Chapter 784: Lift a Siege
Qin Lie’s deductions were pretty close to the truth.
Martial pract.i.tioners of Celestial Artifact Sect—He Yi, Luo Kexin and Bi You—held the ancient spirit diagrams in such high regard because they knew just how valuable they were.
Back then, despite forcefully inscribing an ancient spirit diagram into the Heavenly Mirror as the power core and main internal diagram, the spirit artifact still became a Heaven Grade spirit artifact.
The might of Heavenly Mirror won the admiration of all Celestial Artifact Sect artificers. Even Feng Yi had praised it on more than one occasion.
Through the Heavenly Mirror, they recognized that the secrets and mysterious power contained inside an ancient spirit diagram were by far superior to the power in the diagrams that existed in Celestial Artifact Sect.
Therefore, all artificers in Celestial Artifact Sect wished that they could figure out the mysteries of the ancient spirit diagrams.
He Yi and Luo Kexin did plan to obtain the ancient spirit diagrams from Qin Lie so they could repair the Heavenly Mirror.
To them, the Evil Infant Boy’s hiding place wasn’t really a secret.
If they really did have a way to repair the Heavenly Mirror, then Celestial Artifact Sect had at least a dozen of ways to force the Evil Infant Boy to return the Heavenly Mirror obediently. They would be able to absorb this Heaven Grade spirit artifact back to their midst then.
“This may work!”
Qin Lie caught the key to the solution after pondering for a moment with a clear mind.
“Are you really familiar with the ancient spirit diagrams?” Dark Wind looked surprised.
Qin Lie nodded. “Allow me prepare something for a moment. Once it’s done, please deliver it to the Evil Infant Boy. I think he’ll be interested in it.”
While saying this, he took out a spirit tablet from his spatial ring and inscribed some of the more complicated ancient spirit diagrams he knew on it.
Above Dark Wind Island.
Four hours quickly pa.s.sed by.
The White Bone Demon Monarch suddenly opened his eyes and chuckled. “Here it comes!”
The Soul Summoning Ghost Mother and Evil Infant Boy suddenly looked expectant.
“The evil dragons!”
“They had been captured alive!”
“Seven evil dragons!”
Outside Dark Wind Island, a lot of evil spirits and foreign races exclaimed in surprise.
The seven evil dragons that were supposed to be left behind at Seven Eye Island were now being chained with bright silver chains and escorted over to Dark Wind Island by the subordinates of White Bone Demon Monarch, Soul Summoning Ghost Mother and Evil Infant Boy, as well as dragonmen and lizardmen.
Seven evil dragons were the equivalent of seven Nirvana Realm martial pract.i.tioners. This amount of strength was pretty impressive in the Ruined Lands already.
However, the White Bone Demon Monarch, the Soul Summoning Ghost Mother, and the Evil Infant Boy had a lot subordinates, not to mention that hundreds of dragonmen and lizardmen had surrounded them too. In the end, the seven evil dragons failed to escape their grasp.
Fortunately, evil dragons were worth far more alive than dead.
That was why these seven evil dragons were only shackled and bound. They roared and howled angrily and constantly in the air.
The sorrowful roars of the evil dragons could be heard even from afar.
Beneath Dark Wind Island, the evil dragon Gilbert and the other six evil dragons roared indignantly in response even though they were exhausted after executing the Reverse Dragon Recall Technique.
The White Bone Demon Monarch and the Soul Summoning Ghost Mother laughed excitedly upon hearing Gilbert’s furious roar.
“If you wish for your people to live, then I advise that you all step out obediently and stop making our lives any more difficult.” The White Bone Demon Monarch flew over Dark Wind Island with cruel and malicious expression. “Although a living evil dragon is more valuable than a dead one, I don’t mind decapitating just one to show my fellow denizens of the Ruined Lands exactly how an evil dragon looks like on the inside!”
“We are very interested in dragon blood!” Gu Tuo and Chi Yan laughed madly together.
The dragonmen and lizardmen’s bloodlines were very thin. They hardly provided any benefits.
Only by absorbing the bloodline of an ancient expert could they awaken their bloodline bit by bit and obtain the giant dragons and giant lizards’ power of inheritance.
The dragon blood of an evil dragon also contained the power of bloodline. It could improve the concentration of their bloodline.
“I’m going to kill them! I’m going to tear them all to pieces!”
Gilbert went mad. It roared angrily and was about to charge out of the green flame light s.h.i.+eld to attack them.
“Wait! I can save your people!” Qin Lie suddenly opened his eyes.
The light of spirit energy on his fingertip abruptly vanished. The spirit tablet that was now inscribed with the spirit diagrams glowed with a gentle, jadestone like halo.
