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Novel: [The Primordial Law]
Volume 5: [Seeking Immortality in the Eastern Sea]
Volume 5 (Pinyin): [Dong Hai xun xian]
Chapter 83 (520): [Yao Qian's Frame-Up]
(83rd of Volume 5)
Translator: Shadow Knight AK
Editor: Shadow Knight AK
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"Pfft!"
Blood sprayed into the air.
Si Wuyan's severed arm fell to the ground, blood gushing from his shoulder.
He let out a muffled groan, lost his balance, and tumbled away.
He no longer even considered fleeing.
Had he known this would be his fate, he wouldn't have been burdened by the title of "True Disciple" after being wounded by the Talisman Sword in the East Sea.
He should have abandoned the Cultivation of the Immortal Body.
He should have directly broken through to the Immortal Realm.
With the cultivation of the Immortal Realm, he could have slain Li Weiyi.
Such is human nature: always regretting past choices based on present circumstances.
Yu Zhenyan regretted not fighting harder for the True Disciple position, while Si Wuyan regretted his obsession with cultivating the Immortal Body.
Yet in truth, even if they could choose a hundred times over, given their mindsets and circumstances at that time, they would still make the same decisions.
Li Weiyi glanced at the blood on his sword's edge, then at Si Wuyan, now suppressed by the Purple-Clad Woman's Formation and Wu Hongling's Northern Sea Life Map.
The outcome was sealed.
He turned and darted toward the seven Phoenix-Winged Moth Emperors.
Prince Mingjiao was formidable, his defenses, attacks, and speed rivaling the peak of the Immortal Realm.
He had already broken through the encirclement of the seven Phoenix-Winged Moth Emperors.
He didn't linger in battle, swiftly retreating and charging into the mist, his halberd raised.
"Li Weiyi, our feud isn't irreconcilable. The death of the Three-Eyed Chi Jiao and today's ambush have settled our scores. Continuing this fight benefits neither of us."
Having witnessed the fates of Sheng Wulian and Si Wuyan, Prince Mingjiao genuinely wished to avoid further conflict with Li Weiyi before breaking through to Immortal Realm, hoping to resolve their animosity.
Li Weiyi noticed that Third Phoenix, Fourth Phoenix, and Sixth Phoenix had all sustained significant injuries.
He immediately recalled Fifth Phoenix, who had been pursuing the prince.
Being in the East Sea, he also had no desire to forge an irreconcilable blood feud with the Jiao Clan.
The death of the Three-Eyed Chi Jiao was insignificant.
However, Prince Mingjiao's exceptional talent and status as the Nether Flood Dragon King's son carried considerable weight.
Deep within the mist, a piercing flood dragon python's death cry echoed from the direction Prince Mingjiao had fled.
Then came Prince Mingjiao's dying roar: "The Jiu Li Divine Hidden One and Dengfeng killed me..."
Li Weiyi's pupils constricted, his expression hardening.
He immediately recalled the three wounded Phoenix-Winged Moth Emperors into his Insect Pouch, then activated a Myriad Miles Divine Swift Talisman, cautiously advancing toward the source of the sound, sword in hand.
The ruins were shattered and overgrown, barely any paths remained.
The ground was littered with massive boulders and deep ravines, permeated by the chilling aura of death.
A colossal black Flood Dragon Python corpse gradually came into view.
Crimson Blood Mist swirled around the carcass.
A sound like gurgling springs echoed through the air.
Li Weiyi heightened his senses to their limit, detecting no immediate danger.
He swiftly approached the Flood Dragon corpse of Prince Mingjiao.
The fatal wound was a sword strike piercing the center of the Flood Dragon's forehead.
Blood gushed from the sword wound like a spring, pooling into a crimson lake.
One strike, fatal!
Li Weiyi's heart pounded.
He whirled around to scan the mist-shrouded Dragon City Ruins, sensing danger lurking everywhere.
"Whoosh!"
Hong Ling's red silk ribbons fluttered through the air.
The graceful figure of Wu Hongling descended from the sky like a crimson leaf, her ribbons dancing around her.
Carrying Transcendent Spiritual Qi, she showed little caution as she circled Prince Mingjiao's corpse, examining it closely.
