"Reached the second layer? That's fast enough." King Tianyan again marveled at Zhao Xing's cultivation talent. "But whether it's enough depends on the opponent. The Soul Exterminating Bell is a soul attack technique. Your enemies collecting your personal items clearly indicates their intention to use 'curse spells.' These spells are extremely eerie, and only high-grade cultivators can cast them."
King Tianyan mused, "This matter still requires thorough planning. We've been monitoring this lead for some time, and some big fish haven't been caught yet."
"Your Highness, could you reveal a bit more? I'm a little uneasy," Zhao Xing said. After all, his family was in Dongyang County, and he needed to know the extent of the Heavenly Secret Palace's operations.
"For example, Yin Qiquan, the Supervising Maritime Inspector of Chongming Prefecture, a fourth-grade official. Over the past few years, he's been swapping out archived official documents you issued and collected quite a few copies. Compared to that, what those ordinary spies collected is negligible."
Zhao Xing was slightly startled. Official replies and approvals were the best mediums for curse spells. Why? Because official replies not only contain one's handwriting but also one's opinions on how to handle matters. As the saying goes, "the pen moves like a god." Approving official documents involves the eyes, hands, and heart working in unison, making them far superior to other items as a medium. A used bowl or a casually made toy cannot carry the same strong mental will as an approved official document.
Zhao Xing was the Minister of the Temple of the Earth God. All official documents he approved were made in triplicate: one for issuance to subordinate government agencies, one for reporting and compiling to superiors, and one for archiving for later review. This ensured that even if superiors and subordinates changed, one could still ascertain what decisions a certain official made in which year and month. Additionally, it served as an important basis for official evaluations.
"This matter also arose because of your cultivation in the Military Realm," King Tianyan explained. "Originally, it wouldn't have been so easy to swap them, but for the past two years, most of your official duties at the Temple of the Earth God have been handled by Chen Shijie, who also used your seal and signed on your behalf."
"I see," Zhao Xing realized. If Chen Shijie had handled everything from start to finish, it wouldn't have mattered. The archived documents would all bear Chen Shijie's signature, and even if his own official seal was used, it wouldn't serve as a medium. The problem was that, in between, Zhao Xing, to ease Chen Shijie's burden and give him time to cultivate, personally handled some official duties himself. Therefore, the archives contained both documents genuinely signed by Zhao Xing and those signed by Chen Shijie on his behalf. Yin Qiquan seized the opportunity to swap out some of the genuine documents, increasing the number of proxy signatures. Normally, whether archived documents were proxy-signed or not was irrelevant, a minor detail. But in the eyes of fate officials, it made a difference, as these could be used to cast curse spells. Yin Qiquan couldn't have imagined that a mere fifth-grade official like Zhao Xing had become so important, or that even with his own carefulness, a fate official would specifically monitor such a minor issue.
"Wait for me to return the day after tomorrow; don't act rashly yourself," King Tianyan said.
"Yes," Zhao Xing nodded. This wave of spies was currently under King Tianyan's surveillance. If he killed them, the enemy would likely send more covert spies, making them much harder to track down later.
After ending his conversation with King Tianyan, Zhao Xing returned to the Temple of the Earth God. Although the Heavenly Secret Palace had already implemented strong protective measures for the geniuses entering the Ancient Dragon Court, Zhao Xing himself remained vigilant, knowing he shouldn't place all his hopes on others. So he practiced the Dream Walking technique daily, covering the entire Dongyang County and meticulously observing everyone's every move.
Two days later, King Tianyan hurried back to Star Palace and summoned Zhao Xing. It was the seventh day of the second month of Jingxin Era, year 33. The two spies deployed in Dongyang County began to withdraw. On the same day, Zhao Xing, in his capacity as Minister of the Temple of the Earth God, sailed out to Dragon Stone Island to inspect the sacrificial affairs of Dragon Stone County. That very evening, an overjoyed Yin Qiquan went to a secret underground altar and burned this news in a communication brazier.
