Chapter 171: Go Play Somewhere Else

The World Tree must be resolved first.

Ruan Xing closed her eyes; the repeatedly overlapping memories made it difficult for her to distinguish whether this was the fourth or fifth simulation.

……

Without encountering the Fairy, the Demon Lord, or the others, this time Ruan Xing directly used the old method to replace Li Jin Fu and returned to the mountain gate with the Confucian-robed cultivator.

Seeing Chen Donghao again on the plaza, Ruan Xing took the initiative to walk up and greet him, "Senior Brother Chen, have you seen Senior Brother Cheng?"

There was a hint of surprise on Chen Donghao's face, "You returned at just the right time. I saw him just a moment ago; he said he caught some Ghost Cultivator and was going to lock them in the dungeon to await interrogation. Why, did you encounter something at your patrol post too?"

Phew, thank goodness I made it in time.

Ruan Xing let out a long sigh of relief and said with a serious expression, "Exactly. I still need to go find Senior Brother Cheng first; I'll talk to you later."

Having said that, she offered a farewell and hurried toward the dungeon.

Although the Confucian-robed cultivator did not understand the meaning, he did not interrupt and instead followed in her footsteps.

The two went down to the dungeon, where only Cheng Zijue and Cui Yurong were present. Cui Yurong, who had not been tortured by the sky screen, glared at him with a ferocious expression and fierce eyes, struggling incessantly while bound by the Binding God Rope, not even caring that she was tearing open blue-black wounds tinged with dark red.

"Behave yourself!" Cheng Zijue frowned and growled.

"Senior Brother Cheng!" Ruan Xing called out.

The old Daoist turned his head and smiled, "Junior Brother Li is back. Did you catch some suspicious person while patrolling to keep me company?"

"There were suspicious people, but I didn't catch them," Ruan Xing said with a look of regret. "Those two were too cunning, and their cultivation was no weaker than mine; I was careless for a moment and let them run away. That's why, as soon as I heard you had caught a Ghost Cultivator, I came over to learn from your experience."

Cheng Zijue chuckled, "What experience is there to learn? She was just at the mass grave outside the city; her resentment was like a bright lamp in the dark night. It would have been hard for me not to see her. Besides, her methods were simple, and her attacks had no structure. I seized the opportunity, hooked her with the Binding God Rope, and brought her back."

"Was she alone? That's strange, why did I encounter two of them traveling together?" Ruan Xing was full of confusion. "Senior Brother, why don't you think carefully? Could there have been an accomplice who, seeing that you had a Dharma Artifact like the Binding God Rope that restrains them, simply abandoned their companion and fled?"

"It seems there really wasn't anyone else nearby when I met her..." Cheng Zijue fell into deep thought, then his expression suddenly changed, "I remember now! I did encounter one before!"

He told Ruan Xing about the mortal, and Ruan Xing suggested, "Since you haven't gone to report to the Study Master yet, why don't we go together and mention this later? It might be a clue."

"Excellent! Thanks to your reminder, Senior Brother owes you a favor!" Cheng Zijue said happily.

Calling a disciple from the plaza to help guard the dungeon, the three of them went to the main hall to find the Study Master.

They reported the matter one after another, and the result was much the same as the last time: the Study Master would go to the dungeon to interrogate the prisoner personally, while two Elders would go to investigate the unknown enemies that Ruan Xing and the other had encountered.

Ghost Cultivators have cold bodies and fear thunder and fire most of all. Cheng Zijue did not recognize Cui Yurong's techniques and assumed they were ordinary Yin fire. No one knew that Cui Yurong possessed the Nether Ghost Fire of a Heaven-tier technique, which was not so afraid of heavenly fire, yet they still chose to use heavenly fire to burn and torture her.

As the sky screen enveloped Cui Yurong, sizzling white smoke rose from the blue-white skin exposed outside her black dress. She rolled around and howled a few times, then stopped moving.

