Chapter 1377: The Traveling Palace Is Found

At Shouque Villa, Wu Chang descended and walked unhurriedly toward Zhangsun Mi, Mu Lianze, and Granny Xue, who had arrived before him.

When the four met, Granny Xue leaned on her cane and chuckled. "We meet again. It seems this world is growing less peaceful by the day."

Wu Chang came to a stop before the other three. "It is. Rumors are everywhere, and those sect supervisors have been making quite a commotion."

Zhangsun Mi said, "Someone is definitely manipulating things from behind the scenes!" His cold gaze swept across the others, as though he suspected the culprit might be standing among them.

Mu Lianze said, "The inspection of Misty Pavilion hasn't even properly begun, yet the resistance is already this severe. It seems verifying Misty Pavilion truly has touched the root of the problem and stepped on the suspect's tail."

Wu Chang said, "Huo Kong is already overwhelmed. If this continues, it will become very difficult to push forward the inspection of Misty Pavilion personnel."

Granny Xue smiled. "Does that matter? You've all seen it. Stir things up a little, and everyone starts revealing himself. Misty Pavilion has rotted down to the flesh. Rectifying it was necessary to begin with. As I see it, those twelve Wuliang Fruits can't cause much trouble for the moment. The theft has already happened; there's no need to resolve it this very instant. A little earlier or later makes no great difference. Only a thoroughly renewed Misty Pavilion can accomplish twice the work with half the effort. How does that saying go? Sharpening the blade does not delay the chopping of firewood!"

The other three nodded faintly. They all understood what she meant. The present situation was not necessarily a bad thing, at least not for them. If the sect supervisors continued investigating with this level of vigor, that suited them perfectly. This was exactly the kind of pressure they had wanted those supervisors to exert from the beginning. As for how many people inside Misty Pavilion might be implicated, or how many might die amid the assassinations and abductions, they did not care.

As Granny Xue had said, sharpening the blade did not delay the chopping of firewood. Once Misty Pavilion's interior had been cleaned up properly, investigating the thieves who stole the Wuliang Fruits would become far more efficient.

At their level, they already viewed problems from an entirely different height.

Niu Youdao and the others believed they were obstructing Misty Pavilion's inspection, unaware that they were actually advancing something the Nine Saints themselves wanted done. For the moment, Niu Youdao had not yet realized that the Nine Saints were simply riding the momentum.

To the Nine Saints, Misty Pavilion was the instrument through which they ruled all beneath Heaven. The consequences of a rotten Misty Pavilion were far more serious than twelve stolen Wuliang Fruits.

If Misty Pavilion rotted completely, their ears would go deaf and their eyes blind. At that point, forget twelve hidden Nascent Soul cultivators beneath Heaven. Even if twelve thousand were hiding beneath Heaven, the Nine Saints would still struggle to drag them out and deal with them.

Wu Chang suddenly looked back and, channeling his cultivation into his voice, thundered, "Fatty Yuan!"

The others turned as well.

Yuan Se had just descended from the sky and was about to enter the Sacred Realm exit when Wu Chang's rolling shout came from the direction of Shouque Villa.

He halted in midair, looked over, then flashed toward the villa and landed before the four. Grinning cheerfully, he greeted them. "Everyone, what a coincidence!"

Mu Lianze said, "Coincidence? We knew you'd come. We've been waiting for you."

Yuan Se's eyes rolled about. "Waiting for me for what?"

Granny Xue cackled. "Then what did you come running here for?"

Yuan Se shot back, "Old demon hag, can't I just come out for a stroll?"

Zhangsun Mi had no interest in trading barbs with him and went straight to the point. "The Holy Rakshasa, Shang Song's spirit pet. Are you certain you can handle it alone? If you're confident, we won't disturb you. You can go by yourself!"

Yuan Se chuckled and smoothly changed his tune. "A joke. Don't take it seriously. Naturally, blessings should be shared." He looked left and right. "Only the four of you? Where are the other four? Don't tell me they never received the news."

Mu Lianze said, "The exit guards said Lan Daolin and Lü Wushuang left long ago."

Wu Chang said coldly, "They may have received the news ahead of us and rushed there first."

Yuan Se paused. "What about Luo Qiu and Du Wuxu?"

Wu Chang said, "They're closer than we are. By rights, they should have received the news before us as well, yet neither has appeared. Who knows what they're planning? Everyone, is there any need to keep waiting? If we delay much longer, Lan Daolin and Lü Wushuang may already have found the place. Whatever tricks those four are playing, even if all four join forces, there are five of us here. What do you think?"

Yuan Se slapped his great belly with both hands and laughed. "Little Brother Wu Chang speaks sense! Everyone, I don't see any need to wait. Five of us together should be safe enough!"

Granny Xue chuckled. "This old woman has no objection."

"Then let's go." Zhangsun Mi left the words behind and flashed away.

The others had nothing more to say and followed one after another.

Watching the Sacred Venerables leave the Sacred Realm in succession, the guards at the exit secretly felt their hearts tremble. The last time the Sacred Venerables went out together, Boundless Pavilion had been destroyed. Who knew what would happen this time?

In any case, the guards all knew that unless something major had happened, the Sacred Venerables would rarely act together like this.

...

Beneath an endless sky, the Five Saints flew across the vast sea, then over countless mountains and rivers. At last, they descended one after another at the entrance to the Butterfly Dream Illusory Realm.

The Myriad Beasts Sect disciples stationed in Butterfly Valley to guard the entrance were startled. Even those who did not recognize the five could tell from the speed of their descent that these visitors were anything but ordinary.

