340: Chapter 335 Chaotic Star Sea

The secret chamber of the Lord of Tianhai City was hidden very deep.

It was a secret space buried three thousand zhang beneath the City Lord's Mansion. If Su Lin hadn't directly used Space Law to tear a giant hole through the foundation, finding it by conventional means would likely have taken a year or more without even touching the edge.

The moment Su Lin stepped into the secret chamber with his disciples, a pungent stench assailed their nostrils, causing everyone to frown.

"My god, did this Old Man build a latrine in his bedroom?"

Su Hongling was the first one who couldn't help but speak, her handsome face twisted into a knot. She raised a hand to fan the air in front of her nose, taking half a step back.

"Old Man, I seriously suspect that this Xuanming isn't trying to break through to the Middle Stage of Golden Immortal, but rather trying to earn the title of Guardian God of a large-scale septic tank."

Chu Weiwei pressed tightly against Su Lin's arm, her pure and sweet little face showing not a hint of disgust. She examined the interior of the secret chamber with her amethyst-like eyes, her nostrils slightly fluttering.

"Second Senior Sister, you're the layman here."

Chu Weiwei's voice was soft and glutinous, but her words carried the certainty of an expert. "This smell is a mixture of the embers from burning at least seven types of top-tier Immortal Plant, along with the aura of heart's blood from no fewer than three ancient creatures. This old fellow Xuanming is using this secret chamber as a Pill Furnace, playing with a particularly disgusting but shockingly efficient shortcut method."

"How do you know that so clearly?" Luo Ximei cast a sidelong glance, her white-gold eyes filled with a touch of amusement.

Chu Weiwei proudly lifted her chin: "Because I originally thought about doing this too, to whip up the most nourishing medicinal meal for Revered Master. Later, I realized this smell would really affect Revered Master's rest, so I gave up."

Su Lin rubbed his temples.

When this disciple of his said such things, she could actually use such a natural tone, as if she were discussing what to eat for lunch today. If this kind of thing were to spread in the Lower Realm, the Hehuan Sect would probably hang Chu Weiwei's portrait in the Ancestral Master Hall overnight as a cautionary tale.

Is there any saving this disciple of mine?

Su Lin sighed silently in his heart and walked toward the depths of the secret chamber.

"Stop joking around, and find something serious."

In the center of the secret chamber stood an altar made of dark gold immortal iron.

Scattered around the altar were countless hollowed-out Jade Slips, fragments of a Pill Furnace burned black, and several corpses of Cultivators that had long since shriveled into skin bags on the floor. On the faces of these corpses, expressions of extreme pain were frozen, and dark golden blood, already congealed, flowed from their seven orifices.

Cold Moon furrowed her brows, her purple-gold Phoenix robe fluttering slightly.

"Revered Master, these are all the poor people used by Xuanming to refine Blood Fiend Immortal Crystals. Looking at the style of their clothing, most of them are likely Lower Realm Cultivators who ascended one after another in these past few decades."

A hint of compassion appeared on her stunningly beautiful face, but even more so, an icy, bone-chilling killing intent.

"This old thief died too easily. Had I known, I should have let him suffer for a while longer."

Mu Qingxue stood in white robes opposite the altar, her pale blue eyes slowly sweeping over the remains. She extended her onion-white fingers and tapped gently in the Void Realm.

The Ice Law spread out.

Under the shroud of ice crystals, the lingering resentment of those shriveled corpses was stripped away bit by bit, turning into several scattered light shadows that drifted and merged into the perimeter of her sword.

"Borrowing the resentment of you Seniors."

Mu Qingxue's [ice soul concentration tassel] emitted a clear, crisp chime, and the dull parts of the sword blade visibly regained some luster.

"The Origin Dao Fruit remaining in these residual souls is enough to help me repair the life-bound Sword Intent lost during the battle at the East Gate of Tianhai City."

"Seventh Junior Sister, that's not right of you."

Chu Weiwei leaned over, her tone sour. "You don't even know how to share good things with Weiwei. The Death Qi mixed in these resentments is excellent material for concocting poison pills."

"Don't you already have enough of those poison pills?"

"You can never have too many."

Su Lin couldn't be bothered to manage the little antics of these two and walked straight to the back of the altar.

There was a wall there.

The wall had no decorations, looked ordinary, and didn't even have a single Formation pattern.

But Su Lin's eyes, tempered by the [Myriad Heavens Star Chart], saw through the unusual nature of this wall at a glance.

He raised his hand, his five fingers slightly clenched.

"Revered Master, this wall..."

"Something is hidden inside," Su Lin said indifferently. "And it is the thing that fellow Xuanming least wants people to see."

He didn't waste words; Chaos Immortal Energy spilled from his fingertips, turning into an invisible small sword that pierced directly into the center of the wall.

