Chapter 263: Unexpected Harvest, Grand Minister of Agriculture

"Practiced to two layers? Truly fast." The Heavenly Derivative King once again sighed at Zhao Xing's cultivation talent.

"However, whether it is enough depends on who the opponent is."

"The Soul-Extinguishing Bell is a soul-attack method; the enemy collecting your items must be wanting to use a 'curse-type art'; such arts are very strange, and those who can execute them are high-grade powerhouses."

The Heavenly Derivative King pondered: "This matter still needs to be planned thoroughly; this line has been watched by us for some time, and some big fish haven't entered the net yet."

"I don't know if Prince can reveal one or two? I'm a bit worried." Zhao Xing said.

After all, his home is in Dongyang County, and he also has to know to what extent the Heavenly Mystery Hall has done.

"For example, the Sea Supervision Inspector of Chongming Prefecture, the fourth-rank Yin Qiquan; in these few years, this person has swapped the documents you signed and collected quite a few."

"Compared to this, what those few ordinary spies collected doesn't count."

Zhao Xing was slightly surprised; official document approval, such items, are the best medium items in curse-type arts.

Why? Because official document approval not only has your own words, but also your opinions on handling things.

It is said that writing has a god; approving official documents, eyes arrive, hands arrive, heart arrives; compared to other items, it is not at the same level at all.

The bowls used for meals, the small toys made casually, cannot have strong spiritual will attached like this official document approval.

Zhao Xing is the Deity Temple Chief; the documents he approves must be in triplicate: one is signed and transmitted to the subordinate government agencies. The second is submitted, summarized to the superior.

The third is archived, for review and inspection, so that even if the superior and subordinate have changed, one can still find what kind of decisions a certain official made in a certain year and month. In addition, this is also an important basis for official assessment.

"This matter is also because you were cultivating in the Military World." The Heavenly Derivative King said, "Originally, it wouldn't be so easy to swap, but your Deity Temple has been busy with Chen Shijie handling official business for the past two years, and he even used your seal to sign on your behalf."

"So that's how it is." Zhao Xing realized.

If this matter was handled by Chen Shijie throughout, that would be fine.

All the archived ones are Chen Shijie's signatures; even if he used his own Chief official seal, it couldn't be used as a medium.

The problem lies in the fact that in the middle, Zhao Xing, in order not to let Chen Shijie be so tired and give him time to cultivate, went to handle official business himself.

So the archived ones originally had both Zhao Xing's real signature and Chen Shijie's proxy signature.

Yin Qiquan found an opportunity to swap some real ones, making the proxy signatures more numerous.

Originally, it didn't matter whether the archive was proxy-signed or not; this was also a very small matter.

But in the eyes of a fate official, there is a difference, because this can be used to cast curse-type arts.

Yin Qiquan couldn't imagine that Zhao Xing, a small fifth-rank, was already so important, and he was cautious enough, but there were still fate officials specifically watching such small things.

"Wait for me to come back the day after tomorrow; don't act rashly yourself."

"Yes." Zhao Xing nodded.

Now these waves of spies are under the Heavenly Derivative King's surveillance; if he kills them, I'm afraid the other party will send more hidden spies, and it won't be so easy to find them again.

…………

Ending the conversation with the Heavenly Derivative King, Zhao Xing returned to the Deity Temple.

Although the Heavenly Mystery Hall had already taken strong protective measures to protect these geniuses who were about to enter the Dragon Court Ancient Land.

But Zhao Xing still had an extra eye; everything cannot be pinned on others.

So he practiced the Dream-Walking Art every day, covering the entire Dongyang County, carefully observing every move of everyone.

Two days later, the Heavenly Derivative King rushed back to the Star Palace and summoned Zhao Xing.

February 7th, 33rd year of the Jingxin Calendar.

The two spies deployed in Dongyang County began to retreat.

On the same day, Zhao Xing, in the capacity of Deity Temple Chief, went to sea to "Longshi Island" to inspect the Spring Sacrifice matters of Longshi County.

That night, the overjoyed Yin Qiquan came to the underground secret altar and burned this news into the letter-transmitting brazier.

In the deep East Sea, three sword-like underground peaks stood, and at the bottom of the peaks, a Crystal Palace was hidden.

"Pfft~"

Four red-as-blood incense candles suddenly burned, emitting bursts of incense mist, and a burst of raging flames also emerged from the brazier under Venerable Blood Spirit.

"Deity Temple Chief Zhao Xing, departed this morning, heading to Longshi Island to preside over the Spring Sacrifice, expected to arrive at noon on the 8th."

Venerable Blood Spirit looked at this letter and nodded.

"Waited so long, finally found an opportunity."

As the seventh genius on the must-kill list, the operation against him had started three years ago, but no suitable opportunity had been found.

Because Zhao Xing had a true self and an avatar, which made most assassination methods invalid.

Venerable Blood Spirit couldn't mobilize a large amount of manpower and material resources to kill an avatar.

If he really did that, it would simply be a joke to his peers.

Physical assassination was basically ineffective.

That left only soul-type arts.

As a result, Zhao Xing was transferred to the Deity Temple of Chongming Prefecture in the 30th year of the Jingxin Calendar.

This caused the soul-type assassination plan to have a very low success rate.

Because the Deity Temple belongs to the temple system.

Even if Venerable Blood Spirit had the support of the Liang Prince party, the Southern Wilderness Holy Mountain, and the Profound Heaven Sect, he couldn't kill a fifth-rank official who stayed in the prefecture temple.

Even if he were a first-rank, he couldn't!

Unless Great Zhou fell into internal chaos, the prefecture-level temples within Great Zhou territory were absolute forbidden zones for external sects!

