Heavenly Dao Engine
Chapter 1475 - 1475 0846 Barely Trustworthy Character_2

Chapter 1475: Chapter 0846: Barely Trustworthy Character_2 Chapter 1475: Chapter 0846: Barely Trustworthy Character_2 Lu Songsheng also spoke up from the side, “That’s right, Qi, at this time, every word you say is crucial. You absolutely must not make unfounded statements; every word has to be backed by evidence, without giving others the opportunity to find fault.”

Qi Tian nodded to show he understood. After thinking for a moment, he said, “As for whether there are any other Masters still inside the secret realm, I really can’t guarantee that to everyone. All I can say is that it had been a long time since I encountered any other Masters before I met Master Xu and the Master from Sui’an City.”

Both Ge Pengcheng and Lu Songsheng furrowed their brows simultaneously, as this answer from Qi Tian was far from satisfactory.

Ge Pengcheng urged, “Think about it more carefully. Your answer must be clear and cannot be ambiguous.”

Qi Tian replied, “Even if the Master were to ask me ten times, or even a hundred times, my answer would still be the same—I indeed haven’t encountered any other Masters for a long time. Originally, I had planned to spend a couple more days in the secret realm, but after running into the two severely injured Masters, in order to get them timely treatment, I had no choice but to abandon any benefits I might have obtained from the secret realm and bring the two Masters back. Whether or not there are still other Masters in the secret realm, there might be, there might not be. As for whether there are, I think you Masters should have a way to confirm it. You can just confirm it directly. Asking me, I truly can’t give you a hundred percent certain answer.”

Ge Pengcheng’s expression changed, and Lu Songsheng quickly tugged at him. In front of so many people, they couldn’t afford to take action against Qi Tian, a meritorious individual, especially since, if there were no other Masters left in the secret realm, then the ownership of the secret realm would very likely fall to Qi Tian. This made it even more important not to trouble Qi Tian at this time.

Ge Pengcheng snorted but did not continue to make things difficult for Qi Tian. He raised his head and called toward the direction of Sui’an City, “Li Wenshuo, Cui Jiaxin, you two old folks, stop eavesdropping with your ears perked up and come over quickly. Let’s discuss how we can determine the final ownership of the secret realm.”

Before the sound of Ge Pengcheng’s voice had faded, two Nascent Soul Masters emerged from the direction of Sui’an City. One male and one female, the man was tall while the woman was petite. They both walked straight toward Qi Tian.

The female Master, Cui Jiaxin, gazed at Qi Tian with a fixed stare and asked, “Are you certain that you haven’t encountered any other Masters in the secret realm for a long time?”

Qi Tian answered, “I can confirm that. As for the rest, I cannot guarantee anything to the Masters.”

With Qi Tian’s words being so decisive, Ge Pengcheng, Lu Songsheng, Li Wenshuo, and Cui Jiaxin, these four Nascent Soul Masters knew they couldn’t get anything more out of Qi Tian by pressing him further. They huddled together to discuss what their next steps should be.

Directly, Lu Songsheng proposed that they could now determine the ownership of the secret realm. He believed that there were no Masters left alive inside, and since Qi Tian was the only one who had come out alive from the secret realm, according to the rules they had agreed upon beforehand, Qi Tian had entered the secret realm on behalf of Wanjie City. Therefore, the secret realm should naturally belong to Wanjie City, and Sui’an City had no relation to it whatsoever.

To Lu Songsheng’s proposal, Ge Pengcheng naturally agreed, as this was the simplest way to settle the ownership of the secret realm. Unfortunately, neither Li Wenshuo nor Cui Jiaxin agreed. They insisted that it must be confirmed whether there were any other Masters left in the secret realm before discussing the ownership.

An intense argument broke out between the two parties, and the atmosphere was extremely tense. In the end, it was Wanjie City that made concessions, but of course, these concessions were based on the premise that Qi Tian was the last cultivator to walk out of the secret realm alive. They agreed to send people back into the secret realm to confirm whether any other Masters were still alive.

