At this point, Su Yu truly had no time to pick up One-Eye and the others.
They wouldn't die anyway, so even if he remembered them, there was no need to rush.
Extract Heaven Yuan Qi!
The shadow barrier materialized. One wisp, two wisps...
Su Yu continuously swallowed blood essence and used the album to extract wisp after wisp of Heaven Yuan Qi. The metallic stench of blood on him grew heavier and heavier.
A single drop of early Tengkong blood essence took about three minutes to finish extracting.
Mid Tengkong took five minutes, and late Tengkong required at least ten minutes...
From the afternoon of the seventeenth to the morning of the eighteenth, Su Yu finally finished extracting all three hundred drops of Tengkong Realm Mountain-Breaking Ox blood essence. It had taken him nearly an entire day, but the harvest was immense.
The shadow barrier before him expanded continuously.
Innumerable golden wisps of Heaven Yuan Qi swirled within the barrier like roaming dragons.
Three hundred drops of Tengkong Realm Mountain-Breaking Ox blood essence, worth twenty-three thousand merit points, had yielded an amount roughly equivalent to thirty Heaven Yuan Fruits.
It still wasn't enough!
Su Yu began swallowing Lingyun Realm blood essence. At his current strength, swallowing early Lingyun blood essence was not difficult.
By late night on the eighteenth, he had extracted one hundred drops of early Lingyun blood.
Su Yu stopped there and set aside the remaining mid and late Lingyun blood essence.
Instead, he turned to extracting Cloud Tiger blood essence. The Cloud Tiger race was weak, but Xia Huyou had provided him with a vast quantity of their blood essence this time, which was comparable to that of the Ironwing Bird race.
Eighty-seven thousand merit points' worth of Cloud Tiger blood essence, once extracted, yielded an amount equivalent to roughly ninety Heaven Yuan Fruits.
Excluding the remaining Mountain-Breaking Ox blood essence, Su Yu calculated that this batch would yield roughly the equivalent of one hundred and fifty Heaven Yuan Fruits in total.
That should be just about enough!
By then, having consumed so much blood essence, Su Yu looked practically drenched in blood. Even with his "Blood" divine character relentlessly absorbing the dissipating bloody aura, it could not mask the thick stench clinging to him!
***
It was now the twentieth.
After extracting blood essence for three consecutive days, Su Yu still had not finished the last of the Cloud Tiger blood essence.
Meanwhile, on Yuexin Island.
Zhu Tiandao arrived once again, bringing the three great demons along with him.
The three great demons were still shivering in terror.
Lately, they had run into far too many Sun Moon Realm figures!
Every time they turned around, it was a Sun Moon!
In the past, they had never considered the Shanhai Realm to be weak, had they?
Why were they so miserable now? It had been like this in the Great Xia Prefecture, and it was the same here—Sun Moon experts were constantly keeping an eye on them.
On Yuexin Island.
Zhu Tiandao placed no restrictions on the three great demons. With a casual flick of his sleeve, he shooed them off into the distance to let them wander on their own. Ignoring them, he sipped his tea, looked at Niu Baidao, and chuckled. "What has that boy Su Yu been up to these past few days? I almost thought he had come back to clear the Baidao Pavilion again."
"He hasn't."
Niu Baidao laughed. Luckily, he hadn't; it would have been a headache if he had.
Without lingering on the topic, Niu Baidao quickly added, "If Su Yu wants to cultivate in seclusion, let him. Stop keeping your eyes glued to him all day. You're a manor lord—don't you have anything else to do?"
With that, he promptly said, "The Super Sensing Jade has yielded some results. Care to take a look?"
"Results?"
Zhu Tiandao was overjoyed and immediately replied, "Let's go take a look!"
After investing so many years and such a massive cost, they could finally see the fruits of their labor.
Neither wasted any time. Rising into the air, they quickly vanished.
Back on the island, the three great demons looked at each other.
One-Eye whispered cautiously, "It looks like they really left... Nobody's watching us!"
They just abandoned us like this?
They don't care about us anymore?
Blood Moon murmured faintly, "Should we... run?"
