Back in his cultivation room, Bai Li Shang was currently pondering the secrets of the black sphere in his hands. The surface of the object showed its usual glowing uneven patterns.
How should I solve this?
What secret is it hiding? Bai Li Shang was racking his brains for an answer. He was clear that this sphere represented the biggest gain of his life, as well as his most important miraculous encounter! Should he succeed in solving the profound mysteries within, his destiny would very likely change. However, even with the relic now in his hands, Bai Li Shang simply could not solve its secrets.
All of a sudden, a voice came into the room from outside, "Commander Bai Li, Commander Bai Li."
Cultivation room arrays would allow normally allow sound to be sent in from outside, but would prevent anything from leaking to the outside.
"Mn?" Bai Li Shang frowned. He immediately stored the black sphere back into the wooden box before opening the stone door to leave his cultivation room.
"What's the matter? Did I not say tell you not to disturb me unless it's about an important matter?" Bai Li Shang swept his gaze across, only to see a single World Deity attendant right outside. He immediately recognized him as the person responsible for the protection of the main hall.
The World Deity attendant smiled. "Commander Bai Li, His Highness has given order for you to quickly go see him."
"His Highness?" Bai Li Shang was stunned. "Alright, I'll go over right this moment."
Bai Li Shang felt his head muddled with fog as he rushed over to the main hall. Over the many years he had been depending on Xue Ying, not once did Xue Ying summon him for a meeting while he was undergoing closed-doors cultivation. After all, once everyone saw how the Venomous Ying World Deity was dealt with, nobody dared to offend the supervisor envoy residence any longer. As such, the place remained extremely peaceful.
Upon entering the main hall, Bai Li Shang saw Xue Ying and Jing Qiu seated next to each other on the head positions.
"Greetings, Your Highness and madam," Bai Li Shang politely greeted.
"Commander Bai Li, or should I be calling you World Deity Shang Yi instead?" Xue Ying suddenly said.
Bai Li Shang was momentarily stunned.
Shang Yi?
He had been discovered? Revealed? The relic was still on his body. Would Xue Ying snatch it from him?
As soon as his identity was revealed, his expression quickly changed. He was looking at Xue Ying with a strand of panic in his eyes. Very soon, however, he recovered his calm. Dong Bo Xue Ying's combat power far surpasses mine. On top of that, we're here, at the supervisor envoy's territory and residence. With countless arrays strengthening the residence, I am entirely helpless to face him. He'll just have to do as he wishes.
He already controls whether I live or die. If that's the case, is there any need for me to be so anxious? Bai Li Shang understood that struggling was futile, and decided to simply stop doing it. Quickly after, he understood a second fact. Nobody can be certain that I'm holding the relic. If he were to be sure that the treasure is with me, he would have long since acted. He would have no reason to be spouting rubbish with me.
At first he was nervous, then he became anguished and helpless. Eventually, however, he calmed down and recovered his wits.
All of this had happened really quickly.
"Your Highness is aware of this matter?" Bai Li Shang turned his vision upwards to match Xue Ying's.
"Mn." Xue Ying nodded. "It'll be best if you're honest and explain everything to me."
At this point, Bai Li Shang was sure that Xue Ying did not know the full story. Furthermore, he himself would certainly not reveal his greatest secret until the most desperate moment. He immediately answered, "How did Your Highness find out about my identity? Ws it Monarch Cang Yong who sent someone over?"
Bai Li Shang was a very intelligent fellow, so he could guess what had happened right away.
"What kind of enmity do you have with Monarch Cang Yong?" Xue Ying asked. Seeing Bai Li Shang become flustered just moments before had caused a strand of suspicion to sprout in the minds of both Xue Ying and Jing Qiu.
"I am no more than a tiny and weak World Deity. How could I ever be qualified to offend Monarch Cang Yong? In reality, it was Monarch Cang Yong who was entirely too ruthless," Bai Li Shang helplessly replied. "A while ago, he captured a group of World Deities, including myself, and forced us to enter some ruins, effectively sending us to our deaths. Later, when the place collapsed, the many World Deities all escaped in different directions. Using that opportunity, I also escaped, and only then did I regain my freedom. Who would have thought that Monarch Cang Yong would still continue chasing me!
"Your Highness, Your Highness," Bai Li Shang was staring at Xue Ying, begging without stop. "I can only hope that Your Highness can continue to protect this life of me. Without your help, I would have long since been dead."
Xue Ying exchanged glances with Jing Qiu.
Ruins?
"The Deity world is vast and wide, and there are many World Deities within it. Since you managed to escape, the enmity should just have ended there. Why would it be that, without a care for sowing so much karma, he'd continue pursuing you guys?" Xue Ying frowned. "What do you all hold that makes it worth for him to so frantically chase you and kill you off?"
