Chapter 913: Master's Intentions

Jiang Fan looked at Hua Xin, whose hair was disheveled and eyes blazed with fury.

He said sheepishly, "Sister Hua Xin, it turns out you're proficient in Human, Demon, and Underworld scripts. Why didn't you say so earlier? Your younger brother is an eager and diligent learner; could you also teach me?"

Although she had muted herself, her mouth movements clearly showed that, in her rage, she was spewing anything but pleasant words.

"Ahem, there's always tomorrow," he said. "My sister and I can have a long, heart-to-heart talk later; it's not too late."

His reply was met with the ethereal crystal humming from being pounded, and countless shouts of "Shameless!" that Jiang Fan couldn't hear.

At that moment, whimpering sounds came from the dog pack. The two-headed dog beneath him walked over. It discovered a companion whose neck had been bitten through by a wild boar, bleeding profusely. Although its tail still twitched faintly, it was on its last breath. A group of two-headed hellhounds gathered around it, whimpering incessantly. The two-headed dog Jiang Fan was on also lowered its head, its body trembling with sorrow.

Jiang Fan sighed softly. He leaped off the dog's back. His appearance immediately caused the other two-headed hellhounds to become fiercely aggressive. Jiang Fan took out the Hell Soul Bell and shook it. The two-headed hellhounds immediately quieted down, wagging their tails at Jiang Fan. They made soft snorting sounds. They seemed happy about Jiang Fan's arrival, yet also mournful over their companion's loss.

Jiang Fan approached the dying two-headed hellhound. He took out two Rejuvenation Pills and placed one in each of its mouths. Soon, the nearly dead two-headed hellhound's eyes gradually regained their luster. The surrounding hellhounds immediately barked joyfully. Several of them also kept wagging their tails at Jiang Fan.

*Grumble.*

At that moment, one of the two-headed hellhounds rummaged around inside the wild boar's belly for a while. Finally, it pulled out a blood-red, head-sized orb and placed it before Jiang Fan. Jiang Fan immediately sensed the Asura Karma Fire emanating from it. It was over ten times more potent than what he had previously refined. Jiang Fan was overjoyed! With this, the first level of the Azureflame True Fire Art could advance from minor accomplishment to great accomplishment!

"Thank you!" Jiang Fan cupped his hands. He grabbed the orb, jumped onto the dog's back, and immediately seized the opportunity to absorb the Asura Karma Fire within it. The two-headed hellhound beneath him let out a joyful howl towards the sky. The surrounding hellhounds, except for one left to guard the injured companion, all followed him to escort Jiang Fan to the teleportation array.

On a mountain a hundred miles from the teleportation array, Fairy Azureflame struck a massive black scorpion, radiating monstrous malevolence, to the ground with azure flames from her palm. A faint smile appeared on her face.

"Junior Brother Tianzhou, this tenth level isn't so difficult after all," she said. "The three of us have successfully cleared a ten-mile radius in less than a day. Our merits must have far exceeded a hundred thousand, right?"

The Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets also repelled an underworld creature that hadn't even formed a Nascent Soul. He frowned slightly. Looking at the mountain beneath his feet, he said, "This mountain is called Black Reef. A five-orifice underworld creature once resided here, but for some unknown reason, it's nowhere to be found today. Moreover, the underworld creatures along the way are very sparse, less than thirty percent of what they were initially."

Venerable Cloudfire frowned, asking, "Could it be like the black crystal in the ninth level? Also affected by the Heaven-Connecting Black Pillar?"

The Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets pondered, "The reason is unknown. But this is fortunate; let's speed up our exploration of the surroundings and try to find clues about that ancient saint."

No sooner had he spoken, a cold voice echoed.

"You don't need to search."

Kui Xing stared indifferently at the three individuals before him. He felt a hint of surprise. Hadn't the Asura King said he would eliminate everyone who entered? Why was it that he had already reached the teleportation array, but the Asura King hadn't arrived yet?