Ju Shan grumbled in a muffled voice, "Are you stupid? Why run now? Where would we run to? Watch out, it might be bait! These humans love doing this kind of thing! Right now, Su Yu owes us a promise to send us back to the All-Heavens Battlefield! But if we run... he'll be off the hook. This is a plot!"
It had to be!
It was definitely bait!
Have you forgotten the trap set at Starfall Mountain?
One-Eye and Blood Moon let out faint sighs. That sounded right; it had to be a trap.
Humans were far too treacherous!
He couldn't easily go back on his word, so he deliberately gave them an opportunity to escape. More importantly, if they ran now, they would give the humans an excuse to wipe them out later.
The three great demons exchanged bitter glances.
Better stay put. They absolutely would not fall for it!
At any rate, they wouldn't be able to leave in the near future.
***
Zhu Tiandao and Niu Baidao had no such scheme in mind. What bait? To them, the three great demons hardly mattered, and they weren't worried about them escaping, so why bother keeping tabs on them?
Mingxin Hall.
A retirement residence for Sun Moon Realm elders of the Great Ming Civilization Academy, it supposedly housed four or five elderly Sun Moon figures enjoying their twilight years—all of extremely advanced age, of course.
Mingxin Hall was also located on an island surrounded by water.
The environment was even better than Yuexin Island's!
With singing birds and fragrant flowers, it was like a paradise detached from the world.
Because it was a retirement sanctuary for several Sun Moon experts, ordinary people never visited, leaving it undisturbed by trivial matters.
Just as Zhu Tiandao and Niu Baidao landed, an old man flickered into view and appeared before them.
With snow-white hair and beard and a hunched back, the old man smiled and said, "You two are here. Perfect timing—we're just about to calibrate it. Come on in!"
Zhu Tiandao smiled and asked, "Elder Li, how are the results?"
"We ran a few tests earlier; they're decent."
The old man smiled. "Set up the Sky-Locking Array first, lest the radiation during calibration causes too much of a stir!"
Zhu Tiandao said no more, swiftly tossing out several jade talismans that drifted into the air and vanished in the blink of an eye.
A faint barrier enveloped the small island—the very grand array used back at Starfall Mountain.
A grand array crafted by an Invincible expert!
Once that was done, the group walked together toward a large courtyard on the island.
They entered and proceeded deeper inside. After walking for quite a while, the old man continuously activated defensive arrays along the path. Following a three- to four-minute walk, they finally arrived at a massive underground hall!
The hall was crowded with people.
Mingxin Hall was reputed to be a retirement haven for Sun Moon elders, but over the years, many other very elderly figures had also come here to retire.
If the Great Ming Prefecture had an abundance of anything, it was old elders.
People like Jin Sheng were not just one or two; there were at least a hundred of them.
These people had lived for hundreds of years and made substantial contributions in their respective fields.
Over the years, these elders had gradually stepped down from the front stage and moved behind the scenes, entering Mingxin Hall to retire. Nobody suspected anything, as they were indeed very old, with some nearing the limit of their lifespans.
The Great Ming Prefecture had spent countless resources on these elders, extending their lives and sustaining their vitality. Some of these elders, whom the outside world presumed dead, were actually still alive.
Their combat strength might not be formidable, but Zhu Tiandao had always held them in high regard.
These people were the true treasures of the Great Ming Prefecture!
The moment he and Niu Baidao entered the hall, an elderly woman with missing teeth walked over. Although she radiated the aura of the Sun Moon Realm, she was already decrepit.
Sun Moon experts were supposed to live much longer.
Yet over the years, in their pursuit of research and development, these people often conducted reckless experiments. Sustaining injuries had been a routine occurrence, steadily shaving away their lifespans.
Upon seeing the elderly woman, Zhu Tiandao bowed promptly. Seeing that her teeth had fallen out, he said with a hint of sorrow, "Teacher Hu... you should rest more."
"I'm fine."
Without dwelling on it, the elderly woman smiled and waved her hand. "Enough of that. After so many years, we've finally created this thing. We were just about to begin calibration—come see the results!"
