Chapter 966: At Any Cost, Bring Him Back as Quickly as Possible!

"What the hell are all of you good for? There were so many of you here, and you still let her take him away? No participant in the tempering is allowed to leave that courtyard without permission. Did none of you know that?"

Back at Shouque Villa, Steward Huang Ban had returned. The moment he learned that Luo Fangfei had taken Niu Youdao away, he was both shocked and furious, and immediately tore into his subordinates.

One man said bitterly, "We did try to stop her, but we couldn't. We couldn't exactly attack her without authorization, could we?"

"So what if you attacked her? You're afraid of that bitch? This isn't Daluo Sacred Land. This isn't a place where that bitch can behave willfully and throw tantrums!" Huang Ban roared, beside himself with anger. Ding Wei had entrusted the tempering affair to him. Now they had actually let one of the participants get away. How was he supposed to answer for that?

As for calling Luo Fangfei a bitch, there was nothing remarkable about it. Huang Ban was not an ordinary cultivator from the cultivation world. He belonged to Dayuan Sacred Land. He had no reason to fear someone from Daluo Sacred Land.

Cursing was one thing, but reality still had to be faced. Rage and abuse could not solve the problem. After taking several deep breaths, Huang Ban asked, "Do we know where that bitch took Niu Youdao?"

Someone answered, "We only saw her take him toward the Sacred Realm exit. Later, Luo Fangfei returned from the exit alone, and Niu Youdao never came back. She may have sent him out of Sacred Realm."

"Move!" Huang Ban shouted. With a sweep of his hand, he gathered some men and flew straight out of Shouque Villa toward the exit to investigate.

The result was exactly as reported. The guards at the exit confirmed that Luo Fangfei had indeed taken Niu Youdao out of Sacred Realm. Huang Ban immediately led his people through as well, reached the entrance on Sacred Island, and once again verified the situation with the guards there.

The answer was confirmed yet again. Huang Ban quickly led his people out through the ring of buildings and rushed in the direction indicated by the guards. The group soon appeared on the same stretch of shore where Niu Youdao had lingered earlier, but by then there was not a trace of him.

One of the Misty Pavilion personnel accompanying Huang Ban asked, "Steward Huang, he should already be gone. What do we do?"

Huang Ban's face was black with anger. They had failed to catch Niu Youdao, and for the moment there was little he could do. The world outside was vast, the sea boundless, and they did not even know which direction Niu Youdao had taken. With only the manpower at hand, searching blindly would be no different from looking for a needle in the sea.

As for mobilizing large numbers of people to search, Huang Ban did not possess enough authority to deploy Misty Pavilion personnel on that scale.

"Go back!" Huang Ban swiftly led everyone back, returned to Sacred Realm, rushed to Shouque Villa, and ordered an urgent message sent to Ding Wei.

The matter had gone beyond anything he could decide. Ding Wei would have to step in if they wanted to resolve it...

On an island in the vast Eastern Sea, Niu Youdao had one foot planted on a man's body. In his hand, he held a broad-headed chopping saber, idly moving its blade back and forth beside the man's neck.

The man under his foot had his face pressed against the ground and pleaded repeatedly, "Great Master, spare my life! Spare my life! It's a misunderstanding. It really is nothing but a misunderstanding."

Several people around them held swords and sabers and watched like tigers eyeing prey. They shouted, "Release our Island Lord and we'll spare your life!"

Several more lay scattered across the ground, some groaning with blood running from their noses and mouths, others unconscious. A few had even been beaten back into their original forms. Every one of them had been injured by Niu Youdao.

This was an island occupied by demon cultivators. They were precisely the people Niu Youdao had come looking for. He needed their help and had openly identified himself. Who could have known these demon cultivators would be bold enough to use underhanded tricks against him? They welcomed him warmly on the surface, then secretly poisoned him.

Niu Youdao was alone outside. How could he not guard himself? He had remained secretly vigilant, and this crude trick could not fool an old hand like him. He saw through it.

Once the soft approach failed, the demon cultivators simply turned to force. Unfortunately, they were no match for Niu Youdao, and matters ended up like this.

Then again, what kind of ability could a few minor demons occupying a small island possess? If Niu Youdao could not even deal with them, all his years of experience would have been wasted.

