Chapter 200: “Saint Slave” Purpose

"Trying to run?" Ye Xiaotian scoffed. Even if the golden teleportation bead was priceless, using it in front of someone with spatial abilities... Even if they could escape, they would have to pay a price!

He instantly teleported to the spot where the two had vanished. Without even a glance with his perception, he clenched both fists and hammered them down.

"Heaven's Traverse!"

The main assembly hall exploded with a deafening roar, turning directly into dust. Not only that, but the ground for hundreds of feet around shattered inch by inch, and an enormous black hole appeared in the void.

Xu Xiaoshou quickly pulled Mu Zixi away, flying to escape. He stared in shock at the Dean, his white hair billowing, within the black hole. It wasn't over yet!

Ye Xiaotian reached both hands into the nebulous space, then pulled. Xu Xiaoshou clearly saw two bleeding figures being forcibly dragged back!

"Holy crap!" He nearly dropped his jaw in disbelief. People who had teleported away could still be forcibly pulled back? Was this even leaving people a way to survive?!

"As expected of innate spatial attribute power..." he thought. As he mused, the shadowy figures within the black hole seemed to pull out another bead, crush it with a pop, and escape once more.

"Damn it, that guy... he still has more beads!" Xu Xiaoshou stared in a daze, the burning desire in his eyes almost scorching his mind. He had thought that by acquiring the Four Treasures of Tianxuan Gate, he was already quite the nouveau riche. But after truly witnessing this level of wealth, he was dumbfounded. Was this Doraemon? This wasn't a fight; it was literally burning money!

"If I'd known you were going to use these things, you should have just told me. I could have stolen Luo Leilei for you, and you could have given me the items instead, right?" Xu Xiaoshou thought secretly. Having so many treasures and using them like this was simply a waste!

As Teardrop Lines escaped once more, the storm finally subsided.

Ye Xiaotian appeared before him, his face filled with regret. He sighed, "What a pity, just a hair's breadth away."

"They seem injured?" Xu Xiaoshou wasn't sure if the bleeding figures he saw were real.

Ye Xiaotian nodded. "Indeed. Their void teleportation was interfered with by an external force. The spatial turbulence inside alone would have been enough to give them a hard time." He paused, then added, "It's just a shame about those two golden teleportation beads..."

Xu Xiaoshou raised an eyebrow. "Very expensive?"

"Yes," Ye Xiaotian confirmed. "Even if I collaborated with a Grandmaster of Spirit Arrays, it would probably take at least a year and a half to create just one of them."

Xu Xiaoshou gasped. Two years for a Sovereign, specializing in spatial abilities, and even requiring assistance from a Grandmaster of Spirit Arrays. The value of these golden teleportation beads was simply immeasurable! This battle was truly a money sink!

Ye Xiaotian seemed to know what he was thinking. "It's not just those two beads. The treasures that guy used earlier were practically priceless." He furrowed his brow, then paused before saying, "It's hard to imagine 'Holy Slave' would expend so many resources just to rescue a Luo Leilei."

"Maybe she's the masked man's illegitimate daughter!" Xu Xiaoshou guessed.

Ye Xiaotian was momentarily speechless. "Judging by 'Holy Slave's' actions over the years, they always complete their objectives with very few people and at extremely low cost. Such lavish spending this time is truly out of character for them."

He suddenly looked Xu Xiaoshou in the eye and changed the subject. "You must take good care of your Blackfall Sword Sheath."

Xu Xiaoshou was startled, unsure why the Dean would specifically emphasize the sword sheath. But this was clearly a good thing. It meant that the "spy" issue had passed, and he could likely keep his other treasures hidden. He quickly nodded in agreement.

The scene quieted down. The shattered space was slowly repairing itself under the guidance of the Great Dao, but the assembly hall would likely need to be rebuilt. And this entire area, including the forest, would require renovation. The only peculiar thing was that the old locust tree, protected by a golden light, stood firm and completely unharmed.

