Chapter 268: Secrets of the Rice Cult

Qingyun Coach Company is located in the outer district of West City.

As night fell, hundreds of coach frames, large and small, were arranged in long, winding rows within the immense, garden-like coach yard. Under the lamplight, one could hear unusual movements and calls from the stables and the exotic beast lake, as well as the voices of busy coachmen, craftsmen, and stablehands.

Unlike the Inner City, which is constantly covered by defensive formations, the Outer City's domain is vast, with a diverse and complex population and frequent movement of people.

This was one of the reasons Wang Zhi dared to return!

At this moment, Wang Zhi and Wang Shouxin, the owner of Qingyun Coach Company, were seated in a room on the second floor of the west shed. Rather than appearing as adopted son and father, they seemed to be on equal terms.

Wang Zhi appeared to be fifteen or sixteen years old; he was the young man who had driven the carriage for Yang Qingxi that day.

Wang Zhi wore a magical artifact night suit, his eyes deep and somber. "Li Weiyi is too cunning!" he said. "We clearly received reports that he had descended Mount Taoli, but then he quickly disappeared without a trace."

Wang Shouxin said, "Although he's been crippled, he's still a Divine Hidden Agent of the Nine Li Hidden Gate after all. Who knows how much power he still commands? We shouldn't act rashly before the Fourth Divine Son arrives."

Wang Zhi smiled faintly. "He's the person Southern Venerable explicitly wants," he said. "If we can capture him, it will be a great achievement."

"What exactly is happening beneath Fuzhou... now?" Wang Shouxin asked.

"Only individuals above the elder rank know about this matter," Wang Zhi replied. "I only heard Southern Venerable and Elder Qiu mention that 'a great undertaking is about to be completed' during their discussions!"

Then, Wang Zhi's eyes grew cold again. "The biggest problem now," he said, "is that the imperial court and the various rebel armies have, surprisingly, temporarily united because of the demon race and are no longer fighting among themselves."

A shiver ran down Wang Shouxin's spine as he sensed something amiss.

All sounds from outside the door vanished instantly. An eerie silence prevailed.

"May I ask who graces us with their presence?"

Wang Shouxin's eyelids suddenly shot up, his eyes radiating a cold light, and the mystical energy within him surged like a river. He struck out with a palm towards the tightly closed door in front of him.

With his cultivation level, he could shatter even a city gate made of steel with a single palm strike, let alone a wooden door.

Something strange happened.

This overwhelmingly powerful palm strike was inexplicably neutralized by an invisible force. Around the wooden door, the air rippled like water.

"Whoosh!"

Shi Jiuzhai's brawny figure materialized out of thin air, standing inside the room by the door. He chuckled, "Go on, I'd like to hear more. Tonight's unexpected gains are truly significant."

"Shi Jiuzhai!"

Wang Shouxin was utterly horrified as he recognized this ferocious barbarian bandit, who was immensely famous throughout the Southern Territory.

As he shouted those three words, a mouthful of mystical energy gushed from his mouth. Encased within the energy was a two-foot-long flying sword, a Hundred-Character Scripture artifact.

Propelled by the mystical energy, the flying sword emitted dazzling light.

Dense scripture characters appeared on the sword blade.

"Boom!"

The flying sword halted one foot in front of Shi Jiuzhai, its tip rippling with waves, unable to advance an inch further.

"Bang!"

Wang Zhi smashed through the wall and leaped onto the street west of Qingyun Coach Company.

Shi Jiuzhai glanced at the hole in the wall, spread the five fingers of his right hand, and lightly pressed down towards the ground through the air. Instantly, the entire Qingyun Coach Company, including the surrounding streets, was enveloped in a dense white fog.

This was a "Dao Heart Manifestation," capable of extending up to three *li* in radius and transforming into his independent domain.

Of course, the further out it extended, the weaker his control became.

"Bang!"

The moment Wang Zhi landed on the ground, he looked up. All surrounding sights were gone, leaving only boundless white fog.

"How formidable Shi Jiuzhai is."

His ancestral field trembled, and circles of spatial ripples appeared below his navel.

From the center of the spatial ripples, a first-grade Hundred-Character artifact golden whip flew out. The golden whip resembled a golden flood dragon, coiling around his body and extending several *zhang*.

