Chapter 117: Bribery

Juedai Fenghua had thought that there was only a slight possibility of catching up towards the departed Leakless Sect members. Not only did she have a late start, but a True Immortal controlled the Leakless Sect's immortal boat.

Honestly, the chances of Fenghua catching up was close to zero.

Even if she started following them as soon as they left, the chances of catching up were still low. As for why Tianyi made Fenghua leave a few days after everyone else left? His priority was the secrecy of his nature as a reincarnator. Even then, Tianyi was still worried that someone might notice her existence and link her existence to him. He wasn't concerned with his secret leaking through his clone. Fenghua could always self-detonate if need be, but the pain and resources he spent to create her would make Tianyi cry.

However, reality was always full of surprises.

"What the hell?"

Fenghua unconsciously released those words when she witnessed the scene before her.

The land was covered in scars as if a calamity had passed through. It was not unlike the scenery around Ironwood's inheritance grotto. No, it was actually even worse. Although the landscape was as ruinous as the entrance to the inheritance grotto, Fenghua could sense that the Huang Realm's spatial boundary was especially weak here with even a few spatial rifts.

She could still vividly recall her main body desperately returning to the Huang Realm from the Vast Void. If it weren't for a combination of factors working in her main body's favor, such as the Mountains and Seas Formation and the numerous resources allotted to him, then it would have been likely that Tianyi would not have been able to return and, instead, perish within the Vast Void with no one the wiser. Fenghua originally planned to go around the cataclysmic land, but something caught her eye. With great daring, Fenghua neared the wreckage of an immortal boat.

"This... isn't this the immortal boat of the leakless sect?" Just as Fenghua said this, warning bells rang within her head. And soon after, an incredible impact landed upon her shuttle-shaped immortal boat. The shuttle didn't even last one second before it was destroyed, revealing Fenghua inside. She didn't even see her assailant before she was flung towards the wreckage.

But before she could resist, a suction force took control of her body and began to drag her down towards the spatial rift.

"Goddammit!"

Fenghua didn't even have time to ponder as to who was attacking her as she desperately employed every method within her knowledge to stay within the Huang Realm. But, her cultivation was weaker than Tianyi and didn't have his unique Mountains and Seas Formation. She only let out a despairing cry as she was sucked into the spatial rift.

Unknown to her, this series of events may have actually saved her life. A figure appeared in the air. He did not seem to exude any aura or qi, and even if Fenghua were to stand in front of him, she would not be able to detect him in any way.

"That lass got lucky."

The mysterious figure said as he looked at the spatial rift with annoyance. If it hadn't been for the spatial rift, his mission wouldn't have ended so poorly. He had to return and report this. Otherwise, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Tianyi's jerked as he felt his connection with his clone break. The corner of his lips twisted into a grimace.

"Young Master, is something wrong?" Elder Meng asked upon seeing Tianyi's face change.

Tianyi quickly schooled his features and shook his head. "No, it's nothing."

Although he said that, Tianyi felt as if his heartbeat was thumping against his chest. There was a whole school of butterflies fluttering about in his stomach. He could not help but keep pondering on what happened to his clone. There was a slight impulse to report that the Leakless Sect's immortal boat of being ambushed, but Tianyi thought better of it. He didn't want to explain why he knew of such matters. Besides, with how important the personages on the immortal boat were, news should have reached the Leakless Sect soon, or it may have already reached the Leakless Sect.

But Tianyi couldn't help but question whether or not the attack was directed at him in any way. It was an infinitely small chance, of course. The perpetrator was targeting the Leakless Sect, and Juedai Fenghua could have just been eliminated to make sure there were no witnesses or keep the news hidden as long as possible. Tianyi couldn't help but overthink whether someone was watching him after Immortal Concubine Chong's attack. If Longwei wasn't there, he might've been the one to be attacked.

With Tianyi stuck in his own thoughts, Su Bojing and Jian Wuyan didn't disturb him.

"Senior Brother, what do you think Prince Xi is contemplating so deeply about?" Jiang Wuyan asked Su Bojing.

"Hard to say. As the son of Grand Elder Xi, Senior Brother Xi is on a different level than us. He must know some deeper information. Otherwise, why would that Longwei reveal his strength early? I say Senior Brother Xi had already begun to become suspicious of him since before even the spar. He must have access to more crucial information than common disciples like us. Longwei wanted to strike first and silence Senior Brother Xi, not knowing that he would almost be silenced." Su Bojing whispered.

"Your words contain merit. But I think you're wrong." Jian Wuyan refuted Su Bojing's words. "Although, I think Prince Xi had begun to suspect Longwei. But what kind of person is Grand Elder Xi? She has a transcendental status within the sect. Unless anything major happens, Empress Xi won't make a move. Prince Xi must have inherited Empress Xi's temperament. Prince Xi's heart is devoted towards the Great Dao. Even now, he must be ruminating on comprehending his own Dao."