Deep in the distant East Sea, three sword-like underground peaks stood, and beneath them, a crystal palace was hidden. "Whoosh!" Four blood-red incense sticks suddenly ignited, releasing plumes of fragrant smoke, and the brazier beneath Blood Spirit Venerable also erupted in a roaring flame. "Zhao Xing, Minister of the Temple of the Earth God, departed today at dawn, heading to Dragon Stone Island to preside over the Spring Earth God Sacrifice, expected to arrive at noon on the eighth day." Blood Spirit Venerable read the letter and nodded. "After waiting so long, an opportunity has finally arisen."
As the seventh-ranked genius on the kill list, actions against Zhao Xing had begun three years prior, but no suitable opportunity had been found. Because Zhao Xing possessed both a main body and a clone, most assassination methods were rendered ineffective. Blood Spirit Venerable couldn't possibly deploy significant manpower and resources just to kill a clone. Doing so would be a laughingstock among his peers. Physical attacks were largely ineffective. That left only soul-based spells. As a result, Zhao Xing was transferred to the Temple of the Earth God in Chongming Prefecture in Jingxin Era, year 30. This made soul-based assassination plans equally unlikely to succeed. Because the Temple of the Earth God was an institution under the divine temple's command. Even with the backing of the Liang King's Faction, the Southern Wild King's Court, and the Profound Heaven Sect, Blood Spirit Venerable could not kill a fifth-grade official residing in a prefecture city's divine temple. Not even if he were a first-grade official! Unless the Great Zhou Dynasty plunged into civil unrest, prefecture-level divine temples within its territory were absolute forbidden zones for external sects! This had nothing to do with Zhao Xing's rank; as long as he remained within a prefecture-level divine temple, Blood Spirit Venerable couldn't even kill an ordinary person. The only opportunity was for Zhao Xing's main body to leave the prefecture city, especially if he ventured out to sea!
"The Spring Earth God Sacrifice is an important ritual of the Great Zhou Dynasty. It's unlikely Zhao Xing would send a clone for it. This is the best opportunity," Blood Spirit Venerable mused. He instinctively performed a divination. Moments later, he concluded: "There's an 80% chance of success."
Blood Spirit Venerable nodded, then walked to the Spirit Sealing Hall within the crystal palace. "Rumble!" The great doors opened, and a wisp of azure light flickered, seemingly about to tumble out. However, it was blocked by the barrier of the two doors. Blood Spirit Venerable looked inside; there were a hundred profound ice coffins. Each coffin was transparent. Ninety of the coffins were already empty. Only ten coffins contained naked figures in slumber. On the outside of the occupied coffins, there was an old almanac. Some almanacs were thick, while others had only a few thin pages left.
"I need to cast the Blood Script Curse Assassination Art. The medium has been collected, but it still requires a considerable price. I wonder which senior would be willing to sacrifice themselves?" Blood Spirit Venerable bowed towards the coffins. No one responded, and Blood Spirit Venerable smiled faintly. "It seems everyone is willing. Then I shall presume." He walked towards the coffins. In reality, the people inside these coffins couldn't respond. It was purely Blood Spirit Venerable's own sense of ritual, having been alone for too long. He glanced left and right, skipping over those whose old almanacs were still thick. "You all have it so good, sleeping so soundly. Unlike me, neither human nor ghost, I can't sleep even if I want to. When will it be my turn to sleep? Oh, I don't seem to sleep here. Where do I sleep?" Blood Spirit Venerable murmured to himself, a hint of confusion in his eyes.
