Just a Useful Pawn in the Stain Sect

Chapter 188: Chapter 188: Emergence of the Secret Realm

Meanwhile, within the Star Sea.

Aboard the Dao Court’s Fubo Giant Ship, Ying Tongshou wiped away his cold sweat as he watched Ye Xingfeng, who stood at the prow, staring intently at the sky above.

Although he now held the rank of a Fourth-Grade General, comparable to a cultivator at the Mid-phase of Foundation Establishment, and was technically in the same Realm as Ye Xingfeng, he knew his own limits. The gap between their abilities wasn’t just that of clouds and mud; it was the difference between heaven and earth.

Therefore, his attitude was exceedingly respectful.

”Are you certain that person fled into a Secret Realm?”

Just then, Ye Xingfeng turned around, his brow tightly furrowed. ”I’ve already swept the area with my Sword Intent, and I didn’t see any Secret Realm.”

”Reporting to Celestial Punishment Zhenren, it still needs time.”

Ying Tongshou quickly replied, ”If that person is truly the Yuan Tu Demon from the Jiangbei Demon Sect, I am certain he has hidden himself within Blood Demon Island.”

”Our dynasty’s Observatory once performed a Divination on this matter. It revealed that the Demon’s karmic links with Blood Demon Island run extremely deep. If not for this, I wouldn’t have received His Majesty’s secret order to rush here all the way from the East. But rest assured, Perfected Person, that Secret Realm will reveal itself in three days at the latest.”

”...If you are deceiving me, I will cut you down,” Ye Xingfeng said coldly.

”Rest assured, Perfected Person!”

Upon hearing this, Ying Tongshou immediately puffed out his chest and took out an Eight Trigrams Plate. ”Before my departure, the Observatory specially bestowed this Fixed Star Disc upon me.”

”With this, I can confirm the location where Blood Demon Island will emerge.”

”You are a man of discerning taste, Perfected Person, so you can naturally see that I am not speaking falsely. Look, the location of its emergence... it’s in the Star Sea... Sea...”

In the next second, Ying Tongshou’s eyes flew wide open.

”...The location... is off?”

Ying Tongshou instantly felt a Sword Intent lock onto him. It scared him so much his hair stood on end, and he quickly changed his tune. ”It’s just a technical adjustment!”

”It’s only off by a little. Not a big deal.”

”Look, Perfected Person, it’s actually still very close to the Star Sea. The art of Divination isn’t one hundred percent accurate, after all. A small margin of error is tolerable.”

At this point, Ying Tongshou immediately employed the blame-shifting skills he had honed through long years in the Dao Court’s bureaucracy—the art of deflecting a heavy blow with minimal force, turning major issues into minor ones, and minor ones into nothing at all. He said, ”If my guess is correct, it must be that Lü Yang managed to alter the Secret Realm’s drop point in an attempt to escape!”

”He just didn’t expect that I possess a Marvelous Treasure like the Fixed Star Disc.”

”By doing so, he has merely wasted his Mana for nothing. As long as we follow the Fixed Star Disc, we can definitely catch him red-handed!”

As he spoke, Ying Tongshou began to believe it himself.

On the other side, Ye Xingfeng nodded after listening. He felt the speculation was well-reasoned and not just a wild guess, so he said, ”Then follow it.”

As his voice fell, Ying Tongshou finally felt the Sword Intent that had been locked on him quietly dissipate. He secretly breathed a sigh of relief, then immediately ordered the many generals and soldiers of the Dao Court below to start up the Fubo Giant Ship and follow the Fixed Star Disc’s guidance, heading straight for the Chaotic Flow Sea where the Azure Sun Cultivation Realm was located.

......

「The Chaotic Flow Sea, Azure Sun Cultivation Realm.」

Inside the great hall of the Immortal Alliance Headquarters, twelve Great Cultivators of Unity were gathered around the Emperor’s Golden Seal of Tushita, silently using their own lives to refine this True Treasure.

To cultivate, to seek truth—this was the destiny of every Great Cultivator of Unity in the Azure Sun Cultivation Realm.

Just then, however, the most senior among them, the white-haired Elder Lin, suddenly opened his eyes and looked at a message sent from the outside world:

”A strange phenomenon has appeared at the edge of the sea region?”