"The trident and Seventh-Rank Thousand-Inscriptions Artifact Armor have been taken. The Ancestral Field is completely empty. Even Prince Mingjiao's Young Celestial Emperor foundation and the five Innate Dragon Tendons within his body have been extracted."
"This is terrifying. It must have been done by a Martial-Mystic Cultivator from the Immortal Realm."
"What unspeakable atrocity did you commit to provoke a Immortal Realm Martial-Mystic Cultivator to frame you in this manner instead of simply assassinating you?"
Both men could see that Prince Mingjiao had been fleeing in panic when a sudden attack pierced his forehead, instantly killing him and reverting him to his true form.
Therefore, it was impossible for him to have uttered the dying words, "The Jiu Li Divine Hidden One and Dengfeng killed me."
Someone was using the Jiao Clan to target Li Weiyi and even the Jiu Li Clan.
Simply shouting "Jiu Li Divine Hidden One" was illogical; Li Weiyi had no reason to kill Prince Mingjiao.
Adding "Princess Dengfeng" made the accusation more believable.
As Li Weiyi gradually calmed down, he realized that since the perpetrator had already secured the treasure and the Young Celestial Emperor's foundational Dragon Tendon, and successfully framed him, they had undoubtedly fled far away. They wouldn't linger and risk exposure.
"He chose Prince Mingjiao because he wasn't confident he could kill me," Li Weiyi said, pressing his palm against the sword wound on the Flood Dragon's head. He carefully sensed for any lingering Qi, but found none.
The kill had been executed cleanly.
The Dragon City Ruins were shrouded in deathly Yin Qi. Li Weiyi dared not let Second Phoenix sniff the air here, but he already had a strong suspicion.
Someone capable of instantly killing a fleeing Prince Mingjiao, obsessed with the Young Celestial Emperor's foundational Dragon Tendon, a master swordsman, and harboring deep animosity toward him and the Jiu Li Clan...
The odds pointed overwhelmingly to Yao Qian - over eighty percent.
The method was identical to his own, just as he had framed Li Weiyi for Yang Qingchan's murder.
The remaining twenty percent likely involved Princess Dengfeng.
She had seized the opportunity, entangled the Jiu Li Clan and Zuoqiu Sect, and boarded the Jellyfish Clan's war chariot.
Li Weiyi found Prince Mingjiao's Cosmic Pouch, which the assassin had been too hasty to retrieve.
Opening the pouch, he extracted a golden Immortal Herb Petal.
Wu Hongling flashed forward, reaching to snatch it, but her hand closed on empty air.
Li Weiyi's figure instantly reappeared several dozen feet away.
"If you want this Immortal Herb Petal, leave your Spiritual Qi on Prince Mingjiao's wound and confess to killing him."
"Pfft!"
From Wu Hongling's Ancestral Field, a Dao Sword materialized.
With a single strike along the sword wound, she split Prince Mingjiao's skull in two.
For her, killing the Prince Mingjiao was trivial - merely another victory in her quest to become a True Disciple.
Firstly, the Rice Palace held the East Sea Dragon Clan in utter contempt.
Secondly, the Canghai Rice Realm was separated from the East Sea by vast mountains and seas, unlike the Lingxiao Realm, which bordered it directly.
Without a word, she extended her jade-white hand toward Li Weiyi, her gesture carrying a hint of arrogant defiance.
Li Weiyi was momentarily stunned by her decisiveness.
He placed the petal in her palm.
"I feel like I'm raising a tiger only to be bitten. You wouldn't repay kindness with betrayal, would you?"
A glint flashed in Wu Hongling's eyes as she swiftly stored the Golden Petal in her Ancestral Field.
"If you remove the Six Desires Talisman from my body and give me the two petals you've seized, I'll remember your kindness for the rest of my life. What do you say, adulterer?"
Li Weiyi wasn't one to harbor grudges.
Having already given her the Northern Sea Life Map and the Immortal Herb Petal, there was no need to retain the Six Desires Talisman, which would only breed further conflict and hatred.
He stepped forward, extended a finger, and condensed Spiritual Light at its tip.
He reached toward her slender, graceful neck, just above her full, delicate breasts.
The Six Desires Talisman materialized on her snow-white neck.
His gaze focused intently, his finger moved like a brush, tracing the unique stroke order of the rune across her skin.
