Imperial Cultivation

Chapter 1264 - 1260: Making a Move

Thinking of this, Zhu Lingyun suddenly vanished from his original spot and immediately appeared behind a middle-aged man.

This middle-aged man was wearing a gray combat uniform, blending perfectly with the surrounding dense forest.

He was crouching behind a patch of grass, using the dense thicket to conceal his presence, observing the surroundings.

His eyes were slightly narrowed to prevent his gaze from being too sharp and noticeable.

He only used his peripheral vision to observe the surroundings.

His breath was restrained, merging with the plants.

Chu Zhiyuan, through Zhu Lingyun, had already surveyed the area for a while and was quite impressed by this person’s skill in concealing his presence.

This person’s secret technique was extremely powerful, with a cultivation level around the Fourth Transition of a Venerable.

This level had met the standard of a disciple from the Heavenly Sword Sect venturing down the mountain and would be considered a rare expert in other Martial Arts Sects.

He moved forward stealthily between two groups of Court experts, under their noses, infiltrating the perimeter.

After breaking through the blockade, he still advanced cautiously, extremely vigilant.

With Zhu Lingyun’s sudden appearance, he was startled and about to act.

But Zhu Lingyun was quicker, and before he could act, a spiritual attack had already arrived.

The middle-aged man’s eyes focused, then he became dazed, and subsequently closed his eyes.

Zhu Lingyun placed a hand on his shoulder, and they both disappeared from the spot, appearing on a mountain peak the next moment.

The mountain peak was covered with jagged rocks, resembling a patch of reefs by the sea.

Zhu Lingyun placed him into the crevice between the strange rocks and then disappeared.

The next moment appeared behind a team of three, forming seals with his hands.

The spiritual attack instantly knocked the three unconscious, and they were sent separately to where the middle-aged man was, into the gulch among the strange rocks.

An hour later, when Zhu Lingyun returned to his original cave to sit down and rest, there were already twenty-five martial arts experts lying among the strange rocks on the mountain peak.

Zhu Lingyun suddenly let out a long roar, then vanished.

The surrounding Court experts came to the sound and looked at each other in bewilderment.

"What is this...?"

There were a total of six Court experts, three from the Evil Extermination Department and three from the Demon Hunting Bureau.

They split into two groups, left and right, examining the unconscious people.

Amidst the jagged rocks, people were piled everywhere, almost filling the gulch.

"These guys must have snuck in, right?"

"I recognize this one, Zhao Yiyin from Tianfeng Sword Sect."

"This one is Song Lixian from Linghua Sword Sect, skilled in tracking and concealment techniques."

"They definitely sneaked in, taking advantage of our oversight!"

"Damn it, we’ve gone to great lengths to block the area, and they still got through!"

"This is a direct slap to our face!"

"What should we do with these guys?"

"If you ask me, we should just cripple them!"

"Yeah, cripple their cultivation, let’s see if they can still act up!"

...

The voices of indignation advocated severe punishment, without leniency on them.

This was also a way to set an example to deter others, otherwise they wouldn’t have been able to enforce the blockade truly.

Among the six, two remained silent.

One was brawny like a bear, and the other stout and solid.

Their eyes kept wandering, always keeping watch around.

After the other four had cursed for a while, they gradually paused, turning their gaze to the two.

"Brother Zhong, what do you think?"

The brawny, bear-like middle-aged man nodded slowly: "Hmm, these guys are indeed too much and need a proper lesson to remember, but how did they appear here? What do you think, Brother Li?"

The stout middle-aged man spoke slowly: "It should be Mr. Chu’s handiwork."

"Mr. Chu, Chu Zhiyuan?"

"Hmm."

"Are you certain it’s Mr. Chu?" The brawny, bear-like middle-aged man asked: "Could it be a tribute from the Imperial Palace with excellent Qinggong?"

"It shouldn’t be a tribute," the stout middle-aged man shook his head: "These guys managed to break through our blockade and sneaked in silently, it’s not easy to notice, not to mention all these people being captured, which tribute can achieve this?"

"Chu Zhiyuan can achieve this?"

"Mr. Chu’s Qinggong is extraordinary and beyond imagination."

"That impressive?"

"You haven’t had any interaction with Mr. Chu, so you can’t imagine it."

"Then what does Mr. Chu mean by this?"

"He’s helping us," the stout middle-aged man smiled: "Mr. Chu has a very good relationship with our Evil Extermination Department, we help each other."

"If these guys really snuck into the Cave Mansion..." A young man sighed: "Our sin would be great."

"There’s no Cave Mansion!" The stout middle-aged man quickly said.

"Hehe..." The young man chuckled.

The stout middle-aged man frowned: "You actually think this way? The Director has clearly stated, the Cave Mansion is a rumor."

The young man laughed: "Do you really believe this is a rumor, Lord Li?"

He spoke, shaking his head with a "you’re naive" expression.

The stout middle-aged man’s face turned solemn: "The Director’s words will never be false!"

"Yes, yes, Director Huang is indeed a righteous and selfless person, I admire him greatly." The young man grinned mischievously.

The stout middle-aged man’s face turned increasingly grim.

"Brother Li, let’s focus on thinking of a way to solve this problem now." The brawny, bear-like middle-aged man said in a deep voice: "If they could sneak in, who knows if others won’t sneak in as well."

He glared at the young man, signaling him to shut his foul mouth.

The stout middle-aged man took a deep breath, suppressing his anger, and frowned: "Brother Zhong, do you have any ideas?"

"Seek reinforcement."

"...We are already short on manpower, it’s difficult to send more people over now."

"We can only seek reinforcement, we cannot forcefully hold on, or if something really goes wrong, we can’t bear the responsibility."