This had nothing to do with what rank Zhao Xing was; as long as he stayed in the prefecture-level temple, even an ordinary person, Venerable Blood Spirit couldn't kill him.

The only opportunity was on the road when Zhao Xing's true self left the prefecture and went to other places; going to sea would be even better!

"Spring Sacrifice, is an important sacrifice of Great Zhou; Zhao Xing is unlikely to go with an avatar."

"This is the best opportunity." Venerable Blood Spirit pondered.

He subconsciously calculated with his fingers, and a moment later, he concluded:

"There is an 80% chance of success."

Venerable Blood Spirit nodded, then walked to a 【Spirit Sealing Hall】 in the Crystal Palace.

"Rumble~"

The door opened, and a ray of green light flickered, seemingly about to fall out of the door.

However, it was blocked by the barrier of the two doors.

Venerable Blood Spirit looked over; inside were one hundred 【Black Ice Coffins】.

Each coffin was transparent.

Ninety of the coffins were already empty.

Only ten coffins contained people sleeping naked.

Some coffins had an old calendar pasted on the outside.

Some calendars were very thick, while others only had a few thin sheets of paper left.

"I need to cast the Blood Character Curse-Killing Technique; the medium is collected, but it still requires a considerable price; I don't know which senior is willing to sacrifice themselves?" Venerable Blood Spirit bowed to the group of coffins.

No one responded, Venerable Blood Spirit smiled slightly: "It seems everyone is willing, then I will offend."

He walked toward the group of coffins.

In fact, the people in these coffins couldn't respond.

It was purely that Venerable Blood Spirit had been lonely for too long and had created a sense of ritual for himself.

He looked left and right, and those with thick old calendars were all skipped by him.

"You are still good, sleeping so soundly."

"Unlike me, neither human nor ghost, wanting to sleep but can't."

"When is it my turn to sleep here?"

"Oh, I seem not to sleep here, where do I sleep?" Venerable Blood Spirit muttered to himself, his eyes somewhat dazed.

He came to a coffin, inside was a burly middle-aged man, his body was forty meters tall.

Venerable Blood Spirit looked at the calendar: "Profound Heaven God Sect, Guardian Elder Zhang Yao, sleeping since the 400th year of the 789, 00th year of the 8th Era, for 7, 45 years."

"The Profound Heaven Calendar shows you only have twenty-five years left to reach the limit of sleep."

"Over seven thousand years, in this era, the chance of you waking up is less than 10%, and you are close to the limit of sleep..."

"It's you."

"I'll send you back to Profound Heaven." Venerable Blood Spirit muttered to himself.

He tore off the last two pages of the calendar on the coffin.

"Buzz~"

The coffin vibrated slightly, and the cold air inside began to dissipate slowly.

Venerable Blood Spirit rolled up this coffin and walked out.

After leaving the Spirit Sealing Hall, he quickly closed the door.

Venerable Blood Spirit

Besides him, there were two other statues here.

"Senior Brother, Uncle-Master, protect me."

The Venerable Blood Spirit cupped his hands, then carried the coffin to the side of the blood pool, waiting quietly for the seal on the coffin to dissipate.

…………

Above the East Sea, inside a multi-story ship.

Zhao Xing's true self was closing his eyes and resting on the ship's observation deck.

This was an official ship of the Temple of the Land God; the ship mainly carried a statue of the Land God. Of course, it possessed no great power; it was merely a symbol.

Inviting it to the island for sacrifice was just going through the motions.

"Your Highness, I have set sail now. Is there any unusual movement?"

Zhao Xing appeared to be resting with his eyes closed, as motionless as a mountain, but in reality, he was panicked to the extreme, sending a voice transmission to the Grand Prince of Heaven Expansion in the lower deck of the ship.

Curse-type spells are too bizarre; those who cast them must be of high rank. Such spells are usually mastered by the sorcerers of the Southern Wilderness or the clergy within sects.

Facing a high-ranking member of the clergy, Master Zhao was still somewhat panicked.

Especially since he was truly out at sea in his physical body.

"What are you afraid of? It's not you who will be bearing the brunt," the voice of the Grand Prince of Heaven Expansion reached his ears. "Before I came, I cast the 'Soul-Shifting Death-Substitution Method' on you. Any life-soul-type spell directed at you will act upon me instead."

"Before I die, you will absolutely not die."

"With Your Highness here, how could I be afraid? I was just asking how big a fish we might catch with this cast of the net."

"You don't need to worry about that. Knowing too many secrets of the Life Officials is no benefit, unless you also want to be a Life Official," said the Grand Prince of Heaven Expansion.

"I'll pass on that," Zhao Xing shook his head.

Although Life Officials have a transcendent status, they are also destined never to appear openly before the world.

Low-key and mysterious, the deeds of these Life Officials are only known after they die.

Top-secret files concerning them are sometimes only unsealed many years later.

Zhao Xing was mainly afraid that the Grand Prince of Heaven Expansion might not be able to hold out.

Because in the Southern Barbarian lands, conflicts between high-ranking individuals were increasing, and a large-scale war of high-ranking individuals could break out at any time this year.

Since the one plotting against him here in the East Sea was a high-ranking individual, there was no guarantee how high the opponent's rank might be.

"Meeting a Third Rank is no pressure, meeting a Second Rank is also no major issue, but meeting a First Rank would be life-threatening."

"The Grand Prince of Heaven Expansion must hold out," Zhao Xing muttered to himself.

The Grand Prince of Heaven Expansion was also at the Second Rank realm; if he couldn't hold out, then Zhao Xing certainly couldn't either.

