Chapter 643: The Heavenly Emperors Reward

Chapter 643: The Heavenly Emperor's Reward

Xiao Nanfeng picked up the Heaven division token and activated it once more following what Su Qing had done. The Heaven Division's Gate manifested in the air.

"Su Qing, be careful," Xiao Nanfeng warned.

Su Qing nodded.

"Everyone else, step back."

The disciples retreated and sealed off their hearing. They protected themselves with relics.

Xiao Nanfeng rapped on the Heaven Division's Gate, causing a slit to open. Loss chants filtered out.

"Enter!" Xiao Nanfeng beckoned.

Su Qing gritted his teeth, formed seals rapidly with his hands, and rushed through the gate. A length of rope was tied around his body; Xiao Nanfeng held its end.

The loss chants suddenly seemed to grow weaker.

Xiao Nanfeng waited for some time until he felt a tug on the rope, one so strong it almost felt as if he too would be pulled within. He frowned and began to haul on the rope, dragging Su Qing out.

With a wave of his hand, the Heaven Division's Gate vanished.

Everyone surrounded Su Qing, trying to see what had happened to him. Su Qing was seated cross-legged in meditation, red light flashing by his forehead. He seemed to be cultivating.

Everyone waited patiently until Su Qing opened his eyes.

"Su Qing, what did you see?" Xiao Nanfeng asked.

"The moment I passed through the gate, I saw countless beams of red light, with runes floating in them. The runes burrowed into my mindscape, causing me to forget everything. Then, when a red-furred lifeform suddenly grabbed ahold of me and tried to pull me deeper into the space, the division leader hauled me out."

The disciples glanced at each other in surprise, as did Xiao Nanfeng. What lay within the gate certainly didn't seem to be safe.

"According to the Heaven division's records, plenty of senior disciples in the Heaven division used to go missing after passing through the gate. That's why a sentry was designated to pull out any disciples within," Su Qing continued.

"How do you feel?" Xiao Nanfeng asked.

"I can sense a red bell deeply embedded within my soul," Su Qing said.

"Try to activate it," Xiao Nanfeng said.

Su Qing gently did so.

The bell resounded. Suddenly, loss chants began to emanate from him. The sound of chanting overwhelmed everyone.

"Again?" the disciples cried out.

Except for Xiao Nanfeng, everyone else was caught by the technique. They stumbled around in a daze, as though having forgotten all that was on their mind.

Then, as Su Qing stopped, the disciples belatedly came to their senses, their memories flooding back. They stared at Su Qing in shock.

"These really are loss chants! But they're far weaker than the chants that emanate from within the gate," a disciple murmured.

"You'll need spiritual power to activate the bell. The stronger the spiritual power, the more potent the loss chants. This is as strong as I can make mine," Su Qing said.

"What's the consumption like?" Xiao Nanfeng asked.

Su Qing nodded and smiled wryly. "Very high, but it's worth it. If you can catch enemies off guard, these loss chants can turn the tide of a fight or battle."

"Very good. Who's next?" Xiao Nanfeng asked.

"Really?"

Xiao Nanfeng nodded, recounting what he had learned about saints during his previous conversation with Yu Fuli.

Zhang Lingjun nodded slowly in understanding.

"But even if he can't reward you in public, surely he can do so in private!" Zhang Lingjun continued. "Isn't he petty?"

"Hardly. He's already given me the best treasure in the world, after all."

"What? Where?" Zhang Lingjun's eyes brightened.

"You, of course." Xiao Nanfeng lifted Zhang Lingjun up in a hug.

Zhang Lingjun flushed. "The Heavenly Emperor knows about us?"

"He does. He doesn't object to our being together." Xiao Nanfeng smiled.

"Thank goodness." Zhang Lingjun sighed in relief as well.

"Lingjun, I've been busy these last few days. Now that I'm free, we ought to cultivate." Xiao Nanfeng brought Zhang Lingjun into her bedroom.

"Who wants to cultivate with you?" Zhang Lingjun snorted, but her face flushed red.

She retrieved the praying mat and tossed it toward the pavilion outside her bedroom.

Then, the door to her bedroom slammed shut. Light poured out from it, forming countless formations that sealed her bedroom off.

The praying mat was flung against the pavilion's stone table in a plume of dust.

The praying mat: ...

In Ao Canghai's manor, the gathered Martial Aspects looked toward Ao Canghai. One asked curiously, "Eastern Aspect, why wasn't Xiao Nanfeng rewarded more heavily for his role in the destruction of Dayin? I was sure I had misheard during the court session!"

Ao Canghai pursed his lips. "That's the reward, you see. The Heavenly Emperor is protecting Xiao Nanfeng."

"Oh?"

"It's not a good thing for us that the Heavenly Emperor seems to be recognizing Xiao Nanfeng's strength."

"So what if he thinks highly of Xiao Nanfeng? All the Martial Aspects of the Eastern Quadrant have to listen to you, Eastern Aspect!"

Ao Canghai frowned. "We've suffered considerable losses."

The Martial Aspects sighed. Five had perished, all close confidantes of Ao Canghai.

"Eastern Aspect, what should we do about the reward bequeathed to Violetfrost and the others?" one Martial Aspect asked.

"Those will go to their families. None of you are to touch that treasure," Ao Canghai said.

"Understood!" the Martial Aspects chorused.

They did want more treasure for themselves, but none would dare covet that which had been put aside. After all, if they were to perish one day, they wanted a sum of treasure to be given to their families, too.

"Xiao Nanfeng will surely contest us for those five Martial Aspect positions. We'll have to be careful," Ao Canghai warned.

The Martial Aspects nodded seriously. One of them said, "Don't worry, Eastern Aspect. What happened last time was an accident, and Ao Zhou simply got lucky. It won't happen again."

"Good." Ao Canghai nodded as well.