Chapter 269: Chapter 269

The Snow Dragon Mountain divination result was a Moderate-Moderate Omen—not an entirely neutral sign of neither gain nor loss, but one indicating both opportunities and risks.

Lei Jun carefully examined the floating text on the Light Sphere, deep in thought.

It wasn’t one of those "certain death" or "one-in-ten-thousand chance of survival" situations, but given his current level of cultivation, even the words "contains risks" carried significant weight.

It seemed that Chu Yu, Wei Qiyue, Yue Xiling, and Zhang Jingzhen were in for a rough journey in the Southwest.

Both the Nanzhao Stone Forest and Snow Dragon Mountain were well-known locations in the Southwest, notorious for their dangers.

For cultivators of mid-to-lower realms, these were outright deadly lands, places they would not dare to tread lightly.

The Nanzhao Stone Forest was an illusion-ridden terrain, requiring an extremely resilient soul to withstand its disorienting effects. Otherwise, only cultivators with sufficient martial focus could navigate through it while resisting the illusions.

Even then, the challenge remained immense—even some Seventh-Heaven cultivators could become lost within, needing considerable effort to escape from this naturally occurring illusionary realm.

As for Snow Dragon Mountain, the danger lay in its unstable spiritual energy, which frequently triggered violent spiritual storms.

Moreover, being close to the Snowy Plateau, the region was also frequented by powerful snowfield demons, adding yet another layer of peril.

However, after reading the text on the Light Sphere and comparing it with his divination result, Lei Jun suspected that the real danger was more likely to come from human threats rather than natural disasters.

As for Zhang Jingzhen, she had chosen not to go to Snow Dragon Mountain.

Instead, she would travel to Nanzhao Stone Forest alongside Yue Xiling, Shangguan Sheng, and the Shushan Sect disciple, Liao Jie.

Liao Jie was one of the rising stars of the younger generation of Shushan, second only to Zhang Taigang.

Lei Jun had heard of him in earlier years, and in casual conversation, Ji Chuan from Shushan Sect had also mentioned his name.

For years, Liao Jie had remained reclusive, rarely stepping out of Shushan Sect’s Xiaoding Summit, focusing almost exclusively on cultivation.

Only in the past two years had he finally crossed the last threshold, overcoming the Heavenly Chasm Tribulation between Sixth and Seventh Heaven, successfully advancing into the Upper Three Heavens. He was now the second strongest among Shushan’s younger generation, following Zhang Taigang.

From the perspective of Wei Qiyue and the others, Nanzhao Stone Forest was relatively safer than Snow Dragon Mountain.

Thus, those heading there—Zhang Jingzhen, Liao Jie, and Shangguan Sheng—were all Seventh-Heaven cultivators.

The only one among them at the Eighth Heaven was Yue Xiling, who had just recently broken through and reached the first stage of Infant Transformation in the Daoist Alchemical Sect.

Meanwhile, the more experienced Shushan Supreme Elder Wei Qiyue and Chu Yu opted for Snow Dragon Mountain.

That region was more complex, more treacherous, and held a greater number of unknown variables.

Despite their small numbers, Wei Qiyue and Chu Yu would have greater flexibility in dealing with unexpected threats.

Chu Yu, having severed ties with the Suzhou Chu Clan and aligned herself with the Imperial Court, was constantly the subject of political scrutiny, always at the heart of storms and conflicts.

Yet her approach was cautious, rarely leaving loose ends for others to exploit. She operated with precision, flowing through crises effortlessly.

Lei Jun wasn’t particularly worried about her safety.

Rather, he was more intrigued by what was happening in the northern parts of Snow Dragon Mountain.

Naturally, he had chosen to head to Nanzhao Stone Forest.

Snow Dragon Mountain, Upper Skies – Blizzard Raging

Two figures approached from the distance.

One was dressed in plain robes and straw sandals, wearing the attire of a female Daoist. Her clothing was simple, but her presence carried an undercurrent of sharpness. She appeared to be middle-aged.

She was none other than Wei Qiyue, one of the core elders of Shushan Sect, a veteran powerhouse of the previous generation.

