Deception

“Do you mean to tell me that you saw Gao He enter the Thousand Divination Tower?” Tang Pi expressed his disbelief. “How could that be? He’s my most trusted aide! Why would he betray me now?” His voice trembled with uncertainty.

“But that’s not possible. Had he wanted to rebel, he could have taken advantage of the earlier revolt by the five clans,” Tang Pi reasoned. “Brother Wang, are you really sure it’s him?”

Qin Huai nodded confidently. “I saw it with my own eyes. I may not be able to oversee the blood sea, but every blade of grass and tree beneath it is within my control.” His face wore a smug expression.

Tang Pi bowed respectfully towards Qin Huai, his face serious. “Brother Wang, your generosity is beyond measure. I will be sure to pay you back in the future.”

He then added, “Brother Wang, the spirit world has been quite turbulent lately. A powerful figure has appeared, slaying nearly all the cultivators of the six clans and three sects to obtain some great inheritance, so please be careful when traversing the spirit world.” His tone was sincere and grave.

“Thank you, Sect Master Tang, for the information,” responded Qin Huai. They continued to exchange pleasantries, expressing mutual concern, as if they were long-lost kin. After the exchange, Qin Huai descended back into the blood sea.

As a crimson veil separated them, Qin Huai’s expression relaxed and his composure returned. Quickly navigating the blood sea, he emerged after a few miles, concealed within the clouds. A tap of his finger conjured an image featuring Tang Pi and the esteemed guest, Gao He.

“Sect Master, why the rush?” Gao He had barely stepped into the blood sea when Tang Pi’s men stopped him. “Silence, and follow me into the clouds,” commanded Tang Pi, snatching Gao He and soaring into the skies.

As they ascended, the cold wind grew more intense, with each ascent seemingly transporting them to a different world. Finally, Tang Pi stopped.

“Sect Master, did something happen?” Gao He asked, his wings encrusted with silver frost. From Tang Pi’s cautious behavior, he suspected this was no small matter.

“Wang Kun has discovered that you visited the Thousand Divination Tower.”

Gao He’s expression subtly shifted. “Didn’t I call him earlier to confirm he had entered the spirit world?” Ordinarily, a martial artist’s journey into the spirit world for cultivation would span at least two months. They had all been keeping track of the time.

“So, about our current predicament,” Gao He began, but Tang Pi interrupted.

“I fooled him earlier. Also, he admitted that he could only monitor the area beneath the blood sea, not above,” Tang Pi revealed without waiting for Gao He’s response. “And even if he disclosed this intentionally, so what? He should only have visual access, not auditory. Otherwise, our earlier conversation wouldn’t have proceeded so smoothly, and he wouldn’t have probed me.”

“Then what should we do now?” a puzzled Gao He asked.

“Next is…” Tang Pi couldn’t help but furrow his brows. This situation had not been anticipated. He had initially planned to collaborate with Kong Binghuang and Wang Kun against the white-robed king. However, upon contemplating, the chances of victory seemed minuscule. Especially after receiving news of the current situation in Great You, where he learned that the Sacred Heart Sect had initiated a war with two races, he was taken aback. He was aware of the Sacred Heart Sect’s strength, but this exceeded his expectations.

Coincidentally, during this time, the white-robed king offered him an alliance. In exchange for providing a king realm puppet with the lives of half the top martial artists in Qingzhou, the Kun Peng clan would retain its top position and prestige.

If he, Tang Pi, truly ascended to the king realm and became the first of the Kun Peng clan in ten thousand years, he would have readily agreed.

As for the sincerity of the white-robed king…

Qin Huai, concealed amidst the clouds using the wind breath technique, conjured another image. A man in a white robe was quickly advancing toward the blood sea from the sky. His formidable aura was palpable even thousands of feet away — a chilling shock to the soul, the immense pressure of the king realm. action

The man stood on a glazed jade plate, his speed rivaling Qin Huai’s Kun Peng wings despite lacking wings of his own — an extraordinary flying artifact. Faced with this, Qin Huai’s figure kept retreating, on the brink of collapse. His aura dwindled significantly as he seemed to merge with the turbulent wind.

With the cover of the dense fog, Qin Huai appeared virtually non-existent. However, he couldn’t retreat any further lest he miss their conversation.

The white-robed king didn’t attempt to disguise his trail, his intense aura unabated even as he plunged into the blood sea — it was a clear challenge.

As he paced on the clouds, reaching Tang Pi, he declared, “I could obliterate all of you at any given time. The sky isn’t a safe haven.”

He seemed aware of their earlier exchange, his booming voice echoing across the blood sea, addressing both Tang Pi and Wang Kun.

“Assist me in eliminating those human nuisances, and I’ll provide what you desire.” The white-robed king’s gaze, ablaze with a dazzling white light, bore down on Tang Pi as though he were a deity, much to Tang Pi’s displeasure.

Nonetheless, the circumstances coerced Tang Pi to yield. “Very well! Let’s make a deal. I’ll stay out of the blood sea’s chaos.” Tang Pi decisively concurred, flicking his sleeves.

His choices were limited. If he refused, his life would be in jeopardy.