Chapter 522: Chapter 476: Entering the Palace
Qir An was completely unaware of when he lost consciousness. His Divine Thought was enwrapped by white vines, forming a cocoon, sealed deep within his Sea of Consciousness, oblivious to everything outside.
The aura of the Emperor’s Liquid on the white vines nourished his Divine Soul, immersing him within it.
Meanwhile, his body was entirely taken over by a trace of Divine Thought separated from Jiang Yuebai. She intentionally released a hint of the Emperor’s Liquid’s aura as a form of rent.
For a cultivator at the Qi Cultivation Ninth Layer, whose cultivation was two Great Realms lower than hers, she could perfectly use the advanced version of the Grass and Wood Demon Technique called ’Control’.
In the Ten Thousand Wood Forest of the Demon Clan, some grasses and woods use various methods to control insects to work for them. This Demon Art is quite useful at times, but it can only control those with a significantly lower realm.
After discreetly taking a storage bag from her main body, Jiang Qir An Yuebai quickly stepped onto the Spiritual Void Mountain. With the token from the Inner Affairs Hall, she smoothly passed through the Great Array surrounding the exterior of the Spiritual Void Mountain.
She did not search Qir An’s soul and temporarily did not have Qir An’s memories, so she didn’t know where the Spiritual Fields on Spiritual Void Mountain were, only able to walk inside while quietly probing.
On Spiritual Void Mountain, there is one Main Peak and six side peaks guarding the Main Peak.
At this time, all seven peaks were shrouded in bubble-like barriers, with no sign of outsiders coming in or out.
Jiang Yuebai guessed that the cave mansion of the Big Dog Thief, Ning Zhiyuan, was on one of these side peaks. With the barrier blocking, she could only see the green pines and bamboo on the mountain, with no palace or courtyard in sight.
Jiang Yuebai didn’t know what the Spiritual Void Mountain used to be like. Now, after walking all the way to the bottom of the Main Peak, she hadn’t seen a single servant or Spiritual Void Mountain disciple working.
At the wide staircase beneath the Main Peak, there stood an ancient and imposing stone archway sculpted into the shape of two dragons playing with a pearl.
Jiang Yuebai thought for a moment and walked over directly.
As she approached, the light and shadow on the right side of the archway shimmered, and the dragon-like sculpture actually stretched its body and transformed into a real dragon covered in rocks, lowering its huge dragon head, with dragon whiskers fluttering, staring at her.
Jiang Yuebai quickly adopted a look of fear, clasping her hands and retreating, taking out the token from the Inner Affairs Hall and the Identity Token at her waist.
"Disciple is Qir An from the Fulong Sect’s Outer Sect. I have taken on the task from the Inner Affairs Hall to look after the Spiritual Fields and came specifically to check the situation of the Spiritual Fields on the Main Peak and side peaks, to count the Spirit Plants and register them."
The Stone Dragon’s Divine Sense swept over the two tokens in Jiang Yuebai’s hand. She was mentally tense, fearing the Stone Dragon would further inspect Qir An’s body, as she couldn’t discern the depth of this Stone Dragon.
Fortunately, after checking the two tokens and confirming the insignias within were authentic, the Stone Dragon merely glanced at Jiang Yuebai without further inspection. The barrier under the archway parted, indicating for her to pass through.
Jiang Yuebai immediately stepped in, quickly asking before the Stone Dragon transformed back into the archway, "Dragon Lord, this disciple is visiting Spiritual Void Mountain for the first time, unfamiliar with the paths, and unsure which peaks have Spiritual Fields and which don’t, fearing offense toward various Uncles and True Men. Could I ask for a bit of guidance from the Dragon Lord?"
Jiang Yuebai adopted the clear gaze she mastered in her childhood, bowing sincerely, figuring it was worth trying even if it couldn’t be done; if not, she would explore slowly on her own, spending more time.
She just feared the Inner Affairs Hall would hurry someone over too early. Once her main body left, with too much distance, she couldn’t control Qir An’s body any longer.
Within the Fulong Sect, everyone had a very poor attitude toward the Dragon Clan. Even if it was a disciple with low cultivation, facing a high-cultivation Dragon Clan member or other Inner Sect Disciple, or a dragon beside a Direct Disciple, they only feigned kindness due to cultivation and identity.
In Jiang Yuebai’s eyes, the Stone Dragon saw a genuine sincerity, illuminatingly honest, without a trace of disdain or arrogance.
Moreover, she exuded an aura that made the dragon unwilling to resist.
