Su Yi glanced at the old man in Daoist robes. âUnless Iâm mistaken, you must have told Lu Changming that my origins are extraordinary, and that offending me would lead to unpredictable consequences. Am I right?â
The old man nodded. âI didnât want to see Meng Po Palace commit a grave error.â
âBut your warning gave Lu Changming ideas," said Su Yi. "He wanted me to owe him a favor, and furthermore, he wanted to borrow my hands to teach the Grand and Third Libationers a lesson. After all, if even you think Iâm not one to offend, he could naturally guess that the two of them would suffer if they became my enemies. Thatâs what led to the situation just now.â
It was only after hearing Su Yiâs analysis that the old blind man realized that so many secrets were hidden in that earlier confrontation!
For a moment, he couldnât help but break out in cold sweats.
The young man in white, Wang Ting, was rooted to the spot and visibly overcome with astonishment. It seemed he wouldnât have imagined that Su Yi could discern so much at a glance.
After all, nothing was more unfathomable than the human heart, yet Su Yi had seen through Lu Changmingâs intentions completely; he couldnât hide a thing!
But it was then that Cui Jingyan couldnât help but interject, âNo way! Why would the Third High Elder believe that you of all people could teach the Third and Grand Libationers a lesson?â
Su Yi glanced at the old man in Daoist robes and said calmly, âBecause of him, of course. Lu Changming referred to him as his âDaoist Brotherâ, activated Meng Po Palaceâs transmission formation on his account, and welcomed him in person. In Lu Changmingâs eyes, his words are weighty indeed.â
The old man in Daoist robes couldnât help but grimace. He could hear a trace of mockery in Su Yiâs words.
Cui Jingyan still looked confused. âBut itâs still too ridiculous. Youâre just a Spiritual Incarnation cultivator. How could you teach Emperors a lesson?â
The old man in Daoist robes said gently, âMiss Cui, youâre still inexperienced. Youâll gradually come to realize just how extraordinary our Fellow Daoist Su is.â
An expert stood before her, but she didnât realize it.
This was a common malady amongst cultivators.
Alas, most cultivators would live and die without ever encountering such an expertâŠ
Cui Jingyan fell silent. Numerous thoughts arose in her mind.
When she first met Su Yi, Su Yi discerned her origins at a glance and saw through the jade pendantâs secrets. He'd even guessed her grandfatherâs intentionsâŠ
Furthermore, Su Yiâs cultivation was overly heaven-defying. He was only in the Spiritual Incarnation Realm, but he could kill Spiritual Revolution cultivators with ease. Even in the Netherworld, it would be difficult to find anyone who could stand shoulder-to-shoulder with him.
Then, before their departure, heâd used the transmission altarâs power to refine a jade talisman that marked the Azure Continentâs location.
Now, even this mysterious master and apprentice treated him with the utmost respect and dared not provoke him lightly!
The old man in particular was an Emperor, one even the Third High Elder treated with respect!
All of this left Cui Jingyan increasingly bewildered. Su Yi had so many secrets that he seemed shrouded in layers of mist; she couldnât see through him, much less fathom him.
âFellow Daoist Su, my apprentice and I shall set off tomorrow. If weâre fated to meet again, letâs drink to heartâs content,â said the old man in Daoist robes, smiling and clasping his fist.
Su Yi subtly inclined his head. âTake care of yourself.â
It was just four words, but it left the elderly man in Daoist robes looking a bit bewildered.
Heâd long since guessed that Su Yi had seen through both their origins and what they were attempting to do.
He seemed to realize what Su Yi was indirectly warning him about, and he nodded and smiled. âFellow Daoist, please take care of yourself as well.â
With that, he turned and led the white-robed Wang Ting away.
After watching master and apprentice fade into the distance, Su Yi looked at Cui Jingyan. âI plan to set off for your family estate tomorrow. Want to come with me?â
âAh? ErrâŠ.â Cui Jingyan had obviously been caught off guard. After a momentary daze, she said, âWhat are you going there for?â
Su Yi thought for a moment, then said, âYour grandfatherâs run into a bit of trouble. I have to go have a look.â
Cui Jingyan was flabbergasted, and she couldnât help but blurt, âHow did you know that?â
Su Yi sighed. âStupid. Donât tell me youâve forgotten the pendant he gave you?â
Cui Jingyanâs matchlessly beautiful, fair features filled with vexation. âThen tell me, just what kind of problem is he facing?â
âCome with me to your family estate, and youâll know, now wonât you?â said Su Yi. He was already walking back into the pavilion. âIf you agree, meet us at Misty Autumn Peak at dawn tomorrow.â
âItâs always so mysterious with you! You're like a bunch of mist shrouded in haze!â Cui Jingyanâs beautiful eyes bulged as she glared viciously at Su Yiâs back.
A moment later, she bit her red lips and sighed to herself. Forget it. Thereâs no reason I canât go with him, and if the Third Libationer really does go after him, sheâll likely at least spare him on my accountâŠ
Right, when I get back, I can ask Dad just where Su Yi came from.
As she thought, the young woman turned and left.