He approached a coffin containing a burly middle-aged man, whose body was a full four meters tall. Blood Spirit Venerable looked at the almanac: "Profound Heaven Divine Sect, Mountain Guardian Elder Zhang Yao, dormant since the 400th year of the 789,000th year of the Eighth Era, for 7,645 years to date. The Profound Heaven almanac shows you only have twenty-five years until you reach your dormancy limit. Over seven thousand years, in this era, your chances of waking are less than one in ten, and you're nearing your dormancy limit... You're the one. I shall send you, old man, back to Profound Heaven," Blood Spirit Venerable murmured. He tore off the last two pages of the almanac from the coffin. "Buzz!" The coffin vibrated slightly, and the cold air inside slowly began to dissipate. Blood Spirit Venerable rolled up the coffin and walked out. After leaving the Spirit Sealing Hall, he quickly closed the main doors.
Blood Spirit Venerable brought the coffin to the altar. Besides him, there were two other statues there. "Senior Brother, Junior Uncle, protect me." Blood Spirit Venerable cupped his hands, then carried the coffin to the blood pool, quietly waiting for the coffin's sealing effect to dissipate.
Above the East Sea, inside a multi-decked ship. Zhao Xing's main body was resting with closed eyes on the ship's viewing deck. This was an official ship of the Temple of the Earth God, primarily carrying a statue of the Earth God, which, of course, held no great power but was merely a symbol. Bringing it to the island for sacrifice was just a formality.
"Your Highness, I'm out at sea now. Are there any unusual movements?" Zhao Xing appeared to be resting with closed eyes, unmoving as a mountain, but in reality, he was extremely flustered, transmitting a message to King Tianyan on the lower deck. Curse spells were too eerie; only high-grade cultivators could cast them. Such spells were usually mastered by shamans in the Southern Wild or divine personnel in sects. Facing a high-grade divine official, Old Master Zhao was still somewhat flustered. Especially since he was indeed out at sea with his main body.
"What are you afraid of? It's not you bearing the brunt," King Tianyan's voice entered his ear. "Before I came, I cast the 'Soul Transfer and Death Substitution Art' on you. Any life-soul spell directed at you will affect me instead. You absolutely won't die before I do."
"With Your Highness here, how could I be afraid? I'm just asking how big a fish we can catch with this net."
"You don't need to worry about that. Knowing too many secrets of fate officials won't do you any good, unless you also want to become one," King Tianyan said.
"Then forget it," Zhao Xing shook his head. Although fate officials held transcendent status, they were destined not to appear publicly before the world. The deeds of low-key, mysterious fate officials were only known after their deaths. Top-secret files would even remain classified for many years. Zhao Xing mainly feared King Tianyan wouldn't be able to withstand it. Because in the Southern Barbarian region, conflicts between high-grade cultivators were increasing, and a large-scale high-grade war could erupt at any time this year. Since the East Sea side was targeting him with a high-grade cultivator, there was no telling how high their rank was. "Encountering a third-grade posed no pressure, a second-grade was no big deal, but a first-grade would be life-threatening." "King Tianyan must hold on," Zhao Xing muttered to himself. King Tianyan was also a second-grade cultivator. If he couldn't hold on, then Zhao Xing certainly couldn't. Of course, the probability of a first-grade cultivator casting a soul curse spell on him was extremely low. Everything involved costs; soul curse spells inherently required a price. This was the nature of the spell. Curse spells that could target enemies across the void, ignoring distance, often consumed a person's lifespan. A first-grade cultivator expending their lifespan to kill a mere fifth-grade official? That probability was still very low.
"Whoosh!" Just as he was thinking, Zhao Xing suddenly heard a low wailing sound. He shivered and immediately activated the Heavenly Eye technique, scanning his surroundings. He found that nothing had happened, and the sound's origin was unknown. "Whoosh, whoosh!" The sound became clearer, but Zhao Xing still couldn't find its source. He tried to transmit a message to King Tianyan, but King Tianyan did not respond. When Zhao Xing looked again, he found that there was no one left on the ship!