It seemed she had already adapted to the temperature of the heavenly fire.

However, no one else thought of this; they only assumed she was too weak and had no strength left.

The Study Master pressed her several more times, but Cui Yurong made no sound. Seeing this, Ruan Xing did not hesitate any longer; she stepped forward and suggested to the Study Master, "Since she refuses to speak, why don't we go to the Xumi Realm and capture those related to her? Whether they are enemies or relatives, as long as she still possesses consciousness and emotion, there will always be one who can make her open her mouth."

"That is also a way." The Study Master nodded slightly in agreement. "Cheng Zijue, you stay here and guard this person well. Li Jin Fu..."

He thought for a moment, "You and Sun Xian go and capture that mortal."

"This disciple accepts the order!" Ruan Xing said respectfully with her hands hanging down.

The Study Master left the dungeon, and Ruan Xing parted ways with the Confucian-robed cultivator. Seeing Sun Xian waiting for her, she smiled and said, "Senior Brother Sun, shall we?"

To avoid having to pilot the Black Eagle herself, she consciously fell half a step behind Sun Xian. Seeing her action, Sun Xian assumed it was a show of flattery toward him, and his expression eased slightly.

The two walked to the plaza, and Sun Xian reached out and gestured; a ray of rosy light flew into the sky, and the screech of the Black Eagle came from afar.

Other disciples on the plaza immediately cleared a space for the Black Eagle to land.

Ruan Xing carefully observed Sun Xian's operation, but she still could not figure out what Magic Art he had used, and she secretly sighed in her heart.

After the Black Eagle landed and departed, Ruan Xing immediately struck Sun Xian's back with her palm, while her other hand held a Sword to cripple his right arm. Releasing the aura of the Nascent Soul Stage, she said coldly, "Don't move. If you answer my questions, you might still have a chance to live. If you dare to resist, I will let you know the consequences of disobedience."

A look of terror appeared on Sun Xian's previously arrogant face, and coupled with the shock of the Nascent Soul Stage aura, he lost all desire to resist and nodded repeatedly, "True Monarch, you... you just ask..."

Ruan Xing asked a simple question first, "What is the Magic Art used to drive the Black Eagle?"

Sun Xian dared not refuse to answer; he explained it in detail, and only after Ruan Xing had learned it did he continue, "However, this Magic Art can only summon it to carry one for flight; it cannot command it to do anything else."

This was very strange. Ruan Xing had consulted the Demon Lord about this problem when she subdued the Monster Beast whose home had been stolen in a previous simulation.

Generally speaking, a Monster Beast that has signed a Contract will only obey its master's orders. If the master allows it to temporarily help or listen to someone else, that is possible, but using a single Magic Art to perform a specific task is very difficult to achieve.

And it had continued for so many years.

Ruan Xing asked, "Who is the master that signed the Contract with the Black Eagle?"

As it stood, based on her exchanges with the three leaders of the Six Suns Study, none of them had used this Black Eagle; it was highly probable that none of the three was the master of the Black Eagle.

And Monster Beasts generally only submit to cultivators stronger than themselves.

Could it be that there were other hidden high-level cultivators within the Six Suns Study? She had even broken into their home last time, and that person didn't even come out to take a look?

Who would have thought that Sun Xian would shake his head and hesitate, "The Black Eagle... has no master. At least, in the nearly sixty years I have been in the Six Suns Study, I have never heard of it having a master."

"Didn't you look for one?" Ruan Xing asked with a frown.

Sun Xian's face immediately darkened.

He really didn't have many friends.

In the past, he would have preferred to cover his face whenever he went out; otherwise, he wouldn't have been so eager to guard the National Teacher Palace, just to escape from the Six Suns Study.

Having a junior who had been in the Inner Sect at the Qi Refining stage for decades, he didn't know how many people in the sect mocked him behind his back.

