Chapter 130: Battle in the Palace

This sudden turn of events far exceeded everyone’s expectations.

With Liang Yan’s inexplicable disappearance, the expressions of the three Foundation Establishment cultivators present simultaneously turned grim. Though they cared little for whether Liang Yan lived or died, the Star River Sand in his possession was something they were all determined to secure, and now, it had vanished along with him.

"Fellow Daoist Yun, Liang Yan was the person you brought along. Now that he has disappeared here with the Star River Sand, do you have any explanation for this?" Meng Qi demanded, staring at Yun Xuzi.

"Fairy Meng, you put on quite an airs! Liang Yan was merely a pawn I brought to break the formation. He refused to be controlled and fled with the treasure; what does that have to do with me?" Yun Xuzi rolled his eyes and replied coldly.

Li, hearing this, spoke up: "You cannot say it like that. That boy was poisoned by you; in the end, he will still have to come to you for the antidote. So, the ultimate beneficiary of this matter is still you, Brother Yun."

"Li, what do you mean by that?!"

"Heh, Brother Yun is a man who understands. Since you’ve eaten the meat, you should at least leave some broth for us. Since the Star River Sand will eventually belong to you, why not provide some spirit stones as compensation? That would balance things out."

Yun Xuzi narrowed his eyes and said, "Setting aside whether the Star River Sand would even belong to this old man, even if it did fall into my hands, seeking treasures in a secret realm has always been a matter of destiny. Where does this talk of compensation come from?"

"So, we cannot reach an agreement then?"

Li’s expression remained unchanged, but his voice grew increasingly icy.

"What? Do you two intend to test this old man’s abilities?"

Yun Xuzi stood with his hands behind his back, eyeing Li and Meng Qi coldly, showing not a hint of fear.

The three remaining Foundation Establishment cultivators suddenly stood at daggers drawn.

Just then, Meng Qi giggled and said, "As Fellow Daoist Yun said earlier, treasure hunting in a secret realm is for those with destiny. However, it is only natural that the fewer 'destined people' there are, the better!"

No sooner had she finished speaking than she struck with lightning speed.

She tapped her storage pouch, and four mechanical puppets flew out. These puppets, shimmering with a refined light and wielding long swords, lunged toward Yun Xuzi.

"Puppet Arts!"

Yun Xuzi narrowed his eyes, tapped the ground lightly with one foot, and vaulted into the air. With a mid-air somersault, he narrowly avoided the assault of the four swords.

The four puppets, having missed, suddenly turned and opened their mouths at the airborne Yun Xuzi, firing four blue threads.

Yun Xuzi’s expression shifted slightly; he seemed wary of those blue threads. He unhooked his horsetail whisk from his waist and traced a Taiji symbol in the air.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The four slender threads struck the Taiji symbol, producing crisp sounds like clashing metal, and were deflected backward.

At that moment, a powerful killing intent surged from behind Yun Xuzi. Still in mid-air, he did not look back, but thrust his left hand out from under his armpit to strike a palm.

Boom!

As the palms met, the person behind him was sent flying several feet back, while Yun Xuzi merely swayed slightly before stabilizing his stance.

"Li! To think that after being friends for so many years, we still cannot avoid a battle." Yun Xuzi looked at Li and sighed softly.

"Hmph! Why must you put on such a hypocritical act, Fellow Daoist Yun? You colluded with Zhao Wuming to secretly do me in; did you really think I didn’t know?"

"You know of this as well?" A trace of surprise appeared on Yun Xuzi’s face, but he quickly regained his composure and said calmly, "It seems that Zhao Wuming is indeed a man without principles, playing both sides."

"Heh, if you don't want others to know, you shouldn't have done it! For years, you have used various identities to collude with multiple factions, ignoring the orders of the Yixing Pavilion, and intervening in the affairs of the secular court in an attempt to restore the old dynasty. I am likely the only one who knows all these dirty deeds clearly, so naturally, you have been eager to get rid of me."

"Since Brother Li knows, then for the sake of my grand cause of restoring the nation, I have no choice but to wrong you."

After saying this, Yun Xuzi suddenly flicked his whisk. Two streaks of cyan light swirled out, transforming into two sharp swords in mid-air that flew simultaneously toward Li and Meng Qi.

"Innate True Qi!"

Meng Qi was slightly startled, but her hands did not stop. She tapped her storage pouch, and a miniature Black Tortoise mechanical beast flew out.

The Black Tortoise grew in the wind, reaching a size of three feet in half a breath. It raised its shell and shielded Meng Qi.

Clang!

The cyan sword struck the tortoise shell with a crisp ring. While the cyan sword dissipated, the mechanical beast was covered in cracks, emitting a crunching sound of disintegration.

Meng Qi had sacrificed a Black Tortoise puppet just to barely block the strike, and Li, standing to the side, fared no better. Although he had long known of Yun Xuzi’s true colors, this "Innate One Qi Technique" was a superior Daoist art, truly difficult to resist.

Li’s expression was solemn. A blue light flashed in his hand as he produced a scroll of flowers and birds from his storage ring.

As he shifted his hand seals, the painting burst with vitality, bleeding off the paper with a faint, overflowing fragrance.

The cyan sword manifested by Yun Xuzi struck the painting, but it was like a fish entering the sea, vanishing instantly.

Inside the painting, a cyan sword suddenly appeared, identical to the one Yun Xuzi had conjured with his Innate One Qi.

As the sword entered the painting, it was immediately swarmed by birds and beasts. At first, it held its own, and with a flash of cyan light, a large number of creatures perished.

But the birds and beasts in the painting were endless, as if they could never be killed. They continued to surge toward the sword like a tidal wave. In just a moment, they exhausted the sword’s spiritual energy, causing it to disappear completely.

Though Meng Qi and Li had both blocked Yun Xuzi’s strike, they had been forced to use their trump cards and now looked at him with heavy expressions.

Conversely, facing the pincer attack, Yun Xuzi showed not a hint of panic, appearing completely at ease.

"Loss comes from people, and recovery is sought from people. Returning to the root to restore life—the Innate One Qi! This technique is truly as legendary as they say." Meng Qi murmured, looking at Yun Xuzi in the distance.

"Hmph, this old priest has only mastered the Innate One Qi to a minor level. If we join forces, we need not fear him. Fairy, if you have any trump cards left, now is the time to use them!"

"Very well! Since Brother Li commands, how could I refuse!"

Meng Qi smiled slightly and struck four seals toward the four sword-wielding puppets. The puppets shifted positions, forming an odd sword formation.

"So it is the 'Condensing Essence Sword Formation'! I hear this formation can focus the power of four into a single fatal strike. Today, I shall witness it myself!" Yun Xuzi narrowed his eyes and said calmly.

Just as Meng Qi manipulated the puppets to set the formation, Li also pointed forward with a solemn expression. A brilliant light erupted from the flower-and-bird painting, and a white crane flew out from within.

As Meng Qi’s puppets combined their strength to strike with their swords, the white crane let out a crisp cry and flew rapidly toward Yun Xuzi...