Zhang Chu He, the Left Guardian of Celestial Masters Sect and an Eight Tribulation Bodiless Celestial, died with just a single strike from Duan Ling Tian!
Duan Ling Tian was like a different person compared to before. He was clearly several times stronger than Zhang Chu He. Based on this, Shi Zhing, the Right Guardian, discovered that Duan Ling Tian had been holding back his strength during the previous skirmishes. Through this attack that killed Zhang Chu He so easily, it could be seen that Duan Ling Tian finally revealed his strength.
'This purple-clad young man is just like Feng Qing Yang!' Shi Zhong felt shivers running up his spine when he thought of this. A wave of relief overcame him when he recalled he did not rush to join Zhang Chu He earlier. Otherwise, Zhang Chu He would not be the only one to die today. Based on the strength Duan Ling Tian had just revealed and how he killed Zhang Chu He as though he was only killing a chicken, he knew very well that even if he were to join forces with Zhang Chu He, they still would not be able to defeat Duan Ling Tian.
Shi Zhong continued thinking to himself, 'In the Celestial Masters Sect, I'm afraid only the Free Cloud Sage is a match for him.' His expression was tense, and he had instinctively balled his sweaty palms up. This was because he discovered the purple-clad young man who just effortlessly killed Zhang Chu He was staring at him in cold indifference. Although he did not detect any killing intent in Duan Ling Tian's eyes, he still could not help but shiver in fear. He knew if Duan Ling Tian so wished, Duan Ling Tian could kill him in just a blink of an eye.
Duan Ling Tian looked at Shi Zhong with a piercing gaze as he said nonchalantly, "Guardian Shi Zhong, right? My name's Duan Ling Tian, and I'm from the Saint Province Realm. I met Zhang Yi and befriended him in the Beyond Heaven Secret Zone. Zhang Yun Fei from your Celestial Masters Sect coveted my Celestial Supreme Treasure and died as a result of his greed. His death has nothing to do with Zhang Yi. However, I don't feel any guilt at all for killing Zhang Yun Fei or Zhang Chu He. If the Celestial Masters Sect takes offense at this, then, please come at me. I'll wait for you. However, if the sect decides to hold this against Zhang Yi and unjustly blame him for this, I won't hesitate to pay the sect a visit!"
Shi Zhong gulped when he heard Duan Ling Tian's threats. He had seen Duan Ling Tian's strength so he had no doubt that chaos would descend on the Celestial Masters Sect should Duan Ling Tian decide to pay them a visit. After all, even the strongest person in the sect had strength comparable to Duan Ling Tian. Most importantly, the strongest person in the sect could not possibly protect every single person in the sect.
It seemed like Duan Ling Tian decided to play the roles of both a good cop and a bad cop. First, he had openly threatened the Celestial Masters Sect. Then, he seemed to reveal a way for the sect to nurture their talent by encouraging them to pay more attention to Zhang Yi.
"Celestial Supreme Treasure? An offensive Divine Ability from a Devata Realm?" Shi Zhong inhaled sharply when he heard Duan Ling Tian's words. He turned to look at Zhang Yi for confirmation.
Zhang Yi nodded in assent.
"Apart from that, I'm also an acquaintance of Older Brother Xuan Yuan Zhi from the Yellow Thearch Mansion. I heard Older Brother mention he's a good friend of the Free Cloud Sage. Please convey my message to the sage that if there's a chance, I would like to have a word with him as well," Duan Ling Tian said as he stared at Shi Zhong. After that, he turned to Zhang Yi and said candidly, "This is the most I can do for you, Zhang Yi…"
"It's more than enough," Zhang Yi replied hurriedly, his gratitude was apparent on his face. Duan Ling Tian's words were enough to ensure that no harm would come to him once he returned to the Celestial Masters Sect. In fact, even before Duan Ling Tian had spoken up for him, he had already felt relieved when Zhang Chu He died. After all, Zhang Chu He was the main reason he was afraid of returning to the sect. With Zhang Chu He's death and Duan Ling Tian's words, he was certain his life in the sect would improve.
"Xuan Yuan Zhi?!" Shi Zhong was stunned when he heard this name. An expression of awe appeared on his face as he asked, "Y-you're acquainted with Senior Xuan Yuan Zhi?"
Xuan Yuan Zhi from the Yellow Thearch Mansion was one-half of the mansion's Nine Tribulation Bodiless Celestials. More importantly, Shi Zhong knew Xuan Yuan Zhi was good friends with the patriarch of Celestial Masters Sect. This was common knowledge.