However, this worked out perfectly. He narrowed his eyes, examining the Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets. "You also possess lightning-based divine abilities, do you? Come with me; I'll take you somewhere!"

The Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets looked at the pair of pointed horns on the other's head, his expression solemn.

"An Asura?" he exclaimed. "It's been a thousand years; how can there still be one alive!"

Fairy Azureflame and Venerable Cloudfire's expressions shifted, and they subtly moved to stand on either side of the Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets.

"Senior Brother Cloudfire, this Asura alien is here for Junior Brother Tianzhou," Fairy Azureflame said. "You take him and leave first. I'll cover your retreat."

The one who spoke these words was not Venerable Cloudfire, but Fairy Azureflame, who had always been the most critical of the Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets. The Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets was slightly stunned, clearly surprised, and said, "Senior Sister Azureflame, you..."

Fairy Azureflame said expressionlessly, "Less talk! Go!"

Venerable Cloudfire understood best and sighed softly: "Junior Brother Tianzhou, you were too focused on martial arts back then. You missed out on some people."

Fairy Azureflame's strong resentment towards Yun Tianzhou had never been about the position of Pavilion Master. The position of Pavilion Master was a burden. Fairy Azureflame wouldn't fail to understand this. Her unreasonable behavior was merely an excuse to vent years of accumulated resentment. Venerable Cloudfire, as an observer, had always clearly seen Fairy Azureflame's feelings for her junior brother, Yun Tianzhou. Unfortunately, Yun Tianzhou was solely dedicated to martial arts. He had not picked up on Fairy Azureflame's many hints. Fairy Azureflame once thought that Yun Tianzhou looked down on her due to his superior talent, which caused her to harbor resentment. For years, she had diligently cultivated, always aiming to surpass him in martial arts. Now, she had finally surpassed him, yet she only resorted to sarcastic remarks. Now, seeing Yun Tianzhou in trouble, she was more anxious than anyone.

"Say one more word, and I'll burn your tongue off!" she snapped. "Go!" Fairy Azureflame stomped her foot, giving the talkative Venerable Cloudfire an annoyed glare.

The Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets was stunned for a moment, then gave a wry smile.

"Is that so?" he mused. "Then I truly missed out."

He did not leave, instead channeling all his Nascent Soul power and taking out a palm-sized pavilion. It had ten stories in total. The lowest ten stories were broken off. Originally, there should have been more below, but they had been violently destroyed.

"Although I can only control a small area of the tenth level, it can still somewhat boost our combat power," he said. "It's rare for the three of us, senior and junior siblings, to reunite in the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion. Why don't we fight together!"

Seeing the Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets take out the pavilion, Fairy Azureflame no longer tried to persuade him. With blue flames surging from her palm, she charged forward first, shouting, "If you want to harm my junior brother, you'll have to ask if I agree first!" Venerable Cloudfire followed closely, his body engulfed in surging green flames.

Meanwhile, the Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets conjured hand seals towards the pavilion. Spatial barriers suddenly appeared, locking down Kui Xing and restricting his movements. Kui Xing chuckled, looking at the broken pavilion.

"So, it's the current Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets," he said. "I was wondering who it was. What a coincidence, I have something very similar to yours."

He took out a broken section from the bottom of a structure. Judging by the fracture marks, it perfectly matched the one in the Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets's hand. The Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets's expression changed.

"You're that 'Seven Alien Clan' member who escaped hundreds of years ago?" he exclaimed.

This pavilion was a magical artifact that controlled the spatial barriers of the underworld, personally refined by an ancient saint. Hundreds of years ago, the then-Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets, while on the eighth level, was inadvertently ambushed by a mysterious Asura strongman. Not only was he severely wounded, but this magical artifact was also damaged, and a section of it was stolen by the opponent. Seeing the other party produce this item, the Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets instantly knew his identity!

Looking at Venerable Cloudfire and Fairy Azureflame who were charging forward, his face changed, and he shouted, "Come back quickly! The artifact he holds can control the tenth-level barrier even more effectively!"