"It's coming!" Zhao Xing's heart sank; he knew the mastermind had activated a spell. He just didn't know which type of curse spell it was. "Whoosh!" It was as if something had ignited. Zhao Xing instinctively recoiled, moving away from his spot. He found a patch of ashes where he had just stood. He looked closely and recognized it as Xuanhua paper, commonly used for official documents in the Great Zhou Dynasty. His name was faintly visible on it. "It's the Blood Script Curse Assassination Art," Zhao Xing immediately recognized. "This is a top-tier soul curse spell." His expression became tense. Among all spells, this one was the most difficult to defend against. Just as his Yin Wind spell had made it difficult for enemies to defend against. Curse spells were even more eerie.
"Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle!" The sky was as usual, but suddenly paper scraps began to fall. Characters leaped from the paper, like blood, then twisted and transformed. Some resembled human figures, some were the outline of a single eye, and others were combinations of human and beast. "Puff, puff, puff, puff, puff, puff, puff, puff!" However, these blood characters automatically ignited as they transformed and descended. By the time they reached Zhao Xing's feet, they were already piles of ash.
"Kid, prepare to unleash the Soul Exterminating Bell. I'm going to let some cursed entities in, to make the opponent fall deeper into the trap." This was King Tianyan's voice, which Zhao Xing also didn't know where it came from.
"Alright, bring it on!" Zhao Xing took a deep breath, his life-soul supporting a large golden bell, ready to sound at any moment. No sooner had he spoken than four characters appeared in the sky: 'Decline,' 'Splendor,' 'Vitality,' and 'Spirit.' The character 'Decline' was the first to materialize and rush towards Zhao Xing below. Soul-based spells could only be resisted by other soul-based spells or treasures. The Heavenly Secret Robe Zhao Xing wore emitted waves of white light. At the same time, a bell rang from within his body. "Clang!" The materialized 'Decline' character was immediately blocked twenty meters away. The other three characters remained a hundred meters high in the sky.
"In the Blood Script Curse Assassination Art, 'Decline' goes first, followed by 'Vitality,' 'Splendor,' and 'Spirit.' If the first character doesn't hit, the subsequent ones will be greatly weakened. This is a struggle between two forces now. King Tianyan wants to increase the cost the opponent has to pay." With a thought, Zhao Xing made the Soul Exterminating Bell ring only once. The 'Decline' character entered the fifteen-meter range.
Meanwhile, within the crystal palace among the three underwater mountains. Blood Spirit Venerable looked perplexedly at the blood pool below. Zhao Xing's figure was reflected in the blood pool, his magical robe glowing, but Blood Spirit Venerable could not hear the bell. "As expected, there are defenses; he's received protection beyond that of a fifth-grade official," Blood Spirit Venerable deduced from the information he received. "It's highly likely he's one of those secretly chosen by the Heavenly Secret Palace. Then he definitely cannot be allowed to live."
Scrolls of official documents flew up around him; these were precisely what Yin Qiquan had collected over the years. Continuously, scrolls burned, transforming into streaks of light that plunged into the blood pool. "Go!" Blood Spirit Venerable immediately increased the curse's power. In return, the price he paid also increased. Beside the blood pool lay a corpse, its body cut open with many blood holes. "Gurgle!" Blood flowed into the pool. In the blink of an eye, his flesh withered, leaving him almost skin and bones. The 'Decline' character immediately approached within ten meters of Zhao Xing.
"What demon dares to scheme against this official?!" In the projection, Zhao Xing was both startled and furious, his hands trembling as if he would be unable to resist in the next second. Blood Spirit Venerable smiled faintly; he understood the lip-reading and cast the spell again. "Thump!" The bones of the desiccated corpse also disintegrated into powder and were entirely cast into the blood pool. "Though I die today, even as a vengeful spirit, I will not let you go!!" Zhao Xing looked at the 'Decline' character less than three meters in front of him, his face contorted in a grimace, veins bulging. Blood Spirit Venerable was slightly surprised. Because the blood pool was already more than half dry, yet the blood-colored 'Decline' character still hadn't fully entered Zhao Xing's body. Blood Spirit Venerable pointed again, and five 'Decline' characters appeared in the sky. At the same time, the blood pool was nearing its bottom. "A third-grade life, and I still can't take you down?" Blood Spirit Venerable watched coldly.
