Chapter 128

Li Yu was quite constrained at first, after all, Zhou Yi Yi was her Fourth Martial Aunt, but after spending some time together, she relaxed a little. This Fourth Martial Aunt seemed to be more easygoing than she had imagined.

Aside from eating, she didn't seem to care about anything else.

"Little Martial Uncle, when the trial grounds open in a month, you must prioritize safety when you go inside. After all, you are only at the Sixth Rank, First Stage."

Li Yu voiced her reminder.

Lv Fang nodded with a wry smile and asked, "How many people from Great Zhou have come this time? Shouldn't there be more people at the Fourth Rank Scholarly Adept Realm? It seems both Song Ce and I are at the Sixth Rank."

Li Yu thought for a moment and said, "It seems you and Song Ce are the only Sixth Ranks who came. Most are at the Fifth Rank, basically accounting for more than half, and there are a few Fourth Ranks. It seems I heard that it was arranged this way because of the special nature of the trial grounds."

"Special nature?" Lv Fang frowned slightly.

Li Yu shook her head, "I think I heard a snippet of it, but I forgot to ask for the details."

Lv Fang looked at Fang Chun, questioning with his eyes.

Fang Chun bowed slightly and explained:

"It is like this: there are special areas in the trial grounds that can allow people to gain insights and break through their realm, but this effect is most significant for the Sixth and Fifth Ranks, while it is not as helpful for the Fourth Rank."

"Only those at the Fourth Rank who have a certain potential and have been unable to break through for a long time are specially permitted to enter the trial grounds."

Lv Fang chuckled, "In other words, those entering the trial grounds this time are the most outstanding among the Sixth Ranks, the Fifth Ranks are also the elite, while the Fourth Ranks are actually the ones who are not as strong within their own rank."

Fang Chun smiled and nodded, "You could say that, but since there is a difference in rank, it is best not to have any conflicts if you encounter them."

Lv Fang took the opportunity to ask about some of the sects in the Buddha Land. Upon hearing what Fang Chun said, his head began to ache; there were a great many sects in the Buddha Land.

So many that it was to an exaggerated degree.

Unlike Great Zhou, the imperial power in the Buddha Land is not highly centralized; it is merely considered the largest force recognized by all sects.

Besides the imperial family, there are sects and forces of various sizes everywhere, and these sects are like feudal lords who occupy land and declare themselves kings.

Within the territories of these feudal lords, there are different types of Buddhist beliefs.

Among these strange types of Buddhist sects, the three largest are the Mahayana Sect in the Buddha Land capital, the Black Lotus Sect in the Black Earth region, and the White Lotus Sect in the Ancient Ice and Snow City.

The Mahayana Sect has three branches: the Zen Sect, the Ascetic Sect, and the Vow Sect.

For this Buddha Land trial, each sect will have ten spots.

After finishing, Fang Chun paused, lowered her voice, and said, "If Young Master Fang encounters people from the Black Lotus Sect in the trial grounds, try to stay as far away from them as possible. Their sect advocates plunder, and they may kill to seize destiny."

"Actually, Young Master Fang should keep his distance from everyone. Although killing is not permitted in the trial grounds, only a very small fraction of people come out alive each time."

Li Yu echoed, "Little Martial Uncle, if possible, you can come find me first. Although I am only at the Fifth Rank, Third Stage, I still have certain means of self-preservation in the trial grounds."

"That won't be necessary."

Lv Fang said nonchalantly.

His main purpose for entering the trial grounds is to search for the mysterious underground palace. It might be very dangerous there, and he doesn't want to implicate Li Yu.

Although he is at the Sixth Rank, First Stage, he has the 'Deceiving the Heavens' divine ability. If he really encounters someone of a high rank, he might not necessarily lose to them.

Outside the restaurant.

"What happened?"

Song Ce blinked his confused eyes. He remembered seeing Li Yu in the restaurant just now, so he went to talk to her, then Lv Fang entered, and he came out and entered the guesthouse area. How could he be appearing on the street?

It was the deity occupying his body again.

And this time, it was without any prior warning.

"Deity?"

He shouted in his heart with an unfriendly tone.

The deity gave two strange laughs and said, "Do not misunderstand. I did not intend to occupy your body just now. It is just that you were driven out by Li Yu, and seeing her chatting happily with Lord Wenguan, your emotions were very chaotic, which caused the divine power in your body to become disordered."

"I had no choice but to occupy your body for a short while to stabilize the divine power."

"You do not need to worry about me. You and I are one; we prosper together and suffer together. I will not do anything detrimental to you."

Song Ce remained silent. After testing it for these past few days, he discovered that he could erect a wall in his heart, preventing the deity from peeking into his own thoughts.

After successfully isolating the deity's prying, he felt a sense of panic in his heart, a fear caused by his body suddenly having its control seized by the deity.

If it happened once, it could happen twice.

It was clearly agreed upon before that it would not forcibly take his body without his permission, yet it had violated that.

Now that he thought about it carefully, when he first came out of the Seventh Rank Lower Upper Realm, he would feel very tired after sleeping for a night. At the time, he only thought it was because he was too tired from cultivating.

But now, looking back, perhaps it was the deity taking control of his body and doing things he didn't know about.

"What is wrong? I feel like you seem a bit off."

The deity asked suspiciously.

Goosebumps rose all over Song Ce's body. Upon hearing this, he twisted his 'stiff' neck awkwardly and squeezed out a smile, saying, "It's nothing, it's just that whenever I think of Li Yu, I feel a bit uncomfortable."

The deity gave two strange laughs and said, "Oh, indeed. If I were a woman, I think I would also be full of curiosity about someone like Lord Wenguan. He is truly a mysterious person. It won't be easy for you to compete for a woman with him."

"However, this trial ground is a good opportunity."

"Kill that Lord Wenguan, and you can seize his destiny. In this way, in at least one year, and at most three, I guarantee you will be famous throughout the world."

"Hmm." Song Ce replied with little emotion and turned to leave, but suddenly saw a familiar figure hurrying away.

He stood frozen in place for a moment, then chased after him with an angry expression.

If he hadn't seen it wrong, that figure must be Steward Li. He couldn't have mistaken that walking posture and panicked expression.

Steward Li looked back frequently in panic. Seeing Song Ce chasing after him quickly, he tripped and started running directly.

In his panic, and because he was unfamiliar with the area, Steward Li suddenly realized he had entered a dead end, and this place was very remote.

"Long time no see, Li the Skinflint."

Song Ce walked into the alley with a cold sneer.

Steward Li swallowed hard, squeezed out a smile that was uglier than crying, and bowed, "Young Master, why are you here?"

Song Ce did not answer, but said coldly, "It is truly strange. We have no grudges or grievances, yet when you saw me, you acted as if you had seen a ghost, running for your life. Could it be that you have done something to wrong me?"

Steward Li shook his head frantically and stammered, "No, no, no, Young Master, how could I possibly do anything to wrong you?"