Iron Chain Baleful Force

The next morning.

The people of the Capital City rose to work at sunrise as usual.

Meanwhile, at the Third Princess's Residence, Zhang Yuan and Xiao Yuanjun went together to the Bamboo Grove's tearoom to speak with Dongfang Caibai.

"Coming to see me so early, my consort? Could it be that you missed me?" Dongfang Caibai's eyes curved with a smile as she teased him the moment he arrived.

Zhang Yuan's expression remained unchanged. As long as she did not use her divine ability to influence him, he was now largely immune to Dongfang Caibai's words.

"Third Princess, when will we be married?" Zhang Yuan asked bluntly.

His main purpose in coming that morning was to draw information out of her, gathering as much intelligence as possible.

"Tomorrow," Dongfang Caibai said with a smile.

So soon?

Zhang Yuan furrowed his brow in thought.

He had originally planned to try contacting the Chu Clan before the wedding. If he succeeded, he could reap benefits from both the Bian Empress and the Chu Clan's Golden Core True Lord.

But now, it seemed he would not have enough time.

After a brief moment of thought, Zhang Yuan said, "Third Princess, I wish to leave the residence today. I'll remain within the Capital City."

Although little time remained, he still had to leave the Third Princess's Residence today.

There was no other reason: after forming his first divine ability, he had sensed a fourth Heavenly Dipper and Earthly Baleful Force suited to him within the Capital City, and it would emerge today.

"Mm, all right," Dongfang Caibai said with a slight nod.

Her response startled Zhang Yuan. He had not expected her to agree so readily, as though it were a trivial matter.

Dongfang Caibai smiled. "It's for your fourth Heavenly Dipper and Earthly Baleful Force, isn't it? Go, my consort. Contest it to your heart's content. Before tomorrow, no Heavenly Being will make a move against you."

Li Houjin and Chu Miaofu had not brought their people here merely to kill Zhang Yuan, that unpredictable factor. In all likelihood, the two had also come under their True Lords' orders to take the measure of her Daoist attainment and determine whether she had any value.

To bargain with a tiger for its hide, courage alone was not enough. One also needed the ability.

If her own Daoist attainment proved insufficient and she failed to stop Li Houjin and Chu Miaofu, the Golden Core True Lords of the Li and Chu clans would think nothing of her, even if she intended to turn against her own side.

By stopping Li Houjin and Chu Miaofu, she had effectively struck a deal with the Li and Chu clans.

She would turn against her own side on the wedding day, but they were not to interfere with her before then.

Zhang Yuan and Xiao Yuanjun exchanged a glance. Neither could quite grasp what Dongfang Caibai meant, so they could only thank her and leave the tearoom.

Their way was clear from start to finish.

Zhang Yuan and Xiao Yuanjun left the Third Princess's Residence without trouble.

"I must admit, I really did misjudge you. Your luck is something else, brat. Third-Turn Qi Refinement in three days! Even with my guidance, having an Earthly Baleful Force delivered right to your door the moment you reached the third turn—you could certainly call that deep fortune predestination." Xiao Yuanjun marveled, clicking her tongue.

In her eyes, Zhang Yuan should have been someone with ordinary fortune predestination, yet his cultivation advanced with astonishing speed, and Heavenly Dipper and Earthly Baleful Forces kept delivering themselves to his doorstep every few days.

Ordinary rogue cultivators might fail to reach Third-Turn Qi Refinement in three years, or even thirty, but Zhang Yuan had needed only three days.

Zhang Yuan chuckled.

He might indeed be lucky, but having deep fortune predestination was another matter.

When he had chosen his second talent earlier, he remembered that [Heavenly Nobility] described him as possessing outer-heaven fortune and enjoying the Azure Sky Dust-Stained Realm's favor.

Presumably, that was the reason for his lightning-fast cultivation, rather than the deep fortune predestination Xiao Yuanjun spoke of.

Abundant fortune and deep fortune predestination were still different things.

His future held death at every turn. What fortune predestination could he possibly have?

"What's your fourth Earthly Baleful Force?" Xiao Yuanjun asked.

The Heavenly Dipper and Earthly Baleful Forces at the first, fourth, and seventh turns were the most crucial of these minor Qi Refinement stages. They affected the subsequent balance of Heavenly Dipper and Earthly Baleful Forces, as well as the effects of the divine abilities formed from them.