Of course, the probability of a First Rank casting a soul-curse spell on him was extremely low.

Everything must consider the cost; soul-curse spells require a price to be paid.

This is the nature of such spells.

Void-seeking, distance-ignoring curse spells almost all require the consumption of one's lifespan.

A First Rank spending lifespan to kill a Fifth Rank official like him? The probability was still very low.

"Woo~"

Just as he was thinking, Zhao Xing suddenly heard a low, whimpering sound.

He gave a start and immediately activated the Heaven Eye Technique to scan his surroundings.

Yet he discovered that nothing had happened, and he did not know where the sound came from.

"Woo-woo~"

The sound became clearer, but Zhao Xing could never find the source.

He tried to send a voice transmission to ask the Grand Prince of Heaven Expansion, but there was no response.

At this moment, Zhao Xing looked again and discovered that there was not a single person left on the ship!

"It's here!"

Zhao Xing's heart sank; he knew the mastermind behind the scenes had already activated the spell.

He just didn't know which type of curse spell it was.

"Puff-whoosh~"

It was as if something had ignited; Zhao Xing pulled his neck in and moved away from his original spot.

He discovered that a pile of ash had fallen where he had just been standing.

He looked closely and saw it was Xuanhua paper, commonly used for official documents in the Great Zhou.

His own name could vaguely be seen on it.

"It's the Blood Character Curse-Killing Technique," Zhao Xing recognized it immediately. "This is a top-tier soul-type curse spell."

His expression became tense.

Among all spells, this type is the hardest to defend against.

It was just like his own 【Yin Wind】 spell, which also made it difficult for enemies to defend.

Curse-type spells are even more bizarre.

"Chi-chi-chi~"

The sky looked normal, but suddenly paper scraps began to fall.

Characters jumped off the paper, blood-red, and then twisted and transformed.

Some looked like human figures, some were the outline of an eye, and some were combinations of humans and beasts.

"Puff-puff-puff-puff-puff-puff-puff-puff~"

However, these blood characters automatically ignited during the process of transforming and falling.

By the time they landed at Zhao Xing's feet, they were already a pile of ash.

"Kid, prepare to use the Soul-Extinguishing Bell. I am going to let some curse bodies in to make the opponent sink deeper and deeper."

This was the voice of the Grand Prince of Heaven Expansion; Zhao Xing also did not know where it came from.

"Alright, bring it on!"

Zhao Xing took a deep breath; his life soul held a large golden bell, ready to ring at any moment.

As soon as he finished speaking, four characters appeared in the sky: 'Decay', 'Splendor', 'Qi', and 'Spirit'.

The 'Decay' character took the lead in forming and pounced toward Zhao Xing below.

Soul-type spells can only be blocked by soul-type spells or treasures.

The Heavenly Secret Robe Zhao Xing was wearing emitted bursts of white light.

At the same time, a bell chime rang out from within his body.

"Clang!"

The 'Decay' character manifestation was immediately blocked twenty meters away.

The other three characters remained one hundred meters high in the sky.

"The Blood Character Curse-Killing Technique: Decay goes first, followed by Qi, Splendor, and Spirit. If the first character doesn't hit, the subsequent ones will be greatly discounted."

"Now it is a contest of strength between both sides; the Grand Prince of Heaven Expansion wants to make the opponent pay a higher cost."

Zhao Xing's thoughts shifted, letting the Soul-Extinguishing Bell ring only once.

Hum~

The 'Decay' character entered within a fifteen-meter range.

…………

At the same time, in the Three Mountains under the sea, inside the Crystal Palace.

The Venerable Blood Spirit looked suspiciously at the blood pool below.

The blood pool reflected Zhao Xing's figure; his robe lit up with brilliance, but as for the bell chime, he could not hear it.

"As expected, there are precautions; he has received protection exceeding that of a Fifth Rank official," the Venerable Blood Spirit was also deducing based on the information he obtained. "It is very likely that he is one of the people secretly chosen by the Temple of Heavenly Secrets."

"Then he must not be left alive."

Splash~

Rolls of documents around him flew up; these were exactly what Yin Qiquan had collected over the years.

The files burned continuously, turning into streams of light that burrowed into the blood pool.

"Go!"

The Venerable Blood Spirit immediately increased the power of the curse.

Correspondingly, the price he paid also increased.

Beside the blood pool lay a corpse, its body dissected, with many bloody holes appearing.

"Gurgle~"

Blood flowed into the pool.

In the blink of an eye, his flesh and blood withered, becoming nearly skin and bones.

The 'Decay' character immediately closed in to within ten meters of Zhao Xing.

"What kind of monster is plotting against this official?!"

In the image, Zhao Xing was both shocked and angry, his hands trembling as if he couldn't hold on for another second.

The Venerable Blood Spirit smiled lightly; he read the lip movements and cast the spell again.

"Bang~"

The dried corpse's bones also turned to powder, and the whole thing was thrown into the blood pool.

"Even if I die today, I will not let you go even if I become a vengeful ghost!!"

Zhao Xing looked at the 'Decay' character less than three meters in front of him, his face ferocious, veins bulging.

The Venerable Blood Spirit was slightly surprised.

Because the blood pool had already dried up by more than half, yet the blood-colored 'Decay' character still hadn't been able to fully submerge into Zhao Xing's body.

The Venerable Blood Spirit reached out and pointed again; five 'Decay' characters appeared in the sky.

At the same time, the blood pool hit bottom.

"A Third Rank life, and I still can't take you down?"

The Venerable Blood Spirit watched coldly.

On the ship, all five 'Decay' characters had entered within one meter of Zhao Xing.

