensed Qi Fei's power.

Guan Yu and the others looked grave. They immediately gathered the soldiers who had been training and prepared for Qi Fei to mobilize the army.

If Qi Fei was exerting his power like this, the opponent was certainly not to be underestimated.

They'd better surround the target with the army.

Meanwhile, even after expanding his search area, Qi Fei still found nothing.

"Interesting."

Qi Fei raised an eyebrow.

He summoned a messenger and prepared to mobilize the army directly.

This kind of concealment ability wasn't something an ordinary general could manage. Could it be an immortal, with Internal Qi that had gained sentience?

That's right, there were immortals in the God Three World.

They dispersed into qi and gathered into form. It was quite immortal-like.

But after Chen Xi and the others investigated, they discovered that immortals were actually just masses of sentient Internal Qi, at the Internal Qi Separation level.

They were even weaker in battle than generals at the Internal Qi Separation level.

They'd fallen from immortals to mortals in an instant.

The Marquis of Huaiyin inside the Heirloom Seal of the Realm had this same form.

But the Marquis of Huaiyin was fundamentally a little stronger than an immortal.

Immortals were another consciousness that emerged after a person cultivated certain methods and died. (It was the same person, but they had lost all their memories of the past.)

Essentially, they were a device for collecting Internal Qi, combined with an alarm clock.

Once the Heaven and Earth Essence in the outside world recovered to a certain level and the body in the coffin had been restored, the immortal would return directly to the coffin.

Then the dead person could throw open the coffin and live a second life.

The Marquis of Huaiyin, however, still had his memories and consciousness from the past. He had merely been targeted by Heaven and forced into slumber.

Once unification was restored and the Han Dynasty's fortune flourished, the Marquis of Huaiyin could be awakened directly.

It was a much simpler way to come back to life than an immortal's method.

But neither method of resurrection was permitted by Heaven in the God Three World, so anyone who attempted it would immediately be singled out.

The immortals' complicated method of resurrection was meant to avoid that attention.

In a sense, those revived this way were considered to have usurped the identity of an immortal who was already alive.

The Marquis of Huaiyin's method couldn't avoid Heaven's notice, so he could only hide under the protection of the nation's fortune.

Of course, while some people studied resurrection, others didn't want them to come back.

The Legalist School, for instance.

The Legalists believed that life was life and death was death. You couldn't die and then expect to live again. That wasn't proper.

So after the Marquis of Huaiyin climbed out of the Imperial Seal, Lord Shang's lingering will teamed up with Immortal Yinghuo (Lord of Martial Peace), whose memories had partially returned, and set a trap. They reported this group of would-be interlopers to Heaven.

After making the report, Lord Shang's lingering will perished on the spot. Only then did it become Lord of Martial Peace's and the other immortals' turn.

Lord of Martial Peace relied on the Han Dynasty's inheritance of the Qin System to hide inside the Heirloom Seal of the Realm and live with the Marquis of Huaiyin.

The rest, threatened by Heaven, had no choice but to leave their bodies lying in coffins and feign death, while continuing to operate under the identities of immortals.

Whenever Qi Fei thought about this, he couldn't help admiring the Legalists.

They were ruthless to others, and even more ruthless to themselves. No wonder they were always stirring up trouble.

Still, if it was an immortal, there was no reason for one to spy on the military camp.

Even if they were protecting a feudal lord so he could obtain national fortune, there was no way they'd extend that protection to the military camp.

It was still too early in the story for the immortals to have wasted away their brains. They could even still be called wise men.

Or was it actually a spy from another feudal lord, with some kind of special talent?

But there was no way such a talent could fool a God Boundary Breaker.

What was going on?

As Qi Fei pondered, his orders had already spread throughout the camp.

As the drums sounded, every soldier still in camp was mobilized, except for Ma Chao and Cai Yang, who were still getting used to one another.

Under the effect of the military orders and formations, Qi Fei unified the soldiers' will, and thick Cloud Qi appeared in the sky.

At this point, Qi Fei couldn't be bothered to consider what ability his opponent might have.

Whatever the ability, it couldn't remain unchanged under the cover of Cloud Qi.

