Chapter 885: Qintianjian

Consort Yunxia grew nervous and softly said, "Jiang Lang, don't put yourself in danger. It's not worth it for me."

Jiang Fan gently pinched her arm. "Don't say such things. If my first woman isn't worth risking for, then who is? Besides, there might not even be any danger. I plan to invite the Four Seas Demon Emperors to protect you both during your breakthrough."

Consort Yunxia's eyes lit up with surprise, but then quickly dimmed. She shook her head and said, "It's too late. Sister Lingshu is getting married to the Demon Emperor in five days. We'll need to start our breakthrough at the very latest on that day. How can you possibly notify the Four Seas Demon Emperors in such a rush?"

Five days? Jiang Fan's heart skipped a beat. Five days wasn't enough time for him to travel to the East, South, and West Seas and back. At best, he could only turn around and return to the North Sea to ask the North Sea Demon Emperor for help. But he couldn't leave. The male tiger in the Soul Transformation ruins could reappear at any moment. Without the North Sea Demon Emperor present, the North Sea would be extremely dangerous. Relying on the Four Seas Demon Emperors was out of the question. The only person he could possibly ask was the Pavilion Master of the Heavenly Secret Pavilion. But he wasn't sure he could convince him.

"Never mind!" he declared. "If I can't get anyone to help, I'll personally hold back the Azure Dome Demon Emperor! I just hope you two can safely pass through the heavenly tribulation." He had witnessed the North Sea Crown Prince's tribulation. The terrifying might of heaven made Jiang Fan uncertain if the two women would succeed in their breakthrough, or even survive it.

Consort Yunxia began, "Jiang Lang, don't force yourself..." Before she could finish, Jiang Fan suddenly sat up and instinctively shouted, "Dragon Soul!" He felt a murderous intent. Reverend Xie Tong had caught up!

A roar— A colossal dragon soul suddenly appeared, just in time. A terrifying beam of light struck, but the colossal dragon soul blocked it. The dragon soul soared into the clouds and battled the invisible figure.

"Jiang Lang, is someone pursuing you?" Consort Yunxia asked, alarmed. Jiang Fan immediately dressed and said, "Stay inside the carriage; don't come out!" He put on his heavy-pupil crystal, gazing at the still-invisible Reverend Xie Tong, his eyes narrowing with a cold glint.

"You persistent specter!" "Take an arrow!" He decisively raised his arm and fired at the invisible Reverend Xie Tong.

*Whoosh*— A cold arrow, gleaming with a frigid light, pierced through space and struck precisely. Reverend Xie Tong, who was in the midst of battle, was startled and exclaimed, "You can see me when I'm invisible? Those are my eyes!!!" "Ah!" The cold arrow pierced his body, drawing trails of blood. The dragon soul seized the opportunity to blast him away, causing him to spurt out another mouthful of blood mist! Reverend Xie Tong had believed he had been tracking Jiang Fan undetected all along. He hadn't realized Jiang Fan had seen through him from the start!

"You brat!" Reverend Xie Tong exploded in a rage. But the next moment, he quieted down. Jiang Fan had again raised his spiritual artifact wrist crossbow, aiming it at him. The dragon soul also roared as it attacked. This provoked a series of unwilling roars from Reverend Xie Tong: "Bastard! I won't let you get away with this!" Immediately, he once again used his bizarre blood escape technique, vanishing in an instant. This was a technique even the West Sea Demon Emperor couldn't catch. Even the Nine-Dragon Bronze Chariot would have a hard time.

"What a pity!" "It would have been great if I could have kept Reverend Xie Tong and captured his Nascent Soul!" The Fate-Altering Jade Butterfly only needed one more Nascent Soul. Reverend Xie Tong was severely wounded by the crossbow bolts, not much better off than Reverend Qinghe had been. However, his blood escape technique was too strange to stop him. Nevertheless, after this injury, Reverend Xie Tong wouldn't dare cause trouble again anytime soon. By the time he came looking for Jiang Fan again, if Jiang Fan's luck held, he would probably already be in the Nascent Soul realm.

Back in the carriage, Consort Yunxia was fully dressed, having returned to her usual cold and ethereal demeanor, a stark contrast to her earlier proactive and passionate self.

"He's been chased away," Jiang Fan reassured her before she could speak. Then he embraced her, lingering in the enjoyment of their time together.