But at this moment, they stopped again.

Not only did they not advance, but there were signs of them being pushed back.

"Ahhhhh!"

Zhao Xing roared, as if struggling in his death throes.

The Venerable Blood Spirit was stunned upon seeing this.

"Why can't I kill him yet?"

At this moment, he vaguely felt that something was wrong.

But he also felt that if he put in a little more effort, he could kill Zhao Xing.

"Bang!"

The Venerable Blood Spirit chopped off one of his own fingers and threw it into the blood pool.

"Five Decays of Heaven and Man, go!"

The blood light flared, and it immediately advanced another one-ninth of a meter.

"Ah, who on earth wants to kill me!!!"

"I am about to die, I am truly unwilling..."

"Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang!"

The Venerable Blood Spirit broke nine fingers in a row.

At this time, the five 'Decay' characters had already traveled ninety centimeters.

There was only a 10-centimeter distance left between them and Zhao Xing.

The Venerable Blood Spirit broke his tenth finger.

He discovered that the Blood Character Curse-Killing was still nine centimeters away.

The Venerable Blood Spirit: "..."

Watching Zhao Xing wailing in the image, he felt this scene was somewhat familiar.

At this moment, the Venerable Blood Spirit felt as if he had fallen into the trap of some unscrupulous merchant.

He had made ninety-nine cuts and was about to succeed, only to find that this last cut had been subdivided into ten smaller cuts...

Although he had felt something was wrong from the moment the Third Rank corpse was exhausted.

But with this sunk cost before him, and the temptation that he could succeed with just that last little bit, the Venerable Blood Spirit had been led to this point.

His hands and feet were all broken, yet Zhao Xing was still wailing.

"Scoundrel! This scoundrel!"

The Venerable Blood Spirit was furious.

He remembered that back in Gucheng, he had been tricked by this kid.

It was just that compared to last time, his tactics this time were even deeper.

Anger!

The Venerable Blood Spirit's blood pressure rose in an instant.

He was somewhat broken; he had actually been toyed with twice by the same person using similar methods!

"Such humiliation has not been seen in a thousand years!"

The Venerable Blood Spirit was so angry he wanted to vomit blood.

At this point, his reason finally returned.

"Not good, I've fallen into a trap!"

"I actually lost my reason? I fell for a huge trap set by this kid Tianyan!"

"This was a setup from the start; Zhao Xing was merely bait!"

The Venerable Blood Spirit turned his head to look at the blood pool.

He discovered that the blood pool had dried up in an instant, and at the same time.

A golden flying dragon rose from within the blood pool.

On the dragon's forehead was a Bagua bronze mirror.

After seeing the Venerable Blood Spirit, the dragon's head immediately opened its mouth.

But there was nothing in its mouth; instead, the Bagua bronze mirror on its head shot out a beam of light, heading straight for the Venerable Blood Spirit.

"Grand Prince of Heaven Expansion? What a scheme! You actually affected my divine soul!"

The Venerable Blood Spirit's remnant body flew up, but he was still hit by this beam of light.

"Chi-chi-chi~"

His whole body caught fire, and he couldn't help but scream.

"Ahhhhh—"

He struggled and ran to the front of the two statues.

He crashed into the body of one of the statues.

The flames remained on the statue and continued to burn.

The Venerable Blood Spirit actually walked out from behind the statue with all his hands and feet intact.

"Boom!"

The statue collapsed with a roar.

The Venerable Blood Spirit didn't say a word; he picked up his Uncle-Master's statue and smashed it into the blood pool.

"Blood Origin Profound Seal, go!"

"Boom, boom, boom!"

The golden dragon and the statue perished together.

Watching the golden dragon disappear, the Venerable Blood Spirit panted: "Senior Brother, Uncle-Master, I am sorry; the enemy is too cunning, I had to borrow your two lives to use."

Having gained a respite, the Venerable Blood Spirit scanned his surroundings.

"This stronghold can no longer be used."

The Venerable Blood Spirit quickly burrowed into the 【Spirit Sealing Hall】.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh~

He quickly tore off the almanacs on one of the coffins and opened all the coffin lids.

"Blood Origin Great Art!"

"Gurgle~ Gurgle~"

The people in deep sleep quickly turned into dried corpses.

If he wanted to escape, he had to replenish his energy.

At this time, in his sea of consciousness, there was a golden bell.

The Venerable Blood Spirit looked up in a certain direction.

"Retreat!"

He wrapped up the remaining coffins and flew out immediately.

At the same time, he gathered the remaining items related to Zhao Xing and immediately began to flee.

At the same time.

On the multi-story ship.

"It disappeared."

Zhao Xing looked at the sky.

He used the bell chime to shatter the blood characters, and at the same time, he picked up the debris and immediately used the Five-Finger Heaven Destiny to reverse-calculate the mastermind behind the scenes.

"Hum~"

Scenes appeared before Zhao Xing's eyes.

The three mountains under the sea, the Crystal Palace, the Spirit Sealing Hall, the crystal coffin... and the back of the Venerable Blood Spirit as he fled.

"What? This place?"

Zhao Xing couldn't help but be stunned.

When he saw the three mountains, he was immediately dumbfounded.

Because this was the location of the Millennium Candidate Change that he had calculated for over ten years using the ten-thousand-year-old mysterious turtle shell!

At that time, he had searched on the sea but had never found this place.

He had even entrusted Long Xiao to help search in the Azure Dragon Army.

But there had never been any news.

"It's actually here, and still in the sea? Is it still yet to be born?"

"Wait, is this the Profound Ice Spirit Coffin of the Profound Heaven Sect? The Spirit Sealing Hall?"

