Chapter 820: Chapter 820

Li Xiaofei had no idea about the little storm of emotions brewing in Chu Xiang’s mind. Her self-infatuated thoughts and shy imaginings were completely lost on him.

He was still reeling from the power of the metal shard. Upon closer reflection, he realized it had consumed an enormous amount of energy. Just activating it once had drained nearly half of his internal reserves.

That might also explain why Chu Xiang hadn’t used it to fight back. If a single strike failed to land, she would be left completely defenseless.

He walked to the spot where Chu Xiang had first discovered the shard and conducted a thorough search. But there was nothing else of note. The deeper he ventured into the ruins, the more dilapidated and shattered the surroundings became.

“Where are the others?” Li Xiaofei turned to ask, “Where did Song Yu and the rest go?” Read full story at novel fire.net

Husi and the others explained that everyone had split up without saying much to each other after reaching the riverbank. It was clear that the old Chancellor, Song Yu, and the others each had their own plans. They had refused to let anyone follow.

Li Xiaofei mulled this over. Now that they had crossed the Heavenly River and arrived in Heaven, it wasn’t surprising that they had stumbled upon such a long-lost place. He and Ishihara Masami had lost their value to the old Chancellor, and might even be seen as uncontrollable competitors.

So it was understandable that they had left without waiting. Now, he needed to find Huang Dinggou. But what should he do after that?

According to the instructions left by Li Lan and the other soul entities, he had already reached Heaven. He hesitated, debating whether he should summon one of the soul spirits and ask directly.

Just then, he felt something. His consciousness entered the Secret Time Pavilion, where he saw Ishihara Masami’s body glowing faintly.

Something’s happening?

Li Xiaofei’s awareness snapped back to the physical world. He immediately found a half-collapsed stone hut nearby and entered it, saying, “I have an urgent matter. I need to enter seclusion. You two guard me, don’t let anyone approach.”

The mute girl and the Black Emperor stood watch outside. Chu Xiang was still tending to Hua Dongcheng close by. As for Husi and Fei Lun, they had wasted no time. They fled the moment they had the chance, clearly too afraid to remain in Li Xiaofei’s company.

Inside the stone chamber, Li Xiaofei immediately entered the Secret Time Pavilion. The first thing he did was check on Ishihara Masami’s condition. The energy within her body was still maintaining a delicate balance. That precarious state between life and death, a sort of Black Hole equilibrium, had not been disrupted.

Li Xiaofei let out a deep sigh of relief. If anything had gone wrong with her state, there was nothing he could do at his current level to suppress or resolve it.

So why is her body glowing?

He furrowed his brows in confusion as he studied her carefully. To his surprise, the glow wasn’t uniform. The intensity of the light varied, it was brighter in some directions than others. The glow was the most intense toward the southeast, while faintest toward the northwest.

“What does this mean?” Li Xiaofei rubbed his chin, lost in thought.

Then, suddenly, a memory resurfaced. It was something the old Chancellor and Song Yu had mentioned.

A bold idea flashed through his mind.

Could it really be because of that?

His eyes widened in realization.

Moments later, Li Xiaofei stepped out of the stone chamber. The Black Emperor wagged its tail like a motorized fan, happily bounding up to him. The mute girl looked at him, her face tense with concern.

“Do you have any idea where Huang Dinggou might be trapped?” Li Xiaofei asked.

The mute girl shook her head, then nodded. Li Xiaofei glanced at the Black Emperor. The dog barked rapidly. And somehow, he understood it.

I can't believe I'm talking to someone who needs a dog to translate.

According to the Black Emperor’s interpretation, the girl shook her head because she didn’t know Huang Dinggou’s exact location, but nodded because she had a general sense of the direction. Then, the mute girl raised her hand and pointed.

Li Xiaofei gave a slight nod and began moving in that direction, the mute girl and Black Emperor following closely behind.