Zhu Tiandao sighed and walked forward alongside her.
When they reached the end of the hall, a colossal mirror appeared before them.
Many people were gathered there.
The mirror was enormous, with people all around performing final adjustments. Teacher Hu grinned, revealing her few remaining teeth, and smiled brightly. "Little Zhu, this thing cost us an immense price and a tremendous amount of time. I don't know if its detection can bypass Invincibles, but bypassing Sun Moon experts shouldn't be a problem at all!"
With that, she quickly added, "Different colors represent different cultivation realms! You can choose to display or filter them. For instance, if you set the target to only scan for Shanhai, it will only display the presence of Shanhai experts!
"We based it on the seven colors—red, orange, yellow, green, cyan, blue, and purple—to represent the seven realms: Kaiyuan, Qianjun, Wanshi, Tengkong, Lingyun, Shanhai, and Sun Moon.
"The deeper the shade, the stronger the combat power!"
As the elderly woman introduced it, she smiled brightly and continued, "This Sensing Jade burns Yuan Qi and willpower as its energy source. Activating it once consumes quite a bit, though like the Baidao Pavilion, it automatically draws some stray energy from the void. Still, if it remains active long-term to cover the entire Tiandu Prefecture, it will cost at least a million merit points per year to start!"
Zhu Tiandao nodded. "Not bad. The consumption is high, but the Great Ming Prefecture can bear it. Once this is established, Tiandu Prefecture will be as secure as a fortress!"
He then asked quickly, "Can it lock onto a specific person for investigation?"
"Yes, but that's easily detected by the target, so it's best not to do that."
The elderly woman coughed and called out, "Everyone, how is the calibration going?"
"Position One is ready!"
"Position Two is ready..."
The elders reported one after another. The old woman smiled. "Excellent. Then let's activate it and test it out. Restrict the scan to within the academy and see if Old Wang and the others notice anything!"
"Let's give it a try!"
The elders all laughed. The surface of the mirror trembled as a large quantity of Yuan Qi Liquid was burned and massive amounts of willpower were infused.
A beam of light flashed across the mirror, passing right through everyone before a pillar of light surged upward.
Fortunately, the Invincible grand array had been deployed around the perimeter; otherwise, the activation would have caused far too much commotion.
Zhu Tiandao felt something pass over his body—a very subtle sensation that vanished in a flash. Once those light rays passed beyond the hall, they disappeared in the blink of an eye.
At that moment, points of light began appearing on the mirror.
They started spreading!
In the blink of an eye, the entire academy was encompassed within it.
***
Meanwhile, Su Yu, who was still extracting Heaven Yuan Qi...
Inside his sea of will, the "Calamity" divine character trembled slightly. He opened his eyes and looked around with suspicion. What was going on?
He scanned his surroundings and checked with his Sensing Jade, but found nothing out of the ordinary.
"Is the 'Calamity' divine character about to advance?"
Su Yu felt a faint flicker of doubt. It shouldn't be so fast; another advancement would bring it to third tier.
Forget it!
In a few more hours, he would be done with the extraction.
Su Yu paid it no further mind.
***
At the same time.
In the Beast Taming Academy, the silly fatty, who was munching on bamboo, turned its head and looked around, its dark, beady eyes showing a hint of confusion.
Who just peeped at me?
How shameless! Why peek at me?
Did I sense wrong?
It scratched its head, thought no further, and went back to eating. Who knew which fellow it was? Could King Daming have returned?
***
At that moment, anyone within the academy who possessed sharp crisis instincts and formidable strength had a slight reaction. However, it was far too faint and imperceptible, feeling merely as though someone had casually scanned the surroundings in a passing flash.
Inside the underground hall of Mingxin Hall.
Points of light of all seven colors now dotted the mirror's surface.
A three-dimensional map had taken shape upon the mirror.
The Great Ming Civilization Academy!
It was an exact replica of the Great Ming Civilization Academy, except with no people visible—every person was represented by a point of light.
Zhu Tiandao ignored the rest and immediately looked at the purple points of light on the mirror.
