The Nameless Technique only activated when it encountered that special aura. Seeing this Imperial Crown react meant it must contain that same special aura!

’If I can get my hands on the crown and devour the special aura within, I can definitely expand my Qi Sea and open up my Dantian again!’

However, Nie Yun knew this was the Imperial Palace. Brazenly snatching the Imperial Crown was nothing but a pipe dream.

Huangg Ling’s strength was not much different from his own, and with that Secret Realm old ancestor who had yet to appear, the slightest misstep could get him killed without him even knowing how it happened.

"Let’s begin!"

The two men on the high platform hadn’t noticed the hidden Nie Yun. They placed the Imperial Crown and the Magic Staff in the center of the altar and embedded over a hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones into the Array.

Low-Grade Spirit Stones weren’t enough to teleport a person, but transmitting a message was quite simple.

"Lord Hua, your subordinate, Tuxin, reporting..."

Tuxin held a jade tablet and muttered, seemingly recording his words onto it. Once finished, he gently crushed it with his hand. A flash of light shot out as the Array activated, sending the information from the jade tablet through the Teleportation Array.

WENG!

After a moment, the Array lit up again. Tuxin picked up a jade tablet that had appeared and glanced at it, his expression immediately turning grave.

"Lord Hua is blaming us for our incompetence. He says not to worry about dealing with Nie Yun for now. The priority is to capture Nie Tong and Nie Xiaotian and find a way to get the Phecda Sword. The sword is tied to his promotion within the Sect. If we succeed, he will remotely transmit energy to help you advance to the Secret Realm and permanently relieve you of the Ant-Devouring Affliction in your body!"

"Remotely transmit energy to help me advance to the Secret Realm?" Huangg Ling’s face flushed bright red.

It was difficult to advance on the Qi Sea Continent due to the nature of its Spiritual Qi. Someone with Huangg Ling’s cultivation had never dared to attempt a breakthrough, likely fearing that failure meant instant death.

The promise of an advancement was an immense gift. After all, reaching the Secret Realm meant a qualitative leap in both lifespan and strength, making one superior to all others!

"Don’t get too excited. Nie Tong is Nie Yun’s brother, and Nie Xiaotian is his father. We let them escape last time, and now who knows where they’re hiding. If Nie Yun finds out when we try to capture them and asks his master to intervene, not only will all our efforts be for nothing, but we might even lose our lives!"

Tuxin snorted coldly.

"You’re right. Lord Hua also said that even he is no match for a Supreme Elder of the Cloud Transformation Sect!" Hearing the cold snort, Huangg Ling calmed down. "But... an expert of that caliber wouldn’t deign to act against the likes of us, right?"

"Who knows? It’s better to be careful," Tuxin said.

"By my estimation, Nie Tong and his father will likely try to ambush Grand General Mengg Liao tomorrow. We can lay a Heaven and Earth Net and are certain to catch them then. The only problem is... how do we keep it from Nie Yun..." Huangg Ling’s brow furrowed.

"That’s simple. Aren’t you taking the Sovereigns of the Seven Empires to use the existing Purple Splendor Jade Seal to search for the remaining two tomorrow? If so, you can just do it at Guangming Mountain. The peak of Guangming Mountain is hundreds of kilometers from the Imperial Capital. No matter how strong Nie Yun’s senses are, he’ll never detect the battle in the city. As soon as we capture Nie Tong and the others, we’ll immediately send them to Lord Hua through the Teleportation Array! With no evidence left behind, I refuse to believe that a dignified Supreme Elder from a Major Sect would kill us without proof!"

Tuxin snorted coldly, a conspiratorial look on his face.

"Excellent, that’s a great idea. I’ll go make the preparations now. I’ll send someone to find you tomorrow. When the time comes, you can go to Mengg Liao Mansion and lie in wait!"

Huangg Ling laughed, his mind whirring. "Right, I don’t think that’s quite foolproof enough. During the day, I saw that bitch. Not only did she dare to come back, but she was with that brat Nie Yun. Since that’s the case, I’ll send them a special gift tonight to make sure they don’t get a wink of sleep! HAHA!"

"Mm, you handle the arrangements. Just make sure Nie Yun doesn’t see through the ploy. That kid has a lot of tricks up his sleeve; we can’t be careless," Tuxin nodded.

Tuxin was from the Floating Heaven Continent. Although his strength and status were both inferior to Huangg Ling’s, his tone held little courtesy toward him.

"Don’t worry. I’m just going to have someone inform the Qianqing Sect that their traitor from back then has returned. Let them fight to the death. When it’s over, I can even step in and play the hero. Kill two birds with one stone!" Huangg Ling’s eyes glinted.

"Mm, you do as you see fit. I’m heading back now."

Tuxin nodded, grabbed the Magic Staff, and started to walk back.

"I should go back and prepare as well!" Huangg Ling also picked up the Imperial Crown and turned to leave.

’Those two... It’s a good thing I came today, or I would have fallen right into their trap!’

With a flick of his finger, he sent out two wisps of Tracking Qi, one sticking to Huangg Ling and the other to the Imperial Crown. Only then did Nie Yun emerge from his hiding spot.

If he hadn’t come and overheard their conspiracy today, he might have really fallen for it. But now that he knew everything, there was nothing to fear. He could even turn their own plot against them and establish an immortal authority!

After a moment of thought, he decided not to alert the enemy. With a turn, he quietly flew back, returning to his residential courtyard shortly after.

’Hm?’

Just as he arrived above the courtyard, a sweep of his Spirit immediately revealed something unusual, and Nie Yun’s brows knitted together.

The small courtyards of the surrounding sovereigns were all empty. At this moment, all the emperors were gathered in the living room of His Majesty Ling Tian of the Divine Cloud Empire, apparently discussing something.

To maintain secrecy, these emperors had even deliberately set up various seals and Arrays in the living room. But to Nie Yun, whose Soul had already reached Great Perfection, these seals were like toys. With a slight stir of his Soul, he broke through them without anyone noticing and overheard the conversation inside.

’Looks like they suffered a huge loss at the banquet and want to get even. Perfect. I’ll be waiting.’

After listening to their discussion for a moment, Nie Yun sneered and paid them no more mind. With a flicker, he flew back to his own courtyard.

"Xiaofong, Zi Tong, Hei Yan, Baihua Xiu, Mu Qing, Mu Xia, Qingcheng!"

The moment he entered the courtyard, Nie Yun called out, summoning everyone.

’Tonight is destined to be a sleepless one.’ He gathered everyone first to prepare properly, so they wouldn’t be caught in a panic later.

"Qingcheng, Baihua Xiu, Mu Qing, Mu Xia, these are excellent defensive treasures and offensive weapons that surpass the Royal Family’s Top-Grade. I got them from the Zi Qiong Mountain Range. All of you, equip them. I’m afraid there will be a fight in a little while!"

After gathering everyone in the living room, Nie Yun casually tossed out several weapons.

These weapons all surpassed the Royal Family’s Top-Grade Level. They were incredibly powerful for both offense and defense, and could be considered the most precious weapons in the entire Zi Qiong Mountain Range, or even the entire continent.

"Mm!"

The group knew the young man must have a good reason for these arrangements, so they didn’t refuse and immediately began to refine the weapons.

The speed of weapon Refinement was related to one’s Soul Secret Technique. Everyone present was an Ultimate Venerable Powerhouse with a strong Soul, and with the addition of Nie Yun’s Secret Technique, they refined all the weapons in less than a quarter hour.

A good horse deserves a good saddle. With a full set of defensive and offensive weapons, the group’s strength instantly doubled once more. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendation and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)