However, he still stubbornly said, "There are no particularly senior cultivators in the sect. Most of those who have reached the Golden Core Late Stage have gone out to travel. I couldn't exactly go and ask the Elders and the Study Master, could I?"

What? Ruan Xing suddenly caught onto something and hurriedly asked, "Besides the Elders and the Study Master, how long has the cultivator with the longest cultivation time in the sect stayed here?"

Although Sun Xian found this question strange, his life was in someone else's hands, so he could only answer honestly, "The earliest one should have stayed for eighty-one years, but that person also went out to travel with other fellow disciples a few days ago."

There wasn't a single disciple in the sect who had cultivated for over a hundred years. This was truly abnormal.

Ruan Xing pondered, reaching out to straighten Sun Xian's collar so that his outer robe would cover the bloodstains on his arm.

"In return for your cooperation, you can take a Healing Pill to recover from your injuries," Ruan Xing said kindly.

With the suppression of cultivation, and since Sun Xian was not a tough nut to crack, even without restraining him, he knew what he should do.

Hurriedly swallowing a Healing Pill, Sun Xian stopped the bleeding, changed into another outer robe from his Storage Bag, and asked cautiously, "Then, True Monarch, shall we go and capture that mortal now?"

Why capture a mortal? She came to find the Boundary Tree.

Besides, that is the male lead; Ruan Xing really does not want to cross him. If there is some Heavenly Dao plot correction, it would be bad if things backfired.

His life can only be left for the female lead to take.

She said in a low voice, "No, we are going to the National Teacher Palace."

The place where the Black Eagle landed was originally not far from the National Teacher Palace.

Because this place was built so flat specifically for it to stop and land; the rotating guard of the National Teacher Palace every thirteen years also picks up and drops off shifts here.

She remembers that entering the National Teacher Palace requires someone to meet you, otherwise you will be attacked by the barrier, but she did not expect that even having reached this level of cultivation, it still cannot be avoided.

A young Daoist boy guided the two of them to drip blood into the pool under the Boundary Tree, and only then could they move freely.

"Have those few Cultivators who entered the National Teacher Palace earlier left?" Ruan Xing asked Sun Xian.

Sun Xian seemed not to understand what Ruan Xing was saying, and blankly said, "Each rotation only has one Golden Core Cultivator come to the Xumi Realm to serve as the National Preceptor; other disciples are not allowed to come privately. Even we can only enter the Xumi Realm temporarily when we have a mission; staying too long is not allowed, as it will affect one's fortune."

It seems he is among those kept in the dark.

He does not know that six Cultivators entered the National Teacher Palace a few days ago.

Nor does he know the real reason why the Six Suns Study is conducting a massive search and arrest.

Ruan Xing sighed, "Forget it, I won't ask you anymore, go play on your own."

"The current National Preceptor should already know we have arrived; you go handle it, and watch your words." Ruan Xing lightly pressed a finger on Sun Xian's chest, letting him feel the sensation of the Breaking Source Technique disrupting the flow of his Spiritual Power and Meridians, and chuckled softly, "Otherwise, the taste of broken Meridians is not pleasant, oh."

She did not actually place any restriction on Sun Xian; it was just to trick him. He might discover it in a day or two, but it does not matter; Ruan Xing only needs these one or two days to figure out the Boundary Tree.

Sun Xian revealed an ugly smile, "It is only right, True Monarch, please rest assured."

Cold sweat had already crawled all over his back.

Given the decisiveness and ruthlessness Ruan Xing just displayed, he did not doubt for a second that in the hands of a Nascent Soul True Monarch, he was just an ant that could be crushed at any time.

Because he views those low-level Cultivators and mortals the same way.

Putting himself in her shoes, listening to Ruan Xing is the most appropriate course of action right now. If he still has a chance to return to the Six Suns Study, perhaps he can tell the Master about his process of enduring humiliation and bearing the burden.