The other was a tall, lean young woman, donned in hunting attire, exuding an aura of decisiveness and strength—Chu Yu.

As they moved through the wind and snow, they warded off the blizzard while maintaining a sharp vigilance over their surroundings.

One was an Eighth-Heaven cultivator from the Daoist Artifact Refining Sect, at the Immortal Wandering Realm.

The other was an Eighth-Heaven cultivator from the Confucian Divine Archery lineage, at the Pioneer Realm.

Both had exceptionally keen senses, their spiritual awareness capable of detecting the slightest disturbances.

However, Snow Dragon Mountain’s treacherous environment severely limited their field of perception, making it impossible to fully survey the mountain’s interior and exterior.

“I've long heard that Daoist Chen Donglou enjoys tempering himself in harsh environments, but hearing about it is nothing compared to seeing it firsthand,” Chu Yu remarked, pushing through the snowstorm.

Wei Qiyue gave a slight nod.

“Donglou believes that ‘a blade is forged through hardship’, and so he constantly seeks out the most extreme and perilous places in the world. In his early years, he frequently trained his Flying Sword by challenging the Great River.”

Her gaze swept across the storm-wracked Snow Dragon Mountain.

“In terms of talent and ability, Donglou is an unparalleled prodigy, but unfortunately… his temperament has always been…”

Chu Yu raised an eyebrow. “If Daoist Chen has remained unchanged after all these years, then perhaps… there’s more to the current situation than meets the eye?”

It was possible that Chen Donglou harbored resentment toward Tianshi Mansion or even Shushan Sect, or that he had unresolved disputes with Pure Yang Palace.

But it was hard to imagine someone as direct and brash as him secretly collaborating with figures like Feng Yi, Zhou Peng, Qi Shuo, and Liu Dongzhu, plotting some hidden scheme.

“The Sect Leader and I don’t understand it either,” Wei Qiyue admitted. “The only certainty is that he’s deeply entangled with these people.”

“We’ll only know the truth once we find him.”

As they spoke, they arrived at the northern foothills of Snow Dragon Mountain.

Just as Chu Yu was about to speak—

Her expression suddenly changed.

Down in the mountains, a streak of sword light flashed.

Like a white rainbow piercing the sun, the sword shot up into the sky, ignoring both time and space, arriving before Chu Yu in an instant!

In this chaotic spiritual storm, with the blizzard blocking perception, she had been unable to detect the attack in advance.

And when a Daoist Flying Sword was unleashed—

It seemed as if everything had vanished, but at this moment, Chu Yu and Wei Qiyue spoke in unison:

Both of them had sensed a powerful presence silently approaching through the wind and snow. Though the surroundings appeared empty, their eyes shone brightly as they simultaneously caught sight of a figure flickering within the storm.

The person’s appearance was none other than Gu Han, the former Elder of the Black Tortoise Hall from the Pure Yang Palace.

However, Gu Han was currently in his Nascent Soul form, having arrived at the Snow Dragon Mountain area by means of flight. Just moments ago, he had attempted to ambush Chu Yu and Wei Qiyue using a secret soul attack technique exclusive to Nascent Soul cultivators.

Wei Qiyue’s treasured Dust Silk Sword had been refined with various rare materials, including an abundance of worldly fireworks energy, forming a sword net that blended illusion and reality. Because of this, it was not only capable of countering the Seven Stars Sword, but also of intercepting Gu Han’s soul technique, which allowed him to fade into nothingness.

However, after his initial stealth attack failed, Gu Han immediately switched tactics. Instead of relying on the elusive soul techniques of the Azure Dragon Meng Zhang Lineage, he transitioned to the brutal, aggressive soul techniques of the White Tiger Jianbing Lineage, which were far more focused on pure slaughter.

Meanwhile, seven flying swords gleamed like the Big Dipper in the night sky, their concentrated sword light packing an immense destructive force. They moved through the air with unpredictable trajectories, unleashing the mysteries of Celestial Rotation, attacking from all directions.

