Chapter 767: Lethal Crisis

“The Ziyang Beast?” The girl frowned. “Are you referring to the old dean’s pet beast?”

“Exactly!” Master Mu nodded. “The old dean and I have been friends for many years, and I’m very familiar with his pet beast. Although the aura just now was very faint, I still sensed it!”

He was an old acquaintance of the missing former dean of the Master Teacher Academy, so he naturally recognized the dean's pet beast, the Ziyang Beast.

He had only heard that afternoon that it had been captured by the Otherworldly Demons. To sense its aura so soon after was something he couldn't ignore.

Knowing what he was thinking, the girl said indifferently, “Let’s go take a look.”

“Yes!”

Nodding with gratitude, Master Mu leapt into the air and immediately flew towards the direction where the aura had originated.

Seeing him leave, Luo Ruoxi frowned.

“Why is it so easy for him to find things, yet I have such trouble! If I had known, I would have brought that item with me. Now I can only sense a general area; who knows when I’ll actually find it…”

Rubbing her forehead, the girl shook her head and said no more. She stood quietly in the courtyard, gazing at the starry sky, like a serene painting.

“I didn’t expect you to be quite loyal!”

Seeing that the Ziyang Beast was absolutely loyal to the Otherworldly Demons, refusing to betray its master even unto death, Zhang Xuan shook his head.

He genuinely wondered what kind of enchantment the Otherworldly Demons had used on this fellow. Even after being beaten so badly, it still insisted on keeping their secrets.

“Aren’t you afraid of death?”

He couldn’t help but look at it.

“What’s so scary about death? To be honest, being with my master, even death is fine!” the Ziyang Beast gnashed its teeth.

“This fellow…”

Seeing its firm attitude, completely unwavering, Zhang Xuan shook his head.

What kind of situation was this?!

Whenever he encountered spirit beasts, he usually settled them with a punch or a kick; at the very least, a good beating would make them submit. But this one, despite being beaten to within an inch of its life, not only refused to yield but remained incredibly loyal to its master, unwavering even unto a hundred deaths.

To be honest, by this point, he was somewhat impressed.

As expected of a Saint Beast, its willpower was indeed stronger than that of savage beasts or spirit beasts.

“This place isn’t big enough to maneuver…”

Seeing the beast’s unyielding refusal, and just about to continue beating it, Zhang Xuan looked at the cramped room and courtyard and couldn't help but shake his head.

The place Sun Qiang had found was too small. If he summoned the puppets, the commotion from a fight would not only attract attention but, more importantly, could easily destroy the room and courtyard.

After finally finding a place, if he destroyed it again, where would everyone stay?

He didn’t have much money right now.

“Let’s go outside the city!”

Anyway, it wasn't far from the city. As long as he found an open space, he could beat it however he wanted!

Thinking this, he flicked his wrist and stored the beast back into the Myriad Ants’ Hive.

He launched himself into the air and flew outwards.

Anyway, the Heavenly Ferocious Beast wasn't strong enough to teach this fellow a lesson, so it might as well stay in the courtyard to guard against any unexpected situations.

The spiritual artifact could send one group of people, or even two. It was better to be careful.

Zheng Yang, Sun Qiang, and the others couldn't afford to be in danger.

He flew straight towards the city outskirts. Just as he left the courtyard, a figure appeared in the air above and stopped.

“Hmm? It’s gone?”

It was an old man with a white beard, who looked around below and frowned.

It was none other than Master Mu.

Sensing the Ziyang Beast’s aura, he had quickly flown over. To his surprise, just as he arrived nearby, it had vanished without a trace, as if it had never been there.

“Could it have been captured again?”

His expression darkened.

Although he had set the rule that whoever found the Ziyang Beast would become the dean, if he could find it, he would certainly save it just the same.

The Ziyang Beast was his old friend’s pet and had performed meritorious deeds for humanity. If it could be rescued early, it would be spared much suffering.

“There’s someone over there!”

Looking around, a figure immediately appeared in his line of sight under the starry sky.

Although he couldn't discern their exact strength, the ability to fly indicated they were certainly a Saint realm expert.

“Flying in the middle of the night, that’s a bit strange…” Master Mu raised an eyebrow. “Let’s go take a look!”

He flickered and pursued.

Every Saint realm expert in Hongyuan City held an extremely high status. For someone to fly away in the middle of the night, right after the Ziyang Beast’s aura vanished from this spot, it would be false to say he wasn't suspicious.

“Hmm? Someone’s following me?”

While flying, Zhang Xuan’s eyelid suddenly twitched.

His intention was simple: find a quiet place outside the city, thoroughly deal with the Ziyang Beast, and try to make it reveal the whereabouts of the Otherworldly Demons. He hadn’t expected to be followed the moment he left the courtyard!

“To be able to command even a Saint realm expert, this spiritual artifact has quite the power!”

The other party was flying steadily in the air; without a doubt, it was a super expert who had reached the Saint realm!

He had just captured the four black-robed men, and this fellow immediately pursued him. He found it hard to believe it wasn't sent by the spiritual artifact!

For just those few items, it could even alarm such a powerful expert. That place selling treasures was truly persistent!

“Could it be… there’s some treasure I don’t know about among the things I obtained from the Pavilion of Wonders?”

Back when he deciphered the stone tablet, the other party had given him everything from the Pavilion of Wonders—a messy pile of items he hadn’t thoroughly examined.

He had initially thought they were just a pile of junk when he arrived in Hongyuan City. He hadn’t expected that for these items, the spiritual artifact would even deploy a Saint realm expert!

What a grand gesture indeed!

“Lure him out of the city and kill him!”