On the ship, the five 'Decline' characters had all entered within one meter of Zhao Xing. But at this moment, they stopped. Not only did they not advance, but there were signs they were being pushed back. "Ahhh ahhh ahhh ahhh ahhh!" Zhao Xing roared, as if in a dying struggle. Blood Spirit Venerable was momentarily stunned by the sight. "Why can't I kill him yet?" At this point, he vaguely felt something was wrong. But he also felt that with just a little more effort, he could kill Zhao Xing. "Bang!" Blood Spirit Venerable chopped off one of his own fingers and threw it into the blood pool. "Five Heavens' Decay, go!" The blood light flared, immediately advancing another one-ninth of a meter.
"Ahhh, who wants to kill me!!!" "I'm about to die, so unwilling..." "Thump, thump, thump, thump, thump!" Blood Spirit Venerable broke off nine more fingers in succession. By now, the Five Decays characters had traveled ninety centimeters. Only 10 centimeters remained between them and Zhao Xing. When Blood Spirit Venerable self-amputated his tenth finger, he realized the Blood Script Curse Assassination Art was still nine centimeters short. Blood Spirit Venerable: "..." Watching Zhao Xing wail in the projection, he felt this scene was somewhat familiar. At this moment, Blood Spirit Venerable felt as if he had fallen into the trap of a unscrupulous merchant. He had cut ninety-nine times, almost succeeding, only to find that the last cut had been split into ten smaller cuts... Although he had felt something was off the moment the third-grade corpse was exhausted, the current sunk cost and the temptation of completing the spell with just a little more effort had led Blood Spirit Venerable to this point. His hands and feet were completely broken, yet Zhao Xing was still wailing.
"Bastard! This bastard!" Blood Spirit Venerable was furious. He remembered: back in Gucheng, he had fallen for this kid's trick. Only this time, the ploy was even deeper than before. Fury! Blood Spirit Venerable's blood pressure instantly surged. He was somewhat shaken, having been played twice by the same person using similar tactics! "Such humiliation, unprecedented in a thousand years!" Blood Spirit Venerable was so angry he felt like spitting blood. At this point, his rationality finally returned. "No, I fell into a trap! I actually lost my rationality? I was completely fooled by this kid Tianyan! This is clearly a setup! Zhao Xing is just bait!"
Blood Spirit Venerable turned to look at the blood pool. He found the blood pool had instantly dried up. At the same time, a golden flying dragon rose from within the blood pool. On the dragon's forehead, an eight trigrams bronze mirror was affixed. The dragon's head immediately opened its mouth upon seeing Blood Spirit Venerable. But there was nothing in its mouth; instead, the eight trigrams bronze mirror on its head shot a beam of light directly at Blood Spirit Venerable.
"King Tianyan? Your scheme is impressive! You actually affected my divine soul!" Blood Spirit Venerable's remnant body flew up but was still hit by the beam of light. "Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle!" His entire body erupted in flames, and he couldn't help but scream. "Ahhhhhh—" He struggled and ran to the two statues. He plunged headfirst into one of the divine statues. The flames remained on the statue, continuing to burn. Blood Spirit Venerable, to his surprise, emerged from behind the statue completely intact, with all his limbs. "Boom!" The statue collapsed with a roar. Without a word, Blood Spirit Venerable picked up his Junior Uncle's statue and smashed it into the blood pool. "Blood Essence Profound Seal, go!" "Boom, boom, boom!" The golden dragon and the statue perished together. Watching the golden dragon disappear, Blood Spirit Venerable panted, "Senior Brother, Junior Uncle, I apologize, but the enemy was too cunning. I had no choice but to borrow your two lives." Catching his breath, Blood Spirit Venerable scanned his surroundings. "This stronghold can no longer be used."
