Across the Thousand Li of Yellow Sands, a lone figure walked slowly and wearily. An iron sword was strapped across his back, and his face bore the deep lines of age. Anyone familiar with him would surely recognize him as Zuo Song, the sect leader of Iron Sword Hall in Tianlan Immortal City.
Only the Twin Fiends of the Netherworld and the Four Elders of Liancang knew that Zuo Song had perished within the Divine Transformation pocket world, which meant that this person could only be an imposter.
Meanwhile, the imposter was unaware that after his departure, the Falling Cloud Sect had already begun preparations to seal off the pocket world. At this moment, he was still thinking back to that rapid and intense battle, gaining an even clearer understanding of his strength. His speed now far surpassed not just all Initiates, but also early-stage Adepts. His physique was strong enough to withstand ordinary attacks from enchanted treasures, and his blood qi was dense and powerful.
With all three combined, he was capable of unleashing terrifying bursts of power in close-range combat. Even a Pseudo-Adept like Blood Devil, said to be practically invincible among Initiates, had been slain with ease. As for going up against an actual Adept, Luo Chen still had no absolute confidence; perhaps he might be able to hold one on his own.
With such a powerful physique, it would be a shame if he didn't make good use of it. But in terms of lethal Physique Refinement techniques, he didn't know many; all he had was the low-tier Mountain-Cleaving Monument-Breaking Palm, and the Sky Roc Divine Claw that came with the Sky Roc Transformation.
"When I get back, I should sit down with Wang Yuan. He'll definitely have plenty of advice to offer."
During the recent fight, Luo Chen had already tested the Sky Roc Divine Claw. It had performed remarkably well—a high burst of power, powerful enough to tear down defensive enchanted treasures. But the drawback was also clear: Its range was too short. Unless Luo Chen transformed his body into a beast-like form, expanding his frame to widen his attack radius... but that would also make him a larger target. A trade-off of reach for vulnerability.
What should I do... Tough decision.
As if triggered by that thought, he recalled his recent clash with Blood Devil. "Ah, Han Zheng should still be alive. The Han family has those death-substitute puppets!"
Back at the Debate Platform in Dahe Market, during a brutal clash between two rival forces, Gao Tingyuan of the Dajiang Gang had used one of those death-substitute puppets, though it had been wasted on that very stage. Those things were truly invaluable. As far as Luo Chen knew, throughout the entire Jade Cauldron Domain, only the Han family of the Falling Cloud Sect possessed the skill to craft them.
At the thought of Dahe Market, Luo Chen also recalled Xu Ji and that humanoid puppet in his storage pouch.
He couldn't help but let a hint of satisfaction curl across his lips. If Tian Xingzi hadn't let slip the truth about what happened back then, I really might have been deceived by Xu Ji.
Back in those days, Tian Xingzi hadn't broken his promise. He had truly gathered three Foundation Establishment Pills for Luo Chen. But Xu Ji, who had gone to Dahe Market on Tian Xingzi's behalf, had only handed over two and secretly kept one for himself. If Luo Chen hadn't refined three doses of Imperial Nectar, he might have failed Foundation Establishment entirely.
That was the worst kind of offense among cultivators—an action that directly obstructed his Dao. Such a grievance was not easily forgiven. Had the opportunity come earlier, he would have repaid it in full. As for whether Han Zheng would report it, he wasn't worried. When he struck, he had concealed his appearance and avoided using his signature fire arts. He hadn't left behind even the slightest trace.
The only possible clue was the Crimson Cloud Wings. Still, that was merely an illusory projection born from an enchanted artifact, and he had activated it using blood qi. Han Zheng, who had his eyes shut while faking death, wouldn't have noticed anything. As for Blood Devil, he had known who Luo Chen was, but he was already dead.
But speaking of identities, Blood Devil's true identity had deeply shocked Luo Chen.
After killing him, his Spirit Eyes had seen through the disguise. To his surprise, it was Xuan Yu of Peach Mountain! That had been completely unexpected. Though Xuan Yu wasn't of particularly high status, he was backed by Grand Elder Peach Blossom, and he was a Pseudo-Adept in his own right. He even ran the Peach Mountain brothel, which brought in no small amount of wealth. There hadn't been any sign that Xuan Yu was mentally unstable, so why would he resort to these devil acts?
None of that is my concern. Now, I should return to Tianlan Immortal City, recover my spirit power, and plan from there. Luo Chen made his decision quickly. However, when he reached within a thousand li of Golden Sand Floating Island, he suddenly paused.
He drew out several jade tokens from his storage pouch, and his brows arched slightly. All of them were voice transmissions. Some were from Duan Feng, some from Xu Haizhen, and others from Chu Kui. That wasn't surprising. When he had entered the Divine Transformation pocket world, the three of them had still been on the battlefield. It was only natural that they'd send messages out of concern.
What caught him off guard were the voice transmissions from Wang Yuan and Min Longyu. Weren't the two of them supposed to be in Tianlan Immortal City?
