The Nine Prefectures Cauldron

　　“Sovereign, let me and Little Jun ask the Bladelike Chi about this first.” Teng Qingshan immediately stood up. As he said it, he walked with Li Jun to the dwelling place of the Six Legged Bladelike Chi.

　　In the pavilion:

　　“Father, are you really going to grant a favor just for this?” The High Priestess of the Snowy Lotus Cult stared at her father with bemusement. In the eyes of the High Priestess of the Snowy Lotus Cult, her father was the most powerful figure in the Land of the Nine Prefectures. He could easily ask the other sects for their Emptiness Realm Demonic Beast in return for a personal favor.

　　If Pei San didn’t want to ask the other sects for help, it didn’t matter because Pei San himself could speak the language of beasts.

　　The skill of the King of Beasts, Wu Hou, had been taught to him by Pei San.

　　Since Pei San understood the language of beasts, he could find some wild Emptiness Realm demonic beasts. Furthermore, as an Insightful Emptiness Realm Expert, he could definitely use the offer of a favor as a condition to ask an Emptiness Realm Demonic Beast for help. Even if the Emptiness Realm Demonic Beast had attained culmination, it would most likely agree to the request.

　　However…

　　Pei San was actually asking this Huhe for help.

　　Pei San smiled as he glanced at the High Priestess and said with the use of the Sound Transmission Technique, “Little Lian, it is true that I have other options. However, owing favors to others is a kind of skill as well. In fact, sometimes, it is not a bad thing… Now, I may owe this Huhe a favor. However, by owing him a favor, I will naturally become closer with him. Even though I am unable to convince him to join the Heavenly God Palace, I am able to strengthen his relationship with the Heavenly God Palace.”

　　The High Priestess of the Snowy Lotus Cult understood it then.

　　“If you confer a favor to someone and the favor is too great, that someone might end up becoming your enemy. The same principle can be applied here. Owing someone a favor will make that person a better friend,” Pei San said. Then he turned and looked at the dwelling place of the Six Legged Bladelike Chi and continued, “I hope that this Huhe can persuade that demonic beast. That old bastard of Xiao Yao Palace is like a flea that keeps jumping out and annoying me.”

　　Inside the hut:

　　Teng Qingshan controlled the Power of the Heavens and the Earth, and froze the space around it, preventing any sound from leaving this area.

　　“Brother Huhe, an exchange of favors?” Li Jun asked as she looked at Teng Qingshan happily. Then she said, “This is a good thing.”

　　“Mhm, getting a personal favor from him has a lot of benefits,” Teng Qingshan said with a nod. “Little Jun, tell the Bladelike Chi about it.” Truth be told, knowing the character and temperament of the Six Legged Bladelike Chi, he knew it was highly possible that the Bladelike Chi would agree. This was because… the Six Legged Bladelike Chi was a Demonic Beast that loved fighting.

　　“Roar~ roar roar~~” The roars that Li Jun emitted were occasionally high-pitched and occasionally low-pitched. Moreover, the roars had a certain rhythm.

　　The Six Legged Bladelike Chi stared at Li Jun, and elation filled its blood red eyes.

　　Obviously, it had not seen Li Jun for a very long time. It roared deeply at Li Jun, and the two began chatting.

　　After a while…

　　“Brother Huhe.” Li Jun was still very cautious. Even though Pei San and the others were outside, she still didn’t dare to call Qingshan by his real name. “The Six Legged Bladelike Chi said that this assassination task is very simple. It has agreed to do it but—”

　　“But what?” Teng Qingshan asked, startled.

　　Li Jun giggled and said, “The Six Legged Bladelike Chi said that it is happy to fight against powerful experts. However, if the enemy is too powerful, then don’t let it go out to fight. The Bladelike Chi doesn’t want to die now.”

　　“Haha,” Teng Qingshan laughed and replied, “Little Jun, tell the Six Legged Bladelike Chi that if it ever detects within its domain a ‘black hole’ like the person outside, it must be careful and flee as soon as possible. That black hole is an Insightful Emptiness Realm Expert.”

　　Just like Teng Qingshan, this was the first time the Six Legged Bladelike Chi had sensed an Insightful Emptiness expert.

　　“Mhmm,” Li Jun reminded the Six Legged Bladelike Chi.

　　Now, if the Six Legged Bladelike Chi sensed a ‘black hole’ in the future again, it would know that…. that person was a Insightful Emptiness expert.

　　……

　　“Sovereign, it is done,” Teng Qingshan said as he sat down together with Li Jun. “The Bladelike Chi has agreed to do it.”

　　“Oh. In that case…” Pei San said, standing up, “Huhe, Li Jun, get ready to go to Youzhou with me. Bring the Six Legged Bladelike Chi along.”