Over a hundred profound scriptures enveloped his entire body.

"Clack-clack!"

Footsteps sounded, and Li Weiyi emerged from the fog. "One truly cannot judge a book by its cover!" he remarked. "Who would have thought that a young man working in a coach company would actually be a Dao Seed Realm expert?"

Wang Zhi merely had the appearance of someone fifteen or sixteen, but the appearances of martial cultivators were often highly deceptive.

Wang Zhi gripped the golden whip, his eyes filled with disbelief. "It's you!" he exclaimed. "Weren't you already crippled?"

Li Weiyi said calmly, "Only my ancestral field was crippled! With merely my Sixth Sea cultivation, I believe defeating you shouldn't be an issue. I've made great progress in the past six months."

Wang Zhi sneered, "You probably still underestimate the combat power of a Dao Seed Realm martial cultivator."

"To be able to cultivate an ancestral field, you are naturally not weak, and incomparable to those of inferior Dao Seed Realm roots in the same realm," Li Weiyi said. "Where is Qingxi? I miss her very much. Where is she?"

Wang Zhi's brow furrowed deeply. Even he wasn't sure about the true relationship between Li Weiyi and Yang Qingxi.

Li Weiyi said, "Then let me ask a different question: where is Qi Xiao?"

"Swish!"

Wang Zhi's expression changed. Mystical energy coiled like a swimming dragon around his arm, and instantly, the golden whip transformed into a streak of golden lightning and flew out at incredible speed.

In the air, a harsh tearing sound emerged.

Li Weiyi calmly countered the opponent's spiritual power. He raised a hand forward, and instantly, countless hand seals materialized. Behind him, a five-zhang-tall divine phantom of combat technique intent arose.

One of the Twelve Loose Hands, "Spirit Treasure Seize."

The golden whip's power was formidable. It tore open a hundreds-of-meters-long region of white fog, carving a half-meter-deep groove into the ground.

A single whip strike could carve a riverbed into flat ground!

But this immensely powerful Hundred-Character artifact was firmly grasped by Li Weiyi. Ignoring the look of shock plastered across Wang Zhi's face, the mystical energy in all one hundred and twenty of his golden meridians circulated simultaneously. He exerted force from his wrist, and an overbearing pulling force erupted.

"How could this be...?"

Wang Zhi had not expected a Fifth Sea Realm martial cultivator to possess strength exceeding his own.

Quickly suppressing the shock in his heart, he no longer confronted Li Weiyi directly, but instead actively charged towards him.

Mystical energy overflowed from his entire body. He spun his fingers in the air to form a palm seal, and instantly, the white fog within ten *zhang* twisted along with it. A small sun appeared in his palm, emitting astonishing light and heat.

He unleashed a palm strike!

The opponent's palm force crashed into him like a towering mountain.

Li Weiyi took a deep breath. Behind him, ten combat technique intents simultaneously materialized. He launched a flying kick, and the radiant image of a jade cauldron appeared, colliding with Wang Zhi's incoming palm print.

"Pfft!"

Wang Zhi spat out a mouthful of blood, and his body spun as he flew backward.

This is insane; how can there be ten combat technique intents?

The moment he landed, Wang Zhi suddenly bounced up. Disregarding the golden whip that Li Weiyi had seized, he turned and fled.

A moment later.

Wang Zhi's body stiffened, and he retreated step by step. In front of him were six Phoenix-Winged Moth Emperors.

The seventh Phoenix-Winged Moth Emperor stood on his left shoulder, its membrane wings, sharper than even an artifact battle sword, pressed against his neck. The membrane wings cut his skin, and blood continuously flowed.

"A first-grade Hundred-Character artifact is worth tens of thousands of Spring Coins."

Li Weiyi put the golden whip into his spatial pouch. This rate of earning made him feel very pleased.

However, the most valuable thing a Dao Seed Realm martial cultivator possessed was their artifact battle weapon.

Li Weiyi looked at Wang Zhi, who was restrained by the Phoenix-Winged Moth Emperor. "Who is Southern Venerable?" he asked. "What major undertaking are you really planning?"