Blood Spirit Venerable quickly darted into the Spirit Sealing Hall. "Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!" He swiftly tore off the almanac from one of the coffins and opened all the coffin lids. "Great Blood Essence Art!" "Gurgle, gurgle!" The sleeping figures rapidly withered into desiccated corpses. To escape, he needed another wave of replenishment. "That's enough!" Blood Spirit Venerable looked up in a certain direction. "Retreat!" He swept up the remaining coffins and immediately flew out. At the same time, he gathered up all remaining items related to Zhao Xing and immediately began to flee.
At the same time. On the multi-decked ship. "It's gone," Zhao Xing looked at the sky. He used the bell's sound to shatter the blood characters, then picked up the fragments and immediately cast the Five Fingers of Destiny to trace the mastermind. "Buzz!" Scenes appeared before Zhao Xing's eyes. The three underwater mountains, the crystal palace, the Spirit Sealing Hall, the crystal coffins... and Blood Spirit Venerable's fleeing back.
"What? This place?" Zhao Xing was momentarily stunned. When he saw the three mountains, he was instantly shocked. Because this was the Millennium Transformation location he had deduced over a decade ago using the Ten-Thousand-Year Profound Turtle Shell! At that time, he had searched for it across the sea but never found it. He had even asked Long Xiao to help search for it in the Azure Dragon Army. But there had been no news. "It's actually here, and still underwater? Has it not yet emerged? Wait, are these the Profound Ice Spirit Coffins of the Profound Heaven Sect? The Spirit Sealing Hall? This place was actually a slumbering ground of the Profound Heaven Sect!" Zhao Xing was extremely surprised. It wasn't just the Millennium Transformation; more importantly, it was the Profound Ice Spirit Coffins. In his plans for the future, surviving until the spiritual energy revival, this item was one of his backup plans. "I must quickly find this place!"
Zhao Xing had now escaped the effects of the Blood Script Curse Assassination Art. Everything around him was normal. The other people on the ship hadn't noticed anything unusual, as if nothing had just happened.
Zhao Xing swiftly moved to the bottom of the ship's cabin. "You kid, you're good," King Tianyan chuckled upon seeing Zhao Xing appear. "I asked you to cooperate, and you cooperated exceptionally well." Zhao Xing, as bait, had an unexpectedly good effect. He had managed to lead Blood Spirit Venerable into the trap step by step, making him pay a price far exceeding that of a single spell cast. If he had been willing to pay these costs from the start, he might have even killed a third-grade cultivator. "But you took too great a risk. The Blood Script Curse Assassination Art was almost in your face. Don't do such extreme things in the future."
"Yes." After a pause, Zhao Xing continued, "Your Highness, have you found the demon's hideout?"
"We've confirmed the approximate location," King Tianyan nodded. "And people have gone to pursue them. However, the remaining culprits likely cannot be caught." King Tianyan could feel that many high-grade cultivators had died. But some had also escaped. The gains from this operation were already significant enough. Continuing the pursuit would likely not expand the results further. After all, there was a certain distance between the two sides.
"Your Highness, please allow me to join the hideout search as well," Zhao Xing said.
"Oh? You know the location too?"
"One more person means one more strength," Zhao Xing said.
"Very well," King Tianyan said. "Let's go together, but during the search, don't stray too far."
"Yes," Zhao Xing nodded and immediately ordered the multi-decked ship to deploy a flying boat. His clone remained on the multi-decked ship, continuing towards Dragon Stone Island for the Spring Sacrifice, while his main body, along with King Tianyan, headed towards the target area. Zhao Xing was the direct target of the curse, while King Tianyan was indirectly resisting it. Therefore, when Zhao Xing traced the culprit, he obtained more detailed specific coordinates.