He activated the jade tokens, letting each voice message flow into his ears one after another. By the time they finished, a gentle warmth had risen in his chest. Quiet, yet unstoppable, emotions flowed through him. They actually traveled thousands of li just to come rescue me. Alright then, let's arrange to meet up first.
Without hesitation, he sent voice transmissions back to Wang Yuan, Chu Kui, and Min Longyu.
***
Beyond the Thousand Li of Yellow Sands, deep within a lush and verdant forest, three figures streaked through the skies as swift as lightning bolts. As soon as they landed, all three immediately activated their spirit consciousness. But before they could even begin their search, a white figure calmly stepped out from within a great tree.
"It's been a long time, everyone," Luo Chen said with a faint smile. The usual cold sharpness on his lean face had softened slightly.
"President, you really are still alive!" Min Longyu cried out and rushed forward, unable to hide his excitement.
Seeing that the man looked ready to throw his arms around him, Luo Chen quickly raised a hand to stop him. "Hold it right there. Unless you happen to be Caiyi in disguise, I'm good."
Min Longyu halted at once and scratched his head with an awkward grin. Luo Chen patted his shoulder and said, "That formation of yours was impressive."
Min Longyu's eyes lit up, and he blurted, "President, I've got even better ones now! Want to see them?"
Luo Chen chuckled and shook his head. "Let's put up a concealment formation first. No need to attract random people."
"I'm on it!" Min Longyu immediately took out a formation disc and began setting it up around their location. That enchanted formation disc was undoubtedly the very same treasure Yang Wei had once used to lay down the Lightning Prison Grand Formation in an attempt to kill Wang Yuan.
Luo Chen had let Wang Yuan take it back to society. It had barely been a year, yet Min Longyu seemed to have already grasped its workings. Otherwise, he wouldn't have boasted so confidently just now.
"I knew it! There was no way you'd die!" Chu Kui laughed heartily as he approached.
Luo Chen cupped his fists toward him. "Brother Chu, you held the rear for me back then and faced down an Adept with just Foundation Establishment strength. I'll never forget that favor."
Chu Kui waved his hand dismissively. "Why bring that up? You know the kind of person I am. When people pay up, I deliver. Well, you haven't paid me, but since I gave you my word, then I had to see it through."
Luo Chen smiled and said nothing more. Some things were better etched in the heart than spoken aloud.
At last, Wang Yuan stepped in front of Luo Chen and gave him a solid punch to the chest. "That fight, you fought it in my place!"
A simple sentence, yet it said everything that needed saying. Indeed, had it not been for rescuing Wang Yuan, Luo Chen wouldn't have slain Yan Leizi and consequently offended Di Wanyun. Every twist of fate comes with its own cause and effect. Though Luo Chen had suffered considerable losses, he had also reaped gains within the Divine Transformation pocket world. It hadn't been a fruitless venture.
Huh? Suddenly, Wang Yuan stared at Luo Chen in astonishment. Instinctively, he reached out, as if trying to touch Luo Chen's chest.
"Whoa!" Luo Chen batted his hand away. "Brother, don't be like that. That look in your eye and that gesture... Kinda creepy, you know?"
Wang Yuan shook his head and stared at Luo Chen with a bewildered gaze. "Your body..."
"We'll talk when we get back," Luo Chen interrupted before he could finish. Then, while the concealment formation was still active, he began pulling out unclaimed enchanted artifacts from his storage pouch, shaking them out onto the ground. The act might have seemed strange, but Chu Kui immediately understood.
"There's actually no need to register those anymore," Chu Kui said. "The Four-Sect Alliance already knows you killed Di Wanyun. The merit board shows you've been credited with ten thousand points. That's enough to exchange for the Upper Path Core Formation secret art."
Only ten thousand for slaying an Adept? That's hella cheap, Luo Chen thought. Then he said, "Ten thousand isn't enough. I also want to get the Lower Path secret arts from Ailao Mountain and Green Pill Valley."
"That's still more than enough!" Chu Kui frowned. "Back when we teamed up, we earned eight thousand points or so. Those two arts only cost four thousand total."
Luo Chen nodded, then added, "But the Lower Path often relies on external items. For example, the Dragon-Phoenix Tribulation requires the Dragon Transformation pill and the Ice Phoenix Pellet. The other two are probably similar. If we can't get the auxiliaries, then we'll exchange the rest for Foundation Establishment Pills and cultivation resources for Initiates."
He let out a hearty laugh. "No reason to let free merit points go to waste, right? This war is probably about to end, now that the Divine Transformation pocket world has opened. Let's make one last haul. That way, this whole trip won't have been for nothing."
Chu Kui had completely forgotten about that. To him, redeeming Foundation Establishment Pills seemed completely unnecessary. But Luo Chen, as the leader of Luo Tian Society, wouldn't overlook such a practical advantage.
Chu Kui's merit had already been recorded. With the merit Luo Chen had accumulated on his way out of the pocket world, they would have a total of nine thousand points. He couldn't help but sigh when he saw that number. "If Di Wanyun hadn't stuck his nose, the two of us would've scraped together enough merit points back then and we wouldn't have gone through all this."
"Don't dwell on it. Go quickly and come back soon. We'll wait here for you," Luo Chen said.