harleyscars Chapter 58 The Tortoise Shell Reappears, Surprise Inspection
Chapter 58 The Tortoise Shell Reappears, Surprise Inspection
Chapter 58 The Tortoise Shell Reappears, Surprise Inspection
Sword light streaked across the sky like a shooting star. Just as Chen Yi put the Crimson Flame Sparrow into his spirit beast pouch, his divine sense detected three sharp auras hurtling through the air.
"A demon has caused chaos! All cultivators, remain in place and await orders!"
The roar was like a thunderclap, and the pressure of a mid-Foundation Establishment cultivator swept across the entire dense forest like a tidal wave.
Chen Yi's pupils contracted slightly—it was Zhao Tieshan, a mid-Foundation Establishment stage deacon in the Law Enforcement Hall of the Jade Dragon Sect, and a powerful backer invited by Xu Shixian.
Without hesitation, he made a hand seal, golden light flowed within his body, all the pores on his body closed, and his aura instantly dropped to freezing point.
At the same time, with light steps, his body glided like a fish towards the lake thirty feet away.
"Jade Dragon Sect disciples, heed my command! Form the formation!"
Zhao Tieshan stood in mid-air and flipped his hand to produce the Law Enforcement Hall token.
The token swelled in the wind, transforming into a giant bronze stele over ten feet tall, suspended in mid-air, with the two characters "Illuminate Demons" on its surface glowing with blood-red light.
The twelve late-stage Qi Refining disciples simultaneously formed hand seals, their divine senses converging on Zhao Tieshan like threads.
The demon-revealing mark unique to the Law Enforcement Hall lit up between his brows, and with the enhancement of the battle formation, his perception range suddenly expanded to hundreds of feet, like an invisible net covering the entire forest.
Chen Yi was only three zhang away from the lake when the hairs on the back of his head suddenly stood on end—the enhanced divine sense had already swept over the edge of the forest!
He made a decisive move, activating the Turtle Breathing Technique at full power. His heartbeat and breathing stopped instantly, and his body sank into the lake like a stone.
"Splash—"
The sound of the water entering the water was barely perceptible, but Chen Yi knew it couldn't escape the ears of a Foundation Establishment cultivator.
He immediately activated the Water Movement Technique and the Second-Order Breath Concealment Technique, causing the gray-green patterns unique to the Turtle-Snake Beast to appear on his skin, perfectly disguising his aura as that of a mid-stage first-order demon beast.
Before the ripples on the lake had subsided, twelve sword lights had already reached the sky above the battlefield.
Zhao Tieshan's thick eyebrows shot up as he descended upon the dense forest, stepping on a massive bronze stele. The demon-revealing runes swept across the forest, revealing the utter devastation beneath.
Seven ancient trees were snapped in half, their broken surfaces covered in eerie frost;
The ground was crisscrossed with gullies, the largest of which was five zhang long and had a molten edge.
There were also three gruesome corpses: Huo Sanniang bleeding from all seven orifices, Dong Chang'an with a headless mutilated body, and a Qi-refining cultivator with his heart pierced through.
"Blood Demon Soul-Guiding Technique?" Zhao Tieshan lightly touched the five blood holes on Huo Sanniang's crown with his fingertips, his face grim. That old bastard Dong Chang'an actually stole forbidden blood techniques! Isn't this a disgrace to his Jade Dragon Sect?
His gaze shifted to the battlefield traces, and his extensive combat experience and reconnaissance skills allowed him to quickly reconstruct the scene:
[A bronze fist imprint pierces a bronze shield] - Mid-stage of Bone Refinement, nascent bronze bone form;
[The frozen, cracked cross-section of the blood vine] - enhanced by the cold attribute;
[Second-Tier Firebird Feather Breaks] - A single punch with explosive power comparable to a second-tier demon beast.
"Dong Chang'an has met his match."
Zhao Tieshan narrowed his eyes.
He originally thought he was just catching a petty thief who was practicing body cultivation, but he didn't expect the other party to be so powerful.
If one were to be ambushed at close range by such a body cultivator, one might be caught off guard and suffer a crushing defeat.
"Uncle-Master!" A disciple ran over, holding a photographic stone. "This is all that Uncle-Master Dong has left behind."
Zhao Tieshan activated the recording stone, and the scene of Huo Sanniang's self-destruction appeared, followed by the scene of Dong Chang'an performing the Blood Fiend Soul Summoning Technique.
"Hmph! He deserved to die!" Zhao Tieshan crushed the recording stone.
The sect has explicitly forbidden blood cultivation techniques, yet Dong Chang'an dared to privately practice forbidden arts. His death will be in vain.