When he and King Tianyan arrived at a certain sea area, King Tianyan said, "Zhao Xing, it's up to you."
"Yes," Zhao Xing immediately sent out several clones, flying in different directions.
"Don't let your main body stray too far from me," King Tianyan said, "to avoid any mishaps." After speaking, King Tianyan also leaped into the seabed and began his search. Zhao Xing's Myriad Law Clones proved remarkably effective in searching. In less than two quarters of an hour, he found the crystal palace with the three mountains. "It is indeed the location foretold by the Divination and Marquis technique, but it probably hasn't emerged yet. I wonder how much longer it will take," Zhao Xing mused. "King Tianyan and the others still need to search. I should go down first." He was now here in his main body, and even King Tianyan couldn't distinguish between his main body and clones. Why? Because at a certain distance, King Tianyan could only sense by soul strength. Zhao Xing's Divine Derivation Art created seven soul bodies with no discernable differences in strength, making it naturally difficult to tell which was a clone. So why do this? Primarily because of the Spirit Sealing Hall!
"The Profound Heaven Sect's Spirit Sealing Hall was inherited from the era of spiritual energy. Combined with the Profound Ice Spirit Coffins, it allowed for slumber spanning thousands of years, enduring the passage of time. However, in the era of primal energy, the success rate of this method was greatly reduced. The success rate is low, and even if one awakens, there are significant side effects, ranging from madness to idiocy," Zhao Xing thought, as he quickly searched within the crystal palace. The Profound Heaven Ice Coffin was one of his backup plans precisely because of its severe side effects, making it a last resort. Of course, his insistence on coming this time wasn't just for the ice coffin. The Profound Heaven Ice Coffin alone was useless. One also needed to cultivate specialized spells, construct the Spirit Sealing Hall, and prepare numerous precious treasures. He came primarily for the Spirit Sealing Hall itself. "As long as it's still active, there must be spiritual energy inside, even if just a wisp. For me, that would be extremely valuable. I can use the Profound Yellow Primal Energy Analysis Art to absorb it."
Zhao Xing searched rapidly within the crystal palace. Although the crystal palace was complex, even having hidden mechanisms and secret doors, Old Master Zhao was intimately familiar with such places. Using a clone to scout ahead, he quickly found the location. "Found it!" At this moment, the main doors of the Spirit Sealing Hall lay open, revealing the scattered, floating crystal coffins within. "Blood Spirit Venerable fled too hastily. Perhaps this was an important clone of his, or even his main body," Zhao Xing mused. "I wonder if there's any spiritual energy left." He quickly walked inside. The barrier had been destroyed, and the magic arrays had lost their original effect. Zhao Xing entered and carefully sensed his surroundings. "Ninety percent of the ice coffins have been empty for countless years. The spiritual energy had long been depleted, and under the erosion of time, these magic arrays could no longer sustain themselves." To sustain slumber, many spiritual items needed to be placed inside the ice coffins. Additionally, the Spirit Sealing Hall itself required the presence of spiritual energy. "The transition of an era." Zhao Xing looked at the shattered walls and the ancient magic arrays, many of which had been eroded. "It seems there's nothing to be gained... Hmm?" Zhao Xing had originally intended to give up, but suddenly his brow twitched, and his figure flickered, instantly arriving inside one of the ice coffins. This particular ice coffin seemed to have been opened recently, as the cold energy inside had not yet fully dissipated. Inside lay seven jade-like bricks, laid out in different positions within the coffin. "High-grade Cold Spirit Jade. I wonder if it still contains spiritual energy." Zhao Xing immediately activated the Profound Yellow Primal Energy Analysis Art on the seven pieces of Cold Spirit Jade. "Bang!" "Bang!" "Bang!" "Bang!" "Bang!" "Bang!" Six of the Cold Spirit Jade pieces instantly shattered into ashes upon encountering the primal energy spell's influence. But the seventh piece emitted a faint glow. Although the light was very weak, Zhao Xing was ecstatic. "Yes! This