Ye Xiaotian, unaware of the young man's secret thoughts, gave an instruction before falling back into contemplation. He muttered unconsciously, "'Holy Slave'..." Then, he mused, "Perhaps they aren't the large, redundant organization that the Sacred Temple estimates, but rather a streamlined, elite group?"

Xu Xiaoshou's mind was also stirred. He recalled the three "Holy Slave" members he had met, who were almost all elites in their respective stages. Even Luo Leilei was the strongest in her generation within the inner court, surpassing many others. He, too, was highly interested in "Holy Slave." Although his previous attempts to get information from Elder Sang were fruitless, now that Ye Xiaotian brought it up, perhaps he could ask?

"What kind of existence is 'Holy Slave' exactly?" If one were to view them beyond the conventional notions of good and evil, their actions, though strange, didn't seem to involve any terrorism. That day, when the masked man appeared, he could overwhelm everyone but didn't kill anyone. Today, when Teardrop Lines rescued someone, hostages were certainly taken, but ultimately none were killed. Perhaps their goal wasn't to kill? Even so, Xu Xiaoshou rarely saw any "Holy Slave" members show the contempt of "the weak are like ants." They seemed to... not treat human lives as expendable? Even the masked man and Luo Leilei had invited him, despite his weak cultivation, to join them... In this regard, it seemed even the Tiansang Spirit Palace was more... well, excessive... than "Holy Slave"? "It really does seem that way..."

Xu Xiaoshou was startled by his own thoughts. Who truly was the evil organization? He shook his head internally, dismissing the idea. Perhaps he was only seeing the tip of their iceberg.

Ye Xiaotian, on the other hand, was relieved by the question and chuckled. "'Holy Slave'? Just an extremist organization. I was indeed overthinking it. These are not things we should get involved with."

"Extreme?" Xu Xiaoshou asked again. "But they don't seem to kill people? Where's the extremism in that?"

Ye Xiaotian was taken aback, truly stumped by the question. "I'm not entirely sure either. If we were to delve deeper, perhaps only the Sacred Temple knows best what 'Holy Slave' has truly been doing all these years."

"Their objective seems different from that of ordinary evil organizations?"

Ye Xiaotian scoffed, then continued, "And since everyone on the continent believes them to be evil, how could they possibly be a righteous organization?"

"Who knows..." Xu Xiaoshou muttered. He wasn't one to pick sides, even while aligned with the Spirit Palace. At least from what he had seen so far, the "Holy Slave" members didn't seem as evil as imagined.

"What about their objective?" Xu Xiaoshou asked.

"I'm not entirely clear. Even I only vaguely heard some rumors, it seems to be related to..." Ye Xiaotian suddenly stopped. He hesitated, appearing to weigh whether to speak.

"Related to what?" Xu Xiaoshou's curiosity was piqued.

Ye Xiaotian finally stopped playing coy and said, "Ghost Beasts! 'Holy Slave's' objective is likely related to Ghost Beasts."

Xu Xiaoshou's heart tightened. Ghost Beasts? Beings like the Gray Fog Man? What was 'Holy Slave' looking for these things for? To eliminate them? —Wouldn't that be an act of justice?

Ye Xiaotian, seeing his reaction, was instead somewhat surprised. "You know about Ghost Beasts?" How could a young man at this stage possibly know about such things as Ghost Beasts?

Xu Xiaoshou nodded calmly. "No, I don't."

Ye Xiaotian was speechless.

"Received suspicion, Passive Points, 1."

"Perhaps you've heard the name before, but remember, curiosity killed the cat. Some things are not for you to meddle with at your current stage. Just focus on your cultivation," Ye Xiaotian advised. "Your potential is immense; don't ruin it for yourself." He then looked at the young man's arms, which had already recovered completely, and said, "A Grandmaster's physique?"

"Yes." Xu Xiaoshou nodded, but he was somewhat distracted. He felt that sometimes the world truly was full of coincidences. Some things just inexplicably connected. Ghost Beasts? "Mo Mo..."