Fang Zhiqian didn’t disappoint Lan Xiaobu. In just half an incense stick’s time, he arrived at the rest house where Lan Xiaobu was staying.
“Since you’re here, come up,” Lan Xiaobu’s voice reached Fang Zhiqian’s ears. Sensing Lan Xiaobu’s room, Fang Zhiqian flashed and appeared inside.
“Nine Infants, do you think reaching the sixth step of the Great Dao gives you the right to act superior in front of me?” Lan Xiaobu said coolly.
This guy had entered his room directly without even knocking on the door’s restrictions, showing no awareness of his role as a servant.
“Boss Bu, this guy’s definitely planning to rebel. Why not take him out now?” Tai Chuan called out from the side.
Fang Zhiqian’s heart skipped a beat, but he quickly said respectfully, “I wouldn’t dare. Nine Infants will always be a blade in Boss Bu’s hand, never defying your will.”
Though he kept his head bowed, he was inwardly shocked. The one speaking was surely a chaos unicorn, and a mutated one at that. Having been cultivating in the Cursed Dao City, he hadn’t known about the chaos unicorn.
As for betraying Lan Xiaobu, well, that was only a matter of time. Though he had used the curse Dao seed to elevate his cultivation to the sixth step of the Great Dao and fully restored his body, he knew that to take down Lan Xiaobu, he’d need to reach the seventh step for certainty. Before that, he had to locate the Dao intent imprint on himself—a major threat. So, despite his inner discontent, Fang Zhiqian had no immediate plans to betray Lan Xiaobu.
Tai Chuan snorted. This guy was an expert at flattery, picking up “Boss Bu” after hearing Tai Chuan use it.
“You’d better not dare, or you’ll regret it,” Lan Xiaobu said calmly.
Fang Zhiqian kept his head down, silent. He wasn’t sure if Lan Xiaobu had placed a Dao intent imprint on him, but after reaching the sixth step, he still hadn’t found it. He didn’t believe Lan Xiaobu’s imprinting skills could match Ku Yichi’s. Ku Yichi was at the seventh step of the Great Dao, rumoured to be the strongest below the Dao Ancestor. Lan Xiaobu was likely only at the fourth step, perhaps not even the fifth, a world apart from Ku Yichi.
“We’re heading to the True Derivation Holy Dao next. The goal is simple: capture Guan Yuxue. I plan for you to do it. You don’t have a problem with that, do you?” Lan Xiaobu said coolly.
Fang Zhiqian wanted to refuse, but he wasn’t certain about the Dao intent imprint on him. Besides, when Lan Xiaobu gave him the curse Dao seed, he had made it clear it was for capturing Guan Yuxue.
After a moment’s hesitation, Fang Zhiqian said, “Boss Bu, just give the order. I’ll do my utmost.”
Lan Xiaobu could see Fang Zhiqian’s hesitation and, from his tone, knew this guy was already plotting rebellion before even starting the task.
Pretending not to notice, Lan Xiaobu said briskly, “I’ll find a way to get you into the True Derivation Holy Dao. When capturing Guan Yuxue, you need to ‘accidentally’ reveal your true identity, and Tai Chuan will also ‘accidentally’ be seen.”
“Boss Bu, even if we can sneak into the True Derivation Holy Dao, capturing Guan Yuxue will be tough. They have four saints, all at the seventh step of the Great Dao. I suspect we’d be detected the moment we enter. Not being noticed would already be a miracle, let alone deliberately revealing our identities…” Fang Zhiqian said helplessly, genuinely wanting to remind Lan Xiaobu that the True Derivation Holy Dao wasn’t the Holy Sword Palace.
Lan Xiaobu’s tone turned cold, “I’m telling you to do it, not to haggle.”
Feeling a surge of killing intent, Fang Zhiqian shivered and quickly said, “I’ll follow Boss Bu’s orders, no matter life or death.”
“Good. Let’s leave One Pure Saint City first,” Lan Xiaobu said, grabbing Tai Chuan and stepping out of the rest house.
Fang Zhiqian, though displeased, could only follow.
“Boss Bu, though it’s close to the True Derivation Holy Dao, it’ll still take some time to get there,” Fang Zhiqian said outside One Pure Saint City, still reluctant to take on this mission.
Lan Xiaobu ignored him, tossing out a handful of formation flags and quickly setting up a temporary teleportation array.
“You’re using a teleportation array to go to the True Derivation Holy Dao?” Fang Zhiqian’s eyes widened in disbelief.