“Can we come with you?” asked Chu Xiang, stepping forward cautiously. Her tone was soft and pleading.

Hua Dongcheng was still recovering from his injuries, and she wouldn’t stand a chance against someone like Husi alone. Only by following Li Xiaofei could she guarantee their safety for now.

Li Xiaofei thought for a moment and agreed.

“Thank you! Really, thank you so much!” Chu Xiang expressed her gratitude repeatedly.

But in her heart, she was thinking, Haha, just as I thought! He couldn’t say no to me. My earlier guess must’ve been right.

Even Hua Dongcheng cupped his hands toward Li Xiaofei in thanks. The group began making their way southeast. All the while, Li Xiaofei kept part of his awareness focused inside the Secret Time Pavilion, constantly monitoring Ishihara Masami’s condition.

Half an hour passed, and they still hadn’t made it out of the ruins. But Li Xiaofei suddenly came to a halt in front of a crumbling, ancient stone wall that had partially collapsed. He tapped and knocked on the stone for a while, then fell silent, staring at it in deep thought. The mute girl and Chu Xiang watched him in confusion, unsure of what was going on.

Then, without warning, Li Xiaofei summoned a long spear. He activated his cultivation technique, gathering his essence, energy, and spirit into peak condition. He let out a low shout as he thrust the spear forward with explosive power.

The spear shot out like a flash of lightning, piercing cleanly into the narrow gap between the ground and the stone wall.

“Rise!” With a sudden roar, Li Xiaofei unleashed a terrifying surge of strength.

The blood-marrow immortal iron spear shattered instantly. A row of dark lines formed on Li Xiaofei’s forehead.

He had already known this stone wall was abnormally heavy; every brick and tile carried weight beyond the ordinary. But to have his personal weapon break under the full force of a strike, and still not leave a mark on the wall? That was just ridiculous.

He exhaled sharply, then turned to Chu Xiang and said, “Let me borrow your treasure for a moment.”

Chu Xiang immediately handed over the irregular shard of metal with both hands. Li Xiaofei once again infused energy into it.

The metal fragment shot forward and blasted the stone wall to pieces.

As the dust settled, a pitch-black opening was revealed beneath. It turned out that there was an old, dried-up well beneath the wall.

“This grudge will be repaid,” Husi ground his teeth as he spoke, his voice laced with venom.

Only after he and his companion, Fei Lun, had put enough distance between themselves and Li Xiaofei did they dare to curse aloud. If not for Li Xiaofei, they would’ve already snatched that metal shard from that wretched woman Chu Xiang.

They didn’t even know what it was exactly. It might be a fragment from a furnace that had exploded, but its power was undeniable. If they brought it back to any of the outer star domains, it could fetch a record-breaking fortune.

A fortune that had already been in their hands had just slipped away. It was infuriating. On top of that, they’d taken a brutal beating. Husi was not the kind to forgive and forget. He had already etched Li Xiaofei’s name deep in his heart. He would never let that hatred go. When the opportunity came, he would strike back without hesitation.

“Eh? Look over there!” Fei Lun suddenly cried out, pointing ahead to the right.

A glimmer of black caught their eyes between the ruins and yellow sand. There was something glowing faintly, like a hidden treasure. With the precedent of Chu Xiang finding something valuable in the ruins, the two of them were instantly elated and dashed toward it. They swept aside the sand.

“Hahahahaha...” Husi burst into crazed laughter.

It was a hexagonal metal shard. Intricate and complete patterns were etched onto its surface. It was almost certain this fragment belonged to the same original object as the piece Chu Xiang had found earlier. But it was bigger and in much better condition. And most importantly, there were two pieces.

Husi and Fei Lun each grabbed one. Unable to resist, Husi poured energy into his shard. The metal lit up with divine brilliance and, in a flash, struck the ground with such force it carved out a gully hundreds of meters long.

“Haha! With this in hand, I will have my revenge!” exclaimed Husi, barely containing his excitement.