479: Chapter 479 Broken Sword

Tingxue Zen Monastery, night, cloudy.

"Search quickly! Don't let that kid get away!"

"Who would have thought this guy, a mere Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator, could run so fast?"

"Damn it, for this to happen right under the nose of Tingxue Zen Monastery—we must not let him go!"

"I can't do it, I can't run anymore. You guys go ahead and chase him, I'll rest here for a bit."

"You'd better hurry up. If we let him escape, not only will we have failed Lv Yang, but we won't have the face to go back and see the Abbot!"

A group of burly men in monastic robes, holding iron staves, strode quickly through the forest. One monk, exhausted, sat down against a tree.

"Did I finally trick them?"

Once the group of monks was far away, his appearance gradually shifted, changing from a monk back into Long Tianxing.

He took a broken wooden sword from his robes and began to stroke it thoughtfully.

"So this is what Lv Yang wanted to give Zhou Yan? Just a wooden sword?"

Long Tianxing divided his attention three ways: setting up a small Teleportation Array to send himself to a pre-arranged coordinate, watching his surroundings, and pondering the purpose of the wooden sword in his hand.

"Why does this sword look so familiar?"

"It looks like the one I saw in the Eastern Extreme Secret Realm?"

Long Tianxing recalled the Taoist he had seen in the Eastern Extreme Secret Realm.

Before his death, that man had transformed his body into a wooden sword, identical to the one he held now.

"Right, I saw this sword in the Eastern Extreme Secret Realm, and during that time in the Kaifeng, the sword Zhou Yan held at the end seemed to be of this same style."

"That thing seemed to be the Magic Treasure of a Dao Sect Disciple named Xiao Sheng."

"What is the connection between these three?"

Ever since Long Tianxing learned that Zhou Yan was the Ancestral Dragon, he had tried to find information about him.

But for some reason, it was as if this person only existed in his dreams. Yet, having seen him reappear with his own eyes above the Kaifeng, he knew it definitely wasn't just a dream.

However, he truly couldn't find him. He even found that whenever he tried to reveal it to outsiders or speak that name, he would suffer immense pain.

As a result, he couldn't even ask Zhou Yan directly and could only continue searching on his own.

And it was precisely by utilizing the power of this name that he had managed to ambush Lv Yang.

The four branches of Deception techniques were actually more powerful than Lv Yang imagined.

Although they were considered unorthodox and might not work against Cultivators of the same level, while Lv Yang possessed extraordinary traits, he was ultimately just an ordinary person.

Thus, despite Lv Yang's various small movements and disguises, Long Tianxing had sensed long ago that he carried something good, something he kept hidden and was clearly of great significance to him.

Furthermore, every time the other party mentioned Zhou Yan, there was a forty percent chance that his consciousness would focus on a hidden pocket in his robes for several breaths.

All signs indicated that the item intended for Zhou Yan was likely not a letter, but a treasure.

Therefore, Long Tianxing had prepared to steal it long ago. However, considering the potential price—being hunted by Tingxue Zen Monastery—he had remained in hiding, waiting until he extracted the information he wanted before finally making his move.

And through various predictions, he chose the perfect path guided by fate.

When Lv Yang heard the name of the Ancestral Dragon, he couldn't help but try to calculate it, suffering a backlash as a result. With Long Tianxing promptly providing a Medicinal Pill to replenish him, he would be fine, merely bedridden for two days at most.

But beyond that, Long Tianxing could clearly feel that the Luck connecting the two of them had become even tighter. Although he knew this might not be a good thing, it was a necessary evil.

After all, Lv Yang would never tell him the truth, so he could only use this method to forcibly bind him in order to obtain future clues.

Since Long Tianxing knew this broken sword wasn't anything good, he couldn't just watch it go and bring misfortune to Zhou Yan.

Especially after confirming that Lv Yang truly had ability, he was even less likely to let such a thing happen.

"Zhou Yan, I'll shoulder this Karma for you. Consider it a small repayment for now."

"He's here!"

A monk suddenly discovered Long Tianxing leaning against the tree and shouted loudly. Soon, a group of Cultivators flew over quickly, but it was already too late.

"Your Luck is quite good. You were just a hair's breadth away from succeeding."

Accompanied by Long Tianxing's wicked smile, a pillar of light shot up as the temporary Teleportation Array he had drawn beneath his feet activated.

Boom—!

With a roar, Long Tianxing vanished right before everyone's eyes.

Leaving behind only a chorus of curses.

Meanwhile, inside the meditation room.

Lv Yang opened his eyes, weakly seeing the Abbot sitting by his bed.

The Abbot sighed, looking at Lv Yang lying on the bed and said,

"You rely too much on your own deductions. Why did you insist on doing this?"

Lv Yang just stared quietly at the Abbot for a long time before finally speaking.

"Actually, I knew long ago that Long Tianxing would take that wooden sword. It's just that after Zhou Yan appeared, I thought everything would change."

