The Imperial Family's Scheme, Secret Art

"Demigod?"

Qie Yunzhou's face filled with utter shock.

He had thought Qie Qiong had made a breakthrough in True Meaning. After all, when they had gone to the Thunder Sacred Land, Qie Qiong had already reached the Myriad Existences Realm Third Level.

After all these years, it was only natural that he would comprehend a True Meaning Embryo.

But what had he just heard?

A Demigod!

That wasn't a breakthrough one could make simply by comprehending a True Meaning Embryo. At the very least, it required reaching the First Level Realm of complete True Meaning, as well as ample time and resources.

He knew, too, that his son was a once-in-ten-thousand-years genius in this Cang Yun Material World. He could accept his son reaching the First Level Realm of True Meaning, but in this resource-poor mortal world, how had he managed it?

"Qiong'er, did you join the Bloodshed Tavern?" Qie Yunzhou asked urgently, as if he had thought of something.

In his view, that was the only reason that could explain how Qie Qiong had become a Demigod in this mortal world.

Qie Qiong shook his head with an amused smile. "Father, what are you talking about? Even if I had joined the Bloodshed Tavern, how could they possibly provide me with so many resources?"

Qie Qiong had used at least thirty thousand Origin Stones to raise his Dou Qi to the Demigod level.

Qie Yunzhou had been so shocked that he'd lost some of his reason, which was the only way he could have thought of such a possibility.

After all, no faction would give a newcomer who had only just joined so many resources.

Seeing his father's shocked expression, Qie Qiong smiled gently and explained, "Father, there's no need to worry. Do you remember the Qiyun Mountain mine?"

Qie Yunzhou furrowed his brow. Of course he remembered it. It was there that he'd learned Qie Qiong had become a Title Knight. But what did that have to do with resources?

Seeing Qie Yunzhou's confusion,

Qie Qiong stopped hiding the truth. "Deep in the Qiyun Mountain mine, a Space Gate to a Small Transcendent World suddenly appeared in an abandoned mine tunnel."

He paused, then continued, looking his father in the eye. "That Small Transcendent World is rich in resources. I obtained resources there, which allowed me to break through to the Demigod level."

After saying this, Qie Qiong noticed that the worry between his father's brows, which had been there since his return, had not faded.

Only after hearing that he had become a Demigod had his expression changed noticeably.

A thought stirred in his mind, and he asked directly, "Father, have you run into some trouble these past few years? You've looked worried ever since I came back."

Qie Yunzhou looked at his son, whose bearing was outstanding and who now stood at the very peak of the mortal world.

The secret he had found so difficult to speak of could no longer be hidden beneath his son's gaze.

He drew a deep breath and turned his eyes toward Cloud Sea Prefecture City, yet seemed to gaze through endless space,

his attention settling on the distant, vast Thunder World. His voice was filled with bitterness and an indescribable pain.

"Qiong'er, now that you're a Demigod, far stronger than me, there's no need to keep this from you." Qie Yunzhou's voice gradually sank as he slowly explained what had happened. "It was your father's incompetence. I failed to protect Wantang."

"Mother!"

At those words,

the joy Qie Qiong had felt over breaking through and reuniting with his family after so long vanished in an instant.

His silver robe stirred without a breeze. The Power of Heaven and Earth around him trembled, and a trace of coldness flashed through his eyes.

"Mother? What happened to her? How could anything happen to her at the Sacred Land?" Qie Qiong's voice remained steady.

But beneath that calm, even Qie Yunzhou, a Transcendent Knight, felt a sudden, inexplicable pang of fear.

"Wantang's talent far exceeded our expectations. That should have been a good thing, but because..."

Qie Yunzhou fell silent for a long while, then slowly continued. "Everything was fine during our first few years at the Thunder Sacred Land. With the foundation our ancestors had left behind supporting us, I cultivated quickly, and Wantang became a Title Rank cultivator with the help of those resources. You know your mother's gentle nature. She liked planting flowers and tending to plants."

"Then, one spring, five years later..."

As Qie Yunzhou spoke, his voice began to tremble. "While she was sitting in the Herb Garden, meditating and seeking insight, she unexpectedly comprehended the Mystery of Life in the Myriad Existences Realm—the True Meaning of Life. Qiong'er, you know that it's on the same level as the legendary True Meaning of the Three Deities."

"That should have been cause for celebration."

Qie Yunzhou's expression abruptly twisted with pain and anger. "But who could have imagined that the Mystery of Life in the Myriad Existences Realm would bring Wantang a calamity that nearly destroyed her?"

Qie Qiong's gaze turned completely cold.

