“Impossible! Where’s the token? I clearly saw him put it into his storage pouch.” Moments later, the man muttered in disbelief. Unwilling to accept this, he emptied the pouch onto the ground. A white mist sprayed from its opening, revealing a pile of low-grade magical artifacts and a handful of inferior spirit stones scattered across the floor.
Upon seeing the contents, the man’s face turned deathly pale. A green glow suddenly enveloped him as he wordlessly transformed into a streak of light, darting toward the hall’s entrance.
A long sigh echoed through the hall, followed by a sudden shimmer of silver light across the walls. Layer upon layer of silver barriers emerged like waves, forming a massive dome that trapped the man inside.
With a cold snort, the man showed no intention of stopping. Instead, he slapped a pouch at his waist, releasing a pitch-black pangolin-like spirit beast that lunged at the barrier. A dull *thud* sounded as the beast was repelled without even causing the silver dome to tremble.
A chill ran down the man’s spine, but he gritted his teeth and spat out a blue flying fork. Instantly merging with his escape light, it transformed into a thick blue streak that slammed into the barrier. Another muffled *boom* followed, and the blue light was unceremoniously flung back several feet, nearly crashing to the ground after a brief spin.
“Brother Gu, there’s no need to struggle. This hall is the core of the entire Yellow Dragon Mountain formation and its most formidable restriction. Once trapped here, escape is impossible,” a calm voice rang out in the hall—eerily familiar, as if it belonged to the bald-browed man.
“So you’re not truly dead. That corpse earlier was a flesh puppet, wasn’t it? I’ve long heard rumors that the Nine Nations Alliance has a mysterious cultivator skilled in crafting lifelike flesh puppets indistinguishable from the real person. I never imagined it was true.” The blue dome dimmed, revealing a figure—none other than Gu Shuangpu of the Beast Taming Sect. Though pale-faced and grim, he maintained a semblance of composure.
“Brother Gu is indeed well-informed about our Nine Nations Alliance, even knowing of the substitute puppets. Indeed, what you destroyed earlier was a puppet I controlled. Even a Nascent Soul cultivator like you couldn’t spot the difference—proof of its flawless imitation.” Outside the hall, white light flickered as the bald-browed man emerged. He glanced at Gu Shuangpu inside the dome and the puddle of corrupted blood that had been his puppet, speaking indifferently.
“Hmph! What use is a perfect imitation? Had I not feared arousing suspicion and refrained from scanning your puppet with my spiritual sense, such an empty shell could never have deceived me. Besides, I should have realized sooner—my Twin-Tailed Emerald Serpent, nurtured for centuries, is lethally venomous but could never easily kill a Nascent Soul cultivator. I only intended to wound you, but when the strike succeeded, I mistook it for an underestimation of the serpent’s potency. It seems I was indeed overconfident.” Gu Shuangpu’s expression darkened, a flicker of regret in his eyes.
“Heh! I commissioned this puppet on a whim, never expecting it to rival a true avatar. Yet, this mere puppet has exposed a traitor like you colluding with the Mulan people. The spirit stones spent were not in vain.” The bald-browed man chuckled without anger.
Gu Shuangpu’s face twitched, falling silent. After a long pause, he asked coldly, “From your tone, it seems you anticipated my arrival and prepared the puppet in advance. Did you detect something amiss the moment I arrived at Fire Dragon Mountain?”
“Not at all. Why would I suspect a Beast Taming Sect elder without cause? I was merely alerted by others. Initially skeptical, I’m now certain. Fellow Daoist Han, Brother Ma, you may step out now.” The bald-browed man shook his head before calling out to both sides.
At this, Gu Shuangpu’s composure shattered, his face twisting in shock.
From the hall’s stone walls, yellow light flashed as two figures emerged—Han Li, calm and composed, and the solemn-faced Elder Ma.
“I never imagined you’d stoop to such treachery, Fellow Daoist Gu. What could the Mulan people have offered to drive you to such madness?” Elder Ma lamented, his voice thick with sorrow.
“Madness? I am Mulan by birth—what madness is there in that?” Gu Shuangpu retorted icily, glaring at the elder.
“You’re Mulan?” The bald-browed man and the others were taken aback.
“Of course. What bribe could sway a Nascent Soul cultivator like me? You Tiannan cultivators have no idea how scarce resources are in our Mulan grasslands. Countless low-level spellcasters miss their best cultivation windows yearly, doomed to become bones in a century, all for lack of pills and spirit stones. Why should you monopolize such fertile lands while we ration every stone? Give us Tiannan’s resources, and within a century, our spellcasters would double. With that strength, we’d crush the Xianshi of the Urt and dominate the grasslands!” Gu Shuangpu’s eyes gleamed with fervor.
His words left the others exchanging uneasy glances.
“Defeat the Urt? What I heard was that your main forces were crushed in battle, and most of your grasslands are now under Urt control. Isn’t that why you’re gambling everything on Tiannan?” Han Li interjected flatly.
“You—how do you know this? You eavesdropped on my communication with Master Le!” Gu Shuangpu’s initial shock gave way to fury as he glared at Han Li with murderous intent.
“It seems you catch on quickly. Blame yourself for carelessly using transmission techniques in my presence. My spiritual sense happens to be slightly stronger than my peers’, so I overheard your conversation and alerted Fellow Daoist Lu.” Han Li remained impassive.
“Fine, very well! A single oversight after all my years of hiding in Tiannan, and I’m undone. But ‘slightly stronger’? Don’t mock me! That transmission art is no ordinary technique. Only a late-Nascent Soul cultivator’s spiritual sense could intercept it unnoticed!” Gu Shuangpu’s face was ashen, his voice dripping with bitterness.
“Late-Nascent Soul?” Elder Ma paled in shock.
The bald-browed man also stared at Han Li in astonishment.
Han Li frowned briefly, annoyed at inadvertently revealing his spiritual prowess, but his expression soon smoothed into inscrutability. This only deepened the others’ uncertainty—how could an early-Nascent Soul cultivator possess such power?
“Since you’ve confessed to espionage, don’t blame us for being merciless. Though I’d prefer handing you to the alliance’s enforcers, with war looming, annihilation is your only fate.” The bald-browed man’s voice turned glacial as he produced a silver token. Raising it, he waved it at the dome, unleashing a torrent of silver light that vanished into the barrier.
Inside, silver flowers bloomed, drifting downward with eerie beauty. Gu Shuangpu recoiled as if facing venomous scorpions, hastily layering protective barriers around himself. His blue fork spun into a shield above him.
“Let’s go. There’s nothing left to see. No matter his strength, he won’t last long in this restriction. We should discuss the aftermath—despite his treachery, he was still a Beast Taming Sect elder. The alliance will demand explanations.” As silver explosions filled the dome, the bald-browed man turned away, addressing Han Li and Elder Ma gravely.
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