Under the watchful eyes of the other Foundation Establishment cultivators, he could not show favoritism towards Dong Chang'an.
But as his gaze swept across the lake, his eyes flashed with a sharp light: "Everyone, listen up! Thoroughly search every blade of grass and every tree! Search underwater and in the forest! That cultivator just left not long ago; he must be hiding nearby!"
"yes!"
The twelve disciples responded and dispersed, forming pairs to conduct a thorough search.
Zhao Tieshan stood by the lake, the demon-revealing mark between his brows radiating intense blood-red light, his enhanced divine sense sweeping across the lakebed inch by inch like a comb.
Deep in the lake, Chen Yi swam close to the bottom like a real tortoise and snake.
The gray-green light membrane formed by the water-walking technique perfectly disguised its aura, continuously releasing faint fluctuations of demonic power.
"Whoosh—"
Hundreds of feet overhead, a dense mass of bubbles suddenly swept by, and four late-stage Qi Refining disciples used water-avoidance techniques to enter the lake and search.
The leader held a magical bronze mirror, the light of which revealed even the water plants.
Chen Yi immediately stopped swimming and let his body sink into the silt at the bottom of the lake.
"It's a mid-grade tortoise-snake beast, not a human cultivator," the disciple holding the mirror judged, observing the magical energy fluctuations reflecting Chen Yi's movement in the mirror.
"Heh, the tortoise-snake beast is naturally timid, so it's normal that it was scared away by its martial uncle's pressure."
His companions didn't take it seriously.
"Keep searching, focusing on areas with dense vegetation where people could hide."
The depths of the water are as dark as ink.
Chen Yi drove away a first-tier tortoise-snake beast and quietly occupied its water cave.
The water flow forms a natural barrier at the cave entrance, weakening most of the spiritual fluctuations detected by the outside world.
He sat cross-legged on the damp rock, his fingertips lightly touching the surface, and golden light seeped into Dong Chang'an's storage bag like silk threads, examining it inch by inch.
"Twelve mid-grade spirit stones and over three hundred low-grade spirit stones," Chen Yiqing counted his spoils, feeling somewhat relieved. This amount of resources was enough for him to buy two mutated special demonic beasts like the Illusionary Feathered Spirit Sparrow.
Four bottles of second-tier pills were laid out in a row—
The "Jade Marrow Pill" used for healing is as white as snow.
The "Restore Energy Pill" that restores mana has a pale blue glow on its surface;
The most precious item is the bottle of "Nourishing Spirit Pill," which is specially designed to nourish the spirit. It is a rare item even for Foundation Establishment cultivators. After returning, he can "devour" it to further enhance his spirit. Chen Yi's spirit is not far from reaching the Foundation Establishment stage.
As for the bottle of Blood Dao Pill, its body was wrapped in strange blood patterns. Chen Yi directly enveloped it with his magic power and temporarily sealed it.
"A superior-grade cold-attribute flying sword." Chen Yi gripped the ice crystal longsword, and the piercing coldness emanating from the blade caused the golden patterns on his right arm to flow spontaneously.
A system notification appeared: "[Gengjin Essence detected]".
He seemed to be deep in thought, and temporarily put the flying sword aside, then began to examine other items.
The broken bronze shield is no longer of much use, but a system notification appeared, indicating that you can absorb the Gengjin essence within it upon returning.
Of the talismans, the most valuable was the second-tier "Blood Escape Talisman," but unfortunately, it had already been used by Dong Chang'an.
The Beast Talisman is a contractual artifact for controlling spirit pets. As Chen Yi scanned it with his divine sense, the Crimson Flame Sparrow in the spirit beast pouch immediately emitted a wave of fear.
"You hairy beast, I'll roast you when we get back," Chen Yi sneered.
This firebird survived his full-force punch; its physical strength was comparable to that of a Foundation Establishment cultivator. If it were made into spiritual food, it would be incredibly nourishing.
Finally, his gaze fell on the ancient tortoise shell.
The tortoise shell is no bigger than the palm of your hand, and its surface is covered with mysterious patterns.
Chen Yi tried to bend it, but with his strength at the early stage of bone refining, he could only make it bend slightly.
"The armor plates are probably at least at the third tier in strength," Chen Yi's pupils contracted slightly. This kind of material could likely withstand an attack from a Golden Core cultivator!
What's even more peculiar is that the aura emanating from the tortoise shell is from the same source as the piece of shell that Chen Yi had obtained before!
He subconsciously activated his internal energy cultivation technique, and the patterns on the tortoise shell suddenly glowed faintly.
"Whoosh—"
Suddenly, ripples came from the depths of the lake, and a profound divine sense swept across it like a tide.
