Immortal-Exterminating Divine Venerable

"Success!"

After Yang Xiao handled all eighty-one Primordial Pearls, the Spiritual Brands within them vanished completely, rendering them masterless.

"Lord Xiao is truly amazing!"

Yue Lingxi's face was filled with adoration.

Yang Xiao, however, just smiled. He handed her the Primordial Pearls and said, "We need to go, now. I can already feel that guy getting close."

And he was right.

The Thousand Mechanism Eye in his Sea of Consciousness had been blaring warnings, each one more intense than the last.

Yang Xiao knew.

The owner of this Treasure Array had to be scrambling to get here.

But in the end, he had still won.

"Let's go."

Taking Yue Lingxi by the hand, Yang Xiao unfurled a pair of golden wings. With a single flap, the two transformed into a streak of light, vanishing over the horizon in the blink of an eye.

This time, he was using his full strength.

He even drew upon the power of the Heart of Time, moving at a speed that was absolutely unprecedented.

Not long after Yang Xiao and Yue Lingxi departed, merely half a breath later, a terrifying figure stepped out of the void.

His gaze swept the area.

It was a total wreck.

He found nothing.

"Damn it! Damn that junior, escaping so quickly! But do you think my Primordial Pearls are so easy to take? Let me just sense them... No! That bastard actually erased my Spirit Will from the Primordial Pearls this fast!"

"Damn it! Who in the hell is this kid to possess such an ability?"

The newcomer roared.

Who else could it be but Ye Xuanfeng of the Profound Celestial Sect?

But right now, his expression was hideous. Because Yang Xiao hadn't left behind a single trace of his Spirit Will, Ye Xuanfeng had no idea where he had fled.

All he knew was that his Treasure Array was gone.

Utterly and completely gone.

"Damn it! DAMN IT! If I ever find out who this junior is and where he came from, I will make him... wish... he... were... DEAD! ARGH! How dare he steal my Treasure Array! He's simply courting death!"

Ye Xuanfeng was on the verge of madness.

Anyone who'd had an Array comparable to the Low-grade Daoist Weapon Level stolen from them would likely not be in a good mood.

This was especially true for these Primordial Pearls, which Ye Xuanfeng had spent over a thousand years and exhaustive effort to refine. Though not his Lifebound Magical Artifact, it was one of the most powerful Arrays in his possession. If not for the news from Immortal Dao City about the high probability of opening the Barbaric Region known as Celestial Cloud soon, which told the Profound Celestial Sect to prepare, and if the Sect Leader hadn't repeatedly urged him to handle the matter personally, Ye Xuanfeng would have never placed this treasure here.

But now...

Ye Xuanfeng was seething, but he was, after all, the Great Elder of the Profound Celestial Sect. No matter how furious he was, he knew the priority was not to chase an Array that was impossible to track.

Instead, he had to deal with the aftermath here.

'They were all a bunch of worthless trash. Not a shred of life force remains; I doubt a single one survived. Hmph. Couldn't even handle one junior and ended up costing me a Treasure Array. They deserved to die!'

'I need to send a message back to the Sect and have them dispatch more people to guard this place. And I'll have them investigate if any of the previous guards survived. Maybe I can get a clue from them to find that little thief!'

Ye Xuanfeng calmed down.

With a flick of his finger, a streak of light shot out.

It was one of the Profound Celestial Sect's Communication Talismans.

At their level of power, they had ways to send messages across vast distances, even millions of miles.

Communication Talismans were simply the most common method.

Their only disadvantage was their speed; they were relatively slow.

However, to send a message back any faster, one had to use rarer means.

The cost was comparable to that of a Low Grade Treasure Weapon.

Sending a message via a Treasure Weapon Flying Sword, for instance.

Having just lost an Array on par with an Ultimate Grade Treasure Weapon, Ye Xuanfeng was in no mood to be extravagant.

Besides, he was just going to wait here anyway.

A slight delay wouldn't cause any real problems.

However...

Just as Ye Xuanfeng was settling in for what he thought would be a long wait, a dozen or so auras came speeding toward him from the distance.

"Hm? So fast? Wait, it's Dongge and the others?"

Ye Xuanfeng's eyes lit up.

'Not much time has passed since that junior fled. It would be difficult for me to find him alone, but with so many people, how could we possibly fail to find that little thief?'

The more he thought about it, the more hopeful Ye Xuanfeng became.

So, when Ye Dongge and the others arrived, Ye Xuanfeng cleared his throat. Upon seeing their master standing there, Ye Dongge and his fellow disciples immediately wiped the smiles from their faces.

One by one, they stepped forward to pay their respects.

After putting on a sufficient display of authority, Ye Xuanfeng spoke before his disciples could ask any questions. "You've seen the situation here, haven't you? A petty thief has slaughtered all the stationed disciples and stolen my Primordial Qi Heaven Suppressing Array, the one I laid with eighty-one Primordial Pearls. Now that you're here, go and find him."

"What? Someone would dare be so audacious?"

"Master, rest assured! We are all familiar with Primordial Qi. If we use our techniques, that kid won't get away!"

"Indeed. Master, leave this to us. We will be sure to give you a satisfactory answer."

Ye Xuanfeng's disciples were a swell of righteous indignation.

In their eyes, the entire Eastern Domain belonged to the Ye Family. As one of the top Sects under the Ye Family's control, the Profound Celestial Sect was second only to Immortal Dao City in terms of prestige.

For someone to dare provoke them was simply courting death.

They had to be found and put down.

"Good. I'll leave this to you. Dongge, you're the eldest among them. I'm putting you in charge of this matter. Any objections?"

Ye Xuanfeng was very satisfied with his disciples' attitudes.

Stroking his beard, he looked toward his most prized disciple.

A glint flashed in Ye Dongge's eyes as he stepped forward.

"Rest assured, Master. With Dongge on the case, nothing can go wrong."

He offered a faint smile.

He appeared utterly confident.

Ye Xuanfeng immediately felt at ease.

What he didn't see, however, was that this most prized disciple of his had long been plotting to get his hands on the Primordial Pearls. And now, such a perfect opportunity had presented itself.

How could he possibly let it go?

'That little thief certainly has good taste, daring to set his sights on the old fool's Primordial Pearls. But this time, it's all to my advantage. Once I capture him, won't those Pearls become mine, Ye Dongge's?'

Ye Dongge schemed internally.

His face, however, remained impassive.

He began to direct and deploy the others.

Seeing his prized disciple so dedicated and his arrangements so sound, Ye Xuanfeng was quite satisfied.

And Ye Dongge was indeed very dedicated.

However, after sending out all the disciples in pairs, he chose to set off and search alone.

His confident air earned him even more of Ye Xuanfeng's admiration.

He had no idea, however, that this prized disciple was actually plotting something else entirely.

Moreover, he had already tampered with the Primordial Pearls.

Now, his opportunity had arrived.

How could Ye Dongge possibly let it pass?

'Little thief, once I find you, I'll really have to thank you properly.'

Once he was out of Ye Xuanfeng's sight, he gave a strange smile. A dim yellow pearl suddenly appeared in Ye Dongge's hand, looking exactly like one of the Primordial Pearls.

With a casual toss, the pearl shot off into the distance.

It flew in the exact direction Yang Xiao had taken when he fled.

"It really works."

Ye Dongge smirked and instantly gave chase.