409: Chapter 409 Time is of the essence

Hou Chen sat slumped on the cold bluestone slab.

He stared fixedly at the fleshy, full-bodied shell in mid-air.

No Possession, no soul fusion.

A piece of lightning-struck wood, three drops of essence blood, and a wisp of Ji Earth Qi.

It had forcefully fabricated a Purple Mansion Great Perfection substitute.

Such means of creating things from thin air and reversing life and death completely shattered Hou Chen's five hundred years of cultivation common sense.

In mid-air, the green-robed phantom of Gu Changsheng slowly raised his right hand.

The cyan-gold light transformed into a complex Formation pattern.

It was driven ruthlessly into the center of the Puppet's brow.

The false Hou Chen's tightly closed eyes suddenly snapped open.

An extremely violent Spiritual Pressure, nearly enough to burst the Purple Mansion barrier, erupted from within this shell.

On the outskirts of the Luoyan Mountain Range.

The bloody stench of the white-robed Sword Cultivator being publicly dismembered had not yet fully dissipated.

Dozens of obscure escape lights, like hyenas that had smelled blood, had already approached the mountain gate of the Chengtian Pavilion silently.

These were all top-tier spies from the major forces of the Central Plains.

Deep within the Void Realm, several terrifyingly massive Divine Senses were intertwined.

The sudden appearance of a Body Cultivator with terrifying combat power in the Chengtian Pavilion had given all the lurking hunters a strong sense of crisis.

Boom!

The Ji Earth light curtain of the Chengtian Pavilion's Main Peak churned violently.

An earth-yellow escape light smashed through the dome of the main hall with extreme brutality.

It shot straight into the clouds.

The false Hou Chen hovered in mid-air.

His fat body trembled violently in the gale.

The pressure of the Purple Mansion Great Perfection poured out without reservation.

Mixed within it was a wisp of extremely pure Bing Fire energy, as well as the manic fluctuations of touching the Golden Core barrier.

"Today, the mountain is sealed!"

The false Hou Chen roared at the sky.

The sound waves turned into tangible earth-yellow ripples, spreading madly in all directions.

"This Daoist shall enter secluded meditation in the Main Peak today!"

"I swear not to leave until I prove the Golden Core!"

These shouts, mixed with vigorous mana, exploded directly within a ten-mile radius.

The spies hiding in the shadows were caught off guard.

They were all shaken into vomiting blood by this violent sound wave.

The Foundation Establishment Cultivators with slightly weaker cultivation had their Meridians severed on the spot.

They plummeted from the clouds, crashing deep into the dense forest.

Deep within the Void Realm.

Those intertwined Divine Senses instantly boiled over.

The conjecture was confirmed.

That slippery fat man, Hou Chen, had really obtained a Heaven-Defying fortune in the Bing Fire ruins.

He had even touched the threshold of golden essence!

The greed and killing intent of the old monsters climbed to the extreme at this moment.

The false Hou Chen did not give the outside world any time to react.

He formed seals with his hands at high speed.

The Sect-protecting Formation of the Chengtian Pavilion erupted with blinding light.

The Spiritual Qi of the thirty-six secondary peaks was forcibly drained.

It transformed into an incredibly thick phantom of a mountain, tightly shrouding the Main Peak.

The false Hou Chen dove into the Forbidden Ground of the Main Peak.

His aura was completely concealed.

The entire Luoyan Mountain Range fell into an extremely oppressive silence before a storm.

All the spies frantically transmitted messages to their Sects.

The powder keg of the Central Plains was completely ignited by this wooden Puppet.

In the underground bunker.

The real Hou Chen scrambled into the treasury.

His hands became blurs.

He frantically swept the Top-Grade Spirit Stones, rare Spirit Medicine, and high-level Magical Artifacts from the rows of shelves into his Storage Ring.

Five hundred years of heritage—he didn't even spare a single Low Grade fire star stone.

In just half an incense stick of time.

