Core Formation Masters possess powerful physiques and immense vitality.
They can even survive for a long time after being decapitated.
But when that Sword Intent ravaged Master Rongku’s body from within, swiftly severing all his life force, the light in his eyes quickly faded.
As such, he didn’t see his Lifebound Treasure, the Jade Ruler, moving at a crawl, slowed by the ocean water.
Before it could even fly out of the sea, its mystical glow had already dimmed.
That was Du Youqian’s Sword Intent invading the Lifebound Treasure, slashing back and forth within it, and grinding away his will.
Not only was the thought he had injected into it before his death destroyed, but even the connection he had painstakingly nurtured and refined for over a century was severed.
Having lost its master, the Lifebound Treasure finally flew out from the surface of the sea, aimless and lost.
Du Youqian couldn’t be bothered to chase after it.
An ordinary Treasure could be refined and used by someone else.
A Lifebound Treasure, however, could only be recycled for its materials.
In the sunlight, a beautiful woman leaped from the sea like a mermaid, landing on her Red Lotus Throne Treasure as water droplets rolled off her smooth, delicate skin.
To move freely underwater, she had long since shed her elaborate palace robes, wearing only a short, form-fitting undergarment.
She had no need to be shy in front of Du Youqian.
As for the monkey... it wasn’t even a consideration.
Soon, Du Youqian also surfaced. Lin Sha leaped over to him, wrapped her arms around his neck, and kissed him with abandon.
The monkey resurfaced, cheerfully holding a fish. When it saw the two of them, its little head shrank back, looking a bit wronged.
After a moment’s thought, it released the fish and dove back into the water to catch another...
"How did you get mixed up with these people?" After a long while, the two separated, and Du Youqian took the opportunity to ask.
"These people are wonderful! They’re generous and simple-minded. A few words are all it takes to make them risk their lives for you. I quite like them!" Lin Sha said with a laugh.
Du Youqian was a little speechless.
’Stupid and rich—I like that too!’
"That ’Master’ of theirs, who is it?"
In truth, based on his Divination, Du Youqian was seventy or eighty percent certain that the mastermind was Pang Master.
But he still wanted to confirm it with Lin Sha.
Lin Sha, however, shook her head. "I can’t be sure of their identity either. I don’t even know if they’re a man or a woman."
"Oh," Du Youqian frowned. "Tell me everything from the beginning. How you met this person, how you joined, and what you’ve been through."
Du Youqian’s detailed questioning didn’t displease Lin Sha in the slightest. Instead, she smiled sweetly. "My first contact with that person was right after you were reincarnated, Qing Lang. I was lost and helpless back then. Even though I wanted to believe you could be reincarnated, I was still worried something might go wrong."
Du Youqian said comfortingly, "It must have been hard on you during that time."
Lin Sha shook her head. "Actually, that time wasn’t hard for me."
She looked up, gazing at Du Youqian with infatuation. "What was hard was the time before we recognized each other, when I thought you were dead and that I would never see you again... After getting through that period, nothing has ever felt hard to me again."
Du Youqian listened quietly.
He couldn’t help but feel moved, along with all the emotions that came with being loved: confidence, a sense of self-worth, joy, and love.
He tucked these Emotions away and let reason take control.
After pulling Lin Sha onto her Red Lotus Throne, he asked, "The first time you saw him, what did you two talk about?"
Lin Sha chuckled. "As I said, it was our first ’contact,’ not our first ’meeting.’ The person spoke to me through a mole hidden within the Heavenly Emotions and Oceanic Resentments Sect."
Du Youqian nodded. "That does sound like their style."
"At first, I was displeased. I didn’t want to talk to someone who hides their face. But he said he was looking for like-minded people to shatter this world, break through its limits, and ensure that talented Cultivators would no longer be stuck at the Core Formation realm."
This was somewhat different from what he had said to Fang Hua.
But then again, Fang Hua came from a Third-class Sect. The mastermind might have assumed she despised the existing rules, viewing them as a form of oppression against the Low-class Sects.