Actually, this plan was exactly what Wanjie City and Sui’an City had been discussing all along; they just had never been able to come up with a proposal that all parties could accept. Now, the time had come when they had to determine the ownership of the secret realm, and they could no longer drag their feet. They had no choice but to make a decisive cut through the confusion and come up with a proposal that they believed wouldn’t be too problematic for everyone involved, and the key to this proposal lay with Qi Tian.

Ge Pengcheng, Lu Songsheng, Li Wenshuo, and Cui Jiaxin, the four Nascent Soul Masters, called Qi Tian over again and explained the plan to him. It was simple: those Nascent Soul Masters who had entered the secret realm but hadn’t returned had left behind their Life Jade Tokens in their respective sects. Within each Life Jade Token was a strand of the owner’s life essence. If the owner perished, the life essence would lose its source, and the Life Jade Token would shatter. Normally, it was almost impossible for someone to break a Life Jade Token using common methods.

This time, Wanjie City and Sui’an City had agreed to put the Life Jade Tokens of the missing Nascent Soul Masters into Qi Tian’s hands. Qi Tian would carry them and once again enter the secret realm. If the owner of any Life Jade Token had fallen, then the token would inevitably shatter, thereby clarifying who else might still be residing in the secret realm.

The reason for sending Qi Tian in again was not only that he was the last person to have come out of the secret realm, but also because he had saved the lives of Xu Xinge and another Nascent Soul Master, making his character more or less trustworthy to both parties. Thus, Qi Tian became the only candidate currently acceptable to both sides.

However, to prevent any accidents, the two Sacred Cultivation Places decided to each send two Nascent Soul Masters to accompany Qi Tian into the secret realm. The four individuals selected for this task were Ge Pengcheng and his group.

After hearing the plan, Qi Tian was not too keen on getting involved. But with the situation having evolved to this point, he no longer had the luxury to say “no,” so he could only nod in agreement.

Before long, the Life Jade Tokens of those Nascent Soul Masters who had not returned from the secret realm were all gathered in Qi Tian’s hands. To prevent their competitors from deliberately bringing extra Life Jade Tokens, Ge Pengcheng and the others meticulously inspected the tokens over and over, fearing that their rivals might exploit any loopholes.

Once it was confirmed that the Life Jade Tokens were accurate and undamaged, Ge Pengcheng and the others once again went through the space gate with Qi Tian into the secret realm.

Qi Tian was the last to enter. Ge Pengcheng and the others were already prepared. As soon as Qi Tian appeared, they couldn’t wait to have him take out the Life Jade Tokens.

When Qi Tian took out all the Life Jade Tokens, he suddenly found that there were cracks on all of them, with not a single one spared, and the cracks were rapidly spreading across the tokens. In an instant, the cracks had spread over the entire surface, and soon all the Life Jade Tokens turned into broken pieces.

For Ge Pengcheng and Lu Songsheng, such a result was beyond their wildest dreams—it meant that the ownership of the secret realm was now settled, indisputably belonging to Wanjie City. However, Li Wenshuo and Cui Jiaxin couldn’t accept this outcome. Simultaneously, their gazes fixed on Qi Tian. Could killing Qi Tian at this moment change the outcome of the competition between Wanjie City and Sui’an City?

Lu Songsheng could clearly discern what Li Wenshuo and Cui Jiaxin’s looks implied. He hastily transmitted a message to Qi Tian, telling him to take shelter behind him. Then, with an unfriendly expression, he faced Li Wenshuo and Cui Jiaxin and said, “This competition was a fair fight, and I hope everyone can gracefully accept the result and not complicate matters further.”

Although Ge Pengcheng wasn’t fond of Qi Tian, he knew that he absolutely couldn’t let anything happen to him at this time. It was crucial to ensure Qi Tian’s safety. Therefore, he stepped forward, standing shoulder to shoulder with Lu Songsheng, and declared, “If Sui’an City desires peace, then we, the Ink Flood Dragon Association, will offer peace. But if Sui’an City feels they must move their limbs else they’ll rust, then fine, we, the Ink Flood Dragon Association, are ready for a full confrontation.”