Of course he knew what the True Meaning of Life was: a Grade Three True Meaning. Many people would likely covet it.

But in the end, it was only the Myriad Existences Realm. No one knew whether she would eventually comprehend complete True Meaning.

How could it bring a calamity that nearly destroyed her?

Qie Yunzhou answered his question. "Once the Thunder Imperial Family learned of it, they immediately sent people to our door and demanded that Wantang go help them."

By then, Qie Qiong had already guessed the general situation.

But he continued to ask,

"Help?" Qie Qiong's voice gradually turned cold. "Help with what?"

"They said the Imperial Family's only surviving Demigod ancestor was nearing the end of his lifespan, and needed Wantang to prolong his life."

As Qie Yunzhou said this, his voice faltered. "It was only afterward that I heard the Imperial Family had a secret art that could forcibly convert the life origin of someone who possessed a life-related Mystery, continuously transferring it to that Demigod."

"So the Mystery of Life in the Myriad Existences Realm that my mother comprehended made her the perfect person for this secret art?"

The space around Qie Qiong seemed to freeze at that moment.

A cold killing intent instantly spread out, and everyone in Cloud Sea Prefecture City shivered for no apparent reason.

"So," Qie Qiong said, his voice frighteningly calm, "they captured Mother and treated her as a living 'Life Origin Stone,' using her life to prolong that old monster's?"

"Yes." Qie Yunzhou's voice was filled with boundless humiliation and pain. "If it weren't for the fact that this secret art requires the one being drained to cooperate, and they had their reservations, then you and I..."

He didn't finish, but the meaning was clear.

"So Mother has been trapped there for the past five years, having her life origin drained, because of us?" Qie Qiong pressed, his voice gradually choking up.

"How is Mother now?"

"The secret art operates according to a set pattern. After each extraction, Wantang is given time to recover. After all, if they drained her all at once, it wouldn't add much to his lifespan. But her condition is extremely poor."

Qie Yunzhou's voice was heavy with helplessness and deep self-reproach. "The Imperial Family sent me to fetch you. Officially, it was to escort a newly advanced Transcendent, but having you go to the Sacred Land is probably meant to help them keep your mother under tighter control."

By the time Qie Yunzhou had finished explaining, Qie Qiong had already guessed as much.

And if he wasn't mistaken, the two of them would probably never be able to leave the Thunder Sacred Land again.

After all, as long as they were both under the Imperial Family's watchful eye, Mother would probably cooperate even more.

After laying bare the pain he had kept bottled up for five years, Qie Yunzhou felt utterly exhausted.

He looked at his son's solemn face. The coldness surrounding Qie Qiong made even his own father feel a trace of fear.

After a long while, Qie Qiong slowly closed his eyes.

When he opened them again, the killing intent deep in his gaze had disappeared, replaced by calm.

The aura around him settled at once.

He had already thought of what to do.

"Father," Qie Qiong said steadily, "I understand."

Qie Yunzhou met his son's eyes, and his heart tightened. "Qiong'er, don't do anything foolish. The Thunder Imperial Family has a deep foundation, and they even have a Divine Artifact left behind by the First Thunder Emperor. They're not people a Demigod can afford to provoke. Your mother wants you to live well, too."

Qie Qiong understood, of course. In the end, he had only just entered the Demigod level.

And the True Meaning he had comprehended was only Grade Six. His combat strength was formidable, but he was no match for the Imperial Family.

Their Deity ancestor would certainly send resources into the Material World.

Over the past ten thousand years, the imperial families of the three great empires had not always had Saint Rank Transcendents as their highest level of power, but they had remained the strongest factions in the Cang Yun Material World.

Qie Yunzhou continued, "They sent me to fetch you because your talent, as it appears to others, is too strong. They want us to lack experience and make slow progress."

"Do something foolish?" Qie Qiong reassured him. "Father, don't worry. I understand better than anyone that anger won't solve anything. If something happens to me, Mother will only suffer more. The Thunder Imperial Family wants to keep me trapped, wasting away the years."

His gaze turned toward the window, seeming to pass through the barriers of space and fall on the Space Gate deep in Qiyun Mountain.

If that Small Transcendent World hadn't suddenly appeared, he really might have been powerless.

"They've got their plans all worked out." Qie Qiong's voice was low and forceful. "They'll never imagine..."

He paused. His five fingers clenched, and ripples spread through the space around his palm. "Ten years! Just give me ten more years! I won't need any experience at all. I'll be able to master the True Meaning of Space."

"Ten years, and you'll master the True Meaning of Space?" Qie Yunzhou's pupils contracted.

