Chapter 135

Sui Lv Zhenjun, you not only lack credibility and set an ambush on me, but you also deliberately distract me at this moment.

This is the conduct of a petty person; if word got out, who would still think you're a great Daoist adept? Shang Wuya chopped away layer after layer of nets while cursing.

Seeing him rip open a net and overturn a Golden Core cultivator guarding a corner, Sui Lv Zhenjun didn't waste a word and flew down with a palm strike.

Then he swished out the spirit sword from his jade belt, clanging against Shang Wuya's blade, forcing him to retreat step by step.

Then he said to the disciples, "All of you, retreat."

The few late Golden Core cultivators surrounding him, hearing that, flew off without hesitation; frankly, if it weren't for several of them forming a formation and an elder holding the line, they truly wouldn't dare to besiege a late Nascent Soul cultivator.

On this side, Shang Wuya responded cautiously, his divine sense constantly monitoring changes within several li, fearing those Golden Core cultivators might suddenly appear again.

What Sui Lv Zhenjun wanted was to distract him; his right hand wielded the spirit sword, strike after strike swift as lightning, while his left hand seized the chance to release something before Shang Wuya could launch his hidden weapon.

With a whoosh, Shang Wuya felt a flash of green light; he and his blade were sealed inside a translucent barrier.

"Sui Lv, what damned thing are you using?" he shouted, slashing his blade at the nameless barrier, but no matter how he tried he couldn't cut it open, and he kept worrying the opponent would unleash a killing move.

But Sui Lv Zhenjun walked up to him and said, "Shang Wuya, since you promised to exchange information for the fish plaque, I won't go back on my word."

"Your Heavenly Demon Sect and Harmony Sect both discovered over a dozen Taiji fish plaques in the Demonic Sect; the fact that your Golden Core cultivators clashed there is true."

"I already told you that searching for items in the Demonic Sect is easier than in the Dao Sect."

"But you, having merely luckily reached late Nascent Soul, came to abduct my sect's disciples and think you can leave without compensation—impossible."

As he spoke, he pinched a seal with one hand, causing the barrier enclosing the opponent to contract sharply, and with a slap it struck Shang Wuya's body.

In an instant, Shang Wuya's spiritual power stagnated; the blade he swung thereafter carried only a trace of mana, fortunately his divine sense remained unsealed.

He hastily flung a demonic artifact before him, pouring his meager mana into it, and shouted, "You! Are you practicing demonic arts?"

"Certainly not demonic arts! This is a sealing talisman drawn by my junior disciple Jiang Yu on eighth-grade spirit wood."

"Unfortunately, due to her shallow cultivation, it can only seal nine-tenths of a Nascent Soul cultivator's mana, lasting half a cup of tea (about five minutes)."

"……" Sui Lv Zhenjun thought, "This guy just doesn't get the point—I could kill you with ease, but all I want is to give the disciple fairness."

"Are you sure you want to fight me to the death?"

Shang Wuya suddenly realized he could only take things one step at a time; damn it, being an old-timer Nascent Soul, he had more confidence than himself, "Well, this is compensation for your little cultivator."

He quickly took out several jade boxes from his storage ring, each filled with sixth-grade or higher spirit herbs.

Sui Lv Zhenjun opened one, tossed back two boxes, and said, "Exchange them for two eighth-grade ones."

"Here." Shang Wuya gave them over despite his pain, and after Sui Lv Zhenjun checked them, he fled.

He also sent a mental message: "Shang Wuya, if others are backing your coming to the Dao Sect, then come."

"Have you paid attention to the few others who arrived with you at the southwestern cultivation sects—has anyone actually taken action?"

Shang Wuya had contacted the two persons headed for Falling Moon Sect and Hundred Forging Sect; naturally, they made no progress.

He also vaguely knew he was deliberately sent by the Demonic Sect to cause trouble in the Dao Sect; fortunately, harvesting a fish plaque let him exchange it for the urgently needed pills, so being a pawn once is fine.