　　“Northeast Youzhou? Now?” Teng Qingshan was slightly dumbfounded.

　　“Of course, it is now,” the High Priestess of the Snowy Lotus Cult said from the side, “Foreign Dignitary Huhe, the Sovereign of the Xiao Yao Palace is very cunning. Who knows when he will attack? We can only wait for him to show up. If you are in Yi City when we notice the Sovereign of the Xiao Yao Palace, he will be long gone by the time you arrive.”

　　“Come with us. Bring that Six Legged Bladelike Chi. When the Sovereign of the Xiao Yao Palace appears, you three will help us kill him.” As the High Priestess of the Snowy Lotus Cult spoke, a cold glint flash in her eyes.

　　Hearing this, Teng Qingshan completely understood.

　　“Haha, that’s good too. I don’t have anything to do in Yi City anyway,” Teng Qingshan said, nodding with a smile. “Moreover, I heard that the great army of the Heavenly God Palace is now attacking Youzhou with a formidable force and has already conquered over half of Youzhou. I am guessing that the Heavenly God Palace will attack Hong Tian City, right? I am really expecting to see this battle.”

　　“Hm.” Pei San laughed and nodded. “Let’s go now.”

　　Teng Qingshan brought the wooden box which contained the Splitting Mountain Axe. Then he left Yi City with Li Jun, the Six Legged Bladelike Chi, Pei San, and the High Priestess of the Snowy Lotus Cult. Before leaving, he gave some instructions to his eldest disciple, Teng Shou.

　　The Six Legged Bladelike Chi did not have a huge physique. Its back was rather narrow. Therefore, the Six Legged Bladelike Chi could only accommodate three people for the trip.

　　At this moment, the High Priestess of the Snowy Lotus Cult, Li Jun, and Teng Qingshan were all seated on the back of the Six Legged Bladelike Chi, while Pei San flew at the side with the use of air control. Fortunately, the Six Legged Bladelike Chi’s acceleration and deceleration remained the same as Pei San’s. Otherwise, the Six Legged Bladelike Chi would have already outdistanced him. Although Pei San was powerful, his flying speed was still no match for that of an Emptiness Realm Demonic Beast.

　　……

　　High up in the sky, above the clouds:

　　The four people and one demonic beast were flying northward.

　　“Huhe,” Pei San, who was flying at the side, said while smiling, “Li Jun will be the High Priestess of the Heavenly God Palace in the future. Huhe, you are not part of any sects… As the Sovereign of the Heavenly God Palace, I am now inviting you to join my Heavenly God Palace. What do you think?”

　　Teng Qingshan froze. Then he turned and look over at Pei San apologetically.

　　If Teng Qingshan were alone without any ambition, it would indeed be good for him to join the Heavenly God Palace. However, there were still many things he needed to do, and he also needed to support the Gui Yuan Sect. Thus, how could he join the Heavenly God Palace and take orders from other people?

　　“Sorry to disappoint you,” Teng Qingshan declined tactfully, “Considering the Heavenly God Palace’s capability to gather information, I am guessing you already know that there are many youngsters at my residence. I want to pass on my knowledge and my life’s learnings to the future generations.”

　　Pei San raised his eyebrows and said while smiling, “It is good… to establish a sect.” With that, he spoke no more.

　　What kind of status did Pei San possess?

　　He had officially invited Teng Qingshan. However, since he was rejected, he wouldn’t pester Teng Qingshan endlessly.

　　……

　　After flying for a long time, the group of four finally entered the region of Youzhou.

　　“It is right below.” The foggy light around Pei San’s body suddenly expanded, covering Teng Qingshan, the High Priestess of the Snowy Lotus Cult, and Li Jun. “Let’s go down.” The several people rushed down with the Six Legged Bladelike Chi behind them. However, it was at this moment that…

　　Pei San’s expression changed into one of shock as he stared at Teng Qingshan who was beside him.

　　There were only very few things which could cause Pei San’s expression to change like that.

　　The reason for this was that when Pei San enveloped Teng Qingshan and the others with his power, he took the chance to check Teng Qingshan’s entire body.

　　If an Insightful Emptiness Realm Expert wanted to examine someone, he would need to release a hint of the power of his own world. In the eyes of an Emptiness Realm Expert, this hint of power was just a black thread. However, Pei San hadn’t been able to do that previously while asking Teng Qingshan to do a task. It would be very rude to do something like that so blatantly.

　　However, now was the right time to do it! While they were rocketing downward and Pei San’s power was enveloping everyone, Pei San had already examined Teng Qingshan thoroughly.

　　“He—He actually has…” Pei San was very shocked.