"This place is actually a place of slumber for the Profound Heaven Sect!"

Zhao Xing was extremely surprised.

It wasn't just the Millennium Candidate Change; more importantly, it was the 【Profound Ice Spirit Coffin】.

In his plans for the future, how to survive until the recovery of spiritual energy, this object was one of his backup plans.

"Must quickly go and find this place!"

Zhao Xing had already broken free from the effects of the Blood Character Curse-Killing Technique.

Everything around him was as usual; the others on the ship had not discovered any abnormalities, as if everything that had just happened had not occurred.

Zhao Xing swooshed to the bottom of the ship's cabin.

"You kid are something else," the Grand Prince of Heaven Expansion said with a smile upon seeing Zhao Xing appear. "I asked you to cooperate, and you cooperated too well."

Zhao Xing, as bait, had an unexpectedly good effect.

He had actually led the Venerable Blood Spirit into the trap step by step, making him pay a price far exceeding that of a single spell cast.

If he had been willing to pay these costs from the beginning, he probably could have killed even a Third Rank.

"However, you took too many risks; that Blood Character Curse-Killing Technique was almost on your face. In the future, don't play such extreme games."

"Yes."

After a pause, Zhao Xing added: "Your Highness, have you found the monster's lair?"

"The general direction has been determined," the Grand Prince of Heaven Expansion nodded. "People have also gone over to hunt them down."

"However, the remnants should be hard to catch."

The Grand Prince of Heaven Expansion could feel that many high-ranking individuals had died.

But some had also escaped.

The harvest of this trip was already large enough; continuing to chase would probably not expand the results.

After all, both sides were separated by a certain distance.

"Your Highness, please allow me to join the search for the lair," Zhao Xing said.

"Oh? You also know the location?"

"One more person means one more bit of strength," Zhao Xing said.

"Very well," said the Grand Prince of Heaven Expansion. "Let's go together, but don't go too far when we search later."

"Yes." Zhao Xing nodded and immediately ordered the multi-story ship to detach a flying boat.

His clone sat on the multi-story ship, continuing to head to Dragon Stone Island to attend the Spring Festival, while his true self and the Grand Prince of Heaven Expansion headed toward the target area.

…………

Zhao Xing was the direct target of the curse, and the Grand Prince of Heaven Expansion was the indirect blocker.

Therefore, when Zhao Xing reverse-calculated the person, the specific location he obtained was more detailed.

When he and the Grand Prince of Heaven Expansion arrived at a sea area, the Grand Prince of Heaven Expansion said: "Zhao Xing, it's up to you."

"Yes." Zhao Xing immediately split into several clones, flying in different directions.

"Don't let your true self get too far from me," the Grand Prince of Heaven Expansion said. "To avoid any accidents."

After speaking, the Grand Prince of Heaven Expansion also jumped into the seabed and began to search.

Zhao Xing's Myriad Dharma Clones had significant effects in searching.

In less than two quarters of an hour, he found the Three Mountains Crystal Palace.

"It really is the location predicted in the Candidate-Calculating Method, but it should not have been born yet; I wonder how long it will take," Zhao Xing thought to himself.

"The Grand Prince of Heaven Expansion and the others still need to search for a while; I must go down first."

He was here in his true self now, and the alternation between him and his clones was something even the Grand Prince of Heaven Expansion couldn't distinguish. Why?

Because separated by a distance, the Grand Prince of Heaven Expansion could only sense based on soul strength.

The Derivative God Technique Zhao Xing practiced meant his seven soul bodies had no distinction in strength, so naturally, it was difficult to distinguish who was the clone.

So why do this?

Mainly for the 【Spirit Sealing Hall】!

"The Spirit Sealing Hall of the Profound Heaven Sect was inherited from the era of spiritual energy; combined with the Profound Ice Spirit Coffin, one can sleep for thousands of years and survive the passage of time."

"However, in the era of vital energy, the success rate of this method is greatly reduced."

"The success rate is low, and even if one wakes up, there are great sequelae; one is either insane or foolish," Zhao Xing burrowed into the Crystal Palace, searching quickly.

The Profound Heaven Ice Coffin was one of his backup plans; the reason was that it had great sequelae, a method that could only be used as a last resort.

Of course, he insisted on coming this time, not for the ice coffin.

The Profound Heaven Ice Coffin alone was useless.

One also had to practice special spells, build the Spirit Sealing Hall, and prepare many precious treasures.

He came mainly because of the 【Spirit Sealing Hall】.

"As long as it is still effective, there must still be spiritual energy inside; even if it is just a wisp, it is extremely rare for me."

"I can use the Profound Yellow Element-Analyzing Technique to absorb it."

Zhao Xing searched quickly within the Crystal Palace.

Although the Crystal Palace was complex and even had secret mechanisms and doors, Master Zhao was clear about such places; using a clone to scout the path, he quickly found the place.

"Found it!"

At this moment, the gate of the Spirit Sealing Hall opened, revealing the messy, floating crystal coffins inside.

"The Venerable Blood Spirit fled too hastily; I'm afraid this is an important soul-split of his, or perhaps even his true self," Zhao Xing thought to himself.

"I wonder if there is still any spiritual energy."

He walked in quickly.

The barrier had already been destroyed, and the magic array had lost its original effect.

After Zhao Xing walked in, he sensed carefully.

"Ninety percent of the ice coffins have been empty for who knows how many years."

"The spiritual energy has long been exhausted, and under the erosion of time, these magic arrays cannot be sustained."

To satisfy the slumber, many spiritual energy items also needed to be placed inside the ice coffin.

