Chapter 1413: The Reincarnation Technique Discerns Truth from Falsehood, Wiping Out All Awaits Dawn

"Faster!"

"Could you please hurry up a bit?"

A Yao's fingertips trembled, and the occasional thud of the pipa against her hand echoed in the carriage.

"What did you say?"

"Could you please hurry up a bit?" A Yao slightly raised her voice, though only by a fraction.

"We're nearly there, stop nagging! Wouldn't want to run someone over!"

The carriage driver knew he was hauling an ordinary person with a bit of money, not a spiritual cultivator, and an unattractive one at that, so his patience was thin.

"S-sorry..."

A Yao shrank back, her voice as soft as a mosquito's buzz, unsure if the driver even heard her.

The journey felt endlessly long, as if a century had passed.

When the carriage suddenly stopped, there was a loud thump inside, followed by more noise.

Shortly after, A Yao emerged, clutching her forehead with furrowed brows, hugging her pipa and bending over.

"Thank you."

She handed over a bag of spirit crystals, not daring to look at the driver's face—Xiang Yi had said that even her eyes could attract trouble.

"See ya."

The driver weighed the money bag in his hand, chuckling slyly as he watched his passenger leave. Gazing at that somewhat graceful figure from behind, he clicked his tongue and sighed:

"That backside is plump and round, looks so smooth and perky..."

Not far away, A Yao shuddered, quickening her steps.

"What a shame, she's an ugly one."

"Otherwise, today, old Zhao and my little Zhao could have had some fun..."

After getting off, A Yao first found a shadow to hide in, and soon spotted the "Dong Ji" sign hanging outside the tea shop.

The street was chaotic, filled with noisy chatter and people pointing fingers, discussing something unknown.

But no one was paying attention to her—that was a good thing.

A Yao didn't head straight into the Dong Ji tea shop; instead, she first observed some hidden spots.

Growing up in places like You Gui Ge, she had long learned to read people and situations, gleaning the truth from subtle details.

To leave the city, she couldn't do it openly.

Xiang Yi could be anywhere above, behind, across from the tea shop, or even among the nearby vendors' stalls—anywhere but sitting inside openly, waiting for someone.

Not everyone was like that Xu Gu Sheng, flaunting themselves in public.

Quickly, A Yao noticed the pale-faced vendor at a nearby stall of candied haws, her gaze then falling on a string of them that had dropped to the ground.

It was clear this was the source of the vendor's terror.

In the midst of the unrest, with chaos all around, the small alleyway beside the tea shop was unusually quiet.

That could be a decent hiding spot...

A Yao hunched over and approached stealthily, without a sound, until a sudden slap echoed—she had bumped into something soft and yielding.

She looked up and saw the face of a strange, coldly beautiful woman.

"Sorry, I..."

A Yao paused mid-sentence.

She recognized the woman's earrings—it was Dong Dong!

A flash of joy crossed A Yao's eyes, but it quickly turned to panic, and she collapsed softly to the ground.

"Dong Dong jie..."

At the same time, Dong Dong's eyes turned icy, recalling Xiang Yi's earlier test.

Was that really just a "test"?

Among the three of us, there must be a traitor!

But watching A Yao, whose eyes briefly showed recognition before instantly shifting to alarm, and hearing that familiar yet distant "Dong Dong jie"...

Dong Dong closed her eyes, gritting her teeth.

Mei Er, Xiang Yi treated you well...

Yet, opening her eyes again, she saw the candied haws lying untouched on the ground nearby, and in her ears echoed the words "Who dares touch my Xiang Yi."

Was it intentional?

Or genuine?

Or perhaps none of us are traitors, and Xiang Yi really was just testing?

Dong Dong parted her lips, her eyes filling with confusion.

I can't figure it out, Xiang Yi. Dong Dong really can't figure it out—Dong Dong is too foolish...

"You should go."

Dong Dong said coldly to the pipa player on the ground.

