Heavenly Dao Engine
Chapter 469 - 469 0329 The Destined Nemesis_2

Chapter 469: Chapter 0329: The Destined Nemesis_2 Chapter 469: Chapter 0329: The Destined Nemesis_2 With that thought, Jiang Fan and Lu Kui both nodded in unison, making up their minds to turn Wanjie Commerce’s camp upside down. They were determined to not quit until the perpetrator was found.

Just as they were resolved to pay any price, even if it meant a fight to the death and burning all bridges, to thoroughly search Wanjie Commerce’s two camp locations and the spiritual stone veins, Lin Youbi suddenly pointed at the sky and exclaimed, “Why is there a transmission ghost up there?”

Transmission ghosts and Message Paper Cranes are both used by cultivators to communicate. Most cultivators prefer to use Message Paper Cranes, and only a few ghost cultivators, such as those from Ghost God Temple, would choose to use transmission ghosts. Transmission ghosts also have various levels, with the highest level able to cover thousands of kilometers in one hour. Although this transmission ghost’s level wasn’t that high, it was an excellent transmission ghost that could travel at speeds up to three to four hundred kilometers per hour. Any transmission ghost of this level would at least require a Gold Core powerhouse to use. Apparently, ordinary Ghost God Temple cultivators could not afford to have them. Wan Xiaolan and Lin Youbi were both quite repulsed by transmission ghosts, so it obviously would not be intended for them. Thus, the only remaining possibility was that it came for the other two Gold Core cultivators present: Jiang Fan and Lu Kui.

Jiang Fan looked up at the transmission ghost, his face had changed instantly. Besides their levels, transmission ghosts also varied in category. It’s difficult for outsiders to understand the differences, but he only needed one look to be sure that this transmission ghost was carrying an extremely urgent message. He hurriedly beckoned, and the transmission ghost flew toward him immediately. In the blink of an eye, it reached his ear, turning into white smoke and whirling into his ear. At this, Jiang Fan’s face turned a shade darker.

Jiang Fan gave a bow to Wan Xiaolan, saying, “Sir Wan, Sir Lin, I’m sorry for the inconvenience. Once we return to Wanjie City, I shall host a banquet to apologize. Lu Kui, let’s go.”

Wan Xiaolan and Lin Youbi hadn’t expected Jiang Fan to suddenly change his attitude. For them, the best outcome was to avoid a falling out with Jiang Fan and Lu Kui. Although they suspected something was amiss, they still prioritized safely escorting all the cultivators back home, as it would be their greatest achievement. In comparison to the safety of these cultivators and their dug-up spirit stones, everything else could be sacrificed.

After bowing farewell to Jiang Fan and Lu Kui, Lin Youbi asked, “Brother Wan, should we send someone to check on them? From their looks, I fear they have encountered an urgent matter.”

Wan Xiaolan smirked coldly, “So what if they did? Best if they’re all burned to the ground. However, such affairs aren’t our concern anymore. We should concentrate on our own tasks and avoid any complications that could lead to significant loss.”

Lin Youbi sighed, “I do regret not being able to observe the drama. If not for other pressing matters, I’d definitely want to see what’s happening.”

While Wan Xiaolan and Lin Youbi were making sarcastic remarks, Lu Kui followed behind Jiang Fan, noticing his ashen face. He cautiously asked, “Brother Jiang, what happened?”

Jiang Fan, his face as dark as a pot bottom, gritted his teeth, “Just now, our spirit stone vein was ambushed, the losses were severe. The enemies were extremely powerful, they managed to find a secret tunnel leading to the spirit stone vein, sneaking in and catching our people unprepared. According to a rough estimate, over a hundred of our cultivators were killed or injured, including many Half-step Golden Core cultivators. Moreover, one of our storage rooms for spirit stones was seized, and three million low-grade spirit stones and fifty thousand middle-grade spirit stones stored inside were all stolen.”

Lu Kui’s face paled considerably at this news, “How is that possible?”

Besides Lu Kui, even Jiang Fan found it hard to believe this news. They had initially seized control of the spirit stone vein from the native cultivators. After thoroughly searching the entire vein and even using secret techniques to search the souls of a few cultivators, they had found no evidence of a secret tunnel. Only then had they felt safe to begin excavation. Little did they expect such a disaster, especially when they were so close to their triumphant return with a massive haul.

The occurrence of this event was even more nefarious than the killing of more than a hundred cultivators at the Half-step Golden Core stage. The spiritual stone veins were attacked and robbed, even under their tight security. Not only did many cultivators lose their lives, but a staggering number of spirit stones were also lost, which meant that their efforts to mine the mystical spirit stone mine were greatly diminished. In contrast, the loss of lives seemed inconsequential. Even if more than a hundred Golden Cores died, it wouldn’t affect the fundamentals of Ghost God Temple. However, returning with a few million fewer low-grade spirit stones and tens of thousands of middle-grade spirit stones could potentially impact the future development of the Ghost God Temple.

It was almost certain that once they returned to Ghost God Temple, they would face extremely harsh punishment.

Upon thinking of the consequences, Jiang Fan and Lu Kui’s faces turned so dark it was as if storm clouds were forming. They vowed that, no matter who was involved, even if it sparked a deadly war, they would retaliate against those who dared to attack their spiritual stone veins.

At this moment, whether it was the furious Jiang Fan and Lu Kui or the delighting Wan Xiaolan and Lin Youbi, none of them realized that the massive problems presently affecting Ghost God Temple were caused, not by others, but by a strategy Qi Tian had casually set up.

When the Ghost God Temple first seized the native cultivators’ spiritual stone veins, Qi Tian was observing from a nearby hill. He happened to encounter several indigenous cultivators fleeing from a secret tunnel. He managed to rob and kill them, not only did he gather numerous spirit stones, but he also learned the location of the tunnel. Later, he tamed Wang Na, told her the location of the tunnel, and had her spread the news. Following Qi Tian’s instructions, at the right opportunity, she sold the information to a major force in Wanjie City, leading to the current situation.

You could say that Ghost God Temple was simply unfortunate to run into Qi Tian, who was their destined nemesis. Each encounter resulted in substantial losses.

Meanwhile, Qi Tian, the instigator of it all, was unaware of everything happening at Ghost God Temple. After previously purchasing several books, he had returned to his tent. He’d just come from visiting the notice board. Wanjie Commerce had declared the day after tomorrow morning for their departure, asking all cultivators to prepare in advance. Wanjie Commerce would depart promptly and delay for no one, and anyone who failed to keep up with the group could only blame their own misfortune.

This meant Qi Tian had barely a day left to come up with a way to heal his spiritual wounds, any further delay could spell trouble.

Ignoring the pain in his head, Qi Tian took the newly bought books out of his storage bag. He picked out the book that the Heavenly Dao Engine had responded to and began reading it carefully.

The book was not very thick, only over a hundred pages, about the size of a hand. It contained text as well as pictures.

After browsing through it, Qi Tian realized that it wasn’t the entire book that resonated with the Heavenly Dao Engine, but a single page—more accurately, a single picture.

This picture was approximately the size of a playing card and depicted a meditating cultivator. Its style and the coarseness of the paper were indistinguishable from the rest of the book. If not for the Heavenly Dao Engine, even Qi Tian himself would have failed to notice any difference between this picture and the rest of the book.