He Dongxing hurried to the Nangu Valley Plain to rendezvous with his fellow sect mbers, Jiang Dongyu and his disciple Yang Chengjun. He managed to et them, but they also encountered serious trouble.
The Tang Imperial Court, the Celestial Master Mansion, and high-level practitioners from Mount Shu had joined forces to head south. They destroyed several strongholds of the Sui Dynasty remnants in the Southern Wilderness, as well as the entrance to the Jiuli secret realm, causing chaos for both the Sui remnants and the Blood River Sect.
Although the Blood River Sect was contending with other masters from the Witchcraft Sects, and despite so hidden discord between Wei Ancheng and Sheng Kang’s direct lineage, they still had to divert their attention. They needed to join the Sui remnants to secure their rear.
In addition to Tu Dong and others, Xiong Gang, a Blood River Sect Elder at the Eightfold Heaven Realm, was forced to return.
As a result, at the Nangu Valley Plain, He Dongxing’s group from the Mount Shu Sect ran headlong into Xiong Gang.
Under normal circumstances, He Dongxing’s Sword Control Technique was sharp. Even if his Cultivation Realm was weaker than his opponent’s, he could still attempt to find an opportunity to escape.
However, with Jiang Dongyu severely injured and Yang Chengjun at the Lower Three Heavens Cultivation Realm, it was difficult for He Dongxing to break out.
Fortunately, Shangguan Peng, a commander of the Great Tang Divine Strategy Army, arrived in ti to assist, enabling He Dongxing to escape the predicant.
But of the three from the Mount Shu Sect, only He Dongxing and Yang Chengjun were spared. Yang Chengjun’s master, Jiang Dongyu, had survived the Abyss Descent disaster at Ox Soul Mountain. However, he ultimately could not escape the calamity of the Nangu Valley Plain and was slain by Elder Xiong Gang.
Hearing that Shangguan Peng had assisted He Dongxing and the others from Mount Shu, Lei Jun’s suspicions about the man, far from diminishing, grew even stronger. The discrepancy between Shangguan Peng’s actions and his words intensified this feeling of dissonance.
And Master Lei was not one to shy away from attributing malicious motives to others.
It seed unlikely that Shangguan Peng was colluding with the Blood River Sect or the Sui Dynasty remnants. However, his tily assistance to the Mount Shu mbers carried a strong hint of opportunism. Having helped the people of Mount Shu, his current concern for Master Lei only made the naturally rebellious Master Lei even more vigilant. Therefore, he beca interested in Shangguan Peng’s subsequent actions.
As expected, Shangguan Peng soon hurried to the Star Dragon Abyss.
With a nonchalant expression, he listened to the reports from Shen Qubing and others.
In private, however, he quietly searched the Star Dragon Abyss again on his own.
Shangguan Peng would find it extrely difficult to locate Lei Jun. Even without the Celestial Master Seal or the True One Altar Cave Heaven, Lei Jun had nurous concealnt thods. The complex environnt of the Star Dragon Abyss offered further cover—provided Lei Jun did not actively try to attack Shangguan Peng.
Nevertheless, it was equally difficult for Lei Jun to quietly approach Shangguan Peng, as Martial Tao masters were typically weaker at sensing the external environnt but stronger at guarding themselves.
But Elder Lei, skilled at leveraging internal connections, had no intention of approaching Shangguan Peng directly.
While Shangguan Peng was talking privately with that middle-aged colonel, Lei Jun, from a great distance, took out a Thousand-Mile Sound Transmission Talisman.
It was a product of Lin Shan, one of Shangguan Ning’s subordinates.
Silently, another Thousand-Mile Sound Transmission Talisman on the middle-aged colonel, also crafted by Lin Shan, began to activate.
There was no leakage of Spiritual Energy, no fluctuation of Spiritual Nature, and no intent to attack or harm.
Shangguan Peng might have noticed sothing if the talisman had been on him directly. However, he was currently oblivious. He never expected that this Spirit Talisman—which had never caused problems and had been inspected and used countless tis—would suddenly exhibit a new change.
Thus, Lei Jun lay sideways within the True One Altar Cave Heaven, on the ritual ground before the Altar. Propping his head on his hand, he quietly listened to the conversation between Shangguan Peng and the middle-aged colonel, which was being transmitted through the Spirit Talisman:
"...Mount Shu has confird that they will send more reinforcents to the Southern Wilderness. Next, we should consider the Celestial Master Mansion."
The middle-aged colonel replied, "The Celestial Master Mansion is currently focused on recuperating its Primordial Qi and is short-handed. I’m afraid they can’t spare many people to send as reinforcents."
Shangguan Peng stated, "As long as either Yuan Mobai or Lei Jun falls in the Southern Wilderness, given the temperant of the new Celestial Master, she will definitely head south personally. Even without the Celestial Master Seal and the Celestial Master Robe, if she brings the Celestial Master’s Sword, Wei Ancheng would be forced to divert resources to deal with her. This would greatly reduce the threat from the remnants of the forr dynasty."
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