Stealing Immortal

Chapter 63: Chapter 62: Bait

”You... are Chen Qingyang?”

The man looked imposing, but his voice was gentle. He was also quite courteous, even remembering to bow in return.

Chen Qingyang couldn’t tell if the man’s intentions were good or evil.

”I am. And you are, Senior Brother?”

But the man waved his hand. ”You don’t need to know who I am. Just know that I’m an old acquaintance of yours... Hmm, an old acquaintance from the Profound Light Association?”

’The Profound Light Association... With such a high Cultivation, he can’t be from a Miscellaneous Task background. He must be from Master Xuan Gui’s faction.’

Though confused, Chen Qingyang’s expression remained serene. ”I wouldn’t say I’m an old acquaintance of the Profound Light Association. I only interacted with Junior Brother Hu Kai once!”

”Wrong. It was more than once. You’ve had many interactions with the Profound Light Association. In fact, he specifically took two Qi Gathering Pills from me to give to you, saying you would be of great use to us in the future!”

’Could this be the ’Senior Brother Wang’ he mentioned!’

Hu Kai had gotten himself killed, but he’d left Chen Qingyang in a world of trouble. To be inexplicably dragged into this high-level struggle, he was truly innocent.

Unsure of the other man’s intentions, Chen Qingyang chose to remain silent.

”Later, a Miscellaneous Task disciple named Xu You found your repeated rejections of our goodwill highly suspicious. He got close to investigate, but then he disappeared without a trace... I suspect he must have discovered some secret of yours, didn’t he?”

Whether the man was guessing or truly had evidence, Chen Qingyang remained silent. His mind was racing, calculating how he could kill him on the spot.

”Forget it. Xu You had too high an opinion of himself; his death is no great loss. But Gong Yueshu... I trained her myself. She was always so cautious, yet she just died, just like that. She even took an Outer Disciple with her, causing the Profound Light Association to be gradually exposed... Sigh!”

He sighed again. ”I never suspected you at first. After all, you’re just a Miscellaneous Task disciple. Later, when the Sect began its investigation and Hu Kai turned against us, things spiraled out of control. I always thought the Law Enforcement Hall was behind it, but my Master’s Astrological Inference revealed that a calamitous star had entered the board, threatening the Chaos of Heaven and Earth!”

His eyes were bright, holding a veiled killing intent beneath their calm surface. Chen Qingyang could finally see his face clearly: dark-skinned, with a bristly beard and a square jaw.

”Then, at noon today, I was at the Law Enforcement Hall when Leng Yueru told me you could refine a Tier Two Qi-Introducing Pill. That requires a Cultivation of at least the Third or Fourth Realm of Qi Refining. And then I thought... you could have killed Xu You, you could have killed Gong Yueshu, you could have killed the junior brother we sent later, and you could have killed Hu Kai. Now that I see you in person, I’m even more certain.”

’It had to be Leng Yueru!’

’Someone as clever as her... it’s hard to believe it wasn’t intentional. I’ve hidden for so long, only to have her see through my facade? What is a Steward of the Law Enforcement Hall trying to achieve with these actions?’

”Hu Kai killed Xu You! They were fighting for power within the Profound Light Association! Gong Yueshu tried to use someone else to do her dirty work, bribing Wu Boyou with Spirit Stones, but Hu Kai killed them both! As for what happened after Hu Kai died, you should be asking yourselves!”

Chen Qingyang shouted his reply, wanting his words to carry far.

”Haha!” The man burst out laughing, completely unconcerned with what he’d said. ”Even if everything you said is true—that Hu Kai did it, that it was our own internal strife, that Hu Kai stole the Token from the Nine Nether Mechanic Divine Palace—it all started because of you. And for that, you must die!”

With a cold snort, an immense Qi Mechanism erupted from him. The pressure Chen Qingyang felt was even greater than what he’d sensed from Qi Xiuyuan.

A golden wind gathered in his hands as an auspicious cloud formed beneath his feet. A golden light radiated from his body; he seemed to be using his full power.

’So strong!’

Before the fist arrived, a gale blasted Chen Qingyang, whipping his long hair into a frenzy. The Warm Jade Scroll in his hand began to grow scalding hot.

’I absolutely cannot use this technique unless it’s the last possible moment! Otherwise, people might connect it to the cause of Qi Xiuyuan’s death!’

Three zhang.

Two zhang.

One zhang...

’Aren’t you going to show yourself?’

Just as the Warm Jade Scroll was about to erupt, a figure suddenly appeared in front of him.

There was no gust of wind, not even a ripple in the air. She just materialized out of nowhere, her graceful figure wrapped tightly in black robes.

In that instant, time itself seemed to slow. The black-robed figure threw a soft punch. A tiny ripple expanded across the man’s body, and he was sent flying backward. He crashed heavily to the ground and lay completely still.

Dead or alive, it was impossible to tell. And it had all been done with just a single punch.

”Senior Sister... Leng?”

’After setting this all up, she really was watching me from the shadows. I was right not to underestimate her.’

With a WHOOSH of displaced air, several black-robed Law Enforcement Hall disciples appeared from all directions, surrounding Leng Yueru. Naturally, she had no time to deal with Chen Qingyang.

”Senior Sister Leng, he’s not dead, but you’ve sealed his Divine Soul! He won’t be waking up anytime soon.”

Leng Yueru said, ”Take him back and interrogate him thoroughly. We must find concrete evidence and see who is really behind him!”

”Yes.”

Soon, the Law Enforcement Hall disciples carried the unconscious man away and vanished into the night. Only then did Leng Yueru have time to look at Chen Qingyang.

While they were doing all this, Chen Qingyang had remained waiting on the spot.

”Senior Sister, what... what’s going on?” A bit of fear in his expression was only natural.

