Chapter 507: The Eyes Behind the Heavens

Hui Wu Ren...

Xu Xiaoshou's eyes darkened immediately.

From Tianxuan Men up to now, he had certainly witnessed the formidable power of many ghost beasts.

But the one that truly left a lasting impression on him was always this very one before him.

The sealed ghost beast from Mo Mo's body.

Hui Wu Ren!

"So, it wasn't killed in the explosion and never left..."

He murmured, glancing toward the "San Ri Dong Jie" behind Hui Wu Ren.

Although this creature looked weakened from the blast, its posture with one foot on the ice-blue white skeleton still made Xu Xiaoshou hesitate to advance.

"It's out of reach!"

Xu Xiaoshou instantly confirmed it.

San Ri Dong Jie was blocked by this thing, so there was no way to get it!

Even the ice-blue white skeleton couldn't react to Hui Wu Ren's attack.

And once sealed, it couldn't break free at all.

This meant that Hui Wu Ren's strength had undergone a qualitative leap compared to the last time in the Tianxuan Men small world.

"A-Jie, let's go!"

Xu Xiaoshou stopped overthinking and burst into retreat.

Even with A-Jie by his side, he didn't dare to gamble recklessly.

Because this gamble could cost him his life.

"You're leaving just like that?"

Hui Wu Ren leaped down from the ice-blue white skeleton and hovered in the air, its body still enveloped in surging seal energy, obscuring its face.

It laughed at the two figures retreating rapidly into the distance: "Isn't that your target? Why not take it?"

Hui Wu Ren pointed at the "San Ri Dong Jie".

Xu Xiaoshou ignored it completely.

In his intuition, this creature was already an abnormally powerful existence.

From the intelligence he had, last time in the Bai Ku small world, it had burst out of a encirclement by a group of red-clothed forces.

This meant it wasn't just intuition.

It was because of Mo Mo's presence that it had been restricted.

Otherwise, if it went all out, probably no more than a handful in the entire Bai Ku could stand against it!

So, what qualification did he have to fight Hui Wu Ren without any rules restricting it?

Whoosh!

A sudden gust of wind brushed past his ear.

Xu Xiaoshou felt a chill down his spine and stopped abruptly.

In the next second, he saw Hui Wu Ren's figure vanish from the distant air and reappear, solidifying right in front of him through the gray fog.

"Run?"

"Last time's score isn't settled yet, and you want to run?"

Hui Wu Ren's tone was icy as it sneered: "Think you can get away?"

Bang!

Xu Xiaoshou said nothing, stomped on the void, drew his Buddha knife, and slashed fiercely at the Hui Wu Ren in front of him.

"A-Jie, beat it!"

Can't run!

As expected, can't run!

Since that's the case, no holding back!

Last time, he was alone, which made that fight so grueling.

But now, with A-Jie here, Hui Wu Ren wouldn't find it easy to catch him!

Sizzle!

The knife struck down.

Yet before the blade touched Hui Wu Ren's body, it had already dispersed into fog.

Xu Xiaoshou flipped away, not daring to linger, and shot up into the sky.

Right behind him, A-Jie's shadowy figure suddenly flashed into existence.

Facing the Hui Wu Ren that had reformed, A-Jie lunged with a fist straight to its face.

Whoosh...

A-Jie, upon receiving the attack command, held nothing back.

Even as Hui Wu Ren tried to disperse again, A-Jie's punch shattered the space on the spot.

Boom!

The tremendous force pushed the billowing gray fog straight ahead.

Xu Xiaoshou raised his eyebrows and saw Hui Wu Ren's figure solidify dozens of yards away, crashing heavily into the ground and dragging out a long trench behind it.

Only then did it regain control, exploding into gray fog and reforming into a human shape.

"Who are you?"

Hui Wu Ren's eyes, now reformed, showed shock.

It had always been wary of the power of Xu Xiaoshou's golden light giant.

But unexpectedly, this time, his opponent wasn't Xu Xiaoshou, but this unremarkable little boy beside him?

"Mama..."

A-Jie tilted his head, and in a flash, his figure vanished.