"You're not... what about Mei Er jie?"

A Yao was clever enough to see through Dong Dong's reaction, proving she probably wasn't the traitor.

Dong Dong was silent for a moment, then shook her head and said:

"It's none of your concern."

"Hundreds of white-robed figures just arrived here. Between you, me, and her, one of us must have leaked the information."

"I'm not killing you, just as Xiang Yi said, out of consideration for our decade-long bond."

Tears streamed from A Yao's eyes as she looked at her, hugging her pipa and feeling utterly abandoned by the world.

"Go, now!"

Dong Dong snapped coldly, her killing intent evident.

The wild Taixu energy surged from her, even just a fraction of it causing a "thud," and the pipa in the alley corner was stained with blood.

A Yao's eyes rolled back, her speech becoming labored: "I..."

Dong Dong froze.

Seeing A Yao with blood covering her entire chin, she finally remembered that this girl was just an ordinary person, unable to withstand even a bit of Taixu energy.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry..."

Dong Dong hurriedly knelt down, cradling the pitiful weak woman, and probed with her spiritual energy.

A Yao's meridians were completely severed; she was on the brink of death.

"I'm so sorry..."

Dong Dong was on the verge of breaking down emotionally and crying.

With Xiang Yi gone, she was already in a panic, barely able to think straight.

Realizing she was a spiritual cultivator, she quickly pulled out a pill and fed it to A Yao, barely saving her life, all while apologizing repeatedly.

"Dong Dong jie..."

After a brief faint, A Yao woke up and immediately asked: "What about Xiang Yi?"

"She's inside."

Inside?

Following the pointed direction, the street was nothing but noise and chaos.

But A Yao realized something: "A spiritual cultivator's... boundary domain?"

"Yes."

"How's the situation?"

"I don't know, I don't know." Dong Dong suddenly broke down. "I just... I just saw Mei Er go in..."

Mei Er?

Going into the boundary domain to protect Xiang Yi?

"Then you..."

A Yao almost blurted it out but stopped herself in time.

If I can't even help, how can I ask someone else to risk their life and enter the boundary domain to die?

Dong Dong clutched her head, her eyes bloodshot, and suddenly roared like a madwoman:

"I don't dare!"

"Your Dong Dong jie is useless, your Dong Dong jie is a waste made from pills, your Dong Dong jie is afraid of pain, even more afraid of death, ahhhh!"

Zheng—

The pipa clattered to the ground, its sound discordant.

A Yao was too frightened to breathe, glancing around in panic. Seeing no one noticed the commotion in the street corner alley, she sighed in relief.

"I'm the useless one..."

Then, confusion filled her eyes:

"Dong Dong jie, where do we go now?"

Dong Dong's head drooped, her hair disheveled, shadows creeping across her face as her soul found no escape in the narrow, dark street corner.

"Yes."

"Two useless ones, where do we go?"

"Xiang Yao Yao, long time no see. I hope I didn't startle you."

As these words settled, Xiang Yi stared blankly at Mei Er's head, covered by a white handkerchief, her eyes refusing to close, and endless sorrow welled up in her gaze.

She had sunk so low as to use death to confirm her subordinates' loyalty.

But what was the point of such loyalty, even if confirmed?

"Dao Qiong Cang..."

Xiang Yi lifted her head, her brows knitted tightly, fists clenched with a crack, her gaze sharp enough to tear someone apart.

"I'm here."

Dao Qiong Cang fiddled with the Tianji Compass, still smiling. "I'll say this once: don't resist, and you'll be fine."

"Summoning technique!"

Xiang Yi slammed her palm into the void.

The unfathomable Dao Qiong Cang!

She had no confidence at all, not from the time of the Ten Venerables, nor now.

"Sizzle!"

The void's spiritual energy rippled and surged.

Mist dispersed from around her palm and fingertips.

An illusion...

Nothing emerged.

Xiang Yi's eyes showed no ripple, heavy as she closed them, then suddenly laughed.