At this moment, four Eighth Heaven Realm powerhouses were locked in battle above Snow Dragon Mountain. The already notorious and treacherous terrain was now transformed into a battlefield of utter devastation, turning it into a veritable death zone where no living being could dare to enter.

Caught off guard by the ambush, Chu Yu and Wei Qiyue found themselves at a disadvantage. As time passed, the situation only became more perilous…

Southern Zhao Stone Forest.

Lei Jun moved swiftly through the towering stone pillars, his mind bursting with inspiration.

This place was undoubtedly a land of misfortune, yet it also contained profound principles of heaven and earth.

The distribution of the stone formations seemed as though nature itself had crafted a bewildering maze, and upon observing it, Lei Jun felt a surge of insight.

However, he suppressed his thoughts for now, planning to return later for a thorough study.

For the moment, he needed to focus on other matters.

Yue Xiling, Zhang Jingzhen, and the others had also arrived in this region.

Due to the Stone Forest’s labyrinthine structure, the rest of their forces had remained outside, forming a loose perimeter while scanning the area.

Meanwhile, Yue Xiling, Zhang Jingzhen, Shangguan Sheng, and Liao Jie, four cultivators of the Upper Three Heavens, had ventured deep into the forest.

They split up to investigate, but after a long while, none of them found anything substantial.

Except for Yue Xiling, it was highly unlikely that anyone else would notice Lei Jun’s presence. He continued to move unseen, operating in the shadows.

After searching an entire round, Lei Jun also found nothing of value.

It seemed like everyone had come up empty-handed…

Standing atop a stone pillar, Lei Jun gazed over the landscape with flickering eyes.

Deep within his pupils, the Celestial Ground-Through Talisman shone in rhythmic flashes of light and shadow.

Although he hadn’t discovered any clues regarding Daoist Chen Donglou’s whereabouts, he was certain of one thing—this Stone Forest had been visited in recent years. Not only that, but someone had caused quite a commotion here, only to meticulously erase all traces afterward, deliberately covering their tracks to prevent future seekers from uncovering anything.

Even with Lei Jun’s formidable perception, identifying the remnants of those events in such a short time was difficult. It was only through the Heavenly Book’s Dark Side that he sensed something was amiss.

Creation and transformation often oscillated between chaos and order, disorder and alignment.

The Heavenly Book’s Dark Side held the secrets of inducing chaos and disorder.

And the very disturbances it detected reflected the past events that had unfolded in this Stone Forest.

Someone had ransacked this place and then meticulously wiped away all traces.

In some ways, it resembled how Lei Jun often handled matters—cleaning up after himself using the Heavenly Book’s Dark Side.

But why would Daoist Chen Donglou need to do something like that?

Based on the accounts of the Shushan Sect and his own past behavior, Chen Donglou was not the kind of person who would cover his own tracks.

It was possible that he had indeed come here and left behind some traces.

But then someone else arrived afterward.

They had scoured the area, confiscated every clue, and erased any evidence that Chen Donglou had been here.

Perhaps they came immediately after him, or maybe they returned for a second round of cleanup. Either way, their work was so thorough that even Lei Jun and the others found nothing left behind.

If they had gone to such lengths to erase the evidence, it couldn’t have been some young cultivator stumbling upon a lucky opportunity left behind by a senior like Chen Donglou.

Furthermore, the Southern Zhao Stone Forest was a perilous and enigmatic location. Orchestrating a sweep-and-clean operation here was not something just anyone could pull off.

"It seems I’m not just one step late—I’m several steps behind."

Lei Jun descended from the stone pillar and resumed moving through the forest.

He didn’t feel discouraged, only contemplative.

A deep, resonating sound echoed from the distance. It was hard to tell whether it was the explosion of flames or the roar of a tiger.

Lei Jun stopped in his tracks, raising an eyebrow slightly.

Zhang Jingzhen was fighting someone?

With a light flick of his fingers, a faint and obscure streak of light soared into the air, forming the shape of a Mysterious Illusory Mirror.

The mirror’s glow flickered, barely perceptible, as it swiftly directed its gaze toward Zhang Jingzhen’s location…

The renowned, dignified, and elegant newly appointed High Priest Elder of Tianshi Mansion, Zhang Jingzhen, was currently in an uncharacteristically disheveled state.