"Mmm." Duan Ling Tian nodded. He lifted his hand and revealed a purple and golden order token. When he sent his energy into the order token, a ray of purple light shot toward the north. He raised an eyebrow, "Yellow Thearch Mansion is in the north?"
Naturally, Duan Ling Tian had no intention of visiting the Yellow Thearch Mansion at the moment. Moreover, he doubted Xuan Yuan Zhi had returned from the Beyond Heaven Secret Zone. He made up his mind to visit Yellow Thearch Mansion if he had enough time left after visiting earth. Since he was finally in Yan Huang Realm, his first thought was, naturally, to return to his home in his past life.
Going back to earth had become a slight obsession to Duan Ling Tian. He supposed it was better if he did not know he could return to earth if he wanted to. He had never obsessed over his past life previously. However, now that he knew it was possible to return, he could not help thinking about how he was betrayed by his manager, causing him to seethe in anger. He could not seem to let go of the fact that he had died in his last life due to his manager's betrayal. 'If I see him, I should ask him why he betrayed me back then.'
Duan Ling Tian had considered his manager as his brother and only kin in the world. He did not expect someone whom he thought of as a brother would be the cause of his death. He thought to himself, 'It's been a good few decades now, he must be an old man. I hope he hasn't died.' Based on the time since he began his new life, he figured his manager must be in his seventies or eighties now if he had not died of old age.
Duan Ling Tian thought to himself resolutely, 'Nevertheless, I still want to return to earth even if it's just a while for me to have a look around.'
As Duan Ling Tian fiddled with the order token, Shi Zhong's eyes widened when he saw the order token. "Is that the Yellow Thearch Mansion's Violet-gold Token?!"
The Violet-gold Token was not any run-of-the-mill order token based on Shi Zhong's knowledge. Only elders who had ascended to Devata Realms possessed it. The number of people who possessed this order token could be counted on one hand. All of them, without any exception, were elites in Yan Huang Realm.
Members of the Yellow Thearch Mansion recognized outsiders in possession of the Violet-gold Token as friends. Whoever made an enemy of those people would automatically become an enemy of Yellow Thearch Mansion as well. They were also viewed as being on equal status with the Mansion Master of Yellow Thearch Mansion. 'Ah, I almost forgot. He might only be an Eminent Celestial, but his prowess is not inferior to a Nine Tribulation Bodiless Celestial. It's not surprising that someone so powerful possesses the Violet-gold Token!'
"Zhang Yi, before I ascend to a Devata Realm, if I have the time, I'll visit you in the Celestial Masters Sect. If I don't, well… We can also meet in the Devata Realms," Duan Ling Tian said with a smile. Although he had very few friends, all of them meant a lot to him.
"Alright," Zhang Yi replied with a nod. To him, Duan Ling Tian was not only a friend, but he was also his benefactor. He wanted to tell Duan Ling Tian he did not yearn to return to the Celestial Masters Sect. In fact, he wanted to follow Duan Ling Tian until Duan Ling Tian ascended to a Devata Realm. However, he did not voice this out. After all, with his current strength, he felt he would only be a burden if he followed Duan Ling Tian.
"Let's go." Duan Ling Tian beckoned to Tang Xiao Xiao. The two left immediately, vanishing into thin air before Zhang Yi and Shi Zhong's eyes.
Shi Zhong only averted his gaze after Duan Ling Tian's figure had disappeared. He turned to Zhang Yi and exclaimed, "You've made an impressive friend, Zhang Yi."
"I know," Zhang Yi replied with a nod. It could be seen in his eyes that he was reluctant to part with Duan Ling Tian. He knew very well that after this parting, if Duan Ling Tian had no time to visit the Celestial Masters Sect, it would be difficult for them to meet again. After all, not to mention that there were 81 Devata Realms, each realm was almost boundless.
"Zhang Yi," Shi Zhong could not help but ask, "Duan Ling Tian obtained the inheritance from a Great Overarching Golden Celestial in the Beyond Heaven Secret Zone this time around, right?" He was quite certain the reason an Eminent Celestial had strength comparable to a Nine Tribulation Bodiless Celestial was due to the inheritance from a Great Overarching Golden Celestial, but he just wanted to confirm it again. There was nobody better to ask for confirmation than Zhang Yi.
"No." To Shi Zhong's surprise, Zhang Yi shook his head. "Duan Ling Tian didn't obtain the inheritance. The one who obtained it is his friend."