“Senior Dark Wind, send someone to bring this spirit tablet to the Evil Infant Boy. If what you say is correct, if the Heavenly Mirror really has a damaged ancient spirit diagram, then the Evil Infant Boy will definitely make the right choice!” Qin Lie said firmly.
“Calm down!”
Forefather Dark Wind urged Gilbert and beckoned Lu Heng over immediately. He pa.s.sed a spirit tablet to him and instructed, “Pa.s.s this to the Evil Infant Boy and say that it’s our condition. He will know what to do.”
Lu Heng bowed and flew up into the sky without a word.
The secret art and spirit art he cultivated came from the exact same source as the green flame light s.h.i.+eld. Therefore, he pa.s.sed through the light s.h.i.+eld without any problems at all.
“Why have you come out, Lu Heng? Did Dark Wind send you over to negotiate after realizing that the situation is going bad for him?” The White Bone Demon Monarch laughed.
Without being too haughty or humble, he first cast a glance at the group before bowing towards the Evil Infant Boy. “The Forefather told me to pa.s.s you this. It is our condition. Please, have a look.”
“Give it to me!”
The Evil Infant Boy stretched an arm at the spirit tablet and grabbed it with the power of s.p.a.ce.
The spirit tablet fell smoothly into the Evil Infant Boy’s hands.
The moment the spirit tablet slipped out of his grasp, Lu Heng wisely fell back down to the ground.
He pa.s.sed through the s.h.i.+eld and returned to Dark Wind Island.
When the Evil Infant Boy grabbed the spirit tablet, countless tendrils of spirit light blossomed and slipped inside the spirit tablet.
Suddenly, the Evil Infant Boy’s midget-sized body began to tremble uncontrollably in midair.
His eyes were glowing with a surprisingly intimidating light.
“What’s wrong, Evil Infant Boy? What kind of condition did Dark Wind give?” The White Bone Demon Monarch looked confused.
“Aren’t you being a little too agitated, Evil Infant Boy? Did something good happen?” The Soul Summoning Ghost Mother was also puzzled.
Gu Tuo and Chi Yan were very puzzled too. They didn’t understand the reason behind Evil Infant Boy’s agitation, nor did they know what kind of secret was stored inside the spirit tablet.
“Let me have a look, Evil Infant Boy.” The White Bone Demon Monarch asked for the spirit tablet.
“Give it to me after you’re done,” The Soul Summoning Ghost Mother also wanted to inspect the board.
“Here, catch.”
The Evil Infant Boy quickly calmed down after his initial excitement. He tossed the spirit tablet casually to the White Bone Demon Monarch after a gleam pa.s.sed through his eyes.
Then, he moved slightly to the left where the seven evil dragons were bound.
The Soul Summoning Ghost Mother, Gu Tuo and Chi Yan had all subconsciously moved closer to the White Bone Demon Monarch, hoping to learn the condition Forefather Dark Wind had offered them after he was done.
Therefore, the Evil Infant Boy’s movements didn’t draw their attention.
Many of the surrounding onlookers were paying attention to the spirit tablet in the White Bone Demon Monarch’s hands too.
“Strange, there’s nothing in here. I only see some messy lines in it. Where are the conditions?” The White Bone Demon Monarch muttered before gathering his soul consciousness, wanting to dig deeper into the spirit tablet’s secrets.
“What are you doing, Senior Evil Infant Boy?!”
It was at this moment one of White Bone Demon Monarch’s subordinates suddenly screamed.
He was standing in front of an evil dragon and grabbing a long, bright silver chain in his hands. The chain was covered in strange patterns that meant that it was imbued with many layers of special restrictions.
The reason he screamed was because he noticed that the bright spatial rifts had suddenly cracked open around him.
Then, he noticed that the bright chains binding the evil dragons tightly were actually cut apart by spatial blades.
It wasn’t just him. The same thing was happening to the evil dragons watched by the Soul Summoning Ghost Mother’s subordinates, the dragonmen, and the lizardmen.
The reason he screamed was because he noticed some white light bursting from the Evil Infant Boy’s body.
He understood immediately that the light was the cause behind the spatial rifts.
“What are you doing!? Evil Infant Boy!”
The White Bone Demon Monarch and the Soul Summoning Ghost Mother screamed at the same time as they abruptly stared at him and his surroundings.
All seven evil dragons were freed at once as they charged towards the green flame light s.h.i.+eld.
The White Bone Demon Monarch was simply unable to stop them in time.
The green flame light s.h.i.+eld automatically cancelled out its restrictions and barriers so that the seven evil dragons could pa.s.s through them safely.
In an instant, the seven evil dragons pa.s.sed through the barrier and landed in Dark Wind Island.