"Perhaps you're right." Su Bojing relented. "I heard that when Senior Brother Xi fought Longwei, that spatial giant he formed was magnificent and composed of numerous concepts. I heard the disciples were discussing what they should call Senior Brother Xi."

An expression of regret appeared on Jian Wuyan's face. "Ah...so unfortunate. I was inside the Ironwood Pagoda and didn't have a chance to personally witness Prince Xi going all out."

"I didn't either. And I only made it to the second level before I was forced to leave." Su Bojing felt genuinely regretful.

Su Wanyu was the descendant of a True Immortal Elder, but that elder could only be considered average. The only reason Su Wanyu had so much influence was for two major reasons. One was because she was a genius that entered the Unity Realm within a hundred years of age, and number two was because her master was the Peak Lord of the Flower Mountain of the Buzhou Immortal Sect. For Su Bojing, even though he was of the same clan as Su Wanyu, the resources he received were still because of Su Wanyu's father. The Flower Peak Lord's only duty was towards Su Wanyu and not her clan.

Before Su Bojing entered the Buzhou Immortal Sect, he was the greatest genius of his generation. He outshone his fellow siblings and cousins, but when he entered the Buzhou Immortal Sect, it turned out that he was only average. Su Bojing had some feelings of jealousy towards Su Wanyu. Being born to an Immortal Elder, she could directly enter the sect even if her potential wasn't good and had many things he had to fight for. But it was also because of her that he gained a lot more resources than he could access before.

So Su Bojing especially treasured this opportunity to enter the True Immortal inheritance grotto. At first, he had attempted to gather some treasures himself, but his strength wasn't enough. His cultivation and techniques were weaker than others, and he didn't have the same quality of Artifacts either. Having given up on competing for treasures, Su Bojing thought at least he could learn some techniques from the pagoda. But it turned out that luck wasn't on his side. Before he could even access the more esoteric manuals, he was forced to leave because of Longwei's actions.

The two continued to discuss the recent happenings, leaving Tianyi alone to his thoughts.

When the immortal boat arrived at the Buzhou Immortal Sect, Su Wanyu and the True Immortal Elders went to report the events that had occurred. On the other hand, Tianyi bid farewell to Jian Wuyan, Su Bojing, and the others who would say to invite him to their place in thanks before returning to Jade Peak.

"You're back, Yi'er." His mother had appeared at the foot of the mountain to receive him.

"I'm back, mother," Tianyi said with a slight smile. The trip that should have only lasted one month at most lasted over several months because he had revealed Ironwood's inheritance grotto's location.

The edge of Mengfei'sl lips quirked upwardly without her control as she hugged Tianyi, who hugged back in return. "How were these few months? Have you eaten well? I feel that you've gotten skinner."

Tianyi helplessly smiled. "How could I? I'm a Nascent Soul Grandmaster. Even if I actually did not eat for several months, I won't lose any weight at all."

The next day Tianyi visited his cousin, Xi Ri, and left after a few words. But not before leaving a few manuals he copied from Ironwood's inheritance that he felt were suitable for his cousin. Xi Ri had successfully entered the Spiritual Altar stage of the Foundation Establishment Realm, and there didn't seem to be any bottleneck for him to enter the Spiritual Crucible stage. Within five years, by Tianyi's estimate, his cousin should be prepared to enter the Core Formation Realm.

And when he returned to Jade Peak, another piece of news awaited him.

"That's great. You're going to enter the Core Formation Realm soon. If you don't have a Lifebound Artifact ready, how about I forge one for you?" Tianyi asked, finally seeing a chance to establish his prestige as a senior brother to Daoyi. To his dismay, he discovered that he was still shorter than Daoyi.

"That's okay. Master has already prepared a Lifebound Artifact for me." Daoyi said with a smile.

Tianyi looked towards his mother to see her nod. He could only regretfully rein in his desires. He knew that something he prepared against his mother, who was an Immortal Empress, was woefully inadequate in comparison. And even if he had the face to ask, his mother would still reject Tianyi's request. It didn't matter if he was her son or not, but a Lifebound Artifact was crucial to a cultivator's future. So she would not relent to Tianyi on this matter, no matter what.

For the next few days, his mother did not cling to him like before he left. Instead, she focused on Daoyi and made sure of her chance of ascending to the Core Formation Realm. Tianyi only felt this was right. After all, his mother and Daoyi were master and disciple. Tianyi busied himself with a thought experiment. He had gained numerous insights and ideas from the Eight Strokes Word Art, and right now, it was perfect for him to test it.

The first subject he performed was the formation cards. Going by the rules of a particular card game from his life on Earth, Tianyi created a new set of Formation Cards. Unlike before, the formations weren't only used on the cards themselves, but also the sequence of activation. With the new formation cards, depending on the order in which the cards were used, the end effect would differ. In other words, Tianyi made a combo system for his Formation Cards.

