Firmament Sword

With that, Yuwen Ji looked up at Xu Luo. ”Therefore, at your current realm, whether you try to take it openly or steal it secretly, you have absolutely no hope!”

Xu Luo watched Yuwen Ji quietly, saying nothing.

Although his time in the Celestial Brilliance Sect had been short, he already understood this problem. Even without Yuwen Ji spelling it out, Xu Luo knew that obtaining the Soul Scripture from the Celestial Brilliance Sect was a nearly impossible task.

”However… it’s not entirely hopeless,” Yuwen Ji said, his gaze burning as he looked at Xu Luo.

”You’re not going to ask me to become the Sect Leader of Celestial Brilliance, are you?” Even Xu Luo himself found the idea a bit far-fetched.

Although he was confident in himself and believed that one day he would become a true powerhouse, standing at the very peak to watch the glorious sights of the Mortal World… Xu Luo was not conceited. He had a clear understanding of his current strength.

The Celestial Brilliance Medicine Garden alone, considered the place with the weakest combat power in the entire sect, was filled with so many astonishingly talented young disciples. Even many of the Outer Disciples were in the Saint Realm, to say nothing of the older generation.

He thought of Wanghai, the Inner Disciple of Heavenly Brilliance whose inheritance he had stolen. He was just an Inner Sect Disciple, yet his cultivation was already unfathomably deep. If he wasn’t at the Great Saint Realm, he was likely not far off.

In that case, how powerful must the true, peerless prodigies in other parts of the Celestial Brilliance Sect be?

With this realization, Xu Luo, who already had a sober assessment of his own strength, was even less likely to arrogantly believe he was the strongest of the younger generation in the entire Celestial Brilliance Sect.

So, upon hearing Yuwen Ji’s words, Xu Luo could only smile wryly.

”Become the Sect Leader? You?” Yuwen Ji shook his head vigorously, speaking bluntly. ”Stop dreaming. You’re far too lacking! How many years have you even been cultivating? Not to mention, the Celestial Brilliance Sect is filled with countless talented disciples. Even if we went by seniority… it would never be your turn.”

Xu Luo forced a smile. ”Then what do you mean by that?”

”How can you be so dense? Of course you have to steal it!”

Yuwen Ji looked at Xu Luo as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. ”Besides this method, can you think of a better one?”

”Er…” Xu Luo was speechless as he stared at Yuwen Ji.

If not for the sheer might of this warship when it descended upon the Ninth Mountain; if not for the lavish interior of the vessel; if not for the fact that he couldn’t gauge the old man’s depth and that he naturally exuded the aura of a superior without even trying…

Xu Luo would have seriously suspected this old man was an impostor.

He even had the strong urge to ask, ’Are you a spy sent by the enemy?’

”If you try to steal it yourself, you of course have no hope of success. The security in that place is incredibly tight. Forget a living person like you, not even a mosquito could fly in there!”

”Also… that place is extremely well-hidden. If no one tells you where it is, you could search your entire life and likely never find it.”

Yuwen Ji looked at Xu Luo and then said, ”But… I can help you!”

”Why?” Xu Luo lifted his head and looked at Yuwen Ji. ”What’s in it for you?”

The man before him… was the Chief Grand Elder of the Celestial Brilliance Medicine Garden!

In terms of both prestige and status, he was an exalted figure within the Celestial Brilliance Sect, someone others had to look up to.

So, from any perspective, there was no reason for him to do this!

Even if Xu Luo were his own grandson, there would be no reason for him to help with this!

The Soul Scripture wasn’t like other things that, once stolen, were simply gone.

This was the Holy Scripture of the entire Celestial Brilliance Sect!

It was the Treasure of the Sect for this Supreme Great Sect, Celestial Brilliance!

If the Soul Scripture were stolen, it would undoubtedly trigger a super earthquake of unprecedented scale for the Celestial Brilliance Sect!

Everyone would go insane.

Once anyone was found to be connected to the matter, forget Yuwen Ji… even the Heavenly Brilliance Sect Master wouldn’t be able to withstand the fallout!

”Benefit? Of course there’s no benefit. This old man isn’t an idiot. Besides bringing endless trouble, what possible benefit could there be?” Yuwen Ji looked at Xu Luo as if he were an idiot. ”How could you even think there’d be a benefit? What kind of weirdo thinking is that?”

Xu Luo was on the verge of losing it. With a dark expression, he stared at Yuwen Ji and grumbled, ”Wasn’t I just asking you… why you’re doing this?”

”It’s simple. I’m not happy with the people from the Scripture Pavilion. I can’t stand the sight of them!” Yuwen Ji said with righteous indignation.

”That’s the reason?” Xu Luo couldn’t believe it.

”Is that not enough?” Yuwen Ji looked at Xu Luo with a surprised expression.

Xu Luo’s mouth twitched violently. ’Not enough? It’s completely ridiculous! That’s a reason you could probably only use to fool a three-year-old, right?’ he thought.

”If you knew it wasn’t enough, then why the hell are you asking!” Yuwen Ji suddenly grew angry, scolding Xu Luo. ”This old man has lived for so many years and has my current status and position. Do I need to lie to a little kid like you? I said I’ll help you, so I’ll help you. Why are you asking so many questions?”

”…” The corner of Xu Luo’s mouth twitched again. He was speechless. Finally, he said, ”Alright, I won’t ask anymore. One last question: what do you need me to do?”

As soon as Xu Luo said this, an expression that said ’this child is teachable’ appeared on Yuwen Ji’s face. He nodded and said, ”Now that’s more like it!”

