22: Chapter 22 The Correct Way to Uncover the Dragon Vein, and the "Wanted" Poster from Afar
In the dead of night, the second floor of the Scripture Pavilion was as bright as day.
The "dragon vein heavenly book: Volume One," which had been swiped from the Ancestor Master's coffin, was currently floating in mid-air, pouring out a heavy, dark yellow halo.
The pages turned without wind, and every ancient character seemed to be a condensation of real mountains and rivers; merely looking at them caused a dizzying sensation of the world spinning.
"Bleh..."
Chu Linger lay on the table with a pale face, looking as if she had been tossed around in a storm for three days and three nights.
"I can't take it, this book is poisonous... I feel like my brains have been scrambled."
As a Spirit-Communicating Dao Body, her sensitivity to earth veins far exceeded that of ordinary people. In her eyes, the words in the book weren't just text; they were billions of tons of mountains pressing down, and countless earth vein dragons surging and roaring.
This direct visual and Divine Soul impact was far too overbearing for an eight-year-old child.
"Hang in there."
Li Mo held the spring and autumn brush, rapidly recording something in the Void Realm without looking up.
"This is your ancestor's Legacy. If you can't understand it, how will you suppress the Dragon Qi in your body? Do you really want to be a living volcano that could blow up the entire Sect at any moment?"
"But... I'm really dizzy..." Chu Linger's voice carried a hint of sobbing.
"It's right to be dizzy."
Li Mo's eyes held a near-manic fervor.
In his Great Reader vision, this wasn't a book at all, but an extremely precise "Heaven and Earth Operating System"!
[Analyzing "dragon vein heavenly book: Volume One"... Progress: 99%... 100%!]
[Congratulations to the host for completely mastering the "Cloud Break Mountain Range" earth vein map.]
[Extracted Golden Entry: Dragon Seeking and Point Locating (Gold)]
[Entry Effect:]
[Earth Vein Insight: Your gaze can penetrate the ground, perceiving the flow of earth veins, the distribution of spiritual eyes, and the fortune or misfortune of Dragon Qi within a thousand-mile radius.]
[Earth Resonance: Standing on the earth, your spiritual energy recovery speed increases by 300%. You can mobilize the power of earth veins to set up natural grand arrays.]
[World Transformation (Active): Consumes a massive amount of Mental Energy. Can forcibly twist local earth veins, causing mountains to rise from flat ground and rivers to change course.]
"It's done!"
Divine light burst from Li Mo's eyes.
He suddenly reached out and grabbed it; the floating heavenly book instantly snapped shut, its radiance withdrawing as it fell into his palm like a simple stone slab.
In an instant, an indescribable sense of heaviness filled his entire body.
His breathing seemed to become the breathing of the entire Cloud Break Mountain Range; his heartbeat synchronized with the pulse deep within the earth.
At this moment, he was the mountain, and the mountain was him.
"Girl, come here."
Li Mo's gaze fell on Chu Linger.
"Wh-what for?" Chu Linger protectively held her head. "Are you going to draw talismans on my face again? That last scribble took days to wash off!"
"I'm not drawing talismans this time. I'm giving you a little 'surgery'."
Li Mo grinned. The candlelight cast his shadow on the wall, making him look somewhat profound and mysterious.
He didn't move his brush; he simply stomped one foot lightly on the floor.
"Rise!"
Buzz—
The floor of the Scripture Pavilion remained motionless, but a visible stream of dark yellow Qi erupted from beneath Li Mo's feet. Like a living spirit snake, it docilely coiled around his fingertips.
This was the purest earth vein essence!
"Go."
Li Mo pointed his fingers like a sword towards Chu Linger's forehead.
That stream of dark yellow earth Qi instantly drilled into her body.
Chu Linger's delicate body shook violently. The violent Imperial Dragon Qi that had been rampaging through her Meridians, constantly trying to break the Seal, suddenly calmed down the moment it touched this heavy essence—like a wild horse meeting its master, or a fierce tiger smelling its mother's scent.
Earth can generate metal, and it can also suppress it.
Earth veins were naturally the cradle and final resting place of Dragon Qi.
"So... so comfortable..."
Chu Linger opened her eyes wide in surprise. The pain of her burning Meridians had vanished, replaced by a sense of stability and peace rooted in the earth.
She felt as if she had become a small tree, being tenderly nourished by the entire earth.
"Now, your Seal has been fitted with an 'Earth Lock'."
Li Mo withdrew his hand, his face slightly pale, but his eyes were startlingly bright.
"Unless someone can drain the earth veins of this entire Cloud Break Mountain Range, no one will be able to detect the Dragon Qi fluctuations within you again."
