Chapter 805: Familiar Foes of the Hall of the Dead and the New King of Hell
The Hallmaster of the Hall of the Dead, Xu Anda, was a middle-aged man who was tall and huge. He kept a beard and his eyes were filled with energy. But on closer look, there was darkness deep inside his pupils, as if there was a deep valley.
In that deep valley, black fog filled the place and there were subtly streaks of black radiances that surged.
Each of these streaks of black radiance seemed to portray a painful look on a person's face. But although the expressions of the human figures converted from the black radiance looked tormented, they all remained seated on their knees in the black fog, as they clasped their palms, seemingly cultivating a certain manual.
Xu Anda's back was facing the opening of the pavilion. He looked at the black dragon seat in front of him and remained silent, until someone appeared in the pavilion and greeted him. "Sikong You is here to meet the Hallmaster."
"Oh." Xu Anda turned around and looked at the elder in black.
The elder's hair was snow-white in color, but from his facial features, one could tell that he looked charming when he was young. He had a peaceful look, but he revealed an aura of resilience.
But in front of Xu Anda, this elder remained very respectful.
Xu Anda looked at Sikong You and said, "Wuguan, I heard that when you were in the Million Wraith Sect, you had another brother called Sikong Nan. Not only were the both of you fellow disciples, the both of you were also biological brothers. After the both of you reached the Advanced Stage of the Nascent Soul Stage, you further progressed to the Immortal Soul Stage. I believe that you were also considered a revelation then?"
Sikong You nodded his head, "There was indeed such a thing. But it's a pity that he was killed by a Mount Shu Sword Sect sword cultivator when he was challenged. Only remnants of his soul had been placed within the broken Pearl of Styx."
"I wanted to escape with the Pearl of Styx, but the enemies spotted me and inflicted me with grave injuries too. I lost the Pearl of Styx as a result. Because of this, my brother went missing and I have been unable to locate the Pearl of Styx since."
Sikong You paused for a moment before he continued, "However, from what I know now, the Pearl of Styx has landed in the hands of Wang Lin of the Celestial Sect of Wonders. When he was in the Void Battleground, his flesh was greatly damaged and his soul was gravely injured. He was only able to preserve his life using the Pearl of Styx.
"There has been no news of my brother at all. It's either his remnant soul had been wiped out by the restrictions within the Pearl of Styx or he has landed in the hands of the leader of the Celestial Sect of Wonders and his disciple."
As he mentioned Sikong Nan, Sikong You's expression remained normal. His tone of voice was calm too. It was as if he was not discussing about his own biological brother, but someone who was unrelated to him. But Xu Anda could clearly feel that when he spoke, his emotions were a little delicate.
"Previously, a Nascent Soul Stage cultivator that I developed clashed with Wang Lin. Furthermore, one of the Immortal Soul Stage Elder of the Hall of the Dead was also captured. I tried to help this Nascent Soul Stage cultivator hide himself, but he was still captured by Wang Lin."
After Sikong You finished speaking, Xu Anda replied, "Along with the old King Qinguang, there have already been five Immortal Soul Stage Elders from the Hall of the Dead who have been captured by the leader of the Celestial Sect of Wonders."
The thing about the mantras of the Hall of the Dead was that regardless of a cultivator's level of cultivation, he was still able to cultivate these mantras. He could cultivate these mantras as his foundation and then go on to further develop them. Otherwise, he could also cultivate the mantras from other places and then change his foundation to the lineage of the Hall of the Dead.
After converting to the lineage of the Hall of the Dead, the essence of the original mantras that the cultivator had cultivated could be retained up to 70-80%.
Thus, the Hall of the Dead was not just purely a sect. Rather, it was like the Great Zhou and Great Qin Empire. Besides nurturing their own cultivators, they would also attract powerful cultivators from other places to join them.
The Hall of the Dead operated covertly. Through long-term development, there were many powerful cultivators in the Hall of the Dead now. Their potential was actually very great.
But even so, the loss of five Immortal Soul Stage cultivator, including a Hallmaster, such a loss was still very shocking.
What was more embarrassing was that such a huge loss was not compensated by any significant returns.
Sikong You said, "There's news from the Divine Lands that Mount Yujing has revealed itself for no particular reason. Lin Feng did not appear and there seemed to have many weird points about it. Has something changed in the Celestial Sect of Wonders internally?"
Xu Anda nodded his head, "There's this possibility. If something has really changed within the Celestial Sect of Wonders, then this is our chance."
"But we can't rule out the possibility that Lin Feng has set a trap to bait us."
Sikong You bowed and said, "I have an enmity with the Celestial Set of Wonders. The previous conflict also happened because of a cultivator under me. If the Hall of the Dead clashes with the Celestial Sect of Wonders, I am willing to sacrifice myself."
"Allow me to test out what's going on with the Celestial Sect of Wonders. If something has really changed, we can deal with them then."
Ever since he received the news until Xu Anda called for him, Sikong You had already understood what Xu Anda wanted. Before he even asked, Sikong You volunteered himself already.
Xu Anda smiled, "If this is a really a trap, I will get you back."
"We found an emerald skull not long ago and we have kept it safely. Go and retrieve it."