In battle, it never wasted words.

"Wang Zuo body!"

Hui Wu Ren's pupils shrank instantly, its heart filled with shock.

This speed, combined with the earlier punch that could shatter space, was undoubtedly a Wang Zuo body.

"When did such a Wang Zuo body appear out of nowhere, completely unnoticed?"

Hui Wu Ren didn't dare underestimate it, crossing its hands and fingers in an instant.

"Liu Dao · Chen Feng Zhi Men!"

With a call, six massive gray fog light doors closed in from all sides.

Xu Xiaoshou was startled.

He recognized this spiritual technique.

Back in Tianxuan Men, he had experienced it before.

Based on experience, once A-Jie passed through those dense seal energy doors, it would surely be sealed.

Not only its form, but even its movements would be completely restricted, turning it into a human-shaped seal stone.

"Be careful..."

But before he could finish warning,

Xu Xiaoshou saw one of the six gray fog light doors suddenly erupt with thick fog.

In the next second, Hui Wu Ren's figure was blasted out from it.

Pfft... cough cough!

It clutched its chest in mid-air, coughing violently, nearly spitting blood.

"Just that?"

Xu Xiaoshou's face lit up with joy.

Clearly, Hui Wu Ren, who had just finished forming seals inside, had taken a solid hit from A-Jie.

But he quickly realized that Hui Wu Ren could pass through the light doors unharmed.

Now, with the doors sealed, if A-Jie wanted to pursue, it would have to break through that seal fog!

And once it did, wouldn't it get sealed?

"A-Jie, stop! Don't move!"

Xu Xiaoshou shouted urgently.

At this point, if A-Jie got sealed, he would have no way to deal with Hui Wu Ren.

Even the "Violent Giant" probably couldn't win.

"Ha ha, so what if you blasted me out? Do you dare chase me?"

Hui Wu Ren halted in mid-air and laughed.

Obviously, it was thinking exactly what Xu Xiaoshou had thought.

But its laughter stopped halfway, as a rift suddenly tore open behind it.

Then, A-Jie stepped out from the void rift.

This stunned not only Xu Xiaoshou but also froze Hui Wu Ren's laugh.

"Space rift?"

A-Jie's battle instincts actually allowed it to use a space rift to evade the all-around seal of the light doors?

Wasn't that a form of teleportation?

Xu Xiaoshou was shocked.

"Mama?"

A-Jie tilted its head, seemingly puzzled why "Mama" had told it to stop.

But it was obedient.

After emerging from the void rift, it stuck close to Hui Wu Ren's back without attacking.

Hui Wu Ren's scalp tingled.

It never imagined this little boy could counter it this way.

In the "Liu Dao · Chen Feng Zhi Men", even heavenly spiritual energy and the great dao were sealed off, making them unusable!

How had this guy ripped open the void?

Oh, right!

Hui Wu Ren suddenly realized.

—A-Jie, a Wang Zuo body!

"Beat it!"

Xu Xiaoshou yelled, realizing his earlier command had wasted time.

Indeed, in battles at this level, trying to direct A-Jie—a heavenly puppet born for combat—with his limited experience was pointless.

Better not to interfere at all.

Xu Xiaoshou decided to stay strategically silent.

How could he, who couldn't even beat A-Jie, presume to command it? That would just cause chaos.

Bang!

Sure enough, as soon as he fell silent, A-Jie's palm struck down, blowing Hui Wu Ren's head apart.

The fog, mixed with air currents, scattered in another direction.

Soon, Hui Wu Ren's form reformed.

Xu Xiaoshou's brows furrowed tightly.

This ability was disgusting.

"This thing is basically immortal."

"As long as it turns into gray fog in advance, any physical attack that lands on it is negligible."

"Fighting like this will never end..."

As he pondered, Xu Xiaoshou glanced back at the "San Ri Dong Jie" in the sky.

Staying here was useless for him.

He might as well seize the chance while A-Jie held Hui Wu Ren back and grab that treasure.

"What are you thinking?"

In his perception, Hui Wu Ren's form dispersed again.

