Chapter 317: Chapter 186: Return to the Yan Kingdom (Part 2)

“Boom!”

A loud explosion sounded, and although it did not break the mana shield of the Late Stage of Core Formation cultivator, it was close.

The cultivator’s expression changed instantly, and upon closer inspection of the twin-blade puppet, his face showed even more terror.

Another Tier Three Advanced puppet?

A mere Early Stage of Core Formation cultivator possessing two Tier Three Advanced puppets!

It’s simply defying the heavens.

“Whoosh~” Before he could recover from the shock, he felt a strong suction from beneath his feet, firmly anchoring him to the ground.

“Hmm?” His complexion again changed drastically.

Unexpectedly, another puppet emerged from the ground.

And this puppet was also Tier Three Advanced.

His scalp tingled instantly.

The next moment, he suspected he might be seeing things.

From the front, another puppet charged directly at him, launching a fierce attack.

This puppet was also a Tier Three Advanced puppet.

Heavens!

A mere Early Stage Core Formation cultivator possessing four Tier Three Advanced puppets simultaneously, and possibly even approaching Tier Four!

In an instant, cold sweat poured down his face.

All thoughts of covetousness vanished.

“Whoosh!” In almost an instant, he unleashed all his magical power, breaking free from the Earth Binding Skill of the ground puppet, and turned to flee.

But it was too late; a shadow flashed, blocking his path.

Behind him, the twin-blade puppet also raised its blades.

Even the pale-faced puppet had already closed in…

“Slash!” At the next moment, amidst liver- and gall-bladder-shattering terror, he was torn to pieces, leaving only a spray of blood without any chance to self-destruct his True Core.

“Friend Gu, you are truly powerful!” Zhang Ruoyu looked at Li Jizhou in disbelief after surviving the calamity.

“Our karma is settled, take care, Daoist Zhang!” Li Jizhou gave a faint smile, retracted his puppets, and flew away without a trace of lingering sentiment.

No time for more words, Li Jizhou’s figure vanished from Zhang Ruoyu’s view, and he paused slightly: “Karma is settled?”

Recalling when Li Jizhou had just joined the team, he had engaged in casual conversations as if he knew something about the Golden Sun Sect.

Along with his current words, Zhang Ruoyu’s thoughts began to churn.

Intuition told him this person must be an old acquaintance.

However, no matter how he combed through his old acquaintances, he couldn’t find anyone to match.

Clearly, this person must possess a highly advanced disguise Secret Skill and isn’t just a simple Early Stage Core Formation cultivator.

Controlling four Tier Three Advanced puppets simultaneously almost impossible without Late Stage Core Formation Divine Sense.

And owning those four Tier Three Advanced puppets was not something ordinary people could achieve.

“How could someone like me have any karma with such a person?”

After thinking it over, Zhang Ruoyu couldn’t figure out who it was!

After Li Jizhou left, he flew straight to the Third Heaven.

Now, with Li Jizhou at the Middle Stage of Golden Core, flying through the Third Heaven posed almost no pressure.

At this altitude, no tactless cultivator dared to disturb him.

He traveled unobstructed all the way ahead.

——–

Outside Guzhu City,

“This is it!” A brocade-robed man stared at the city gate ahead with an excited expression.

“Third Brother, this time you must not be careless, or our authority within the family will be in jeopardy,” said another old man in a black robe in a deep voice.

The brocade-robed man chuckled lightly at his words: “Elder Brother, you worry too much, this place only has Guzhu True Monarch, how could they dare oppose our Shangguan Immortal Race?”

The black-robed man frowned slightly: “Third Brother, how long has it been since the incident in the Yan Kingdom? Hmph, you shouldn’t have been brought out this time!”

Hearing this, the brocade-robed man’s face flushed red: “Elder Brother, that time wasn’t my carelessness, it was the treachery of Jiang Yuan who ambushed me beforehand. Otherwise, I would surely have been able to slay those rebel leaders!”

“Hmph! Would that Cyan Robe girl wait for you to kill her? Even a fool could see there would be an ambush, and you dare say it wasn’t your carelessness?” the black-robed man snorted coldly.

A few years ago during the chaos in the Eastern Desolate Southern Domain, various major forces from the Central Domain secretly participated in the conflict, all targeting each other’s Nascent Soul combat power.

The Shangguan family dispatched a line led by Shangguan Dang along with two newly advanced Nascent Souls within the clan to carry out an assassination operation, but they ended up being counter-killed by Cyan Robe True Monarch, the leader of the allied forces, who slew one of the newly advanced Nascent Souls.

Additionally, Shangguan Dang was also injured by a mid-stage Nascent Soul sneak attack.

This incident left the clan with considerable opinions about their faction, nearly expelling the elder of this line from the elder council.

This time, after negotiations between the Cangming Dynasty in Central Domain and the Shangguan family, the elder of their line took on this mission again to atone for their sins.