"Whoosh!"
With each stroke of his finger, the Six Desires Talisman vanished, line by line.
An absolute stillness descended upon the surroundings. The scene was undeniably intimate, the two standing so close it seemed he was gently caressing her jade-like neck.
Wu Hongling felt a ticklish sensation on her neck.
Gazing at Li Weiyi's focused expression from close range, she was secretly surprised.
She had assumed that getting him to remove the Six Desires Talisman would be an arduous task, requiring her to submit to his whims and perhaps pay a steep price.
His willingness to help her without hesitation genuinely touched her.
As the talisman dissipated, Li Weiyi had already taken six or seven steps away before Wu Hongling snapped out of her reverie.
"Whoosh!"
Her figure flashed, leaving a curved afterimage as she intercepted Li Weiyi.
"You haven't given me the petal yet!"
"Miss Wu, surely you understand that nothing in this world comes for free," Li Weiyi said, his tone now serious, "The Northern Sea Life Map and that petal were a mutually beneficial exchange - each of us needed what the other possessed. If I give you another petal, what price will you pay?"
Wu Hongling smiled coyly: "You can set the price. I'm open to negotiation."
"Not for sale. We're even now."
Li Weiyi quickly moved away from the corpse of Prince Mingjiao.
Wu Hongling pursued him again, extending her palm.
A faint Buddhist Dao Imprint appeared, but it was inverted.
Li Weiyi froze, stunned that she had actually cultivated something in reverse.
He murmured, "Nurturing a tiger only to invite disaster. This time, it's truly nurturing a tiger only to invite disaster!"
Wu Hongling retracted the Buddhist Dao Imprint, her laughter triumphant and genuine.
"Nurturing a tiger doesn't always invite disaster! My sister and I came to the East Sea to seek the legendary Phoenix Tree, hoping to advance our combat prowess within the same realm and catch up to Sheng Wulian and Si Wuyan."
"Now that we haven't found the Phoenix Tree, but instead found you, the Liu Fengshu, we've obtained the Northern Sea Life Map, the Immortal Herb Petal, and even cultivated the Buddhist Dao Imprint. I feel we no longer need the true Phoenix Tree!"
"Perhaps this is fate and opportunity, Li Weiyi. Let's wipe the slate clean! I believe you are my Person of Destiny. Killing you would surely damage my Qi."
Li Weiyi retorted, "You've taken all the benefits. What about me?"
Footsteps approached, and a beautiful purple figure gradually came into view.
The Purple-Clad Woman walked over and handed Si Wuyan's Cosmic Pouch to Li Weiyi.
Her fingers were slender and graceful, and her voice was crisp and melodious, "It's truly wonderful that Li Shenyin and Hong Ling can turn hostility into harmony."
Li Weiyi accepted the Cosmic Pouch, which contained a considerable wealth of resources.
Li Weiyi could sense a deathly chill emanating from the Purple-Clad Woman, her double pupils now even darker and more profound. It was clear she had seized Si Wuyan's Dao.
The True Disciple Si had truly become the Dead True Disciple.
Seeing they showed no intention of attacking, Li Weiyi asked, "Have you both condensed your Immortal Golden Pills?"
Wu Hongling chuckled: "If we couldn't even condense the Immortal Golden Pill, how could we have attracted so many people to risk their lives coming to the East Sea? Haven't you also made remarkable progress in your cultivation in such a short time?"
"My point is that with your combined strength, you two would stand a decent chance of defeating me," Li Weiyi said, genuinely curious.
Killing him and pinning Si Wuyan's death on Li Weiyi would have been the perfect conclusion for them.
Wu Hongling frowned, realizing this man had never let his guard down, remaining wary of her all along.
The Purple-Clad Woman spoke, "We've already obtained the opportunities we sought and fought the battles we needed to. There's no need to take further risks. The True Disciple title is important, but life itself is even more so."
"With such a rational strategist as Miss Purple-Robe, I believe your chances of winning the True Disciple competition are excellent. Congratulations in advance! Farewell!"
Li Weiyi genuinely felt that the Purple-Clad Woman possessed a mountain-like steadiness, capable of seizing opportunities and knowing when to advance or retreat.
She was a woman destined for great things.
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END OF CHAPTER
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