âŠâŠ
Within the pavilion.
Su Yi sprawled out in a wicker chair and rubbed his forehead.
Todayâs incident had been truly disappointing.
Those old-timers were all scheming something.
Third Libationer Yuan Linningâs goal was the most direct: she wanted to seize the Seed of the Azure.
When she took action, Grand Libationer Gu Zhongxun oversaw it from the shadows, and he stepped out to smooth out the situation as soon as trouble arose.
Third High Elder Lu Changming had hoped to kill two birds with one stone; he wanted Su Yi to owe him a favor, and he wanted to borrow his hands to take the two libationers down a peg.
Even the old man in Daoist robes was obviously hoping to use todayâs incident to establish positive karma with him.
Only Cui Jingyan foolishly yet earnestly believed she was helping him by calling for reinforcementsâŠ
âYour Excellency Su, do we need to prepare anything before we leave tomorrow?â the old blind man approached and asked.
âNo need,â Su Yi said with a wave.
A quick look at bit.ly/3iBfjkV will leave you more fulfilled.
A moment later, he rose from his wicker chair. âIâm going to take a trip to the Divine Cave of the River of Forgetfulness, but Iâll be back before sunrise.â
With that, he got up and left the building.
It was already dark out, and beneath the curtain of night, the nine peaks of Naihe Divine Mountain were bathed in faint purple moonlight. This lent the area a mysterious, tranquil quality.
In the Netherworld, numerous strange and mysterious occurrences took place at night.
For instance, the moonlight was sometimes purple, sometimes red, and sometimes pale silver.
On nights without moonlight, one had to be careful.
Throughout the Netherworldâs vast territories, numerous unbelievable scenes unfolded: parades of ghosts, green-flamed Netherworld lanterns illuminating the skies, flowing rivers of wandering soulsâŠ
In danger zones like the Ghostâs Gate, the Blood River of Sin, and the Sea of Bitterness, these bizarre occurrences could be fatal even to cultivators.
In the Netherworld, they had a saying: âWhen the moon has no light, heaven and earth are in fright.â
Throughout the Netherworldâs history, no one had determined just why so many bizarre occurrences took place when the moon didnât shine.
In his past life, Su YI had once investigated this problem.
In the end, he reached the vague conclusion that the âmoonâ of the Netherworld was, in fact, a manifestation of the Netherworldâs source power.
When it disappeared, it meant that some other strange and mysterious power was blotting out the power of the Netherworldâs source.
This was what led to so many bizarre occurrences.
But of course, that was still mere conjecture.
The Netherworld was so enormous that it seemed limitless. Despite the peak Imperial Apex cultivation of his past life, not even Su Yi knew just how vast it was, nor how many secrets it hid.
Tonight, the moon shone purple, covering Naihe Divine Mountain like gauze.
Su Yi stood with his hands behind his back, and he confidently walked over to the edge of a cliff, then proceeded into the valley below.
The valley between the mountainâs nine peaks was perpetually shrouded in mist and covered in numerous formations.
Quite a few presented a lethal threat to even Emperors!
However, Su Yi had visited Naihe Divine Mountain as a guest in his past life, and the formations might as well not have been there.
He stepped into the air, proceeding into the valley. His robes swayed around him, and every time he faced the power of a formation, he evaded it as if he had precognition.
In a flash, he passed through the fog and formations, arriving at the bottom of the valley.
This was Meng Po Palaceâs forbidden ground!
Only libationers and higher were qualified to enter.
The valley was enormous but shrouded in dense darkness and permeated with mist. Two bronze lamps were dimly discernible through the fog, casting dim yellow light.
A path paved with black flagstones stretched out before Su Yi.
Every flagstone was covered in the strange and mysterious totems of a formation, and the path stretched into the valleyâs depths.
When he arrived, Su Yi finally stopped in his tracks.
This was the path to the Divine Cave of the River of Forgetfulness.
However, the path was covered in an extremely terrifying killing formation. Even Emperors would face a lethal onslaught should they attempt to barge in.
Su Yi naturally had his ways, but it would waste energy unnecessarily.
Instead, he let out a strange and inscrutable noise, like the calls of an ancient whale. His voice reverberated throughout the dim tranquility of the valley.
Moments later, an enormous, lake-sized golden eye shone deep within the mists!
Whoosh!
A surging energy fluctuation spread outward, forming a golden arc and pathing a path atop the black flagstones.
Only then did Su Yi proceed, but there was no need for him to continue walking. The arc of golden light shot into the valley, carrying his tall upright figure.
The journey was entirely uneventful, without the slightest surprise or danger. Before long, heâd bypassed the killing formation atop the black flagstones completely.
Before long, an enormous cave entered Su Yiâs field of view.
The entrance was fully one hundred feet tall, and the interior was enveloped in darkness; the scenery inside was entirely unidentifiable.
The mountain-sized head of a massive beast poked out of the fog on one side of the entryway. The rest of its body was enveloped in mist; there was no way to tell just how enormous it was.
When it saw Su Yi, the beastâs lake-sized golden eyes lit up with excitement and delight.