241: Chapter 241 The Youngest Virgin

Beside the Heaven-Reaching Tower in the Moonshadow Sect.

The Heaven-Reaching Tower soared into the clouds, and not far away, an ancient, massive black tablet stood silently.

The body of the tablet was neither gold nor jade, with mysterious, unfathomable dark golden patterns flowing across its surface, faintly resonating with the Dao rhythms of heaven and earth.

In front of the tablet, numerous Disciples sat in circles, their expressions focused, their consciousness immersed within it, their spiritual power circulating, and their auras steady and profound.

This was the Ten Thousand Laws Dao Tablet that Ling Hao had recently erected. Only Disciples at the rank of Inner Sect Disciple or higher could trigger the mysteries within the tablet after inscribing their names.

This tablet not only contained the ability to practice the ten thousand laws, but its deeper function was to utilize the great power of the everlasting light tablet connected to its core.

Although this could not grant an indestructible Soul like inscribing one's name on the everlasting light tablet, it could form a powerful protective barrier, safeguarding the Disciples' Divine Soul from the encroachment of curses, mental erosion, and other sinister methods.

This… could be considered a reserve for the everlasting light tablet.

Since returning from the Wind Spirit Sect, the treacherous "Blood Soul Thread Curse" of Gongsun Gai had been weighing on Ling Hao's mind.

He had always spared no effort regarding the safety of his Disciples.

In the Sect mall, all kinds of life-saving teleportation Talismans and substitute-death Puppets were supplied at almost rock-bottom prices.

Now, this Ten Thousand Laws Dao Tablet had perfectly filled the last gap regarding defense against Divine Soul curses.

Ling Hao stood on high with his hands behind his back, his gaze sweeping over the focused Disciples beside the Dao Tablet and looking toward the sea of clouds in the distance.

"Niding Alliance…"

A cold glint flashed in his eyes, "I have not yet found the time to deal with you, yet you dare to stroke the tiger's whiskers first."

This group of skulking rats must be taught a lesson. However, where should he start to strike at the vital point?

Suddenly, Ling Hao took out a sound-transmission Talisman and probed it with his Divine Sense.

"It's her?"

…

Wangyue Mountain.

It was originally intended to be the base for the Hundred Flowers Sect, but it was never used; now, there were only empty, silent valleys and blooming flowers here.

In Wangyue Lake, the Merfolk Race frolicked, their crystalline scales shimmering with a dreamlike luster under the moonlight.

Not far away, a woman dressed in a magnificent and intricate palace gown stood by the railing.

She was stunningly beautiful, with an elegant and noble temperament.

"The Merfolk Race…" Di Fuling whispered softly.

Looking around and sensing the astonishingly dense Spiritual Qi of the earth veins and the active Dao rhythms, her heart was even more shocked.

"The earth veins are recovering; this place gathers the spiritual beauty of heaven and earth. In time, it will surely become the new 'Yunmeng Great Marsh,' the true center of the Cangwu Kingdom."

Just then, a pressure descended quietly; though it was not overbearing, it made Di Fuling tighten her focus.

She immediately turned around and bowed respectfully to the figure in the black robe that had appeared beside her, "Master."

"Hmm."

Ling Hao withdrew his gaze from Wangyue Lake and let it fall upon Di Fuling.

[Name: Di Fuling] [Age: 10086] [Spiritual Root: Star Water Spiritual Root (Heaven Grade)] [Physique: Nine-Twist River Physique (Origin)] [Cultivation: Loose Immortal Second Tribulation] [Favorability: 78]

Di Fuling flipped her hand to take out a Jade Slip shimmering with a ghostly light and offered it with both hands, "Master, this is the evidence of Di Futian colluding with the True Demon Realm. Aside from Di Futian himself, the core individuals who know about this matter include only a few others, such as my Wanxian Dynasty's Second Old Ancestor Hong Jing and Third Old Ancestor Di Hongshen. As for others who might have leaked the news…"

She paused, "Seven years ago, Di Hongshen sent a trusted aide to pass a message to a Demon Venerable, which was accidentally discovered by a Loose Cultivator at the Soul Transformation Stage. Although we dispatched more men to silence them afterwards, ensuring no living witnesses escaped… logically, there should have been no leaks."

"Silenced?"

Ling Hao took the Jade Slip, his Divine Sense instantly scanning the contents within.

What was inside was the conversation between Di Futian and Di Fuling.

And when he heard "Loose Cultivator at the Soul Transformation Stage," his heart stirred, remembering the matter of Xiao Wei being hunted down in her past life, and he asked, "What was the name of that Loose Cultivator at the Soul Transformation Stage?"

