Second update! That’s all for today; something took up the entire afternoon. Updates tomorrow for the Lantern Festival might be a little later...

If attempting to forcibly kill him only resulted in the enemy seeing through their identity, that would truly be disastrous; the whole operation would be ruined...

Jun Mo Xie’s true purpose for this journey was singular: to release one piece of information: The Ninth Netherworld Young Master is right here in ** City!

If they could successfully kill Zhan Mu Bai, that would naturally be best. The unique wounds visible on the corpse would be caused by the Nine Netherworld Cold Blade, which also served to confirm this fact. Even though the primary plan hadn't succeeded, having Zhan Mu Bai himself speak of it would achieve the same effect, perhaps even a better one...

However, the defense of a Saint Emperor expert truly opened Jun Mo Xie’s eyes! It was simply too formidable!

A killing strike launched in ambush, utilizing seven-tenths of his full power—setting aside anything else, he was certain that even an ordinary Saint would likely have died upon taking the blow! Yet, against the Saint Emperor, it had almost no effect, especially considering the Saint Emperor was already suffering from internal injuries, meaning his combat power was compromised!

The astonishing gulf between a Saint and a Saint Emperor was evident at a glance.

Recalling the shocking power displayed by the Ninth Netherworld Young Master previously, who killed a Saint Emperor level expert almost without effort, Young Master Jun sighed with a touch of frustration: compared to the true peak experts of this world, the gap he faced was still too vast...

Last time in the Snow Mountain, he had successfully broken through to the second level of the Venerable rank; after this period of accumulation, although he had broken through the fifth layer of the Hong Jun Pagoda, his actual cultivation seemed to have made no significant progress, merely transforming into an entirely new state.

Up until now, he had only reached the third level of the Venerable rank! Whereas Zhan Mu Bai was a genuine peak level two Saint Emperor; he was separated from him by more than ten levels... To think he could actually kill him would be truly bizarre...

Jun Mo Xie stood up and let out a soft breath. Since Zhan Mu Bai had already received the news, the next step involved Cao Guo Feng and Hai Wu Ya.

However, the fact that they had all moved out with the Chen family and were staying in the same inn had significantly reduced his maneuverability...

Jun Mo Xie’s figure flashed and vanished into the darkness of the night.

Regardless, the plan had officially commenced, so it had to be seen through to the end. Taking advantage of everyone’s excitement tonight, how could he not add more fuel to the fire?

Since the Ninth Netherworld Young Master had arrived in ** City, how could he not find some trouble for him? That wouldn't do him justice!

While flying, Jun Mo Xie suddenly recalled something: Since the Chen family recognized that corpse, didn't that mean his status as a 'genius with the Ethereal Body' might still be useful in the future? Gah-ha-ha, this Young Master was just trying to figure out how to compensate for this gap in his cultivation, and fate truly smiled upon him...

As he thought, Jun Mo Xie burst into a wicked laugh, seemingly seeing the Seven-Colored Divine Tree in the Illusory Manor beckoning to him, along with the so-called Heavenly Saint Lotus Pond and the Nine-Segmented Exquisite Lotus...

If any woman happened to witness the smile carved onto Young Master Jun’s face at that moment, never mind a beauty—even a seventy or eighty-year-old grandmother would probably flee as far away as possible immediately...

He had never seen anyone so utterly shameless...

Damn it all!

In the inn, Cao Guo Feng, Bai Qi Feng, and the others were gathered in a room, every single one of them frowning deeply, consumed by doubt.

“If that person wasn’t Zhan Mu Bai... then who could it be? Although Zhan Mu Bai’s statement was infuriating, it wasn't entirely without reason. Looking around the world today, there are indeed few who could abduct someone right under our noses!”

Cao Guo Feng knitted his brow, completely unable to figure it out: “Hai Wu Ya is not that tall, He Zhi Qiu is a bit portly, and the other Saint Emperors from the Three Great Sacred Lands just recently ascended to the Saint Emperor rank; there is absolutely no way they could have slipped past our divine sense to enter the small courtyard... Who was it?”

“Boss Cao, don’t jump to conclusions just because Zhan Mu Bai looks aggrieved. I still firmly believe that this matter is inextricably linked to Zhan Mu Bai, or perhaps the entire Three Great Sacred Lands.”

Bai Qi Feng stood, his tone sharp. This man rarely sat down wherever he was. Furthermore, his temper was notoriously foul; every time he spoke, it was like a firecracker going off. It was precisely his outburst in the Forest of Heavenly Punishment that caused the five major powers to completely collapse back then.

But those who knew him well understood that this was just how the fellow spoke—born with a face that begged for a beating and a temper that invited a slap. If one day he spoke and no one got angry, that would be truly strange...

“What do you mean by that?”

Cao Guo Feng raised an eyebrow.

“The logic is simple. The potential of the Ethereal Body, you know it, I know it, and Zhan Mu Bai knows it too. No matter what, he would never give up on it.”

Bai Qi Feng sneered: “An Ethereal Body without foundation is equivalent to the greatest treasure! Zhan Mu Bai isn't stupid, and I believe the others aren't fools either. Whichever of the Three Great Sacred Lands obtains this person, it can be foreseen that in the next two or three hundred years, the family that gains him will completely overwhelm the other two, perhaps even using him to merge the three lands into one!”

When Bai Qi Feng finished speaking, the other six Saint Emperors nodded in agreement. “In that case, after knowing about such a monumental matter... could Hai Wu Ya and He Zhi Qiu truly keep their promise? To snatch that person away and hand him over to Zhan Mu Bai? For the sake of a few pieces of broken junk? If it were you, would you be willing?”

