156: Chapter 156 A Cunning Plan: A Life-or-Death Situation Beneath the Spirit-Suppressing Pagoda

He lowered his head, his gaze slowly falling upon his left hand, which was currently transmitting a bone-chilling coldness.

The pad of his finger subconsciously rubbed the rough stone ring on his thumb; that cold warning felt like the finest needle tip, piercing through skin and flesh, reaching straight to his Divine Soul.

His heart sank to the bottom in an instant.

Heart Inquiry verification?

This term sounded high-sounding and righteous, full of the majesty of the orthodox sects.

But that stone ring, personally gifted by Su Qingyao, which had long been connected to his Bloodline and even partially assimilated by the System, would never issue a warning without reason.

This ring had witnessed all his secrets from being a mere Mortal to his current Golden Core stage; it possessed an almost instinctive rejection of any threat that might pry into his core secrets.

This so-called "Heart Inquiry" was definitely not as simple as distinguishing between righteous and evil Cultivation Technique.

Its true target was likely the "More Children, More Blessings System" deep within his Sea of Consciousness!

Lin Chen's mind raced with countless thoughts.

Master Jianzhen, a Formation Great Master of the Tianji Academy, a Golden Core Cultivator who held a seat in the power center filled with Nascent Soul experts.

Such a person was either a pure technical bureaucrat with superb skills or a political creature with unfathomable depth.

Looking at his current appearance—compassionate on the surface, but actually forcing him into a desperate situation—he was clearly the latter.

Why was he targeting him?

Was he an ally of Deputy Chief Huangfu Ming?

Or... was he himself related to the Dark Agents of the Mo Abyss?

Refuse?

Once he said the word "No," Deputy Chief Huangfu Ming's framing would be immediately confirmed, and he would instantly fall from a meritorious official to a Demonic Path spy that everyone shouted to beat.

No matter how much Senior Xuanjizi tried to protect him, he couldn't stop the wagging tongues of the masses and the internal political infighting of the Tianshu Pavilion.

All the power and resources he had just obtained would vanish like bubbles.

Accept?

That would be voluntarily putting his own neck on the guillotine, letting the other party use that unknown "Heart Inquiry" secret art to pry into his biggest trump card.

Sweat silently soaked Lin Chen's back, but not a trace of panic could be seen on his face.

He kept his head lowered, as if truly thinking hard; that calm appearance made all the scrutinizing gazes in the hall full of patience.

He could not follow the other party's script.

He had to break this binary deadlock and create a third option.

An option that the other party could not refuse, and one that could skillfully avoid the core trap.

Time ticked away, and the air in the hall was so oppressive it felt like it was about to drip water.

Finally, Lin Chen slowly raised his head.

He did not look at Master Jianzhen, nor did he look at Deputy Chief Huangfu Ming, but instead cast his gaze toward the most majestic and heavy light shadow on the main seat of the high platform—Immortal Master Zhenyue.

"Reporting to Immortal Master and all Seniors." His voice was calm and resonant, without the slightest bit of cowardice, "This Junior is naturally willing to prove my innocence."

As soon as these words were spoken, the corners of Master Jianzhen's mouth, hidden under his Daoist robe, curled up imperceptibly.

A flash of sinister glee crossed Deputy Chief Huangfu Ming's eyes.

However, Lin Chen's tone shifted abruptly.

"But!" He emphasized his tone, his gaze burning as if flames were ignited, "With the great war imminent, every single second could relate to the life and death of billions of living beings in the Central Continent! As far as this Junior knows, the 'Heart Inquiry' secret rite of the Tianji Academy has a complex process and takes a long time, ranging from several days to half a month. Do we really need to delay this urgent military matter of finding the Devil Lord's altar for half a month just to verify one Junior? During this time, if the Dark Agents of the Mo Abyss make another move, or if that altar is completely formed, who will bear this responsibility? Is it I, Lin Chen, or... Master Jianzhen, who proposed this method?"

The words were resonant and forceful, directly elevating the issue of personal innocence to the level of the entire war situation.

He kicked the ball hard back to them!

The smile on Master Jianzhen's face froze instantly.

He didn't expect this young man to react so quickly and speak so sharply, putting a hat of "delaying the war effort" on him in one sentence.

Before Master Jianzhen could refute, Lin Chen continued, his tone carrying a sense of righteous awe: "This Junior dares to propose a more direct and efficient method here!"

His wrist flipped, and in his palm appeared the "Ten Thousand Laws" token that Senior Xuanjizi had just bestowed, flowing with complex golden runes.

He held the token high, and the pressure on the token resonated faintly with the Luck Formation in the main hall.

