Chapter 803: The Powerful Jin Clan Leader

"Grand Ancestor, we've come to see you," Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou said with a laugh, looking at the Innate Daoist meditating on the ground. The lamplight cast their shadows tall and imposing.

The Innate Daoist stared blankly at Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou, who had just entered carrying bedding. "Didn't we just part ways half an hour ago? How did you manage to get into the same cell as me so quickly?"

Silent Daoist was deeply touched, never imagining his good disciples would worry so much about his life in prison that they'd specifically come to stay with him.

"This place is actually quite suitable for your cultivation," Silent Daoist said seriously. He explained that while the prison's formation could suppress spiritual energy, Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou's cultivation was too high and their foundations too solid for it to fully restrict them. Cultivating in prison was like weight training for martial artists; adapting to this environment would greatly benefit their future cultivation.

"There's such a good thing?" Lu Yang rejoiced. "Your master was right; good deeds truly are rewarded," Immortal Fairy said.

At this moment, Lu Yang's spiritual space underwent a major transformation. A row of thick pillars divided the space in two, with Lu Yang on one side and the Immortal Fairy on the other. As the leader, Immortal Fairy was quite loyal, upholding the principle of sharing hardships. She had imprisoned herself, wearing tattered, drafty clothes to suffer alongside Lu Yang.

"Wait, Fairy, isn't your living environment a bit too good?" Lu Yang looked at his side, where dry straw covered the ground, ragged clothes served as a pillow, and he wore shackles. In contrast, Immortal Fairy's side boasted an expensive, soft bed, a wardrobe for clothes, a tea table with chairs and a teapot, and on the wall hung a painting by Immortal Fairy—a depiction of chickens pecking at worms on the ground, titled "Dragon and Phoenix Contending." Combined with the prison uniform Immortal Fairy wore, she looked like a privileged inmate who had come to the heavenly prison to enjoy life. Lu Yang, on the other hand, resembled a powerless individual being bullied by the jailer, while the Immortal Fairy's implied thought seemed to be, "My immortal body is too delicate to sleep on dry straw!"

"Go on, go cultivate!" Immortal Fairy commanded. "I've even specifically suppressed your divine sense so that you can cultivate both your spiritual energy and your divine sense simultaneously."

After putting on the shackles, Lu Yang indeed found that his divine sense was no longer as naturally accessible as before.

In reality, Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou sat cross-legged, meditating and cultivating according to Silent Daoist's instructions. At the same time, to temper their Dao hearts, Silent Daoist continuously interfered with their cultivation by talking to the Innate Daoist. Fortunately, both had high cultivation talent and quickly entered meditative states, unaffected by Silent Daoist's interference. Five days passed in a flash. Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou both felt a slight improvement in their cultivation, and they believed that once the grand formation's suppression was lifted, their spiritual energy control would advance to another level.

Silent Daoist found it curious to see the two open their mouths wide, absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. "Is this the legendary innate ability of the *Taotie* clan, 'Devouring Heaven and Earth'?" he mused. "This is far more efficient than a spirit-gathering array, and it allows cultivation anytime, anywhere."

Patriarch Jin's expression was strange. "Is this how the *Taotie* clan's 'Devouring Heaven and Earth' works? It's different from what I've seen."

Just as Silent Daoist was about to chat a bit more with the Innate Daoist, his expression suddenly changed. With a loud crash, the prison cell was ripped open like a box. The inmates looked up at the dark night sky and the terrifying figure emanating dread beneath it.

"No good, it's an enemy attack!" The jailer's face changed drastically. He roared, his spirits invigorated, and wielding his halberd, he flew into the air, staring intently at the figure.

The figure seemed to ignore the Nascent Soul stage jailer, coldly sweeping its gaze over the prisoners. Nearby residents lit oil lamps and nervously peered through their paper windows at the figure, debating whether to hide inside or flee. Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou snapped out of their meditative state and looked at the figure. They couldn't sense the other party's cultivation level, which meant the figure was an Integration stage cultivator!