Bai Qi Feng laughed coldly.

“Naturally not!” Except for Cao Guo Feng who was still pondering, the other five shook their heads in unison.

“Since you aren't willing, why should you assume Hai Wu Ya and He Zhi Qiu would? Is Zhan Mu Bai their biological father?! A slight difference in stature means nothing; for us, temporarily altering our physical form takes less effort than eating or drinking! It’s just that we value our status and are unwilling, even disdainful, to do so! Bai Qi Feng sneered, his voice rising slightly louder.

“Keep it down!” Cao Guo Feng quickly stopped him.

He had figured it out: his sworn brother, having followed and monitored Hai Wu Ya and He Zhi Qiu all this time, was already boiling with suppressed rage and was now looking for an excuse to give those two a good thrashing as well.

Cao Guo Feng had already set up a field boundary; when speaking here, unless one exerted excessive force, outsiders could not hear, even if the outsider was a Saint Emperor expert. But Bai Qi Feng’s last sentence was deliberately raised in volume and infused with profound energy (Xuan Li).

If those two were paying attention to the happenings here, this sentence was absolutely certain to be heard.

For the dignity of two aloof and untouchable Saint Emperors, this single statement could easily ignite a war, perhaps even a fight to the death!

And indeed, that was the case. In the adjacent room, following Bai Qi Feng’s statement, He Zhi Qiu snorted in anger and was about to erupt. Although Hai Wu Ya’s face was also clouded with rage, he grabbed He Zhi Qiu’s arm: “On what grounds? These people from the Misty Illusory Manor are being utterly presumptuous! Knowing we are nearby, they slander us like this. This sentence is clearly a provocation! If you won't act, are you going to drag me into being a turtle in its shell too!” He Zhi Qiu hissed low in anger.

“Old He! Everything must be for the sake of the greater picture! The Illusory Manor can afford to disregard the bigger picture because they have plenty of fallback options; once they hide inside the Manor, even the Ninth Netherworld Young Master cannot enter. But can we? Circumstances are stronger than men; we must endure this. In the end, the innocent will clear their names!” Hai Wu Ya’s eyes were deep, his words righteous, yet a cold, grim smile played on his lips.

“Hmph! Sooner or later, I will make these old scoundrels pay the price!” He Zhi Qiu spat out a breath of hatred and sat down again...

“Brother Bai, since they refuse to let go, why did they agree to help? One of the shorter Saint Emperors asked, puzzled.

“They probably just want to reap benefits while others fight. If they had directly refused Old Man Zhan’s request, or even demanded ownership of the child themselves, their previous stance would instantly become antagonistic, making it harder to contend with us. Instead, by pretending to agree, they stabilize Old Man Zhan, making it easier for them to act.”

Bai Qi Feng’s voice remained loud: “Who can’t see through this kind of low-level scheming?

I’m afraid even a five or six-year-old child could see it with their backside; only Old Man Zhan, blinded by greed, is confused by the situation. It’s a real joke that those two bastards think their plan is some unparalleled masterpiece. Hai Wu Ya and He Zhi Qiu, they truly let this old man see what real fools are!” The breathing of the two men next door became noticeably quicker, their gasps growing heavier! Their steel-hardened teeth were practically grinding to dust...

“It’s meaningless to keep guessing wildly now. What we are discussing now is... who exactly abducted the person, not the stance of Hai Wu Ya and He Zhi Qiu! Bai Qi Feng, you are getting your priorities mixed up. Remember, this is not the time for you to be willful. While Hai Wu Ya and He Zhi Qiu’s positions might be questionable, the strength of either of them alone is still insufficient to move so freely in front of us. I believe the person that night was none of those two.” Cao Guo Feng snorted, quickly interrupting. If he allowed Bai Qi Feng to continue speaking unchecked, the entire ** City might fly into the sky tonight...

“Those two fellows indeed don't have that kind of ability, but they might not be entirely disconnected from the matter either. Although we only brought a few of us over, the Three Great Sacred Lands might not have done the same! Note: Content in parentheses indicates addresses for mobile and PC reading sites.

Bai Qi Feng continued: “You must know that up until now, even in dealing with the Ninth Netherworld Young Master in the Forest of Heavenly Punishment, the Three Great Sacred Lands only dispatched three level two Saint Emperors each. As for high-level level three and level four Saint Emperors, not a single one was sent out. While the strength they have gathered is considerable, it is highly likely they intended to rely heavily on our Illusory Manor to take the brunt of the damage. Their greatest hope was likely that the masters from our Illusory Manor would perish together with the Ninth Netherworld Young Master, allowing them to reap the benefits of the leftovers. This is something we have to thank Boss Cao for his far-sighted planning, implementing a unified arrangement to avoid the awkward situation of fighting alone. Otherwise, the Three Great Sacred Lands would certainly have stood by and profited!”

In the next room, Hai Wu Ya and He Zhi Qiu exchanged glances: this arrogant lunatic was actually quite right on this point.

“It’s the same point I keep making. I still believe that those two fellows’ intention in promising to help Zhan Mu Bai was not simple. You must know that such unparalleled talents are coveted by all Three Great Sacred Lands, yet due to the balance between them, none of them can claim him alone. Such a person, I imagine, will surely enter the Heavenly Saint Palace, existing as a transcendent entity above the Three Great Sacred Lands, the common wealth and the strongest guardian of all three!”