Chapter 143: Cheating Again!

Bright daylight had already broken.

Yet, within a certain courtyard of the Zheng family estate, an eternal darkness still prevailed.

The Nocturnal Star Silk Array!

Once deployed, this formation naturally conjured a localized night sky phenomenon.

And this was only because its power was intentionally restrained; if the array were to unleash its full might, its scope would extend far beyond this single courtyard, enveloping a radius of over a dozen miles.

The artificial night sky above the courtyard rippled, gradually transforming back into a length of flowing silk.

From the soft luster of the nocturnal silk, growing from small to large, four figures emerged.

All four were Golden Core cultivators.

They were none other than the patriarchs and ancestors of the Zhou and Zheng families.

Shortly before, the four Golden Core masters had engaged in a wagered duel.

Two Golden Core cultivators from the Zhou family had set up the array, while two from the Zheng family had broken through it.

The stakes were the Zheng family’s Nine-Sun Yellow Ox Ointment and the Zhou family’s Southern Heaven Vermilion Bird Asterism Array Diagram.

The four Golden Core cultivators touched down on the ground.

The two Zheng family members stood with their heads held high, their lips curling into confident smiles. In contrast, the two Zhou family members wore calm, somewhat gloomy expressions.

A lingering trace of sheer disbelief still lingered between the brows of Zhou Nongying.

Seeing the Zheng family’s Golden Cores looking over, Zhou Nongying sighed, "Second Brother Zheng, you have won."

Zheng Danlian, one of the Zheng Golden Cores, replied, "We are flattered. That we succeeded in breaking the array today was entirely due to the sharpness of our weapon."

These words instantly made the two Zhou Golden Cores recall the battle just past, and their expressions shifted once more.

Zhou Nongying sighed again, "I never expected that your esteemed clan had been secretly accumulating power all these years, actually forging such a peerless treasure."

"For us to lose to this, we have no complaints whatsoever!"

"A bet is a bet! Once the two of us return to our ancestral grounds, I will personally deliver the Southern Heaven Vermilion Bird Asterism Array Diagram to your mansion!"

"Hahaha, excellent!"

Zheng Shuanggou laughed heartily, produced a jade bottle of medicinal pills, and tossed it straight to Zhou Nongying.

Zheng Shuanggou said, "This is the Nine-Sun Yellow Ox Ointment. The future of our clans lies with the younger generation."

"Zhou Zhu and Zhou Zeshen are both exceptional talents. Treating their conditions is paramount; their foundations must never be neglected!"

The two Zhou Golden Core cultivators immediately exchanged glances. Zhou Nongying feigned hesitation and asked, "This is?"

Zheng Shuanggou cupped his fists and smiled, "Ah, we actually have a favor to ask of you."

"The Zhou family excels in array formations, and Fellow Daoist Zhou Nongying is exceptionally skilled in dynamic arrays. Our previous clash gave both my elder brother and me a profound appreciation of this."

"Might we ask you, Brother Zhou, to personally step in and set up a dynamic array for this weapon of ours?"

"Oh? This matter..."

Zhou Nongying wore a troubled expression. "Setting up a dynamic array is, of course, well within my capabilities."

"It's just that doing so would inevitably require referencing the weapon's blueprint."

"What difficulty is there in that? If you wish to see it, look all you like!"

Zheng Shuanggou appeared thoroughly open and forthright.

Zheng Danlian added, "Years ago, we acquired this mechanism blueprint from the Lava Immortal Palace."

Even so, the magnanimity displayed by the two Zheng Golden Cores left the two Zhou masters deeply moved.

After all, the wagered duel that had just concluded had seen their defeat at the hands of a single mechanized weapon.

The weapon was not excessively massive, yet through the rotation of internal gears and linkages, it could undergo complete morphological transformations.

Once transformed, the weapon could unleash entirely different offensive maneuvers.

By showing the mechanism blueprint to the Zhou family, the Zheng family was drastically reducing the threat this weapon posed to the Zhou family.

This was undoubtedly beneficial to the Zhou family. The two Zhou Golden Cores immediately nodded in agreement and inquired about the specific timeframe for setting up the array.

Zheng Danlian explained, "The weapon is not yet fully forged. To add the final components, immense flame force is required to melt the critical materials. Only once the complete weapon is crafted will it be suitable for the attachment of the array."

Zheng Shuanggou continued, "Finally, during the quenching phase, we will also need extreme frost energy. That happens to be the one element our clan lacks."

Zhou Nongying mused, "The Ning family originates from the Northern Wind Country, and their primary cultivation techniques are all ice-based. They should be able to resolve this issue."

Zheng Shuanggou nodded, "That was our thought as well."

With the negotiations concluded, the Zheng family head knocked on the door. Entering, he bowed respectfully and said, "Two senior immortals, two ancestors, major events have occurred in the city over the past few days."

He then produced a formal invitation card. "This is an invitation sent by Chief Constable Zhu Xuanji. He wishes to invite all the Golden Core cultivators in the city to jointly explore the Lava Immortal Palace."

Upon hearing the report from the Zheng family head, the expressions of all four Golden Core cultivators shifted.

"Meng Kui, sitting atop the mountain to watch the tigers fight, using external forces for his own gain—humph, he truly lives up to his name as our city lord. He uses people as he pleases, caring not a whit for the lives of the citizens!"

Discovering that they had been manipulated put none of the four Golden Cores in a good mood.

"As we said before, Meng Kui is one of Meng family's Four Generals. To him, bringing the Lava Immortal Palace and even the Fiery Persimmon Immortal City under the complete control of the Meng family is the ultimate objective."

"As expected of a Nascent Soul-stage expert; with just a slight move, he altered the entire situation."