Five Storage Rings with incredibly vast capacity were stuffed to the brim.

Hou Chen pressed the rings tightly against his chest.

He ran back to the core secret chamber.

In the center of the secret chamber, the phantom of Gu Changsheng was holding his hand in the air.

The Void Realm barrier was torn open extremely brutally by the cyan-gold light.

A spatial rift flickering with the intertwined light of deep blue and cyan-gold was slowly taking shape.

The edges of the rift emitted a terrifying suction force that could shred everything.

Yet it was tightly imprisoned within a three-foot square frame by the Yuanmu Law.

"Master, the treasury has been emptied."

Hou Chen knelt before the rift.

He was drenched in sweat.

Gu Changsheng did not respond.

His finger bones suddenly stopped on the phantom armrest.

An extremely cold energy pierced through the thick rock layers of the Luoyan Mountain Range without warning.

A pure Golden Core Divine Sense!

Some old monster lurking in the Central Plains finally could not hold back.

It bypassed the Formation directly and probed toward the depths of the underground.

This Divine Sense was extremely brutal.

The soil, rocks, and even defensive Restrictions along the way turned into nothingness under this pressure.

Hou Chen's fat body instantly stiffened, his Purple Mansion Great Perfection mana was pinned tightly in his Dantian, and he couldn't even move a finger.

Spatial fluctuations could not be hidden from the perception of a Golden Core True Lord; if that Divine Sense swept over this secret chamber, the plan for the substitute would be exposed instantly.

Gu Changsheng sat upright on the throne, not even changing his posture, as cyan-gold light danced rapidly at his fingertips.

Facing that approaching terrifying Divine Sense, he flicked his finger extremely casually.

It formed an invisible filter net, covering that Golden Core Divine Sense directly.

The Divine Sense swept through the secret chamber brutally, perceiving nothing unusual.

Gu Changsheng used the Soul-Guiding Melody to directly tamper with the information received by the other party's Divine Sense.

The pressure retreated like a tide.

Hou Chen collapsed onto the bluestone slab like a pile of mud.

He gasped for air in large gulps.

Cold sweat gathered into a small puddle beneath him.

He looked up at the green-robed phantom in mid-air, the awe in his heart beyond words.

Deceiving the heavens and crossing the sea!

"Get in."

Gu Changsheng's calm, true voice echoed in the secret chamber.

The spatial rift was completely stabilized, the deep blue passage pointing directly to the East Sea millions of miles away.

Hou Chen did not dare to hesitate, grabbed the Storage Rings, and scrambled toward the rift.

The moment he stepped into the passage, he turned his head.

He kowtowed heavily to Gu Changsheng's phantom.

"This subordinate will await Master's decree in the East Sea!"

His fat body was instantly swallowed by the deep blue light.

The rift contracted rapidly, turning into an extremely tiny dot of light.

Finally, it was completely annihilated in the Void Realm.

The deep blue dot of light was completely annihilated in the Void Realm.

Hou Chen felt the world spinning, his internal organs nearly crushed by the violent spatial compressive force.

A violent sense of weightlessness struck him, forcing him to keep his eyes tightly closed, using all his Purple Mansion Great Perfection mana to protect his heart pulses.

East Sea, Chaotic Star Sea Region.

In the highest council hall of the Longevity Tower, water vapor swirled.

One-Eyed Shark sat upright on a wide chair made of pure gold, flipping through the ledger of maritime tributes that had just been delivered with one hand.

His only remaining left eye revealed a fierce Evil Qi, his knuckles making a rustling sound on the animal skin paper.

Since taking over the seventy-two islands ceded by the Dragon Palace, the Longevity Tower had become the sole power in the shallow waters.

Countless Loose Cultivators and low-level Yao Race lined up to pay tribute, just seeking a bit of stability in this Shura field.

The Void Realm in the center of the hall twisted without warning.

