I Collect Skill Fragments in the Demon World

Chapter 1047: Chapter 675: The Hard-Luck Liu Ji

He was capable of dispelling the overcast rain in the sky, but he did not do so. He knew the rain was influenced by the array within the Shen Family Mausoleum; even if he dispersed it temporarily, the rain would soon gather again.

Zhang Chen opened his oil-paper umbrella and walked towards the academy. Upon arriving, he saw Tushan Qing standing alone in front of the mural, silently observing the lines.

Looking at Tushan Qing’s back, Zhang Chen could sense the rapid transformation of Tushan Qing’s Essence, Qi, and Spirit, clearly experiencing great benefits.

"What are you looking at?" Zhang Chen asked as he approached Tushan Qing from behind.

Tushan Qing returned to his senses, revealing a hint of joy in his eyes. Secretly extending his palm, he unveiled an eye: "This eye of mine seems to resonate with one of the murals."

Zhang Chen was surprised upon hearing this, but he didn’t say much, merely remarking, "Then make sure to study it well, it’s a rare opportunity."

"Of course, I’ve been quite lucky lately!" Tushan Qing replied smugly.

Zhang Chen stepped aside to the stone wall, continuing to comprehend the Xuanji within the Exquisite Tower and sensing the manifold mysteries within.

Ever since Zhang Chen cultivated to the eleventh tier, he has felt some resonance with the Exquisite Tower, yet the perception remains elusive and unclear.

After contemplating for a long time without insight, Zhang Chen exited the Exquisite Tower and returned to the courtyard at the mountain base. His three little ones and stepmother stayed on the mountain; he needed to check the situation in the valley and meet Liu Ji, uncertain about Liu Ji’s current condition.

Employing the Escape Technique, Zhang Chen stealthily arrived at the base, hearing earth-shaking shouts and cries. Half of Jinling City was engulfed by these sounds, pervaded by a killing aura, and the stench of blood rose skyward, making Zhang Chen almost retch.

The city was rife with slaughter and flames, the heavy rain unable to subdue it.

Utilizing the Escape Technique, Zhang Chen returned to his courtyard at home. His gaze fell on a familiar piece of cloth tied to a branch beneath the peach tree at the entrance.

Zhang Chen stepped forward, removed the rain-soaked cloth, carefully identifying it as part of Liu Ji’s garment, infused with Liu Ji’s Qi Mechanism. After brief contemplation, he flicked a scorching spark which turned the cloth to ashes, then entered the house to wait.

He trusted that Liu Ji certainly had lookouts nearby, and the mere act of removing the cloth would alert Liu Ji quickly.

After inspecting his courtyard, Zhang Chen found it intact, unharmed by the calamity, feeling quite relieved. It seemed this place was under the protection of the Yellow Heaven Dao, shielding it from external conflict.

Zhang Chen lit an incense in the house, brewing tea. Before the tea was boiled, a ’knock knock knock’ resonated through the rain.

Sitting in the room, Zhang Chen did not move, instead using the rain to open the door. A figure flashed in, closed the door, and entered the hall.

Zhang Chen looked up, seeing a person covered with a straw raincoat and wearing a bamboo hat, obscuring their features.

Rain trickled down the straw coat, and Liu Ji took off the hat, hanging it on the wall, cursing, "You have the leisure to drink tea while I almost died because of you. Luckily, I silenced the Yellow Family’s steward in advance, otherwise, I’d be caught up with this house because of you."

Having said that, he removed the straw coat, sat by the fire, eyes fixed on Zhang Chen, voice full of dissatisfaction: "You’re quite careless with your actions."

"Who could predict Zhang Xiaohua would attend Chongzheng Academy? By the time I reacted, she had already targeted me." As he spoke, Zhang Chen took a porcelain vial from his sleeve, placing it before Liu Ji; "Consider this as compensation."

"What is it?" Liu Ji asked, not moving.

"Innate Water God’s blood," Zhang Chen answered.

Hearing this, Liu Ji trembled, swiftly reaching for the vial, holding it gingerly for fear of breaking it. Opening the lid, a mysterious Qi Mechanism burst forth; seeing the light blue liquid inside and the powerful mysterious aura, Liu Ji promptly replaced the lid, beaming with joy: "Boy, your gift measures up to the risks I’ve taken for you; I like it very much."

Liu Ji was immensely pleased, for this was the Innate Water God’s blood, which could directly grant him the Innate Water God’s lineage, thus becoming divine.

"I don’t recommend you directly using this bloodline to birth the Innate Water God bloodline. After all, the matter of that Innate Water God’s spirit resurrection, you should have heard about it. If one day you’re possessed by the Innate Water God, or he targets you, I can’t save you," Zhang Chen advised.

Liu Ji’s smile froze upon hearing this: "If I don’t use this to birth a bloodline, what’s the point of taking it?"

"Use your soul to refine it. This bottle of blood is enough for you to cultivate into a Yin Spirit," Zhang Chen replied.