The saber in Niu Youdao's hand hovered beside the neck of the man beneath his foot. Ignoring the shouts around him, he said, "A misunderstanding? You've got quite a lot of nerve. Don't you know Lang Jingkong, Hall Master of Fubo Hall in your Eastern Sea, is my sworn elder brother? You actually dared move against me. Tired of living, are you?" The edge of the blade pressed into the skin of the man's neck.

"It really is a misunderstanding!" The Island Lord cried out in pain and hurriedly explained, "Great Master, if you truly are Niu Youdao, Master Dao, then of course we'd worship you like an ancestor. But your story sounded too absurd! Master Dao already went to Sacred Realm for tempering together with Hall Master Lang. Then you suddenly appear here saying you're Niu Youdao. How were we supposed to believe you?"

Niu Youdao said, "Didn't I already tell you? I just came out of Sacred Realm."

The Island Lord beneath his foot did not know whether to laugh or cry. "You're joking with me, aren't you? What kind of place is Sacred Realm? Is it somewhere anyone can enter whenever they want and leave whenever they want? Even if you wanted an excuse, you shouldn't have chosen one like that. If I simply believed you, I'd have no way to explain myself to those above me."

The man's reasoning was not entirely wrong. Niu Youdao did not know what kind of rotten luck he had been having lately. He kept encountering things he could not explain clearly. He could not be bothered wasting more words on these minor demons. The saber tip pressed against the man's neck. "You're under my blade now. Can you explain that to your superiors?"

The Island Lord hurriedly said, "Yes, yes! I was forced by circumstances and had no choice but to comply. That can be explained." He immediately shouted at his surrounding subordinates, "What are you standing around for? Send the message! Tell them Niu Youdao, Master Dao, has come out of Sacred Realm and wants to borrow a flying mount!"

With their leader held hostage beneath Niu Youdao's foot, the minor demons did not dare act rashly. They immediately went to obey.

That was exactly what Niu Youdao wanted: to borrow a flying mount from the Eastern Sea so he could return to Zijin Cave.

He was alone now, and he had no shortage of enemies. There were far too many people who wanted him dead. Naturally, the safest thing was to get back to Zijin Cave as quickly as possible.

Crossing the boundless sea under his own spiritual power would consume too much time and strength. Even after the sea came the land, and the remaining distance was still considerable. Borrowing a mount would be much more convenient.

For all the commotion, it did not actually take especially long.

The superior of the island's demon cultivators heard that Niu Youdao had appeared and did not believe it either. He sent someone who had seen Niu Youdao before to verify his identity. The person sent was a demon cultivator who had participated in the Tiandu Secret Realm expedition.

The man arrived, took one look, and discovered that it really was Niu Youdao. He immediately returned and made an urgent report.

By the time dawn broke, three large flying mounts finally appeared in the distant sky. The leader who ruled these Eastern Sea waters, the Great Sage of the Eastern Sea, had come personally. He had not come alone either. Quite a few subordinates had accompanied him to see what was happening.

Before the Great Sage of the Eastern Sea arrived, many demon cultivators from the surrounding waters had already gathered on the island. Most had come simply to see the excitement after hearing that Niu Youdao had emerged from Sacred Realm.

A group descended from the sky. When the Great Sage of the Eastern Sea saw that it truly was Niu Youdao, he was astonished. "Niu Youdao, it really is you?"

"The genuine article!" Niu Youdao laughed. He bent down, hauled the man beneath his foot upright, and patted him on the shoulder. "Brother, no hard feelings. See? I wasn't lying to you."

The Great Sage of the Eastern Sea had already heard what happened. Although Niu Youdao had injured people on this side, he had not used lethal force. The Great Sage therefore waved a hand and barked, "Why haven't you thanked him for showing mercy?"

The island's demons immediately apologized aggrievedly to Niu Youdao. "We had eyes but failed to see. Thank you for showing mercy, Master Dao."

They felt aggrieved because they had suffered the beating, yet the Great Sage showed no sign of standing up for them. What they did not understand was that to the Great Sage of the Eastern Sea and the others, the fact that Niu Youdao had somehow come out of Sacred Realm mattered far more than this little grievance of theirs.