The wall, which looked seamless, split open without a sound and slowly retreated to both sides.

Revealing a small inner chamber.

This inner chamber formed a stark contrast to the foul-smelling altar outside. The floor was covered with a soft snow-fox fur rug, the four walls were hung with precious landscape Formation maps, and in the very center sat a rosewood desk.

On the desk, several stacks of Jade Slips were neatly arranged, and beside them was a crystal ball carved with intricate patterns.

"Oh? This old fellow really knows how to enjoy himself."

Su Hongling poked her head in and looked, clicking her tongue in wonder. "Cultivating in that ghostly place outside, while hiding in such a nice place to drink tea and read books. Is this the so-called Golden Immortal privilege?"

"Second Senior Sister, you can do it too." Chu Weiwei smiled and continued, "Once Revered Master overturns the entire Taihuang Immortal Domain, we can live wherever we want."

Su Hongling's eyes lit up: "That's right!"

Su Lin: ...

What kind of disciples have I raised?

Su Lin took a deep breath, suppressing the urge to lecture them, and walked into the inner chamber.

He first picked up the thickest Jade Slip on the desk and slowly probed it with his Divine Sense.

The information inside the Jade Slip poured into Su Lin's mind like a tide. This was all the interpersonal relationship network Xuanming had accumulated over tens of thousands of years, densely recording the connections and secret accounts between the major forces of the Taihuang Immortal Domain.

Su Lin's brows furrowed tighter and tighter.

Although this Xuanming was only a Golden Immortal guarding a city, the connections he was involved with behind the scenes touched the core structure of the entire Taihuang Immortal Domain.

What Guardian Envoy of the Beichen Heavenly Palace, what Elder Council of the Chaos Sword Pavilion, what Left and Right Envoys of the Liuli Demon Domain...

This old guy's reach was to this extent?

Su Lin grumbled in his heart while continuing to read.

Finally, at the very end of the Jade Slip, he saw the information he was looking for.

"Seven million miles northwest of the Chaotic Star Sea, a female Cultivator suspected to be an ascender from the Lower Realm has been discovered. The female Cultivator holds a Golden Abacus, and wherever she goes, not a blade of grass grows. Along the way, she has destroyed seven secret outposts of this city. Suspected to be of the same Origin as the two female Cultivators from the Hanyue Mountain incident. Suggest joining forces with Beichen Heavenly Palace to encircle and suppress."

"Appendix: According to a secret report from the Far North Snow Plains, a Vicious Beast of ancient times never seen before has recently appeared in the Taihuang Yao Wasteland, having already swallowed the three great Yao Kings of that region alive. The Vicious Beast appears in the form of a young girl, with black hair and ink-colored pupils, and vines like a sea behind her. Please have the Upper Realm dispatch a Golden Immortal Rank powerhouse to suppress it personally."

The moment he saw these two pieces of information, the stone hanging in Su Lin's heart finally fell halfway.

Qiuyue is still alive.

Youer is also still alive.

These two girls are not only alive, but they can also stir up enough trouble to alarm the City Lord's Mansion; it seems they haven't suffered any substantial harm along the way.

Su Lin put away the Jade Slip and told his disciples the information on it exactly as it was.

"Hahahaha!"

Su Hongling was the first to laugh out loud, her handsome face filled with pride.

"I said it! With Sixth Junior Sister's money-grubbing brain, she could live prosperously anywhere. Destroying seven secret outposts along the way, that girl probably treated their outposts as her own private treasury and emptied them out!"

"Fourth Senior Sister is even more exaggerated," Luo Ximei shook her folding fan, a hint of approval flashing in her white-gold eyes. "Swallowing three Yao Kings alive? That girl has only been in the Upper Realm for a few days, and she already has such a record. It seems her [Abyssal Devouring] Bloodline is like a fish in water in this high-dimensional world."

Chu Weiwei, however, pursed her lips, her face full of displeasure.

"We worked so hard just to gain a foothold in this ghostly place, and Fourth Senior Sister has it good; she went and took over the Yao Race over there. This is too unfair, right?"

"Third Junior Sister, are you jealous?" Su Hongling raised an eyebrow.

"No way!" Chu Weiwei immediately clarified, "Weiwei just thinks that when we see Fourth Senior Sister next time, we must make her a pot of refreshing medicinal soup to help her sober up."

"..."

Su Hongling looked at her Third Junior Sister's innocent-looking face and silently hid behind Su Lin.

She knew all too well what the "refreshing medicinal soup" in Third Junior Sister's mouth was. If Ye You drank even half a mouthful, she would probably be bedridden for the rest of her life.

Su Lin glanced at these two, too lazy to expose them, and brought the topic back on track.