Some time later, as they neared the Demon Emperor Palace, the Azure Dome Demon Emperor finally caught up, panting. Seeing that Reverend Xie Tong had escorted Consort Yunxia back to the palace all this way, his doubts were dispelled. He had been worried that Reverend Xie Tong, like Reverend Qianshi, might have designs on Consort Yunxia.

"Reverend Xie Tong," the Azure Dome Demon Emperor said, stopping the Nine-Dragon Bronze Chariot. Inside the carriage, Consort Yunxia sat on Jiang Fan's lap, lingering reluctantly. She kissed him once more before slipping out of the carriage. Upon seeing the Azure Dome Demon Emperor, the joy of her reunion with Jiang Fan immediately vanished. She walked towards the Demon Emperor Palace expressionlessly.

Seeing that Consort Yunxia was unharmed, the Azure Dome Demon Emperor completely relaxed. He bowed and smiled. "Thank you, Reverend Xie Tong, for looking after my consort throughout the journey. If you don't mind, please come to the palace for a visit. I will certainly..."

Jiang Fan activated his Myriad Illusions Hairpin, mimicking Reverend Xie Tong's voice. "You're too kind. It was just a small favor. I still need to go to the location of the Sky-Connecting Black Pillar, so I won't trouble you."

The Azure Dome Demon Emperor didn't suspect a thing. All the Nascent Soul cultivators from outside this continent came primarily to investigate the Sky-Connecting Black Pillar. He immediately clasped his hands and stepped aside. Watching the Nine-Dragon Bronze Chariot depart, he murmured, "This Xie Tong is unexpectedly a good person."

North Sea Coast. Reverend Xie Tong, pale-faced, fled all the way to the coastline. Just as he was about to use his spirit boat to leave and return to Mount Sanqing, a wisp of yin energy silently appeared near him. Reverend Xie Tong seemed to sense something. He turned his head and saw Reverend Qianshi, covered in wounds and his face full of murderous intent.

"Reverend Xie Tong!" "You dare to ambush me? Do you think you can return to Mount Sanqing?" Reverend Xie Tong gasped and quickly said, "Listen to me, that wasn't me! It was a small human named Jiang Fan!"

Reverend Qianshi, however, didn't waste a single word and directly summoned countless yin corpses. In truth, whether what Xie Tong said was the truth or not didn't matter. It was a rare chance to encounter a Nascent Soul realm cultivator so severely injured. Who would pass up such a heaven-sent opportunity?

At the Sky-Connecting Black Pillar. The Pavilion Master of the Heavenly Secret Pavilion smiled as he patiently answered questions from a group of powerful cultivators from the Divine Sects beyond the realm. Each of them possessed unfathomable cultivation, and they were all prominent figures in the Great State of Taicang. Especially the one currently speaking to him, a grand elder from the Myriad Tribulations Sacred Palace, Reverend Baiyu, whose cultivation had reached the Five-Aperture Nascent Soul stage. The Pavilion Master was only able to cultivate the Myriad Tribulations Sacred Palace's techniques because Reverend Baiyu had allowed it.

"It's good that the Sky-Connecting Black Pillar is on your continent," Reverend Baiyu said. "If it appeared in our Great State of Taicang, it would be quite a headache." Hearing this, the Pavilion Master could only offer a forced smile, his heart growing cold. In the eyes of the Divine Sects from beyond the realm, their continent deserved to be the landing point for the ancient giants. Whatever destruction they faced was irrelevant, as long as it didn't affect the Great State of Taicang.

"Alright, don't be discouraged," Reverend Baiyu continued, patting his shoulder casually. "When the time comes, just pick a few disciples you favor and bring them to my Myriad Tribulations Sacred Palace for refuge. As for the rest of the people on your continent, you can't manage them, and neither can I. They can only blame their bad luck."

He then walked over to the Sky-Connecting Black Pillar and respectfully clasped his hands towards a young woman carrying two Seven-Star treasured swords on her back and wearing a unique uniform. "Commander Bai, if you're done with your investigation, you're welcome to take our Myriad Tribulations Sacred Palace's ship back to Taicang." Not many people could make Reverend Baiyu act so deferential. The young woman before him was one of them. This was because she hailed from the Qintian Supervisory Department, an official organization established by numerous great sages a thousand years ago!

Bai Xin gazed at the Sky-Connecting Black Pillar, pondering slightly, and said, "You all can go first. I'll wait for that person named Jiang Fan to return."