Chapter 539: Xue Lengzhao’s Warning

Upon hearing these words, Xue Lengzhao felt a thunderous explosion in his mind, the shadows completely shattered, and tears unknowingly streamed down his face.

The evil demon he had considered unbeatable in his heart was treated like a mere dog in someone else’s eyes, effortlessly slain without even knowing its name!

From this day forward, there would no longer be the Ten-Hearted Lover in the world.

From this day forward, all past events would be buried forever!

At this moment, even if the Ten-Hearted Lover were still alive, he would no longer be an insurmountable and tormenting demon in Xue Lengzhao’s eyes, nor the master of his joy and suffering.

Sometimes, overcoming inner demons might only require a slight spark of opportunity!

“The Ten-Hearted Lover of the House of Joy…” Jiang Zhiwei glanced at the corpse of the Ten-Hearted Lover, who had died with eyes wide open in disbelief. She felt a sense of relief and briefly recounted the entire incident.

Meng Qi felt a surge of anger rise from his heart. That damned lustful monk—thankfully, he had already been cut in two by Meng Qi’s blade!

But even being cut in two was far too lenient for such a scoundrel!

After his anger slightly subsided, Meng Qi couldn’t help but feel a bit smug. He had actually slain a master who had crossed the first Celestial Ladder with a single strike. Moreover, his earlier skeptical question had been particularly “stylish,” showcasing his might before Jiang Zhiwei and the external disciple of the Snow Mountain Sect.

Most importantly, the Ten-Hearted Lover must have possessed immense wealth!

Just then, a calm and refined voice entered Meng Qi’s ears: “I’ll take seven, you take three.”

Meng Qi’s expression instantly turned blank. Although he had mentally prepared himself, when faced with such a situation, he still couldn’t help feeling a bit sorrowful, as if treasures were sprouting wings and flying away before his eyes.

But this was only fair. If it weren’t for the Cloud Crane Immortal’s divine aura, which effortlessly dispelled the “Fundamental Vow of the Joyous Buddha,” and immobilized the Ten-Hearted Lover, how could Meng Qi have slain an unmatched expert at the fourth level of external disciples with a single strike? At most, he could have caught him off guard and wounded him. Then, with Jiang Zhiwei’s help, they might have had a fifty-fifty chance of victory.

But a fifty-fifty chance was entirely different from actually killing the Ten-Hearted Lover. When Meng Qi struck him with the Primordial Sundering Slash, there had clearly been a defensive treasure blocking the blow. That white monk’s robe had also been soft yet resilient, nearly preventing Meng Qi from breaking through. If the Cloud Crane Immortal hadn’t immobilized the Ten-Hearted Lover, he would have surely found an opportunity to act once the treasure’s power took effect!

Master, where’s your immortal demeanor! Meng Qi muttered inwardly. He nodded at Xue Lengzhao, greeted her, descended to the ground, and began searching the Ten-Hearted Lover’s body for items.

Meanwhile, Jiang Zhiwei silently retracted the Gate of Ten Thousand Scenes, “concernedly” inquiring about Xue Lengzhao’s condition. Xue Lengzhao had been in a fierce internal struggle and hadn’t noticed where Meng Qi had suddenly appeared from. She had assumed the Gate of Ten Thousand Scenes was a defensive treasure that blocked the Ten-Hearted Lover’s attack, allowing Meng Qi, who had been hiding nearby, to land the decisive blow.

The defensive treasures and protective monk’s robe on the Ten-Hearted Lover’s body had all been destroyed by Meng Qi’s single slash. However, a string of prayer beads clutched in his left hand and a pale yellow cloth pouch at his waist remained intact.

The prayer beads numbered nine, dark in color, each adorned with a strange eye.

Even without being activated, merely looking at them caused Meng Qi to feel his soul dizzy and his body weak, as if he had been drawn into a cycle of reincarnation by those nine eerie eyes, experiencing both heavenly bliss and hellish torment.

“Thankfully, the Ten-Hearted Lover, confident in his superior cultivation, didn’t activate this treasure…” Meng Qi felt a slight sense of relief.

His relief wasn’t because Jiang Zhiwei might have been captured—after all, as the direct disciple of the strongest master of the Sword-Washing Pavilion, Jiang Zhiwei must have received a life-saving treasure upon reaching the external disciple stage. Meng Qi was relieved precisely because the Ten-Hearted Lover hadn’t had time to activate the treasure, which had benefited him!

