Chapter 199: Chapter 198: The Power Distribution of Yongzhou’s Prefectures

The small pebble lay hidden and motionless in the grass. It was surrounded by countless other small stones just like it, scattered across the ground. Blending in perfectly, it gave off no unusual aura and was utterly inconspicuous.

If the Five Thunders Order in his Sea of Consciousness hadn’t failed to register any new Evil Qi, Gu Zhao would never have realized that the man in green had faked his death to escape.

But now that he knew what to look for, Gu Zhao used his Divine Thought combined with Taoist True Qi to examine the area closely, and he naturally spotted what was unusual about this particular pebble.

After Gu Zhao spoke, the scene fell silent.

"You think I’m bluffing?" Gu Zhao gave a dry laugh. He formed a Sword Pointing gesture with his right hand, and a spark of fire shot from his fingertips, landing on a small pebble three feet in front of him.

The spark flared into a net of fire, instantly enveloping the small pebble.

"AARGH!"

A bloodcurdling scream echoed in everyone’s Divine Souls. A ghostly shadow then erupted from the pebble, trying to break through the net of fire.

But with less than one percent of his Magical Power remaining, how could he possibly break Gu Zhao’s Fire Shield Technique?

He shrank his Soul Body, trying to squeeze through the gaps in the fiery mesh. But the openings in the net seemed to be sealed by an invisible barrier, trapping the man’s Soul Body inside. At the same time, the net tightened, and wisps of flame latched onto his Soul Body, searing his very essence.

The soul shrieked and, with a WHOOSH, shot back into the stone. At the same time, a fluctuation rippled from his Divine Soul—it was the sound of him begging for his life. "Mage, spare me!"

Gu Zhao picked up the stone. Ignoring the pleas, he turned to Zhuo Qingyan. "Let’s first pay respects to your father."

Zhuo Qingyan nodded and, with another wave of her hand, released Yuan Wenrui’s soul.

...

By the time a few sticks of incense had burned down, Zhuo Qingyan had obliterated Yuan Wenrui’s soul, finally paying tribute to her parents.

The sun had not yet begun to set when the group boarded the carriage back to Daluo Palace.

Once they were in the carriage, Gu Zhao took out the small stone again. With a light poke of his fingertip, the green-clothed man’s soul emerged. The contempt and nonchalance were gone from his alluring eyes, replaced by a mixture of shock, anger, and helplessness.

Bai Ke leaned in with a chuckle. "So, are we worthy of hearing your name now?"

The man in green gritted his teeth, but still managed to force a smile. "That was just a misunderstanding. I couldn’t bear to see that Mage’s soul go to waste, so I acted a bit hastily. Please, don’t hold it against me."

"I am Deng Lingyun of Silent God Mountain. And how should I address you?" The man cupped his hands, his gaze fixed on Gu Zhao.

"Silent God Mountain..." Gu Zhao murmured, rubbing his fingers together. "The one in Yongzhou, or the one in Yazhou?"

Deng Lingyun was taken aback. ’He has such high Cultivation, yet he doesn’t know about Silent God Mountain?’

"Silent God Mountain is in Xianshan Prefecture, Yongzhou. It’s one of Yongzhou’s most famous mountains." Deng Lingyun said tentatively, "My friend, I was blind to your greatness earlier. They say conflict breeds friendship, so what do you say we become friends?"

Gu Zhao glanced at Deng Lingyun with an unreadable smile.

The Silk Embroideress couldn’t hold back. "Do you take us for fools? We beat you down to a single wisp of a soul. You think we’re just going to let you go back, gather reinforcements, and come back for revenge?"

"I wouldn’t dare! I wouldn’t dare!" Deng Lingyun raised his hands. "Your Thunder Technique is profound and unfathomable, my friend. If I’m not mistaken, you must have at least eight or nine hundred years of Dao Practice. On Silent God Mountain, that would put you at the rank of an Elder. How would I dare bring trouble upon my Sect by offending you?"

At this, Deng Lingyun gave a warm smile. "Besides, my body is a ghostly one. Even with just a wisp of a soul left, I’ll recover after a year or so of rest. This doesn’t count as a true feud between us. Not at all."

’Silent God Mountain is that powerful?’ Gu Zhao’s eyes glinted. ’An expert with eight or nine hundred years of Dao Practice is merely an Elder? The Sect Leader’s Cultivation must be even higher, and I bet there are plenty of masters with over five hundred years of Dao Practice.’

