Chapter 229: The Crafty Rabbit's Three Burrows

Within the Zai Dou Great Array on Xiao Qiongfeng,

Li Changshou, engrossed in researching new hybrid xian dou techniques, was suddenly struck by a faint sense of unease.

He carefully tried to grasp it, feeling as if something was happening around him...

The feeling came and went quickly, leaving him no time to fully sense it.

Is someone plotting against me, the young disciples' teacher?

Li Changshou put down his hoe and paused his farming, a serious look on his face.

This unease suggested a scheme that could truly threaten him...

Currently, all his external affairs were handled by his Paper Daoist, and to protect against divination, he had numerous small artifacts, plus the direct intervention of the Taiqing Saint shielding his heavenly secrets.

Could it be someone within the sect is targeting me?

That didn't seem very likely;

Hardly anyone within the sect could directly threaten him anymore.

—After all, his self-severed cultivation realm wasn't just for show; ordinary Golden Immortals posed no real pressure on him.

Furthermore, he had been monitoring the sect continuously;

Any True Immortals or Heavenly Immortals who might conflict with him were basically within his regular "inspection" range...

A cultivator's spiritual intuition and this inner palpitation were never unfounded.

Li Changshou tidied up the area, quickly checked the various parts of the great array, and then shifted his mind back to his main body. He began to pinch his fingers to perform detailed calculations.

But after just a few breaths, he got a result and decisively gave up this futile effort. Instead, he took out paper and brush to analyze the situation point by point.

There was no other way; this divine ability of calculation was tied to one's age, cultivation level, and distance from the Heavenly Dao—it was essentially consulting heavenly secrets.

What caught Li Changshou off guard was that the unease returned soon after, only to disappear again.

A moment later, he experienced a third slight tremor in his spiritual sense...

What on earth?

Could the one threatening him still be hesitating?

Li Changshou furrowed his brows, looking at the crisscrossing story lines he had drawn on the white paper, and couldn't help but mutter to himself.

The ways that could threaten his main body were now limited to four:

First, some great power suddenly deciding to destroy the Du Xian Men on a whim;

Second, exploiting vulnerabilities left by the Paper Daoist to locate his true body;

Third, involving his close ally who connected "Du Xian Men disciples" and "South Sea Sea God"—Ao Yi.

The fourth was rather absurd but not impossible: his own saint master might take a dislike to him and blow him to ashes with a single breath...

Among these, the second and third were the most probable.

He could start by ruling them out through elimination.

Li Changshou immediately used his divine sense to contact Ao Yi. Their divine senses linked through the idol in the An Shui City main temple, entering a dream state.

Li Changshou carefully interrogated Ao Yi, which made the Second Cult Leader quite nervous.

Fortunately, the Second Cult Leader withstood this round of scrutiny...

Li Changshou then asked Ao Yi about the current "public opinion" on Jin'ao Island.

According to what Ao Yi had seen firsthand, after Jin Guang Shengmu returned to Jin'ao Island, she sought out many friends and spoke of the "fated connection" between the South Sea Sea God and the Jie Jiao, clarifying that the South Sea Sea God had no intention of scheming against their Senior Brother Gongming.

Jin Guang Shengmu also emphasized that the South Sea Sea God was "wholly devoted to the Daoist path and untouched by a hundred karmas," which largely restored the reputation of the South Sea Sea God and the Sea God Cult among the Jie Jiao...

Cutting off the divine sense connection, Li Changshou stared once more at the white paper before him.

The likelihood of the third option had dropped significantly.

That left the most probable scenario...

Did the Grand Mage let something slip?

No—perhaps the Paper Daoist had a problem...

The Paper Daoist wasn't a flawless divine ability; despite Li Changshou's best efforts to perfect it, many hidden risks remained.

And he had been aware of these risks from the start, taking some precautions.

"Clearly, the precautions weren't enough."

Li Changshou murmured to himself, glancing at the two Nine-Turn Golden Pills, then closing his eyes to concentrate. He mobilized his Paper Daoists across various locations, hiding those that could be hidden even deeper and self-destructing those that weren't secure.

Before long, Li Changshou had completed a full self-check.

Yet, that inner unease surfaced again...

"Still haven't made up your mind?"

Li Changshou frowned slightly. If he had the Grand Mage's abilities, he would truly want to tear open the fabric of reality, poke his head through, and ask if the other party intended to make a move.

Of course, it would be best if they never did...

Meanwhile, in an unassuming cave at the foot of Ling Mountain,

Wen Jing Dao Ren lounged diagonally on her precious couch, gazing at the trembling blood cocoon in her palm. Her delicate brows furrowed at times and relaxed at others...

She was indeed hesitating.

Not because she was torn between the Ren Jiao and the Xi Fang Jiao— she had completely given up on the Xi Fang Jiao and seen a bright, open path in the Ren Jiao.

Anyone, as long as they weren't foolish, would make the wise choice.