"Karma?" At this point, Bai Li Shang finally understood how Monarch Cang Yong had found him.
Karma was a truly mystical force.
Even the powerful existences, who could transcend the river of eternity, would produce karma just the same. It was through karma that the powerful existences would immediately know when Xue Ying or anyone else called out their name! This was precisely because they reached the realm they were at that they could have such intricate senses towards karma. Stage four World Deities had yet to transcend eternity, so their senses could not reach such a stage.
"I'm going to ask you once more: what exactly do you all have that is worth him chasing after you guys?" Xue Ying asked again.
Bai Li Shang felt his heart tightening.
"This is something I'm also unsure of," Bai Li Shang helplessly replied. "It's likely because we've uncovered his secrets."
"Secrets?" Xue Ying asked.
"It's about those ruins!" Bai Li Shang waved his hand, causing a complex diagram to appear in mid-air. "This star map marks the position of the ruins. At first, we also did not know the position of the ruins, and it was only after they collapsed and we escaped that we finally understood their accurate position! The ruins might have already collapsed, but they are still incredible in size. My guess is that they still hold something that cannot be revealed?"
Xue Ying looked at Bai Li Shang. "This is all because of some ruins?"
"I can't think of anything else it might be," Bai Li Shang added.
"Mn." Xue Ying lightly nodded then left him with an order, "Commander Bai Li, from now on, you should not leave the supervisor envoy residence. Monarch Cang Yong has left one of his subordinates outside to keep a close a watch on you. I'm afraid that, as soon as you leave, you might just die at any time."
Bai Li Shang felt flustered and lost.
"Also, if you have an avatar, it would be best if you moved it away from your true body," Xue Ying concluded.
What does he mean? Is he perhaps already aware that my avatar is also here? Bai Li Shand thought to himself. His true body and avatar were both located within the supervisor envoy residence. Since he only had one treasure he could use to distort spacetime, this was the only way he could protect and conceal himself. If his avatar were to be captured by Monarch Cang Yong, the latter had methods to ensure that he could not even kill himself! On top of that, the monarch could very easily sweep through and investigate his memories!
"Many thanks, Your Highness. I'll certainly be careful," Bai Li Shang said.
"You may leave," Xue Ying said, and Bai Li Shang politely complied.
Only Xue Ying and Jing Qiu now remained within the hall.
"Those ruins he mentioned are likely real. It's not the sort of matter he could easily lie about. However, he was too vague when talking about them. He might have provided a map, but he did not give any details about it." Xue Ying frowned.
Jing Qiu giggled. "You've overthinking it. In fact, it was you who did not ask him for details."
"Perhaps." Xue Ying nodded.
"Even so, I think you should give your personal guard order to increase the scope of their patrols. The way I see it, Monarch Cang Yong is unlikely to let go of this matter so easily," Jing Qiu said.
In the Deity world, over at the distant Cang Yong Empire.
The Cang Yong Empire was truly sprawling, and it had been single-handedly brought up through Monarch Cang Yong's efforts. In his country, he had an overwhelming amount of power; his will was also this country's will! It was for reasons like this that many experts were not willing to join organizations such as the Bloodshed God Palace, the Temporal Island, or the Myriad God Palace. To depend on someone also meant that they would have to be restricted by many rules and limitations.
Even killing a stage three World Deity would be tough. How troublesome was that?
"Monarch," the green-robed World Deity Mou Xiao respectfully greeted.
High above, a large, tall figure could be seen sitting atop a throne of white jade. Behind his back were many bony protrusions, rows of them forming a fan-like shape. The figure's head was bald, and neither did there seem to be any hair on his face. His eyes were apathetic, and it was easy to determine from his appearance that he was not human.
"Dong Bo Xue Ying said he would defend his subordinate. He will not chase out World Deity Shang Yi under any circumstance, unless we clearly state the contents of the enmity between us and World Deity Shang Yi and affirm the truth," the green-robed man respectfully said.
"This Dong Bo Xue Ying…" Monarch Cang Yong's long and slender finger drummed upon the armrest of his throne. "At the moment, he's full of mettle, so how could possibly refuse to defend a member of his personal guard? Even so, I've already tried negotiating with him, which means I've shown him enough respect. Now that he declined my offer, he can't blame me anymore. World Deity Shen Tu!"
Hua.
A figure came walking out from the void. He was garbed entirely in black, and even his face was somewhat hard to distinguish.
"World Deity Shen Tu, Dong Bo Xue Ying's combat power is very high, so I would not have any certainty of success, were I to send some other World Deity. As such, I must ask you to act," Monarch Cang Yong spoke in an indifferent tone. "I have no wish for you to become Dong Bo Xue Ying's enemy, so it's best that you remain unseen as you kill Shang Yi."
"Yes," the black-robed man respectfully acknowledged.