And a sinister voice echoed in his ear.

"Damn!"

"Under scrutiny, passive value, 1."

Xu Xiaoshou swung his staff backhandedly.

But Hui Wu Ren ignored the attack, its body splitting in half before reforming.

"Not bad reaction."

After a low mutter of praise, seeing A-Jie's figure vanish as if coming to help,

Hui Wu Ren suddenly exploded, no longer forming a solid body, but floating as a vast mist in the air.

"Mama?"

A-Jie was baffled.

It had never seen an enemy like this.

Such an existence was untouchable, even with its strong physical body!

"Kid, not bad this time, bringing backup?"

Hui Wu Ren's voice drifted down from above.

"But so what? No matter how strong the physical body, it can't affect me; and spiritual energy is useless against seal power."

"So, I'm invincible. No one can beat me."

It paused, then said: "But I'm not interested in the Wang Zuo body. On the contrary, I'm very interested in you!"

"Under scrutiny, passive value, 1."

Xu Xiaoshou's skin crawled instantly.

Undoubtedly, Hui Wu Ren had no regard for A-Jie.

Its target was the weaker him.

"What's so interesting about me?"

Xu Xiaoshou sneered coldly: "A-Jie can't hit you, but with it here, you can't hurt me either."

"So, if we drag this out, it'll just be a stalemate with no end. It's meaningless."

"But I'm different from you..."

Xu Xiaoshou suddenly smirked, chuckling to himself: "I'm not a ghost beast. If we wait long enough, the red-clothed will arrive, and you're done for!"

He pulled out the Linglong Stone, pretending to crush it.

"Oh, red-clothed?"

Hui Wu Ren's mocking voice came down: "Do you really think crushing that worthless stone in this space will alert the red-clothed?"

"This space?"

Xu Xiaoshou's brows lifted. In Bai Ku, crushing the Linglong Stone should alert the red-clothed. What did it mean?

"What do you mean?" he asked, lowering his voice.

"Tsk tsk, kid, you're still too green. You don't even know you're on the brink of death!"

Hui Wu Ren laughed derisively.

After a long while, the laughter stopped.

It seemed to be thinking.

Only after some time did its voice return.

"I thought you were just at that level from last time, even if you'd grown, not by much."

"But you brought this thing..."

"It's not human, right?"

Xu Xiaoshou's pupils shrank.

A-Jie's life signs were identical to a human's. Aside from not saying anything besides "Mama," it was hard to spot any difference.

Yet Hui Wu Ren had figured out its secret in just a few exchanges?

Xu Xiaoshou didn't respond, stepping forward and saying loudly: "Enough talk. Others might fear you, but I don't."

"If we fight to the death, mutual destruction—I don't mind the loss."

"On the contrary, you escaped from Bai Ku only to come back in, and now all your plans will be for nothing. Are you okay with that?"

Xu Xiaoshou paused, glancing at his information bar.

No reaction?

He continued: "To be honest, there's no deep grudge between us. Last time's fight was just each pursuing our own goals."

"So, why are you targeting me like this? What do you want?"

He looked up.

Staring at the gray fog floating in the air, he felt puzzled.

"Revenge?"

"Or just a fight to get even?"

He thought to himself, but he didn't believe Hui Wu Ren was that shallow of a ghost beast.

Not likely!

Combining what it had said earlier...

"This space..."

"You don't even know how you're about to die..."

Xu Xiaoshou felt like he had missed something.

"Under scrutiny, passive value, 1."

"Under suspicion, passive value, 1."

The information bar flickered sporadically. Xu Xiaoshou used his perception to probe the surrounding space, sensing something subtly wrong.

This world...

It seemed changed?

The rules, the aura, the environment...

Was it because of the earlier explosion?

"No!"

Xu Xiaoshou suddenly realized something.

Hui Wu Ren was still here.

But when he first emerged from the ground, he had seen two people.

Where was that red-skirted man?

"Under scrutiny, passive value, 1."

The information bar jumped again.

Xu Xiaoshou suddenly thought of something.

Constant scrutiny wouldn't keep triggering "under scrutiny"!

