"T-This..." Sun Luyuan stammered for a long time, unable to utter a single coherent sentence.
Fortunately, Li Ping did not press him.
With a wave of his hand, Li Ping sent a streak of golden light into Sun Luyuan's body and said coolly, "From now on, I am afraid you will not be able to return to the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals. Stay here in our Sacred Dynasty for the time being.
"In time, I will arrange for you to return to the Alliance under another identity."
Sun Luyuan looked up at Li Ping somewhat blankly.
Only then did Li Ping show him the apocalyptic scene of Mo Sha obliterating Luoyan Province.
As boundless terror surged in Sun Luyuan's heart once more, he instantly understood the purpose of that golden light.
It had cleanly erased the tracking imprint left inside him by the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals.
"That Tianyin is tied to too many secrets. If an entire province had not been completely wiped away, someone would inevitably have followed the trail and traced her here," Li Ping explained.
"Then our Sun family..." Sun Luyuan's expression warped drastically as something suddenly struck him.
"That depends on your luck. If Tianyin tells the Alliance what happened to her, then the Sun family will definitely be implicated. You will vanish completely from the world; not a single person will be spared."
Li Ping's words left Sun Luyuan's face deathly pale.
Yet Li Ping changed his tone. "However, you need not worry too much. Tianyin is formless and intangible. If she refuses to appear, the Alliance likely cannot find her either. Tianyin and the Alliance do not walk the same path.
"Besides, the strike I unleashed before departing didn't destroy her, but it heavily wounded her. Tianyin's state was inherently unstable to begin with. When she reappears and regains clarity, she might not even remember us."
Even though Li Ping said this, it failed to put Sun Luyuan's mind at ease.
The implication hidden within Li Ping's words was obvious: behind Tianyin stood another terrifying existence, one that even the unfathomable Holy Emperor of Great Qi before him had to be wary of.
*Damn that Xu Yuanxian, claiming it was just running a simple errand! I actually believed your nonsense...*
Thinking of how he had been inexplicably dragged into this mess, not only seeing all his original plans thrown into disarray but even putting his entire clan at risk of ruin, an uncontrollable fury flared in Sun Luyuan's chest.
*That old bastard! Just like the other higher-ups in the Alliance, he's utter scum!* he cursed inwardly.
And imagining the myriad crises his clan would face after his disappearance, Sun Luyuan could not help feeling frantic and bewildered.
Right then, Li Ping spoke again.
"Actually, if you want to return without suspicion, there is a way. As long as you inform the Alliance of our existence, you will likely not only escape punishment, but also render immense merit."
Li Ping's voice echoed across the Holy Emperor Throne.
Sun Luyuan's heart skipped a beat, and he hurriedly pledged his loyalty. "How could this humble one ever betray the Holy Emperor?"
To his surprise, Li Ping chuckled. "I think you misunderstand my meaning.
"Return to the Alliance and report everything about Luoyan Province and My Sacred Dynasty to Xu Yuanxian, down to the last detail. This is an order."
"Ah?" Sun Luyuan was utterly bewildered. He could not comprehend why the Holy Emperor would suddenly make such an abrupt decision that ran completely contrary to what he had just said.
*Could it be that he is already prepared to go to war with the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals?* Sun Luyuan could not help thinking.
"When you meet Xu Yuanxian, say this..." Li Ping sent a voice transmission in a calm, deliberate tone.
And Sun Luyuan's expression gradually grew very colorful.
Before long, Sun Luyuan quietly returned to the Xuanhuang Realm proper under the protection of Daoist Baihua.
He hurried to the Alliance Headquarters.
At this moment, the Alliance Headquarters was somewhat chaotic over the destruction of Luoyan Province.
Yet right now, no one could have imagined that this matter had anything to do with Sun Luyuan, a Dao Integration cultivator from the Protector Hall.
Thus, Sun Luyuan smoothly arrived at the Protector Hall headquarters and saw Xu Yuanxian once again.
"You have returned? How did the task I entrusted to you go?" Xu Yuanxian did not even open his eyes.
"Elder Xu, something terrible has happened."
Sun Luyuan seemed terrified to the extreme, hesitating as if struggling to speak.
Xu Yuanxian snapped his eyes open.
With a wave of his hand, he laid down layer upon layer of restrictions before saying in a deep voice, "Do not panic. Speak slowly and in detail."
Sun Luyuan took a deep breath. "As you instructed, Elder, I did indeed meet Senior Qingfeng at Qingfeng Hall on Wanxian Island.
"The treant named A'liu has gone completely mad, and Senior Qingfeng was willing to leave with me. However, she refused to come to the Alliance Headquarters, insisting instead on going to Luoyan Province..."