And with no enemy Cloud Qi interfering, their own forces could exert their power to the fullest. That spy in the camp was as good as dead.

"Let's start with a scan of their will."

Qi Fei immediately drew on the will of the entire army.

In the next instant, the army's will scanned the camp and the surrounding area for more than ten miles.

Qi Fei searched the ground, the sky, the water, and even underground.

Yet he still couldn't find the intruder.

"Now that's strange."

Qi Fei crouched on the platform, beginning to doubt himself.

He couldn't understand it.

If this had happened in some other setting, he could understand not finding the target. But this was the God Three World, where a proper army stood above all the supernatural nonsense.

He had the army with him, Cloud Qi in place, and the will of the entire force at his command.

Even an ordinary Boundary Breaker didn't warrant this kind of attention from him.

So why couldn't he find one measly spy?

"Zilong's on leave, of all times. What a pain."

Qi Fei sighed.

In the past, Zhao Yun had practically traveled all over Mount Tai by himself to complete the land reclamation.

He might not have known everyone on Mount Tai, but he had at least seen most of them before.

If Zhao Yun took the White Horse around the area, he might have found a clue.

What a shame.

"Mengqi, take these two hundred cavalrymen and make a sweep outside the camp. See if you find anyone suspicious."

Qi Fei had no choice but to hand the task to Ma Chao, who was similarly inclined toward speed.

"Your subordinate obeys."

Ma Chao rode out with the men.

Qi Fei continued searching with the will of the entire army.

But even after Ma Chao had circled the area three times, Qi Fei still hadn't found anything.

"Something's wrong."

If they couldn't find anything outside, there was only one possibility.

"Take a head count. If anyone seems out of place, report it to me at once."

Qi Fei's order immediately spread throughout the army.

A short while later, the head count was complete. Nothing seemed out of place.

"Just as I thought—"

Qi Fei looked solemn.

Those things from Chu State must have arrived.

"Stand down. Call Ma Chao back to camp."

As the troops withdrew, Qi Fei closely watched for changes in the army's will and the Cloud Qi overhead.

He tried to find the suspicious target among them.

But once again, he found nothing.

Qi Fei couldn't help but doubt himself.

Was he just being paranoid, or were this thing's methods far beyond his imagination?

After they had assigned their soldiers to their posts, Second Master and the others hurried over.

"Zihong, who just attacked us? Did you find anything?"

"I didn't find anything. I'm even starting to wonder if I imagined the sensation and no one was spying on us at all."

Qi Fei shook his head.

In truth, he already had a theory, but he couldn't say it yet.

"That's impossible."

Guan Yu immediately rejected the idea.

"I don't believe Zihong would be mistaken either. It seems this intruder has extraordinary methods."

Cai Yang agreed.

Generals at the Internal Qi Separation level were already sensitive enough to a gaze. A God Boundary Breaker was even more so.

The chance of Qi Fei being mistaken was lower than the chance of all three systems of Essence, Qi, and Spirit breaking through the boundary at once right here.

"With methods like that, what could he want from spying on the camp?"

Hua Xiong made a rare effort to think.

Of course, since the people of Xiliang had spent so long honing their muscles, that was about as far as his thinking went.

"Maybe he was drawn here by the Edict of Recruiting the Virtuous and wanted to see how strong we really are?"

Top strategist Zhang Fei made his entrance.

Unfortunately, without enough information, even a top strategist's theory couldn't be very accurate.

Just then, Ma Chao returned.

Liu Bei was with him, along with an unfamiliar general.

The man had two short halberds strapped to his back and a longbow on his shoulder. A sword and quiver hung at his waist. He looked quite imposing.

"Greetings, Lord Xuande/Master."

Everyone quickly paid their respects.

"There's no need for formalities. Zihong, has something happened?"

Liu Bei hurried forward and helped Qi Fei to his feet.

"Yes, Lord Xuande. The thing I've been worried about has happened."

Qi Fei spoke with a serious expression.

"Is it the matter you discussed with Zichuan last time?"

Liu Bei asked.

There was only one thing that had Qi Fei so worried.

At Liu Bei's words, everyone except the two newcomers immediately understood what he meant.