Purple represented the Sun Moon Realm.
Right now, there were seven purple points of light in the vicinity of the Mingxin Hall!
Representing seven Sun Moon experts!
Himself, Niu Baidao, and the five elderly Sun Moon figures.
A formidable force!
Within the rest of the academy, there were three more purple points of light—an alarming presence!
"That's Old Wang..."
He glanced at one of the points, which corresponded to Vice Principal Wang's location. Of the other two purple points, one was at the Beast Taming Academy.
Glancing at it, Teacher Hu frowned. "Manor Lord, is that the Iron-Eater Beast?"
Zhu Tiandao nodded. "Its cultivation is at the peak of Shanhai, but its physical body is at the Sun Moon Realm. It probably counted it as Sun Moon. The effect is quite good; this judgment is reasonable. That fellow can indeed be treated as a Sun Moon."
With physical defense at the Sun Moon Realm, it truly could be treated as one.
The elderly woman smiled. "This Sensing Jade detects based on a synthesis of energy fluctuations, willpower fluctuations, Yuan Qi fluctuations, and so forth, to avoid missing information and causing trouble."
Everyone turned their gaze toward the final point of light.
Their expressions turned peculiar!
Zhu Tiandao and Niu Baidao exchanged looks, their eyes filled with utter bewilderment.
"Is that... Old Hu?"
Zhu Tiandao was not entirely sure.
That seemed to be the territory of the Multiple Divine Characters Academy. Yet within that area, there was not a single blue point for the Shanhai Realm; the only point there was purple, indicating the Sun Moon Realm!
Who could it be if not Hu Xiansheng?
Niu Baidao was astonished as well. "Old Hu... is showing Sun Moon purple light. Although the purple light is faint, does that fellow... at seventh-stage Shanhai, have that kind of strength?"
Even he hadn't seen it!
A faint purple light corresponded roughly to the first or second stage of Sun Moon.
Yet... that fellow was only a Shanhai!
Zhu Tiandao knitted his brows and said quickly, "Old Niu, go check on him. Make sure Old Hu hasn't been killed and replaced by Lan Tian..."
"Impossible!"
Niu Baidao chuckled. "If it were really Lan Tian, the purple light would be dense. Never mind, I'll go take a look!"
Niu Baidao vanished in a flash.
Moments later, at the Multiple Divine Characters Academy.
In the dean's office.
Hu Xiansheng was idly doodling when he glanced sideways and saw Niu Baidao appear. Hu Xiansheng raised an eyebrow. "Old Niu, were you probing me just now?"
Niu Baidao didn't bother wasting words and reached straight out to grab him.
The moment his hand closed, it grabbed empty air with a whoosh. Space rippled, and a spatial tremor erupted right above his head, accompanied by the crisp sound of shattering glass. Niu Baidao's willpower vibrated as space shook violently.
With a pop, Hu Xiansheng materialized several meters away, frowning at him. "Old Niu, what are you doing?"
He watched Niu Baidao warily. Had this fellow come looking for trouble today?
Niu Baidao smiled, beaming brightly. "Old Hu, do you think you could win in a one-on-one fight against a Sun Moon?"
"Nonsense! How would I win? By playing dead?"
Niu Baidao said with a faint smile, "Never mind. But I have to say, your spatial transit technique is truly remarkable! Not only is it a lifesaving trump card, but its lethality is also quite impressive. You really know how to hide your strength, you sly dog."
"Hide what?"
Hu Xiansheng was speechless. The next moment, Niu Baidao vanished.
"Fuck!"
Hu Xiansheng cursed. Out of his mind!
Coming here out of nowhere to pick a fight—had Old Niu gotten so old he was becoming senile?!
***
Inside the underground hall.
Niu Baidao returned the next instant and laughed. "It's definitely Old Hu. That spatial transit technique of his... if Lan Tian knew how to do that, even an Invincible would struggle to handle him!"
Zhu Tiandao chuckled as well. "Fascinating. The Sensing Jade assessed him as Sun Moon. In that case... if trouble breaks out in the future, leaving a Sun Moon opponent for him shouldn't be an issue, right?"