Hearing those three words from Sun Luyuan's mouth and connecting them to the recent catastrophe that had struck Luoyan Province, Xu Yuanxian's expression could not help but shift slightly.
"Just what happened in Luoyan Province?!" Shedding his usual composure, he asked in a cold voice.
"Just as I was about to bring Senior Qingfeng to our destination, she suddenly became trance-like. She said something like, 'Sure enough, there are few in this world who are good to me...' and then I felt my body grow faint and ethereal, as if I were about to completely vanish from this world," Sun Luyuan said with lingering dread.
Xu Yuanxian evidently knew of this habit of Qingfeng's, showing no surprise.
"Just when I thought I was about to die, a golden figure suddenly descended. Then..."
"...he clashed with Senior Qingfeng."
Sun Luyuan projected the image of Li Ping's struggle against Qingfeng.
"Power of heaven and earth, be bestowed upon my body."
In the projection, that towering figure barked in a low voice.
Xu Yuanxian stared intently at the projection, his expression growing solemn.
Only when that silver needle appeared did he thoroughly lose his composure.
The projection came to an abrupt halt.
"The other senior took me away. Only after I returned did I learn that Luoyan Province had been destroyed, and Senior Qingfeng has gone missing without a trace..." Sun Luyuan put on a look of utter panic.
"Elder Xu, just what is going on here?! What is Senior Qingfeng's true identity?" he asked in return.
Xu Yuanxian did not answer.
Frowning in thought for a moment, he finally asked, "That cultivator who saved you—do you know his title?"
Sun Luyuan nodded. "He called himself the Destined Holy Emperor. However, he didn't converse much with me and released me before long.
"Oh, right, Elder Xu, that pocket world where the Destined Holy Emperor resides seemed a bit strange..."
Xu Yuanxian, however, paid no heed to the second half of Sun Luyuan's sentence. Instead, he muttered to himself, "Destined Holy Emperor."
Sun Luyuan did not interrupt, only waiting patiently for his reaction.
"Ask no further about this matter. Act as if none of this ever happened," Xu Yuanxian suddenly said.
Sun Luyuan was stunned.
It was not an act.
"Elder Xu..."
Xu Yuanxian raised a hand to cut off Sun Luyuan. "I was inconsiderate. Having not seen each other for so many years, I never expected things to have deteriorated to an irreconcilable point.
"I will find an opportunity to compensate you separately. But this matter must be kept strictly confidential." Xu Yuanxian's frigid gaze locked onto Sun Luyuan.
Sun Luyuan shuddered and hurriedly swore an oath of compliance.
"Go back for now. If there are any issues, I will contact you again.
"Remember my words."
Before Sun Luyuan left, Xu Yuanxian did not forget to remind him again.
Sun Luyuan had expected the matter to be fraught with perilous danger, yet it was resolved this smoothly.
Relieved as he was, an overwhelming sense of unreality filled his heart.
*Still, that old bastard's reaction fell largely within the Holy Emperor's predictions.*
*'Irreconcilable'? What does that even mean?*
Sun Luyuan could not wrap his head around it.
Yet this twist of events had not only saved his life, but even earned him a favor from Xu Yuanxian. It could well be considered an unexpected blessing.
Sun Luyuan shook his head slightly, putting aside the haze of uncertainty in his heart for the moment.
*Since I'm already at headquarters, I might as well go see Lu'er.*
Turning the thought over in his mind, he made his way into the Dharma Formulation Jade space shortly after.
Sun Ang seemed overjoyed by his arrival, constantly asking questions about this and that.
Sun Luyuan answered in great detail.
"It has truly been hard on you, Lu'er."
"As long as the clan is safe, that is all that matters."
Sun Ang's simple words caused a sudden twinge of guilt to well up in Sun Luyuan's heart.
Embarrassed to linger, he hurried away.
Sun Ang—or rather, Li Fan—watched Sun Luyuan depart with an inscrutable expression.
Naturally, not a single word of Sun Luyuan's conversation with Xu Yuanxian had escaped his ears.
The Holy Emperor's sudden change of mind had also been under his influence.
*Sure enough, there are people in the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals who know the true plight of the Xuanhuang Realm.*
*The Xuanhuang Realm is being dismembered, reconstructed, and merged.*
*Xu Yuanxian is one, and Dharma Transmitter Jiang likely is as well. Yet as subordinates of Chuanfa, they are unquestionably on Chuanfa's side.*
*They may have long anticipated the intervention of the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao. But since it exceeds their capability to handle, they choose to stand by and watch from the sidelines...*
*After all, not everyone possesses the courage to stand up against Chuanfa. Even those Longevity Heavenly Venerables of the Five Elders Association simply let him have his way.*
Li Fan let out a cold snort in his heart.
