Lan Xiaobu knew that the woman named Xuan Hui was telling the truth. Whether she entered the Great Path Gobi Valley or not was never her decision. Now that they were about to leave, if she didn’t send a message, she would be doomed once they got out.
Tu Wang looked at Lan Xiaobu. He had been a step too slow when killing the male cultivator earlier. This time, as soon as Lan Xiaobu gave the word, he would immediately kill this woman. Moreover, he felt he could do better than Sage Heku. Even if that male cultivator deserved to die, Sage Heku should have reported to the Dao Monarch before acting. Killing someone in front of the Dao Monarch without permission was no different from what that male cultivator had done.
Perhaps Sage Heku realized that killing the male cultivator earlier had been disrespectful to Lan Xiaobu as the Dao Monarch, so this time he didn’t take the initiative to kill the female cultivator.
Everyone was watching Lan Xiaobu. Lan Xiaobu looked at the female cultivator and said, “Actually, I don’t have to kill you.”
“Ah…” Xuan Hui stared at Lan Xiaobu in disbelief. Under any other Dao Monarch, she would have been executed without question.
Lan Xiaobu said calmly, “You know about the Land of Silent Dao in the Great Path Gobi Valley, right? Do you also know that the Land of Silent Dao is a potential exit?”
“Yes, I know. Saint Kunwei told me about it. He also speculated that if anyone discovered the spatial vortex in the Land of Silent Dao, they might choose to leave through it. If anyone chose to leave through the Land of Silent Dao, I was to send a message immediately,” Xuan Hui replied without hesitation.
Lan Xiaobu nodded, “Now I’ll give you a chance. Send a message to Saint Kunwei, telling him that we are sending a group to attack the spatial vortex in the Land of Silent Dao, but in reality, we plan to leave through the sealed exit of the连环神阵 (Chain Divine Array).”
“Ah…” Xuan Hui stared at Lan Xiaobu in confusion. Wasn’t this the exact content of the message she had just tried to send? Why intercept her message only to have her send it again? What was the point?
Not only was Xuan Hui puzzled, but everyone else was also looking at Lan Xiaobu in confusion. Was he planning to report to Saint Kunwei first and then let him capture them all?
“Quickly write the message. Make sure it’s detailed and use respectful language. Use all the honorifics you can,” Lan Xiaobu said calmly.
“Dao Monarch, I… I…” Xuan Hui’s voice trembled. She was genuinely terrified, thinking that Lan Xiaobu was deliberately humiliating her before subjecting her to torture. If that were the case, not only would she be unable to reincarnate, but even death might not come easily.
The others also realized that the Dao Monarch might be speaking sarcastically. However, time was pressing. Even if they wanted to torture this female cultivator, there was no need to waste time here.
Lan Xiaobu said indifferently, “Just do as I say. Remember, the tone must be respectful, and the message must be thorough.”
Lan Xiaobu had only later realized that intercepting Xuan Hui’s message might not have been the best move. Originally, he had planned to have Xuan Hui send a message to Saint Kunwei, informing him that they planned to leave through the Land of Silent Dao. This would draw Saint Kunwei’s forces to the Land of Silent Dao, allowing them to escape through the sealed exit.
But later, Lan Xiaobu felt something was off. The main reason was the vast difference between his array skills and Saint Kunwei’s. He was only a seventh-grade divine array master, while Saint Kunwei was a ninth-grade divine array emperor.
Previously, he had entered the Great Path Gobi Valley with the help of the Cosmic Dimension Model. Now, without it, the void-restriction arrays and spatial restraints he had set up, though they had blocked Xuan Hui’s message, were likely already known to Saint Kunwei.
If Saint Kunwei, who had sealed the Great Path Gobi Valley for so many years, didn’t notice the interception of Xuan Hui’s message, he wouldn’t deserve his title as a Great Saint. Even the slightest fluctuation in spatial rules would likely not escape Saint Kunwei’s notice. This space was filled with divine arrays that Lan Xiaobu hadn’t had time to study or decipher with the Cosmic Dimension Model. These arrays might contain Saint Kunwei’s monitoring of spatial fluctuations.
Lan Xiaobu himself was a seventh-grade void array master, capable of easily setting up seventh-grade void arrays. In Saint Kunwei’s eyes, Lan Xiaobu would also know that Xuan Hui’s message had been intercepted. Saint Kunwei was well aware of this.
For Lan Xiaobu, the choice was difficult. First, Saint Kunwei knew that Lan Xiaobu had intercepted Xuan Hui’s message. Second, Lan Xiaobu also knew that Saint Kunwei knew.
Both sides were fully aware of each other’s moves. So, if he had Xuan Hui send the message again, would Saint Kunwei believe it or not?
At this point, it all came down to luck and courage. Whoever guessed right would win.
Xuan Hui finally understood that the Dao Monarch wasn’t being sarcastic but genuinely wanted her to do this.
Not only did Xuan Hui realize this, but the others also understood. If they did this, wouldn’t they be walking into a death trap?
“Dao Monarch…” A quasi-saint couldn’t help but step forward. He didn’t want to die, so he wanted to clarify.