The Xi Fang Jiao simply couldn't compete with the few key figures in the Ren Jiao.

Yesterday, that hunchbacked old Daoist gave her this blood cocoon and talked about "heavy use" and such...

'Do they really think I'm some naive girl, so easily deceived?'

She could clearly feel that, on the Xi Fang Jiao side, she was already a pawn that could be discarded as soon as they had leverage...

Take this arrangement by that saint's disciple, for instance.

No matter who it was, unless the saint themselves acted, any divination of the South Sea Sea God would result in a warning from the Tai Ji Tu.

What did that mean?

It meant the South Sea Sea God held a pivotal position in the Ren Jiao and enjoyed direct protection from a saint!

Without considering her current status as a "beautiful double agent" who had surrendered to the Ren Jiao,

Asking her to use this butterfly to find and eliminate the South Sea Sea God's true body was essentially throwing her into the Eight Trigrams Furnace in the Dou Shuai Gong.

If she acted and succeeded, that man—Xuan Du Grand Mage—would surely hunt her down.

Besides, the South Sea Sea God and this little mage from the Ren Jiao were her only links to the Ren Jiao. How could she do something that would cut off her own path...

Wen Jing Dao Ren wasn't worried about how to handle this matter; as long as she informed the South Sea Sea God, he would naturally have a way to counter it.

What she was hesitating about now was...

'Should I use this thing to find that little mage's true body and toy with him a bit?'

Wen Jing Dao Ren's narrow phoenix eyes narrowed again, her gaze filled with a mix of mischief and playfulness.

She had been schemed against by this South Sea Sea God so many times that she harbored some resentment...

"Hmph, if I want to do it, what can you do about it?"

Wen Jing Dao Ren sat up for the sixth time, her fingertip seeming about to pierce the blood cocoon, but just a hair's breadth away, she held back...

Though finding that guy's true body and teasing him would vent her anger, it might lead to losing sight of the bigger picture and easily provoke the South Sea Sea God...

She wasn't afraid, of course; it was just a matter of rational thinking, with a slight inclination to follow her impulses.

Wen Jing Dao Ren's mind kept replaying her encounters with this third key figure of the Ren Jiao...

Each time, she discovered something new;

Each time, he made her feel even more cautious deep down.

Moreover, it was highly possible that this little mage wasn't just from the Ren Jiao; the saint behind him might not be limited to just the Taiqing Saint.

Forget it, better to discuss this secretly with him first...

Wen Jing Dao Ren was about to withdraw her finger, but a flash of annoyance crossed her eyes, and she raised her hand to pierce the blood cocoon.

Who was she?

She was the queen of the Blood-Winged Black Mosquito clan, a formidable figure who once dominated a corner of the Blood Sea!

The blood cocoon split open, strands of blood light converged, and a translucent butterfly with a eerie green glow fluttered into existence, landing on Wen Jing Dao Ren's fingertip.

'Hmph! As long as I find you!

At worst, I'll just apologize—what, are you going to kill me?'

Here it comes!

In the underground chamber, Li Changshou's spirit sharpened. In that instant, the jump in his spiritual sense was incredibly clear.

The other party had made their move!

Li Changshou held his breath, stood up immediately, and used Smoke Escape to leave the underground chamber. His main body rode the clouds hastily toward Po Tian Peak.

Upon reaching the Bai Fan Hall, he walked to the spot beneath the saint's portrait, took out three thick, long sticks of incense from his sleeve, lit them for the saint, and knelt sincerely, thinking in his heart:

'Your disciple seeks nothing; I just come to offer incense and find some peace of mind.'

Just like his routine every three months, the portrait showed no change.

The outer affairs elders were already used to this sight.

Li Changshou closed his eyes and waited quietly for the danger to arrive, his mind fully alert, monitoring several key locations:

The Du Xian Men mountain gate, the An Shui City main Sea God Temple on the South Sea coast, and the East Sea hideout of his Paper Daoist legion.

But after Li Changshou stayed on high alert for an hour, the warning in his heart suddenly stirred lightly!

His divine sense immediately descended upon an inconspicuous Sea God temple...

He was half a step too late, only catching a glimpse of a burly figure riding the clouds away, vanishing in the blink of an eye... with considerable cultivation.

There was indeed an enemy.

Li Changshou was about to activate a Paper Daoist to intercept and probe, but a thought crossed his mind, and he suppressed the idea.

He couldn't rush.

If his guess was right, the other party was deliberately alarming him, possibly to lure out his incarnations...

It was habitual to play it safe; he'd observe the opponent's next moves first.

Another half an hour passed...

That figure appeared again in a Sea God temple in some major city, wandering around before leaving, intentionally revealing their realm.

Peak Heavenly Immortal level?

Conservatively speaking, it could be a Golden Immortal disguised as such.

The intent to draw out his incarnations was all too obvious...

'Don't tell me it's the Xi Fang making another move.'

