Chapter 18: Truth: One Finger Slays the Celestial Immortal

Zhou Yu, listening to Ji Ning describe the events, gradually understood everything.

A few days earlier, the young master Shao Yan Nong of the Shao Yan Clan arrived at Anchan County, sought the help of Ji Ning and other prodigies, and entered the Wujiang Immortal Residence.

After the success, Shao Yan Nong personally escorted Ji Ning and the others out of the Wujiang Immortal Residence and held a celebratory banquet here to mark the achievement.

But for some reason, a powerful rogue immortal suddenly appeared, striking with the intent to take Ji Ning's life.

"Senior Immortal Qian Yu, with Ji Ning's cultivation level, he likely couldn't provoke such an enemy; could you be harboring a grudge and taking it out on Daoist Ji Ning?" a voice suddenly said.

The speaker was a youth dressed in splendid brocade, and Zhou Yu glanced at him, instantly recognizing him as Shao Yan Nong.

"Perhaps."

Zhou Yu said calmly, "I'll investigate this matter to the end."

"Ji Ning, come with me first," Zhou Yu said to Ji Ning, then turned his gaze to the others.

"Disciples of Heibai Xuegong, come with me."

"Yes."

Everyone nodded, rose quickly to Zhou Yu's side, and with a wave of his hand, they all vanished from the spot.

"Young master." Behind Shao Yan Nong, a fully manifested Divine Demon Xiangliu, his expression solemn, said, "That rogue immortal earlier was…"

"Don't continue, let's return first."

Shao Yan Nong spoke without hesitation.

…

At this moment, high above the mountain peak, Zhou Yu stood here with Ji Ning.

Just now, Zhou Yu had only sent the Heibai Xuegong disciples back, but he and Ji Ning did not return.

"Ji Ning, who do you think wants to kill you?" Zhou Yu asked at that moment.

"Master, I truly have no offense worthy of such a powerful rogue immortal." Ji Ning calmed down and said:

"But this incident cannot be explained by your enemies, Master; that rogue immortal clearly knew I was here in advance, so he struck without hesitation as soon as he arrived. I suspect someone among the cultivators here tipped him off."

"Who do you think it was?" Zhou Yu asked again.

"…Shao Yan Nong?" Ji Ning was now uncertain.

Shao Yan Nong had been very courteous to him all along; Ji Ning understood there must be some reason involving his own master, yet there was no reason for Shao Yan Nong to kill him.

Moreover, he had helped Shao Yan Nong complete a trial mission; at most the other party might be ungrateful, but to kill him?

But after pondering, Ji Ning still arrived at this seemingly impossible answer.

The biggest suspicion about Shao Yan Nong was why he didn't hold the celebratory banquet at the Wujiang Immortal Residence, yet after leaving, he suddenly tried to retain them warmly.

Ji Ning had reason to suspect this was Shao Yan Nong's move to stall him.

"Indeed, it seems you weren't misled by Shao Yan Nong's words; your years of experience have paid off," Zhou Yu nodded with great satisfaction.

"Master, you're saying the true culprit is indeed him?" Ji Ning exclaimed in surprise.

"I'm ninety percent certain, but whether it's true we'll find out by asking." Zhou Yu smiled, looked at the Shao Yan Clan's troops that had just departed by flying boat, and directly performed Great Translocation with Ji Ning.

Swish!

The two instantly appeared inside a cabin of the flying boat, where Shao Yan Nong was seated cross‑legged, and Divine Demon Xiangliu stood behind him.

"Immortal Qian Yu."

Divine Demon Xiangliu was startled at Zhou Yu's sight; he moved to shield Shao Yan Nong, but Zhou Yu pointed a finger, instantly freezing Xiangliu in place.

Shao Yan Nong tried to use a life‑preserving artifact, but he was likewise frozen instantly.

"Immortal Qian Yu, what do you intend? I am the next Feathered Divine Lord; if you dare act rashly, the Shao Yan Clan will never let you go!" Shao Yan Nong realized he could still speak, and he hurriedly threatened.

In truth, he still held great apprehension toward Zhou Yu.

A rogue immortal who has lived three million years is not comparable to ordinary million‑year rogues; Shao Yan Nong's high standing in the Shao Yan Clan stems from having a true Celestial Immortal—Xuanji Celestial Immortal—behind him.

Shao Yan Nong understood that Zhou Yu's strength might not be beneath his patron Xuanji Celestial Immortal.

That is terrifying, for ordinary million‑year rogues merely possess the threshold of Celestial Immortal power; few Celestial Immortals are that weak.

And an Immortal Qian Yu who truly rivals Celestial Immortals is exceedingly fearsome.

Therefore, although he wished to kill Ji Ning, he did not act directly; instead he quietly contacted his tribe, having them dispatch elite warriors.

This aligns with the Shao Yan Clan's interests.

Because Shao Yan Nong discovered that Ji Ning is a descendant of the Weichi Clan, which the Shao Yan Clan annihilated, a prodigy bearing such a vendetta cannot be allowed to live according to the Shao Yan Clan's principle.

Not to mention, Ji Ning apprenticed under Immortal Qian Yu; his background is impressive, and if allowed to mature, he could very likely threaten the Shao Yan Clan in the future.

Thus, the Shao Yan Clan immediately dispatched a very powerful rogue immortal; though not a million‑year rogue, his strength rivals that of a seven‑ or eight‑hundred‑thousand‑year rogue.

But unexpectedly, the assassination ultimately failed.

"Shao Yan Clan?"

Zhou Yu smiled without further comment, looked at Ji Ning and said, "Ji Ning, if you have any questions, ask them; he cannot lie in front of me."

"Hmm." Ji Ning nodded, then stared at Shao Yan Nong and asked, "Shao Yan Nong, is this assassin connected to you?"

