Chapter Fifty-One: Tired of Living, Are You?

A few hours later.

Dawn gradually broke.

Xu Zhe slowly opened his eyes. Through the window of the flying vessel, he could clearly see that all around them, countless other crafts and flying machines of every kind traveled alongside them in the high skies.

“Li Corporation? Immortal Cola?”

Xu Zhe glanced at an even larger, eye-catching airship emblazoned with that very advertisement.

“Grand Hall Master, that’s the force founded by Li the Blade God—the Li Corporation. That Immortal Cola is one of their products,” Ji Dali immediately explained.

“Li Chungang is coming to the Stoneflame Secret Realm as well?” Xu Zhe was a bit astonished.

“Most likely not. If I’m not mistaken, it should be the third disciple of the Blade God, Li Xunhuang, who’s making the trip.”

“That’s a good name. Is he skilled with throwing knives?”

“Throwing knives? I haven’t heard of that. He may be a disciple of the Blade God, but he actually cultivates a sword technique,” Ji Dali shook his head. “It’s said he possesses a five-star Azure Smoke Serpent bloodline and a water spiritual root; though he’s at the peak of the Golden Core stage, he once slew a Nascent Soul-stage fiend beast. I imagine he’s come to Stoneflame Secret Realm to use the fire spirit energy’s restraint over his water root for sword training under adversity.”

“So that’s how it is.” Xu Zhe nodded slightly, and as if remembering something, asked, “By the way, what’s Li Chungang’s bloodline?”

“You didn’t know, Grand Hall Master? The Blade God boasts a nine-star Yazi bloodline, incomparably powerful. His blade techniques are unrivaled,” Ji Dali replied in slight surprise.

He’d always heard that the Grand Hall Master, the Blade God, and Daoist Wang Jianguo had once been inseparable friends—how could he not know the Blade God’s bloodline?

“I hadn’t paid much attention before, so I never asked. It just occurred to me now,” Xu Zhe replied with a smile, his face thoughtful.

A Yazi bloodline?

That was hardly an auspicious lineage!

“What about Wang Jianguo’s bloodline?” Xu Zhe asked again.

“Daoist Wang carries a nine-star Suanni bloodline,” Ji Dali answered at once.

Xu Zhe nodded and said no more.

Moments later, the flying vessel began descending through the clouds, gradually landing on the ground.

Stepping out, Xu Zhe discovered they’d arrived at a specially constructed, vast concrete plain, wide enough for countless flying ships to dock—much like the airports one would see on Earth.

All around the field stood glass-walled towers of modern architectural style. Wide gaps between the buildings were filled with tiered seating, reminiscent of stadium stands.

Viewed as a whole, it resembled a colossal football arena.

“Are there many people here to watch us enter the secret realm?” Xu Zhe frowned.

“Yes. Every time Stoneflame Secret Realm opens, people from the Celestial Mechanism Sect mix in, transmitting scenes onto screens. Any force can watch if they pay a few spirit stones,” Ji Dali nodded, as if this were perfectly ordinary.

He then seemed to recall something and lowered his voice: “Grand Hall Master, I nearly forgot to warn you. If you stay around the periphery of the secret realm, it’s fine. But if you enter the central region, be wary of ambushes—the screens can’t project images from there. The Omniscient Jade Disk melts in the fire spirit energy at the center.”

Having said this, Ji Dali slapped his own forehead as if correcting himself, “No, wait, I misspoke. Grand Hall Master, with your current Foundation Establishment cultivation, you mustn’t approach the center at all. The fire poison there is terrifying—only Nascent Soul cultivators with fire spiritual roots can last even a short while inside.”

“No matter. I’m just here to have a look around,” Xu Zhe replied with a smile, unconcerned.

With the Lunar Fire Lotus accompanying him, why would he fear fire?

As for Ji Dali and the others, though they’d cultivated the Lunar Fire Lotus as well, without the True Qi Demon-Sealing Canon as foundation, the lotus they produced was a pale imitation—a world of difference.

“Xu the Prodigy?”