"Where are the Heartless Sect members?" the figure said coldly. It was a prison break! Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou were stunned. They hadn't expected the Heartless Sect to be so bold as to attempt a prison break. The captured Heartless Sect members were held deep within the prison, far from where Lu Yang and the others were confined. Heartless Sect disciples were serious felons, and those who wished to join the sect also had criminal records, all under strict surveillance by the Ye City government. However, no matter how strict the security, it couldn't stop an Integration stage cultivator from breaking out of prison!

"Bold fiend! Thousand Halberd Dance!" The jailer roared in anger, swinging his halberd. The gleaming weapon was exceptionally dazzling in the night sky, like another ray of moonlight. The Thousand Halberd Dance was a form of martial art, created under the moonlight. Its power would double if used at night!

The figure didn't even glance at the jailer, casually raising a hand to catch the moonlight-like halberd. The jailer, despite using all his strength, couldn't move the halberd even a fraction of an inch. "Boring," the figure muttered. With a flick of its hand, the figure flung the jailer and the halberd away, then extended a finger, shooting a black light intended to pierce through the jailer.

*Whoosh*—A strange gust of wind, seemingly from nowhere, directly dispersed the black light.

"Who's there?!" The figure's eyes narrowed. In the air appeared a majestic Qiongqi, its eyes glowing with bloodthirsty red light. Each breath it took carried a chilling, malevolent aura, revealing an ancient and terrifying power.

"It's from the Nine Nether Sect!!" Patriarch Jin roared, his voice like a Buddhist lion's roar, shaking the heavens and shattering space.

"The Nine Nether Sect has an Integration stage Qiongqi?" The figure frowned, greatly puzzled.

Patriarch Jin gazed intently at the figure. According to his elder brother, capturing this person would be a great achievement! "It seems they knew I was bored in prison and deliberately came to entertain me!" Patriarch Jin completely disregarded the figure. Unlike the Dijiang clan, known for their singing and dancing, the Qiongqi clan had always been renowned for their battle prowess!

A massive tiger claw swiped down, instantly filling the air with a tearing wind. The figure's eyes turned sharp, and it lightly tapped its feet, darting through the wind like a phantom, easily dodging the attack.

"The Qiongqi clan is nothing special," the figure sneered. Suddenly, as if sensing something, it looked down to find three claw marks on its chest, bleeding profusely.

"The Heartless Sect only has this much ability? No wonder they're easily humiliated!" Patriarch Jin burst into laughter, pouncing on the figure once more.

The figure seemed provoked by Patriarch Jin's words, or perhaps it triggered some unpleasant memory. Endless dark energy surged from its sleeves, transforming into ghostly specters.

"Ghost-Dispelling Arts?" Patriarch Jin chuckled, revealing his white tiger fangs. A gentle flap of his wings stirred the surrounding air, making the ghostly specters tremble and show signs of losing control. "It seems our Qiongqi clan rarely takes action, which has made the world forget our clan's Ghost-Binding Arts!"

Hearing of the Ghost-Binding Arts, Lu Yang's eye twitched slightly. He recalled that the reason he joined the Immortal Sect was to eliminate a tiger demon who also mastered these arts.

"No, the Heartless Sect shouldn't be here to rescue anyone," Silent Daoist muttered with a frown. Based on his understanding of the Heartless Sect, rescuing people offered them no benefit whatsoever. Moreover, Daxia was full of hidden masters. While the city might not appear to have many powerful cultivators, there could very well be one residing there in seclusion. In a situation like this, let alone rescuing anyone, they would only be risking their own lives.

Silent Daoist spread his divine sense, searching for anything unusual in Ye City. Suddenly, his expression hardened, and he transformed into a streak of sword light, heading straight for the City Lord's Residence. "Not good, something's happening at the City Lord's Residence!"