”I just used your name to draw out a traitor, that’s all. I apologize for frightening you. Rest assured, as a Steward of the Law Enforcement Hall, I strictly abide by the Sect’s laws. Not even a Miscellaneous Task disciple can be killed so easily!”

’So she really did use me as bait. Now that the fish has been hooked, I wonder if my own life is still safe.’

Seeing Chen Qingyang hesitate, Leng Yueru added, ”From your conversation with him, it sounds like you’ve been horribly victimized!”

Chen Qingyang sighed. ”So many people have died, and the blame was nearly pinned on me. If they hadn’t killed me, the Sect would have dealt with me instead.”

Leng Yueru waved her hand dismissively, her tone almost a warning. ”I don’t care about Miscellaneous Task or Outer Disciples. Those who deserved to die are dead. I won’t pursue those matters further. Your safety, however, Junior Brother... that I am quite concerned about.”

Chen Qingyang was confused, so Leng Yueru continued, ”I met Li Qianxue once. Besides, for you to have survived this long as a Miscellaneous Task disciple, and to have been so determined as to escape the Four Golden Peaks... your character is quite good. Who knows, you might actually have a chance to fulfill your ambitions in the future!”

He couldn’t tell her true motive, or if she genuinely had a good impression of him, but Chen Qingyang reached at least one conclusion: Leng Yueru wasn’t going to care how those other people had died.

He bowed deeply, clasping his hands together. ”Thank you, Senior Sister Leng.”

Leng Yueru waved her hand. ”It’s nothing. Just now, that Junior Brother Wang said you were a calamitous star entering the board. Do you know what he meant?”

Chen Qingyang didn’t hide it from her. ”Senior Sister Liu once told me that the Astrology Skill that Master Xuan Gui cultivates is incredibly powerful. He must have inferred something.”

Leng Yueru wasn’t surprised. ”That’s right. It’s also one of the reasons it’s so hard for us to find evidence of his collusion with the Demon Sect. Although the Sect is currently monitoring him with the Circulation Demon Suppression Star Array, his movements aren’t restricted. He will likely calculate everything that happened today very clearly, and at that point, you’ll probably be exposed.”

Chen Qingyang was at a loss for words. ’Based on what Senior Brother Wang said, I shouldn’t have been exposed at all. It was all because of the information Leng Yueru intentionally leaked.’

”Heh heh!” With a light laugh, Leng Yueru tossed him a palm-sized Gold Coin Sword. Chen Qingyang examined it carefully but, aside from a cool sensation, he couldn’t detect anything unusual about it.

”My Master knew I constantly face life and death in the Law Enforcement Hall, so he specially refined this protective item for me. Keep it on you. With it, a single blow from anyone below Foundation Establishment can’t kill you. Consider it a temporary loan from me. Return it when this storm has passed.”

Leng Yueru’s kindness immediately made Chen Qingyang think of something else. ’If Qi Xiuyuan had an item like this on him, wouldn’t I have been done for?’

’But... even Liu Tao was never granted such a thing, so why would Qi Xiuyuan have one?’

”Thank you, Senior Sister Leng!”

Leng Yueru smiled again. At this moment, she was breathtakingly beautiful. Her ordinary features, which usually didn’t stand out, seemed to be rejuvenated with a radiant light, giving her an almost holy aura.

”Don’t thank me. After all, I’m the one who caused this mess. Let’s just call it even!”

Despite her words, Chen Qingyang thanked her again. ”Senior Sister, if I may ask one more thing, once he wakes up, will you be able to get any concrete evidence?”

Leng Yueru didn’t seem too hopeful. ”It’s hard to say. Anticipating the enemy’s moves is part of the Astrology Skill. We’ll have to interrogate him to know if he’s just a disposable pawn or someone truly important!”

A gust of wind blew past, and in an instant, Leng Yueru was gone.

Chen Qingyang stood there for a long time, his mind completely preoccupied with the Astrology Skill.

’Such a powerful Dharma Gate... couldn’t it be used to predict another’s opportune moment? If one could obstruct their path, they could seize their Immortal Seedling.’

He fiddled with the Gold Coin Sword in his palm for a while longer. Perhaps the power of a Foundation Establishment Master was simply far beyond his imagination, as he still couldn’t sense any Qi Mechanism from it.

He carefully tucked it into the clothes on his chest, then executed the Void Step Introduction and descended the mountain at top speed.

「In the small cabin.」

Seeing her master return later than usual and noticing that something was off about his expression, Xu Baoling was naturally concerned.

”Master, did something happen?”

Chen Qingyang replied, ”From what you know, what methods are there to obtain the True Method of the Star Pivot and Purple Star?”

”This... Master, why do you ask?”

After speaking, Xu Baoling realized she shouldn’t have asked and quickly added, ”I’ve never heard of anyone else cultivating it. Only Master Xuan Gui’s lineage has it. It consumes the lifespan of others, which is not in line with the Dharma Gates of a Daoist Sect. The other Foundation Establishment Masters look down on it.”

”You’re saying the only way to get this True Skill is through Zhang Wenyuan and Master Xuan Gui?”

Xu Baoling said, ”Master, based on my understanding, that should be the case. It’s passed down within their lineage; outsiders have no way of knowing it.”

”I heard that after Master Xuan Gui’s other legacy disciple died, Zhang Wenyuan is now the only one who has been taught this True Skill. He is at the Seventh Realm of Qi Refining, and it seems the Master is not very satisfied with him!”

Chen Qingyang pondered for a moment. ”I finally understand why Master Xuan Gui wants to defect. This True Skill consumes a person’s lifespan. If he were in a Demon Sect, he wouldn’t have such concerns.”

”Mm. You have a point, Master.”