A piercing sound of spatial tearing suddenly exploded, and shrill sound waves, like two pieces of raw iron rubbing together frantically, swept across the surroundings.

A deep blue rift bloomed out of thin air, its edges flickering with destructive turbulence.

Immediately after, a round meatball, mixed with several Storage Rings, fell out of the rift in an extremely disheveled state.

Bang!

Hou Chen slammed heavily onto the floor tiles covered with sea beast skin.

His fat body trembled violently, smashing a cracked shallow pit into the hard bluestone foundation.

Gravel splattered, and the offering table in the hall was overturned directly by the shockwave.

One-Eyed Shark slammed the ledger shut, shattering it into powder.

The mana of a Purple Mansion Cultivator erupted with a boom.

The water-elemental Spiritual Qi in the hall instantly boiled, transforming into dozens of thick, ice-blue water spears.

The sharp spear tips pointed collectively at the uninvited guest on the ground, radiating a bone-chilling cold.

One-Eyed Shark pressed one hand on the chair armrest, his figure instantly disappearing from where he was.

When he reappeared, he was already three zhang in front of Hou Chen.

"Who dares to trespass in my Longevity Tower!"

Locking onto the fat man on the ground, his killing intent poured out without reservation.

Hou Chen was thrown into a daze, his head filled with the buzzing of spatial turbulence.

He had just propped up his upper body when he felt several extremely dangerous cold auras approaching his throat.

A Purple Mansion Cultivator!

Hou Chen's eyelids jumped wildly, and a layer of cold sweat instantly seeped from his back.

He saw the one-eyed strong man in front of him, as well as the deadly water spears floating around him.

How could this Loose Cultivator of the East Sea have a heavier killing intent than those Sword Cultivators of the Central Plains!

Hou Chen didn't have time to calm his churning blood and Qi, and scrambled backward.

He formed seals with his hands at high speed, and a layer of earth-yellow Ji Earth shield instantly expanded, shielding him tightly in the middle.

"Fellow Daoist, hold your hand!"

Hou Chen roared at the top of his lungs, his voice distorted by terror.

"We are on the same side!"

One-Eyed Shark didn't buy this at all.

The East Sea was inherently a Shura field of the Law of the jungle; where would there be people on the same side?

He opened his five fingers abruptly.

The suspended water spears erupted with a sharp, piercing whistle, stabbing straight towards the vital acupoints all over Hou Chen's body.

The water spears tore through the air, leaving behind a long trail of white water vapor.

Hou Chen was scared out of his wits.

He dared not use his trump cards as a Purple Mansion Great Perfection Cultivator to counterattack, fearing he might ruin the Old Ancestor's layout.

He could only pull open his lapels in extreme disarray.

Between his brows, a cyan-gold lotus mark suddenly flickered.

A vitality of the Yuanmu Law, transcending the heavens and earth, surged out from the mark.

This aura possessed not a shred of aggression, yet it exuded absolute majesty, domineeringly suppressing all things.

The moment the water spears stabbing toward his face made contact with the cyan-gold light,

they were brought to a sudden halt in mid-air, then evaporated into harmless water vapor.

One-Eyed Shark's only remaining left eye widened abruptly.

The Golden Core Origin Law mark within his body actually resonated extremely strongly with this aura.

That is the Master's aura!

One-Eyed Shark trembled all over, his violent killing intent vanishing in an instant.

He waved his hand violently, completely dissipating his magic power and forcibly smoothing out the Spiritual Qi within the great hall.

"You..."

One-Eyed Shark stared fixedly at the mark on Hou Chen's brow, his throat bobbing violently.

"Are you the person sent by the Master?"

Hou Chen exhaled a long breath of stale air and wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.

He dissipated his Ji Earth shield and struggled to climb up from the ground.

He brushed the dust off his Daoist robe and picked up the scattered Storage Rings one by one.

"This humble Daoist is Hou Chen, here by the Old Ancestor's decree, specifically for the East Sea Longevity Tower."