"No problem at all!"
Niu Baidao laughed heartily. "That fellow can take it!"
Everyone laughed. Sun Moon combat power was somewhat beyond their expectations; for a seventh-stage Shanhai to match a Sun Moon proved that Hu Xiansheng truly knew how to play dumb.
Then again, he belonged to the Multiple Divine Characters faction... so it made sense.
Zhu Tiandao smiled. "Enough about him. Aside from him, we have thirteen Shanhai Elders... Old Niu, take a look and see how many Shanhai experts there are in the academy!"
Blue!
Shanhai!
Niu Baidao swept his eyes over the map, an odd look flashing across his face. There were quite a few.
Of the thirteen Shanhai Elders, two were stationed with the army and one had gone traveling, leaving ten Shanhai Elders who should be in the academy.
Two were in this hall, leaving only eight outside, not counting Hu Xiansheng.
Yet at this moment, there were a full fifteen blue points of light outside!
Seven extra!
"These three are those three great demons..." Niu Baidao noted, then pointed to the waters near Yuexin Island. "These are the old turtle and its primary wife. The old turtle's blue is almost turning purple, and its primary wife has actually reached seventh-stage Shanhai without me noticing..."
Five of them were great demons.
As for the other two points, Niu Baidao quickly checked them again. One was in the Multiple Divine Characters Academy!
He hadn't noticed it earlier and felt somewhat surprised. "Did it penetrate the defensive array of the Primordial Spirit Research Institute? Without being detected?"
"It shouldn't have been,"
the elderly woman explained. "That defensive array is only at the Sun Moon Realm, so it shouldn't have noticed."
"This blue is very faint... It's probably Wen Zhong!"
Zhu Tiandao nodded. "It should be him, though it's hard to say for sure..."
He pointed to another point of light. "Here, in the Primordial Spirit Research Institute. Look, there's a cyan point of light that's very dense. Is that a ninth-stage Lingyun?
"And over here, there are three more cyan points..."
Zhu Tiandao said with an odd look, "One Shanhai-level presence and four Lingyun-level ones. Where did they get four Lingyun experts?"
"Water Person and Shadow are Lingyun, Wen Zhong counts as a weak Shanhai, and then there are two more Lingyun figures here..."
The group exchanged looks, and Niu Baidao suddenly said, "That little fur ball..."
Zhu Tiandao nodded. "It reached the Lingyun Realm, that's true. But there are two here—one was assessed at roughly ninth-stage Lingyun, and the other at seventh-stage Lingyun... Which one do you think is the little fur ball?"
Niu Baidao hesitated. "The ninth-stage Lingyun? That creature is rather unique and hard to gauge by normal standards. If scanned, it could easily be judged as ninth-stage."
"Then what about the seventh-stage one?"
The two exchanged glances. Could it be Su Yu?
Inside the Primordial Spirit Research Institute, several Tengkong elders were displayed, the Character Cultivation Realm Wu Lan was displayed, and the Suanni and Mountain-Boring Ox at the entrance were also displayed. The only unaccounted-for point of light was a Lingyun... Su Yu?
Seventh-stage Lingyun?
The Sensing Jade had assessed him at seventh-stage Lingyun?
Why?
What was that based on?
If it had judged Su Yu to be at fourth- or fifth-stage Lingyun, they might have believed it. But seventh-stage... wasn't that a bit too high?
Just as Niu Baidao was about to speak, Teacher Hu interjected, "Manor Lord, Principal, forget that for a moment! What matters right now is that this point—and the entire area around it—is abnormal!"
The elderly woman pointed at Su Yu's point of light and said, "If this is Su Yu, who knows what that kid is up to right now. It feels like a Shanhai-level threat is about to emerge from his spot..."
That entire region was transitioning from cyan to blue—not an individual, but a whole zone.
Zhu Tiandao asked in surprise, "What does that signify?"
The old woman explained, "It signifies that this area harbors a threat transitioning from Lingyun to Shanhai. He might be conducting some research that triggered a temporary surge of power, and that power is expanding!"