No, it had benefited the old cow-nosed Cloud Crane!

“The Nine-Eyed Reincarnation Beads,” Jiang Zhiwei glanced at the prayer beads in Meng Qi’s hand and recognized their “identity.”

Nine-Eyed Reincarnation Beads? Meng Qi immediately recalled what they were!

The Western Buddhist sect belonged to the Esoteric School, distinct from the Chan School of Shaolin and the Pure Land School. Symbolized by the Vajra Temple, its followers were widespread throughout the Western Regions, even spreading into the grasslands, giving rise to the so-called “Esoteric Buddhism.” The House of Joy also originated from the Esoteric School but had strayed into heresy, deviating from the true Buddhist path and becoming despised by the world.

The Nine-Eyed Reincarnation Beads were treasures of the Esoteric School. Though each branch had its own unique techniques, their essence remained unchanged: to draw the enemy’s spirit into an illusory cycle of reincarnation, tormenting them with the suffering of birth, aging, sickness, death, and the pleasures and pains of life. If one’s mind was not strong enough or had obvious vulnerabilities, after experiencing one “cycle,” their spirit would be nearly shattered—just like the scar-faced man who had collapsed in shame under Meng Qi’s Heaven-Shattering and Earth-Shaking Method.

“About the level of an external disciple at the fifth heavenly stage. Combined with the Heaven-Shattering and Earth-Shaking Method, it should have extraordinary effects…” Meng Qi mused inwardly.

Upon reaching the External Disciple level, all his adversaries were masters with formidable souls and potent spiritual power. Although the Heaven-Shattering and Earth-Shaking Technique was indeed miraculous—capable of awakening past-life memories—its low rank and the fact that it had already reached the limit of the first volume of the Muscle Transformation Scripture made it difficult to breach an opponent’s spiritual defenses and invade their Sea of Consciousness. Unless he employed the Arhat’s Breaking Precepts Blade Technique as a medium to establish a mind-to-mind connection—a method Meng Qi was reluctant to use—it had essentially become a useless burden.

The appearance of the Nine-Eyed Reincarnation Beads gave the Heaven-Shattering and Earth-Shaking Method a chance to be useful again.

“I’d better include these beads in my three-tenths share,” Meng Qi silently decided. Then he forcibly broke the seal on the cloth pouch.

Upon opening the pouch, it turned out to be similar to a spatial ring, its interior space roughly equivalent to Meng Qi’s current “Pocket Courtyard,” filled with various items.

Meng Qi did not feel delighted; instead, his mouth twitched. Most of the items were women’s clothing and undergarments, stained with various filth…

What a pervert! Meng Qi inwardly cursed, sweeping this pile of items aside. He first retrieved a red-and-white pearl.

As soon as the pearl touched his skin, a series of illusions appeared in Meng Qi’s mind—beautiful women, naked and bare-fleshed, expressions intoxicated, immersed in lewd ecstasy.

Xue Lengzhao had been quietly observing from above. Seeing Meng Qi take out the pearl, her face flushed red, and she urgently exclaimed, “This is the Red-and-White Mani Pearl, a tool used by the House of Joy for cultivation!”

The Red-and-White Mani Pearl? A wish-fulfilling pearl refined from the energy of desire and the essence of men and women during seduction… No wonder there were visions of women indulging in lust—these were the results of the Ten-Hearted Lover’s seductions… Meng Qi tossed the pearl into the pouch, deciding to give it to the Cloud Crane Immortal!

Among the remaining items was a golden wheel weapon engraved with an image of the Joyous Buddha, several rare treasures, not as rich as those of Zeluo, but one stone was exactly what Meng Qi urgently needed—a scarce item called Yuanhai Xuanshi!

It was only a small black stone, but Meng Qi nearly couldn’t lift it. The surrounding void seemed to collapse toward it, precisely the material needed for refining the Primordial Void.

Meng Qi calculated the value and decided to keep the “Nine-Eyed Reincarnation Beads” and the “Yuanhai Xuanshi,” planning to give the Red-and-White Mani Pearl, the golden wheel weapon, and the pale yellow pouch to the Cloud Crane Immortal.

Suddenly, he noticed a piece of sheepskin beneath several rare treasures. He pulled it out and found it wrapped around a black string of prayer beads, ancient and distant, similar to those owned by Zhou Qiushan and Qian Kai, but not completely devoid of power—it gave off a hazy, muddled sensation.