Sikong You bowed towards Xu Anda, "Thank you Hallmaster. I shall retreat now."
He turned around and was prepared to leave. Xu Anda seemed to have thought of something and he asked suddenly, "How are you going to test the Celestial Sect of Wonders?"
Sikong You stopped in his tracks, "A few of Lin Feng's disciples have arrived in the Southern Wilderness. Three of them are his Immediate Disciples. One of them is the sect guardian."
"Wang Lin, Yue Hongyan, Yang Qing, Kang Nanhua, these are the few?" Xu Anda asked, "They are not only your familiar foes. Since this is the case, let Qinguang go too."
"Yes." Sikong You retreated and left the pavilion. As he walked, he came to a mountain valley outside the black royal palace.
There was a small building in the mountain valley. Sikong You came to the mountain valley and a young man walked out from the building. After seeing Sikong You, he clasped his fist and palm together, "Elder You, why are you here alone? If there's anything, you can ask someone to pass the message to me. I can then go over to find you."
Sikong You looked at him and said, "You have become the new King Qinguang. We are of the same status. How can I trouble you?"
"With your potential, you will overtake me soon, Zhang Lie."
The new King Qinguang was Zhang Lie. As he looked at Sikong You, he smiled, "Your words are too kind. I don't dare to accept your praises."
His outer appearance was a youth who was tall and huge. His figure was proportionate and he looked charming. His facial features were neatly displayed through the contours on his face, revealing a manly feel about him.
He turned his body slightly and opened a path, "Elder You, please take a seat."
Sikong You followed him into the building. As he walked, he said, "I am here because the Hallmaster has set a task for both you and I."
"Oh, what is it?" Zhang Lie asked.
Sikong You answered, "Mount Yujing has revealed itself suddenly and has remained in the sky above Mount Kunlun. But it has not done anything as of yet. Lin Feng has not revealed himself. The situation seems to be abnormal."
Zhang Lie and Sikong You sat together. After hearing this, he said, "I know this. What plans does the Hallmaster have for the Celestial Sect of Wonders?"
"Although things seemed to be abnormal on Mount Yujing, there's no evidence to corroborate our assumptions. No one can confirm what is happening either." Zhang Lie rubbed his finger across his forehead, "If we think that something is going based on this and act recklessly, we may harm ourselves eventually. If I am the Hallmaster, I won't be so reckless too."
"That's why, we must test things out first. So, it seems like the task given to the both of us is one that's going to lead us to our deaths?" Zhang Lie laughed, "Elder You, I have been implicated by you. "
Sikong You replied, "You defeated the Hallmaster's Immediate Disciple and became King Qinguang. This is the main reason why you were chosen."
"The last King Qinguang fell in the hands of Lin Feng. The Hallmaster left this position empty for countless of years, and it was reserved for his own disciples. But who knew that you defeated them and managed to overcome the other Immortal Soul First Level Envoys of the Hall of the Dead. Eventually, because of that, you were given this position."
"The Hallmaster is not so narrow-minded. He will only remember the major things." Zhang Lie laughed. He did not continue harping on this topic and asked, "So, how are we going to test them out? The Celestial Wonders World?"
Sikong Yue straightened one of his finger and shook it a little, "There's the Dual Polarity Peak in the Celestial Wonders World. We don't have to do this the hard way. We have a better opportunity in front of us."
Zhang Lie's brows shook a little. His gaze froze slightly, "From my calculations, they seem to be reaching."
As Sikong Yue saw this situation, his pale face revealed a smile, "Seems like you understand? Not bad, the few disciples of Lin Feng and even the sect guardian Kang Nanhua is in the Southern Wilderness."
"They are all your familiar foes. Of course, they are also related to me. Wang Lin is here too."
Zhang Lie lowered his head and looked on the ground. He revealed a deep laughter from his throat. His laughter grew louder and louder, "Haha, indeed a familiar foe."
Sikong You said, "From what I know, Kang Nanhua and Yue Hongyan's cultivation have improved all these years. I believe that their greatest motivation in speeding up their cultivations in the Heavenly Cosmic Ray World is to take revenge against you."
"I wonder, what will they think when they see you? Zhang Lie, even the Hallmaster and I are astonished by how fast you managed to form the Immortal Soul. All these years, you have been cultivating tirelessly. In the Void Battleground, you have killed countless too. Your efforts are indeed not wasted."
Zhang Lie lifted his head up. He looked at Sikong Yue and laughed, "They have all gone under Lin Feng. Naturally, I have to hide in the Void Battleground and in this world. If I reveal myself in the Divine Lands, I have no confidence of escaping the capture of Lin Feng."
He stood up, "We have to be careful this time too. If the Hallmaster has made a wrong judgement, and there are no big changes in the Celestial Sect of Wonders, Lin Feng may be furious when he knows that we played with his disciples. When that happens, I will follow in the footsteps of the previous King Qinguang. In that case, I will become the King of Hell with the shortest tenure in history?"
Sikong You asked, "What are your plans?"
Zhang Lie maintained his look, "It's not really a plan. It's a chess piece that I laid down quite some time ago. Now, I'm going to take it out to play with them."