"But I didn't expect that even with such major changes, he could still steal the wooden sword."

"How did all of this get so tangled up?"

The Abbot glanced at Lv Yang and helped tuck him in.

"Rest well. Don't think about it anymore."

"No!" Lv Yang's energy suddenly surged as he grabbed the Abbot's wrist.

"Help me pack my things. I'm going to chase Long Tianxing. I know where he's going."

The Abbot was about to say something when he met Lv Yang's determined gaze.

"Since Zhou Yan's Karma has been taken back by Long Tianxing, I will go find Zhou Yan myself. After all, I can't just do nothing."

"The destined future has already changed, so I must change as well."

"If the mountain will not come to me, I must go to the mountain. At least I still know a few things."

While things were emotional between Master and Disciple at Tingxue Zen Monastery, over at Kurong Temple, a 'filial' scene was unfolding.

"What kind of mess is this!"

Xiao Sheng, with a wooden sword on his back, grumbled as he prepared to go down the mountain. At the same time, he didn't forget to place a clay figurine he had prepared into the shrine his Master usually worshipped at.

Even though the statue in that shrine had long since been taken away.

Witnessing this scene, Wang Yao felt somewhat awkward.

He had originally come here to ask for help, only to stumble upon the famous scene of the entire sect moving away together and isolating Xiao Sheng.

He was almost unable to keep a straight face.

But Xiao Sheng turned around and said that since he promised to help, he definitely would. Since his Senior Brothers couldn't come, he would personally descend the mountain in the name of the Temple Head of Kurong Temple to lend a hand.

Upon hearing this, Wang Yao could no longer smile.

It wasn't that he looked down on Xiao Sheng's combat power, but the danger they were about to face—his Master had said it wouldn't be inferior to the incident in the Kaifeng—was bound to be extremely perilous.

He had a special Physique, so he didn't fear even the Nascent Soul Stage now. But if Xiao Sheng joined him, setting aside whether he'd be a hindrance, Wang Yao would feel terrible if his good brother met with an accident because of him.

"Old Xiao, actually you don't need to come with me. I can go on my own. It's very dangerous, likely no less than what happened in the Kaifeng."

Wang Yao thought he had been blunt enough, but Xiao Sheng didn't seem to get it at all.

Instead, he patted Wang Yao's shoulder.

"Old Wang, don't be afraid. With the two of us acting together, why should we fear a bunch of people from the Demon Sect?"

"Back in the day, just the two of us dared to break into a Soul Transformation residence and repeatedly escaped from Nascent Soul hands. Not to mention that after years of accumulation, our cultivation has improved. We'll definitely give those demon brats a lesson they won't forget!"

In truth, Xiao Sheng was simply homeless and wanted a companion.

Mainly, Kurong Temple had been stripped so bare that it was nearly impossible for a lazy person like him to restore the sect's legacy.

It was better to find an excuse to go down the mountain with his good brother to eliminate demons. That way, the Temple's Luck wouldn't pressure him so much.

However, he completely failed to notice Wang Yao's look of disdain and continued to boast.

"To tell you the truth, I secretly brought back that set of mecha later. After some intense research, I successfully turned it from a semi-finished product into a 'nearly finished' product."

"It already has Nascent Soul-level combat power. It's a bit short, but it's enough."

"Not to mention I have this sword. Those bastards took everything else but left this sword, saying they were afraid I'd follow its scent back. Truly heartless!"

"But it's my gain. At least I have something for self-defense, making it more convenient for the two of us to go down the mountain."

When Wang Yao heard the word 'accumulation,' he really wanted to retort.

After all these years, the other guy had only gone from the Early Stage of Core Formation to the Middle Stage, a level lower than him, the latecomer.

Keep in mind, Wang Yao had been practicing multiple Body Refining secret techniques simultaneously, which had slowed his progression significantly.

From this, one could see just how much Xiao Sheng had slacked off.

However, upon hearing that the other party had modified the mecha and possessed that Immortal Artifact, Wang Yao changed his mind.

Finally making up his mind, he threw an arm around Xiao Sheng's shoulder and said,

"That makes sense. Since you can use the mecha and the celestial master sword, then the three of us might actually pull it off."

"Exactly, that's what I'm saying—wait, three?"

Before Xiao Sheng could react, Wang Yao pulled him quickly down the mountain.

"Good! Since you have such grand ambitions, Old Xiao, let the two of us strike again and show those demon cultists what we're made of!"

"Oh! I don't know why, but my blood is pumping again!"

The two of them disappeared into the sunset.

What they didn't expect was that shortly after they left, the entire mountain vanished as well.

Meanwhile.

Old Man Hu, who had been babysitting at home all day, suddenly discovered an extra money bag on the table.

Old Man Hu scratched his head, feeling a bit strange.

"Aren't these two days off? Why is there still pay?"