Inside the Ancient Pagoda.
Whether it was Baihe, one of the Seventy-Two Taixuan Young Masters of the Nine-Hua Alliance, Ye Rou, the direct disciple of the Wind-return Sect—the number one sect in the Liuli Great Region—or Zhuo Feng, the leader of the Nine Young Nobles of the Fire Cloud Branch, all three of their gazes had been fixed on Chen Yue from the very beginning.
Clearly, they didn't take Xiaolian and Gu Qingfeng seriously at all.
And indeed, that was the case. Xiaolian only emitted the aura of Foundation Establishment, while Gu Qingfeng merely exuded the aura of the Purple Mansion. Both possessed only a single aura, and with such weak cultivation, standing next to Chen Yue who displayed three distinct auras, they were simply inconspicuous.
Compared to Chen Yue, Zhuo Feng's sudden appearance seemed to irritate Young Master Baihe even more.
"Zhuo Feng, last time you were lucky to escape. This time, I'm afraid your luck won't be so good."
"Escape? Heh, that's a good choice of word."
Zhuo Feng stood tall and straight, one hand behind his back, the other lightly resting in front, a picture of elegant grace. He smiled faintly and said, "Last time, I was merely in a hurry to find someone surnamed Gu. Otherwise, I would have certainly given you an opportunity for a spar."
"Heh."
While Zhuo Feng appeared calm and composed, Young Master Baihe seemed exceptionally sharp and fierce, his face filled with arrogance. He sneered coldly, "Very well. This Young Master would also like to see what progress you've made after a year in seclusion!"
"Oh my, why is the atmosphere so tense as soon as you two Young Masters meet?"
Ye Rou struck a coquettish pose, smiling seductively. "Young Lord Zhuo, the person surnamed Gu you mentioned just now... could it be Gu Qingfeng, the Crimson Flame Young Lord?"
"Oh? You've heard of him?"
"That's the name I've heard most since leaving seclusion. Rumors say this person has a mysterious identity and bizarre strength. I heard he even beat up Jing Tao, one of the Nine Young Nobles from your Fire Cloud Branch."
"Heh... mysterious and bizarre?"
Zhuo Feng shook his head with a laugh, a trace of disdain curling at the corner of his mouth. "Ever since the Cataclysm a century ago, it seems anyone can be labeled 'mysterious and bizarre.' How many truly mysterious or bizarre things can there be in this world?"
As he spoke, his eyes remained fixed on Chen Yue. He continued with a smile, "So-called mystery, so-called bizarreness, are nothing more than stumbling upon a stroke of luck. I've seen far too many of these nouveau riche types. They get lucky once, become inflated with arrogance, think themselves invincible under heaven, act recklessly without restraint, growing so arrogant they defy all laws. Such people don't live long. At the very least, I dare say that fellow surnamed Gu won't survive past the end of this year."
"The end of this year?" Young Master Baihe suddenly snorted coldly, his tone haughty. "A mere little nouveau riche. If this Young Master weren't busy with matters in the Black-Raven Secret Realm, I would have killed that upstart long ago."
"Young Master Baihe? Why are you..." Ye Rou was puzzled by Baihe's sudden anger, then suddenly remembered and laughed. "Ah, I forgot. I heard he killed Long Fei, didn't he? If I recall correctly, Long Fei used to be your underling, right?"
"Ye Rou! Don't say I didn't warn you. If you dare mention that matter in front of me again, don't blame this Young Master for being impolite!"
Perhaps feeling that having his underling killed was a loss of face, Young Master Baihe's expression turned gloomy. He spoke word by word, "I will definitely make that nouveau riche surnamed Gu pay a heavy price!"
To the side.
Listening to the three of them discussing Gu Qingfeng, complex expressions appeared on Chen Yue and Xiaolian's faces, because the scene before them was truly rather bizarre.
Baihe was there, furious and vowing to kill Gu Qingfeng. The implication in Zhuo Feng's words was the same.
And Gu Qingfeng himself? He just stood there to the side, eating Redleaf Monster Fruitlets, glancing at this one, looking at that one, as if watching a spectacle. It seemed as if the person Baihe and Zhuo Feng wanted to kill wasn't him, but someone else entirely.
Xiaolian curled her lip, thinking to herself.
This guy's courage is too big. Two geniuses with Ninefold Flowing Color are openly declaring they'll kill him, yet not only is he fearless, he's even watching the show.
Just how big is his heart!
Xiaolian couldn't stand it anymore and sent a secret voice transmission: "You dare to keep standing there? If they find out you're the Crimson Flame Young Lord, you'll die a miserable death!"
Gu Qingfeng shrugged indifferently.
He had come to the Black-Raven Secret Realm with Chen Yue simply because he had nothing better to do. Now that there was a spectacle to watch, he might as well have some fun.
Besides, this place was bound to get even livelier later.
He could tell that the eight Ancient Pagodas within the Black-Raven Secret Realm formed a Bagua Weiyang Seal, and this seal was currently being released. He was quite curious about what would appear after the seal was broken. Whatever was being suppressed by a Bagua Weiyang Seal was definitely no ordinary character.
Even this Ancient Pagoda was extraordinary. Although the pagoda was already dilapidated, Gu Qingfeng had still detected traces of a divine-level technique within it that did not belong to this world.
Just then, a violent sound suddenly came from somewhere.
Immediately after, the Ancient Pagoda began to shake inexplicably.
Gu Qingfeng's Divine Sense had been enveloping the pagoda the whole time. He could tell, and had long known, that something was happening at the pagoda's summit.
Soon, Zhuo Feng also seemed to sense something. He was the first to vanish in a flash. Following him, Baihe, Ye Rou, and the others also vanished in succession, rushing toward the summit.
Moments later.
Chen Yue also took Xiaolian and vanished in a flash.
Gu Qingfeng followed unhurriedly.
The summit of the Ancient Pagoda was a dilapidated Grand Hall.
At least, that's how it had been when Young Master Baihe and the others were there earlier. But when they arrived at the summit again, this dilapidated Grand Hall had somehow transformed into a hall gleaming with golden light.
The walls of the hall were covered with mysterious, faintly visible scriptures that emitted a soft golden radiance. In the center of the hall was a worn Meditation Cushion. Strangely, the cushion also glowed with a faint golden light, transforming like a blooming lotus flower.
This scene filled Young Master Baihe and the others with astonishment. They had been to the summit earlier and had even investigated here for a long time. They never expected this Grand Hall to conceal such a great secret.
"Truly incredible. We actually didn't notice this earlier..." Ye Rou gazed at the Meditation Cushion in the center of the hall, her seductive eyes flashing with both surprise and greedy gleams.
"It seems my luck is truly good, arriving just at the right time..." Zhuo Feng was also staring at the cushion, his eyes shining with an unusual light.
"Sister, what is this?"
Xiaolian also looked at the lotus-like cushion, her heart filled with curiosity.
Chen Yue stared intently, then shook her head. She didn't know either, but she was certain it was something extraordinary. From the lotus cushion, she sensed an exceptionally vast and powerful spiritual aura, as well as a profound and marvelous extraordinary power.
Chen Yue could sense it, and so could Zhuo Feng, Ye Rou, and even Young Master Baihe. Otherwise, the three of them would have already made a move to seize it at the first opportunity.
Gu Qingfeng also narrowed his eyes to look, his brow slightly furrowed. He truly hadn't expected this thing to be related to Buddhism.