"My lord," a lean middle-aged man spoke slowly: "Lord Zhong is absolutely right, if we pretend not to know and don’t quickly seek reinforcement, if something really happens, it will be our responsibility."

As a member of the Evil Extermination Department, the most important thing is not about killing evil demons, but self-preservation.

When facing evil demons, self-preservation is necessary, and when facing the superiors of the Evil Extermination Department, the concept of self-preservation is also required.

If the former is not achieved, one might die at the hands of evil demons; if the latter is not achieved, one might be expelled from the Evil Extermination Department.

"...Alright, then request reinforcements!" the burly and solid middle-aged man said in a deep voice.

...

Zhu Lingyun sat in a cave, observing their words and actions with clarity through Insight.

Chu Zhiyuan listened and nodded.

The actions of these six from the Evil Extermination Department and Demon Hunting Bureau were fine.

If one cannot accomplish something, one certainly shouldn’t force it; requesting reinforcements is the safest choice.

He then furrowed his brows.

In Zhu Lingyun’s Insight, that cluster of Golden Light was flashing, resembling the breathing of a fetus.

The frequency of its breathing had changed, becoming slower and more prolonged.

Chu Zhiyuan thought for a moment, clenched his teeth, and disappeared in a flash.

In the next instant, he appeared in a cave.

The cave was sixty miles from the Undying Evil Venerable Statue, where Zhu Lingyun had previously arrived.

If not for his Nine Transitions Perfection, he wouldn’t dare risk appearing personally.

With Nine Transitions Perfection, everything within sixty miles was within the range of Super Sensing Illumination.

Under the illumination of Super Sense, a seven-colored light column connected heaven and earth, enveloping the statue.

Strands of seven-colored radiance floated from all directions, thin as hair, seemingly sparse yet endless, continuously entering the Undying Evil Venerable Statue.

In Super Sensing Illumination, there was a cluster of Golden Light at the center of the Undying Evil Venerable Statue’s forehead, as large as a date.

The Golden Light flashed, resembling the breathing of a fetus.

With the influx of seven-colored radiance, the Golden Light flickered more slowly.

Chu Zhiyuan felt a subtle intuition.

Once a change occurs in the Golden Light at the Undying Evil Venerable’s forehead, it might mark the moment it awakens.

That would be extremely terrifying.

Could its awakening be interrupted?

How could it be disrupted?

Thoughts flashed like electric currents in his mind, illuminating one idea after another.

He looked up at the seven-colored light column that connected heaven and earth.

The root lies with it.

With this realization, twelve Flying Knives emerged from his sleeve.

Some of the Flying Knives carried the aura of the Demon Suppressing Divine Tree, while others had no additional aura, only pure True Yuan.

The twelve Flying Knives split across various directions, shooting towards the center, the Undying Evil Venerable Statue.

After a tea’s time, two Flying Knives shot towards the seven-colored light column.

They passed through the seven-colored light column unhindered.

The seven-colored light column remained unchanged, seemingly just a shadow, unable to resist force.

Chu Zhiyuan frowned.

These two Flying Knives—one contained the aura of the Demon Suppressing Divine Tree, the other had the power of the void and substance.

He prepared for its inability to resist force, ensuring it couldn’t evade the attack even as a shadow.

Yet the attack was still evaded.

Another Flying Knife flew from his sleeve.

This Flying Knife was golden and radiant, incredibly swift, covering the sixty-mile distance in an instant, directly slicing towards the seven-colored light column.

"Pfft!"

In a light whistling, the Golden Light of the Flying Knife rapidly dissolved, dimming by half.

It swerved in mid-air, shooting towards the seven-colored light column again, then "pfft"—the Golden Light extinguished completely.

As it curved again, shooting at the seven-colored light column, it silently pierced through it, as if passing through a mere shadow.

This Flying Knife nimbly shot into the distance, landing inside a tree a mile away.

Chu Zhiyuan pondered deeply.

What the Flying Knife contained was indeed the Power of Merit.

The Power of Merit within the Demon Suppression Divine Palace really could affect the seven-colored light column.

The seven-colored light column showed no difference, yet under Super Sense it had dimmed somewhat.

Another Flying Knife, radiant with fierce Golden Light, flew from his sleeve.

The Flying Knife was invisible, only the Golden Light burst forth like a small sun.

It turned into a stream of Golden Light across the sky, shooting at the seven-colored light column.

"Bang!"

The seven-colored light column wobbled.

Chu Zhiyuan broke into a smile.

In the next instant, he suddenly vanished, appearing at Heavenly Sword Peak.

At the same time, a small sword formed by the seven-colored radiance suddenly swept past his previous position.

Standing in his courtyard at Heavenly Sword Peak, Chu Zhiyuan’s smile faded as he wiped his forehead.

Sweat already covered it.

He broke out in cold sweat.

The moment earlier was too perilous.

Through Zhu Lingyun’s Insight, a small sword of seven-colored radiance suddenly shot from the light, heading straight for his position.

This seven-colored small sword was incredibly fast, appearing abruptly, its attack impossible to foresee.

If not for the instinctive warning, forcing him to leave instantly during that intense intuition, being struck by the seven-colored light saber might have been fatal.

This seven-colored light saber was too dangerous, absolutely not to be taken head-on.

He glanced at the Golden Sword, finally shook his head.

Releasing the Golden Sword without assurance wouldn’t be wise.

Fortunately, his earlier efforts indeed affected the seven-colored light column.

The frequency of the flickering Golden Light cluster at the Undying Evil Venerable Statue’s forehead changed.

No longer slow and prolonged, it reverted to its initial frequency.

Chu Zhiyuan sighed in relief.

At least he delayed its faster awakening; the remaining tasks require another plan.

A solution must be found, to withstand its backlash and attack.

Otherwise, it’s too perilous.