For instance, Zhang Yuan's first Earthly Baleful Force had been [Stolen-Life Baleful Intent]. To address its fatal-tribulation drawback, he had been forced to choose [Golden Carriage Baleful Intent] and [Red Phoenix Baleful Intent]. That was precisely why his first divine ability was not strong enough and had little killing power.

"[Iron Chain Baleful Force]," Zhang Yuan said.

"Iron Chain Baleful Force?" Xiao Yuanjun's eyes flashed with delight.

Zhang Yuan raised a brow, unsure what had made her so happy.

[Iron Chain Baleful Force] likewise had little power to speak of. Using it as a foundation, he could at most form a divine ability for trapping people, like [Earth-Blocking Plow].

"What's special about [Iron Chain Baleful Force]?" Zhang Yuan asked.

Xiao Yuanjun nodded happily, then explained, "[Iron Chain Baleful Force] isn't much use, but if you find a [Linked-Chain Baleful Force] to pair with it, the divine ability you form will be extremely useful."

"Useful how?" Zhang Yuan asked curiously.

Iron chains and linked chains—could it tie people together?

"You'll find out when the time comes. Let's find [Iron Chain Baleful Force] first. As for the second one, [Linked-Chain Baleful Force], I'll think of a way to get it for you," Xiao Yuanjun said with a smile.

Since Xiao Yuanjun would not explain, Zhang Yuan could only nod, then lead the way toward the place where [Iron Chain Baleful Force] would manifest.

As luck would have it, [Iron Chain Baleful Force] was right at the edge of the Capital City, only a few dozen paces from the city wall.

Had [Iron Chain Baleful Force] been outside the Capital City, Zhang Yuan might not have been able to leave to search for it. Dongfang Caibai would certainly have stopped him.

The outer city.

By the time Zhang Yuan and Xiao Yuanjun arrived, the surroundings were already packed. At a glance, apart from ordinary mortals who had gathered to watch without understanding what was happening, most were actually Qi Refinement Perfected of the Gang Sha Path.

Although Gang Sha Path cultivators were rare, there were still quite a few in the vast Capital City, with its population of nearly ten million.

"Oh, there are some familiar faces here."

Looking into the crowd, Zhang Yuan spotted Li Jiejian, Chu Ruifeng, and Chu Xiyin together. Clearly, all three had come for [Iron Chain Baleful Force].

Strangely enough, Chu Ruifeng and Chu Xiyin were both at eighth-turn Qi Refinement, while Li Jiejian was only at the fifth turn, yet anyone with eyes could see that Li Jiejian led the trio.

How strange. Does Li Jiejian really get along that well among the aristocratic clan scions?

Zhang Yuan was puzzled.

Li Jiejian had gone red in the face when mistaken for a waiter and stammered "you" several times in a row. What emotional intelligence could he possibly have?

"Zhang Yuan, look down. You're about to walk into someone," Xiao Yuanjun's voice called out.

Zhang Yuan looked down and discovered that there was indeed someone in front of him.

It was a girl who only came up to his chest. Without lowering his head, he really would have had trouble noticing her.

With a kindly expression, Zhang Yuan asked, "Little girl, it's going to be dangerous here soon. Where are your grown-ups? I'll take you back to them."

With so many Qi Refinement Perfected of the Gang Sha Path fighting over [Iron Chain Baleful Force], they would be lucky if this place was not razed to the ground.

Never mind anything else—Xiao Yuanjun's [Fivefold Body-Rending Qi] alone could leave not a blade of grass growing nearby, cutting off all vitality for years.

The girl ahead turned around. She wore a loose white robe and had a lovely face, especially her eyes, which were lively as though the sun and moon shone within them. They were strikingly beautiful.

"Are you blind? Can't you see I'm a grown-up? Get lost!"

The White-Robed Girl's words were startling; the moment she opened her mouth, she hurled abuse at him.

Zhang Yuan froze in astonishment.

How could such a pretty little girl have such terrible manners?

The White-Robed Girl gave a quiet huff and turned to leave.

But suddenly, she stopped again and turned back, narrowing her eyes as she stared at Zhang Yuan's face and examined him closely.