Heavenly Dao Engine
Chapter 1262 - 1262 0726 Nascent Soul Techniques_2

Chapter 1262: Chapter 0726: Nascent Soul Techniques_2 Chapter 1262: Chapter 0726: Nascent Soul Techniques_2 Now, the range in which the Heavenly Dao Engine could sense had significantly increased, covering places beyond a radius of twenty miles. With this advantage, Qi Tian’s search efficiency greatly improved. Even so, it still took him more than half a day before he sensed, at the edge of the Heavenly Dao Engine’s sensing range, fluctuations of Spirit Force that he suspected to be emitted by Manager Chen and his group.

Qi Tian quickly changed his direction and headed towards the location of Manager Chen and his companions. He was extremely careful in his approach, not only applying talismans on himself that could mask his aura but also shouldering the Liuli Sand, ready to deploy it at any moment to ensure his safety.

Qi Tian was so cautious, of course, due to the importance he placed on Manager Chen. Although Manager Chen’s cultivation and strength probably could not exceed the First Level of the Nascent Soul Stage at most, Qi Tian had not forgotten from where Manager Chen came. Manager Chen was sent to the Imperial Family Secret Territory by Wanjie Commerce, serving as the person in charge of Wanjie Commerce in the Imperial Family Secret Territory. To ensure Manager Chen’s safety, it was completely foreseeable that Wanjie Commerce would bestow upon him several Nascent Soul Level magical instruments or other means for self-protection. Qi Tian’s caution lay precisely in this matter. While Wanjie Commerce might very well think that it was unlikely for the Cultivation World within the Imperial Family Secret Territory to pose a threat to Manager Chen’s life and might not confer Nascent Soul Level means to him—a possibility also not small—Qi Tian did not want to place his hopes on this. He preferred to take the initiative into his own hands.

Another reason for Qi Tian’s caution was the likelihood that Manager Chen and his subordinates, in order to ensure their own safety, might have set up some hidden sentries or scouting traps at some distance from themselves. Such tactics were common in the Cultivation World, and Qi Tian needed to anticipate this as well.

If Qi Tian disregarded casualties and was not afraid of losses, using the power he currently commanded, it was entirely possible for him to eliminate Manager Chen. However, the problem was that doing so might come at a great cost. It could consume more than half, or even more, of the power that Qi Tian had so painstakingly accumulated, and the gains he might acquire could completely fail to offset the losses incurred. This outcome was not what Qi Tian desired; he hoped to thoroughly eliminate the threat of Manager Chen with minimal losses.

After determining Manager Chen’s possible location, Qi Tian did not proceed in a straight line. Taking his sensed location of Manager Chen as the center, he began to walk in circles. He used this method to observe Manager Chen’s situation from all 360 degrees to finalize whether Manager Chen held any potential danger to him.

It must be said that as the Heavenly Dao Engine was upgraded, all of its functions became more powerful and refined. Through its sensing function, Qi Tian was able to grasp all the details surrounding Manager Chen clearly, including how many people remained on Manager Chen’s side, what their approximate strength was, and especially whether they had set any traps in certain areas. Qi Tian’s investigation unveiled all their hidden maneuvers.

The results of the investigation broke Qi Tian into a cold sweat. Manager Chen and his party were now in a Saint’s Tomb, which was situated in a very favorable geographical position. Besides one path that led directly there, there were no other paths accessible. Most of the core area of the Imperial Family Secret Territory had a No-fly Array, meaning if one wanted to reach Manager Chen without any skills, they could only take this one and only road.

And on this single road, Manager Chen and his men had established layers upon layers of checkpoints and countless traps. Various arrays were set up everywhere, and even in other places without access, they had chosen several key locations to make some defensive preparations. Although these arrangements were not impenetrable, they were nevertheless very tight; an ordinary person would simply be unable to breach these obvious and hidden defenses. It was only with the help of the Heavenly Dao Engine that Qi Tian could find all these hidden sentries and guards.

The meticulous arrangements were just one aspect. Another point was that among these setups, the vast majority were at a Half-step Nascent Soul level or just above, not yet reaching the level of the Nascent Soul Stage. However, this did not imply that there were no Nascent Soul Stage measures here. Through the sensing function of the Heavenly Dao Engine, Qi Tian had discovered that among these arrangements made by Manager Chen’s party, several were very well hidden, with high concealment; they were all Nascent Soul Level tactics, all placed in the most easily overlooked corners. If Qi Tian were to break into those places and carelessly trigger them, he would surely have to pay a hefty price to get past them.

Qi Tian muttered under his breath how fortunate he was. He remembered very clearly that when he first met Manager Chen, he had used the Heavenly Dao Engine’s Spirit Qi induction function to inspect Manager Chen and his party, searching to see if they were carrying high-level magical artifacts. One of the key points of that inspection was that, at the time, the Heavenly Dao Engine did not detect any Nascent Soul Stage weapons or any other techniques on them.

But now, suddenly, so many had appeared, indicating that Manager Chen and his companions might possess methods to elude the Heavenly Dao Engine’s induction function. Of course, it was also possible that the techniques Manager Chen was now deploying had been sent to them after their encounter with Qi Tian.

Whichever the case, it was now certain that Manager Chen was very difficult to deal with. If Qi Tian were to rashly engage with Manager Chen without uncovering these techniques first, he would undoubtedly pay a hefty price.

Looking at the three-dimensional images fed back by the Heavenly Dao Engine, Qi Tian fell into deep thought. He had to plot a course that cleverly avoided all Nascent Soul Stage lethal traps and any risks that could lead to early detection. Then, he needed to gradually get closer to Manager Chen’s location to determine whether Manager Chen had found his opportunity and whether he had already absorbed it. Only after confirming these details could Qi Tian decide how best to confront Manager Chen.

After much consideration, Qi Tian settled on a route that avoided the obvious path and all possible risks as much as possible. Once he had confirmed the route and ensured there were no significant risks, Qi Tian began to follow the path he had planned out.

The entire process went very smoothly, without a single hiccup. However, Qi Tian soon faced a dilemma. Ahead of him was a spot that he could not avoid no matter how he planned his route. This place could be considered the heart of the Defensive Array prepared by Manager Chen’s subordinates: no matter what methods others might think of employing, if they desired to enter the Saint’s Tomb to disrupt Manager Chen’s affairs, they would inevitably have to pass through this spot.

Manager Chen and his subordinates had made very meticulous arrangements for this area. Not only were three Gold Core Realm cultivators stationed there for defense, but there were also arrays and magical artifacts deployed. Every method that Qi Tian could think of had traces present there.

This was a place that Qi Tian simply couldn’t bypass unless he could fly. Unfortunately, the power of the No-fly Array in this region was formidable; it was difficult even to make higher-than-average jumps, let alone to fly.

Faced with this location that was like a hedgehog bristling with spines, Qi Tian was somewhat vexed.