In addition, the Spirit Sealing Hall itself also needed spiritual energy to exist.

"The changes of an era."

Zhao Xing looked at the broken walls and the ancient magic arrays, many of which had been eroded.

"It seems there is no harvest... Hmm?"

Originally, Zhao Xing had intended to give up, but suddenly his brows twitched, his figure flickered, and he immediately arrived inside an ice coffin.

This ice coffin seemed to have been opened not long ago, and the cold air inside had not yet completely dissipated.

Inside lay seven jade-quality bricks, laid out in different positions within the ice coffin.

"Top-grade Cold Spirit Jade; I wonder if it still contains spiritual energy."

Zhao Xing immediately activated the Profound Yellow Element-Analyzing Technique on the seven pieces of Cold Spirit Jade.

"Bang!" "Bang!" "Bang!" "Bang!" "Bang!" "Bang!"

Six of the Cold Spirit Jades exploded and turned into ash as soon as they were affected by the vital energy spell.

But the seventh piece lit up with a ray of light.

Although the light was very weak, Zhao Xing was ecstatic.

"There is! The amount of this spiritual energy is about half of that withered branch from before!" Zhao Xing immediately extracted it.

At the same time, he cast the Pure Origin Projection.

"Hum~"

The earthy yellow light cluster immediately submerged into the Pure Origin Soil.

"It is Earth-type spiritual energy."

Zhao Xing waited with great anticipation.

Breaking through to the Fourth Rank realm, his Pure Origin Soil was Level 4!

The total area was about 314, 00 square meters.

The radius of the Pure Origin Soil was about 316 meters.

Now it began to transform, and the Pure Origin Soil began further growth.

"Boom~"

After obtaining this portion of Earth-type spiritual energy, the radius of the Pure Origin Soil increased to 420 meters.

The total area expanded to 550, 00 square meters.

"It is still Level 4 soil, and no qualitative change occurred, but the range growth is very significant," Zhao Xing thought to himself. "If I had to rely on vital energy resources to pile it up, I don't know how much money and time it would cost."

After searching for a while, Zhao Xing did not find any other items related to spiritual energy.

"There are many valuable or important items inside, but they cannot belong to me, and taking them would bring trouble."

"However, having this unexpected joy is already very good."

Zhao Xing quietly retreated and began to call the Grand Prince of Heaven Expansion.

…………

Officials arrived at this sea area one after another.

Since the subsequent matters were not suitable for Zhao Xing to participate in, the Grand Prince of Heaven Expansion accompanied Zhao Xing's true self back to Chongming Prefecture.

It was also on this day that the interior of Chongming Prefecture began to close the net.

"Clang!"

The gate of the Yin Prefecture was suddenly kicked open, and a group of officers entered without permission.

Hum~

Two sets of magic arrays, the Net of Heaven and Earth, immediately sealed the Yin Prefecture from top to bottom.

Yin Qiquan sat up in shock from his bed.

"Scoundrel, who dares to break into the residence of the Sea Inspection Supervisor!"

The leading official wore a black raptor robe and held a compass and command arrow; he then pointed lightly, tearing Yin Qiquan's official robe.

Torn along with it was the official position and luck on Yin Qiquan's body.

"Sea Inspection Supervisor? You are no longer one."

"Arrest everyone; not one can die!"

"You are... Life Officials." Yin Qiquan's face turned pale, and he collapsed to the ground.

At the same time, screams rang out all over Chongming Prefecture.

"Run!"

"Ah, Father!"

"It's over, everything is over!"

……

Within the scope of Dongyang County alone, a total of 532 officials and civilians were executed.

Including the military, the total number of officials involved in Chongming Prefecture was over 75, 00.

Including Yin Qiquan, a total of 25 Fourth Rank civil and military officials had their families ransacked and exterminated.

One Third Rank military officer and one civil official each.

Because they colluded with outsiders, it belonged to the treasonous crime of the Ten Unpardonables; even if they had privileges, they could not avoid death.

However, these two Third Ranks were not executed immediately but were secretly imprisoned for trial.

Because they were talents recommended by the Prince of Liang, their foundations needed to be stripped away before they could be killed.

Before they spat out all their secrets, wanting to die was a luxury.

With the Third Rank civil and military officials arrested, Chongming Prefecture and the East Sea Legion also started a new storm of anti-corruption and investigation.

Under this deterrence, the entire East Sea became much calmer.

However, after Zhao Xing finished reading the list, he knew that this result was nothing at all.

"The calm before the storm," Zhao Xing thought to himself. "As long as the conquest of the barbarians fails, those who have no intention of rebelling now will also develop such intentions then."

Like Hong Yuanba, he was the best example; this person originally didn't want to rebel, but was dragged into the water by his foolish younger brother.

"Once the luck of Pinghai Prefecture is shaken, those without two hearts will also develop two hearts," Zhao Xing stared at the high sky.

Now that he had practiced the Derivative God Technique and his soul was strong, observing the sky with the Great Expansion Qi-Observing Technique, he could see a thick layer of luck light shield over Pinghai Prefecture.

It was this light shield that locked the luck of Pinghai Prefecture from flowing out.

"Once the Prince of Liang splits the luck of Pinghai Prefecture, officials will only have two paths: either rebel or be cleared of charges; they can't even escape," Zhao Xing thought to himself. "If they escape, they lose their position. Some officials who rose up relying on the luck of the state will immediately die of old age. Now I am also in this game."

Zhao Xing could feel that his causal soul was entangled by many invisible threads; this was the change after he made his previous decision.

Now, by fishing for the Venerable Blood Spirit, leading to the execution of many officials, he was completely involved in the future changes.