"Yes. One wrong move, and this matter will bring endless trouble. So I could only tell Lord Xuande. I hope the rest of you won't hold it against me."

Qi Fei glanced around at the others.

When it came to this matter, keeping it from them was even more important than guarding against that strange thing.

Zhang Fei and Hua Xiong stared at Qi Fei, seeming unable to believe what they were hearing.

Guan Yu appeared to be asking with his eyes, Was it really that serious?

"Sorry."

That was all Qi Fei could say.

In fact, if Liu Bei hadn't been there in person, he wouldn't even have wanted to tell him.

"Yunchang, Yide, Zijian, this is Taishi Ziyi, a formidable general. He defeated Xuangao in less than a hundred exchanges just now. Why don't you entertain him for me?"

Liu Bei immediately spoke up.

"Understood."

Guan Yu agreed without a moment's hesitation.

After achieving God Boundary Breaker, he hadn't been able to see through Qi Fei. If anything, Qi Fei seemed even farther beyond his reach.

So under the circumstances, he fully supported Qi Fei's decision.

Since Guan Yu had agreed, Zhang Fei and Hua Xiong exchanged a glance and agreed as well.

"Ziyi, what happened today was my fault. I'll personally apologize to you another day."

Liu Bei turned to Taishi Ci and said.

"Things happened suddenly, Lord Xuande. How could you be at fault?"

Taishi Ci had seen what happened just now.

They had even mobilized the army. Clearly, this was no small matter.

"Thank you for understanding, Ziyi."

Liu Bei bowed.

"Second Master, wait a moment."

Qi Fei sent a message to Guan Yu.

"If you discover anything, do not investigate it. Otherwise, disaster could befall your descendants for generations to come."

Of all these people, if anyone might notice that thing, it would be Guan Yu, since he was also a God Boundary Breaker.

So Qi Fei had to make sure he warned him.

"I understand."

Guan Yu replied through a mental transmission.

Qi Fei was being so serious that Guan Yu naturally wouldn't do anything rash.

After that, Guan Yu and the others left with Taishi Ci. Cai Yang and Ma Chao were also invited to leave.

Liu Bei then ordered his personal bodyguard, Xu Chu, to leave as well.

"Pass my orders to every unit: no one is to leave the camp without my personal approval."

Once the others were gone, Qi Fei immediately issued the order.

"Oh, I almost forgot about this."

Qi Fei beckoned with one hand.

Far away at the Library Pavilion, Nine Phoenix rose into the air. It broke the sound barrier in an instant, then flew toward Qi Fei with a roar.

A few breaths later, the Nine Phoenix Sword dropped from the sky and landed neatly in Qi Fei's palm.

Afterward, Qi Fei took Liu Bei somewhere else. Only after putting every precaution in place did he explain the Guest Corpse Feast Rite talent and what had happened to Chu State back then.

"I see. No wonder Zihong was so cautious."

After hearing everything, Liu Bei understood how serious the matter was.

It was quick and easy to learn, and made people powerful. What general wouldn't be tempted?

Even if they didn't know what had happened to Chu State back then, there would surely be no shortage of people greedy for power.

"That's exactly why I had to keep General Guan and the others out of this."

Qi Fei sighed.

If they decided they could improve it and went off to study the talent, it would be a real problem.

The core of this talent was to raise people into inhuman beings. Change it, and all its advantages would disappear.

And during the research, no one could guarantee that outsiders wouldn't find out.

Manifesting an Elite Talent required soldiers, and it couldn't be done with just one or two.

If at least three people knew something, could it still be called a secret?

"Zihong, you did the right thing."

Liu Bei consoled Qi Fei.

Qi Fei had told him all his concerns, so Liu Bei could understand him now.

"By the way, Zihong, how do you plan to find that thing?"

They'd already gone to so much trouble without finding the real culprit. Could they really find it now?

"I don't need to look for it."

Qi Fei shook his head.

"It was watching me before. I assume that was because of my power, so it'll come looking for me on its own."

The thing—or things—that came this time were probably like the powers he had absorbed before, drawn in by the gift of the Supreme God of Destruction.

So, now that Nine Phoenix Sword had returned, all Qi Fei had to do was wait in the camp.

It—or they—would definitely come.