Liu Ji showed a conflicted look: "If I refine it myself to enhance my Divine Soul Dao cultivation, the only beneficiary will be me. But if I use it to birth a bloodline, I can establish a noble family in the future."

"And become food for the Innate Water God like the Shen Family?" Zhang Chen retorted.

Liu Ji shivered: "Then forget it, my Ten Directions Defense is enough to establish a noble family, I better not leave such calamity for my descendants."

Carefully putting away the bottle, Liu Ji heard Zhang Chen say, "I’ve applied a Secret Technique on that bottle to suppress the blood aura of the Innate Water God inside it. The time limit is one year. So within a year, you must refine the Innate Water God’s blood. If you can’t, either come to me for a re-sealing, or just throw the blood away."

"I understand!" Liu Ji nodded solemnly.

"Why did you send a message to contact me? What’s the matter?" Zhang Chen asked after seeing Liu Ji accept the Innate Water God’s blood.

The bottle not only contained the Innate Water God’s blood but also a finger of the Innate Water God, enough for Liu Ji to use for cultivation. Zhang Chen didn’t dare to give too much at once; he can give more gradually later. Too much at once might break the Sealing Technique he set, and if the Innate Water God’s breath escapes, both of them would be in trouble.

The Sealing Technique on the bottle was an application that Zhang Chen devised after comprehending a Suppression Talisman. Moreover, the bottle was not made of ordinary material but was Innate Jade, dug up from a coffin, enough for Liu Ji to anchor his soul.

"I wanted to ask you about the mausoleum. Now Yellow Heaven Dao is going crazy, sending dozens of experts into the mausoleum searching for Creation, but they vanished without a trace. Even from the General Temple, news came that Zhang Xiaohua’s Life Lamp has gone out. Yellow Heaven Dao is now in a frenzy over the Shen Family Mausoleum. The most crucial part is, those old-timers pinned the blame on me, saying I lost the Supreme Divine Sword. They want me to redeem my crimes by sneaking into the mausoleum and seizing the Creation. Zhang Xiaohua died in the mausoleum; how could I have the ability to get in? But since the order came from above, I have no choice, so I thought of you." Liu Ji explained the situation before lowering his voice: "I saw you enter the mausoleum back then, and later in the academy, I heard news of your return, so I wanted to contact you."

"Now there’s a death order from above, telling me to open the mausoleum and get inside. Isn’t this seeking my death? Even with Ten Directions Defense, I can’t just do whatever!" Liu Ji cursed.

Zhang Chen glanced at Liu Ji, recalling that Liu Ji had Ten Directions Defense, then said: "With Ten Directions Defense in your hands, the mausoleum won’t harm you. You could go in."

Hearing that Liu Ji was blamed by Yellow Heaven Dao’s higher-ups for losing the Treasure Sword, Zhang Chen felt a bit guilty because he had secretly taken half of the Immortal Slaying Sword.

"Really?" Liu Ji’s eyes lit up instantly.

"It’s true, absolutely true, but the Creation inside the mausoleum has already been emptied by us. Even if you sneak in, it won’t work. It’s better not to go," Zhang Chen said.

Liu Ji began to lament: "Do you think I want to go? Yellow Heaven Dao is eyeing that mausoleum, wanting to use that great array to trap and kill a certain powerful expert. So I have to sneak inside to explore the array’s operational patterns and then take control of the array."

Talking about this, Liu Ji cursed again: "Those damned Yellow Heaven Dao higher-ups, it’s said a new Tenth Tier expert is about to arrive. I heard someone say he got the Divine Position of the Po Jun Star and was sent by Yellow Heaven Dao to Jinling City to oversee the situation, wanting to turn the entire Jinling City into a base for Yellow Heaven Dao. At the same time, they are secretly investigating the cause of Zhang Xiaohua’s death. Yellow Heaven Dao always felt Zhang Xiaohua’s death was mysterious. After all, Zhang Xiaohua was an Eleventh Tier expert; even the Innate Water God shouldn’t have been able to kill him, so how did he perish inside the mausoleum?"

Saying this, Liu Ji picked up a kettle and poured himself a cup of tea: "By the way, when you were in the mausoleum, how did Zhang Xiaohua die?"

Zhang Chen looked at Liu Ji, shook his head, and chose to hide his methods: "I don’t know!"

He feared Yellow Heaven Dao might have a way to spy on people’s minds, and if Liu Ji accidentally leaked it, he would be in big trouble.

Seeing that no useful information could be extracted, Liu Ji picked up his cup and took a sip of tea: "Be careful yourself. If there’s a chance, leave Jinling City quickly. That Po Jun Star Ying is born for slaughter and is no easy target. Once he knows about you, he will certainly stir winds and rains inside Jinling City."

"With Zhou Qiucheng around, can Yellow Heaven Dao still make trouble?" Zhang Chen retorted.

"Zhou Qiucheng is formidable, but he can’t be with you all the time. Even a tiger needs rest sometimes," Liu Ji replied solemnly.