Chapter 140: Twelve Pearl Spirit Curtain Disc

At Tian Sang Spirit Palace, it was dawn, the sky just beginning to lighten.

Nearly a full day had passed since Xu Xiaoshou and the others entered the Heavenly Gate.

In a dimly lit room within a side hall of the main council chamber, Zhao Xidong was fast asleep.

Despite repeatedly breaking rules, the crucial responsibility of guarding the Heavenly Gate still fell to Zhao Xidong, who was considered the Spirit Law Pavilion's top prospect for future development.

The room was empty, save for Zhao Xidong dozing at the gatehouse, a lone wooden table, and a violet crystal spiritual disk hovering in mid-air.

The spiritual disk was exquisitely crafted, adorned with carvings of dragons and phoenixes.

Twelve white jade beads, brimming with spiritual energy, floated above it, each casting a curtain of azure light, giving the entire setup a mystical aura.

This was the Twelve-Bead Spirit Curtain Disk!

It corresponded to the Heavenly Gate's twelve realm-guarding treasures!

Connecting to another dimension using this spiritual disk had cost Tian Sang Spirit Palace immense manpower and financial resources. Therefore, this guarding mission was simultaneously crucial and, in some ways, trivial.

Zhao Xidong's sole responsibility was to monitor the spiritual disk. If no anomalies occurred within three days, it would indicate that everything inside the Heavenly Gate remained stable.

If something went wrong with the spiritual disk, Zhao Xidong figured, "What can I do? I'm outside the Heavenly Gate; I can't intervene!"

At most, he could only report the incident.

Moreover, if Boss Xiao hadn't mentioned the possibility of a small mole, this spiritual disk would likely have been guarded by just anyone, as in previous years.

“Huh!”

Zhao Xidong, dozing with his backside sticking up over the gatehouse desk, suddenly woke with a start. He had dreamed that Xu Xiaoshou had a breakthrough in the Heavenly Gate and blew up the entire secret realm.

His head hit the door panel, and he grimaced in pain.

Zhao Xidong wiped his saliva, turned, and subtly wiped the drool off the door with his backside before his gaze finally focused on the "Twelve-Bead Spirit Curtain Disk."

Nothing unusual!

“Phew... I was overthinking it,” Zhao Xidong murmured, picking up a water cup to moisten his throat and sighing. “Could a mere Xu Xiaoshou really blow up a space? It really was just a dream!”

“What’s with Xu Xiaoshou? He keeps appearing in my dreams these past few days; it’s like he’s cursed!”

“He’s practically Xu Nightmare!”

The water cup clinked onto the wooden table, its crisp sound echoing in the silent room.

“Crack!”

Zhao Xidong froze. The sound clearly didn't come from the cup in front of him; it came from behind?

Trembling, he turned his head and saw that the protective barrier of one of the white jade beads on the spiritual disk had shattered, and the glowing bead instantly dimmed.

“Holy crap!”

Zhao Xidong felt like he was going crazy. “Are you kidding me! It really shattered?”

The protective barrier corresponded to one of the realm-guarding treasure's three layers of defense. The dimming of the white jade bead indicated that the treasure had already been taken!

“There really is a mole?” Zhao Xidong’s heart pounded.

With a bang, the door flew open, and he rushed out, intending to report the situation to Boss Xiao, but then swiftly turned back.

Carefully, he picked up the spiritual disk, carrying it with him. This item couldn't be stored in a spatial ring; it was connected to another dimension, and if spaces overlapped, it would lead to a major catastrophe.

“Something’s happened! Something’s happened!” he muttered. “Boss Xiao truly had foresight.”

Zhao Xidong left the main council chamber and flew toward the Spirit Affairs Pavilion.

“Crack!”

Just as he took flight, the protective barrier of yet another white jade bead shattered. Zhao Xidong wobbled in the air, nearly falling.

“Good heavens, what on earth is happening inside the Heavenly Gate? Who’s stirring things up?!”

The white jade bead that had lost its protective barrier flickered, seemingly on the verge of dimming completely, but it was still holding on.

“Hold on!”

With a grimace, Zhao Xidong accelerated to his maximum speed, disappearing into the horizon.

In a dim, cramped room, four men were gathered.

Qiao Qianzhi couldn't understand why Old Sang had inexplicably developed a fondness for stewed pork hock, so much so that he wouldn't even touch his usual roast goose.

