"Move...!"
His consciousness drove his body, bypassing the Warrior Talisman Seal within. Finally, Wang Ping managed to force his eyes open and painstakingly stretch his limbs.
’Success!’
Even though a heavy pressure weighed down on his entire body, he had successfully regained the ability to move without triggering the Warrior Talisman Seal.
What came next was simple.
’Run!’
’First, I have to get out of this damned Daoist Temple. Then, I’ll find a place nearby, dig a hole, and bury myself. Go into hibernation, lay low for a year or two, and then come back out.’
This was Wang Ping’s entire plan. It was crude, direct, and relied heavily on luck, but it was the only thing he could think of. Staying in the Daoist Temple meant certain death anyway, so he might as well try to escape. Filled with hope, Wang Ping took a step toward the warehouse exit.
But just then—
"Interesting."
The voice was familiar—soft and enchanting. It was as if she had been standing right behind him the entire time, her words a lover’s whisper in his ear:
"The Heaven and Earth Pavilion’s products really are subpar when it comes to quality control."
"I wonder how much those vermin skimmed off the top."
"Just for refining a mere Warrior, and they couldn’t even wipe the raw material’s memories clean... Excellent. I’ll be demanding a hefty compensation from them for this."
"..."
Wang Ping’s body went rigid. He slowly turned his head and saw Daoist You under the hazy moonlight. Her aura was cold and detached as she stared intently at him.
’I’m screwed!’
Wang Ping didn’t voice his cry of despair, but Daoist You seemed to have caught his sentiment anyway. She gently patted his shoulder.
"You can’t really be blamed. After all, you didn’t have many options; escaping was the only viable one. It’s just that anything you can think of, I can naturally think of as well. So, I’ve been setting a trap for this very possibility from the start. If I still couldn’t catch you under these circumstances, it would be a mark of my own incompetence."
At her words, understanding dawned on Wang Ping.
’So that’s how it is. The quiescent state after our training sessions was just a smokescreen. In reality, this venomous woman has been secretly lying in wait at the warehouse after every session...’
’She was lying in ambush!’
A wave of fury washed over Wang Ping. ’A dignified Immortal Sect Disciple, deliberately targeting and scheming against a mere tool like a Warrior? Is there any justice in this world?’
’Who wastes time matching wits with a tool?’
At this thought, all his hope turned to ash. Paradoxically, he was no longer afraid. He simply closed his eyes. Daoist You, on the other hand, had a hint of curiosity in hers.
"Do you... have anything to say?"
Wang Ping shook his head, his face resolute. "I have nothing more to say. Just get it over with."
"Very well."
As soon as she finished speaking, Daoist You formed a spell with her hands, activating the Warrior Talisman Seal inside Wang Ping’s body and instantly severing his control over it.
However, she wasn’t in a hurry to destroy this defective Warrior. After all, she still had to demand compensation from the Heaven and Earth Pavilion. And from what she knew of those vermin, they would never pay up without concrete evidence right in front of them. Therefore, Wang Ping still had some use to her.
’Now, what’s the next step?’
With one worry settled, Daoist You was in high spirits. She began to consider how to maximize her gains. After all, she had finally gotten some leverage over the Heaven and Earth Pavilion, and it hadn’t been easy.
’I need to blow this up.’
’A simple mistake in refining a Warrior... even if the Heaven and Earth Pavilion admits fault, it’s just a minor issue. They could get away with paying a bit of Magic Money and that would be the end of it.’
That would never do.
Soon, Daoist You had drafted a story in her mind:
’Shocking! You Xuexin, a disciple of Jile Immortal Peak, has recently uncovered an insidious undercover plot against the Immortal Sect, painstakingly orchestrated by the Brahma Country!’
’Under the guidance of her esteemed master, Mingyou, You Xuexin perfectly exemplified the role of a True Disciple. With supreme conviction, absolute loyalty, and keen intuition, she discovered a Brahma Cultivator who had taken over a mortal’s body and disguised himself as a Warrior to infiltrate the Immortal Sect, intending to steal vital secrets.’
’Upon investigation, the methods of said Brahma Cultivator were found to be exceptionally cruel.’
’His method of infiltration involved possessing a mortal. The Heaven and Earth Pavilion, which then refined this mortal into a Warrior, was negligent in their quality control and failed to detect his presence...’
A moment later, Daoist You nodded in satisfaction.
’That’s much better.’