"Heh."

"Hehehe... Ha!"

"Hah hah ha, you smug old Daoist, you've got some nerve!"

The Saint Emperor's guidance had led her here.

Dao Qiong Cang had even summoned a semi-saint incarnation to deal with her, not his subordinates or a semi-saint thought projection.

Given this smug old Daoist's careful nature...

If he didn't have absolute certainty, absolute proof, how could he act against You Gui Ge, against her?

And since he had acted, how could he allow even the slightest mistake, letting her escape?

"Tianji technique?"

Xiang Yi looked up at the hundreds of white-robed figures and the star-patterned white-robed Dao Hall Master, regaining her composure.

"Yes."

"I can show you. This is the 'Hundred Boundaries Spirit-Breaking Array.' I spent a quarter of an hour studying it beforehand."

Dao Qiong Cang adjusted the Tianji Compass.

The complex Tianji principles hidden around them revealed themselves.

Those hundreds of white-robed figures' boundary domains weren't just layered one over another; they were staggered and aligned to specific array points.

Nested boundary domains formed a nested Tianji array, outlining a great Tianji formation that blocked the imprisoned one's communication with external spiritual energy, saintly power, and more.

If a semi-saint stood at the core array point and mastered the Tianji technique, they could manipulate the 'Hundred Boundaries Spirit-Breaking Array' with minimal cost, even severing communication with Ancestral Source Force.

Dao Qiong Cang finished his brief explanation and asked: "After all these years, you haven't obtained Ancestral Source Force or comprehended Thorough Divine Thought, have you?"

Xiang Yi laughed bitterly: "You think highly of me."

"Then it seems I didn't need to send this incarnation, but it was just in case. What if the Eighth Venerable came to save you, right, third-in-command of the Saint Slaves?"

"Heh." Xiang Yi sneered.

From now on, she wouldn't say another word—that was the best way to deal with this smug old Daoist.

Dao Qiong Cang shook his head while twiddling his fingers, speaking to himself:

"Oh, I misspoke. The third-in-command should be Shen Yi. You're just a summoner..."

"I used to just guess, well, they guessed without evidence... the Judgment Division."

"Little did they know, my guesses are evidence. Pity they didn't believe, but now, they have to."

Glancing at Xiang Yi, still silent, Dao Qiong Cang continued:

"Judging from Shen Yi's state in the Four Symbols Secret Realm, his true body isn't on the Saint God Continent, right?"

Xiang Yi's face remained expressionless.

"For your sake, he charged into the ruins... tsk tsk, what a notion? Completely incomprehensible. Just because he feared you'd said the name?"

Xiang Yi's face remained expressionless.

"If I gave him a choice..."

"One, you both live, but as mortals, enjoying a hundred years of luxury."

"Two, Shen Yi lives and hunts me forever, while I flee to the ends of the earth."

Dao Qiong Cang paused, looking calmly at her: "What would he choose?"

Xiang Yi could no longer stay calm, gritting her teeth and opening her mouth... then swallowing all her words.

This was Dao Qiong Cang!

If she said anything extra, even a single word, he could read hidden meanings into it!

That fool...

Heh, old Daoist, Shen Yi isn't stupid.

He knows this isn't a choice!

He can only become strong for me to live!

"No."

Dao Qiong Cang seemed to have mind-reading ability, wagging his finger: "Xiang Yao Yao, you don't understand love."

"It's one of humanity's most complex emotions, even Tianji technique can't fully grasp it."

"I don't even need to make promises; Shen Yi will know I'm not giving him two choices."

You madman!

You idiot!

You fool who's studied Tianji technique until your brain's waterlogged and rotten—you know nothing about love!

Xiang Yao Yao panted heavily, biting her lower lip until it bled, but said nothing.

"Why am I so sure of Shen Yi's answer?" Dao Qiong Cang suddenly leaned in.

Why?

Why, my foot!