The sheepskin depicted a map from Yuhai to the Tanhan region, clearly marking various landscapes. Seven locations were marked with red dots, and one place was circled in red.

Jiang Zhiwei flew down to observe, blocking Xue Lengzhao’s view and cutting off her perception.

“These seven locations are where the Buddha’s light previously shone,” Meng Qi identified, sending a mental message to Jiang Zhiwei.

Jiang Zhiwei’s heart stirred. She looked at the place circled in red, then gazed into the distance. “The place surrounded by the red circle is where the Buddha’s light just shone!”

As soon as Meng Qi heard this from Jiang Zhiwei, his heart surged with shock. Before the Buddha’s light appeared, the Ten-Hearted Lover had already judged that something unusual would happen there, hence marking it with a red circle?

No wonder he hadn’t gone to investigate!

What had he based this judgment on? Had he grasped the location where the final palm technique’s manual would emerge?

The House of Joy, though a heretical sect of Buddhism, had a far deeper understanding of Buddhist teachings than Meng Qi, a half-baked monk. They could make such judgments, but Meng Qi could only stare blankly at the sheepskin.

As they exchanged words, Xue Lengzhao looked toward the returning lights in the distance and suddenly murmured, “Thank you both for this. Hmm, hmm, leave Yuhai as soon as possible. Delay may bring danger.”

After speaking, she directly flew toward the edge of Yuhai to greet her sect’s elders.

Delay may bring danger? Meng Qi and Jiang Zhiwei exchanged glances, both puzzled. What did Xue Lengzhao mean? Could it be that the Snow Mountain Sect, the Vajra Temple, and the Asura Temple had some major plans?

“I’ll first relay Xue Lengzhao’s warning to my seniors, then await my sect’s orders, advancing and retreating with my fellow disciples,” Jiang Zhiwei stated her position.

This was no longer a matter of sparring or battling. As a member of the Sword-Washing Pavilion, she wouldn’t leave prematurely without clear orders.

Meng Qi nodded, glancing back toward the location of Lao Cao’s Tavern, speculating what had happened to Xie the Drunkard and how he should contact the Immortal Trace to determine his next steps…

Xie the Drunkard was always drunk, showing no signs of competing for the palm technique. Logically, none of the experts in Yuhai would target him.

Now, there were only two possibilities: either the Immortal Trace’s identity had been exposed, leading to an ambush, or old enemies had discovered him.

Meng Qi decided to be cautious. He would treat this as a compromised contact point and not leave any hidden marks in Yuhai to seek a meeting.

This place wasn’t far from Liushaji or the entrance to the Biyou Heaven’s vast ocean, so he was willing to make the journey!

Once he clarified the Immortal Trace’s plans, schemes, and personnel allocation, he would know what auxiliary actions he needed to take!

Having made his decision, he whispered secretly to Jiang Zhiwei, “Zhiwei, since you’ll be waiting for your sect’s orders and won’t leave temporarily, take the Gate of Ten Thousand Scenes and wander around for a while, finding an opportunity to let the Cloud Crane Immortal come out for a stroll. I have something to attend to in Liushaji.”

This was their prior agreement. Meng Qi dared not deceive the Cloud Crane Immortal. Since he needed to go to Biyou Heaven, Jiang Zhiwei would have to take over his duties.

Jiang Zhiwei didn’t ask many questions. She handed the Reincarnation Talisman to Meng Qi. Without the Gate of Ten Thousand Scenes, he at least needed a reliable life-saving tool at the bottom of his bag!

After handing the yellow pouch to Jiang Zhiwei for her to pass on to the Cloud Crane Immortal, Meng Qi disguised himself once more as the “Great Sun Ascetic” Shen Bao, carrying the “Nine-Eyed Reincarnation Beads,” “Yuanhai Xuanshi,” the sheepskin map, and the strange prayer beads, and stealthily left Yuhai.

…

When Meng Qi arrived at Liushaji, the sky was just beginning to brighten.

Before he even landed, he sensed an indescribable chill. The entire Liushaji was eerily quiet, with only the sound of wind and sand. There was not a trace of life!

His spirit extended outward, sensing the past. The entrance to the “First Family of Hanhai” inn stood wide open, but inside was completely empty, silent and sinister.

Had Jiu Niang also encountered trouble?