Lan Xiaobu’s expression darkened, “The Great Wilderness Dao Court has its rules. If every word I say is met with a barrage of questions, perhaps you should be the Dao Monarch instead. Right now, everyone hasn’t officially joined the Dao Court or sworn allegiance. Each of you can act according to your own will and choose not to follow me, but don’t interrupt me casually.”
Sage Heku felt a chill. Although Lan Xiaobu was reprimanding one of his quasi-saints, he felt the words were directed at him. He regretted acting without permission earlier. Even if that male cultivator deserved to die, establishing authority should have been done after Lan Xiaobu gave the order.
He had been the leader of the Heavenly Street Alliance for so long and was used to being the top authority. Now he suddenly realized that he was no longer the leader, nor was he the strongest here. At the very least, Lan Xiaobu was above him.
If he wanted to continue following Lan Xiaobu, he needed to know his place.
He had some inkling of what Lan Xiaobu was planning but wasn’t entirely sure. Even if his guess was correct, Lan Xiaobu was playing with fire. If Saint Kunwei saw through the ruse, they would be doomed.
With a sigh, Sage Heku remained silent. If Saint Kunwei and his forces were waiting outside, with so many of them here, he might still have a chance to escape. Even if he couldn’t, he could retreat back into the Great Path Gobi Valley.
The Great Path Gobi Valley was vast and filled with forbidden zones. Hiding there would make it hard for anyone to find him. Besides, with his strength, Saint Kunwei wouldn’t dare send people in piecemeal to search for him.
…
At the sealed exit of the Great Path Gobi Valley, led by Saint Kunwei of the Taihan Sacred Mountain, nearly a thousand people had gathered.
Although there were nearly a thousand people here, there were over ten Saints, dozens of quasi-saints, over a hundred合神境 cultivators, and the rest were at least世界神 level or above.
It was clear that as soon as Lan Xiaobu opened the sealed array, they would be met with a head-on interception by Kunwei and his forces.
Jiang Yijian, the first Saint of the Myriad Dao Sacred Gate, said, “This Lan Xiaobu is quite remarkable. I’ve seen Saint Kunwei’s sealing array. Even I might not be able to break through it in less than a hundred years. And even if I could, breaking the array would alert Saint Kunwei. As for leaving, I wouldn’t be able to do it.”
A man with a goat-like beard chuckled, “If this person’s array skills were ordinary, he wouldn’t have been able to completely conceal the Hongmeng Dao rules, even from us.”
He was Ji Sansha, a Saint from the Eternal Life Sacred Dao. Ji Sansha was not only a Saint but also the founding Saint of the Eternal Life Sacred Dao, with immense strength.
This time, only Ji Sansha had come from the Eternal Life Sacred Dao, mainly because the Ji family harbored deep hatred for Lan Xiaobu. Not only had Lan Xiaobu killed Ji Qiu, but he had also incited a war between the Eternal Life Sacred Dao and the Taihan Sacred Mountain. In that war, two Saints from the Eternal Life Sacred Dao had fallen, one of whom was from the Ji family.
At this moment, the communication bead in Kunwei’s hand lit up. Kunwei’s divine sense swept over it, and he smiled, “The informant I placed inside has sent a message. Lan Xiaobu is about to lead all the cultivators in the Great Path Gobi Valley out through here.”
“Today, if I don’t refine this Dao Monarch Lan’s soul, I don’t deserve to remain in the Myriad Dao Sacred Gate,” Han Yue, the leader of the Myriad Dao Sacred Gate, said fiercely upon hearing Saint Kunwei’s words.
Everyone was eager for action. This insignificant Lan Xiaobu, who dared to proclaim himself the Dao Monarch of the Great Wilderness Divine Realm and incite wars between sacred sects, was simply asking for death.
However, Kunwei said solemnly, “But I feel this message might be fake. I suspect they might actually leave through the Land of Silent Dao.”
Seeing everyone’s puzzled looks, Saint Kunwei explained, “Xuan Hui must have been caught by Lan Xiaobu because Lan Xiaobu set up a void-restriction array. When Xuan Hui tried to send me a message, it would have been impossible to escape Lan Xiaobu’s void-restriction array. If that’s not enough proof, just look at the language Xuan Hui used in her message to me.
Under such circumstances, the language is so respectful and thorough, indicating that Xuan Hui had ample time. But in reality, if the message had been sent in a hurry, how could she have had so much time?”
“So you’re saying Lan Xiaobu must have had Xuan Hui send a fake message?” Ji Sansha frowned and asked.
“Most likely fake. In that case, we should hurry to the Land of Silent Dao,” another pseudo-saint said urgently.
Kunwei remained deep in thought for a while before saying, “If Lan Xiaobu were so easy to catch, he wouldn’t have become a Dao Monarch. Lan Xiaobu used Xuan Hui to send me a fake message…”
“Wait,” Kunwei suddenly said, “Lan Xiaobu must have guessed that I also know he caught Xuan Hui, so he knows that I’m aware the message from Xuan Hui is fake. He’s playing a game of truth and lies, making it hard for me to discern the real plan.”
Saint Kunwei frowned. He wasn’t sure where Lan Xiaobu would actually leave from. Since both sides knew each other’s moves, Lan Xiaobu might use the fake to conceal the real plan. In that case, Lan Xiaobu might actually leave from here instead of the Land of Silent Dao.