Ruan Xing stopped paying attention to him, and after letting him leave, she went to the pool of the Boundary Tree alone.

She reached out and swiped through the water, feeling no danger, and her Divine Sense could not find the edge when probing into it; she did not expect this seemingly shallow pool to hide such depth at the bottom.

Applying a Water Avoidance Talisman to herself, Ruan Xing prepared to dive into the pool when she suddenly heard a small cry.

"Big sister..."

It was the voice of Cai Jiao; her movements paused for a moment.

Usually, except for letting Cai Jiao come out to play and move around freely during break times, she keeps her hidden in the Storage Bag at other times. She is well-behaved and quiet, very obedient to Ruan Xing, and when in the Storage Bag, she does not move or speak so as not to disturb Ruan Xing.

This time, there must be something wrong.

Thus, she let Cai Jiao out.

As soon as Cai Jiao came out, she raised her hand, looking at Ruan Xing with a pleading gaze, "Big sister, it is moving."

Cai Jiao's small hand was struggling to grasp the cyan seed that was vibrating non-stop.

Its strength was so great that it seemed ready to break free at any moment.

Ruan Xing's eyes focused on this seed.

Could it have some connection to the World Tree?

"Alright, I know, thank you A Jiao, your reminder is very helpful." Ruan Xing took the seed and patted A Jiao's head.

Cai Jiao's originally anxious heart settled down, and she pursed her lips, revealing a shallow smile.

After letting Cai Jiao return to the Storage Bag, Ruan Xing threatened the seed, "Don't move. I can take you where you want to go, but you cannot disrupt my plan."

She knows that this seed actually understands human speech; it just does not respond.

Sure enough, the seed's struggling force weakened, though it still kept trying to jump into the pool.

After this short delay, Sun Xian came back down.

Meeting Ruan Xing's scrutinizing gaze, Sun Xian said sheepishly, "I have already reported to the current National Preceptor that we were sent by the Master to inspect and maintain the Boundary Tree, and that no unauthorized persons are allowed near here. Since you won't let me capture that mortal and I have nothing else to do, I came down to see if I can help the True Monarch with any small tasks."

He originally did not want to get close to Ruan Xing again, but he thought that since he already had the True Monarch's restriction in his body, she could kill him at any time whether he was close or not. It would be better to come down and see what the True Monarch intends to do to the Boundary Tree, so that when he returns to the Six Suns Study in the future, he can report some important content to the Master.

The Boundary Tree is the foundation for the Six Suns Study to seal the Xumi Realm; if there were no Boundary Tree, the Six Suns Study would also cease to exist, so its importance goes without saying.

He could not afford not to come.

Ruan Xing thought for a moment and changed her mind, "Since that's the case, then you come down with me."

She does not know what is under this water, and she still has to be distracted to look after the cyan seed. If she brings Sun Xian, she can throw him in to scout the path if there is anything unclear later.

She applied a Water Avoidance Talisman to Sun Xian as well, and pulling him along, she jumped into the ink-like pool water.

Sun Xian's eyes widened; if not for the Water Avoidance Talisman, he would likely have swallowed a mouthful or two of this unknown pool water mixed with the blood of ten thousand people.

He was suffering bitterly in his heart; he clearly only wanted to see what tricks the True Monarch was going to play on the Boundary Tree, so how did he end up actually helping? Can the True Monarch even trust the help he provides? Thanks to Qing Yu Yue for the tip~ Thanks to Hao Ning for the monthly ticket~ Thanks to Ai Zhizhi 12345 for the monthly ticket~ Thanks to Bo Song for the monthly ticket~ Thanks to Ning Ning for the monthly ticket~ Thanks to Xiwang Liulang for the monthly ticket~ Thanks to A Chuang for the monthly ticket~ Thanks to Book Friend 20231019183119642 for the monthly ticket~ Thanks to Book Friend 20190709010248904 for the monthly ticket~ (End of chapter)