**
Back in his cultivation room, Bai Li Shang was currently pondering the secrets of the black sphere in his hands. The surface of the object showed its usual glowing uneven patterns.
How should I solve this?
What secret is it hiding? Bai Li Shang was racking his brains for an answer. He was clear that this sphere represented the biggest gain of his life, as well as his most important miraculous encounter! Should he succeed in solving the profound mysteries within, his destiny would very likely change. However, even with the relic now in his hands, Bai Li Shang simply could not solve its secrets.
All of a sudden, a voice came into the room from outside, "Commander Bai Li, Commander Bai Li."
Cultivation room arrays would allow normally allow sound to be sent in from outside, but would prevent anything from leaking to the outside.
"Mn?" Bai Li Shang frowned. He immediately stored the black sphere back into the wooden box before opening the stone door to leave his cultivation room.
"What's the matter? Did I not say tell you not to disturb me unless it's about an important matter?" Bai Li Shang swept his gaze across, only to see a single World Deity attendant right outside. He immediately recognized him as the person responsible for the protection of the main hall.
The World Deity attendant smiled. "Commander Bai Li, His Highness has given order for you to quickly go see him."
"His Highness?" Bai Li Shang was stunned. "Alright, I'll go over right this moment."
Bai Li Shang felt his head muddled with fog as he rushed over to the main hall. Over the many years he had been depending on Xue Ying, not once did Xue Ying summon him for a meeting while he was undergoing closed-doors cultivation. After all, once everyone saw how the Venomous Ying World Deity was dealt with, nobody dared to offend the supervisor envoy residence any longer. As such, the place remained extremely peaceful.
Upon entering the main hall, Bai Li Shang saw Xue Ying and Jing Qiu seated next to each other on the head positions.
"Greetings, Your Highness and madam," Bai Li Shang politely greeted.
"Commander Bai Li, or should I be calling you World Deity Shang Yi instead?" Xue Ying suddenly said.
Bai Li Shang was momentarily stunned.
Shang Yi?
He had been discovered? Revealed? The relic was still on his body. Would Xue Ying snatch it from him?
As soon as his identity was revealed, his expression quickly changed. He was looking at Xue Ying with a strand of panic in his eyes. Very soon, however, he recovered his calm. Dong Bo Xue Ying's combat power far surpasses mine. On top of that, we're here, at the supervisor envoy's territory and residence. With countless arrays strengthening the residence, I am entirely helpless to face him. He'll just have to do as he wishes.
He already controls whether I live or die. If that's the case, is there any need for me to be so anxious? Bai Li Shang understood that struggling was futile, and decided to simply stop doing it. Quickly after, he understood a second fact. Nobody can be certain that I'm holding the relic. If he were to be sure that the treasure is with me, he would have long since acted. He would have no reason to be spouting rubbish with me.
At first he was nervous, then he became anguished and helpless. Eventually, however, he calmed down and recovered his wits.
All of this had happened really quickly.
"Your Highness is aware of this matter?" Bai Li Shang turned his vision upwards to match Xue Ying's.
"Mn." Xue Ying nodded. "It'll be best if you're honest and explain everything to me."
At this point, Bai Li Shang was sure that Xue Ying did not know the full story. Furthermore, he himself would certainly not reveal his greatest secret until the most desperate moment. He immediately answered, "How did Your Highness find out about my identity? Ws it Monarch Cang Yong who sent someone over?"
Bai Li Shang was a very intelligent fellow, so he could guess what had happened right away.
"What kind of enmity do you have with Monarch Cang Yong?" Xue Ying asked. Seeing Bai Li Shang become flustered just moments before had caused a strand of suspicion to sprout in the minds of both Xue Ying and Jing Qiu.
"I am no more than a tiny and weak World Deity. How could I ever be qualified to offend Monarch Cang Yong? In reality, it was Monarch Cang Yong who was entirely too ruthless," Bai Li Shang helplessly replied. "A while ago, he captured a group of World Deities, including myself, and forced us to enter some ruins, effectively sending us to our deaths. Later, when the place collapsed, the many World Deities all escaped in different directions. Using that opportunity, I also escaped, and only then did I regain my freedom. Who would have thought that Monarch Cang Yong would still continue chasing me!
"Your Highness, Your Highness," Bai Li Shang was staring at Xue Ying, begging without stop. "I can only hope that Your Highness can continue to protect this life of me. Without your help, I would have long since been dead."
Xue Ying exchanged glances with Jing Qiu.
Ruins?
"The Deity world is vast and wide, and there are many World Deities within it. Since you managed to escape, the enmity should just have ended there. Why would it be that, without a care for sowing so much karma, he'd continue pursuing you guys?" Xue Ying frowned. "What do you all hold that makes it worth for him to so frantically chase you and kill you off?"