Chen Yi tensed up, instantly pushing his concealment technique to its limit, while the dark gold crystal on his right arm prepared to unleash its power.
The divine sense paused slightly upon touching the light emanating from the tortoise shell, and an obscure thought was transmitted:
"Young man, obtaining this armor piece signifies that you are destined to visit the lakeside cave ten years from now when it opens."
The old tortoise clearly mistook Chen Yi for an ordinary tortoise-snake beast.
Chen Yi felt nervous; he guessed that the tortoise shell had once again disturbed the old tortoise at the bottom of the lake.
On the surface, he pretended to be in a dazed state like an ordinary tortoise-snake beast, even mimicking spitting out a string of bubbles.
The divine sense lingered for a moment before slowly receding.
Once the oppressive force completely dissipated, Chen Yi breathed a sigh of relief and discovered that his back was covered in cold sweat.
"This old tortoise is probably a near-third-tier great demon, yet it has been disguising itself as a peak second-tier demon, maneuvering among the Jade Dragon Sect cultivators. I wonder what kind of conspiracy it's plotting." He stroked the tortoise shell, sensing the ancient, concealing essence contained within.
As for the underwater cave, which will open in ten years, Chen Yi had absolutely no interest in it.
With that old bastard around, Chen Yi didn't want to take any risks.
As for the tortoise shell, he didn't even want to take it with him.
He pondered the system notification in his mind: [High-level concealment spirituality detected]
Without hesitation, Chen Yi placed the tortoise shell between his eyebrows, and golden light spread like a spider web. The patterns on the tortoise shell lit up one by one, transforming into streams of light that entered his sea of consciousness.
In that instant, countless insights about concealing one's presence and disguise flooded my mind—
How to perfectly integrate one's scent into the environment;
How to simulate fluctuations at different levels of life;
It even briefly disguised itself as the oppressive aura of a high-level being!
Before long, the runes on the surface of the tortoise shell dimmed, and the spiritual energy within was completely devoured.
Chen Yi opened his eyes, his gaze sharp and restrained, his aura ethereal and misty.
The Concealing Breath Technique actually broke through to the late stage of the second tier in one fell swoop!
This means that it would be very difficult for ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivators to detect Chen Yi's true situation using divine sense scanning.
Unless it's a major overhaul in the late stages of Foundation Establishment, or close contact with Chen Yi and a purposeful, thorough investigation.
He carefully processed his spoils, dividing them into two groups: he carried commonly used supplies such as spirit stones and pills with him; while sensitive items such as magical artifacts and blood cultivation techniques were buried in two hidden caves at the bottom of the lake.
With Chen Yi's current spiritual sense and array formation abilities, he is already able to detect which items bear tracking marks.
Apart from the photo stone, Dong Chang'an's belongings are safe.
After doing all this, Chen Yi slid out of the cave like a fish.
Using his newly acquired skill of concealing his breath, he perfectly disguised himself as a first-tier tortoise-snake beast and quietly returned to the Myriad Sounds Pavilion by following the undercurrent.
In the quiet room, Chen Yi reviewed the day's battle.
"Dong Chang'an is just a Foundation Establishment cultivator whose lifespan is about to end. His magic power is not flowing smoothly, his cultivation level is not high, and his reaction speed is slow. Yet I used all my tricks, including a sneak attack, and it was still so difficult to kill him. I used up all my trump cards."
He stared at the bone in his right hand, where the dark gold crystals that had accumulated over the past month had been completely depleted.
"If I were to face someone like Zhao Tieshan, who is at the Foundation Establishment stage of a sect, I'm afraid I wouldn't even be able to escape with my life."
I must be more careful in the future.
Fortunately, after Huo Sanniang died, the clues about the body cultivator hidden in the market were cut off, and others basically could not find me.
As long as we can dodge this wave,
"I am now the real Chef Chen, and I no longer need to worry about any threats to my identity."
"Furthermore, my Concealment Technique has improved again. That should be enough to handle the current situation."
He recalled the "lake cave" the old tortoise had mentioned. He wondered what the old tortoise was plotting, but things certainly wouldn't be peaceful.
The market may become even more bustling in the next decade.
But none of that mattered to him. He just wanted to be a good cook and didn't want to get involved in any secret realms or ancient cultivators' caves.
Outside the window, the sword light of the sect cultivators patrolling moved about.
Chen Yi straightened his chef's robe, walked into the kitchen with a normal expression, and began preparing dinner as if nothing was wrong.
Later that day, Zhao Tieshan, accompanied by disciples of the Enforcement Hall, arrived at Miaoyin Pavilion under the pretext of investigating the conspiracy of the robbers.