Hmm—
The Stone Dragon let out a low hum, transmitting a Divine Thought over, and returned to the archway, transforming back into a statue.
Jiang Yuebai’s eyes lit up, hurriedly expressing her gratitude.
"Thank you, Dragon Lord!"
Jiang Yuebai quickly climbed the stairs. The information in the Stone Dragon’s Divine Thought was extensive and detailed, telling her all about peak affiliations and the distribution of the Spiritual Fields.
It turned out that the Big Dog Thief, Ning Zhiyuan, was the third disciple of Daoist Long Ming.
Daoist Long Ming’s first disciple left the sect half a year ago, claiming to seek an opportunity for Nascent Soul formation, while the second disciple took on a task to the West Sea.
The fourth disciple was still in closed-door cultivation on Spiritual Void Mountain, impacting Late-Stage Golden Core, probably unaware that Daoist Long Ming had already perished.
The fifth disciple and the newly received sixth disciple lived together, still on the side peak farthest from the Main Peak at the moment.
Before coming to Fulong Sect, Jiang Yuebai had learned that Daoist Long Ming had a Divinity Transformation master. Unfortunately, his master was seriously injured in the West Sea, with his foundation damaged, and his cultivation regressed, unable to return from the West Sea temporarily.
Therefore, after Daoist Long Ming’s fall, many people rushed to push him down, with the Five Fire True Monarch scheming for his assets.
Rumor had it that the Sect Master of Fulong Sect gave a deadline: if Daoist Long Ming’s first disciple couldn’t return after forming a Nascent Soul within three years, the entire Spiritual Void Mountain would be allocated to be under the Five Fire True Monarch’s control.
Three years, to High-Level Cultivators, passed in the blink of an eye.
Therefore, Qir An’s task of looking after the Spiritual Fields was for three years. Whether he could continue after three years depended on whether the Five Fire True Monarch would allow Qir An to stay.
The side peaks where Daoist Long Ming’s first three disciples lived were the closest to the Main Peak. Jiang Yuebai restrained her patience, starting to tally from the Spiritual Fields in the back valley of the Main Peak.
The main palaces and important areas on the Main Peak were all protected by stronger barriers, requiring specific Jade Talismans to pass through.
The valley behind was not large, less than half of Huaxi Valley, guarded by only two servant disciples at the Qi Cultivation Third Layer.
Jiang Yuebai was considered their supervisor; after arriving, she used a mixture of kindness and severity, giving a sweet treat after a slap, making them happily hand over the Spiritual Field ledger.
The condition of the Spiritual Fields was somewhat dire, so in front of the two disciples, Jiang Yuebai performed the Five-Layer Cloud Rain Technique using Qir An’s body, which she hadn’t used for a long time.
A shower of Spiritual Rain fell, and the withered Spirit Plants revitalized, shooting up taller.
"Alright, you two no longer need to watch over here for now. You, go tally the Spiritual Fields on the two side peaks over there, and you, over there; I’ll tally the two peaks on the Main Peak side. If we can’t draft a detailed list by tonight, then no rest for anyone!"
Jiang Yuebai issued orders, and the three moved separately. Jiang Yuebai made a show of going to the side peak where Daoist Long Ming’s first disciple lived, finding the Spiritual Fields already abandoned and nothing left.
One servant was assigned to the second disciple’s side peak. With the Jade Scroll listing the details, she then proceeded to the side peak where Ning Zhiyuan resided.
The Spiritual Fields below the mountain and at the mountainside had already been abandoned, with the grand halls all located at the mountaintop. Confirming no one and no dragon were present on this side peak, Jiang Yuebai quietly slipped up to the mountaintop.
A mansion entirely constructed from white jade stood under the bright moon, splendid and magnificent, shrouded in a blue barrier, serene and profound.
"So big? There’s going to be a lot to do tonight."
Jiang Yuebai took out Ning Zhiyuan’s Key Jade Talisman, cautiously advancing forward. Standing at the edge of the barrier, she inhaled deeply and pressed the Key Jade Talisman against the blue light barrier.
Streams of flowing light converged from all directions, colliding with the Key Jade Talisman, causing ripples after ripples. In these ripples, the thick blue light barrier gradually and silently dispersed.
Jiang Yuebai couldn’t suppress her joy in her heart, mixed with a bit of excitement, quickly stepping into the barrier and retracting the Key Jade Talisman. The barrier silently closed behind her once more.
The commotion here did not draw any attention, aside from a towering tree wrapped in lock chains deep within the mansion, which suddenly shook its branches, shedding dried leaves from all over.