This was the overbearing nature of the dragon vein heavenly book.
Borrowing the momentum of heaven and earth to hide a person's secret.
"Thank you... Cousin." Chu Linger lowered her head, calling him by this title with sincere intent for the first time.
"Don't thank me too early."
Li Mo sat back in his chair and poured himself a cup of tea.
"This is only a temporary measure. To cure it completely, we still need to collect all nine volumes of the heavenly book. And..."
His gaze pierced through the window lattice, looking towards the distant east.
Though the night was deep, in his newly acquired earth vein vision, a sky-piercing aura of blood and Evil Qi was transforming into a hideous dark cloud, rolling towards the Heavenly River Sword Sect.
"The guests have already arrived at the door."
...
The next morning.
Outside the mountain gate of the Heavenly River Sword Sect, the morning mist was brutally torn apart by a gust of wild wind.
A giant mechanical bird cast entirely from bronze hovered over the mountain gate, blotting out the sun and casting a massive shadow. The sheer metallic pressure alone made the mountain gate Disciples struggle to breathe.
On the bird's back, a black flag with a gold dragon fluttered loudly in the wind.
The Great Zhou Dynasty's Royal Army Battle Flag!
"Listen up, Heavenly River Sword Sect!"
A sharp and mean voice, sounding like a eunuch's, was amplified by spiritual power and echoed throughout the Cloud Break Mountain Range.
"The Special Envoy of the Great Zhou Dynasty has arrived! Open the Mountain Protection Grand Array immediately and hand over the remnant of the former dynasty! If you hesitate, the army will descend, and not even a chicken or dog shall be left alive!"
Inside the mountain gate, the Disciples were in an uproar.
"The Great Zhou Dynasty? Why would they come to this backwater place?"
"A remnant of the former dynasty? Where would our Sect have such a thing?"
Inside the Sect Master's Hall, Sect Master Ye Gucheng's face was ashen, the veins on the back of his hand gripping his sword hilt bulging.
"Too much! Do they really think my Heavenly River Sword Sect is a soft persimmon to be squeezed at will!"
"Sect Master, don't be impulsive!"
An Elder nearby hurriedly advised, "On that mechanical bird, there are not only the Imperial Guards but also the enforcement team from Jixia Academy! Once we make a move, we'll be enemies with the entire orthodoxy of the Central Province!"
Just as the atmosphere in the hall grew heavy, a lazy voice drifted in from outside.
"Why fight? They're here to 'reason' with us. Let's open the doors and welcome the guests, and hear what kind of reason they have to speak."
Everyone turned around.
Dugu Yun walked in leisurely with his hands behind his back, followed by a submissive Utility Disciple holding a broom—it was Li Mo.
"Junior Martial Uncle? Why are you here?" Ye Gucheng was stunned, his gaze sweeping over Li Mo. "And you..."
"Oh, this kid is quick with his hands, so I brought him along to... record the meeting's contents." Dugu Yun casually made up an excuse, then actually plopped down on the throne belonging to the Sect Master.
"Little Ye, open the array and let them in."
Dugu Yun crossed his legs.
"I want to see what kind of cats and dogs Sima Changfeng sent to bark on my Heavenly River Sword Sect's turf, since that old geezer didn't dare come himself."
Ye Gucheng took a deep breath and finally grit his teeth to order: "Open the array! Welcome the guests!"
...
Rumble.
A crack opened in the Mountain Protection Grand Array.
The Bronze Mechanical Bird slowly landed in the center of the martial arts field, kicking up a cloud of dust.
A group of Imperial Guards clad in black armor, their Evil Qi piercing the sky, were the first to step down, lining up on both sides.
Then, a young man wearing elegant Confucian robes and holding a folding fan walked out gracefully, surrounded by a crowd.
The young man's face was as fair as jade and his temperament was refined, but a snake-like viciousness was hidden deep in his eyes.
"I am Zhao Wuji, the Grand Preceptor to the Crown Prince of the Great Zhou Dynasty and an Inner Sect Disciple of Jixia Academy."
The young man slightly cupped his hands with an arrogant posture. His gaze swept contemptuously over Ye Gucheng and Dugu Yun, finally landing on the Servant in the corner carrying a broom.
He frowned slightly.
For some reason, the way this sweeping Servant looked at him made him very uncomfortable.
That look was like he was sizing up a fat sheep that had already walked into the slaughterhouse.
"Special Envoy Zhao has quite the official presence," Dugu Yun cold laughed.
"Bringing troops up the mountain, are you planning to flatten my Heavenly River Sword Sect to add a military exploit to your resume?"