Di Fuling was slightly stunned; although she did not understand why Ling Hao suddenly asked about a dead person, she immediately replied, "Answering Master, according to Hong Jing's confirmation, that person's name was Lin Yiyi."

A flash of realization crossed Ling Hao's eyes.

Lin Yiyi… Lin Xiwei… So that was it! The root cause of the pursuit that plagued Xiao Wei was now completely clear. She had inadvertently discovered the secret of the Wanxian Dynasty colluding with the True Demon Realm.

Di Fuling recalled the scene of being easily suppressed in the Qin-Tripod space; based on her judgment, Ling Hao was at least at the Late Stage of Undergoing Tribulation, or even higher. But that was a Demon Ancestor…

Seeing Ling Hao silent, she thought he was weighing the threat of the Demon Ancestor and could not help but say with worry, "Master, Di Futian is colluding with the Yan Yan Demon Ancestor, intending to borrow his power to kill you and obtain the shuofang tripod. That Demon Ancestor is a Mahayana Stage entity; if his true form descends upon the Southeast Rift…"

Ling Hao waved his hand, interrupting her, "It is of no concern."

Mahayana Demon Ancestor? Come on over!

Di Fuling wisely stopped dwelling on this matter and moved on to report the next key piece of information, "In addition, Di Futian has ordered the Fenglei Sect and the Danding Sect to formally propose the 'sharing' of the Sheng-Sheng Creation Spring on the Cangwu Yuji Platform in the coming days, intending to test and coerce you."

"The shuofang tripod," Ling Hao suddenly spoke, asking a key question, "What does Di Futian intend to do by seizing it?"

Di Fuling took a deep breath, "He wants to use the shuofang tripod as a guide to forcibly extract the Source earth vein beneath the Yunmeng Great Marsh, which is already incomplete and on the verge of exhaustion! Using this earth vein Origin as a sacrifice, combined with his 'Source Blood Tribulation-Bearing Undying Technique,' he intends to blood-sacrifice the billions of living beings in the Cangwu Kingdom to forcibly break through to the Mahayana Stage and return to his Peak!"

Upon hearing this, Ling Hao shook his head.

Ling Hao, with a restrained expression, stared at Di Fuling, "According to the information in the Jade Slip, Di Futian is your older brother, right? You betrayed your brother; do you not feel even a shred of guilt?"

"Guilt?" Di Fuling seemed to have heard a huge joke, and a cold, mocking expression appeared on her face, "Back then, I was ambushed by those three Mahayana Demon Ancestors on the battlefield outside the realm."

"My whereabouts were concealed by the Heaven-Covering Plate; even with techniques to deduce heavenly secrets, it would be extremely difficult to lock onto me on such a desolate battlefield! The only possibility—was that someone personally delivered my spatial coordinates into the hands of the Demon Ancestors!"

She raised her eyes and looked directly at Ling Hao, her eyes resolute, "Besides my 'good brother' Di Futian, who else could do it?!"

"As for the Di Family? Heh… this Di Family is no longer the Wanxian Dynasty that guarded the common people back then; it is merely a tool for Di Futian's own selfish desires, a rotten, empty shell hollowed out by his Bloodline Possession secret technique."

"His Di Family, what does it have to do with me? I am merely… a lonely ghost who survived by luck."

Looking at the surging hatred in Di Fuling's eyes and her complete severance from the Family, Ling Hao's lips curled into a playful arc, with a hint of teasing, "Hmm… so that's how it is; the Di Family are all his descendants, you have no sense of belonging to his Di Family, and you hate this older brother to the bone. That means…"

He deliberately dragged out his tone, his gaze sweeping over Di Fuling's stunning face, "Tsk tsk, my, my, over ten thousand years old, and still a maiden? That is truly… rare."

This could be considered the "oldest" female cultivator Ling Hao had met so far.

This sudden teasing made Di Fuling's elegant and cold expression freeze instantly.

She turned her head abruptly to look at the shimmering Wangyue Lake, facing Ling Hao sideways. The mountain wind blew against the hem of her palace gown, and for a long while, she finally forced a single word out from between her tightly pressed lips: "…Yes."

The voice was cold, revealing embarrassment and vexation. Having lived for ten thousand years and holding the high position of Supreme Old Ancestor, when had she ever had such a private matter pointed out so bluntly by someone?

Yet, she was facing the Master who controlled her Soul mark, so she couldn't even lash out. Tsk, even if her Soul mark wasn't controlled, she wouldn't be able to beat him anyway.

"Ahem…" Ling Hao did not intend to tease her further, "Is there any other news…"

"There is…"