“Why not? Isn’t a teleportation array faster?” Lan Xiaobu replied. He had already set up a teleportation array outside the True Derivation Holy Dao when scouting the area.
Fang Zhiqian quickly said, “You can’t just set up teleportation arrays in the Great Universe. Why do you think there are so few between Dao cities? After the chaos in the Great Universe dissipated, too many spatial voids remained. One misstep in a teleportation array, and you’d be swept into a void, your soul and body destroyed.”
Lan Xiaobu acted as if he hadn’t heard, stepping into the teleportation array. Tai Chuan followed.
Fang Zhiqian hesitated, tempted not to follow. Unless he rebelled now, he had no choice. After a few breaths of indecision, he stepped into the array, vowing to reach the seventh step soon. Before, that was a pipe dream, but now, having fused the curse Dao seed and cultivating the curse Dao, failing to reach the seventh step would be a joke.
The array activated, white light swirling. When Fang Zhiqian landed, he knew instantly they were outside the True Derivation Holy Dao. At that moment, he was almost certain Lan Xiaobu could set up short-distance teleportation arrays in the Great Universe, though he didn’t know how.
“Nine Infants, I’ve investigated. Two of the True Derivation Holy Dao’s four saints are away, and the other two, including Guan Chong, are in Anluo Heavenly City. Guan Yuxue hasn’t left the True Derivation Holy Dao, so now’s our chance to capture her,” Lan Xiaobu said to Fang Zhiqian with an unquestionable tone.
“Boss Bu, the Immortality Conference in Anluo Heavenly City is approaching. If we wait there, we can intercept Guan Yuxue without entering the True Derivation Holy Dao,” Fang Zhiqian said earnestly, genuinely afraid.
Lan Xiaobu ignored him and continued, “Soon, you and Tai Chuan will enter my small world. I’ll take you into the True Derivation Holy Dao, and you’ll act against Guan Yuxue while I stay hidden to back you up. I’ll tell you when to reveal your identities. Nine Infants, here’s a teleportation talisman. Use it when I give the order.”
The True Derivation Holy Dao’s protective array was far beyond the Holy Sword Palace’s. The Cosmic Dimension Model had constructed its array’s dimensional structure, but the True Derivation Holy Dao was vast, with layered arrays. Even the Cosmic Dimension Model couldn’t fully map it quickly. Lan Xiaobu had to enter early, or once Guan Yuxue reunited with Guan Chong, capturing her would be much harder.
Spending two years in One Pure Saint City refining his transformation principles wasn’t fruitless. With his current transformation, unless a seventh-step Great Dao cultivator appeared, no one should detect him.
Moreover, with the True Derivation Holy Dao’s arrays layered, now was the best time to act. With the saints absent, even if something went wrong, their return wouldn’t be immediate.
“Yes,” Fang Zhiqian said, increasingly certain Lan Xiaobu had placed a Dao intent imprint on him, though he hadn’t found it.
Lan Xiaobu produced a small world, about to let Tai Chuan and Fang Zhiqian enter, when he recalled something and asked, “Nine Infants, Shi Changxing found his daughter because of a Primordial Dao Seed. Do you know what that is?”
Lan Xiaobu had a Primordial Dao Seed but didn’t dare ask Shi Changxing. That old fox would likely guess he had one if he did.
Fang Zhiqian’s eyes widened, and he took a deep breath, “It’s one of the Great Universe’s most precious treasures. It’s said that to reach the ninth step of the Great Dao, you need a Primordial Dao Seed. Without it, no matter how long you cultivate, you’ll stop at the eighth step. And in the vast universe, Primordial Dao Seeds are limited.”
“How many are there?” Lan Xiaobu asked immediately.
“It’s said there are nine, though some say eighteen. I’m not entirely sure. It’s just hearsay. Besides Dao Ancestors, no one’s seen one. I know of Primordial Dao Seeds, but if you put one in front of me, I wouldn’t recognise it,” Fang Zhiqian said.
“I see. Enter my small world. I’m heading into the True Derivation Holy Dao’s protective array,” Lan Xiaobu said calmly, though inwardly shocked. He hadn’t expected the seed he possessed to be so valuable. If it were exposed, even a Dao Ancestor might hunt him down.
“Boss Bu, the True Derivation Holy Dao is full of restrictions and top-tier trigger arrays. Be careful,” Fang Zhiqian cautioned before entering the small world.