Hearing the words "Old Ancestor," the ferocity on One-Eyed Shark's face completely vanished.

It was replaced by extreme fanaticism and reverence.

He strode forward and grabbed Hou Chen's arm with astonishing strength.

"So you are an envoy under the Master's seat!"

"I have offended you just now, Fellow Daoist Hou Chen, please do not blame me!"

One-Eyed Shark's attitude had shifted completely.

In the Longevity Tower, the Master's will is the absolute heavenly Law.

Anyone who could be personally sent across realms by the Master must be a core confidant.

Hou Chen was taken aback by this enthusiasm.

He sized up the one-eyed burly man before him, clicking his tongue in secret.

This person exuded a fierce ruthlessness born from slaughtering his way through mountains of corpses and seas of blood; he was clearly a daredevil who licked blood off the tip of a blade.

Although his cultivation was not as high as his own, that fearless, crazy drive made him a tough nut to crack.

The Old Ancestor has the Chengtian Pavilion in the Central Plains and the Corpse Yin Sect in the Southern Border.

Now, even in a godforsaken place like the East Sea, he has fostered such a vicious character!

He even dared to take over the turf of the East Sea Dragon Palace, trampling the Dragon Clan's face into the ground.

Just how vast is the Old Ancestor's layout?

The reverence in Hou Chen's heart climbed to a new height, and he was completely awestruck by Gu Changsheng's methods.

He grasped One-Eyed Shark's wrist in return and squeezed out his trademark slick smile.

"No matter, no matter, the ignorant are not guilty."

"Tower Lord One-Eyed, you have guarded the East Sea with great diligence and merit; this humble Daoist has even heard of you in the Central Plains."

"I am new here and will need to rely on the Tower Lord for much care."

The two exchanged a few pleasantries, and the atmosphere instantly became harmonious.

One-Eyed Shark waved away the guards who were peeking outside the hall and ordered that no one was to come within half a step of the great hall.

The stone doors of the great hall slammed shut.

A layer of water curtain that blocked investigation shrouded the two, ensuring their conversation would not leak.

"Fellow Daoist Hou Chen, what decree did the Master have when sending you this time?"

One-Eyed Shark lowered his voice, his tone revealing undisguised anticipation.

Hou Chen retracted his smile, his expression becoming extremely grave.

He pointed at his feet, then toward the direction of the Central Plains in the west.

"The Central Plains are in chaos, with demons dancing everywhere; those old monsters have already set their sights on me."

"The Old Ancestor ordered me to come to the East Sea to temporarily avoid the limelight in your territory."

"And by the way..."

Hou Chen paused, his Purple Mansion Great Perfection aura leaking out slightly, causing the surrounding water curtain to ripple.

"To find an absolutely safe Top-Grade earth vein to enter seclusion and seek the Golden Core!"

Seek the Golden Core!

These two words struck One-Eyed Shark's ears like a thunderclap.

He gasped, staring fixedly at the fat man before him.

Purple Mansion Great Perfection!

Touching the Golden Core barrier!

The Master actually intends to personally foster a Golden Core True Lord right here in the Chaotic Star Sea!

One-Eyed Shark felt his scalp tingle, blood rushing to his crown, and even his breathing became rapid.

Once Hou Chen succeeds in his Dao, a solid Golden Core mighty figure will stand behind the Longevity Tower.

By then, those flood dragons of the Dragon Palace will only be fit to pull carts for the Longevity Tower!

"Good! Good! Good!"

One-Eyed Shark said the word "good" three times, pacing back and forth in excitement, his hands constantly rubbing against each other.

"Rest assured, Fellow Daoist, the Master's affairs are my life, One-Eyed Shark's life!"

"What kind of earth vein do you need? As long as it exists in the East Sea, I will lead people to seize it for you even if I have to rob it!"

Hou Chen stroked his chin, quite pleased with One-Eyed Shark's bandit-like conduct.