"Is he researching blood essence? That kid couldn't be extracting blood essence from a Sun Moon god or demon, could he?"
He wasn't certain, but Zhu Tiandao knew Su Yu had acquired the corpse of a Sun Moon god from the Xia family. Could that kid already dare to extract it now?
After watching for a while, he looked away. Right now, he was only curious about one thing: did Su Yu truly possess the strength of a seventh-stage Lingyun?
That was impossible, wasn't it?
Or had he swallowed blood essence and was temporarily unleashing Lingyun Realm strength?
Looking away from Su Yu, he quickly shifted his gaze to the final blue point of light—the last Shanhai.
Who was this?
He looked at Niu Baidao, who frowned. "Over here... There are no Shanhai Elders in this direction. This is a student dormitory area. Where did a Shanhai come from...?"
The two exchanged glances, somewhat surprised.
On the very first test, had they hooked a big fish?
A Shanhai was no small fish!
"Are you sure?"
"Not sure... How about we go take a look together?"
Niu Baidao stroked his beard and said, "Shall we go see? I don't recall any Shanhai over there. Could it be that some great demon in the academy broke through without me noticing?"
"A breakthrough to Shanhai slipped past you?"
"Wasn't I away for a while recently?"
After a brief exchange, the two vanished simultaneously.
***
A moment later, they appeared in a dormitory area.
A young student was diligently reading a book. Sensing something, he turned his head to look outside, his heart jolting. Hurriedly rising to his feet, he said, "Greetings, Manor Lord! Greetings, Principal!"
Niu Baidao looked him up and down. After a long pause, he stroked his chin and frowned. "I don't see anything unusual. Manor Lord, when did our eyesight become so poor?"
Zhu Tiandao ignored him, scrutinizing the student from head to toe before finally saying, "Looking closely, there are indeed some abnormalities. My eyes deceived me! I thought only the Modification Faction could hide from my gaze, but it turns out... one doesn't necessarily need the Modification Faction! This fellow must possess a very unusual divine character..."
At these words, the young student's expression changed drastically. He hurried to speak: "Lord Manor Lord, I..."
Zhu Tiandao waved his hand. "Quiet! I'm not Xia Longwu—I don't kill people on sight! Impressive. A Shanhai expert who managed to fool both Old Niu and me. Even if we didn't interact much, you swaggered around right under our noses and fooled us. Quite remarkable!"
The young student's face paled drastically!
"Don't panic, I never said I was going to kill you. Your skills are quite something!"
Zhu Tiandao sighed with admiration and smiled. "Speak. Where are you from? The All-Races Cult, or somewhere else?"
The young student's face changed yet again. After a long pause, he muttered gloomily, "My lord, please don't misunderstand. I harbor no ill will, and I am no member of the All-Races Cult. This humble one comes from... the Traveling Merchant Guild..."
Zhu Tiandao's eyes widened with realization. "So it's you—Xu Bin, the Thousand-Handed Bandit! The Traveling Merchant Guild... you certainly have some nerve!"
Zhu Tiandao chuckled. "A capable man indeed! To think you were hiding right here. The Great Ming Civilization Academy lost important research results three times; that was all your doing, wasn't it? The All-Races Cult took the blame for you! You, a dignified Shanhai, going around thieving everywhere—truly something!"
The young student gave a dry laugh and remained silent.
Zhu Tiandao's expression chilled. "Remaining here this time, are you hoping to steal something, or do you have other plans?"
"No..."
As Xu Bin spoke, he felt an overwhelming pressure bearing down on him. His face twisted in panic, and he hurriedly stammered, "I... I only took a small job to steal Su Yu's upcoming Primordial Spirit Aperture Opening Art, or some other cultivation method! Truly, I haven't made a move yet! It was just a casual job with a hefty bounty of two hundred thousand merit points, issued collectively by several branches of the Primordial Divine Cult..."
He immediately added, "Manor Lord, I surrender! I only steal, I never kill! I'll pay for my life! One million merit points..."