*Still, I believe that in this Xuanhuang Realm, there are still people whose passionate blood has not grown cold.*
The figure of Young Lord Shang flashed before Li Fan's eyes.
*What is lacking now is an opportunity to unite them.*
*Destined Holy Emperor...*
*Now, the title is actually beginning to live up to its name.*
This time, the Xuanhuang Realm had taken the initiative to unleash Mo Sha, helping the Holy Emperor avatar conceal his tracks. This was something Li Fan had not foreseen.
*This is certainly related to the avatar aiding and feeding back into the Heavenly Dao via the sea of gloomy darkness, but even more so because the Xuanhuang Realm's Heavenly Dao has been isolated and helpless for too long. With the sudden emergence of such a Holy Emperor, It grasped onto him as if clutching the last lifesaving straw.*
*With all manner of coincidences stacking together, the evolution of this avatar has truly become rather intriguing.*
Li Fan narrowed his eyes, thoughts racing.
Although the avatar remained under his absolute control, during the period Li Ping clashed with Tianyin, bolstered by the golden Source Power and the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao, the avatar's strength had subtly surpassed that of the present Li Fan.
This had caused the path the avatar was walking to deviate ever so slightly.
It was like driving a carriage along a road: Li Fan still held firm control over all the vehicle's functions, but the road itself had changed due to the vehicle's condition.
*Yet for me, this may not necessarily be a bad thing.*
*The more support gained from the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao, the better it can force out the full depths of the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals and even Chuanfa.*
*And that Xuanhuang malice. It is also time to probe into its secrets.*
The thought crossed the minds of both Li Fan's true self and his Holy Emperor avatar simultaneously.
Before long, Sun Erlang and Wang Xuanba arrived together before the Holy Emperor Throne.
"What is the current situation in the Strange Beast pocket world?" Li Ping first asked Sun Erlang.
"In reply to Master: after personally witnessing the might of our Sacred Dynasty, particularly Xuanba's more advanced beast technology, the Imperial Daughter has agreed to an unconditional surrender.
"Presently, her fighting forces are gradually being integrated. Although the armies there are composed of mortals, after three to five years of modification, they can become combat assets for our Sacred Dynasty. In particular, the vast number of strange beasts has, to a certain degree, made up for the Sacred Dynasty's resource shortage," Sun Erlang reported gravely.
"Indeed! Our flesh factories are projected to increase efficiency more than fivefold within three years. Moreover, that Imperial Daughter truly has her own unique insights into beast development techniques. She's even better than me!" Wang Xuanba chimed in with praise.
Having heard their reports, Li Ping nodded slightly.
He then told them the location of the pocket world where the Xuanhuang malice—Xu Ke—resided.
"Go there with Qing and Xiaohong. See if you can invite Xu Ke back.
"Your attitude must be respectful."
Sun Erlang and Wang Xuanba exchanged glances.
They had run errand missions before, but this was the first time the Holy Emperor had been so solemn about one.
The two brothers dared not dally. Taking their leave of the Holy Emperor, they hurried first to the Empire pocket world.
There, they found Saint Teachers Qing and Xiaohong.
"What? Xu Ke?"
"Are you sure you did not mishear?"
Hearing what they had to say, Qing and Xiaohong froze on the spot.
Then, losing her composure entirely, Qing directly grabbed hold of Sun Erlang, questioning him repeatedly for confirmation.
"Master said so, so it definitely cannot be wrong. Will you two make the trip with us?"
Though a hundred doubts lingered in Qing and Xiaohong's hearts, none could compare to several millennia of yearning.
They agreed at once.
The four traveled together and arrived at the entrance of that pocket world.
"This is..."
"The aura of the Beast Taming Sect's formation," Qing and Xiaohong said excitedly.
The aura around them grew somewhat erratic. The person they so desperately wished to see was right ahead, yet in this moment, they suddenly lacked the courage to take that final step forward.
Only under Sun Erlang's urging did they step inside the pocket world.
Between the lonely heavens and earth, only a lone, white-haired elder sat atop a mountain peak.
"Xu Ke!"
Qing's trembling voice rang out.
The elder's body stiffened slightly, and then he slowly raised his head.
Two figures, one azure and one crimson, were flying swiftly toward him.
Memories long buried beneath the dust of time flooded into his mind in an instant.
Scenes from thousands of years ago reemerged before Xu Ke's eyes.
Only Qing and Xiaohong still looked as they had back then.
While he, Xu Ke, was already decrepit with age.
The three stood face to face.
There were thousands of words to say, yet none knew where to begin.
"Sun Erlang."
"Wang Xuanba."
"Greetings, Senior!"
Two voices tactlessly interrupted the three's reunion.
Chapter 1235