The Evil Infant Boy laid an order to his subordinates with a sharp scream.
His subordinates abruptly scattered and escaped from Dark Wind Island at once. They rushed back towards Evil Infant Island to hide themselves.
Only Evil Infant Boy was still hovering at the same spot with an indifferent look on his face. It was almost as if nothing had happened before.
It was almost as if he wasn’t the person who untied the seven evil dragons.
The surprise had come and gone too abruptly. Before the White Bone Demon Monarch and the Soul Summoning Ghost Mother could react, it was already too late.
The White Bone Demon Monarch, the Soul Summoning Ghost Mother, Gu Tuo and Chi Yan rushed towards the Evil Infant Boy.
They surrounded him tightly at the center.
“Why?” The White Bone Demon Monarch looked incredibly gloomy. “Are you planning to take all those evil dragons for yourself? You don’t look like the type!”
“Did you come into an agreement with Dark Wind? What exactly did he promise you?” the Soul Summoning Ghost Mother said angrily.
“Dark Wind will not fight against Qin Lie, we know this since that incident in Frost Island a year ago! Do you really think that you can claim all those evil dragons for yourself if you work together with Dark Wind?” Gu Tuo was also furious. “Don’t you think your appet.i.te is a little too big, Evil Infant Boy!?”
“None of you can stop me if I wish to leave. You all should know this.” The Evil Infant Boy’s tone was so calm and indifferent that he sounded like a dead person. “I, Dark Wind, a Rank Eight evil dragon, thirteen Rank Seven evil dragons and the defenses of Dark Wind Island are enough to beat you. In that case, you may as well give up on this mission and go back to your homes, pretending that today has never happened. This is the best outcome for everyone.”
“But why?” The White Bone Demon Monarch looked incredibly reluctant.
He knew that the Evil Infant Boy was telling the truth.
The Evil Infant Boy had a unique understanding of the power of s.p.a.ce, so it would be very difficult for them to surround and stop him. Dark Wind and the Soul Summoning Ghost Mother were equal in strength, and the Rank Eight evil dragon could beat Gu Tuo and Chi Yan.
This should have been a clear victory for them with him and the Evil Infant Boy around. But after the Evil Infant Boy had betrayed them, he would have to fight the Evil Infant Boy instead. In that case the situation had become entirely different.
He knew that he would probably have the upper hand if he really were to fight against the Evil Infant Boy. However, he also knew that he would have to pay a heavy price.
The price would be so terrible that even fourteen dead evil dragons might not be able to cover up his losses.
Therefore, he would only lose more than he gained if he chose to fight after the Evil Infant Boy had joined forces with Dark Wind.
“What was it that Dark Wind offered you that’s so attractive? Is it even more precious than those fourteen evil dragons?” the Soul Summoning Ghost Mother also asked.
“Yes, it is more precious than the fourteen evil dragons.” The Evil Infant Boy nodded indifferently. “However, Dark Wind isn’t the one making the offer. It is someone else.”
The Evil Infant Boy stopped explaining and went down towards the green flame light s.h.i.+eld.
The light s.h.i.+eld that should’ve held strong vanished in an instant.
The Evil Infant Boy’s childlike body slipped through it in an instant.
The White Bone Demon Monarch, the Soul Summoning Ghost Mother, Gu Tuo and Chi Yan stared blankly at the green flame light s.h.i.+eld beneath them.
They couldn’t say anything for a very long time.
Without the Evil Infant Boy, no one could break through the green flame light s.h.i.+eld because none of them possessed sufficient understanding to do so. Therefore, they couldn’t enter Dark Wind Island.
If they couldn’t even enter Dark Wind Island, then how in the Spirit Realm were they going to capture those evil dragons?
Even if they did go in, could they really be certain of victory after the Evil Infant Boy had joined the opposition?
“What do we do now?” the Soul Summoning Ghost Mother said irritatedly.
“What else can we do?” The White Bone Demon Monarch said gloomily, “We’ve obviously been fooled by the Evil Infant Boy this time! This will not end here!”
“I can’t stand this either!” The Soul Summoning Ghost Mother snorted.
“I refuse to believe that they’ll stay in Dark Wind Island forever!” the White Bone Demon Monarch said fiercely before turning around. “Let us leave this place for now. I’ll show them once they come out of the island!”
“I guess that’s the only option left.” The Soul Summoning Ghost Mother sighed.
After coming to an agreement with each other, the two martial pract.i.tioners took their subordinates and left Dark Wind Island without a care for Gu Tuo or Chi Yan’s opinion.
After exchanging a glance with each other, Gu Tuo and Chi Yan too went away from Dark Wind Island while sighing dejectedly.
