Chapter 217: Reincarnation of Master Chongguang?

"You say this is Master Chongguang's reincarnation?"

In Qing Country, within a grand great hall, the King of Qing stared with an ashen face at the child before him — fair-skinned with a rosy flush, looking seven or eight years old.

"You dare to fool This One?"

"Reporting to Your Majesty."

The eunuch in charge of delivering the news hurriedly said, "Although this child looks grown, in truth he was only born eight days ago, and moreover he possesses extraordinary gifts far beyond ordinary mortals."

"Like hell he is eight days old!"

The King of Qing's expression grew more and more doubtful. Hearing the eunuch say the child before him possessed extraordinary gifts, he immediately glanced at Zhong Xin beside him, and Zhong Xin took the hint.

The next instant, this newly minted Top Graduate (top scholar) saw fit to extend a finger without the slightest hesitation. Official Qi gathered at the fingertip, transforming into a sharp arrow that shot straight at the child. Yet to everyone's surprise, when this sharp arrow struck the child's body, it failed to so much as graze a single hair on his skin!

"This is. 【Undying Stump】!"

Zhong Xin's gaze sharpened slightly at the sight. "When a first-Wood stem severs its roots and branches, becoming dead wood, and meets the waters of rivers, pools, and marshes — dead wood joining dead water — only then is 【Undying Stump】 formed."

"This should be a divine gift from the 【Covered Fu Fu Fu Deng Huo】 lineage!"

"It governs longevity and incorruptibility — a top-grade art for protecting the body and shielding the Dao."

The King of Qing heard this and felt a spark of joy. "So you're saying this person really is Master Chongguang? Only he hasn't yet broken through the mystery of the womb, and has but a single divine gift protecting his body?"

"Reporting to Your Majesty, your subject is but a man of mortal flesh and ordinary eyes — truly cannot tell."

Zhong Xin heard this and replied with a troubled look. "In your subject's view, this is merely an ordinary infant. His soul shows nothing extraordinary — he has only inexplicably gained a few minor divine gifts."

The King of Qing shook his head, then pointed at the child. "Whether real or fake — kill him!"

The moment the words fell, several eunuchs stepped forward at once. Although 【Undying Stump】 was fearsome, after all it was only an infant, and there wasn't much magic power within him.

So the eunuchs merely used magic power to rub out two balls of spirit fire and tossed him in. Before long, he was burned into a pile of ash. The King of Qing then stepped forward to carefully examine the remains, confirming the infant was truly, thoroughly dead. But before he could heave a sigh of relief—

"Report!"

Another armored soldier ran in from outside the hall, dropped to his knees, and announced loudly, "Your Majesty, the scouts dispatched to various regions have all reported back — three more Master Chongguangs have been discovered!"

"."

The King of Qing was nearly driven to laughing in fury. Three Master Chongguangs? Why not just say the entire Holy Sect has reincarnated into my tiny Qing Country — what a blessing for my Qing Country!

A moment later, three more infants were brought in.

Zhong Xin stepped forward to examine them one by one, then finally shook his head. "Same as the one just now — each only carries a single divine gift from the 【Covered Fu Fu Fu Deng Huo】 lineage."

"【Shade Dragon Water】, 【Fear of the Axe】, 【Firm Flame Furnace】."

Zhong Xin said carefully, then shook his head again. "Your Majesty, your subject's learning alone is limited — I fear I cannot discern accurately. We may invite others to identify them."

Before he could say it, the King of Qing had long since intended exactly that. He immediately nodded in approval, then summoned several senior ministers from the Imperial Academy to examine the infants together. Yet the result was the same as Zhong Xin's — the infants didn't look like reincarnations, but the divine gifts they carried didn't seem fake either.

Just then, another armored soldier reported back — yet another extraordinary infant.

"A fifth one?" The King of Qing was stunned.

Yet on this infant's body, unmistakably, was that same 【Undying Stump】! But the infant who had carried 【Undying Stump】 should have already been burned to ash by him!

"How can this be?"

The King of Qing could hardly believe his eyes. In the end, it was an old minister who stepped forward and said in a low voice, "Your Majesty, your subject believes there is more to this matter than meets the eye."

"Of course I know there's more to it — the question is what!" The King of Qing cursed, somewhat losing his composure. After all, he had finally thought he'd found Master Chongguang's reincarnation, only for it to turn out like this — joy raised to the heavens, then dashed to the ground. Such a wild swing of fortune made it hard for him to keep his emotions in check.

"Your subject believes these are all decoys."

