"Having received a heavenly mandate, an anima of Heaven and Earth will never vanish out of nowhere before completing its mission unless someone kills it," the white-haired man said in a low voice.
The black-robed cultivator blinked, initially failing to catch why the other had brought this up so abruptly.
After a moment, however, he started slightly and asked with a touch of uncertainty, "Brother Zhan, do you mean to say both incidents were committed by the same organization?"
"That shouldn't be possible, right?" The black-robed cultivator frowned. "To kill an anima of Heaven and Earth without alerting the Alliance... Such power is..."
The white-haired man surnamed Zhan gave a sneering chuckle. "Doesn't Brother Xiang find it strange? Your Xiang clan only discovered the Gale Grotto-Heaven recently. How could a bunch of out-of-province cultivators have caught wind of it?"
"To be frank, a mere Nascent Soul grotto-heaven is no big deal. The real issue is the capability displayed behind this, which is rather unsettling."
"It is said that the Alliance takes this matter extremely seriously—even a Dharma Transmitter has stepped forward," the white-haired man said gravely.
The black-robed cultivator shuddered in alarm. "This... How could it go that far?"
Though his tone had held a touch of arrogance moments before, hearing the words "Dharma Transmitter" made him noticeably tense.
That this matter already ran so deep far exceeded his imagination.
"As Brother Xiang knows, my father serves in the Department of Heavenly Oversight. Hence..." The white-haired man trailed off meaningfully.
The black-robed cultivator nodded, his mind racing with calculations.
Looking at his good friend, Zhan Fei still held back some words.
The so-called Department of Heavenly Oversight was a secretive organization within the Alliance dedicated to observing and monitoring traces of the animas and principles of Heaven and Earth.
It was not listed on any official roster; only a tiny fraction of cultivators even knew of its existence.
Animas of Heaven and Earth involved Dao Integration combat power.
Every single one was vital, so it was only natural that the Alliance sought to keep them under surveillance.
Aiming to bring every anima of Heaven and Earth under the Department's scrutiny, their efficiency had grown higher and higher over the years. While they had not reached one hundred percent, nearly a third of all animas of Heaven and Earth in the present world had been cataloged in their records.
This could be considered one of the Alliance's most precious treasures.
Yet this was merely a secondary duty of the Department.
Its true responsibility was to constantly monitor the traces of the principles of Heaven and Earth.
Even though the principles of Heaven and Earth had remained nearly unchanged for thousands of years, the Department of Heavenly Oversight had to keep close watch at every moment, never letting down its guard in the slightest.
The principles of Heaven and Earth were like a colossal crisscrossing web woven together to form the Heavenly Dao of the Xuanhuang Realm.
There were Longevity Heavenly Venerables who defied the principles of Heaven and Earth to become part of this great web.
The process of defying the principles inevitably pulled at the threads of this vast web, sending out ripples.
The greater the degree of reversal, the stronger the ripples.
Through this method, they could detect whether any cultivator was currently reversing the principles of Heaven and Earth to attain Longevity.
Once such traces were discovered, they had to ascertain the identity of the defying cultivator immediately.
If it was a neutral cultivator, well and good.
If the individual belonged to the Five Elders Association, they would resort to every possible means and spare no cost to prevent the attempt from succeeding.
***
All sorts of knowledge regarding the Department of Heavenly Oversight drifted across Zhan Fei's mind.
He harbored little fondness for this organization where he was soon to take office, despite his father having emphasized its importance before him countless times.
After all, once one entered the Department of Heavenly Oversight, they would spend the greater part of their remaining life sitting dryly before that instrument.
One might not even get a single day of leave in a century.
Such a life...
Unfortunately, an appointment to the Department of Heavenly Oversight was not something he could change.
Zhan Fei glanced at the friend beside him, a flicker of envy rising in his heart.
Being a local tyrant was actually not bad at all.
Meanwhile, the black-robed cultivator, named Xiang Zengqiang, had no inkling of what his friend was thinking.
He pondered and hesitated for quite a while before finally making up his mind.
First, ascertain the identity of the cultivator who stole the Gale Grotto-Heaven, but make no rash moves.
Wait and see the movements from the Department of Heavenly Oversight's side before deciding.
***
The Congyun Sea.
Having returned to Haixuan Island, Ji Shaoli remained unaware at first that someone had targeted him.
However, after handling various miscellaneous affairs of the Mutual Aid Association, he received an anonymous message.
"Does Daoist Ji have a grievance with the Xiang clan of Juchao Province? I saw people over there quietly inquiring about you."
Ji Shaoli wore an inscrutable expression. "Juchao Province?"
He knitted his brows.
His sole connection to Juchao Province was likely the Gale Grotto-Heaven devoured not long ago.
He instantly understood how he might have offended them.
After conducting some searches, Ji Shaoli felt slightly relieved.
This Xiang clan was merely a local power in Juchao Province, guarded by only a single Dao Integration cultivator.
Even if they came knocking at his door, Ji Shaoli had nothing to fear.
"Still, some preparations are in order."
Ji Shaoli's eyes flickered.
***
Heavenly Sword Sect, Sword Tomb.
Li Fan, who had been focused on his comprehension, suddenly jolted awake.
It was not because of any crisis his clone might face, but because, inexplicably, he could no longer perceive anything from Sword.
Li Fan looked around.
He discovered he was not the only one.
The myriad leftover swords in the Sword Tomb seemed to have lost their connection to Sword at this moment as well.
Their slightly bowed blades returned straight, utterly bewildered.
Li Fan stared intently at the wooden sword before him. "Is it a change within itself? Has it lost all spirituality?"
"No, this is temporary."
Li Fan soon discerned a clue.
Making no hasty moves, he simply observed the wooden sword carefully and waited with patience.
Sure enough, after just fifteen minutes, the wooden sword regained its splendor as a wonder of Heaven.
Brimming with the profound mysteries of the sword, it brought the myriad blades to bow their heads once more.
The question was...
What had happened during those fifteen minutes?
Li Fan's interest was piqued at once.
While continuing to comprehend the sword dao, he waited for the next "malfunction" to occur.
After observing continuously for several days, Li Fan discovered the pattern.
At fixed intervals, the sword would lose its spirituality for exactly fifteen minutes.
During this time, the myriad leftover swords in the Sword Tomb would simultaneously lose their connection to Sword.
With only a single exception!
Thanks to the Dao Transformation Stone within his mind, Li Fan could fully record the reactions of every single sword before and after, comparing them one by one.
That was how he spotted this peculiarity!
Having locked onto his target, the moment the next "malfunction" occurred, Li Fan leapt over to its side.
This was an inconspicuous black sword coated in dust.
Plain and unadorned.
It possessed neither a sharp edge nor intricate patterns.
Like the first practice piece of a blacksmith's apprentice, it appeared utterly ordinary, even somewhat unsightly.
Yet it was precisely this sword that had won the favor of the wooden sword, the wonder of Heaven.
If the scene of ten thousand swords paying homage in the Sword Tomb was a collective lecture given by the wooden sword,
then during the "malfunction," it was tantamount to the wooden sword giving private tutoring to this black sword alone.
Chapter 890