The Heavenly Court.
Qin Dingling hovered high in the vast sky, her expression deadly serious.
This killer move had been brewing inside her for three full days and nights.
"Now!" In the next instant, she finally unleashed it, channeling a magnificent golden radiance. The golden light unfurled like a five-tailed peacock, crying out softly as it soared into the sky.
When the golden light reached a certain point in the heavens, it suddenly detonated, scattering into countless specks of light.
Among the scattered glow, a massive passage gradually materialized.
Fairy Ziwei, who stood beside Qin Dingling, paled instantly. "There really is such a passage!"
Qin Dingling slowly bled from her seven orifices, her body swaying, her face deathly pale. She withdrew to rest.
"You've worked hard." Duke Long was also present, visibly moved.
After catching her breath, Qin Dingling spoke with emotion: "That was far too close! If I hadn't recently soul-searched Zhao Lianyun and picked up a few scraps from Juyang's Living Beings' Fortune True Inheritance, my own attainments alone would never have been enough to discover Immortal Venerable Juyang's arrangement here."
Duke Long snorted coldly. "This Immortal Venerable Juyang harbored treacherous intentions. He feigned a sightseeing visit to the Heavenly Court back then, but in reality he planted this hidden hand. This Fortune Path True Inheritance is truly unfathomable — the vast Heavenly Court never detected it. But Heavenly Will still favors our Heavenly Court. At the critical moment, Fairy Qin awakened and saw through Immortal Venerable Juyang's scheme."
Fairy Ziwei drew a deep breath. "With such an arrangement, Immortal Venerable Juyang has opened a path straight into the Heavenly Court. Once activated, Gu Immortals from Eternal Heaven could charge right into the Heavenly Court."
"Indeed. This is exactly the sort of thing those Northern Plains barbarians would do," Duke Long said.
Bright light flickered in Fairy Ziwei's eyes. "However, now that we've discovered this, we can make counterarrangements. We can even turn their scheme against them and set a trap for the Northern Plains. This will be of tremendous help at the Central Continent Gu Refining Grand Assembly in a few years."
Despite her great contribution, Qin Dingling's expression remained somber. She sighed: "Immortal Venerable Juyang possesses three True Inheritance Paths — Own Fortune, Living Beings' Fortune, and Heaven-Earth Fortune. To counter him, I specifically cultivated Living Beings' Fortune, and after years of bitter training, I originally thought I was close to matching him. But this time has shown me that the gap between us is still that vast."
Fairy Ziwei consoled her: "The Venerables of every era cannot be measured by common standards. Senior, your fortune attainments are already a blessing for the Heavenly Court — they fill a historical gap. From now on, the Heavenly Court finally has a respectable Fortune Path True Inheritance to call its own."
Qin Dingling said: "To guard against unforeseen circumstances, I've already placed my Fortune Path True Inheritance in the Immortal Treasury. But it would be far better to obtain Immortal Venerable Juyang's True Inheritance directly. Unfortunately, while Zhao Lianyun witnessed the Living Beings' Fortune True Inheritance firsthand at the Royal Court Blessed Land, her perspective was limited and she only caught fragments. As for Ma Hongyun, he was blessed with extraordinary fortune and surely knew much more — but he was captured by Fang Yuan."
At the mention of Fang Yuan, Fairy Ziwei's brow immediately furrowed. "Come to think of it, Fang Yuan hasn't shown himself for quite some time. We've already made airtight deployments in the River of Time, yet he still hasn't appeared. He clearly possesses the Ten Thousand Year Battle Flying Ship, yet he doesn't seem particularly interested in the Red Lotus True Inheritance. Is it that we simply can't track his whereabouts, or is he..."
At the mention of the Red Lotus True Inheritance, Duke Long's brow also furrowed slightly. He spoke in a deep voice: "Then let's prepare for the worst and assume Fang Yuan has already obtained the Red Lotus True Inheritance."
"To subdue Fang Yuan, in my opinion, the key still lies with Gu Yue Fang Zheng," Qin Dingling said with a faint smile.
Unlike in the previous life, Gu Yue Fang Zheng had received the greatest attention, long since catching the eye of Duke Long and Fairy Ziwei. With the Heavenly Court's arrangements and a massive allocation of resources, Gu Yue Fang Zheng's strength was rapidly advancing.
Immortal Path Killer Move — Blood Chill!
The three desolate beasts' movements grew slower and slower until they all froze and collapsed onto the ground, whimpering.
The victor, Gu Yue Fang Zheng, hovered in the air, looking down at the three desolate beasts lying at his feet. His gray robe was immaculate — not a hair harmed.
"A Blood Path killer move really is formidable." Zhao Lianyun stood right beside him, shoulder to shoulder.
Fang Zheng cupped his fists. "I owe it all to Fairy Lingyuan's assistance. Without her, where would I get so many opportunities for real combat?"
Zhao Lianyun smiled. "We share a common goal, so of course we should work together. Isn't that right?"
Just as in the previous life, in this life Zhao Lianyun had taken the initiative to befriend Fang Zheng.
Zhao Lianyun loved Ma Hongyun, yet Ma Hongyun had been killed by Fang Yuan. Though the latter was dead, his soul still existed — there was still a chance of resurrection.
"The Heavenly Court reveres Heavenly Will. They actually don't want Hongyun to resurrect. If he rises from the dead, wouldn't that defy fate!"
"Even though I've become the current Fairy of Ling Yuan Studio, the Heavenly Court still treats me as nothing more than a pawn, constantly using me."
"Before, that female immortal Qin Dingling casually soul-searched me — that was the best proof. On this point, Fang Zheng and I are in exactly the same situation. We're both pawns, except the Heavenly Court values Fang Zheng a little more."
"So, to resurrect Hongyun, I can only rely on myself and look for my own opportunities!"
Zhao Lianyun had her own calculations.
Zhao Lianyun knew her situation, and Fang Zheng was no longer naive. Having experienced much, he understood his own circumstances, and he comprehended why Zhao Lianyun was befriending him.
Fang Zheng didn't dislike Zhao Lianyun. Both were in the same predicament, and he felt a genuine sense of sympathetic kinship.
As the two talked, Gu Yue Fang Zheng had already stored the three desolate beasts in his Immortal Orifice.
The three desolate beasts were not dead. Once the Blood Chill killer move was properly calibrated, it became an excellent means of capturing enemies alive.