Chapter 149: He Is Very Gentle

In a dim and cramped room, five men were gathered.

Qiao Qianzhi added another set of chopsticks and a bowl for Zhao Xidong, remarking that the guard duty was hard work and deserved encouragement.

Zhao Xidong finally tasted Elder Qiao's long-desired cooking and was so moved he almost shed tears.

A large, braised pork hock was eaten, followed by a burning hot cup of fine wine.

"Splendid!"

He slammed the cup heavily onto the table, feeling a surge of heroic spirit.

"Crack!"

A sharp crack, clearly not from the table.

The four men beside him stared blankly at Zhao Xidong, then looked behind him.

Zhao Xidong's heart stopped.

"No way, not again!"

He slowly turned his head to see that the pearl above the "Twelve Pearl Spirit Screen Disk," which had lost its protective barrier, was now cracked and dim.

"It couldn't hold out much longer, as expected," Xiao Qixiu sighed.

Since the three-layered protective barrier could be breached, the seal likely wouldn't stop the infiltrator either.

"Perhaps, just as old man Sang said, we'll really have to forcefully intervene in the Tianxuan Gate and send people in?" Elder Qiao also frowned.

Ye Xiaotian looked at Elder Sang and asked, "What do you mean?"

Elder Sang calmly sucked his fingers and said, "Perhaps, as you said, the current situation isn't the worst yet?"

Everyone was stunned. Although they didn't want to admit it, this could very likely become a reality.

It was only the first day at Tianxuan Gate, and two realm-镇宝 treasures were already gone. What would happen over the next two days?

"Don't worry, those people should know their limits. After all, if more than four treasures are taken, Tianxuan Gate would explode, and they wouldn't be able to get out alive," Elder Sang said.

"Tianxuan Gate would explode?"

Zhao Xidong was dumbfounded. This was the first time he'd heard such a thing, and he quickly thought of his previous dream.

"This... I never imagined it might actually come true?"

"Then we need to intervene faster! Otherwise, what about our own disciples inside Tianxuan Gate?" Qiao Qianzhi urged, getting anxious.

Elder Sang calmly waved his hand. "Don't worry, it definitely won't explode. No one will die."

"Definitely?"

"But what if something goes wrong?"

Seeing the old man still so nonchalant, Ye Xiaotian couldn't help but say, "Both of your disciples are still in there!"

"Yes, they're both in there..." Elder Sang showed no sign of anxiety, which greatly distressed the four people around him.

Just as Ye Xiaotian was about to speak again, he saw the old man turn his head, furrow his sparse eyebrows, as if something had just occurred to him.

Elder Sang indeed had a flash of insight.

According to the map he gave Mu Zixi, Xu Xiaoshou should have reached the bottom of Blackfall Cliff, but in the scene he just witnessed, Xu Xiaoshou had already climbed to the top.

Everyone had overlooked that fleeting moment... Xu Xiaoshou was airborne!

Moreover, Elder Sang recalled carefully and indeed did not see the young man stepping on a black sword.

"He broke through to the Innate realm?!"

Elder Sang was a bit surprised. He remembered the last time he saw Xu Xiaoshou, the young man was supposedly not even at the tenth realm yet...

"Rebirth from the ashes!"

Soon, Elder Sang thought of the steps he took back then: the final step of "Cinderflare Heaven Burning" was to break before establishing anew.

He had been waiting for Xu Xiaoshou's Innate body to break but believed this incredibly tenacious young man could endure it, which was why he accepted him as a disciple first.

Now, Xu Xiaoshou must have reached this stage as well, where his Innate body broke, and he successfully broke through to a Grandmaster body.

"Well done, kid. You've surpassed your master."

He recalled that it took him three days to achieve the Grandmaster body back in the day!

"So..."

Elder Sang looked at everyone. "The one at the top of Blackfall Cliff... Lei Lei? What's his cultivation level?"

"Late Spiritual Realm. He's the strongest and most talented among the thirty-three new entrants this time, with lightning affinity," Ye Xiaotian replied. "Why do you ask?"

"Spiritual Realm..." Elder Sang murmured softly. "Then he probably can't beat Xu Xiaoshou..."

The four men: "..."

Zhao Xidong was utterly bewildered, feeling as though he must have misheard.

What made him so confident about Xu Xiaoshou? "That guy... he's only at the ninth realm!"

Of course, he didn't dare voice these thoughts, silently eating his meat as a silent act of defiance.

Elder Sang's eyes lit up. He picked up his chopsticks again and said, "I probably know who the infiltrators are. There should be two: one is Lei Lei, and the other..."

Everyone looked on expectantly.

"Hmm, he's hidden himself very well. Even I don't know who it is."

Goose-feather snow drifted in the wind, and the stars hung sparsely above.

Amidst the rustling wind, a trail of footprints, starting heavy and growing lighter, stretched backward, gradually becoming obscured by the spiritual snow.

Mo Mo's expression was serene. Though her appearance was ordinary, her demeanor was elegant, like a pristine white snow lotus in the world. It seemed few things could stir her emotions.

Her right hand still held a bronze censer, from which sandalwood incense subtly burned, its embers releasing wisps of immortal mist.

In her left hand, however, was a white stone she hadn't held before, about the size of a fist, devoid of any spiritual energy or aura.

"'The Seal Stone' has been obtained. Are you... awake?"

Her right hand trembled, and the smoke from the small bronze censer intensified, converging into a blurry human face.

"Awake. I didn't respond earlier because someone was observing this space. Be careful."

It was an equally indistinct voice, impossible to tell if it was male or female, or even if it was human speech.

"Observing?" Mo Mo was a little surprised but didn't ask further, simply putting it down.

"My mission should be complete. When will you release..."

"Only half completed! And my existence is entirely beneficial to you, with no harm," the blurry voice interrupted her.

Mo Mo clenched the stone, her voice soft but with a hint of stubbornness. "I don't need it."

"Next, kill two people."

Listening to the undeniable tone, Mo Mo slowly closed her eyes. "Who?"

"Xu Xiaoshou!"

She abruptly opened her eyes, her gaze filled with shock and confusion. "Why?"

"He discovered me."

"Impossible!"

"Oh? Are you defending him?" The blurry voice gained a touch of emotion.

"Even the elders of Tiansang Spirit Palace couldn't discover you. How could Xu Xiaoshou possibly have?" Mo Mo's voice returned to its calm tone.

"You don't need to know these things; just execute the mission."

Mo Mo's face showed determination. "I will not kill Xu Xiaoshou."

"You like him?"

Mo Mo froze, a blush seemingly spreading across her pretty face. She thought back to the finals arena, to the moment that unreliable guy had complimented her beauty.

"It's not about liking him; I just don't want to kill him."

"Why?"

Mo Mo thought of the black sword that pierced them both, the apprehension she felt falling from the sky in his arms, and her reluctant pretense of fainting...

"He is gentle." A faint smile appeared on her face. "Some people just shouldn't be harmed."

The smoky human face remained silent, then completely dissipated, seemingly respecting Mo Mo's wishes.

However, the very next second, an emotionless voice settled.

"The second person is Zhao Xidong."

Mo Mo's steps faltered. Officer Zhao?

She had only briefly met him once in the inner courtyard. Why must he also be killed?

She wanted to ask, but the smoky figure had already dispersed.

"Sigh."

With heavy snow falling, Mo Mo could only continue forward. Her mission was only half complete.

What happened next, she would deal with later!

She looked ahead...

That was the direction of the "Senluo Secret Forest."