Her Daoist headscarf had shattered, allowing her long black hair to cascade down.

Following the guidance of her half of an ancient tablet, she had made her way to the Southern Zhao Stone Forest.

After searching for an extended period without any results, she had begun to resign herself to failure.

Fortune favors the persistent.

Just as she was about to give up and regroup with Yue Xiling, Shangguan Sheng, and Liao Jie, the ancient tablet in her possession suddenly reacted!

Zhang Jingzhen immediately followed its guidance.

She didn’t find anything related to Chen Donglou.

But she did find someone—and something—she had been searching for.

A former True Disciple of Tianshi Mansion, yet now an exile.

He still wore Daoist robes, though not the familiar apricot-yellow of Tianshi Mansion’s disciples. Instead, he had fashioned a white Daoist robe of his own design.

He was hidden deep within the Stone Forest, accompanied by several other Daoists.

Their black-outer-white-inner robes clearly marked them as True Disciples of the Pure Yang Palace.

At a glance, Zhang Jingzhen recognized a particular middle-aged Daoist of Sixth Heaven Realm standing among them—Mo Chen, a fugitive formerly wanted by the Pure Yang Palace, just like Zhou Peng and Wang Jingfang.

Facing off against them, Zhang Jingzhen didn’t need to ask to know that the other half of the ancient tablet was in Chen Yi’s possession.

However, something felt off.

For Chen Yi and Mo Chen to remain hidden in this dangerous, labyrinthine forest—while Upper Three Heavens cultivators were actively searching—implied one thing.

Someone within Zhang Jingzhen’s own group was protecting them.

Still, Zhang Jingzhen wasted no time.

A green-flamed Infernal Tiger roared as the Nine Abyss True Fire erupted, engulfing the surroundings in a sea of flames…

Zhang Jingzhen was shocked by Chen Yi’s rapid growth in cultivation.

The former True Disciple of Tianshi Mansion had not only advanced multiple realms since his exile, but his progress had far exceeded all prior estimations by the elders of Tianshi Mansion.

She had expected his cultivation to rise after obtaining half of the ancient tablet, but the speed at which he improved was astonishing—even unnerving.

Nonetheless, he was still only in the Middle Three Heavens Realm.

Even with Mo Chen and the other Pure Yang Palace fugitives backing him, he stood little chance against Zhang Jingzhen, who had already stepped into the Upper Three Heavens Realm.

But Zhang Jingzhen’s goal was not just to defeat him—it was to reclaim the other half of the ancient tablet.

Under the relentless assault of her Nine Abyss True Fire, Chen Yi was forced to reveal the ancient tablet fragment.

Both halves of the tablet floated into the air, instinctively gravitating toward each other, as if eager to reunite.

Even Mo Chen and the other Pure Yang Palace Daoists, despite their dire situation, couldn’t help but reveal expressions of astonishment and greed.

But what happened next shook Zhang Jingzhen to her core.

As Chen Yi reached his breaking point, something within him changed.

A mysterious light flickered deep within his pupils.

Zhang Jingzhen's vision blurred—her very consciousness trembled.

Suddenly, within her mind, a strange and foreign image emerged.

The hall was vast and magnificent, yet there was something eerily desolate about it.

The chamber was nearly empty, save for a few scattered objects, placed seemingly at random.

But before Zhang Jingzhen could fully comprehend the meaning of the scene, the golden hall trembled.

And at that very moment—

The two halves of the ancient tablet, just moments from merging, were forcibly torn apart!

A deafening BOOM resounded through the Stone Forest.

A golden ripple surged outward, spreading in all directions.

The ancient tablet fragments were flung far apart, shooting into the distance.

Both Zhang Jingzhen and Chen Yi suffered the recoil of the mysterious force.

Zhang Jingzhen’s Daoist headscarf shattered, her long black hair falling freely as her body stiffened.

For the first time in years, she found herself completely immobilized, her usually pristine and composed image now disheveled and shaken.

Chen Yi, on the other hand, was sent flying, blood spraying into the air.