Chapter 295: Speaking Honestly

Xu Anchuan, holding the black banner, also had many questions: What was this "cooperation" with Shudaoshan? What were they going to verify with Shudaoshan's people?

He was truly confused. Was it appropriate to expose Qianyan Sect like this? He had previously taught Qianyan Sect the 'lure the tiger out of its mountain lair' tactic. If things went this way, how would they reap the benefits from Qianyan Sect later?

Similarly, these questions were difficult to ask at the moment, with the Shudaoshan group gathered nearby. He could only remain silent, continuing to ponder in secret.

And so, the various parties faced each other in this mixed standoff...

Wu Jinliang, speeding through the air, went nowhere else but directly to where Zhu Xiangxin was hiding.

He didn't need Shi Chun to tell him where to go; he knew exactly where Shi Chun was referring.

Chen Wuji, who was keeping watch, saw him arrive and was about to pop out cheerfully when he suddenly saw Pang Hou descend with him. Confused, not recognizing him, Chen Wuji asked, "Who is this?"

"He's here to inspect the goods," Wu Jinliang chuckled, then asked, "Where's Zhu Xiangxin?"

Before Chen Wuji could answer, Zhu Xiangxin's voice came from the rightmost of the three caves: "Here."

She had initially intended to show herself but, hearing there was an outsider and having the divine flames under her control, she remained hidden inside the cave.

Wu Jinliang walked to the cave entrance, peered inside, then waved at the wary Pang Hou who was looking around. "Alright, if we wanted to kill you, we would have already done so. With you, I could extinguish you with one finger. Come, inspect the goods."

It was rare for someone at the Minor Martial Mastery realm to speak so naturally to someone at the Grand Martial Mastery realm in such a manner.

Yet, Pang Hou surprisingly believed it. After a moment's thought, he calmly walked to the cave entrance, peered inside, and saw a woman holding two faint silver-blue flames in her hands. His eyes instantly lit up.

Then, with a wary look in his eyes, he said, "I've seen your tricks before."

Wu Jinliang retorted, "Aren't you here to inspect the goods? Why are you standing at the entrance? Are you afraid she'll eat you, or do you want her to bring the divine flames out for a public display?"

Since he was already here and had been provoked like that, Pang Hou naturally wouldn't lose the imposing demeanor of a prominent sect disciple. He walked in with an air of dignity.

Wu Jinliang, who had entered with him, said to the bewildered Zhu Xiangxin, "Let him inspect the divine flames. This is the Big Boss's instruction."

Zhu Xiangxin didn't know what was happening, but trusting Wu Jinliang, she extended her hands, offering the divine flames.

In fact, it was quite exhausting to remain there controlling the divine flames, requiring constant expenditure of spiritual power to maintain them.

Pang Hou immediately performed a Fire Control spell. After cautiously extending his hand and adjusting to it, he took the two clusters of divine flames into his hands. The moment they were in his grasp, he became instantly excited. If he still couldn't distinguish their authenticity now, something would truly be wrong with his mind.

For a moment, he truly wanted to overpower everyone present, seize the divine flames, and flee.

Seeing his hands trembling with excitement, Wu Jinliang chuckled and said to Zhu Xiangxin, "Come, show him the Ice Flame you absorbed too."

Zhu Xiangxin didn't understand the purpose, but she cast the spell as instructed. With a single palm uplifted, a faint silver-blue flame instantly appeared out of thin air, filling Pang Hou's eyes with envy.

Wu Jinliang chuckled, "Previously, in the Iron Forest, two people already demonstrated them to you. Now another has been shown, and you still have two. Use your clever mind to calculate: Aren't there five Ice Flames in total? Were we wrong when we told you about them back in the Ice Plains?"

Pang Hou expressed his doubt, "Who knows when you got these Ice Flames? Maybe you had them before the incident."

"Ha!" Wu Jinliang was amused again. "We have more Ice Flames than we can use, and we even need to assign two special guards to them. How messed up would our minds have to be to have so many Ice Flames and still try to snatch yours? Do you still need to be stubborn about whether these Ice Flames were acquired before or after the incident? Are you insulting our intelligence, or your own?"

Pang Hou felt a little embarrassed by his words, but still stubbornly insisted, "We've all witnessed the strength of the Ice Jiao. How could you possibly have slain it to extract so many Ice Flames?"

Wu Jinliang didn't bother arguing further and pointed to the divine flames in Pang Hou's hands. "Alright, stop holding onto them. They're not yours; give them back. Go back soon. Don't just insult our intelligence; go insult Gu Lianni and the others' minds too."

He was too lazy to answer such questions, fearing his answers might not align with Shi Chun's later. He preferred to let Shi Chun handle it himself.

As an artificer who had never absorbed divine flames, Pang Hou truly didn't want to give up the two divine flames in his hands. Even just holding them brought a profound sense of happiness that outsiders couldn't understand.

However, reality was harsh. He was afraid he couldn't defeat Wu Jinliang if he tried to seize them by force, especially with two other people present.

Yet, considering that Shi Chun was pushing for the continuation of their earlier cooperation, and according to their prior agreement, these two divine flames were originally meant for Shudaoshan, meaning they would eventually be given to them, his heart immediately grew fervent again. He promptly returned the two divine flames to Zhu Xiangxin.

As he returned them, he also nodded slightly in acknowledgment and bowed a little, as if saying, "You must protect these two divine flames well!"

"Let's go," Wu Jinliang said, turning and ushering him out.

Outside the cave, Pang Hou still felt a little uneasy. He looked inside the cave, then at Chen Wuji, and hesitantly asked, "Only two people guarding these two divine flames, is that safe?"