Wang Zhi clenched his pearly white teeth, his eyes filled with fervent madness. He laughed heartily at Li Weiyi but said nothing.

"They should be members of the Twin-Rice Cult," Shi Jiuzhai explained. "It is said that the cult has five Great Venerables, each responsible for the four territories (east, south, west, north) and matters concerning Lingxiao City. Additionally, there are twenty-eight Elders who oversee the twenty-eight prefectures of the world."

Shi Jiuzhai, holding the unconscious Wang Shouxin, walked out of the fog.

As a Dharma King of the Earth Wolf Royal Army, he was considered half a member of the evil path, and naturally, he had a deep understanding of it.

Seeing his identity exposed, Wang Zhi said angrily, "Shi Jiuzhai, since you know we are members of the Divine Cult, you should show reverence. Your Earth Wolf Royal Army cannot afford to provoke us."

Shi Jiuzhai ignored him and transmitted a message to Li Weiyi: "Before we acted, I wanted to tell you that these hidden pawns usually have Death Spirit Flames planted within them. Now we have big trouble. The Twin-Rice Cult members are far more fanatical than the Yan Sect's hidden agents; they aren't afraid of death or torture at all. Getting information from them is as hard as ascending to heaven."

"If they see even a slight loss of hope for survival," Shi Jiuzhai continued, "they will proactively release the Death Spirit Flames within their bodies."

"Are you saying we've disturbed the snake by beating the grass?" Li Weiyi asked.

Shi Jiuzhai said, "Since it's already done, let's use this opportunity to set a trap and catch a bigger fish."

"I'll be the bait!"

Li Weiyi worried about Shi Jiuzhai encountering further mishaps. But he was different; he had more than one Protector behind him... As he thought this, a figure appeared in his mind, and he smiled, saying, "Even if Death Spirit Flames are planted within them, it doesn't mean we can't extract information."

"Whoosh!"

Li Weiyi's figure flickered, and with one palm strike, he knocked Wang Zhi unconscious.

The unconscious Wang Zhi and Wang Shouxin lay by the lake in Qin Garden.

Zen Sea Viewing Mist, in a red robe and wearing a veil, was present in her true form.

Her figure was as beautiful as a painting, her aura noble and mysterious. Her ten slender, jade-like fingers hovered above the two men's heads, releasing countless threads of spiritual light that burrowed into their skulls.

Li Weiyi had long witnessed Zen Sea Viewing Mist's soul-searching methods; even if the opponent had Death Spirit Flames planted within them, she could still find some memory fragments.

Now, Zen Sea Viewing Mist's cultivation was far superior to before, and naturally, her soul-searching was more assured.

Shi Jiuzhai was somewhat dazed. Looking at Zen Sea Viewing Mist in the distance, he prided himself on being able to remain calm even when facing Heavenly King Shi Na'er. Yet, after this woman appeared before him, his heart pounded, his soul felt detached, and his mind simply couldn't settle.

It wasn't because the opponent's cultivation aura was strong.

It was like an innate fear!

He transmitted a message, asking, "Which great divine power is this?"

"Her?" Li Weiyi replied. "About her, it's best you keep it to yourself. Don't mention it to anyone, otherwise, you'll incur significant karma."

Shi Jiuzhai didn't think Li Weiyi was joking and nodded solemnly.

"Hiss, hiss!"

"Crackling!"

Once soul-searching began, the Death Spirit Flames within both men's bodies would be passively activated.

They were already burning at that moment.

After several breaths, they turned into two charred remains.

The spiritual light threads dispersed. Zen Sea Viewing Mist stood by the lake for a long time, silent. Her beautiful eyes, filled with wisdom and unfathomable depth, were in a state of contemplation.

Li Weiyi walked over and asked, "Miss Zen Mist, what's wrong?"

Shi Jiuzhai hesitated, not walking over, as he was very wary of Zen Sea Viewing Mist.

Zen Sea Viewing Mist looked at Li Weiyi. Beneath her veil, her red lips slightly parted. "I didn't acquire all the memories!" she said. "But what I've learned so far is already astonishing... In just a thousand years, the Rice People of the Lingxiao Living Realm have grown to this extent. I must make a trip to the underground of Fuzhou."