The Five Saints had been here before. Grand Elder Qi Wantong of Myriad Beasts Sect, who had been waiting at the entrance, recognized them and hurriedly bowed. "Qi Wantong pays respects to the Sacred Venerables!"

Myriad Beasts Sect had expected the Nine Saints to come once the report was submitted, so Qi Wantong had been waiting here. The sect itself also had people waiting, ensuring that whenever the visitors arrived, no one would miss the chance to receive them properly.

"We pay respects to the Sacred Venerables!" The gathered Myriad Beasts Sect disciples bowed in alarm. A few bolder ones secretly stole glances at the five.

The Five Saints' attention was fixed on the shimmering ripples within the valley.

Zhangsun Mi asked, "You've confirmed that the Holy Rakshasa appeared?"

Qi Wantong said, "Confirmed. It has appeared several times in succession near the exit."

Yuan Se asked, "Have Lan Daolin and Lü Wushuang come?"

"Uh..." Qi Wantong froze for a moment. "After we reported the matter to Misty Pavilion, the sect made arrangements for me to remain here. I have been guarding this place the entire time and have not seen either Sacred Venerable arrive."

They had not come? The Five Saints exchanged glances. Myriad Beasts Sect would not dare lie about such a thing. That meant those two had not received the news ahead of them after all. For the moment, no one knew where they had gone or what they were doing.

After exchanging looks for a while, four gazes eventually settled on Wu Chang.

Wu Chang remained expressionless. He understood perfectly well what they wanted: as the least senior among them, he was supposed to enter first and check whether anything unexpected lay inside.

He did not bother arguing. Nor did he have anything to fear. With a flash, he vanished into the shimmering ripples. A short while later he emerged, called out that there was no problem, then disappeared inside again.

Only then did the other four enter one after another. In the blink of an eye, they appeared in a pitch-black world made bizarre and luminous by distant, fantastical light.

Qi Wantong followed them in and stepped forward to point in one direction. "Over there. The Holy Rakshasa appeared three times in succession in that direction."

The Five Saints flew that way and descended at the edge of the Fantastical Forest, looking down from higher ground over the magnificent strange scenery ahead.

Once Qi Wantong caught up, Granny Xue suddenly asked, "What does the Holy Rakshasa look like?"

Qi Wantong replied, "According to disciples who saw it with their own eyes, its entire body is silver-white, with a pair of silver wings on its back. It radiates silver light."

Granny Xue asked, "You didn't see it yourself?"

Qi Wantong said, "No. The disciples below saw it. I imagine they wouldn't dare lie."

He had been cultivating quietly inside the sect. How could he personally have seen the Holy Rakshasa? In truth, not only had he not seen it, most people had not. Only a handful of disciples claimed they had.

Wu Chang said coldly, "Where is Xi Haitang? Why hasn't he come to receive us?"

Qi Wantong hurriedly explained, "We didn't know the Sacred Venerables would arrive today. The Holy Rakshasa's sudden appearance is no small matter. To obtain detailed information for our report, the Sect Leader personally took the disciples who saw it before and ventured deep inside to investigate."

The truth was that Xi Haitang had already hidden himself. Given his present situation, how could he dare meet the Nine Saints face-to-face? He feared they might notice something abnormal about him. He therefore had no choice but to use the excuse of entering the Fantastical Forest. Only by going somewhere from which communication was difficult could he avoid meeting them.

Hearing that Xi Haitang had personally risked himself in order to gather reliable information for their report, the five could hardly fault him. They had not informed Myriad Beasts Sect when they would arrive, after all.

Zhangsun Mi asked, "How do we proceed?"

Granny Xue said, "Since we're here, naturally we should go have a look." She pointed in one direction, then turned and asked Qi Wantong, "That way?"

Qi Wantong hurriedly nodded. "Yes! According to the disciples below, all three appearances were in that direction."

With a swish, Granny Xue shot straight into the sky. Wu Chang and the other three followed, streaking into the starry night above.

The five did not fly directly into the depths of the Fantastical Forest. They first climbed to a great altitude, then headed toward the part of the Illusory Realm they had been told about.

All five had experience venturing deep into this place. They knew there were far too many Butterfly Rakshasas below. If they did not climb high enough, the creatures would discover them and swarm upward, creating endless trouble.

The five kept their speed under control and swept through the high sky together, their Dharma Eyes watching closely for movement below.

As they flew, they spread out somewhat, keeping several hundred zhang between each person. In a broad line, they searched as they advanced.

Midway through, they regrouped briefly. Having found nothing unusual, and reasoning that Myriad Beasts Sect would not dare deceive them, they spread out once more and continued flying in that direction.

Nearly half a day later, all five gradually stopped in the air and stared down between the towering mountains below. Then they rapidly converged again.

"There seems to be a whole complex of buildings down there!" Mu Lianze said, pointing below.

"There is!" Granny Xue chuckled, sweeping her gaze over the surroundings. "This old woman should have searched this area before. There certainly wasn't anything here then. How did an entire complex of buildings suddenly appear?"

Wu Chang said heavily, "Shang Song's Traveling Palace."

None of the others needed the reminder. They all had the same suspicion. They knew perfectly well what Butterfly Rakshasas were like; the creatures were hardly capable of constructing a vast palace complex. Anyone able to build something on this scale in a place this deep could only have been Shang Song.

Yuan Se's eyes shone. "Looks like Myriad Beasts Sect wasn't lying. It truly is in this direction!" He glanced around at the others. "The Holy Rakshasa may be here. How do we proceed?"

For them, finding the Holy Rakshasa had never been the true goal. Their ultimate purpose in seeking it had always been to locate Shang Song's Traveling Palace.

[End of Chapter 1377]