"To my mind, his true target is the Lava Immortal Palace itself, isn't it? By leveraging the Crimson Flame fierce beasts, he weakened the Immortal Palace while maintaining an impeccably righteous pretext, leaving no room for criticism."

"After all, even a demonic orthodox successor like the Soul Devouring Sect has emerged!"

"Could this Qi Bai be that shadow demonic cultivator?"

"Hard to say!"

"For Qi Bai, a true successor in the Golden Core realm, to be defeated and captured is truly a rare sight!"

"The one who made a move was Sun Lingtong. This person is the master of the black market, having operated in Fiery Persimmon City for many years. He possesses the combat power of a peak Foundation Establishment cultivator, but most importantly, he hails from the Voidless Sect."

"The Voidless Sect is a major evil sect that is in no way inferior to the Soul Devouring Sect!"

"Sun Lingtong did not show much during this battle; the one who truly defeated Qi Bai was a mechanized cultivator known as the Temple-Brow Guest."

"Does this mean the Voidless Sect laid their plans in Fiery Persimmon City many years ago?"

The Soul Devouring Sect, the Voidless Sect...

Exchanging thoughts via divine sense transmission, the four Golden Cores grew increasingly solemn.

The Three Masters were Dao-Seeking realm magnates, and the Lava Immortal Palace was their legacy and heritage; the forces it would attract were bound to be immense.

Compared to these two colossal demonic sects, the Zhou and Zheng families were mere minor factions confined to a corner.

"A precarious era..."

A Golden Core ancestor sighed.

"Ultimately, the one we can truly rely on is still the Southern Bean Country!"

"Heh, heh, heh. Zhu Xuanji explicitly pointed out Meng Kui's methods in his invitation. As expected of someone from the royal family, he understands the art of alliances and diplomacy far too well!"

"Right now, the peak of Fiery Persimmon Mountain has been designated a restricted zone by Meng Kui. Originally, two of us could have entered the Immortal Palace, but Meng Kui blocked us directly!"

"His reasons were utterly unimpeachable; we had no choice but to comply!"

"But this time, Zhu Xuanji's reason is equally unimpeachable—out of deep concern for the Lava Immortal Palace, he wishes to lend a helping hand, entering the palace in person to fend off external enemies!"

"Heh, heh, heh. How must Meng Kui be feeling right now? Just as he treated us, Zhu Xuanji is now treating him!"

After deliberating for a while, the four Golden Cores promptly decided to accept the invitation.

It had been a long time since the Golden Cores of their two families had set foot inside the Immortal Palace.

While leveraging Zhu Xuanji to check Meng Kui, this would also deepen the ties between their clans and the royal family. Should things go awry in the future, they might still rely on the backing of the royal family to counter the probing claws of the Soul Devouring Sect and the Voidless Sect.

With the maneuvers of Meng Kui and the clashes involving the Voidless Sect and the Soul Devouring Sect, all four Golden Cores felt the mounting pressure.

Subconsciously, they grew closer and more tightly united.

At the same time, they rapidly began gravitating toward the royal family of the Southern Bean Country.

At this very moment, within the Lava Immortal Palace.

The Golden-Blooded Battle Ape, Dasheng, claimed victory ahead, clearing the path for Ning Zhu.

Their progress was unimpeded.

Dasheng had advanced to the first stage of the Intelligent Spirit realm, resulting in a massive surge in combat power.

Although the mechanized body of the Golden-Blooded Battle Ape remained unchanged.

While Ning Zhu had not studied it in detail, his cooperation with Dasheng along the way had given him plenty of experiential insight.

Dasheng's spiritual intelligence was still inferior to that of a normal human; his interactions with Ning Zhu consisted of just a few repetitive phrases.

One could truly call him a man of few words.

When Ning Zhu tried to prompt him for opinions or deliberately started conversations, Dasheng simply remained silent.

"Dasheng, is there really no need to address me as 'Lord' every single time? Can't you change how you address me?"

Dasheng immediately shook his head, flatly refusing, "You jest, Lord. You are this subordinate's lord; how could I change my form of address?"

This response gave Ning Zhu much food for thought.

He suddenly understood that by following the spiritual currents earlier, he had effectively secured a definite position within the foundational cognition of that spiritual intelligence.

From Dasheng's perspective, Ning Zhu had successfully ascended to the highest tier, recognized by Dasheng as his lord.

"Had I not reached the highest tier, I might have been regarded in Dasheng's spiritual cognition as the lord's offspring or a peer, which would have made it impossible to command him completely!"

"The spiritual intelligence of the Intelligent Spirit realm has its own distinct set of concepts, and these concepts govern all their actions."

Ning Zhu once again successfully breached the three Buddhist barriers and claimed his reward.

There was nothing unexpected—they were all Illusory Truth Lotus Seeds.

After claiming seven of them consecutively, he paused on his own accord.

Originally, the embryonic divine ability resembled three sections of lotus root accompanied by a tiny sprout and small leaf.

After absorbing seven lotus seeds, the tiny sprout completely unfurled, transforming into a lotus leaf the size of an adult's palm.

Having achieved another massive breakthrough, Ning Zhu retreated step by step through the barriers, closed the Buddhist gate, entered the preparation room, and finally withdrew all the way back to Room One.

The Dragon-Tortoise Fire Spirit had been watching closely the entire time; seeing this, its face was full of confusion—what on earth was Ning Zhu trying to do?

The next moment, Ning Zhu poured all his concentration into sensing his My Buddha Heart Demon Seal while simultaneously mobilizing the Thread of Human Destiny.

His soul power plummeted rapidly as the Thread of Human Destiny gave a fierce yank, dragging Sun Lingtong's soul straight inside.

Sun Lingtong: ...

Dragon-Tortoise Fire Spirit: ?