”The Ghost Cloud is in turmoil, and a Spirit Light shines through, triggering a Spirit Tide in all directions. It’s suspected that a Secret Realm is about to appear, one of an extremely high grade—likely at the Foundation Establishment Level...”

Reading to the end, Elder Lin’s expression suddenly turned grave.

Although the Azure Sun Cultivation Realm was isolated, it wasn’t completely ignorant of the outside world. The term ”Foundation-Stage Cultivator,” in particular, was etched deep in their memories.

Soon, Elder Lin spread the news.

In an instant, the entire hall erupted as the twelve Great Cultivators of Unity grew clamorous, clearly filled with curiosity about this so-called Foundation Establishment Secret Realm.

”Elder Lin, do you think there might be a way inside to help us break the Restriction?”

”For three thousand years, this Emperor’s Golden Seal of Tushita has devoured the lives of countless fellow Daoists. I don’t want to die at the hands of this thing too.”

”I think we should give it a try!”

Amid the clamor of opinions, Elder Lin’s expression gradually softened. Just then, however, he tilted his head slightly, as if hearing some strange voice.

”...All of you, leave for now.”

In the next moment, Elder Lin’s expression changed abruptly. He then dismissed all the Great Cultivators of Unity. Seeing this, the others didn’t find it strange. After all, similar things had happened before. Since Elder Lin offered no explanation, they just assumed he was getting old and needed some time alone to think clearly.

However, after everyone had left, Elder Lin raised his head and looked at the Emperor’s Golden Seal of Tushita in the center of the hall. ”Come out,” he said in a low voice. ”What do you want to say?”

”Hehe...”

Following a soft chuckle, the Script on the Emperor’s Golden Seal of Tushita gradually shifted, slowly outlining a pale gold face.

”...I too... am doing this for your own good.”

The pale gold face moved its lips, and Elder Lin found himself uncontrollably making the same motions. The entity was borrowing his body to speak:

”I have sensed it... a great karmic link is about to descend upon this Chaotic Flow Sea. It belongs to a person condemned by Heaven and Earth, someone with terrifyingly vast karmic links to attract such a grand spectacle... I estimate he might be a prodigy from the Stain Sect. But thanks to him, I now have a chance to escape.”

’Escape?’

Hearing this, Elder Lin’s expression changed slightly. He knew that this monster had been sealed by a Primal Daoist; theoretically, it should be impossible for it to escape.

Even the Perfected Fortune himself failed to rescue it back then!

”Don’t be so alarmed.”

”My escape will be beneficial to you as well.”

The pale gold face continued, ”After all, without me, you little shrimps wouldn’t be able to bear that person’s karmic links. You would die a very ugly death.”

”Of course, I’m not in a hurry.”

The pale gold face appeared very calm, its mood growing cheerful for the first time in a long while. ”Condemned by Heaven and Earth... is it because the current spectacle is already grand enough?”

”The karmic links targeting me have not yet been released by Heaven and Earth.”

”I hope that Perfected Person from the Stain Sect can hold on a little longer, long enough for Heaven and Earth to decide that no one else is capable, that I must be released in order to kill him...”

That will be its golden opportunity to escape.

Hearing this, Elder Lin couldn’t hold back any longer. ”What is it that you truly want?”

”Take me to that Secret Realm.”

The pale gold face continued, ”Bring the Emperor’s Golden Seal of Tushita with you. That way, I might even be able to save your lives if necessary.”

”This...”

Elder Lin hesitated. The Emperor’s Golden Seal of Tushita was the foundation of the Immortal Alliance and housed their True Spirits. In theory, it should not be moved lightly.

However, according to the entity, that Secret Realm was undoubtedly extremely dangerous. With the protection of the Emperor’s Golden Seal of Tushita, they would have some means of self-preservation. Moreover, if there really was a Saint Sect Zhenren, perhaps he would have a way to undo the Restriction on the Emperor’s Golden Seal of Tushita.

After long deliberation, Elder Lin finally made up his mind. ”Fine. I’ll take you there.”

With that said, he took the Emperor’s Golden Seal of Tushita and tucked it into his robes.

”Remember what you said.”

”We only wish for release. We don’t want to die only to find we cannot even reincarnate, to be devoured by this damned thing and become its sacrifice...”

”Release? What a luxurious thought.”

For a moment, only the last echo of the pale gold face’s voice remained in the great hall: ”Man acts, and Heaven watches. We are all just ants. Which of us is not a sacrifice?”