The many onlookers, evil spirits and foreign races who were waiting expectantly for a great battle never thought that things would turn out this way.
“How boring.”
“They didn’t fight? Really? What in the Spirit Realm is the Evil Infant Boy thinking?”
“Who on earth convinced him to switch sides? This is unbelievable!”
Seeing that there was no chance that a battle would occur, the onlookers left one after another until there were only a couple of people at the scene, seemingly waiting for another turn of events.
One of them was Bai Li.
After the crowd had dispersed, Bai Li descended to the edge of Dark Wind Island and walked inside, requesting to meet Forefather Dark Wind.
After getting permission, Bai Li stepped through the green flame light s.h.i.+eld and went inside.
There were also a few other people who asked to meet Forefather Dark Wind outside the s.h.i.+eld.
These people didn’t belong to the White Bone Demon Monarch, Soul Summoning Ghost Mother, Gu Tuo or Chi Yan’s faction. Their realms weren’t very high either, and there was no chance that they could affect the bigger picture. Therefore, they were allowed into the island too.
Inside Dark Wind Island.
Qin Lie sat next to Gilbert with a calm smile on his face.
The moment the Evil Infant Boy came down, he looked around and spotted Qin Lie immediately. “Are you the one who sent out that spirit tablet?”
Qin Lie nodded smilingly.
“Can you help me repair the Heavenly Mirror then?” A trace of excitement appeared on the Evil Infant Boy’s calm face. His eyes slowly brightened up too.
“I do not dare give you a hundred percent a.s.surance just yet. I will need to see and inspect the spirit artifact first to know if it can be repaired.” Qin Lie expressed.
The Evil Infant Boy immediately pa.s.sed over the Heavenly Mirror without wasting a second. “Please have a look.”
Qin Lie accepted the mirror and carefully probed the internal spirit diagram of the spirit artifact with his soul consciousness.
The Heavenly Mirror had a lot of small spirit diagrams, and a large majority of them were Spirit Gathering, Spirit Storage and Strengthening spirit diagrams. They were all the regular spirit diagrams of Celestial Artifact Sect.
At the center of the dozens of small spirit diagrams, there was an ancient spirit diagram called “Void Illusion.” He had seen this ancient spirit diagram in the Soul Suppressing Orb before, and it was one of the deeper middle level ancient spirit diagrams that he hadn’t studied or mastered just yet. Naturally, he couldn’t say that he was familiar with it.
The most important spirit diagram in Heavenly Mirror was the Void Illusion ancient spirit diagram. It was also the only spirit diagram that was damaged.
“I can repair this, but I will need time to do so. It can be as short as ten days, or it can be as long as three months. I cannot say for sure.” A while later, Qin Lie returned the Heavenly Mirror to the Evil Infant Boy. “I’ll need to consider carefully how best to repair this before I come back to you for the Heavenly Mirror. The actual repair process will only take an hour. Are you fine with this?”
“If you can repair the Heavenly Mirror for me, then I can promise to build a teleportation formation on any island in the Ruined Lands that connects directly to the teleportation formation at the Setting Sun Islands! I will pay the spirit materials necessary to build it too!” The light in the Evil Infant Boy’s eyes looked incredibly sharp.
Qin Lie shuddered once and said loudly, “A month! I promise to repair the Heavenly Mirror in at most a month’s time!”
“If it’s a month then…” The Evil Infant Boy pondered for a moment. “I can move the teleportation formation at Evil Infant Island to an island of your choice and gift it to you first! I will build another one for myself later!”
“It’s a promise then!”
“It’s a promise!”
Qin Lie and the Evil Infant Boy had come to an agreement so swiftly that even Forefather Dark Wind was surprised.
“I will wait for you at Dark Wind Island in case White Bone and Ghost Mother try to do something. Please arrange a place for me to stay, Dark Wind,” the Evil Infant Boy asked.
“Lu Heng, please take Senior Evil Infant Boy away so that he may choose an accommodation!” Forefather Dark Wind hastily instructed.
The Evil Infant Boy and Lu Heng vanished from the place in the blink of an eye.
At almost the same time, Bai Li had been brought to Qin Lie and Forefather Dark Wind by Lu Feng.
“Well met, Senior Dark Wind.”
“Well met, Yao… wait! It should be Qin Lie, right?”
Bai Li’s chilly eyes fell on Qin Lie.
Qin Lie smiled freely and bowed slightly, saying, “h.e.l.lo, Sister Bai.”
“I’ve come under orders to inform you that she has returned to Frost Island.” Bai Li said.
“Who’s she?”
“Lin Liang’er. She told me to inform you that she is almost ready to fulfill her promise.”
“Got it.”