Ten years was a long time for a mortal. For a Transcendent, it wasn't over in the blink of an eye, but it was no more than a few sessions of cultivating Dou Qi.

And the True Meaning of Space was said to be a Grade Two True Meaning. Could it really be mastered in ten years?

"Yes, ten years." Qie Qiong's voice rang out with absolute certainty as he made his solemn promise. "Father, believe me. In ten years, I'll definitely rescue Mother."

Hearing him say that eased Qie Yunzhou's heart. His son had never made empty boasts, especially about something concerning his mother.

"All right. Your father is useless. I can only count on you, son."

"Don't blame yourself, Father. Most people wouldn't have a good way to deal with the Imperial Family." Qie Qiong spoke calmly. "For the next few days, tell them I need to consolidate my cultivation and use that as an excuse to delay them. After that, come with me to take a look at the Small Transcendent World."

"Good!" Qie Yunzhou clapped his son firmly on the shoulder. The despair in his heart was replaced by hope that day. His son's talent had shown him that there was still hope.

"As for the Sacred Land, I'll say you just broke through and need a few days to stabilize your cultivation."

Qie Qiong nodded. "Then, Father, come with me now and see where our Qie Clan's true treasure lies."

As he spoke, two streaks of light cut across the sky, heading straight for the mine deep in the Qiyun Mountain Range.

When they once again reached the depths of the abandoned mine tunnel and saw the silver Space Gate hanging quietly in the air, Qie Qiong felt little.

But Qie Yunzhou's heart surged.

Beyond this door lay an ownerless Small Transcendent World. It was something countless Transcendents dreamed of.

Now it belonged to their family. If not for what had happened to Qie Qiong's mother, Qie Yunzhou would have been even more excited.

"Father, this is the place." Qie Qiong pointed at the Space Gate, his gaze deep. "Go in and have a look. I can't enter right now."

Demigods couldn't enter Small Transcendent Worlds, so all Qie Qiong could do now was watch from outside.

His voice held a trace of helplessness, but above all, the calm of someone in control of everything:

"Go in and take a look. I've already cleared out the top experts inside and left a Dou Qi Clone with only Flying Sky Rank strength there. It should still be peaceful inside. The clone will guide you to the main Origin Stone vein. Go in for two reasons: first, to get a feel for that world; second, to see whether the preliminary preparations for mining are in order. The people I assigned should be arriving soon."

Over the past year, all the Knights and miners who had still been alive in the mine had gone inside to make preparations.

Qie Yunzhou took a deep breath at his words and said solemnly, "All right! Don't worry, Qiong'er. Father will take a good, careful look."

Though he couldn't do anything major for his son as a father, these little things were no problem for him.

Watching his father step into the silver Space Gate and disappear, Qie Qiong's gaze grew calm.

He sat cross-legged on the floor of the mine.

Now he had to look for a secret technique that could conceal the aura of his Demigod realm, so he wouldn't be discovered once he reached the Thunder Sacred Land.

If he was discovered, things could get rather unpleasant.

His thoughts sank into the depths of his Sea of Consciousness, and the "Golden Light" Codex unfurled.

This time, his goal wasn't to comprehend a True Meaning, but to search through this vast ocean of secret techniques for one suited to his current situation.

His powerful mental energy swept through the countless secret techniques in the codex.

At last, in the silver chapter on the Mystery of Space, he found several lines of text formed from tiny spatial ripples:

Secret Technique—Space Concealment Technique.

This secret technique could also be called the Spatial Membrane.

It was exactly the secret technique he urgently needed right now: one that could conceal his own realm.

Its deeper mystery lay in using Spatial Fold around his body to form a special "Spatial Membrane."

Because it could only be cultivated through the True Meaning of Space, according to the text, anyone below a Grade Two True Meaning Transcendent or a true Deity could be fooled.

The first condition for mastering this secret technique was the Myriad Existences Realm of Space. Furthermore, it had to be the Myriad Existences Realm of the True Meaning of Space, not a lower True Meaning of Space, such as Space Cutting.

Cultivated to a high level, this technique could even simulate the aura fluctuations of nonliving things.

"Good." Qie Qiong's heart settled. "With this secret technique, I won't have to worry about my realm being exposed."

Time was pressing. He immediately cast aside every stray thought and immersed his mind completely in the secret technique.

After an unknown length of time—perhaps only half a day—

the energy around Qie Qiong was completely sealed within the "Spatial Membrane."

He opened his eyes. The aura around him had grown weak, revealing only the energy fluctuations of someone who had just entered the Transcendent realm. They were also rather unstable, making it obvious he had only broken through recently.