Chapter 2418

Liu Yisheng thought carefully: "Right, Shangguan Biao was re-recommended by Li Yun, returned from being a menial disciple to being a disciple of his master Tang Lin Zi again, and after that another two years passed before Zhao Dongyang died."

"At that time, he had already learned to endure." He Lingchuan asked, "What divine abilities did Shangguan Biao cultivate?"

"Every disciple of Changfeng Valley, upon entering the sect, can cultivate one primary divine ability and three secondary divine abilities. Shangguan Biao became the master of Qufeng Cave, and he selected all the divine abilities in the sect. I remember the ones he excelled at most were, first, Secret Realm Space, and second, Soul-Sealing Technique. At that time he had not yet graduated, and once during an internal sect competition, he produced a Secret Realm Space so convincing that even his master Tang Lin Zi could not tell truth from falsehood and fell into it. It was then we realized he had a talent for creating Secret Realm Spaces."

As for Secret Realm Space, there's no need to mention it—it's Changfeng Valley's forte. "Soul-Sealing Technique?"

"Sealing souls within the Secret Realm." Liu Yisheng pointed at himself and Li Yun, "This is also Changfeng Valley's unique secret art, but until the sect's destruction it was still in the exploratory stage—unexpectedly, it was carried to greatness in the hands of that wretch."

The four understood instantly: "Guardian Spirit?"

"The Guardian Spirit is the master of the Secret Realm, appearing only under special conditions, requiring favorable timing and location, neither can be lacking, and also needing an extremely firm obsession—its birth conditions are very strict." Liu Yisheng gave a bitter smile, "But actually, Li Yun and I… from the very beginning we didn't want to live, yet we were bound here, unable to escape."

They were neither the masters of the Screen Secret Realm nor did they have much obsession; within the Secret Realm they were merely imprisoned and suffering.

"The chains on our bodies are forged from Jumu wood and the earth mother's stone, binding us yet also sustaining us—otherwise, having been separated from our physical forms for so long, our souls and spirits would have long scattered." Liu Yisheng murmured, "What I once feared most, I now long for but cannot obtain."

What does he want?

He wants to see Shangguan Biao fall from power, but he would rather his soul and spirit scatter, so he need no longer suffer torment in this purgatory!

He Lingchuan glanced at Mingke Xianren, saw him shake his head, and realized there was nothing more to ask.

"Is there any other intelligence we must know?"

Liu Yisheng spoke solemnly: "I am not a good person, Li Yun is not either, but Shangguan Biao truly deserves the name 'wicked to the extreme'—he is a hundred, a thousand times more vicious than we are!"

This was his final defense.

He Lingchuan walked around the screen and forward, leaving only one sentence:

"Actually, Shangguan Biao did one good thing: he uprooted Changfeng Valley completely."

The four disappeared behind the screen, gradually fading into the distance.

Gazing long at the ruined mountain gate beyond the screen, Liu Yisheng finally exhaled a turbid breath from his chest.

For thousands of years he had rarely spoken to the living, yet he now felt somewhat reluctant to part.

After these few people left, it is highly likely they will return soon—at least their heads will be brought back by the earth mother.

The day of liberation is truly far, far off.

Just as this thought finished, a one-eyed ogre slipped back from behind the screen.

It was precisely He Lingchuan, who had just left.

"Old Liu, I forgot to ask you one thing."

"Go ahead." Anyway, he had nothing else to attend to.

"Is your contract with the earth mother still in effect?"

Liu Yisheng blinked, then nodded: "The contract remains, and it has not been dissolved to this day."

He still exists, so the contract still stands. After so many years, Shangguan Biao and he seem to have forgotten this matter.

Anyway, Changfeng Valley has long ceased to exist, his body has long been destroyed, and the contract is now meaningless.

He Lingchuan, however, replied cheerfully: "Good, I want you to do me a favor."

￥￥￥￥￥

The earth mother's demon army searching for the Panlong Secret Realm only does three things:

Tear down houses, push down walls, set fires.

The earth mother has already ordered that all buildings within the Panlong Secret Realm must be demolished, torn down until not a single standing timber remains in the city.

There is no vegetation here; the true fire spat out by the demons burns fiercely on the buildings, for a moment flames shoot into the sky, mingling with explosive sounds.

Panlongcheng is once again engulfed in a great fire.

The Bear King then stared at the high wall of the South Gate, speaking in a muffled voice: "This wall seems not so easy to tear down."

The South Gate of Panlongcheng has blocked countless attacks and endured countless years of wind and frost; at a glance it is obviously thick and hard, and even if it were to use divine abilities, it might not necessarily be smashed to pieces.

The earth mother's avatar pointed at the area behind the high wall of the South Gate and asked it: "What is missing here? Have you noticed?"

"Ah?" The Bear King hastily shook his head: "No, I don't know."

"Those two prisoners both said there is a black dragon statue behind this wall. When we first entered the city, the statue was still on the wall; when we entered the second time, the statue lay shattered on the ground." The earth mother also had no hope for its intelligence, "I ask you, do you see the statue now?"

The Bear King carefully examined the wall surface, then looked at the square, and shook his head:

"No!"

"Where did the statue go?" The earth mother laughed coldly, "The statue of the Black Dragon Divine Sovereign must surely carry additional significance; its disappearance means something is amiss!"

In the late ancient era, the Black Dragon Divine Sovereign was universally recognized as the leader of all immortals. Its image appears in Panlongcheng, yet it has vanished from the Secret Realm—such an abnormality often hints at something.

Is the Guardian Spirit of this Secret Realm appearing in the form of the Black Dragon Divine Sovereign? If so—

The earth mother grimly cracked open her mouth, determined to bring this Guardian Spirit back to Yujing City to be cherished.

To be able to command the Black Dragon Divine Sovereign for one's own use—just thinking about it feels powerful—even if it is merely a figurine resembling it in appearance.

"Concentrate manpower, first smash the Nancheng Wall." The earth mother ordered, "I have a premonition that the black dragon is most likely hiding within the city wall."

As the words fell, two demons who had been happily setting fire in the alley suddenly felt something grab their hind legs, and were violently dragged to the ground.

The other demons then saw them being dragged into the burning house.

The demons hurriedly gave chase, but those two demons had already vanished without a trace.

A witness shouted: "Snake, no, it's a dragon!"

But before it could finish its cry, a blackish shadow emerged from the burning smoke of the nearby ruins, bit off its head in one gulp, and then dragged the headless corpse to the fire.

Now, more demons saw its appearance:

A body like a python's, but at least ten zhang in length;

The head bears double horns with bifurcations, a crocodile's mouth, eagle's claws, and a qilin's tail.

Though its scales are pure black, under the firelight they display a metallic, oily sheen.

"Black Dragon!"

After just a few breaths, the earth mother's avatar appeared beside these few monsters, grabbing them up in one hand:

"Look closely—is it really the black dragon?"

"Absolutely certain—we saw it clearly." A monkey monster pointed at the burning district ahead, "It went in there."

"Search!" The earth mother's avatar waved a hand, "All of you, come surround it—make sure you find it!"

The Bear King whispered, "Dragon God, can we, can we beat it?"

Before the earth mother's avatar could speak, the Wolf King Silverfang cursed first: "Blockhead, how could it possibly be the real Dragon God! If the true Dragon God came, a hundred of us wouldn't be enough for it to swallow!"