Chapter 1166: The Young Master's Might

The answer was originally just veiled by a layer of mist.

But the arrival of the Nine Shores’ daughter stirred up a wind that churned this mist, making clarity a natural outcome.

However, the mist hadn't completely dispersed, so no matter how one looked, it was like seeing flowers through a fog.

Even knowing it was a flower, yet because this matter concerned his own constitution, a glimmer of hope still lingered.

This was due to human nature.

Star Anulus was no exception.

This was the reason for the daze in his eyes and the hoarseness in his voice.

He also knew clearly that if the truth was what he was currently seeing, then in this struggle, he had no chance of winning at all.

He understood that since the opponent had revealed their cards tonight, this already signaled the start of the decisive battle!

“I cannot win, but I have a certain chance... not to lose!”

A dim light flashed in the Fourth True Sovereign’s eyes, and killing intent surged within him. He paid no heed to Spirit Phoenix Immortal or Fox Beauty.

He swayed, then walked forward.

For him, these two individuals were no longer important at this moment.

Time was now the most crucial factor for him, so he could not waste his limited time on others.

Fox Beauty’s gaze sharpened, intending to block him, but the pressure from the Mark of God Command forced her to stop. She then looked towards Spirit Phoenix Immortal.

“Junior Sister, this person seems very eager. How about we stop him?”

Spirit Phoenix Immortal’s eyes flickered upon hearing this, but in the end, she chose not to obstruct him.

“My task from that person was merely to protect Fox Beauty.”

Spirit Phoenix squinted, letting the Fourth True Sovereign’s figure walk out of the courtyard and disappear into the raging storm.

Heavenly thunder roared.

The sound of thunder echoed in all directions.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Xu Qing’s figure appeared outside Zhong Chi’s residence. Listening to the thunder in his ears, he stepped inside.

In an instant, the residence blurred. All the formations and restrictions within, which could stop others, could not hinder Xu Qing in the slightest.

Thus, in the blink of an eye, Xu Qing appeared inside the residence, standing before Zhong Chi, who was seated in meditation.

Lightning flashed outside, illuminating the heavens and earth, and also reflecting in Zhong Chi’s suddenly opened eyes within the residence, revealing a hint of bewilderment.

“Young Master?”

Xu Qing’s appearance surprised Zhong Chi. He instinctively rose to his feet, and just as he was about to bow, a gentle force emanated from Xu Qing, preventing him from doing so.

Amidst his surprise and doubt, Xu Qing walked to the window of the house. Gazing at the wind and rain outside, listening to the thunder in his ears, and feeling the strong gusts, his expression remained calm as he spoke softly.

“Li Mengtu!”

The moment these three words left Xu Qing’s mouth was also when the thunder outside roared most loudly. In an instant, the thunder from beyond the heavens seemed to fall upon Zhong Chi’s heart.

It exploded in his mind, resounding through his thoughts.

His face suddenly changed, and his heart surged with immense waves. Just as he was about to speak, Xu Qing’s voice still echoed like startling thunder.

“I have clearly seen your purpose.”

“You are subtly invading the body you possess with your own constitution, intending to poison it to death!”

“But because it's a consciousness descent, and this body you inhabit is not simple, it's difficult to prematurely meet the conditions for being poisoned to death. Therefore, you seek to leverage the power of historical waves at critical historical junctures to make your constitutional poison take effect.”

“You aim to change the person you inhabit, from one who was destined to die in the catastrophe, to one killed by your poisonous constitution!”

“In this way, your poison gains historical weight, appearing in history even before your master.”

“Thus, no matter what happens after this historical mirror image, you will have a weapon for your future struggle against your master.”

“If history becomes real, then your poisonous constitution will have a true foundation. If history remains merely a mirror image, then for you, it can be called an illusory foundation.”

“Beneficial for your cultivation of mind thereafter!”

“A good idea!”

Xu Qing turned his head, his gaze calm, and looked at Zhong Chi.

As Xu Qing spoke these words, the roar within Zhong Chi’s heart continued to intensify, finally reaching its peak, becoming a deafening, earth-shattering sound.

His breathing quickened instantly, and the previous reverence in his eyes was swept away, replaced by a sharp intensity.

Yet, deep within that sharpness, an undeniable disbelief was still exceptionally clear.

At this moment, he, like Spirit Phoenix Immortal and Li Tianjiao, also mysteriously aligned with the Fourth True Sovereign’s thoughts.

Regarding the person who couldn't possibly be replaced, yet was replaced...

He felt dazed and horrified.

Thus, in the blink of an eye, the power of his poisonous constitution surged all over him. He stared fixedly at Xu Qing, suppressing the turmoil in his heart, and quickly regained his composure.

With countless thoughts swirling in his mind, he spoke in a low voice.

“Who are you?!”

“The moment I called out your name, you should have already guessed.”

Xu Qing said calmly.

Zhong Chi fell silent. He had indeed made a guess because he had told Earth Spirit Patriarch about his identity, asking him to pass it on to Xu Qing.

However, recalling his interactions with the Young Master before him now, he felt a bit confused.

Especially since his true identity wasn't difficult to guess; poison was the most obvious sign.

So he was about to speak.

But at that moment, thunder roared outside once more.

Xu Qing noticed, and looked outside.

He had many things to do tonight, and explaining this matter to Zhong Chi would take time, so he spoke decisively.

“I have a better way for you to achieve your goal!”

