Upon hearing that voice, the expression on the Otherworldly Demon’s face froze. His body trembled a little as he hurriedly lifted his head.
“Teacher?”
That voice was simply too familiar! He had heard this voice in his dreams, day and night, so there was no way that he could possibly not recognize who it belonged to!
“It’s me. Are you still doing well? How did you end up joining the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe? What are you doing here?”
There were countless questions running through Zhang Xuan’s mind.
Even though the Otherworldly Demon before him had disguised himself very well, such that even the Zhenqi of Slaughter coursing through his body seemed authentic, the truth still revealed itself through his Eye of Insight. With a single glance, he could tell that the other party was the student who had left him in the Qingyuan Empire without bidding farewell, Liu Yang!
Due to the outstanding accomplishments of his other students, Liu Yang had been put into a position of immense pressure, such that he eventually left his side to seek his own fortune. Zhang Xuan had tapped into the connections of the Master Teacher Pavilion and those of his students to seek Liu Yang, but there had been no news whatsoever.
Who could have known that his student would actually end up being accepted into Wu Chen’s lineage and be brought to the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe!
“Teacher, I’ll fill you in on this matter later. At the moment, Sovereign Chen Yong still doesn’t know of my true identity, so I ask you to help me keep it a secret,” Liu Yang replied through zhenqi telepathy.
“Un!” Zhang Xuan replied with a slight nod.
He could tell as much via the interactions between Liu Yang and Wu Chen, which was why he had chosen to communicate with Liu Yang through zhenqi telepathy.
Even though the two of them had only communicated with one another for a brief moment, the sharp Wu Chen still noticed some anomalies in their behavior. Swiftly directing gazes between the two, he asked, “Do the two of you know each other?”
“That’s not it. I was just impressed by the talent of your student, so I secretly asked him about some matters regarding cultivation,” Zhang Xuan said with a light smile.
“Matters regarding cultivation?” Wu Chen repeated with a slight hint of skepticism in his voice. Seeing that the young man was unwilling to talk too much about this matter, he shook his head before turning to Liu Yang to ask, “What’s the current situation within the capital?”
This was the matter that he was the most concerned about.
“Sovereign Chen Ling and Sovereign Chen Xing returned a month ago, and they announced that you had already been killed by the Ancient Sages of mankind. While trying to protect you, they sustained some injuries as well… By claiming that you had passed down your position to them, they took control of your armies and replaced many of the higher-ranking commanders with their own men. I fear that even if you return to the capital, you won’t be able to mobilize the armies and make them do your bidding!” Liu Yang said grimly.
Hearing those words, Sovereign Chen Yong’s face turned livid. Just as he had thought, those two b*stards had indeed attempted to devour his sphere of influence.
“What about those who have been replaced? Where are they at the moment?”
Those Otherworldly Demons were experts who were loyal to him. If he could find them, he might still be able to make a comeback.
“After they were relieved from their positions, they were all assassinated within a month’s time. I’m afraid that none of them are around anymore!” Liu Yang replied.
“They have been assassinated?” Wu Chen staggered a little upon hearing those words.
He had known that Sovereign Chen Ling was vicious, but he did not think that the other party would go so far!
He was truly callously weeding out everything that could potentially pose a problem to him in the future, not leaving any room for deviation at all.
Suppressing the rage boiling in his chest, Wu Chen asked, “How are the physical conditions of the both of them at the moment?”
He had managed to land a critical hit on the both of them when they attempted to kill him, thus causing them to be grievously injured. While their injuries were not as severe as his own, it was likely that their foundations had been rattled, so it would not be too easy for them to make a recovery!
As long as they did not return to their peak, he would still have a chance to turn the tables on them!
To put it bluntly, for cultivators at their level, what was more important was their individual strength rather than amassing armies and authority. As long as they could kill those two traitors and announce their return, those subordinates would have no choice but to obediently follow his orders whether they liked it or not!
“I wasn’t really able to uncover anything specific. It seems like their current physical condition is classified information…” Liu Yang shook his head.
Wu Chen was not surprised to hear those words. Both Sovereign Chen Ling and Sovereign Chen Xing were extremely scheming individuals, and locking down vital information regarding their weaknesses was the bare basics. If they were not capable of that much, they would not have come so close to killing him back at the Temple of Confucius.
“How many Ancient Sages have they managed to bring over to their side so far? You should at least have some idea of that, right?”