Honestly, the only advantage of such a system would be saving resources for the cards' production and the numerous effects you could unleash depending on the combo. It was still much more efficient to use a single card of the same power than going through all that trouble. Still, it was only a thought experiment for Tianyi. After testing and creating the new Formation Cards, Tianyi felt his understanding of formation deepening and increasing. This included how he could link other techniques into formations.

The next thought experiment consisted of a simple equation that was very famous back on Earth.

E=MC^2

Tianyi recalled how Zhou Erlian, the younger brother of Evil Wind Flower Picker Zhou he had killed using his wealth as a Foundation Establishment Disciple, had self-detonated. Honestly, for a pseudo-Venerable, Tianyi felt that the self-detonation was quite weak. And with the creation of his clone, he felt the need to create a better self-detonation technique.

But the creation progress turned out to be more challenging than Tianyi expected. He understood the concept of how matter related to pure energy on paper, but he needed to ruminate on the concept more as well as discover a way to turn the idea into reality.

"If I could discover a way. Back on Earth, I'd need to start up a new energy company and become rich and famous." Tianyi chuckled to himself.

But before he could complete it, a surprising visitor appeared.

"Greetings, Sect Master Xia," Tianyi said with a bow. "My mother is currently busy with Junior Sister Jiang's upcoming Core Formation Heavenly Tribulation. I will send a message to her right now."

Sect Master Xia waved his hand in an amicable matter. "No need, I already greeted her before coming here. I'm here for you, little Tianyi."

"Matters concerning me?" Tianyi said, unsure of what needed Sect Master Xia to visit him personally. But then he recalled the maters of Longwei and the person who wanted to kill him.

"I heard what happened from little Su. I had not thought that it would be possible for such a thing to happen. First, for that loose cultivator Longwei to kill our sect disciples. Had you not been there, then our losses would have been even worse. Naturally, the sect needs to reward such contributions."

"I was doing my duty, having grown up in the sect, I have received a lot of aid," Tianyi said, but not refusing the reward either.

"Your loyalty to the sect could not be more evident. It's just that..." Sect Master Xia paused for a moment before continuing speaking. "It seems that there are unsavory rumors concerning our sect's stance towards the Dragon Emperor Clones. Do you know about the Dragon Emperor?"

Tianyi nodded. "My mother explained to me."

"Good. Then you should know that there have been cases of forces raising a Dragon Emperor Clone to utilize his power. But such schemes are something our sect has never pardoned. We have forbidden those under our power to do so. But it seems that there are rumors concerning the sect that says otherwise." Sect Master explained.

"There are rumors that the Buzhou Immortal Sect is trying to raise a Dragon Emperor Clone?" Tianyi questioned, but it was more of a statement.

Sect Master Xia nodded.

"Where would the rumors have come from?" Tianyi asked.

Sect Master Xia shooked his head. "We are still investigating the matter. But the investigation has led to some links to members of our sect."

That confirmed it for Tianyi. Who else would want him dead but Immortal Redseal? Lovespot probably wanted him dead, but he didn't have the power to.

"You should be careful when leaving the sect." Sect Master Xia said heavily before changing the topic. "The sect has decided to bestow you the chance to enter the seventh level of the Immortal Scripture Repository and select a technique of your choosing."

Tianyi felt his lips twitch. "Does my mother know?"

Sect Master responded negatively.

This is a bribe, isn't it? Sect Master Xia doesn't want me finding trouble with Immortal Redseal, or, rather, my mother finding trouble. Even if my mother does find trouble with him, I can't say how the results would turn out. Aside from Lovespot, Immortal Redseal has been pretty spotless. I'm not even sure this matter can be fully linked to him. Who knows, maybe the investigation will clear his name. And most importantly, nothing has happened to me yet. Just like back on Earth, the punishment for the crime of attempted homicide and actually homicide were different.

I also don't know how much Sect Master Xia knows. From what my mother told me, Immortal Redseal and Sect Master Xia were staunch allies. He calls me little Tianyi and has seen me grown up, but compared to the life of an Immortal, these years with me should just have been a blink of an eye.

Compared to uncertainties, it's better to grasp all advantages, although...

Tianyi smiled towards Sect Master Xia. "There is a technique that catches my eye on the seventh level of the Immortal Scripture Repository. But I also have my eye on another technique, the Three Union Lifebound Weapon technique. My junior sister is prepared to form her Spiritual Core, so it would be quite beneficial for her to learn it. But I can only choose one, what a conundrum." Tianyi crossed his arms and pretended to be frustrated over the matter while looking at Sect Master Xia.

Sect Master Xia found himself speechless for the first time in ages. He shook his head and relented. This matter already had him at a disadvantage from both the objective and moral standpoint. So he acquiesced to Tianyi's unsaid questin.

"Many thanks, Sect Master Xia."