The more he thought about it, the angrier he became, and his eyes glinted fiercely.

Endless, isn’t it?

Four Dimension Sundering realm experts were already ruthless enough, but now they even sent a Saint realm expert? Did they believe he wouldn’t kill this fellow?

So what if he’s a Saint realm expert?

Didn’t the Ziyang Beast get beaten until it had no temper left?

If he truly dared to attack, he wouldn’t mind unleashing the formidable one and those puppets!

Could it be that you truly think I’m easy to bully just because I’m new to Hongyuan City?

“No, the Ziyang Beast was enchanted by the Otherworldly Demons, so killing it is fine, it doesn't matter. But the other party is human, and the spiritual treasure must know that he came looking for Sun Qiang and the others. If he’s killed… the matter of the puppets might be exposed!”

Although he really wanted to get rid of this arrogant fellow, he also knew he couldn’t act rashly.

Since this fellow was sent by the spiritual treasure, the latter would certainly know his whereabouts. If he died, the news could very likely spread, and Zhang Xuan himself would face an investigation.

A Saint realm expert was at the pinnacle of existence in Hongyuan City. The death of even one would cause immense panic. It was best not to act unless absolutely necessary.

Otherwise, if they investigated Sun Qiang and the others, and then traced it back to him, the matter of the Otherworldly Demon puppets would be inexplicable, and his many secrets would be hard to conceal.

After all, how could a mere four-star master teacher tame a great devil from the Otherworldly Demons? And how could he make these puppets obedient?

These things wouldn’t stand up to scrutiny.

“If I don’t kill him, he might come after me… What should I do?”

He couldn't kill him, but the other party was clearly here for those treasures. What if he really tried to attack him?

He couldn’t just sit there and wait for death!

“It seems Master Yang should make an appearance!”

After a moment of internal struggle, an idea struck him.

With his current strength, without the help of the Otherworldly Demons and the formidable one, he certainly couldn't withstand a Saint realm expert. Unless… he could trick them!

Anyway, it wouldn't be the first time he'd done this.

As long as he got the person to acknowledge him as their teacher, the spiritual artifact, even if it wanted trouble, would calm down.

Thinking this, he didn't hesitate. His entire body’s muscles rippled, and his face transformed, taking on the appearance of Yang Xuan.

As the Heaven's Path Golden Body cultivation grew deeper, his muscles could change at will. The disguise he created was so perfect that even a peak six-star master teacher wouldn't see through it.

Mo Gaoyuan had been easily deceived before and couldn't discern that Master Yang and Zhang Xuan were the same person.

Anyway, he was facing away from the other party, and it was night. The other party hadn't seen his appearance, so it was impossible for them to know about his subtle transformation.

After doing all this, he then circulated his Heaven's Path zhenqi, subtly altering his aura to make it seem exceedingly ethereal and unfathomable. Only then did he sigh in relief, quietly turning his head to look back.

“Flaws!”

He muttered inwardly.

Although Saint realm flying differed from the Mortal Dust Stride, consuming very little zhenqi, as long as zhenqi was being circulated, it was equivalent to executing a martial art. Thus, he could use the Library of Heaven's Path to observe.

As his thought ended, his mind stirred, and sure enough, a book appeared before his eyes.

Continuing to fly, he gently opened the book with his hand.

“Mu Yuan, Master Teacher Hall of Qingyuan Conferred Empire, Seven-star Master Teacher, Saint 3-dan. Flaws:…”

“A Seven-star Master Teacher? A Saint 3-dan expert?!”

Zhang Xuan’s mouth twitched, and he nearly fell out of the air.

What exactly was the origin of this spiritual treasure?

It could even command a Seven-star Master Teacher?

Shouldn’t someone of this caliber be staying in the Master Teacher Hall of the Conferred Empire, not going out? To pursue him for a few items of his, was this real or fake?

“Fortunately, I didn’t use the puppets, otherwise, I might be the one dead…”

He was filled with frustration, but also secretly relieved.

His large collection of puppets could handle Saint 1-dan and 2-dan experts, but Saint 3-dan would be difficult.

Saint 1-dan, the Dimension Sundering realm, involved opening the Dimension Sundering acupoints, allowing one to walk on air.

Saint 2-dan, the Embryonic Soul realm, involved opening the Empyrean Eye, generating divine sense, and projecting one’s consciousness. One could discern and observe even without physical eyes.

Saint 3-dan, the Soul Embryo realm, was somewhat similar to the Cocoon Seal realm. The latter involved condensing primordial essence in the dantian, like a golden core. The former was when this golden core hatched, taking the form of an infant. Hence, this level was also known as the Nascent Soul realm.

With the soul condensing into a Nascent Soul, one could already wield the power of heaven and earth. Cultivators reaching this level were truly entering the ranks of immortals and saints; moving mountains, filling seas, and shifting rivers were all done with a single thought.

These feats certainly couldn't be accomplished through brute force or zhenqi alone.

The twenty-plus puppets in his possession could eliminate Saint 2-dan experts using swarm tactics, but they were completely incapable of dealing with a powerful expert at the Soul Embryo realm.

Even if the formidable one could intervene, who knew if this fellow had any life-saving trump cards?

If he couldn't be killed, it would bring endless trouble.

“Let’s see if there are any flaws I can exploit!”

He couldn't win, nor could he escape. At this moment, he could only see if he could rely on his eloquent tongue to make the other party compliant. If successful, he would avoid danger; if he failed… he would be crushed to death on the spot, and no one could save him.

He hurriedly looked at the flaws listed below. After just a moment, his mouth involuntarily dropped open, and his eyes widened. “This…”