"Use the geng metal true spirit fragment as a guide to perform the 'Spirit Rhyme Resonance' test!" Lin Chen said loudly, "The geng metal true spirit is the most rigid and yang Law Origin in heaven and earth, naturally clashing with the yin, evil, and filthy power of the Mo Abyss like water and fire! Whether this Junior's Cultivation Technique is pure, whether my Origin of spiritual power is related to the Demonic Path, and whether it is compatible with this world-suppressing divine object, one test will tell! This method will yield results in an instant, proving my innocence without delaying the war effort for even a moment! I wonder what you Seniors think?"

This proposal was brilliant!

It was logically rigorous, impeccable, and firmly grasped the core contradiction of "efficiency first."

Using the geng metal fragment to test not only showed he had a clear conscience but also skillfully replaced the unknown trap of "Heart Inquiry" with the geng metal Law Domain, which he was relatively familiar with.

"Good!" A voice of undisguised approval came from the light shadow representing Immortal Master Tieyu, "Well said! This is what it looks like to do big things! Dilly-dallying, what kind of decorum is that! This old man agrees with this method!"

Senior Xuanjizi's Incarnation also nodded slightly, his voice calm, but the meaning of support was self-evident: "The geng metal Law is the most yang and rigid; it identifies evil and breaks delusions, far exceeding the effectiveness of any derivation secret art. This old man also supports Lin Chen's proposal."

Immortal Master Zhenyue's aura, steady as a mountain, fluctuated, clearly approving of this plan as well.

He glanced at Senior Xuanjizi and then said in a deep voice: "Acceptable."

One word, and the situation was settled.

Master Jianzhen stroked his long beard and chuckled: "Clan Chief Lin truly has righteousness in his heart; it was this old Daoist who didn't think thoroughly. Since that is the case, the 'Spirit Rhyme Resonance' method is very good, very good."

His tone shifted, becoming incomparably sincere: "However, although this method is fast, it requires extremely precise control of the Formation. The geng metal true spirit is, after all, an Innate divine object, and its Law power is unparalleled in its violence. A slight carelessness could trigger a backlash and damage the tester's foundation. To prevent accidents, this testing Formation shall be set up and presided over by this old Daoist personally."

He bit the words "presided over" very heavily.

The meaning was obvious: since he couldn't use "Heart Inquiry" to play tricks, he would firmly grasp the initiative in his own hands while presiding over the "Resonance Test."

Lin Chen sneered inwardly, but his face remained calm. He bowed deeply to Master Jianzhen, his attitude incomparably respectful: "Then I will have to trouble you, Venerable."

Soon, under the decree of Immortal Master Zhenyue, Lin Chen was led by a deacon of the Tianshu Pavilion, leaving the core hall and heading toward a building located in the central area of Tianshu City.

It was a nine-story stone tower built entirely of unknown black boulders; the tower had no rune carvings, only exuding a sense of dead silence and desolation.

The spire pointed straight to the firmament, like a black sword piercing the sky.

The Spirit-Suppressing Tower.

It was rumored to be the place where the Tianshu Pavilion suppressed heinous Devil Heads and Demon Emperors.

Just before stepping into the cold and dark tower gate, Lin Chen followed behind the deacon, his right hand hanging by his side seemingly casually tucked into his sleeve.

Under the cover of his wide sleeves, his fingers quickly and covertly pinched several mysterious hand seals.

An invisible and intangible special message, which only those with the direct Bloodline of the Lin family could perceive, rippled like a stone thrown into water, silently crossing space and transmitting out.

Far away in a quiet guest house on the outskirts of the Tianshu Pavilion, Lin Haoyu, who was sitting cross-legged, suddenly opened his eyes.

A jade talisman he wore close to his chest heated up slightly, and his father's familiar and grave Divine Thought sounded directly in his mind:

"Haoyu, after one stick of incense, sense the vibration of my token. With your Wu Earth Spiritual Root Origin, inject a trace of purification power into this place. Remember, only the purest trace is needed, then immediately sever all connection, do not do any further investigation."

Lin Haoyu's heart tightened.

His father had been in the Tianshu Pavilion for less than an hour, and such a strange instruction came.

He dared not delay, immediately focused his mind, pressed his palm onto the jade talisman that had begun to heat up slightly, and waited silently.

On the top floor of the Spirit-Suppressing Tower, the space was much more spacious than it looked from the outside.

On the ground, Master Jianzhen had used a special spiritual ink mixed with cinnabar and gold powder to personally draw a complex circular Formation.

Every node of the Formation flickered with a faint light, full of mysterious aura.

"Clan Chief Lin, please enter the center of the Formation." Master Jianzhen pointed to the heart of the Formation with a gentle smile on his face.

Lin Chen walked in as instructed. The moment he stood still, the Incarnation of Immortal Master Zhenyue appeared out of thin air at the main position of the Formation, holding a jade box.