Huo Sanniang was forcibly labeled as "colluding with treacherous cultivators".
Qin Chengcheng knew the truth—Dong Chang'an's death revealed internal strife within the Jade Dragon Sect, and Zhao Tieshan's trip was actually to investigate the truth.
Zhao Tieshan held his law enforcement token, his tone stern:
"Sect Master Qin, your sect's cultivator has been murdered. According to the sect's regulations, the Enforcement Hall must thoroughly investigate all personnel within the sect. This is also to protect the fairy within your sect."
Qin Chengcheng knew perfectly well that he was using this as an excuse to make a fuss. So many people died in the cultivation world every day, but the sect's law enforcement hall never came to investigate.
However, despite having some connections, she was powerless to stop the sect's law enforcement officers from taking such ruthless measures.
After all, Zhao Tieshan had the Jade Dragon Sect behind him, and no one could find fault with his reasons for the investigation.
Qin Chengcheng's jade-like fingers clenched slightly beneath her moon-white long sleeves, yet her expression remained aloof.
"Please proceed, Steward Zhao."
just
Although Miaoyin Pavilion is temporarily located within your sect's territory, it is not something to be trifled with.
The implication is that if the search yields no results, the Jade Dragon Sect needs to provide an explanation.
During this exchange, both sides tacitly avoided mentioning Dong Chang'an's secret practice of the Blood Path Technique—Zhao Tieshan needed to maintain the sect's reputation, while Qin Chengcheng was concerned about the trouble Chen Yi might get involved in.
In fact, there was a reason why Zhao Tiesheng went straight to Miaoyin Pavilion.
After carefully investigating the clues surrounding Dong Chang'an's death in the forest, Zhao Tieshan began to have doubts:
The Vajra Technique taught to warriors by the Jade Dragon Sect could never give a person the strength to kill a Foundation Establishment cultivator in just a few years.
He suspected that the cultivation technique had encountered a variable that the Jade Dragon Sect did not know about, or that the body cultivator had other opportunities.
This is something he has to take seriously.
If there are indeed changes in the cultivation method, he might as well also cultivate body refinement.
Although the direct witness, Huo Sanniang, is dead.
But Zhao Tieshan had his own methods of reconnaissance; he approached it from a different angle.
He ordered the Dong family to compile records of monster consumption in the market in recent years, with a focus on investigating shops with high consumption, such as restaurants, butcher shops, pharmacies, and Miaoyin Pavilion.
During the statistical process, Fatty Liu, the head chef of Miaoyin Pavilion, secretly revealed to the Dong family that he had been an informant planted by Dong Chang'an, and reported a crucial piece of information:
Before his death, Dong Chang'an tried many times to lure Chen Yi out, but failed. As Qin Chengcheng's private chef, Chen Yi had handled several second-tier demonic beasts in the past year!
The area where the fight took place in the forest was cordoned off, and Zhao Tieshan was confident that the body cultivator would not return to the market.
However, since it involves the secrets of body-refining techniques, he still needs to check it again just in case.
The front courtyard of Miaoyin Pavilion
All the monks gathered, and the fairies who had performed at the concert that day were the first to be excluded.
Zhao Tieshan's gaze swept over the gathered crowd like that of a hawk.
He stood with his hands behind his back, the bronze law enforcement token hanging at his waist, radiating a faint sense of authority.
"Everyone, stand at attention!" His voice was cold and firm, brooking no argument.
Dozens of cooks, servants, and old men from Miaoyin Pavilion lined up in several rows. Chen Yi stood among them, his head bowed and his breathing steady as usual.
Zhao Tieshan's divine sense swept over everyone like a tide, carefully sensing their magical power fluctuations.
His divine sense lingered on Chen Yi for a moment.
However, the golden light within Chen Yi's body was contained, like a hidden dragon lurking deep within its acupoints. His aura was as calm as an ancient well, no different from that of an ordinary Qi Refining cultivator.
His Breath Concealment Technique has reached the second-tier superior level. Not to mention the mid-Foundation Establishment stage, even late-Foundation Establishment cultivators would find it difficult to discern his true strength without deliberate investigation.
"There's nothing unusual. Is that Fatty Liu playing a trick on me?"
Zhao Tieshan frowned slightly.
Then, he flipped his hand and took out an ancient bronze mirror.
The mirror-like runes are intricate, resembling interwoven star trails, and conceal a secret testing method passed down by the Jade Dragon Sect, specifically designed to examine the qi and blood levels of body cultivators and strongmen.
When the mirror's light sweeps across, it can reflect the true strength of the body's vital energy and blood.
With this mirror, he could basically rule out ordinary body-refining cultivators.
(End of this chapter)