"Although these infants all carry divine gifts from the 【Covered Fu Fu Fu Deng Huo】 lineage, not a single one possesses a Natal Divine Gift. Your subject believes this is the key point."

"They should merely be cover for the true Master Chongguang's reincarnation!"

"Therefore, until the true Master Chongguang is found, whether these infants are killed or not is meaningless. Even if killed, they will merely possess new infants."

"Useless! All useless!"

The King of Qing cursed furiously, then simply waved his hand. ". Zhong dear minister, I'm weary. From now on, this matter is entirely yours to handle. Be decisive."

The unspoken meaning was: kill them all!

Better to kill by mistake than let one slip through!

Zhong Xin didn't hesitate in the slightest, and quickly bowed low. "Your subject obeys the decree."

Just then, a third armored soldier rushed frantically into the great hall, causing the King of Qing to feel irritated at once. "Another infant? From now on, all such matters—"

Before the words were finished, the armored soldier's panicked cry rang out through the entire great hall.

"The Mo Sect is marching south!"

【Qing Country】, outside Zhā Lóng Pass.

"This place is called Zhā Lóng Pass precisely because it divides 【Qing Country】 and Jiangbei. A single pass cleaves the flow of spiritual Qi between the two into two segments."

"Because the spiritual Qi within the pass is entirely bound by the rules of the Dao Court, every last wisp belongs to the Dao Court. Anyone below Foundation Establishment cannot wield divine gifts or arts within. If we wish to enter Qing Country, the only way is to break open Zhā Lóng Pass and shatter the Dao Court's monopoly on spiritual Qi."

Before the grand pass, Yinshan True Person, Hanxiang, and a valiant woman stood shoulder to shoulder.

Below them swarmed cultivators like an army of ants — disciples dispatched from the various sects of Jiangbei, ranging from mid Qi Refining to Great Perfection.

At this moment, they were each piloting their escape lights, racing toward Zhā Lóng Pass.

And atop Zhā Lóng Pass, the soldiers and generals tasked with its defense met them head-on. The two forces clashed, and in an instant dyed the earth beneath their feet red.

"Fellow Daoist Yinshan, what use are these Qi Refining disciples?"

Seeing this, Hanxiang couldn't help but ask. "The formation of Zhā Lóng Pass can only be broken by Foundation Establishment True Persons. These Qi Refining disciples are just throwing their lives away."

Yinshan True Person glanced at Hanxiang upon hearing this and said lightly, "Fellow Daoist, your thinking still isn't broad enough."

"Although they're only at Qi Refining, they aren't entirely without use. Long before the battle began, I had already distributed spirit pills for cultivation to all the Qi Refining disciples."

"I added other medicinal guides to every spirit pill. While preserving the cultivation efficacy, I added a thread of blood-foul Qi. If these Qi Refining disciples die at Zhā Lóng Pass, the Qi and blood from their deaths will merge into the spirit veins, polluting the spiritual Qi, thereby indirectly destroying the spirit-vein formation of Zhā Lóng Pass."

The words had barely fallen when Zhā Lóng Pass suddenly shuddered.

As the spiritual Qi was polluted, the formation that had been running smoothly also began to show some stagnation. In the eyes of the Foundation Establishment True Persons, countless flaws instantly appeared.

Yinshan True Person nodded at the sight. "You see — isn't that useful?"

Hanxiang: "."

The next second, Yinshan True Person turned his head to look at Hanxiang and the valiant woman: "Daoist Hanxiang, Daoist Yu Chan, you must go all out this time."

The other two nodded in turn.

However, just before departing, the valiant woman named "Yu Chan" glanced around but did not see Lu Yang's figure, causing her delicate brows to furrow slightly.

High in the sky, Yinshan True Person stood with his hands behind his back.

He held a black mountain-shaped magic treasure in his hand; as he circulated his magic power and tossed it into the air, it instantly transformed into a great mountain!

"Boom!"

The Shanfeng crashed down, striking directly upon the Zhalong Pass; instantly the earth shook and the mountains trembled, the spiritual energy outside the pass surged, and the array's radiant light flickered wildly. With the spiritual energy tainted, its power was greatly reduced, and facing Yinshan True Person's such broad and fierce smash, it truly showed signs of collapse.

Yet just at this moment.

"Do not panic, hold firm!"

Accompanied by a ripple in the void, a valiant and upright figure appeared atop the walls of Zhalong Pass, immediately stabilizing the array.

It was none other than Zhong Xin, who had just been entrusted with a critical mission and returned by shifting through the void!

"."

The next second, Zhong Xin's and Yinshan True Person's gazes collided, both radiating intense killing intent.

(End of this chapter)