Li Changshou pondered for a moment, his resolve to stay hidden growing firmer.

In the following half day, the opponent showed up six more times in succession, even deliberately clashing with the Xiong Village divine envoy once, injuring two divine envoys.

Yet, Li Changshou's incarnations remained completely absent, steadfastly...

Playing it safe.

"Still not taking the bait?"

In a certain underwater crevice in the South Sea, Wen Jing Dao Ren couldn't help but twitch her lips.

As expected of the Sea God who had subdued her—he was even harder to deal with than she imagined, with such keen instincts.

"Today, I'll truly settle things with you once and for all."

Wen Jing Dao Ren's lips curved into a charming, intoxicating smile as she began to plot something big...

On the other side, Li Changshou stood up and left the area in front of the saint's portrait.

It wouldn't do to kneel there forever; half a day of worship was his limit.

But moving elsewhere was out of the question.

In this treacherous and shadowy great wilderness, only the rear courtyard of the Dou Shuai Gong and the spot before the saint's portrait could give him a sense of warmth.

Li Changshou let out a light hum, furrowed his brows, and let his surrounding Dao rhythms tremble gently, feigning a breakthrough...

He asked, "Elder, may this disciple temporarily enter closed cultivation here?"

"Quick, a breakthrough is a major event!"

"Thank you, Elder." Li Changshou bowed in salute, then sat cross-legged not far from the left side of the saint's portrait, setting up a layer of magical force barrier around himself.

Two True Immortal outer affairs elders nearby added two more layers of immortal force barriers for him...

All those spiritual fish and meats he had offered daily weren't for nothing.

For the next half month, Li Changshou remained in closed cultivation in the Bai Fan Hall, his cultivation seeming on the verge of a minor breakthrough, yet also appearing to lack momentum.

In reality, he was engaged in a hidden contest with that unseen opponent...

The opponent's attacks came wave after wave, full of tricks, but somewhat hollow at the core.

What puzzled Li Changshou was that the opponent always stopped just short, as if holding back from something...

It was confusing.

Three days later, the opponent's disruptive actions had escalated to the point of nearly causing mortal casualties and increasing his karmic burdens.

Li Changshou weighed it in his heart—even if it meant a bit of karmic burden, he remained as steady as a mountain, unmoved.

But the opponent seemed to be just putting on a show and didn't actually harm mortals; each attempt fizzled out...

Did the opponent also fear karmic burdens? Li Changshou pondered silently.

Another three days passed, and seeing that they couldn't force the Sea God's incarnation to appear, the hidden assailant seemed to temporarily give up...

However, how could Li Changshou let his guard down?

He had plenty of patience; right now, he was only playing it safe up to the fifth move...

On this dusk, Li Changshou suddenly sensed his primordial spirit being probed!

The alarm in his heart blared, and his divine sense instantly descended upon a Sea God temple...

He saw a green butterfly rise from the tip of his idol's nose and land in the palm of that burly man...

The man chuckled coldly, turned, and rode the clouds away from the Sea God temple.

Li Changshou: ...

Just... that?

This green butterfly was likely a rare beast that could track primordial spirit energy, perfectly matching one of the scenarios he had deduced.

Li Changshou relaxed—about one-tenth—and shifted his mind to a large Sea God temple, quietly waiting for the opponent to arrive.

Two hours later, the burly man rode the clouds over, following the butterfly's guidance to the temple's backyard, where he saw an old man quietly sweeping leaves in the corner.

The burly man said indifferently, "You are the South Sea Sea God?"

The old man didn't respond, just looked up with a slight smile and a nod, but his figure was suddenly enveloped in flames, turning to ashes in an instant.

It was just an ordinary Paper Daoist,

Infused with a drop of Li Changshou's essence blood, mixed with a trace of his primordial spirit energy and personal Dao rhythm...

The burly man froze on the spot as the butterfly flapped its wings again, pointing to another direction.

The burly man snorted coldly and rode the clouds toward the next Sea God temple.

And so...

Over the next four or five days, the burly man followed the butterfly, circling back and forth along the South Sea coast. He visited a total of eighteen Sea God temples and witnessed...

The self-destruction of eighteen ordinary Paper Daoists.

"Ah! You inhuman beast!"

In a certain underwater crevice in the South Sea, Wen Jing Dao Ren clutched her two strands of hair, gritting her teeth and contorting her face in fury. In the past few days, she had cursed in Western vulgarities more times than she could count.

Whether this South Sea Sea God was a vicious fiend, she couldn't say for sure, but he was absolutely cunning to the extreme!

They say a crafty rabbit has three burrows—what was this? He must have three hundred!

With this level of scheming, how could the Xi Fang hope to compete with the Ren Jiao? They might as well surrender; they couldn't outmaneuver them at all!

Suddenly, through that blood mosquito puppet, Wen Jing Dao Ren heard a familiar voice transmission...

"Have you had your fun yet, Wen?"