"The assassin was sent by the Shao Yan Clan." Shao Yan Nong said, his heart shocked; he couldn't control himself and unintentionally told the truth.

"Why? I consider I never offended you." Ji Ning frowned and asked.

"Because you used the Wind Wing Escape Technique, Xue Hongyi told me your mother is named 'Wei Chi Xue', and you are a remnant of the Weichi Clan; that makes you an enemy of the Shao Yan Clan."

Shao Yan Nong said, and Ji Ning fully understood: so that's why, so that's why!

The Weichi Clan was indeed wiped out by the Shao Yan Clan; his mother was gravely injured back then, leading to her death, a result not without the Shao Yan Clan's 'contribution'.

Shao Yan Nong looked at Ji Ning's reddened eyes, felt uneasy, and hurriedly said, "Ji Ning, don't be foolish. I can give you compensation for whatever you desire, but if you kill me, not only will the Great Xia Dynasty no longer have a place for you, your master will also face inescapable guilt; the Shao Yan Clan has been a tribe that has followed His Majesty the Summer Emperor since the Divine Demon era, and there is more than one Celestial Immortal."

"If I don't kill you, will the Shao Yan Clan spare me?" Ji Ning asked coldly.

"At the very least, we won't pursue you at any cost, and Immortal Qian Yu won't be implicated either." Shao Yan Nong added.

Hearing that, Ji Ning felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over his heart.

Yeah, it's one thing for him himself, but if he drags his own master into this, does he still deserve to cultivate?

"Ha ha, involve me?" Zhou Yu looked at Shao Yan Nong, and the next moment an invisible force suddenly erupted.

Snort! Snort!

Silently, Shao Yan Nong and the demon god Xiangliu were erased into nothingness.

After their deaths, some primordial energy was absorbed by Zhou Yu; though scarce, he doesn't mind gathering it bit by bit.

At that moment, Ji Ning was stunned.

"Master, how can my disciple's vengeance involve you?" Ji Ning hurriedly spoke.

"Ha ha, the Shao Yan Clan is strong, but it's not all‑powerful. After all these years, haven't I learned what's important? A mere Shao Yan Nong—killing him is no big deal," Zhou Yu said:

"On the contrary, you staying in Anchan County is unsafe. I order you to go at once to the Daxia Capital to attend the upcoming Xianyuan Conference."

"Xianyuan Conference?" Ji Ning was taken aback; he had heard of it before, but had planned to accumulate three more hundred years to join the next session.

But now his identity had been exposed to the Shao Yan Clan, so attending the Xianyuan Conference was not a bad choice.

"If you achieve good results there, the Shao Yan Clan will no longer be an unbeatable force," Ji Ning thought, understanding that his master had shown him a clear path.

"I understand."

Ji Ning nodded; he knew he could do nothing now, and following his master's instruction to attend the Xianyuan Conference was the best choice.

"You should be able to use Shao Yan Nong's treasure, so take it with you," Zhou Yu waved his hand and gave Ji Ning Shao Yan Nong's storage artifact.

"Master, I will definitely return!"

Ji Ning bowed deeply; when he faced the scattered immortal's attack earlier, he survived only because of his master's treasure. Just now his master risked everything to kill Shao Yan Nong directly, so Ji Ning was deeply moved and silently vowed to become stronger and return.

"Go, go forth." Zhou Yu said no more.

He didn't tell Ji Ning that he actually didn't care about the Shao Yan Clan; it was to give Ji Ning pressure, for pressure spurs faster growth.

…

Because a fate tablet remained within the tribe, Shao Yan Nong's death was instantly known to the Shao Yan Clan.

Shao Yan Nong's shattered fate tablet was quickly brought before the Mystic Mechanism Celestial, whose anger was unprecedented at that moment.

Shao Yan Nong was the child of his most beloved female disciple, someone he had always valued, and now he had died in Anchan County?

Without any hesitation, the Mystic Mechanism Celestial immediately left his seclusion and headed straight for Anchan County.

Upon arriving in Anchan County, he employed a secret technique and quickly located the place of Shao Yan Nong's fall through the fate tablet.

"This is it."

The Mystic Mechanism Celestial was seated on a celestial carriage drawn by nine flood dragons; after confirming the location, he rose from the carriage and stepped into the void ahead.

He unhesitatingly cast the time‑reversal spell.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Time reversed, and past scenes unfolded before the Mystic Mechanism Celestial.

But soon the reversal halted; despite desperately channeling his power, the Mystic Mechanism Celestial could not make time turn back even a fraction.

"What?" the Mystic Mechanism Celestial exclaimed in disbelief.

Such a situation could arise either because a terrifying strongman had been here in the recent past, or because someone with an extremely high comprehension of the Dao of Time—perhaps even fully mastering it—deliberately employed a method to forbid time reversal here.

"How could the boy have provoked such a being?" the Mystic Mechanism Celestial subconsciously thought it impossible.

Suddenly, the Mystic Mechanism Celestial looked into the distance, where a figure had appeared at an unknown time.

In his perception, the figure emitted no aura, as if it did not exist at all.

"Could he be the murderer?"

A subconscious thought flashed through the Mystic Mechanism Celestial's mind, and at that moment the figure moved; he pointed with a single finger.

Swish!

Space‑time seemed to contract instantly, and a finger imbued with terrifying temporal power reached the Mystic Mechanism Celestial.

"What?"

The Mystic Mechanism Celestial frantically churned his power to activate his artifact and block the finger, but though the finger seemed slow, his movements couldn't keep up with its speed.

The finger lightly tapped the Mystic Mechanism Celestial's forehead.

Snort!

In the silent instant, a celestial turned to dust.

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(End of chapter)