Suddenly, someone pointed at Xu Zhe and called out.

Xu Zhe was taken aback—he’d covered his face, yet still been recognized?

He turned toward the voice. The speaker was a man whose eyes shone with a righteous brilliance.

“So that’s how it is,” Xu Zhe realized, sensing the radiance. It was a bloodline talent with penetrating vision, able to see through ordinary things—in short, clairvoyance.

Of course, such a talent was a bit trivial. Any ordinary object, including clothing, could be protected with a simple restriction, blocking prying eyes.

Most cultivators wore garments with these protections. Xu Zhe’s attire from the Prodigy Pavilion was no exception.

But he’d overlooked the strip of cloth covering his face—it was just an ordinary rag. Thus, someone with this talent had seen through it and exposed his identity before all.

Now, countless eyes were fixed on Xu Zhe. Some cultivators above the Golden Core stage even swept him with their divine sense, confirming his identity before withdrawing.

“It really is him!”

“Xu the Prodigy actually came.”

“Is he not afraid of Specter’s revenge in the Stoneflame Secret Realm?”

“He slew several of their Golden Core assassins only ten days ago. Now he’s exposed here, Specter will soon gather a team to hunt him inside.”

“Not just Specter—other assassin organizations will come, too.”

“I’ve heard some up-and-comers from the Mo family in Xikun Continent will be here as well. This is bound to be entertaining.”

The crowd erupted in discussion.

Suddenly, a commotion broke out at the rear.

“Make way! The Blade God’s third personal disciple, Li Xunhuang, is arriving!” someone shouted.

A tall, elegantly dressed young man, a long sword wrapped in black cloth slung across his back, strode through the crowd.

Upon closer look, the black cloth around the sword was densely embroidered with golden runes, faintly radiating a baleful aura.

“Nourishing the sword with killing intent?”

Xu Zhe raised an eyebrow. Such cultivation methods had long been abandoned in the Cangtian Domain.

A sword tempered in such a way would corrupt the spirit, making the wielder violent and prone to inner demons, risking self-destruction at higher realms—not worth the cost.

“Oh? As expected of Xu the Prodigy—you can see through my sword’s secrets,” the young man smiled, stepping directly before Xu Zhe and brazenly scrutinizing him.

“How insolent, you—” Ji Dali nearly exploded with rage, about to rebuke him.

Xu Zhe stopped him with a gesture, meeting the young man’s gaze. “Are you Li Chungang’s disciple?”

“Ha! Few dare call my master by name these days—even among prodigies.”

Li Xunhuang smirked, continuing, “Don’t get me wrong, Xu the Prodigy—I’m not here to cause trouble. I merely wish to see, with my own eyes, the prodigy said to have been so close to my master in the past.”

He took a step forward, his presence aggressive. “I’ve seen you plenty on the Spirit Web, but I want to see you in person. You don’t mind, do you?”

“Not at all,” Xu Zhe replied with a slight smile and a shake of his head.

“Then why not remove that rag from your face? Or shall I do it for you?” Li Xunhuang sneered.

“You’re welcome to try,” Xu Zhe answered coolly.

“Try? By all means.” Li Xunhuang laughed, raising his hand toward Xu Zhe’s face.

“Insolence!” Ji Dali couldn’t hold back, shouting in fury.

Almost simultaneously, a streak of red light tore through the air, aiming straight for Li Xunhuang’s brow.

He retreated instantly, twisting aside as the red light struck the ground, boring a small hole that erupted into searing flames, melting the concrete.

“Qu Hongxiu?” Li Xunhuang’s face darkened as he uttered a name.

A familiar voice called from the back of the crowd, “Li Xunhuang, tired of living? The one I set my sights on—wait, wrong line, let me try again—Li Xunhuang, you have a death wish? Dare be rude to my Uncle Xu? Believe me, with one word, I’ll summon the million-strong Vermilion Bird Army and my master, the God of War Chu, to flatten your Li Corporation!”

As the words fell, a figure in red strode out of the crowd with swaggering steps.

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