A shoddy Warrior was a slap-on-the-wrist offense at best. But allowing a Brahma Cultivator to infiltrate the Immortal Sect? That was a major incident, starting with, at the very least, a charge of gross negligence.
Then, she would just need to find a way to fan the flames of public opinion, making the situation sound as dire as possible. The Warrior was genuinely defective, after all. With a little guidance, public opinion would naturally shift in her favor, which would in turn put pressure on the Heaven and Earth Pavilion and force them to concede.
The next step was to fabricate the evidence.
At this thought, You Xuexin glanced again at the deactivated Wang Ping. ’Hmm, just claiming he’s a Brahma Cultivator isn’t very persuasive.’
’I need to add something to the mix.’
After all, the Immortal Sect would definitely send someone to investigate a matter like this. She had to leave behind some evidence related to Brahma Cultivators, otherwise, the frame-up wouldn’t even be plausible.
After a moment’s thought, You Xuexin reached into her sleeve.
She then pulled a scripture, shimmering with golden light, from within her robes. Its title was written on the cover in a flamboyant, cursive script that seemed to shift with iridescent light.
The Celestial Book of the Heavens of Desire and Transformation!
She had obtained this scripture after slaying a Brahma Cultivator during a previous Immortal-Buddha Sword Fight. It was only a fragment, but it specifically targeted her Paradise Immortal Body.
"Indulgence and pleasure lead to emptiness? What a load of heretical nonsense!"
As a loyal bearer of the True Inheritance of the Immortal Sect, You Xuexin naturally held a deep-seated loathing for the Immortal Sect’s old rival, the Brahma Country, and completely rejected its philosophy.
She had kept this Cultivation Technique mainly because it touched upon the path of dual cultivation and supreme bliss, which offered some analogous insights for her own practice. Moreover, the scripture itself was made of high-quality material, and she planned to melt it down to reforge into a Magical Treasure one day.
’This will do.’
You Xuexin formed a hand seal and chanted an incantation, gradually drawing a Profound Mystery from the scripture. For a moment, the air seemed to fill with the sound of serene, distant Zen chanting.
"Go!"
With that, You Xuexin poured the entire scripture of the Cultivation Technique from the Brahma Country into Wang Ping’s mind, forcibly branding its contents into his memory.
With this, the "Brahma Cultivator spy" identity would be set in stone.
Just as a smug You Xuexin began to ponder how she would extort the Heaven and Earth Pavilion, Wang Ping suddenly began to convulse.
"Hm?" You Xuexin’s eyes narrowed.
’What’s happening?’
Before her, Wang Ping’s body began to radiate a brilliant light. A dense network of cracks appeared on his face, his expression contorting in agony.
"Is this... rejection? Impossible. Even if the raw material used to refine the Warrior had some residual memories, it should only be fragments of a personality. For rejection to occur, the personality must be completely intact and highly independent... Are you kidding me? Did the Heaven and Earth Pavilion not even process the materials...?"
In an instant, the light grew even more intense.
"...This is bad!"
Only then did You Xuexin realize what was happening. Her expression changed, and she quickly altered her spell, trying to extract the scripture she had just injected.
But it was too late.
The next second—
BOOM!
With a massive explosion, Wang Ping’s body blew apart in a flash of light. His flesh and blood disintegrated, then dissolved into nothingness, as if he had never existed.
Only You Xuexin remained.
The unexpected turn of events left her beautiful face completely stunned. A moment later, she finally reacted, and her expression twisted at a visible rate.
"He killed himself?"
"Not only was his personality intact, but he was determined to die?"
Her leverage was dead, and her extortion plan had gone up in smoke. Her dream of getting rich overnight had shattered in an instant. The stark contrast was too much, and You Xuexin completely lost her composure.
Moreover, she discovered that with Wang Ping’s violent death, the scripture of the Celestial Book of the Heavens of Desire and Transformation she had just injected into his mind did not return to her. Instead, it had been destroyed along with him. Even the physical book that held the scripture had lost its Profound Mystery and was now slowly crumbling to pieces.
In other words.
After all that trouble, not only had she gained nothing, but she had actually lost a Warrior and a priceless Cultivation Technique scripture?
SHIIING!
Within the Daoist Temple, a clear sword-song rang out. A brilliant light shot toward the heavens, seeming to separate yin from yang and sunder dusk from dawn. For a long time, it lingered between heaven and earth, refusing to disperse.