"I wouldn't dare."
Zhao Wuji snapped open his folding fan. The "Hundred Ghosts Night Walk" painted on the fan was filled with Demonic Qi, completely at odds with his Confucian Scholar identity.
"This official is here on the orders of the State Preceptor to capture a great bandit who assassinated the Old Ancestor of the Blood River and stole the Imperial Dynasty's Luck. The State Preceptor used heavenly secrets to deduce that the culprit... is hidden within your noble Sect."
Saying this, he took out a scroll from his robe and unrolled it for all to see.
"This person is the imperial court's wanted criminal."
Li Mo curiously craned his neck and took a peek.
On the painting was a Taoist priest wearing tattered robes with a blurry face, holding a pitch-black book, with a shifty-eyed rat perched on his shoulder.
Beside it, twelve large characters were annotated in cinnabar:
Extremely Dangerous! Extremely Wretched! Extremely Wicked!
Li Mo: "..."
Squeak: "..."
The man and the rat shared a look in their hearts, both trying their best to hold back laughter.
This drawing... one couldn't say it had nothing to do with them, only that it was exactly the same.
Especially the word "wretched"—it practically captured the Soul.
"Never seen him."
Dugu Yun didn't even bother to lift his eyelids and simply waved his hand.
"Everyone in my Heavenly River Sword Sect is an upright Sword Cultivator. How could there be such a sneaky and wretched fellow? Special Envoy Zhao must have the wrong place."
"Is that so?"
Zhao Wuji narrowed his eyes, and an ancient copper mirror slid out of his sleeve.
"This is the 'Bone-Reflecting Mirror' bestowed by the State Preceptor. Any disguised skin will have nowhere to hide under this mirror. Since Elder Dugu says there isn't, then why don't... I personally shine it around?"
Before his voice could fade, the copper mirror in his hand suddenly erupted with a piercing golden light!
That golden light wasn't aimed at Sect Master Ye Gucheng, nor at Dugu Yun who had the highest cultivation, but instead shot straight towards the most inconspicuous sweeping Servant in the corner—Li Mo—with lightning speed!
"Found you!"
A sinister smile curled on Zhao Wuji's lips.
"The State Preceptor said, the more one hides in the mundane, the more suspicious they are!"
The golden light arrived in an instant!
The entire field was shocked; no one expected this envoy to suddenly strike a killing blow at a Utility Disciple without warning!
Dugu Yun's eyes turned cold, and he wanted to act, but it was already too late.
Seeing that the golden light meant to pierce through falsehood was about to completely envelop Li Mo.
Li Mo stood there, seemingly frozen with fear, not moving an inch.
He even lazily let out a yawn, then casually pulled out a black, square... brick from his robe?
No, it was a book.
A Demonic Path treasure he had looted from the Old Ancestor of the Blood River's storage ring, forged from extraterrestrial meteoric iron—"Thick Black Theory (Physics Edition)".
Whack!
A crisp, loud bang rang out.
As if shooing away a pesky fly, Li Mo casually swung the iron book, accurately smacking it against the incoming golden light.
The golden light shattered like glass hit by a sledgehammer.
Golden shards flew everywhere.
A violent counter-shock force surged back along the trajectory of the light.
The Bone-Reflecting Mirror in Zhao Wuji's hand let out a mournful cry, and with a "crack," the surface was instantly covered in spiderweb-like fractures.
The entire field was deathly silent.
Li Mo seemed to be startled awake by the loud noise. With a face full of "terror," he dropped the iron book on the floor, clutched his head, and squatted down, his voice even carrying a hint of crying:
"Oh my! Scared me to death! Where did that light come from! It almost hit my head!"
Zhao Wuji gripped the cracked treasure mirror, frozen in place. His hand was shaking, and the sinister grin on his face had hardened into a comical expression.
A Servant?
A casual swat?
Smashed a Profound Rank Magic Treasure bestowed by the State Preceptor?
Was this sweeping monk of the Heavenly River Sword Sect truly an idiot, or was he playing Zhao Wuji for a fool?!
Meanwhile, Li Mo, squatting on the ground, looked at the dumbfounded Zhao Wuji through the gaps in his fingers with interest, sneering in his heart.
Want to shine a light on me?
I'm afraid your mirror isn't hard enough.
But...
His gaze swept over the massive Bronze Mechanical Bird behind Zhao Wuji and that arrogant black dragon battle flag.
"Since you've come all this way to my door, wouldn't it be quite impolite if you didn't leave some 'road toll' behind?"
A grand drama of "shakedown" and "counter-killing" had only just begun.