"There is not much preparation time left for me," Zhao Xing withdrew his gaze. "It's time to go find Li Boqian and learn his secret methods."

…………

Li Boqian had once said he would give him six opportunities to ask for advice.

To date, Zhao Xing had not used a single one.

However, starting from March of the 33rd year of the Jingxin Calendar, Zhao Xing decided to use these six opportunities.

"The Cloud Gate Method and the Prison-Suppressing Chapter of the Profound Heaven Thunder Method are both at the Third Turn for my true self and the First Turn for my clone."

"Now there is no need to learn attack methods; in the coming time, I must strive to learn one or two life-saving methods."

"In case my true self encounters a very powerful high-ranking expert, I must be able to run away."

"Li Boqian has three great unique skills: first, the 'Kunpeng Transformation'; second, the 'Inch-Near Horizon'; and third, the 'Origin Seal'."

"To learn the unique skills, and to go deep, my true self must take a trip to the Tianyuan Prefecture branch."

The first layer of the Derivative God Technique was completed, and even the Soul-Extinguishing Bell had reached the second layer realm.

In terms of soul methods, the learning time was three years ahead of schedule.

That is, the Grand Prince of Heaven Expansion letting him research and summarize the insights of the first layer, as well as the discoveries from practicing the Dream-Walking Method this time, delayed him a bit more time.

"It is now March of the 33rd year of the Jingxin Calendar; if I go to Tianyuan Prefecture now and use the teleportation of the Lihuo Dao Academy, it will only take seven days at the fastest."

"Going to the headquarters of the Kunyuan Academy is far; just going there would take more than a month."

"If I learn quickly here with Li Boqian, then I will go to the Kunyuan Academy," Zhao Xing planned.

His first choice, of course, was the Profound Heaven Academy branch, because it was in Pinghai Prefecture.

In addition, the Kunpeng Transformation is an internal practice of the Candidate Change Method!

This method must be learned by the true self.

Of course, the priority is to go to the Profound Heaven Academy.

March 15th, 33rd year of the Jingxin Calendar.

Zhao Xing asked for leave from the Grand Prince of Heaven Expansion, left the Star Palace, and headed to the Tianyuan Prefecture branch of the Profound Heaven Academy.

March 23rd, Zhao Xing arrived at the Tianyuan Prefecture branch.

At this time, no one knew his true self had come here.

Except for Li Boqian.

"You want to learn my unique skills?" Li Boqian looked at Zhao Xing with great interest. "I have many unique skills; which one do you want to learn?"

"Kunpeng Transformation, Inch-Near Horizon, Origin Seal," Zhao Xing said respectfully.

"Hahaha, your appetite is not small," Li Boqian laughed loudly. "Although your true self has arrived here, these three unique skills of mine are not so simple to learn."

"Whether it is the Prison-Suppressing Chapter of the Profound Heaven Thunder Method you are learning, or the Cloud Gate, they are all complete paths from low to high, and countless sages have summarized many experiences."

"But my three great unique skills, since they were created, have only had top-tier methods; the difficulty of entry is comparable to the minor success of others, and there are no high-level methods created as stepping stones for comprehension."

"Among them, the 'Origin Seal' has absolutely no assistance, because when it first enters, it is at the level of a top-tier Seventh Turn; except for myself, no one can cast it."

"Six opportunities, why not use them on other methods?" Li Boqian said. "Wind, rain, thunder, cloud—you haven't learned them all yet. If you are willing to put them on this, you might not be unable to fully enter the minor success realm."

"My mind is made up," Zhao Xing bowed again. "I will never regret it; please, Grand Minister of Agriculture, grant it."

"Fine." Li Boqian waved his hand with a light smile. "Since you have this determination, then try it."

"The internal practice of the Candidate Change Method requires preparing Kunpeng essence blood, which must be transferred from the main academy; the threshold for the Origin Seal is even higher, so let's start by learning the Inch-Near Horizon."

Li Boqian took Zhao Xing's true self and jumped upward.

Clouds grew under his feet, and the next moment, Zhao Xing discovered he had arrived at an altitude of ten thousand meters.

Zhao Xing looked down and marveled secretly.

Similar spells also exist in the Self-School spells.

He had learned a method called 【Jungle Jump】, but it had limiting conditions: it must be based on living grass and wood life, and after the escape, the grass and wood used as a basis would die.

The distance was also limited; to this day, he could only escape four thousand meters, meaning he could only perform this method in a limited environment.

But this method of Li Boqian was clearly much more profound.

"Inch-Near Horizon is a Cloud Method." Li Boqian reached out and gestured in the sky, and immediately a batch of cloud layers arranged themselves according to his will.

"What does this look like to you?"

"Like a cloud path," Zhao Xing looked at the cloud channels extending in all directions. "Warship flight and combat guidance all use cloud paths."

"Not bad. Warships flying in the sky, in most environments, easily encounter the gale layer, creating huge resistance."

"The higher you go, the greater this resistance becomes, but sailing in a cloud path is different; such resistance can be eliminated or even utilized."

"Therefore, if you want to sail quickly at a very high place, you generally use cloud ships; for example, the ship Wang Tianzhi brought you on is a Wind-Breath Cloud Ship."

"Not only can it ignore the gale layer, but it can also use it to accelerate. Just speaking of warships, the cloud ship series is the third fastest in the world."

"Because it is not just moving itself; the cloud path is also pulling it forward."

"But the cloud path cannot be used repeatedly; when the cloud ship passes, the fluctuations of the displaced cloud path become a kind of interference, and the range is huge."

"It takes a long time to recover."