　　However, he was not shocked by the Splitting Mountain Axe in the wooden box. The power of his world was just like another pair of eyes. It could not analyze the material of the object. So, in Pei San’s observation, the Splitting Mountain Axe was just a strong weapon which looked different from several years ago.

　　TLN: Remember Teng Qingshan carved the Splitting Mountain Axe to make it look different because he was on the run. That’s what Pei San noticed.

　　Pei San could not actually tell that the Splitting Mountain Axe was special.

　　What truly shocked him were—

　　The jade box Teng Qingshan carried at his bosom and the little cauldron on Teng Qingshan’s bosom itself!

　　There were two stalks of the Grass of Immortality placed inside the jade box, and what Teng Qingshan was wearing on his chest was the Nine Prefectures Cauldron. Teng Qingshan always brought two stalks of the Grass of Immortality with him just in case any accidents occurred during battles. After all, the Grass of Immortality was used to save lives during emergencies.

　　For example, if Li Jun’s vital organ got pierced and she was dying, it would be impossible for her to wait for Teng Qingshan to return and retrieve the Grass of Immortality. Therefore, it was extremely important to bring it everywhere!

　　As for the small cauldron, that was something which Teng Qingshan had brought with him everywhere he went since the very beginning.

　　“Grass of Immortality? He has the Grass of Immortality?

　　“Nine Prefectures Cauldron? He even has this kind of precious treasures?” Pei San was dumbstruck.

　　“Only the Undying Phoenix that dwells somewhere in the North Sea possesses the Grass of Immortality. In the past, I searched Desolate Land and ventured the entire Land of the Nine Prefectures, and I only managed to find the Undying Phoenix amidst the North Sea! The Undying Phoenix was a demonic beast that followed the Omnipotent Expert Li Taibai. Even I could only obtain one stalk of the Grass of Immortality from her!”

　　Pei San knew clearly how scary the Undying Phoenix was!

　　In terms of talent, the Undying Phoenix was considered to be the epitome of Emptiness Realm Demonic Beasts! Those who could rival the power of the Undying Pheonix were very rare.

　　Furthermore, the Undying Phoenix had achieved the culmination of the Emptiness Realm. It had already reached the highest point of cultivation for a demonic beast.

　　Besides that, this Undying Pheonix was a follower of the Omnipotent Expert Li Taibai. Li Taibai would naturally aid the Undying Pheonix by showing it ways which could allow it to use its advantages and display its greatest strengths.

　　Moreover, the Undying Phoenix itself had cultivated for several thousand years. The current Undying Phoenix was considered one of the most daunting existences amongst the Emptiness Realm Demonic Beasts! Although Pei San was a proud person, he had realized that the Undying Phoenix was not an easy opponent after having a brief fight with it. The Undying Phoenix held the same view toward Pei San. Since Pei San had been courteous and polite, the Undying Phoenix had given Pei San one stalk of the Grass of Immortality.

　　“Two stalks of the Grass of Immortality? This Huhe has indeed sailed the seas before.” Pei San was certain of this. “It’s impossible for him to have taken the Grass of Immortality by force. It is also impossible for him to have stolen it. The Undying Phoenix’s speed is incredibly fast. Unless it is an Omnipotent Expert, no one else is able to take the Grass of Immortality by force. However, Huhe was still able to obtain two stalks of the Grass of Immortality.

　　“This means that Huhe’s relationship with the Undying Phoenix is extremely good. Otherwise, the Undying Phoenix wouldn’t have been willing to give him two stalks of the Grass of Immortality. Even I was only able to obtain one,” Pei San thought. Yet, he had no idea that… Teng Qingshan had actually received nine stalks of the Grass of Immortality.

　　“And that Nine Prefectures Cauldron…” Pei San muttered silently, “So, that’s why this Huhe’s cultivation speed is so impressive. Even if he is exceedingly talented and gifted, his cultivation speed would several times slower if not for the Nine Prefectures Cauldron.”

　　……

　　The four people and the Six Legged Bladelike Chi had already landed.

　　“Father, what are you thinking about?” The High Priestess of the Snowy Lotus Cult asked when she saw Pei San was distracted. She had only seen her father like this a few times.

　　“It’s nothing,” Pei San answered. He then looked at Huhe and said with a smile, “Huhe.”

　　“Yes? Sovereign?” Teng Qingshan stared blankly.

　　Pei San casually touched his neckline and revealed a tiny cauldron on his chest.

　　Teng Qingshan’s pupils contracted when he fixed his eyes on Pei San’s chest.

　　He had worn one in his past life, and he wore one again now. There was no way he could identify it incorrectly. The tiny cauldron on Pei San’s chest….

　　“Nine Prefectures Cauldron! It’s the Nine Prefectures Cauldron that I possess as well!” Teng Qingshan thought. He was truly shocked.