Chapter 955: Cooperation

As the light and shadow ended, everyone fell into a moment of silence, and judging by their thoughtful expressions, they had likely guessed the identity of these projections, just as Li Luo had.

After all, the people present were all young elites from the various factions, so they all knew the origins of the "Spirit Phase Cave Heaven."

"In the past, when the Spirit Phase Cave Heaven opened, did these 'people' ever appear?" Li Luo asked curiously.

Qin Yi pondered briefly, then shook her head and said, "The Spirit Phase Cave Heaven has only existed for a little over ten years in total. It has only opened a handful of times so far, but I've never heard of disciples from the 'Faceless Holy Sect' appearing before."

"Moreover, they may not be real people. I feel they should be some kind of energy projection-like existence, but this 'Spirit Phase Cave Heaven' is too wondrous, or rather the Faceless Holy Sect's methods are too astonishing, to actually still possess such formidable power in these projections after countless years."

At this moment, Chen Ping suddenly said, "Actually, the timing of the Spirit Phase Cave Heaven's appearance is rather coincidental for Dragon Head Li Luo."

"Coincidental?" Li Luo's brow rose.

Chen Ping smiled and said, "The year after your parents entered that legendary 'Faceless Holy Sect' ruins, the Spirit Phase Cave Heaven appeared."

The moment these words were spoken, the atmosphere instantly became somewhat subtle. The gazes of the crowd drifted between Li Luo and Qin Yi, because after that incident back then, Li Taixuan and Dantai Lan had forged an irreconcilable blood feud with Qin Qin Lian.

The corner of Li Luo's mouth twitched slightly. These bastards really can't wait for him and Qin Yi to start fighting right here on the spot, stirring up trouble at every turn. These prodigies from the various major factions in the Inner Shenzhou are full of dirty tricks. Back then in Daxia, that outstanding iron-headed kid from Duze Prefecture was far cuter in comparison.

Qin Yi's eyes also flickered slightly, but she didn't show any emotion. Instead, she changed the subject and said, "Dragon Head Li Luo, what you saw earlier were only the ordinary guards of that 'Golden Hall.' The real trouble lies one layer deeper inside."

"In there are eight disciples suspected to be elites, their strength around Seven-Star Tian Zhu Jing, but perhaps due to some kind of strange formation amplification, their combat power rivals Eight-Star Tian Zhu Jing. This is also why, up until now, no faction has truly managed to break completely into the Golden Hall."

"Oh? Eight elite disciples with strength comparable to Eight-Star Tian Zhu Jing?" Li Luo was also startled upon hearing this. With such strength, if it were up to him alone, he probably really wouldn't have a chance of breaking in.

However, looking at it this way, the reason Qin Yi sought him out might really not be because of him, but because of Li Li Lingjing.

Just as Li Luo was thinking this, Qin Yi's beautiful eyes turned toward Li Li Lingjing, who had remained silent all this while, and said, "This should be Miss Li Li Lingjing, yes? The noble lady of the Western Tomb Li Shi back then. They say you once had the bearing to contend for the Dragon Head position, but unfortunately later met with misfortune and vanished from sight. Yet looking at you now, this strength of yours is in no way inferior to Li Li Wuyuan."

Li Luo was somewhat surprised. This Qin Yi really did have some ability, to actually know the details of Li Li Lingjing. After all, even that blockhead Li Li Wuyuan hadn't recognized her at the time.

Li Li Lingjing was also somewhat surprised, then she smiled at Li Luo and said, "It seems many of the young talents within our Dragon Fang Branch are unable to resist the charm of this Qin Fairy."

If the other party could learn information about her, then it must have been obtained from within the Dragon Fang Branch. However, this wasn't strange either. With the other party's charm, a crook of her finger would likely cause some of the young people within the Dragon Fang Branch to enthusiastically divulge some information.

Li Luo could only purse his lips helplessly.

Qin Yi did not deny this either, merely smiling and saying, "Miss Li Li Lingjing's strength rivals Eight-Star Tian Zhu Jing. Combined with my big brother Qin Ying, we should be able to hold off some of the elite disciples. Add to that the assistance of the various factions present, and it's not impossible to entangle or break through the blockade of those eight elite disciples."