He put down his chopsticks and said gravely, “The Holy Temple has issued a statement confirming that the 'Holy Slaves' target this time is Named Sword Twenty-One. It’s said that gathering them all will bring about a miracle.”

He paused, then added, “The Holy Temple shouldn't have issued a statement. Originally, not many people knew about this, but now the news is spreading like wildfire across the entire continent.”

“I hear some people are fishing in troubled waters. In other regions, the wielder of a named sword has changed hands several times without anyone even realizing it.”

Old Sang didn’t even lift his head. “How do you know they’re fishing in troubled waters? Are there no Holy Temple people involved?”

Xiao Qixiu, sitting nearby, paused at the remark, putting down his roast goose. “That’s impossible,” he said. “The Holy Temple has maintained continental order for so long. If they wanted the named swords, they would have collected them long ago.”

Old Sang scoffed. “Do you think it’s that easy? Even for the continent’s foremost power, accomplishing this silently would be utterly impossible!”

“Only when the waters are sufficiently muddied can those in control reap greater benefits. Otherwise, why do you think the 'Holy Slaves' have developed so quickly over the years?”

Ye Xiaotian, however, disagreed. He spoke up, “If the Holy Temple can’t be trusted, then spirit refiners on the continent would have no one left to rely on.”

Old Sang glared at him, angrily retorting, “That’s why I say being cooped up in one Spirit Palace has made you all foolish!”

“In the struggle for the Great Dao, who else can you trust besides yourself?!”

The three men fell silent. The words were true and undeniable.

Qiao Qianzhi chuckled, waving his hand. “Further discussion is pointless; this has little to do with us. But Old Xiao, you need to be careful. Don’t let that girl Qianqian go out these days.”

“Understood!” Xiao Qixiu nodded, resolved to keep the token hidden and not act rashly at a crucial moment.

“There’s one more thing…” Qiao Qianzhi said, his gaze solemn as he looked at the three men.

“The ‘White Lair’ has shown recent activity. Rumors say an extraordinary treasure has emerged, and now, everyone knows about it.”

“‘White Lair’... an extraordinary treasure?” Xiao Qixiu’s thoughtful expression lasted only a moment before his eyes lit up with endless fervor. He rose in shock. “One of the Eighth Sword Immortal’s personal swords?”

Qiao Qianzhi gestured for him to sit down, acknowledging that his shock was understandable.

No swordsman could remain indifferent to the Eighth Sword Immortal's relics. He nodded, saying, “Indeed. This time, the entire Eastern Domain's Sword God Heavens will likely be shaken.”

Old Sang rolled his eyes. “You’re overthinking it. Rumors are just rumors. Which treasure land in this world isn’t rumored to have his relics emerging? Have you seen any real proof?”

Qiao Qianzhi said calmly, “This time, even the specific name has come out: ‘The Four Swords of Existence’!”

Old Sang: “...”

“Who spread it?”

“The Holy Temple.”

“Why does that damned temple have so many issues? And it’s confirmed by them again?” Old Sang was enraged.

“Yes,” Qiao Qianzhi slowly nodded.

The three men could all understand Old Sang’s anger.

Over thirty years ago, the old man had barely survived a perilous situation, only managing to bring back the scabbard of 'The Four Swords of Existence.' He had been waiting for this very moment, for the sword to return to its sheath.

His return to the Spirit Palace after traveling was partly to defend against masked intruders.

Secondly, he was waiting for the ‘White Lair’ to reopen.

As a result, the news was leaked, and now who knew how many more people would come to meddle.

Old Sang took a gulp of his silent drink and looked at Ye Xiaotian. “Let’s make a bet,” he said.

“Hm?”

“Don’t you believe that beneath the Holy Temple’s glorious facade, there’s actually darkness hidden? This time, let’s bet on whether they’ll make a move!”

Ye Xiaotian paused. “Even if the Holy Temple does make a move,” he said, “then what?”

“Nothing then.”

Old Sang smiled. “Let’s bet that these so-called holy people will undoubtedly use a high-sounding reason to successfully obtain the slots to enter the ‘White Lair’ from the various Spirit Palaces of the ten prefectures!”

Ye Xiaotian raised an eyebrow. “Betting on such high stakes? Even on how the Holy Temple will make its move?”

“The stake?”

Old Sang put down his chopsticks and, without a trace of a smile, stated, “No matter what Xu Xiaoshou gained this time in the Heavenly Gate, we’ll turn a blind eye!”