In fear of him returning to exact vengeance for their betrayal, the two of them would surely try their best to rally as many Ancient Sages over to their side as possible.
At the very least, that was what he would have done if he was in their position.
“Based on what I have heard so far, Lord Ji, Lord Huai, Lord Mang, and five other lords have joined their faction and come under their command!” Liu Yang replied.
“Lord Ji, Lord Huai, and Lord Mang? Humph!” Wu Chen flung his sleeves furiously.
Serving directly under the Three Sovereigns of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe were the Fourteen Lords, and Lord Ji, Long Huai, and Lord Mang were the strongest among them. They were all powerful Ancient Sages who had reached the level of Blood Reincarnation realm!
As they were feudal lords, they were usually stationed in their fiefdom and were rarely mobilized by the Three Sovereigns. Yet, who could have known that they would collude together with Sovereign Chen Ling and Sovereign Chen Xing!
“Eight Lords along with two Sovereigns, that means that they have ten Ancient Sages on their side… Your Majesty, you mustn’t move recklessly. Otherwise, you will expose yourself to grave danger!” Liu Yang said anxiously.
Had Sovereign Chen Yong been at his peak, ten Ancient Sages would not have posed a threat to him at all. However, if he challenged them in his current state, the one who would be standing at the very end would not be him.
“I know!” Wu Chen said with his brow deeply furrowed.
He had returned for vengeance, but he knew better than to allow his emotions to get the better of him. With the enemy gathering so many Ancient Sages, barging over in his current condition would be no different from suicide!
Wu Chen was silent for a very long while before he abruptly remarked, “I’ll be making a trip over to the Primal Lodestone Mountain!”
“Primal Lodestone Mountain?” Liu Yang was perplexed.
Since they had traveled so far to get to the capital, why were they leaving all of a sudden instead of vying for authority with the other two Sovereigns?
The Primal Lodestone Mountain was one of the perilous zones of the otherworldly battlefield. Even at his peak, Sovereign Chen Yong would have hesitated before entering the grounds. Thus, his sudden decision to enter that area was incomprehensible to Liu Yang.
“Great perils lie in the Primal Lodestone Mountain, but it’s also where Ancient Sage Hao Xun is cultivating. Right now, I can only hope that he’s willing to help me. His strength is only slightly beneath mine when I was at my peak. Only with his help will we stand a chance at victory!” Wu Chen replied hesitantly.
There was no way he could defeat ten Ancient Sages with his current strength, so he could only seek other helpers to aid him.
“Ancient Sage Hao Xun? I’ve heard of him before, but I thought that he passed away three thousand years ago.” Liu Yang widened his eyes in astonishment.
“He didn’t pass away. It’s just that he chose to seclude himself in the depths of the Primal Lodestone Mountain and refuses to leave the area. Back then, his strength was nearly on par with mine, and given how many years have passed since then… he might even have surpassed the bottleneck of the Blood Reincarnation realm!” Wu Chen said.
“If he refuses to leave the area, I suppose that it won’t be easy to gain his support, right?” Zhang Xuan asked.
Given that Ancient Sage Hao Xun had chosen to seclude himself for three thousand years, it likely meant that he had already chosen to steer clear from secular affairs. Thus, no matter how powerful he was, it did not seem too likely that they would be able to obtain his assistance.
“We have to do it no matter how difficult it is. Otherwise, we’ll be bound for death!” Wu Chen shook his head.
There was no question that everyone in his lineage would be slaughtered without any mercy if he died. Thus, there was no other route for them to take. They had to grasp at any possible straws of hope that were within reach.
“Wu Chen is right. Where is the Primal Lodestone Mountain, and do you have any plans in mind that might allow us to convince him to help us?” Zhang Xuan asked.
The deaths of Sovereign Chen Ling and Sovereign Chen Xing were necessary if he wanted to bring long-term peace to mankind and find Luo Ruoxin. The fact that he had ended his life back at the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters in order to sneak over to the otherworldly battlefield was more than enough to prove his resolve in making this happen.
“The Primal Lodestone Mountain isn’t too far away, located roughly a hundred thousand li away from here. Given so, it shouldn’t take us too long to go there and back. It’s just that Ancient Sage Hao Xun has an eccentric personality, so it won’t be too easy for us to bring him over to our side!” Wu Chen rubbed his glabella.
Having made up their minds, Zhang Xuan and Wu Chen swiftly bade farewell to Liu Yang before flying off in a certain direction.
