Chapter 9: East Wilderness

"Young man, why are you in my master's cave dwelling?" The eldest of the group was the first to regain his composure. He raised the black flag in his hand and asked with a frown.

Upon hearing this, Chen Mobai inwardly cursed. A look of embarrassment crossed his face. In the Immortal Sect, one was forbidden from probing another's cultivation level without permission, so he didn't know their exact cultivation, but the spiritual energy fluctuations suggested they were not far from his own. Furthermore, the way the elder and the younger man entered the cave dwelling clearly indicated they possessed the correct key. Although he had entered the water manor unintentionally, he had, after all, occupied this spiritual haven for several days of cultivation. Being caught red-handed by the master's disciples was quite awkward.

"Please don't be offended, elder; I entered unintentionally and will leave immediately." Chen Mobai prepared to depart, but then he noticed the unusual distance between the elder and the youth who had just entered the water manor. A thought suddenly flashed through his mind, and he paused.

"I see. The Azure Water Grand Formation shows no signs of damage, so young man, what you said about entering unintentionally must be true." The elder waved the black flag in his hand, inspecting the grand formation that protected the entire cave dwelling. He then confirmed that the restrictions on the three side halls were intact and breathed a sigh of relief, nodding at Chen Mobai.

"I'll open the formation now; you can just exit, young man." As he spoke, Chen Mobai saw a two-meter-wide opening appear in the light barrier covering the water manor, right at the front hall's entrance. Yet, the water from outside did not rush in, seemingly blocked by an invisible force.

Under the watchful eyes of the elder and the youth, and with their clear intention to see him off, Chen Mobai, though suspicious, nodded slightly. He walked past them and approached the opening.

*Buzz!* Just as Chen Mobai was about to step through the opening in the light barrier, a torrent of azure light, like ink spilling from the sky, poured from his clenched palm. It transformed into a set of wooden armor that enveloped his entire body.

*Thud! Thud! Thud!* Three tawny long needles appeared out of nowhere, their tips glowing with a dark yellow, eerie light, and struck the wooden armor covering Chen Mobai.

"Is trespassing cause for such a vicious attack? Is there no law anymore!" Chen Mobai turned around, seeing the ordinary-looking youth holding a needle case in one hand and forming hand seals with the other, his eyes cold. Chen Mobai immediately flew into a rage.

Diyuan Star, governed by the Immortal Sect, upheld the legal system of a previous civilization internally. Murder was a capital crime. If Chen Mobai hadn't pre-activated his "Wooden Armor Talisman," which automatically triggered upon attack, he might have died on the spot.

"What are you waiting for, attack!" Seeing his magical artifact blocked and Chen Mobai exuding killing intent, the youth in brown robes feared the latter might have some mutual destruction technique. Although he was already at the sixth level of Qi Condensation, he didn't want to waste too much spiritual energy before breaking through the restrictions. So, he pulled out three more long needles from his case while shouting at the elder.

"Alright, behold my divine lightning!" The elder roared in response, a sharp glint in his eyes. He waved the black flag towards Chen Mobai, then with his other hand, he flung an eerie blue talisman paper from his sleeve. However, the talisman was aimed directly at the youth in brown robes.

A cracking sound of thunder erupted. The youth in brown robes cursed loudly, then forcefully reversed his spiritual energy, redirecting the flying needles he had just prepared to shoot at Chen Mobai, turning their tips towards the elder instead.

While Chen Mobai watched, utterly bewildered, the youth in brown robes was struck by the elder's divine lightning and fell, his face etched with unwillingness. His flying needles, however, were blocked by the power of the water manor's formation, manipulated by the elder waving his black flag.

*Clink, clink, clink!* The flying needles fell onto the floor tiles, their tips piercing straight in, revealing their sharpness.

"Hahahaha! With your mere third-rate inheritance from the Flying Needle Sect, you actually thought you could share the gains from this secret realm equally with me? This is the lawless Eastern Wilderness!" The elder burst into laughter, waving the black flag again, using the Azure Water Grand Formation to try and kill Chen Mobai. However, the power of Chen Mobai's "Wooden Armor Talisman" had not yet been exhausted, blocking the onrushing waves of water.

"Where exactly is this place? The Eastern Wilderness? This name isn't among the Immortal Sect's Thirty-Six Grotto-Heavens and Seventy-Two Blessed Lands!" Chen Mobai had been absorbed in the immense shock of the elder and youth mercilessly turning on each other, intent on killing. But the burning heat from his Wooden Armor Talisman, whose spiritual energy was now depleted and began to burn, instantly snapped him back to reality.

The elder's cultivation level was unknown, but the black flag in his hand was the core of this water manor's grand formation, allowing him to wield its entire power. Although the Azure Water Grand Formation itself had no lethal power, if Chen Mobai were to be trapped, he would undoubtedly meet the same fate as the youth in brown robes, struck by a lightning talisman and dead beyond all doubt.

At that critical moment of life and death, Chen Mobai did not hesitate. He unleashed an Azure Arrow Talisman he had already prepared. *Whizz, whizz, whizz...* Five azure arrows emerged from the void like vines, covering the elder's area with extreme speed.

"Hmph, if this were outside the water manor, I would certainly give you a wide berth." The elder chuckled, confidently waving the black flag in his hand. The power of the Azure Water Grand Formation was activated, transforming into invisible ripples that froze four of the azure arrows mid-air before they could reach him.

"How did a young brat like you cultivate to the fifth level of Qi Condensation with such terrible aim…" As the elder chuckled, preparing to seal the opening and trap Chen Mobai, his expression suddenly froze. He realized the Azure Water Grand Formation was out of control. He then saw the light barrier's opening, which was about to close, stop. But Chen Mobai, who could have escaped the water manor's grand formation through it, had stopped at the opening, retrieved two more Azure Arrow Talismans, and was gazing coldly at him.

"How does this brat know that this formation flag primarily controls 'defense'?" The elder looked around, and his heart couldn't help but tremble. It turned out that four of the spiritual energy arrows from Chen Mobai's Azure Arrow Talisman, which had shot towards him, were merely a diversion to attract his attention. The other arrow, which had seemed to miss, had precisely struck a formation base not far from him, breaking the formation flag embedded within it.

Although the Azure Water Grand Formation was a second-tier formation, it possessed no defensive power against attacks from within. Chen Mobai, who had thoroughly explored the water manor, exploited this weakness. By breaking a formation flag in one corner, he immediately caused the smoothly operating grand formation to stall.

The elder's face turned ashen. He glanced at the three side halls behind the water manor, but feeling that the talismans in Chen Mobai's hand were about to activate, he gritted his teeth, ready to retreat. His cultivation was only at the third level of Qi Condensation. If not for the black flag in his hand, which was the core control of the Azure Water Grand Formation, he would never have dared to attack the youth in brown robes and Chen Mobai.

But at that very moment, azure light flashed across the sky. Both Azure Arrow Talismans in Chen Mobai's hand had already been activated, and ten spiritual energy arrows formed in mid-air, aimed directly at the elder. "Young man, no, Senior, please show mercy..."