"Karma?" At this point, Bai Li Shang finally understood how Monarch Cang Yong had found him.
Karma was a truly mystical force.
Even the powerful existences, who could transcend the river of eternity, would produce karma just the same. It was through karma that the powerful existences would immediately know when Xue Ying or anyone else called out their name! This was precisely because they reached the realm they were at that they could have such intricate senses towards karma. Stage four World Deities had yet to transcend eternity, so their senses could not reach such a stage.
"I'm going to ask you once more: what exactly do you all have that is worth him chasing after you guys?" Xue Ying asked again.
Bai Li Shang felt his heart tightening.
"This is something I'm also unsure of," Bai Li Shang helplessly replied. "It's likely because we've uncovered his secrets."
"Secrets?" Xue Ying asked.
"It's about those ruins!" Bai Li Shang waved his hand, causing a complex diagram to appear in mid-air. "This star map marks the position of the ruins. At first, we also did not know the position of the ruins, and it was only after they collapsed and we escaped that we finally understood their accurate position! The ruins might have already collapsed, but they are still incredible in size. My guess is that they still hold something that cannot be revealed?"
Xue Ying looked at Bai Li Shang. "This is all because of some ruins?"
"I can't think of anything else it might be," Bai Li Shang added.
"Mn." Xue Ying lightly nodded then left him with an order, "Commander Bai Li, from now on, you should not leave the supervisor envoy residence. Monarch Cang Yong has left one of his subordinates outside to keep a close a watch on you. I'm afraid that, as soon as you leave, you might just die at any time."
Bai Li Shang felt flustered and lost.
"Also, if you have an avatar, it would be best if you moved it away from your true body," Xue Ying concluded.
What does he mean? Is he perhaps already aware that my avatar is also here? Bai Li Shand thought to himself. His true body and avatar were both located within the supervisor envoy residence. Since he only had one treasure he could use to distort spacetime, this was the only way he could protect and conceal himself. If his avatar were to be captured by Monarch Cang Yong, the latter had methods to ensure that he could not even kill himself! On top of that, the monarch could very easily sweep through and investigate his memories!
"Many thanks, Your Highness. I'll certainly be careful," Bai Li Shang said.
"You may leave," Xue Ying said, and Bai Li Shang politely complied.
Only Xue Ying and Jing Qiu now remained within the hall.
"Those ruins he mentioned are likely real. It's not the sort of matter he could easily lie about. However, he was too vague when talking about them. He might have provided a map, but he did not give any details about it." Xue Ying frowned.
Jing Qiu giggled. "You've overthinking it. In fact, it was you who did not ask him for details."
"Perhaps." Xue Ying nodded.
"Even so, I think you should give your personal guard order to increase the scope of their patrols. The way I see it, Monarch Cang Yong is unlikely to let go of this matter so easily," Jing Qiu said.
In the Deity world, over at the distant Cang Yong Empire.
The Cang Yong Empire was truly sprawling, and it had been single-handedly brought up through Monarch Cang Yong's efforts. In his country, he had an overwhelming amount of power; his will was also this country's will! It was for reasons like this that many experts were not willing to join organizations such as the Bloodshed God Palace, the Temporal Island, or the Myriad God Palace. To depend on someone also meant that they would have to be restricted by many rules and limitations.
Even killing a stage three World Deity would be tough. How troublesome was that?
"Monarch," the green-robed World Deity Mou Xiao respectfully greeted.
High above, a large, tall figure could be seen sitting atop a throne of white jade. Behind his back were many bony protrusions, rows of them forming a fan-like shape. The figure's head was bald, and neither did there seem to be any hair on his face. His eyes were apathetic, and it was easy to determine from his appearance that he was not human.
"Dong Bo Xue Ying said he would defend his subordinate. He will not chase out World Deity Shang Yi under any circumstance, unless we clearly state the contents of the enmity between us and World Deity Shang Yi and affirm the truth," the green-robed man respectfully said.
"This Dong Bo Xue Ying…" Monarch Cang Yong's long and slender finger drummed upon the armrest of his throne. "At the moment, he's full of mettle, so how could possibly refuse to defend a member of his personal guard? Even so, I've already tried negotiating with him, which means I've shown him enough respect. Now that he declined my offer, he can't blame me anymore. World Deity Shen Tu!"
Hua.
A figure came walking out from the void. He was garbed entirely in black, and even his face was somewhat hard to distinguish.
"World Deity Shen Tu, Dong Bo Xue Ying's combat power is very high, so I would not have any certainty of success, were I to send some other World Deity. As such, I must ask you to act," Monarch Cang Yong spoke in an indifferent tone. "I have no wish for you to become Dong Bo Xue Ying's enemy, so it's best that you remain unseen as you kill Shang Yi."
"Yes," the black-robed man respectfully acknowledged.
**