Xiang Yao Yao, don't let him manipulate you—this guy has the Saint Emperor's guidance!

"To ask why..." Dao Qiong Cang paused, then snapped his fingers: "Shen Yi is a little fool."

The Tianji array fell silent for a brief moment.

The next breath...

"I'll destroy you, you mongrel bastard!!!"

Xiang Yao Yao's eyes turned blood red in an instant, like a wild beast shattering the ground as she charged forward...

She formed seals.

She drew her long sword.

She threw out the cloth doll, summoning Shen Yi.

Shen Yi activated the Human Path and Hungry Ghost Path, blasting Dao Qiong Cang into dust and completely devouring his soul!

Dead!

That dog bastard was finally dead, a cause for universal celebration! Ha ha ha ha, what a relief!

Xiang Yao Yao exhaled deeply, only to realize she was still in place, unable to even move a finger.

What had passed was just a cycle in the spiritual world.

Great Cycle technique... Xiang Yao Yao sighed silently, a sense of guilt as a weak ant rising within her.

"Yes, the Great Cycle technique."

Dao Qiong Cang answered calmly the question Xiang Yi hadn't even voiced:

"Life is like a dream, just a few cups of melancholy shared."

"Too much emotional fluctuation, and one day you might wake up, go through today's routine, and find yourself still in bed."

"But the traces left behind remain."

Dao Qiong Cang flipped his palm, producing a cloth doll still warm, with a faint fragrance.

—Exactly the one taken from Xiang Yi's chest with Great Shift technique.

"This thing can cross rules? Interesting."

"A pink dress, but bald, and so many needle holes... uh, Shen Yi's work?"

Dao Qiong Cang raised an eyebrow, glancing at the unresponsive Xiang Yi, and smiled as he tapped the doll's head:

"I have to say, Shen Yi's craftsmanship is really poor, shoddy work."

Xiang Yi's very soul showed no fluctuation, as if she were dead.

But after shielding her six senses, Dao Qiong Cang forced them open again.

She had to stare wide-eyed at this damned Tianji master as he approached step by step.

"Sizzle."

The long sword cut her finger.

A drop of blood fell on the cloth doll.

Dao Qiong Cang quickly fed her a pill, afraid the wound would heal too fast for him to compensate.

Only after that did he look up and say:

"The process of drawing blood is quite troublesome."

"I did an experiment: eight out of ten people in danger can't control their blood; it's more often accidental drops that activate blood sacrifices."

"So, next time, tell Shen Yi not to do that—it makes him seem outdated... and 'foolish'."

Xiang Yao Yao ground her teeth almost to pieces.

It was the only part of her body she could move; Dao Qiong Cang wanted her to speak.

She nearly spat blood on that smug old Daoist's face but held back just in time.

"I hate you."

Dao Qiong Cang said to the cloth doll in Xiang Yao Yao's voice—he had intuitively mastered its cracking and summoning methods.

"Buzz..."

The cloth doll glowed with blood light.

The surrounding pressure began to build wildly.

That powerful aura made the hundreds of white-robed figures behind feel a vague threat.

Dao Qiong Cang vanished on the spot.

When he reappeared, he dusted off his long robe.

"He's off playing in the Western Region, though I don't know what he'll become, but I don't want to face that monster."

Despair!

Xiang Yao Yao was filled only with despair!

This guy... this guy knew everything and was still stalling here!

She vaguely understood something.

After waiting a bit longer, Dao Qiong Cang flexed his fingers and finally looked back.

"So slow, but indeed reckless."

"Just in time, to catch them all."

Outside the Hundred Boundaries Spirit-Breaking Array, several auras suddenly surged in, voices arriving before the people:

"Rest! Birth! Injury! Block! Scene! Death! Alarm! Open!"

"Tian Shu! Tian Xuan! Tian Ji! Tian Quan! Yu Heng! Kai Yang! Yao Guang!"

"Don't worry, Xiang Yi, we're here—"