As he spoke, Xu Qing raised his hand and took out a special jade slip. He was about to imprint it but then seemed to remember something and looked at Zhong Chi.

“Give your constitutional poison a primal name!”

Zhong Chi’s eyes narrowed. As the Young Master’s companion reader, he naturally recognized the jade slip, knowing it was a Young Master’s Edict Slip.

His heartbeat instantly quickened, and he vaguely guessed what the other party intended to do.

This very conjecture was something he had previously longed for but couldn’t achieve due to his status.

So, despite his surprise and doubt about the person before him, he immediately spoke.

“Poison of Dream Soil!”

Xu Qing nodded, then squeezed the jade slip, imprinting it with his divine sense.

“Zhong Chi, disciple of the Immortal Palace, by guarding the Young Master’s life and death with his self-created Poison of Dream Soil Constitution, has rendered meritorious service in protecting the Young Master!”

“Therefore, Zhong Chi is specially permitted to establish the Department of Poisonous Arts within the Lesser Extreme Palace, to propagate his self-created poison, make it a standard for Immortal Palace disciples, and announce it to the world!”

As the divine sense echoed, Zhong Chi’s mind roared as never before.

He knew...

This was an official conferment!

It conferred his identity and the foundation of his poisonous constitution. This method was clearly more direct, grander, and more profound than his own act of poisoning himself!

The two couldn’t even be compared.

Thus, as the edict was imprinted, spatial-temporal waves instantly surged here, exploding in unison with the thunder outside.

“After tonight, remember to come to the Lesser Extreme Palace to establish your Department of Poisonous Arts.”

Sensing the spatial-temporal waves here, Xu Qing flung the Edict Jade Slip in his hand, sending it flying towards Zhong Chi.

Zhong Chi seized it. The sense of bewilderment in his heart was even more pronounced now. He wanted to say something but didn’t know how to begin.

“Finally, give me a portion of your poison. Remember... make it concentrated and potent, otherwise, how will you protect the imperial presence?!”

Xu Qing’s expression remained calm from beginning to end. After speaking, he looked at Zhong Chi.

Zhong Chi didn’t hesitate. He raised his hand and fiercely cut open his chest, and blood instantly gushed out.

It was black blood.

He then infused a trace of his consciousness, linking it to his poisonous constitution, elevating the poison within the blood to a certain degree.

Only then did he hand it to Xu Qing.

Xu Qing took it and glanced at it.

“It seems your mastery of botanical knowledge is not complete. That’s why, since I returned your poisonous constitution to you, it hasn’t grown much.”

Xu Qing shook his head, took a step outside, and his figure disappeared into the wind and rain.

Inside the house, Zhong Chi let out a long breath. Gazing outside, the Young Master’s departing words echoed in his mind, and after a while, he let out a bitter laugh.

“Xu Qing, you’ve kept a very deep secret...”

Within the Immortal Palace, the wind and rain grew heavier, pouring down. The celestial disturbances caused by the chaos of heavenly secrets appeared once more.

One half suddenly revealed a crimson glow.

The other half remained pitch black!

In the darkness, the Fourth True Sovereign’s figure surged forward. His target was Zhong Chi’s location, where the waves of disturbance appeared like a torch in his eyes.

But just as his figure darted through, a patch of mist, merged with the night, silently spread, blocking his path!

The Fourth True Sovereign’s steps halted.

From within the mist before him, Li Tianjiao’s figure slowly emerged, battle intent gleaming in his eyes as he spoke in a low voice.

“Star Anulus, in such a hurry, where are you going?”

Within the darkness, the battle intensified.

Amidst the crimson glow, Xu Qing advanced.

He could feel that the entire Immortal Palace’s spatial-temporal continuum was forming waves as a result of his actions.

Initially, the waves caused by changing Li Tianjiao’s personal trajectory were ordinary.

But with Fox Beauty’s presence, the waves strengthened somewhat.

Then, Li Mengtu’s alteration and the edict’s star power gave these waves more impetus.

“Next, Li Tianjiao’s severed arm will become a foregone conclusion.”

“Then, the contents of the edict will take effect, further increasing the spatial-temporal waves!”

“But... it’s still not enough.”

As Xu Qing advanced, he placed his divine sense upon the poisonous blood in his hand.

Li Mengtu’s poisonous constitution was understood by one other person in the world, besides himself and his master – and to some extent, even better than Li Mengtu himself.

This person was, naturally, Xu Qing.

Therefore, at this moment, he was infusing his insights into this poisonous blood, and then, using the host body, he further empowered it, making the poison even more potent.

Afterward, he appeared within the Palace of Punishing Thunder, outside Gongsun Qingmu’s hall.

The moment he appeared, inside the hall, Gongsun Qingmu, who was meditating cross-legged, suddenly opened his eyes. His gaze was piercing, yet tinged with surprise and doubt as he sensed the outside world through the hall door.

He could sense who was outside the door.

However, tonight, he had prepared for someone to come at any moment and was confident he could handle anything.

Yet, he never imagined that the one who came would be the Aurora Young Master!

At that instant, his mind, like everyone else’s, suddenly churned.

At this moment, wind and rain howled, crimson glow spilled forth, and thunder rumbled.

Outside the door, Xu Qing, without ceremony, took a step forward.

The hall’s grand doors shattered with a crash. As countless splinters of wood surged in with the wind and rain, Xu Qing’s figure also stepped into the hall, standing before Gongsun Qingmu.

He looked down, and spoke softly.

“Treachery is your path.”

“But with me, it won’t work!”