"The situation is like this now."

Su Lin put the Jade Slip into his storage space, his expression becoming calm and focused.

"Qiuyue is in the Chaotic Star Sea, about seven million miles away from us. Youer is in the Ancient Yao Wasteland of the Far North Snow Plains, a bit further away.

According to the intelligence left by Xuanming, both places have already attracted the attention of higher-level forces in the Taihuang Immortal Domain."

He paused, scanning his disciples.

"In other words, Qiuyue and Youer's current situation is even more dangerous than we imagined.

The former has to face the encirclement and suppression by the City Lord's Mansion and the Beichen Heavenly Palace, while the latter is even more exaggerated, having alarmed a Golden Immortal Rank powerhouse from the Upper Realm."

Cold Moon said solemnly: "Revered Master, I believe we should go find Qiuyue first. The Chaotic Star Sea is fraught with danger. Although Qiuyue has top-tier Magic Treasure to protect her, she is a merchant after all, and her direct combat experience is not as good as Youer's."

Mu Qingxue also spoke up: "Great Senior Sister is right. That child Youer is exceptionally fierce; in terms of survival ability alone, no one among the seven sisters can compare to her. Letting her stay in the Yao Wasteland for a few more days is not a big problem."

"Then we go to the Star Sea first."

Su Lin nodded and made a decision.

"But before we set off, we have to deal with the matters of Tianhai City. Since this city has fallen into our hands, we cannot let it be too loose."

Su Lin turned to look at Yan Rusi.

The Saintess of the Hehuan Sect was huddled in the corner, trying to minimize her presence. Hearing Su Lin call her, she trembled and hurried over to Su Lin.

"Does Senior have any instructions?" Yan Rusi lowered her head, her voice filled with caution.

"Your Hehuan Sect background makes you more skilled at handling these affairs of wind and moon than anyone else."

Su Lin said steadily, "I will leave Tianhai City to you to manage temporarily. Pick a few Heavenly Immortals who are still obedient to stay as your deputies, release all the Lower Realm ascenders imprisoned in the city, provide them with resources to restore their cultivation, and let them freely choose whether to stay or leave."

"In addition, destroy all the facilities that the old thief Xuanming raised to irrigate the [Calamity Blood Lotus]. From today on, Tianhai City will no longer harvest any Dao Fruit from the Lower Realm."

Yan Rusi's eyes widened.

She never expected that Su Lin would hand over such a large main city to her to manage. If she managed it well, it would be enough for her to gain a foothold in the Taihuang Immortal Domain.

But upon second thought, she was a bit terrified.

"Senior, how could Yan Rusi..."

"You only need to do things according to my instructions; you don't need to think too much."

Su Lin interrupted her, his tone brooking no argument.

"When we finish dealing with Qiuyue and Youer's matters, we will come back to check. If Tianhai City is managed in good order by you, I will consider giving you a bigger stage.

If you dare to practice favoritism or engage in any small tricks while we are away..."

Su Lin's words paused, and his deep eyes looked over coldly.

"Then there should be one more dried corpse in this Tianhai City."

Yan Rusi was so scared that she knelt on the ground with a "thump" and kowtowed repeatedly.

"Senior, rest assured! Even if Yan Rusi is smashed to pieces, she will never betray Senior's trust!"

"Get up."

Su Lin waved his hand, too lazy to look at her sycophantic appearance.

Chu Weiwei approached Su Lin, the corners of her mouth curling into a sweet but sinister arc.

"Revered Master, let Weiwei plant a Soul-Chasing Gu on her. That way, in case this little fox spirit has any crooked ideas, we can immediately perceive it even from thousands of miles away."

"No need, since I use her, I will trust her." Su Lin retorted.

"Alright, everything is arranged."

Su Lin clapped his hands and turned to walk out of the secret chamber.

"Let's not delay here; Qiuyue can't wait."

"Old Man, what kind of ghostly place is that Chaotic Star Sea? It sounds sinister just by the name."

Su Hongling carried her great sword and followed at the end, asking.

"According to the records in Xuanming's Jade Slip, it is a place where Void Realm turbulence intersects in the Taihuang Immortal Domain."

Su Lin explained to his disciples while walking.

"Countless wrecks of ancient battlefields float in that star sea, and space storms often erupt, so even Golden Immortal Rank powerhouses dare not easily go deep into it.

But at the same time, it is also the birthplace of various top-tier treasures, so there have always been many Cultivators who don't fear death going there to try their luck."

"Sounds fun." Su Hongling's eyes lit up.

"...Hong Ling, can your focus be a bit more normal?"

Cold Moon chuckled from the side: "Second Junior Sister has always been like this; Revered Master, please don't make it difficult for her."