"My Inch-Near Horizon was created based on the principle of cloud ships," Li Boqian said. "Compared to the huge cloud ships, the fluctuations brought by the spells cast by people are very small."

"Although it still cannot go back and forth on the same path or pass in a straight line, this subtle fluctuation can already be ignored."

Zhao Xing listened quietly; the Cloud Method Li Boqian spoke of already involved the path of space.

So-called cloud path sailing can be understood as a Cloud Method version of 'curvature flight'.

As the contemporary Grand Minister of Agriculture, Li Boqian's realization of the Heaven-Time Method was already at the ceiling level of the Profound Yellow World.

If it were in the luck dynasty of the spiritual energy era, he would also be a person who could break through the air and ascend.

"The top-tier Cloud Gate Method and the ultimate Cloud Heaven Path Method ultimately aim to replace Heaven in walking the path with the Cloud Method, but this is ultimately a kind of luxury. The limit of the Cloud Method can briefly change the rules of heaven and earth, but in the end, it cannot replace them."

Li Boqian waved his hand again, and the ten-thousand-meter cloud layer filled with cloud paths extending in all directions shrank rapidly.

Finally, in Li Boqian's palm, a miniature version of the cloud path map appeared.

"Go!"

Li Boqian pulled with both hands, and the shrunken cloud map deformed again, covering Zhao Xing.

"Try taking a step forward."

"Which foot should the junior lift first?"

"Whatever."

Zhao Xing did as he was told, and then discovered he had appeared ten thousand meters away.

"Hum~" As soon as he stood firm, cloud energy emerged beside him; the cloud energy flashed and disappeared, and Li Boqian appeared beside him.

"How does it feel?"

"Very fast."

"Think again."

"I only took one step."

Li Boqian smiled without a word.

"I actually didn't walk; the clouds were carrying me?"

Li Boqian nodded: "Not bad."

"Since you have already learned the Cloud Gate and have a foundation in Cloud Methods, start with the ninety-nine types of cloud paths."

"If you can comprehend all ninety-nine types of cloud paths, you can be considered to have entered the gate of the Inch-Near Horizon."

"You comprehend here; if you have any gains, you can come down to find me, and I will cast the Inch-Near Horizon to let you experience it personally and verify your comprehension."

Li Boqian waved his hand, and the shrunken cloud map expanded rapidly again, finally becoming a circular cloud layer with a diameter of ten thousand meters.

"Yes." Zhao Xing chose one of the cloud paths, burrowed into it, and began to comprehend and practice.

Li Boqian flew down and landed in the Qianqing Garden below.

There was a water pavilion in the garden, with a chessboard set in the middle.

A figure stood beside the chessboard; his posture was majestic, like a towering mountain, emitting an irresistible majesty.

He wore a purple-gold robe embroidered with mysterious runes and ancient totems; every line flowed with powerful strength, and the light flickered like stars.

His face was firm and cold, like marble carved by time, with distinct angles.

His eyes were as deep as an abyss, as if containing endless wisdom and the sharpness to see through everything. The light that occasionally flashed in his eyes seemed to be able to pierce through the fog of time and space, making people dare not look directly at him.

He wore a brilliant crown on his head, with nineteen gems flickering on it; each gem carried great power, and the emitted light intertwined into a mysterious radiance, shrouding his body.

When Li Boqian came down, he remained motionless, with his back to this contemporary Grand Minister of Agriculture.

Despite such a rude act, Li Boqian did not have the slightest impatience; instead, he bowed respectfully and said: "Your Majesty, I am half a quarter of an hour late; please punish me, Your Majesty."

Ji Mingjing stood with his hands behind his back, looking into the distance at the sky: "Boqian, what is special about him?"

Li Boqian said: "Extraordinary ambition, outstanding talent, has the bearing of a Grand Minister of Agriculture."

"Oh?" Ji Mingjing's tone was slightly surprised: "You never said such things about your junior brother Wang Tianzhi, yet you think highly of him?"

Li Boqian smiled: "I only said he has this bearing, but Your Majesty's spirit swallows the universe, as the master of the world; whether he can succeed depends on Your Majesty."

"He is too young; even if he is a wise talent, he can only be handed over to future monarchs."

Ji Mingjing withdrew his gaze, turned around and sat down, and with a wave of his hand, the chessboard rippled like the surface of water, and in the blink of an eye, it turned into a military sand table.

It showed the terrain, landforms, and cloud energy of the nineteen prefectures, among which the land of Pinghai Prefecture was already covered in dark clouds.

"Playing war chess today, I punish you to hold the white pieces, let me move two steps first, and you must win."

The corners of Li Boqian's eyes twitched, because Ji Mingjing stood on the other side of the sand table holding the black pieces, representing the south of the Canglan River.

He sat in the nineteen prefectures north of the Canglan River.

On the flags were military names, personal names, and the names of forces; the Jing Emperor took the first move.

The first piece was the Black Dragon Army moving backward, withdrawing from the south of the Canglan River back to Pinghai Prefecture.

"Boom~" Dark clouds gathered, the luck golden dragon over Pinghai Prefecture split into two, large areas of official cities collapsed, and the celestial phenomena were extremely chaotic.

The Jing Emperor pointed, and the second move pointed to the East Sea.

Towering seawater surged from the East Sea to the eastern defense line of the Great Zhou; the four clans of chieftains rebelled in unison, and countless sea ship flags landed, instantly devouring the east of Pinghai Prefecture.

Two pieces fell, and in Li Boqian's heart, it was as if two claps of thunder had sounded.

Ji Mingjing stared at him calmly: "Boqian, it's your turn."