"No need to thank me. It was only a misunderstanding." Niu Youdao laughed generously, plainly no longer intending to pursue the matter.

"Get lost!" The Great Sage of the Eastern Sea waved the obstructing demons away, then walked up to Niu Youdao. Looking over the plain crimson clothing on his body, he asked curiously, "Why are you dressed like that?"

Niu Youdao said, "Everyone who went in was stripped naked and made to dress like this. Lang Jingkong was no exception."

The Great Sage of the Eastern Sea found this remarkable. He had personally watched Niu Youdao and the others enter Sacred Realm from Sacred Island. He asked, "How did you get out? Weren't you there for tempering? Where's Lang Jingkong? Did only you come out?"

Niu Youdao sighed. "It's a long story. I still haven't figured out what happened myself. Someone simply threw me out." He pointed around them. "With this many people here, I doubt the news that I've come out of Sacred Realm can be kept quiet. Great Sage, I have many enemies. Once my whereabouts leak, it won't be safe for me to remain here. This isn't a place to linger. I need to return to Zijin Cave as quickly as possible. Please lend me a flying mount for the journey."

The Great Sage of the Eastern Sea did not make things difficult for him. Not only did he lend Niu Youdao transportation, he personally escorted him away.

Hadn't Niu Youdao just said it was a long story? No matter how long it was, the Great Sage wanted to understand why he had come out. That was the real reason he personally joined the escort: he wanted to question Niu Youdao carefully along the road.

Three large flying mounts rose into the air together and carried Niu Youdao away from the island. The Great Sage of the Eastern Sea and a group of subordinates accompanied him as escorts.

...

"I put you in charge of the tempering, and this is what you manage to produce for me right at the beginning?"

Back at Shouque Villa, Ding Wei had rushed back from Dayuan Sacred Land after receiving the message. Once he understood the situation, he gave Huang Ban a blistering tongue-lashing.

Huang Ban looked miserable. "I never imagined Luo Fangfei would show up during the brief time I was away. It was my fault. I'm willing to accept whatever punishment Sir decides!"

"Punishment? First bring the man back!" Ding Wei roared. With his hands clasped behind his back, he paced back and forth. "What the hell is that lovesick bitch trying to do? Is she deliberately trying to make trouble for me?"

How could he not be furious? The Sacred Realm tempering was such a major affair, yet trouble had already erupted almost as soon as it began. What would those above think of him?

He stopped, turned back, and cursed again. "What are you still standing here for? Go find him! Lead the search yourself. Check every place Niu Youdao could possibly go. You must bring him back! As for manpower, you may mobilize every person available to Misty Pavilion. Spare no cost. Find him and bring him back as quickly as possible! If you can't bring him back, bring me your head!" He casually tossed over a command token.

"Yes!" Huang Ban caught the token, accepted the order, and strode away.

Before long, Huang Ban appeared on Sacred Island at the head of a large contingent of Misty Pavilion personnel. Dozens of large flying mounts scattered in every direction. At the same time, several hundred messenger Goldenwings were released from within the fortress and flew toward Misty Pavilion stations across the lands, carrying orders to mobilize local manpower for the search.

They truly had adopted a posture of sparing no cost.

...

At Daluo Sacred Land, Daluo Sacred Hall stood imposingly atop the main peak, its upturned eaves reaching toward the heavens.

Inside, the polished blue-jade floor gleamed. The entire grand hall had been built of blue jade, giving the eye a cool, pristine impression while also creating an unusually solemn, oppressive atmosphere.

The vast hall stood empty. Sha Rulai and Luo Fangfei stood side by side, perfectly still, waiting for the thunderous wrath that was about to descend, or might descend at any moment.

"Senior Brother, I'm sorry," Luo Fangfei whispered again.

It was not the first time she had apologized.

Sha Rulai remained silent as before. He truly did not know what he could possibly say.

When this woman had said she would send Niu Youdao back out again, Sha Rulai had said nothing because he considered it impossible. Ding Wei's side could not possibly release the man, in his judgment. Letting this woman run headfirst into a few walls was not necessarily a bad thing.

Who could have imagined that she would send Niu Youdao out with almost no effort at all?

What was Sha Rulai supposed to say?

[End of Chapter 966]