He seemed to have already considered them Shudaoshan's property.

Wu Jinliang replied, "Whether it's safe or not is none of your business. The divine flames aren't yours; if they're lost, we're the ones who suffer, not you. Honestly, if it weren't for the Big Boss's insistence, I really wouldn't want to cooperate with you. Wouldn't it be better to trade two divine flames for two of a different variety with someone else?"

Zhu Xiangxin's voice suddenly came from inside the cave, "Brother Jinliang speaks wisely; I too share that sentiment. Please convey it to the Big Boss."

Pang Hou quickly said, "This matter isn't for us to decide. It depends on how our junior martial uncle and Shi Chun discuss it. Brother Wu, let's go. We need to hurry back; we shouldn't keep them waiting too long, lest something unexpected happens."

Wu Jinliang wasn't in a hurry. "Wait. I need to make them change their hideout, in case you come back to steal them later."

Pang Hou said gravely, "We're not that shameless."

Wu Jinliang scoffed, "You couldn't produce the complete Lock Yuan Array, yet you dared to swear a venomous oath on your own father. Tell me, how shameless does one have to be to do something like that? Honestly, if it weren't for the Big Boss's insistence, I truly wouldn't trust you!"

"..." Pang Hou was speechless, unsure how to explain himself.

Anyway, after coming along with this big fellow, he felt as if his Shudaoshan side had been behaving improperly and was in the wrong at every turn.

Wu Jinliang walked aside and whispered a few words to Chen Wuji. As he had just said, it was only safe to change locations.

Since Shi Chun entrusted such an important matter to him, he naturally trusted his abilities. Wu Jinliang wouldn't lack such a basic level of vigilance.

Afterward, Wu Jinliang and Pang Hou ascended into the air together.

This time, Wu Jinliang wanted to rest a bit, conserve his own spiritual power, and expend some of someone else's. He took out a damaged Wind Scale he had picked up from the Ice Plains, but after several attempts, he couldn't activate it. He then waved his hand towards the sky, signaling.

So, Pang Hou, who was in the air, descended back to the ground to ask what was wrong. He took the Wind Scale from Wu Jinliang, tried to activate it with a spell, and indeed found it was faulty. He had no choice but to make the effort and carry Wu Jinliang back on his own Wind Scale.

After another long journey, the two finally returned to their destination, the Loess Wasteland, and landed within their respective camps.

Wu Jinliang gave Shi Chun a slight nod, indicating that everything was handled.

Pang Hou, on the other hand, motioned for Gu Lianni and Yuan Yao to step aside. The three walked a little distance away and huddled together, whispering.

There was nothing else but Pang Hou recounting what he had seen and heard on his trip, confirming that Shi Chun's side had indeed acquired five divine Ice Flames.

"Could it be that we truly misunderstood?" Gu Lianni murmured, glancing towards Shi Chun from time to time.

Pang Hou reminded her, "According to the original agreement, they take three. The two extra divine flames they have should be given to us."

He was quite eager about this. Two identical divine flames could not be absorbed by the same person, meaning that after their junior martial uncle absorbed one, the choice for the remaining one would inevitably be between him and Yuan Yao.

Yuan Yao, however, hesitated, "How could they have slain that Ice Jiao? If they truly possessed such power, why didn't they act sooner? Why wait until we suffered heavy casualties before making a move? That only proves they are suspicious." He then added softly, "Martial Uncle, if he can't explain this clearly, don't believe him!"

Gu Lianni narrowed her eyes slightly. After pondering for a moment, she nodded subtly, then cast a spell to project her voice, "Shi Chun, do you dare to come over and speak?"

Upon hearing this, Shi Chun understood that it was likely the final push. He immediately replied in a clear voice, "Why not!"

With that, before the surprised and worried Xu Anchuan could stop him, he had already flashed over by himself.

Since Gu Lianni had called out, the encircling Shudaoshan forces did not obstruct him.

Shi Chun stood alone before the three members of Shudaoshan, drawing intense attention from everyone. Shi Chun showed no sign of fear.

Over at Qianyan Sect, Gong Shixi's eyes flickered, feeling a bit restless. To be honest, he also wanted to go over and watch the spectacle.

Yuan Yao didn't beat around the bush and asked directly, "Shi Chun, how did you slay the Ice Jiao?"

Shi Chun knew they would ask this. He calmly replied, "To be honest, we didn't actually kill the Ice Jiao. It seemed like it had taken the wrong medicine and was having stomach issues, thrashing around wildly until it eventually thrashed itself to death."

This explanation was too perfunctory, causing the three listeners to frown, but he paid no mind and continued speaking without pause, "When the Ice Jiao died, I only then realized that what I initially told you about it having five divine flames inside was incorrect.

At first, I indeed saw five divine flames entering the ice pillar. However, before it died, six divine flames emerged from its body. We don't know where the extra one came from. That extra divine flame seemed to be the root of its stomach problems, or perhaps it was due to the injuries you inflicted earlier. In any case, the six divine flames seemed to be competing—whether it was one against five, or five bullying one—which caused the Ice Jiao great pain. Then it suddenly exploded into a sprawling ice mountain.

After it exploded into an ice mountain, an even larger divine flame appeared, which seemed to be the Ice Jiao's origin. In other words, a total of seven divine flames emerged from the Ice Jiao's body, both before and after its death. However, our capabilities at the time were truly limited. We were in a flurry and didn't have time to catch them all; two escaped by vanishing into the ice mountain. We only managed to capture five.

I know this sounds strange, and saying the Ice Jiao died from a stomachache sounds like nonsense. But that's truly what happened. If you insist on believing I'm lying to you, then I have nothing more to say."