"This humble Daoist cultivates the Law of Ji Earth."

"I need a place where the earth Qi is extremely dense and which can conceal heavenly secrets."

"It is best if it is far from human habitation, in the depths of a sea eye, undisturbed by external ocean tides."

One-Eyed Shark stopped abruptly, slapped his thigh with one hand, making a crisp sound.

"I have it!"

"Among the seventy-two islands that the Dragon Palace previously ceded, there is an isolated island called Chenyuan."

"Below that island, it leads directly to the East Sea trench, with an ancient earth-type waste vein suppressed underground."

"It is usually ignored, but the earth Qi is extremely dense; even sea demons are unwilling to approach it."

"Most importantly, the water pressure in that place is immense; even the Divine Sense of a Purple Mansion great cultivator cannot penetrate it!"

Hou Chen's eyes lit up, his fat cheeks trembling slightly with excitement.

Ancient waste vein, water pressure isolation.

This is simply a treasure land for seclusion tailored specifically for him!

"There is no time to lose; please lead the way, Tower Lord!"

One-Eyed Shark was swift and decisive, not dragging his feet at all.

He directly activated the secret teleportation Formation behind the great hall.

The two stepped into the Formation and activated the Formation Plate.

A white light flashed, and they directly crossed tens of thousands of miles of sea, leaving the Longevity Tower behind.

When they reappeared, they had arrived on a bare black reef island.

All around was an ocean as black as ink.

The gale whipped up giant waves a hundred feet high, fiercely crashing against the reefs and emitting a deafening roar.

One-Eyed Shark pointed to a bottomless black hole in the center of the island.

"Below is the Chenyuan Sea Eye."

"I will immediately mobilize the elite of the Longevity Tower to completely seal off the sea area within a thousand miles!"

"Any living thing that dares to approach, whether it be a Loose Cultivator or the Dragon Clan, will be killed without mercy!"

Hou Chen nodded repeatedly, extremely satisfied with the efficiency of the Longevity Tower.

He formed seals with both hands, and the Ji Earth True Essence within his body surged into operation.

A layer of thick, earthy-yellow halo wrapped around his entire body, transforming into an indestructible rock armor.

"I trouble the Tower Lord to act as Protector."

Hou Chen leaped and jumped directly into that pitch-black hole.

He plummeted at high speed.

The sound of the wind in his ears was gradually replaced by the muffled sound of water pressure.

The further down he went, the denser the surrounding earth-type Spiritual Qi became, and even the seawater grew viscous.

Hou Chen dove for a full half-hour.

Finally, he stepped on hard bedrock.

All around was an extremely spacious underground karst cave.

Overhead, the churning black seawater was firmly blocked outside by a natural earth-type barrier.

The rock vein beneath his feet exuded an ancient and weathered aura.

Hou Chen sat down cross-legged.

He removed all five Storage Rings from his body and laid them out in a row before him.

The five-hundred-year foundation of the Chengtian Pavilion was all here.

He waved one hand.

Tens of thousands of Top-Grade Fire Star Stones and Earth Spirit Crystals poured out.

They piled up into small hills within the karst cave, illuminating the dim cavern brightly.

Hou Chen bit his fingertip and quickly sketched Formation patterns in mid-air.

The Law of Ji Earth transformed into tangible rays of light, sinking into the surrounding rock walls.

"Seal!"

The Spiritual Qi within the karst cave froze instantly.

An extremely complex Spirit-Gathering Formation roared into operation.

It crazily drew over the earth-type Spiritual Qi from a hundred miles around.

Hou Chen closed his eyes, placing both hands flat on his knees.

The Ji Earth immortal foundation within his Dantian began to vibrate violently.

He immersed his Divine Sense completely into that wisp of Law comprehension bestowed by the Old Ancestor.

The earthy-yellow halo within the karst cave grew brighter and brighter.

Illuminating his fat body into an unshakeable clay statue.