He opened the jade box, and the irregular geng metal true spirit fragment lay quietly inside; just being exposed to the air made the surrounding space emit unbearable "clack, clack" sounds.

"Begin." Immortal Master Zhenyue said concisely.

Master Jianzhen bowed and accepted the order. He waved his wide Daoist robe sleeve toward the Formation, and several dharma spells were cast into the Formation eyes.

"Hum—!"

The moment the Formation started, the [Good/Bad Spirit Intuition] of Lin Chen sounded a major alarm, ten times stronger than it was in the main hall!

The cold chill felt like it was about to freeze his Divine Soul!

From the corner of his eye, he clearly captured a detail.

The moment Master Jianzhen waved his sleeve to start the Formation, his wide sleeve shook extremely slightly toward an inconspicuous energy node of the Formation.

A grain of black sand, smaller than dust and almost impossible to capture with the naked eye or Divine Sense, fell silently from his sleeve, accurately dropping into that energy node, and dissolved in an instant, as if it had never appeared.

So that was it! The trap was here!

Lin Chen's thoughts turned like lightning, understanding the other party's plot in an instant.

This black sand must be some kind of sinister thing that could distort and pollute the attributes of spiritual power.

Once his spiritual power came into contact with it and then resonated with the geng metal fragment, the result would inevitably be "spiritual power is mixed and impure, containing evil," and by then, he would be unable to clear his name even if he jumped into the Yellow River!

What a poisonous scheme!

Lin Chen's face remained as calm as water, as if he hadn't noticed anything.

While fully mobilizing his Divine Soul, he restrained all the aura of the stone ring on his thumb to the extreme, avoiding any direct reaction with the black sand.

At the same time, his mind moved, and in the "More Children, More Blessings System" within his body, the [Law Aura Simulation] ability obtained from Dragonfall Gorge was pushed to the limit.

The moment his spiritual power flowed out of his Dantian, it was disguised as a pure aura that was of the same Origin as the geng metal fragment, yet distinct and full of affinity.

At the same time, he secretly triggered the Bloodline token that had long been handed to his eldest son, Lin Haoyu!

A barely perceptible vibration came from his chest.

Far away in the guest house, the moment Lin Haoyu sensed the token vibration, he did not hesitate to activate the trace of Wu Earth True Source that had been condensed for a long time in his palm through the mutated communication jade talisman!

This trace of Wu Earth True Source was the Origin power of Lin Haoyu's Earthly Spiritual Root, the purest and thickest, naturally possessing the characteristics of suppressing and purifying all things.

An invisible and intangible purification power accurately crossed the barrier of space and landed on the top floor of the Spirit-Suppressing Tower, on the energy node that Lin Chen had locked onto, which had been polluted by the black sand!

This external purification power was extremely weak but of very high quality. The moment it landed, it completely neutralized and dissipated the sinister pollution brought by that grain of black sand.

After doing all this, Lin Haoyu immediately followed Lin Chen's instructions and disconnected all connections, as if nothing had happened.

And in the Formation at the top of the tower, at the next moment after the purification power fell, a strange change occurred!

In an instant, the entire Formation burst into light!

The geng metal true spirit fragment seemed to be attracted by the purest source aura, suddenly erupting with ten thousand zhang of golden light.

A golden pillar of light, pure to the extreme and so dazzling that people could not look directly at it, shot into the sky, directly piercing through the top of the Spirit-Suppressing Tower!

And Lin Chen stood in the center of this pillar of light.

The spiritual power aura emanating from his body, after being disguised by the [Law Aura Simulation], complemented this golden pillar of light, attracting each other, yet not encroaching on each other, presenting a perfect state of affinity and resonance!

This scene was more standard than a textbook!

The test result was impeccable!

The smile on Master Jianzhen's face completely froze, replaced by a deep suspicion, confusion, and a hint of imperceptible dread.

He couldn't figure out why his "Law-Eroding Sand," which came from the edge of the "Return to Ruins" and could not even be detected by Nascent Soul Cultivators, had failed?

What other secrets was this Lin Chen hiding?

"Test over." Immortal Master Zhenyue's majestic voice broke the silence. He nodded with satisfaction and waved his hand to disperse the Formation.

Just as Master Jianzhen turned around to put away the Formation Plate, Lin Chen's [Earth Pulse Perception] ability, obtained from the System, keenly captured an extremely subtle movement.

Master Jianzhen's toe tapped the hard black stone floor three times, very lightly and quickly, in a unique and rhythmic cadence.

Tap, tap-tap.

An extremely obscure vibration message, which others could not perceive at all, silently transmitted along the tower structure into the depths of the Spirit-Suppressing Tower, and even deeper into the ground.

The content of the message was clearly translated in Lin Chen's perception:

"Plan No. 1 failed, the target is strange. At the research meeting, initiate backup Plan No. 2."