The black-clad youth standing behind Qin Yi now fixed his sharp gaze on Li Li Lingjing and said slowly, "This Miss Li Li Lingjing can make even me sense a trace of dangerous aura. Her methods must be considerable."

The expressions of the prodigies from the various factions nearby shifted slightly, and their gazes toward Li Li Lingjing gained a few more shades of wariness. After all, they were all paired off in teams of two, yet the guardian beside them was not as strong as Li Li Lingjing.

After all, those who could reach Eight-Star Tian Zhu Jing at this age were basically considered the top tier of this generation.

Seeing this, Li Li Lingjing gave those young prodigies a faint smile and said, "Keep provoking Li Luo, and I might find a chance to kill you all."

The corners of the others' mouths twitched, and they silently took a step back. At the same time, the high-star Tian Zhu Jing practitioners from the same faction paired with them warily stared at Li Li Lingjing, because whether or not it was an illusion, they faintly sensed a trace of subtle killing intent in Li Li Lingjing's words.

But, such a beautiful woman should be joking, right?

Only Li Luo knew Li Li Lingjing wasn't joking, because ever since entering the Spirit Phase Cave Heaven, those slender jade hands of hers had likely already claimed several lives.

This elder cousin of his, who looked all smiles and dimples on the surface, actually harbored an extremely heavy killing intent.

Li Luo couldn't do anything about it either, because Li Li Lingjing had experienced too many twists of fate over these years. A once-fine noble lady of the Western Tomb, muddled for many years, the glory that once adorned her had become a burden and a weight. Such earth-shattering changes were inherently liable to warp a person's character. On top of that, half of Li Li Lingjing's mind had been devoured by the 'Eroding Spirit True Demon,' and over the years, her will had been continuously eroded by it. That kind of torment—even Li Luo felt a chill in his heart just thinking about it.

Fortunately, perhaps because Li Luo was the one who had awakened her from that darkest of abysses, she was genuinely quite good to him.

"When do we make our move?" Li Luo suppressed his thoughts and asked Qin Yi directly. After all, given the defensive strength the latter described, relying on just him and Li Li Lingjing, they probably wouldn't be able to break in at all.

"There's no time to lose. More and more loose cultivators are arriving now, and the longer we wait, the more things can change," Qin Yi said decisively.

Li Luo naturally had no objections.

Then a group gathered together, and their momentum was quite formidable, drawing many gazes from the surroundings. When they spotted the most conspicuous Qin Yi and Li Luo among them, they immediately recognized their identities, and exclamations of surprise rang out. After all, in the eyes of many, Qin Yi and Li Luo should have been mortal enemies, and no one expected them to be able to cooperate now.

Li Luo and Qin Yi paid no heed to those gazes. Although the two appeared to be cooperating, in truth they kept a distance of over ten steps between them, and both Li Luo and Qin Yi stayed closer to Li Li Lingjing and Qin Ying respectively.

Clearly, neither of them truly trusted the other in their hearts.

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, the group plunged straight into the mountain forest and then vanished into the mist.

Countless loose cultivators were also stirred into action, following at some distance behind, trying to see if there was a chance to slip into the Golden Hall amid the chaos and find treasures.

Among the crowd, an expressionless man walked slowly forward. His pupils were an eerie, deep black, slowly writhing, and his gaze remained fixed on the direction Li Li Lingjing had departed.

"Hey, you gonna dawdle here waiting to die? If you're not moving, get lost!" At this moment, an angry curse came from the side. It was a loose cultivator with a face full of viciousness.

The eerie man didn't move in the slightest, paying no attention.

The loose cultivator instantly flew into a rage and threw a punch directly. As violent phase power surged, it caused the air to emit a sonic boom.

His fist slammed directly into the eerie man's back, but the latter seemed not to notice and continued his slow forward pace.

The loose cultivator's body, however, stiffened at this moment. He stared at his fist in terror, only to see a black worm burrowing into his skin. The worm's claws were extremely bizarre, resembling miniature human hands, and it swiftly merged into the loose cultivator's fist and vanished.

The loose cultivator's pupils rapidly turned a deep, eerie black, and deep within them, a bizarre worm could be seen slowly writhing.

Then, that loose cultivator, with stiffened steps, followed the eerie man and slowly disappeared into the mist.