So...

Was this actually from two sources?

His heart raced with a sense of horror. He quickly scrolled up through the information.

In daily life, Xu Xiaoshou always kept a thread of focus on the information bar.

But during that explosion, to save people, he might have overlooked something important.

Soon.

Before even halfway through, he spotted a chilling entry.

"Under imprisonment, passive value, 1."

Imprisonment?

This was his first time seeing this term, and it was in an overlooked message.

Xu Xiaoshou felt a pang of panic.

He looked at the gray fog in the sky.

So, unknowingly, had he entered Hui Wu Ren's domain?

"No!"

"This doesn't feel like a domain!"

"And if it were a domain, where would the other 'under scrutiny' come from?"

"But if not a domain, what is it?"

"What do I want..."

Hui Wu Ren's murmuring voice carried a hint of bitterness as it suddenly looked up and roared angrily: "I want the 'San Ri Dong Jie', I want the 'Jin Zhao Yuan Zhong', I want to get out!"

"Jin Zhao Yuan Zhong?"

Xu Xiaoshou's attention was instantly drawn.

He subtly glanced at the milky-white fire seed in the sky.

Jin Zhao Yuan Zhong...

So that's what it's called?

"Looks like you want these treasures too, so you're trying to kill me for them!"

"Now that you see A-Jie is here and you can't kill me, you're stuck wanting to share, but you're not happy about it?"

"And getting out..."

Xu Xiaoshou felt like he had pieced it together. He forced himself to stay calm, sighed casually, and said: "You're not bad. Seems you've realized you're imprisoned too."

"Oh?"

The word "imprisonment" made Hui Wu Ren snap out of its emotions.

It asked in surprise: "So you know you're locked up?"

"Hah, as if that's news."

Xu Xiaoshou shook his head indifferently, hands behind his back as he paced.

He scanned around and said casually: "It's him, right?"

The gray fog in the sky surged for a moment, then condensed into a solid form.

Hui Wu Ren's figure appeared above.

It seemed agitated, its body unmoving, but the gray fog around it pulsed, clearly furious.

"You damn freak, just wait until I get out, and I'll show you real pain!"

"Let you chase..."

Hui Wu Ren looked up, glaring at the sky.

Xu Xiaoshou followed its gaze but saw nothing unusual.

What was it looking at?

Why was this thing speaking in riddles too?

But from the word "freak," it must be that red-skirted man he saw earlier!

"Imprisonment..."

"So, is that guy's strength strong enough to imprison even Hui Wu Ren?"

"And the method—could it be this entire space?"

Xu Xiaoshou reasoned, finding it hard to believe.

The environment around him felt completely real.

How could it become a tool to imprison both him and Hui Wu Ren?

But if it wasn't imprisonment...

The information bar couldn't be wrong!

"Mama..."

A-Jie saw Hui Wu Ren appear and its eyes glowed red, ready to pounce.

"Hey, hey, hey."

Xu Xiaoshou quickly snapped back and held it down.

What's the rush?

We don't even know the situation yet.

I haven't gotten the info out of him, so don't charge in!

"Don't rush, don't rush."

After soothing A-Jie, Xu Xiaoshou looked at Hui Wu Ren and said: "Now we're all in the same boat. You can't kill me for now, so no point in useless fights."

"I'll ask you one thing..."

Xu Xiaoshou paused, his gaze serious and eyes stern: "What's his cultivation level?"

"Zhan Dao peak."

Hui Wu Ren glanced at the eager A-Jie and replied irritably.

It didn't want to fight anymore.

Honestly, as Xu Xiaoshou said, last time they clashed, it was just for a Life Spirit Seal, and Hui Wu Ren had seen Xu Xiaoshou as a potential threat to Mo Mo, so it wanted to eliminate him.

But since it couldn't get the treasure or kill him last time, the grudge wasn't that deep now.

As for being beaten unconscious...

That was humiliating, but compared to being trapped by a Zhan Dao expert, it was far less frustrating.

"Zhan Dao peak, Jiu Si Lei Jie?"