amount of spiritual energy is roughly half of that ancient withered branch!" Zhao Xing immediately extracted it. Simultaneously, he cast Pure Essence Projection. "Buzz!" The yellowish-brown light mass immediately submerged into the pure essence soil. "It's earth elemental spiritual energy." Zhao Xing waited with immense anticipation. Upon breaking through to the fourth-grade, his pure essence soil was Level Four! With a total area of approximately 314,000 square meters. The radius of the pure essence soil was about 316 meters. Now undergoing transformation, the pure essence soil began to expand further. "Rumble!" After receiving this earth elemental spiritual energy, the pure essence soil's radius increased to 420 meters. The total area expanded to 550,000 square meters. "It's still Level Four soil, no qualitative change occurred, but the range increase is significant," Zhao Xing mused. "If I had to rely on primal energy resources to accumulate this, I don't know how much money and time it would take." After searching, Zhao Xing found no more items related to spiritual energy. "There are many other valuable or important items inside, but they cannot be mine. Taking them would cause trouble. However, to have this unexpected pleasant surprise is already very good."
Zhao Xing quietly withdrew and began calling King Tianyan. Officials arrived at this sea area one after another. As the subsequent events were not suitable for Zhao Xing to participate in, King Tianyan accompanied Zhao Xing's main body back to Chongming Prefecture. On this very day, the internal purge in Chongming Prefecture also began. "Clang!" The gates of the Yin residence were suddenly kicked open, and a group of soldiers stormed in without invitation. The Heavenly Net and Earth Net arrays immediately sealed off the entire Yin residence. Yin Qiquan sat up in bed, startled. "Bastards, who dares to trespass into the Supervising Maritime Inspector's residence!" The leading official wore a black raptor robe, holding a compass and command arrow. With a gentle point, he tore Yin Qiquan's official robe. Along with it, Yin Qiquan's official fortune was torn from his body. "Supervising Maritime Inspector? You are no longer." "Arrest everyone; not a single one must die!"
"You are... fate officials," Yin Qiquan's face instantly turned pale, and he collapsed to the ground. At the same time, screams echoed throughout Chongming Prefecture. "Run!" "Ah, Father!" "It's over, everything is over!" Within Dongyang County alone, a total of 532 officials and civilians were executed. In Chongming Prefecture, including the military, over 75,000 civil and military officials were implicated. Including Yin Qiquan, 25 fourth-grade civil and military officials had their homes confiscated and their clans annihilated. One third-grade military general and one civil official were also implicated. Due to collusion with outsiders, which constituted the unpardonable crime of treason, even with privileges, they could not escape death. However, these two third-grade officials were not immediately executed but were secretly imprisoned for trial. Because they were talents recommended by the Liang King, their true depths needed to be fully exposed before they could be killed. Until they revealed all their secrets, even death was a luxury. With the third-grade civil and military officials arrested, Chongming Prefecture and the Eastern Sea Legion also initiated a new anti-corruption and cleanup storm. Under this deterrent, the entire East Sea region became significantly quieter. However, after reviewing the list, Zhao Xing knew that these achievements were insignificant.
"The calm before the storm," Zhao Xing thought. "As long as the barbarian conquest fails, those currently without rebellious intentions will develop them." Hong Yuanba was the best example; he originally had no desire to rebel but was dragged into it by his foolish younger brother. "Once Pinghai Province's fate energy wavers, even those without ulterior motives will develop them," Zhao Xing gazed at the sky. Having cultivated the Divine Derivation Art, his soul was strong. Using the Great Derivation Aura Observing Art to observe the sky, he could see a thick protective barrier of fate energy over Pinghai Province. It was this shield that prevented Pinghai Province's fate energy from flowing out. "Once the Liang King fragments Pinghai Province's
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