Chapter 226: The Heavens and Earth Are Vast

He Pingsheng sat quietly on the square.

Then he scanned the square with his gaze.

He saw the white-haired cultivator Long Yuan, and also Jiang Lan, who had restored his true appearance.

But now He Pingsheng wore the Brocade Cloud Robe, and his appearance and gender had changed—Jiang Lan could not recognize him.

The vast square was already filled with over a thousand people.

He Pingsheng remembered that when he arrived, just the Dingxiang Commandery alone had sent over four thousand people.

Altogether, across the entire Qi State, no fewer than eight thousand, perhaps ten thousand, had entered the Divine General Mountain—so most cultivators still hadn't emerged from within.

After all, the secret realm wouldn't close for four more days; why not stay inside longer to search for treasures?

He Pingsheng's gaze swept across the square, then turned to the surroundings.

Around the perimeter of the square, every five zhang stood a soldier of the Great Qi imperial household.

These soldiers' cultivation bases weren't low—each had reached around Foundation Establishment.

Under normal circumstances, no one could break out.

He Pingsheng's eyes narrowed slightly: I wonder if the Invisible Talisman would let me slip away?

Not yet.

There were still too few people on the square.

The situation wasn't complicated enough.

Only when the crowd grew thick and chaotic would it be the perfect moment to escape.

He Pingsheng waited patiently.

Unknowingly, two more days passed.

More people emerged from the Divine General Mountain's secret realm, and the square's population surged from over a thousand to over four thousand.

Crowded, bustling, alive with noise.

Many cultivators even unpacked their goods and set up stalls right there.

A small market instantly formed.

Long Yuan and the Great Qi imperial household paid it no mind.

After all, so many soldiers guarded the perimeter—no one could escape; as long as they stayed on the square, nothing mattered.

Do whatever you like.

Long Yuan waited.

He would inspect each person one by one after the secret realm closed.

He believed this method would catch every last fugitive.

"What is this thing?"

"I've never seen it!"

"Neither have I!"

At a cultivator's stall, dozens of people murmured and pointed.

Soon, the item drew attention from others.

He Pingsheng didn't approach—he stepped back two paces to the crowd's edge, and extended his spiritual sense.

He saw a golden bead on the stall, its surface wreathed in swirling mist, occasionally flashing mysterious, inscrutable black runes.

The object clearly had an extraordinary origin.

Even the white-haired cultivator Long Yuan was drawn over.

This was the moment.

He Pingsheng quietly pulled the 【Invisible Talisman】 from his storage pouch and pressed it against his body.

While everyone's attention fixed on the treasure, He Pingsheng's form vanished instantly.

Gone.

Though his body disappeared, he could not use any magic power.

Any use of magic power would trigger a ripple on the talisman, nullifying its invisibility.

He Pingsheng took a deep breath, then stepped slowly toward the mountain's descent stairs.

He wore the supreme magic treasure, the Golden Pattern Cloud-Treading Boots, so his footsteps made almost no sound.

Unless you listened closely, you couldn't hear a thing.

Combined with He Pingsheng deliberately slowing his pace, lifting and placing each foot with care, not a soul noticed him as he reached the foot of the descent stairs.

But ahead lay a greater challenge.

Ahead was the mountain's exit path.

The stairway was five zhang wide.

On either side stood a Foundation Establishment soldier.

The soldiers wore golden armor, gleaming brightly.

He Pingsheng inhaled slowly, then stilled his breath—he would not breathe again for some time.

One step, then another, moving gently forward.

He tried to make no sound at all.

But that was only theoretical.

In reality, silence was impossible.

When He Pingsheng stepped between the two Foundation Establishment soldiers, he made faint, almost imperceptible sounds.

"Hmm?"

One soldier turned his head, frowning slightly.

"What is it?" asked the other.

"Nothing," said the soldier. "I thought I heard something."

The left soldier asked: "What sound?"

The right soldier replied: "I can't say exactly—I just felt like someone was nearby."

Boom…

Both soldiers simultaneously extended their spiritual senses.

But it didn't matter.

After activating the Invisible Talisman, even Nascent Soul cultivators' spiritual senses could not detect a trace.

"Perhaps… it was just the wind."

The right soldier shook his head.

He Pingsheng took advantage of their conversation and took a few more quiet steps forward.

The farther he went, the fainter the sound became.

One step!

Two steps!

Three steps!

After a dozen breaths, He Pingsheng had descended dozens of stairs, far from the two soldiers guarding the square's entrance.

He still dared not breathe—but at least he had escaped the imperial soldiers' encirclement.

Still, he couldn't let his guard down.

Nascent Soul cultivators' spiritual senses could sweep over vast distances—often fifty thousand zhang.

So within fifty thousand zhang, he must not reveal his form.

Only keep walking.

How far is fifty thousand zhang?

Roughly three hundred li.

That's absurd.

Three hundred li was no small distance.

Just out of the encirclement, He Pingsheng still moved cautiously, lifting and lowering each foot slowly.

One step after another.

After carefully walking for about an incense stick's time, he finally passed beyond a hundred zhang from the nearest cultivator.

Only then did He Pingsheng dare to slightly quicken his pace.

Another hour passed before he covered a thousand zhang.

A thousand zhang seemed short, but it was already six or seven li away.

Now He Pingsheng felt less constrained; though he still moved quietly, placing his feet lightly, his speed increased significantly.

He continued like this for a full day and night.

Only then did he finally leave the range of Nascent Soul cultivators' spiritual senses.

Once clear, he immediately used magic power to alter his appearance once more, then mounted his sword and flew away.

Now, only one day remained before the Divine General Mountain closed.

Within this day, he must find Qiao Huizhu.

Otherwise, after the mountain closed, the white-haired cultivator might do something unpredictable if he couldn't find the person he sought.

Swoosh…

He Pingsheng mounted his sword and rose into the air, flying north for an hour, then circling around toward the place called Lishan in the west.

Stepping out of the gloom, he suddenly felt the vastness of heaven and earth.