With that, Yuwen Ji looked at Xu Luo and said, ”I need you to help me find her!”

”Find who?” Xu Luo looked at Yuwen Ji. ’Don’t tell me he wants me to find some old flame of his? Heavens… you’re a Divination Master who can use Heaven-Defying Skills, and you can’t find this person. How could I possibly find her?’ he thought.

”Your master’s wife, of course!” Yuwen Ji chided. ”This old man has told you so much, yet you still don’t get it. I really don’t understand how you’ve managed to cultivate to your current realm!”

Xu Luo looked at Yuwen Ji with an innocent expression, though he was utterly speechless inside. ’Am I the one who doesn’t get it? It’s clearly you who’s making an impossible request, okay?’

”Are you thinking that since this old man’s Heart Inference Skill is so powerful, why can’t I just look for her myself?” Yuwen Ji asked, giving Xu Luo a sidelong glance.

Xu Luo nodded. ’Isn’t that obvious?’ he thought.

Yuwen Ji stood up, looking vexed. ”Of course it’s because your master’s wife is stronger than me. I can’t deduce her location. Otherwise, do you think… I wouldn’t have looked for her all these years?”

”Er…” This news truly shocked Xu Luo. The old man before him was a great expert of the Venerable Realm before his realm dropped. Could it be that his partner back then was even stronger than him?

”You forced an old man like me to say such an embarrassing thing out loud. You little rascal, you’re really too wicked!”

Yuwen Ji looked at Xu Luo, fuming. ”When we parted, our realms were about the same. Deducing her location… was already extremely difficult for me. What this old man mainly cultivates is the Alchemy Skill, but she… she is a true combat genius!”

”When I obtained that Nether Flower Seed and deduced the chaos behind that Golden Toad, I had my suspicions, but I couldn’t be certain. So… I need you to help me with this matter!”

”But…” Xu Luo wore a wry smile as he looked at the old man. ”You also know that this flower seed came from a treasure vault. So… do you know that I stole this treasure vault from that giant toad?”

”Of course I know!” Yuwen Ji said, rolling his eyes. ”What’s so great about a Great Sage Toad? Isn’t it just the one from the Vast Mountains? When you reach the Great Saint Realm, you can just capture it and interrogate it. Problem solved, right?”

”Then why don’t you go yourself?” Xu Luo couldn’t help but roll his eyes back at him.

”If I could go, would I need you? Besides… don’t you want the Soul Scripture anymore?” Yuwen Ji sneered.

At the mention of the Soul Scripture, Xu Luo was out of words. He could only look at Yuwen Ji helplessly and say, ”If it must be this way… then I have nothing more to say. I promise you. However… you will very likely be disappointed in the end.”

Xu Luo didn’t want to mention the fact that the Great God behind the Infinite Saint Emperor… was very likely the Kunpeng. He was afraid of upsetting the old man so much that he’d fly into a rage and refuse to help him at all.

Little did he know, Yuwen Ji was also breathing a sigh of relief internally, cursing in his mind, ’This little bastard, why is he so difficult to deal with? All the other Heavenly Brilliance Disciples are so obedient when they see me. They’re like mice seeing a cat. Why is this little rascal so unruly when he sees me?’

In truth, Yuwen Ji could only blame himself. If he hadn’t interacted with Xu Luo in such a manner, how would Xu Luo have ever imagined that such a high-ranking and powerful Celestial Brilliance Elder would be such an unreliable old man?

At this moment, the warship stopped. The cabin door opened, and Yuwen Ji directly shooed Xu Luo out. ”Scram. Go find a place to stay. You’ll become my disciple tomorrow!”

Without waiting for Xu Luo to say anything, the old man stuck out his foot, giving Xu Luo no chance to dodge, and kicked him out.

”Hey…” Xu Luo’s voice was cut off by the rapidly closing cabin door.

Yuwen Ji heaved a sigh of relief and muttered, ”Why is this little rascal so difficult?”

”And you’re blaming him? It’s clearly because you’re so unreliable that you scared him,” a woman’s voice sounded from the side. Then, a figure materialized out of thin air. It was the Eighth Elder of the Celestial Brilliance Medicine Garden, the beautiful young matron.

”How am I unreliable? This kid’s background is too immense, and I accidentally deduced his identity. If I didn’t lay my cards on the table, do you think this kid is an idiot… that he would believe me?” Yuwen Ji plopped back down into the rattan chair, a look of frustration on his face.

”Big Brother, you couldn’t be this upset just because your little sister heard your inner thoughts, could you?” The beautiful young matron sat down beside him with a smile.

”Of course not. It’s not like you don’t know my business,” the old man said, rolling his eyes in self-defense.

The beautiful young matron smiled, then said, ”Big Brother, honestly, after so many years, do you really think you can still find sister-in-law?”

”I have to find her, even if I can’t!” Yuwen Ji said. ”I was the one who angered her into leaving back then. In short, I wronged her. If I don’t find her… my heart will never be at ease.”

A flicker of sorrow passed through the beautiful young matron’s eyes. She then said, ”But is it appropriate for you to do this?”

”What’s inappropriate? That toad in the Vast Mountains… was originally her pet. And now, a Nether Flower Seed has been discovered in its treasure vault. What does that tell you?” Yuwen Ji sighed. ”It means this treasure vault… is very likely hers!”

”According to what you’re saying, Big Brother… does that mean she’s in the Vast Mountains? Then the emperor of the Vast Mountains…”