Lin Sha, on the other hand, was a genius from a Second-class Sect and a beneficiary of the current system, so he had to use a different line on her.
As Du Youqian mulled this over, Lin Sha continued, "At the time, I thought this person had to be either a madman or an unfathomably profound individual with heaven-defying abilities. After a few more contacts, although he never showed himself in person, he demonstrated impressive and even miraculous power. I suspect he hasn’t reached Nascent Soul Formation yet, but in certain aspects, he may have already surpassed Tier Three and reached Tier Four."
Du Youqian agreed. "As you say, this person is not to be underestimated."
Lin Sha said, "So I thought about how you, Qing Lang, have mentioned in passing that you wanted to go to the outside world. If this person really has a way to break the world’s boundaries and let us leave, it would be a good thing for you. So, I brought Meng Xiao and Luo Jinyu with me and joined his organization. We don’t intend to die for him; we just plan to observe for now and act according to the situation."
Du Youqian gave a wry smile. ’So it’s my fault after all, huh?’
"Why didn’t you ask Fang Hua to join?"
Lin Sha said proudly, "Her? She’s an idiot who only knows how to draw her sword and kill. If she joined, I’m afraid it wouldn’t take a few years before she offended everyone in the organization, and we wouldn’t be able to find out anything."
Well...
Du Youqian had to admit it. Lin Sha had a point.
"So, in the forty years that have passed, what have you found out? How much have you learned about the mastermind’s background? How many people are in the organization, and who are they?"
Lin Sha looked a little dejected. "This person is secretive and cautious; I don’t even know if they’re a man or a woman. As for how many people are in the organization, his rules forbid us from asking. Everyone operates in small teams, and each person only knows who is on their own team. For example, my team has only five Core Formation cultivators, including Luo Jinyu, and about ten Foundation Establishment cultivators. Meng Xiao also only knows the people on his team. I don’t know about the other teams. In my squad, only Master Rongku was the mastermind’s confidant. The rest of us just followed orders."
Du Youqian comforted her, "That’s enough. How many Core Formation cultivators are there in all of Momenan? I estimate this person’s organization probably only has two or three teams in total."
Lin Sha nodded repeatedly. She thought so too.
"As for what happened today, it must be because you triggered an Array somewhere, Qing Lang. The mastermind sent down an order saying someone was coveting a secret base he had set up. He ordered me, Master Rongku, and Red Jade Master to go deal with it and kill the intruders," Lin Sha said with a smile. "I heard from Master Rongku that the mastermind is skilled in Divination. I just wonder if his Divination predicted this total annihilation, a result where even his confidant, Master Rongku, was killed in battle."
Du Youqian smiled along with her. He then told Lin Sha everything he had learned in his previous life: about the Teleportation Array leading to the outside world, which was used to send out one prodigy every few hundred years; about how he had gone to inspect the Teleportation Array only to find it destroyed and Pang Master dead; and how in this life, the array was seemingly repaired before being intentionally destroyed again.
However, he did not mention his suspicion that Pang Master had used some unknown method to survive and had become the mastermind.
He added, "When it comes to Divination, I have some skill myself. I am also adept at methods for obscuring heavenly secrets. If that mastermind wants to divine my fate, I’m afraid it won’t be so easy."
Lin Sha said gently, "Qing Lang, you are a person of great ability, infinitely stronger than that secretive creature who can’t bear the light of day. Meng Xiao, Luo Jinyu, and I will work a little harder. We’ll strive to round up everyone in this organization and have them serve you after you take down the mastermind."
Du Youqian was a little surprised. "You’re planning to go back and report?"
Lin Sha laughed. "Of course. You’ve already destroyed Master Rongku’s dying message, so the mastermind shouldn’t know I betrayed him."
Du Youqian frowned. "But Master Rongku is dead, Red Jade Master is dead. How did you get away? You’ll need a good story."
Lin Sha blinked. "I barely escaped after seducing the powerful enemy, of course."
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