"Xianshan Prefecture... I thought you were from Shide Prefecture," Gu Zhao said, feigning nonchalance.

"What’s Shide Prefecture?" Deng Lingyun replied just as casually. "Just a few minor sects squabbling over scraps of Incense. They’re no real threat."

Gu Zhao nodded and asked, again with an air of casualness, "Silent God Mountain’s power is renowned throughout Yongzhou. Don’t you claim the Incense from Shide Prefecture?"

"Silent God Mountain cultivates Silent Death Qi; we have no need for mortal Incense." Deng Lingyun didn’t answer the first part of the question directly. "It’s the Nether Fire Sect from He Yan Mansion that needs Incense. They’re the ones currently suppressing Shide Prefecture."

Gu Zhao’s eyes glinted. "What’s the Cultivation of the Nether Fire Sect’s Sect Leader?"

"They say the Netherfire Celestial Venerable has two thousand years of Dao Practice. No one in Shide Prefecture can stand against him. If those few sects hadn’t joined forces, the Nether Fire Sect would have wiped them out already."

Gu Zhao nodded. ’So Shide Prefecture’s overall strength is probably about the same as Bai Shi Prefecture’s,’ he mused.

"He Yan Mansion is just north of Xianshan Prefecture, but they don’t dare venture south. It seems they’re afraid of provoking Silent God Mountain," Gu Zhao said with a smile.

Deng Lingyun said smugly, "The Netherfire Celestial Venerable may be powerful, but he’s no match for our Old Ancestor of Silent God Mountain. If he dared to act out of line, our Old Ancestor could obliterate his soul with a mere wave of his hand."

As the carriage made its way back to Daluo Palace, Gu Zhao’s tone grew increasingly friendly. It even gave Deng Lingyun the illusion that they were just friends chatting. If he weren’t just a remnant soul at the moment, he might have even wanted to share a few drinks with Gu Zhao.

Still, Deng Lingyun began to relax slightly.

"If you have the time, my friend, you should come visit Silent God Mountain as my guest," Deng Lingyun offered. "With your profound Dao Practice, you would be an honored guest. My master is an Elder of Silent God Mountain; he would surely not neglect you."

"So you’re the prized disciple of an Elder. My apologies, I should have shown more respect. No wonder you were so arrogant," Gu Zhao said with a teasing smile.

"I wouldn’t dare claim that. I am far inferior to you, my friend." Deng Lingyun cupped his hands in shame. "If you hadn’t shown mercy, my soul would have been scattered to the winds."

Gu Zhao waved his hand dismissively. "Then I suppose I’ll just have to wait for your master’s revenge."

"My master won’t... ahem, he won’t *need* to use the True Spirit I left on the mountain to track you down for revenge." Deng Lingyun’s smile was so warm his eyes narrowed into slits. "We’ve turned from foes to friends, after all."

"Exactly, exactly. And as you said, there’s no real grudge between us. I have no desire to provoke Silent God Mountain either." Gu Zhao nodded with a smile, then seemed to recall something. He asked with curiosity, "Brother Deng, what brought you to Changping Prefecture all by yourself?"

By this point, Deng Lingyun had truly let his guard down. He waved his hand dismissively. "I need to collect the souls of Mages to refine a Silent Extinction Ghost God. I’ve been traveling northwest, but I didn’t find enough in Shide Prefecture, so I came to Changping Prefecture."

Gu Zhao understood. He pointed to himself. "I’m a Mage."

Deng Lingyun gave an awkward laugh. "You must be joking, my friend. How could I possibly be a match for you?"

"You need the souls of Mages for your Refining Technique. When you encounter a Mage, if you can win, you kill them. If you can’t, you get killed by them."

Gu Zhao nodded and looked up at Deng Lingyun. "I’m a Mage, and you couldn’t beat me. Correct?"

Deng Lingyun’s expression changed dramatically. "My fri—"

Gu Zhao smiled faintly. "So it’s only natural that you would die at my hands. Correct?"

"My master will—"

Before Deng Lingyun could finish, Gu Zhao touched a finger to the center of his forehead. A flash of violet-gold light flickered for an instant, completely shattering his soul.

Wisps of Evil Qi were absorbed by the Five Thunders Order, filling the last empty segment of the Thunder Seed’s condensation progress bar.

The Thunder Seed successfully formed.

Deng Lingyun’s soul was obliterated.

Gu Zhao picked up a silk handkerchief from the small table and wiped his fingers. "Things are about to get busy again," he said softly.