"Just, what exactly did Sui Lv use that actually sealed… huh, when did my mana recover?"

"If not now, when else should I leave?" He patted himself down while checking, and activated his escape light.

Shang Wuya fled swiftly, fearing another hit, even employing the secret blood escape technique, hurriedly leaving the vicinity of Grand Void Sect.

Fu Ju Zhenjun, who had remained hidden several li away, watched his escape light vanish completely before flying back to the sect's market town.

"Senior martial brother, I'll guard the market town; you return to the sect to rest."

"It would be best to urge Jiang Yu to draw more stabilizing talismans." Fu Ju didn't know that the stabilizing talisman was a name given by Jiang Tu.

"Actually, if a high-level Nascent Soul cultivator draws this talisman, it can seal a Nascent Soul cultivator in a cyan cocoon for decades."

"Drawn by a cultivator of Void Fusion or above, it can seal a Nascent Soul or lower cultivator for hundreds of years, immobile; even if they eventually break free, they will remain mana-less for a long time."

"But now, drawn by Jiang Yu, it is similar to an immobilizing talisman, and even inferior to one."

"The only useful aspect is that it is drawn on eighth-grade spirit wood and possesses an inherent concealment function, making it harder to guard against than a regular immobilizing talisman."

Sui Lv Zhenjun didn't directly seek Jiang Yu; instead, he bought some eighth-grade spirit wood in the market town before returning to the sect.

But after sending the message, Jiang Tu replied, "Talisman Peak has an urgent task; Jiang Yu and the others must work nonstop for at least three days and three nights."

"Don't look at how a single light talisman paper is only a few inches; its production involves many steps, and missing one can drastically change its efficacy—possibly causing over half the papers to self-ignite when the talisman artist draws them."

Sui Lv then sent another message: "Let her focus on making talismans; once the Talisman Peak task is done, contact me promptly."

"Are you also assigning tasks?" Jiang Tu couldn't help but be curious.

Sui Lv Zhenjun briefly replied, "Sort of."

"Jiang Yu's Qi Refining task might drag on until Golden Core." Jiang Tu clicked his tongue twice, realizing he couldn't ask about the task, put away the message, and flew back to Jiang Yu's side to help repeatedly press the materials into the water.

"Who's looking for me?"

"Elder Sui Lv told you to finish the task and report to him."

"Oh."

"You don't even ask what it is?"

"You'll know when the time comes."

"And that time must be one month later."

In the meantime, Jiang Yu also served on the peace-talisman scattering team, dispatched to various parts of the sect to shower talismans over the Foundation Establishment cultivators.

Many Foundation Establishment disciples in the sect, upon seeing the peace talisman, didn't even try to grab it; they simply flicked their sleeves and pushed away the talisman that fell before them.

They didn't realize they had just pushed away an opportunity.

Qi Refining disciples who saw it wanted to snatch one or two to take back, but the talisman-scattering team would find them and exchange a spirit stone for it.

After the Foundation Establishment disciples reacted, the day-long aerial scattering of peace talismans was a benefit solely for them; if they wanted to join the grabbing again, the activity was over.

Altogether, twenty-three marked peace talismans; when they received the order to go to Grand Void Hall to acknowledge the fish plaque as master, only fifteen succeeded.

The remaining eight were practically worse off than those who didn't grab a talisman; the sole consolation is that they can on the spot shout for someone to go up to Grand Void Hall and resell this opportunity.

Jiang Yu didn't know which twenty-three people those were, but after the Talisman Peak task was completed, her master sent her to another secret valley, where she saw sixty-three Foundation Establishment cultivators before her.

The familiar Senior Brother Lin, two Senior Sisters Lu, Senior Sister Gu, Senior Brother Qian, and others were conspicuously present.

Among the inner disciples were Xia Bing and Tao Wenche, and unexpectedly there was also Deng Yuanwu.

Jiang Yu's heart instantly grew unhappy: "Jiang Tu, among those who have formed golden core, isn't there also True Person Ye?"