Seeing Zhu Tiandao's face remain dark, he blurted out frantically, "Three million! My entire fortune! A lifetime of savings! I'll work for the Great Ming Prefecture! My lord, there isn't a place under heaven I cannot infiltrate... Cough, cough, a misunderstanding, my lord, that's not what I meant! What I mean is, I'm extremely useful! The Traveling Merchant Guild isn't a band of human traitors; we're just... middlemen, trading goods that are inconvenient for people to deal in openly..."
Zhu Tiandao couldn't be bothered to listen. He reached out and grabbed him directly. For a ninth-stage Sun Moon, capturing a first- or second-stage Shanhai was child's play.
Xu Bin offered no resistance whatsoever, wearing a look of helpless resignation as he said hurriedly, "My lord, I truly surrender! Is there anything your lordship wishes to steal? No, I mean, is there anything your lordship requires? I know this trade inside and out! Even if your lordship wants the Great Xia Prefecture's Heaven-Cleaving Blade or the Great Zhou Prefecture's Civilization Sword, I can fetch them for your lordship! If that won't do..."
Zhu Tiandao couldn't be bothered to respond. With a dull thud, he struck him dizzy, then ignored him and turned to Niu Baidao with a smile. "We didn't find Lan Tian, but we caught Xu Bin instead—an unexpected bonus. Do you think Lan Tian is actually in the academy?"
"Hard to say. He might still be in the Great Xia Prefecture."
Niu Baidao smiled as well. "This thing is truly useful! Even Xu Bin was detected and captured. Even if his concealment ability isn't on Lan Tian's level, he's still a headache for every prefecture, yet he tripped up right here!"
The results were superb!
The Super Sensing Jade, which had consumed countless resources and required the concerted efforts of multiple Sun Moon experts and Earth-rank weaponsmiths over so much time, had not been built in vain!
Xu Bin was famous across all the prefectures.
Just as he said, he didn't kill; he only stole.
A Shanhai Realm thief!
Naturally, the things he stole were never ordinary.
Zhu Tiandao chuckled. "This fellow is exceptionally useful. The number of secrets he holds is beyond normal. Over a decade ago, even the Quest Realm suffered a theft by his hand. Catching him is a massive windfall!"
Both men smiled!
This fellow had stolen far too many things and amassed a fortune so immense it was terrifying. Making a profit was secondary; through him, they might unearth far more.
With that, Zhu Tiandao quickly added, "The Super Sensing Jade is truly wonderful. Let's expand its coverage to the entire Tiandu Prefecture immediately. Right now, I'm even more curious about that kid Su Yu. Does he really possess the strength of a seventh-stage Lingyun?"
Shaking his head, Niu Baidao replied uncertainly, "Hard to say. Last time, he cleared up to the forty-ninth floor. If it's a weak seventh-stage Lingyun, it's possible—it depends on the criteria programmed into the Sensing Jade."
"We'll go check on him later."
Zhu Tiandao's eyes narrowed slightly. "Setting that aside, once the Sensing Jade blankets Tiandu Prefecture, we're bound to root out a swarm of parasites! Old Niu, we might have work to do soon. We might just catch some big fish!"
The efficacy was simply too great!
With this device in place, the Great Ming Prefecture's defense network had reached a pinnacle.
Zhu Tiandao narrowed his eyes and smiled. "Right now, we just lack an opportunity—a chance to lure all of them out at once. It looks like Su Yu is about to cast his body. How about we talk with him... and use this chance to do some fishing? We might hook a truly big fish!"
"Inside the academy, that will be difficult!"
Zhu Tiandao laughed. "I know. Su Yu... can leave the academy! We'll talk it over; it shouldn't be an issue. It's for his own safety anyway—to flush out all those scoundrels in one fell swoop. It would be best if we can flush out Lan Tian too; that fellow is the biggest trouble!"
Niu Baidao nodded, inwardly delighted.
With the Great Ming Prefecture's defense and surveillance networks soon perfected, they could clean out some vermin!
Zhu Tiandao smiled in high spirits.
Once they cleared out those troublemakers, things would be much easier going forward.
And Su Yu's body casting might just be that opportunity.
Chapter 297