Chapter 1910: Fortune Telling Old Taoist

After all, this was the Imperial Palace, and its interior space was incredibly vast. Even though Xu Yang continuously released his powerful mental energy to search for hidden paths in the darkness throughout their journey, he still almost got lost here.

More importantly, Xu Yang soon discovered that all the original guard formations within the palace had been forcibly altered by the dark force disciples. The last time Xu Yang entered the Imperial Palace with Long Kun and Qing Ya, he had quietly used his mental energy to imprint the entire layout of the palace into his mind. The previous arrangement of guard groups, which Xu Yang had memorized, now completely clashed with the current setup.

This situation arose because after the impostor emperor left the palace for the imperial front line, the High Priest took complete control of all matters, big and small, within the Imperial Palace. It was also the High Priest's intention to disrupt the original order of all the martial artist guards inside the palace. Ultimately, he undertook this massive disruption simply to create as much trouble for Xu Yang as possible. Clearly, his goal had been achieved.

Previously, Xu Yang would have unhesitatingly used his supreme martial arts power to level the Imperial Palace, solving all problems instantly. However, now he had too many concerns and couldn't resort to such swift and decisive action. This was because the methods employed by these dark force disciples, and the High Priest who controlled them, exceeded Xu Yang's assessment of their moral boundaries. These individuals were utterly ruthless; they would stop at nothing to achieve their goals, even sacrificing millions of innocent citizens in the imperial capital without hesitation.

Facing such vicious individuals, Xu Yang had to slow his pace. Otherwise, even if he could ultimately eradicate them all, the cost would likely be far greater. He truly did not want innocent people to be inexplicably caught in this conflict.

"Hmm?"

At that moment, Xu Yang, with the red-clad woman on his back, continued to advance with Nangong, Xuan Guang, and Lan Linger along a longer, secluded path deeper into the palace. Xu Yang's mental energy was incredibly powerful, often allowing him to anticipate the actions of approaching dark force disciples and adjust their direction, significantly reducing pressure on the group. Before they knew it, they had reached the end of the main path leading to the palace's rear courtyard. Suddenly, from a dark corner ahead, a powerful martial aura emanated, drawing their particular attention.

"Come closer, take a look. A half-immortal tells fortunes; fate guides all. Esteemed patrons, why not let this old man read your faces and tell your fortunes?" Suddenly, an old Daoist's voice emerged from the dark corner.

Xu Yang gently raised a hand, and a faint, flickering light slowly rose, illuminating the path ahead for the group. Indeed, they saw an old man in a Daoist robe, appearing like an immortal, leisurely stroking his white beard with crossed legs, his eyes half-closed, as if he had been sitting there waiting for Xu Yang and his companions for a long time.

"Are you serious? Setting up a fortune-telling stall inside the Imperial Palace? Don't tell me this old geezer is also one of your Elder Council members!" Xu Yang felt a surge of exasperation, thinking to himself, "Why does the so-called foremost martial arts force in the empire have so many oddballs?"

Hearing Xu Yang's somewhat hostile tone, Nangong and Xuan Guang, who had been about to chime in, instinctively shut their mouths. The red-clad woman on Xu Yang's back, however, smiled slightly and whispered into his ear, "You are truly the smartest and most handsome man under heaven. This old geezer is one of the seven members of our Elder Council. Please don't mistake him for a good person; he's a notorious fraud in our group, always ready to tell anyone's fortune. If he's in a good mood, he'll definitely give you a top-tier prophecy. But if he's had a bad day, the fortune he tells you will surely be more disastrous than his own."

As the red-clad woman on his back finished her complaints, the old man in the corner chuckled, even before Xu Yang could respond. Without a clear sight of his movements, the old Daoist, holding his white whisk, appeared directly in front of Xu Yang and his companions.

Regardless of whether he was an old fraud, the old man before them undoubtedly possessed the strength of a Martial God. "You foolish girl, you speak wrongly! I see you, dressed in red, here in the inner palace, and you are surely destined for a bloody disaster today. Why not step forward and let this old man carefully re-examine your fortune? Perhaps I can help you avert this fate!" The old man continued to speak presumptuously.

At the same time, he subtly flicked his whisk, inadvertently releasing a potent, mind-confusing mist. Xu Yang scoffed, instantly recognizing the old man's rather crude trick. He stomped his foot, releasing an incredibly powerful martial aura that directly sent the striking mist back. This subtle movement alone made the old fortune-teller's eyes widen in surprise.

Then, he couldn't help but grin at Xu Yang. "Well, well, it seems you've truly sided with outsiders. No wonder His Excellency the High Priest wanted me to wait for you all here and specifically instructed me to tell each of your fortunes! Because this might very well be the last time you ever have your fortunes told."

It was clear that this old man's soul had also been controlled by the dark force disciples behind the scenes. However, Xu Yang soon noticed that this immortal-like old man's strength seemed greater than that of the other Elder Council members behind them. At least, there was no reddish hue in his pupils. This indicated two things: first, the old man's soul world was stronger than those of the other Martial Gods from the Changyun Heavenly Sect; and second, the trace of evil in his soul world was likely not released by a puppet of the Golden Robe Disciple level, but rather by the High Priest himself.

Helping this old man regain his true self might be significantly more difficult than before. However, for Xu Yang, this was merely a slight increase in the "game difficulty."

He gently set down the red-clad woman from his back. His expression quickly became serious as he met the old man's gaze.