Xu Xiaoshou's heart stirred.

He had heard of Jiu Si Lei Jie.

It was said to be the heavenly barrier that Zhan Dao must cross to reach Tai Xu.

Nine trials of defying heaven—if successful, one could break through to Tai Xu and grasp Tai Xu power.

Then, transform from a mortal body into one qualified to touch the holy dao and impact the holy body.

But failure...

Even once could mean severe injury, total loss of cultivation, or instant death!

So, even at Zhan Dao, few dared to attempt Jiu Si Lei Jie.

Yet, the one imprisoning them...

"Had he passed all of Jiu Si Lei Jie?"

Xu Xiaoshou found it hard to believe.

Hui Wu Ren nodded.

"At least the last three, given his strength, success isn't hard."

"In the past, he was just relying on passing Jiu Si Lei Jie and grasping some space dao to seal this space in his spiritual artifact."

"But now, to get out with my current state..."

Hui Wu Ren looked down at itself and sighed helplessly: "It's tricky."

"Sealing space into a spiritual artifact?"

Xu Xiaoshou had never heard of such a thing.

This level of means was beyond his imagination as a novice refiner.

But from Hui Wu Ren's tone...

If it were at full strength, it wouldn't fear that red-skirted man?

"Good one..."

Xu Xiaoshou thought inwardly, wondering if it was bragging or the truth.

Glancing at Hui Wu Ren, he probed: "I noticed something off with the world's rules, but imprisonment..."

Unable to hold back his curiosity, he asked: "How exactly?"

Hui Wu Ren swept its gaze over the young man below.

Rules?

Theoretically, it should see through this guy's cultivation at a glance.

But looking over, there was no answer.

Vaguely, it could only judge from the heavenly dao aura around him that the young man hadn't reached Zong Shi yet.

But Xiantian...

And he could sense the rules had changed and know he was "imprisoned"?

Although it had been beaten by Xu Xiaoshou before, that didn't change Hui Wu Ren's inherent appreciation for this young talent.

At least, among the young people Mo Mo had encountered, this guy was top-tier.

"Perhaps..."

Hui Wu Ren pondered, seeming to make a decision.

"Kid, sensing the rules have changed is already impressive."

"See?"

"You can't see it!"

"This world is actually a page in his ancient artifact."

Hui Wu Ren sighed: "As for you and me, we're just pawns trapped inside..."

"Oh?" Xu Xiaoshou interrupted as he listened: "I can't see it, but you can?"

"Are you kidding me?"

Hui Wu Ren chuckled mockingly, waving its hands as a layer of seal fog blocked the rules in the sky.

The red glow vanished.

All heavenly secrets seemed to disappear.

A massive void hole appeared.

Xu Xiaoshou looked up and, to his shock, saw a celestial body rolling behind the sky?

"No, not a celestial body!"

"That's..."

"An eye?"

Xu Xiaoshou was horrified.

Was that red-skirted man outside, watching everything inside with his eye?

This sight was truly shocking.

It reminded Xu Xiaoshou of the end of the "Textile Mastery" illusion.

Back then, as the world collapsed, a massive hand was manipulating everything behind the scenes.

"So, from the moment of the explosion, that red-skirted man had sealed this entire space, including the blast, into his ancient artifact?"

Xu Xiaoshou said in full shock.

"Correct."

Hui Wu Ren nodded and continued: "But with his strength, he couldn't fully seal the explosion. At most, he transferred most of the force in and protected himself outside."

"This approach shifted the damage, but the problem is, with the space's heavenly dao in chaos, he doesn't dare interfere, or he might hurt himself."

"So, to take the treasures or send us out, he has to wait until the space stabilizes as much as possible."

"For now, he can't touch the treasures and can only watch."

Xu Xiaoshou understood completely.

In other words, that red-skirted man had trapped him, but it also bought time to seize the treasures.

"Then getting out should be simple, right?" Xu Xiaoshou's eyes brightened.

"Simple?"

Hui Wu Ren was amused.

It had no way out itself, so how could it be simple?

"Are you joking?"

"Under questioning, passive value, 1."