Therefore, this time they dared not be careless and directly sent two mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivators to Guzhu City.

“Big brother, rest assured, we will certainly not be careless this time. Besides, with you around, I must of course follow your commands!” The True Monarch in the embroidered robe with mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivation smiled sheepishly, with a hint of flattery, speaking to the True Monarch in the black robe.

The black robe glared at him, then solemnly looked towards Guzhu City in the distance: “Ah, it’s unclear whether it’s good or bad that the elder fought for this errand.”

“Big brother, what are you worried about? Just a few junior Core Formation cultivators; even if Guzhu True Monarch makes a move, what do we have to fear?” Shangguan Dang said with a peculiar expression.

The black robe Nascent Soul Shangguan Xiu frowned deeply and said angrily: “You know nothing! If it were that simple, why would the Cangming Dynasty need us to take action?

Isn’t it just leaving us a favor for no reason?

The Cangming Dynasty is currently flourishing in prestige, how could their favor be so easily obtained?

Moreover, I heard a piece of news that this time the Cangming Dynasty proactively reached out, promising us we would make a move once!”

“Indeed! So, according to big brother’s idea, why is the Cangming Dynasty doing this?” Shangguan Dang frowned.

Shangguan Xiu shook his head slightly: “If I could figure it out, I wouldn’t be so worried.”

“This time the Cangming Dynasty only mentioned taking two items from An Liuli, the greatest upheaval must lie in those two items!”

With that, Shangguan Xiu looked at the jade talisman in his hand.

This talisman was handed to him by the Shangguan family ancestor himself, stating that it can only be opened after capturing An Liuli.

He even mentioned that he hadn’t opened it himself.

Moreover, it was shrouded in secrecy.

Looking at the jade talisman in his hand, Shangguan Xiu increasingly felt that this would not be that simple.

“Why doesn’t the Cangming Dynasty take them by themselves?”

“If it were truly just ordinary Core Formation cultivators, why would they need to send two mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivators?”

After pondering for a while, to no avail.

“Forget it, old three, make sure to follow my lead!” Finally, Shangguan Xiu sighed.

“Big brother, don’t worry, I’ll heed your every word!” Shangguan Dang wholeheartedly agreed.

After waiting for three days, finally, two late stage Core Formation cultivators arrived.

After exchanging secret codes, they confirmed that they were indeed envoys sent by the Cangming Dynasty.

Subsequently, the four entered Guzhu City.

——-

“Stop, friend!”

Three months later, Li Jizhou returned to the territory of the Yan Kingdom.

As soon as he entered, a team of patrol cultivators stopped him.

A hundred-zhang flying ship had dozens of cultivators forming a battle formation.

“Friend, please forgive us, as there is currently a critical situation with the great demon war in the Eastern Desolate Southern Domain. This is the rear area of our righteous army, so we must be extra cautious. May I ask which sect you belong to, and what business you have in the Yan Kingdom?” The leader at late stage Core Formation, wielding a top-grade spiritual artifact, the Red Flame Halberd, with vigorous flames.

Li Jizhou glanced at the other party; besides the late stage Core Formation leader holding a top-grade spiritual artifact, others also formed a battle formation.

An ordinary late-stage Core Formation cultivator wouldn’t gain any advantage.

This goes to show the righteous army’s emphasis on this rear area, as there’s a risk of being uprooted, so caution is necessary.

Yet because they need to absorb new blood, they cannot completely block returning cultivators.

“Formerly a Tier One loose cultivator, I fled to the marsh for shelter due to the disaster caused by the Demon Dao. Now I just barely achieved Core Formation. Upon hearing that Nascent Souls in the Southern Domain do not appear, I returned, hoping to devote myself to cultivation once more, in hopes of being strong enough in the future to contribute!” Li Jizhou said solemnly.

“We also need you to swear a Great Heart Demon Oath, as we cannot verify too many identities!” The patrol captain further requested.

Li Jizhou frowned slightly, but indeed, without the Great Heart Demon Oath, how could they verify the identity of many returning cultivators to the Yan Kingdom?

Considering this, Li Jizhou had no objections; after all, the Great Heart Demon Oath is the heart demon of Master Gu, unrelated to him, Li Jizhou.

Immediately swore the Great Heart Demon Oath.

The patrol team seeing this, nodded slightly.

Although Li Jizhou appears to have early-stage Core Formation cultivation, he has a desire to eliminate demons, which is commendable.

Encouraging him briefly, they registered his information and issued him an identity jade talisman.

This jade talisman merely confirms his verification through the Great Heart Demon Oath, allowing free passage within the Yan Kingdom righteous army’s controlled area, except for key military locations.

After entering the Eastern Desolation, Li Jizhou did not head to the righteous army headquarters but instead turned towards the direction of the Purple Vine Mountain Range.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep