Chapter 337: Baohu's Ominous Premonition

[Jingyuan Pass].

Stepping out of the Heavenly Craft Cave Abode, Wang Ping immediately spotted Heaven-Stealing Thief and Xianfu waiting outside. Both turned to look at him the moment he appeared.

"Congratulations, my good disciple."

Heaven-Stealing Thief spoke first, holding out a hand. "Where is the Crown-Stroking Mountain? Now that you've broken through, it's time to return my Spiritual Treasure."

"Senior Brother Xianfu."

Wang Ping turned a deaf ear to him, facing Xianfu instead. "You mentioned earlier that you'd need my help with something once I broke through. What exactly is it?"

Heaven-Stealing Thief was speechless. 'Little beast, playing this game with me?'

A split second later, Heaven-Stealing Thief formed a hand seal and pointed. Wang Ping's chest violently jolted as the Crown-Stroking Mountain he had just stowed flew out uncontrollably.

"Tsk."

Wang Ping smacked his lips at the sight. "My good master, ever since I took you as my teacher, this disciple hasn't received a single gift from you. Why not lend this Spiritual Treasure to me..."

'Now you know to call me your good master?'

Heaven-Stealing Thief sneered, ignoring the plea completely.

Seeing this, Wang Ping scowled and said coldly, "Heaven-Stealing Thief, I'm going to kill Baohu shortly. I need to requisition this Spiritual Treasure."

"Think about it. On the Brahma Nation's side, Baohu has two Spiritual Treasures, plus there's someone from the Arhat Seats who also holds one. That makes a full three. What about our side? I only have two, and Senior Brother Xianfu has one. Three Spiritual Treasures only puts us on an even footing."

"How are we supposed to kill Baohu like that?"

"...Wait a minute."

Heaven-Stealing Thief narrowed his eyes. "Don't you have three Spiritual Treasures on you? Did you not count that Martial Dao Spiritual Treasure, the Heavenly Martial Campaign Profound Armor?"

"How is that the same?!"

Wang Ping answered without hesitation. "My Martial Dao is incomplete. The Heavenly Martial Campaign Profound Armor only has the foundation of a Spiritual Treasure; its actual power is nowhere near the level of a true one."

"In short..." By the end, Wang Ping sounded entirely righteous. "Hurry up and lend me your Spiritual Treasure. We need four of them together to have a winning chance of killing Baohu."

"Otherwise, if you ruin the True Monarch's plans, can you bear the responsibility?"

Heaven-Stealing Thief laughed in sheer anger. 'Using the True Monarch to pressure me? Does he think I'm Mingyou? Does he think I can be blackmailed?'

"Take it, take it!"

Heaven-Stealing Thief tossed it casually, too lazy to waste any more breath. He threw the Crown-Stroking Mountain right back into Wang Ping's arms, finally drawing a beaming smile from the young man.

"Right, I'll need you to lend a hand when killing Baohu..." Wang Ping rubbed his hands together in anticipation. After all, he had witnessed Heaven-Stealing Thief's strength firsthand; taking down someone like Baohu would be child's play, wouldn't it?

But the next second, Heaven-Stealing Thief shook his head without hesitation. "Out of the question!"

By now, Heaven-Stealing Thief was looking at Wang Ping rather strangely. 'This brat... just because he sees I'm useful, he wants to work me to death?'

"My main body cannot move freely. Dealing with the True Person's phantom earlier was just a wisp of divine sense, so it was fine, but taking action with my main body is absolutely impossible."

Heaven-Stealing Thief shook his head.

"Lending you the Spiritual Treasure is already the greatest help I can provide."

As his voice faded, Wang Ping's expression swiftly cooled. "Oh. Then you're useless. Please stop standing here and wasting my time."

Heaven-Stealing Thief was struck dumb. 'What a traitorous disciple!'

"Let me into the Heavenly Craft Cave Abode," Heaven-Stealing Thief snapped in annoyance. "I'm going to help Kunlun extinguish the Earth Yang Fire. You and Xianfu can talk about killing Baohu."

Soon, after sending Heaven-Stealing Thief off, Wang Ping turned his bright gaze back to Xianfu.

Xianfu naturally understood what he meant and gave a slight nod. "I will help you kill Baohu. Or rather, this is something I was going to do anyway."

'What a good brother!'

"However... I also have a favor to ask of you."

"Please speak, Senior Brother." Wang Ping waved a hand magnanimously.

Following that, Xianfu spoke in a low voice. "Your original plan, Junior Brother, was likely to destroy the imperial edict after killing Baohu, severely crippling the Great Shun's destiny."

"Thereby stopping my attempt to ascend the entire dynasty, correct?"

"That's right."

Wang Ping nodded. "In that case, the True Person backing you, Senior Brother, would fail in his plan. I deduced that he would most likely switch to our side because of it."

"I hope you won't do that."

Xianfu shook his head and lowered his voice. "Or rather, don't do it so early. At the very least, before you do that, do something else first."

"Senior Brother means...?"

"Unite Xin to reveal Water!"

Xianfu's eyes burned bright as he spoke in a low tone. "I hope you can continue walking the path of uniting Xin to reveal Water. Use the Heavenly Yin Metal to shatter the Ten Thousand Gods Terrestrial Chart on your body."

"This path no longer holds any obstacles for you. You can completely sever your ties with the Great Rebellion identity. Once severed, this will be nothing more than a pure Divine Power transformation. After uniting Xin to reveal Water, it could even enhance your Divine Power... Only after you finish all of this should you destroy the edict I gave you earlier."

This request actually surprised Wang Ping quite a bit.

But just as Xianfu had said, at this point, the Heavenly Yin Metal didn't matter to him anymore. Whether he walked that path or not, it wouldn't have any further impact.

"...Alright."

Wang Ping thought about it and didn't refuse. After all, with the Heavenly Craft Cave Abode in hand, there would always be room for cooperation between him and Daoist Master Hanguang Danyang.

Compared to that, a mere Divine Power didn't matter much. If it was destroyed, so be it.

Furthermore, that Divine Power carried the karma of the Great Rebellion. It would make it inconvenient for him to commit suicide and reincarnate in the future.

Although the ability the gentleman should hide his implements at the right time was also troublesome since it was entirely unique in the world, at most, it only meant the Water Qi True Monarch could find him. It was relatively safe.

As for becoming a True Monarch's pawn, there was undeniably a risk of that, but Wang Ping wasn't overly resistant to the idea. After all, how many people wanted to be one but had no way in?

'To be able to serve as a True Monarch's dog is my honor!'

"Excellent."

Hearing this, Xianfu smiled and continued, "The Immortal-Brahma Sword Battle's battlefield is currently sealed inside and out. Baohu cannot escape. She shouldn't be hard to find."

[Eight Treasure Table], a corner of the grasslands.

The sky remained shrouded in profound, murky colors. Nothing could go out, and nothing could come in. It was a seamless whole, as if the entire world had sunken to the bottom of the ocean.

Baohu looked up at the sky, spiritual light flashing in her square, jade-green eyes.

"The authority of Water Qi."

"The plans laid out by various True Persons were exposed prematurely, but then interrupted by an even stronger external force. As a result, no one can interfere with this battlefield in the short term."

This disciple under a Bodhisattva of the Brahma Nation displayed astonishing calmness at this moment. Behind her stood Jingshan, Wu Chi, Suoze, and a throng of other Brahma Cultivators—twenty or thirty of them in total. Apart from Baohu and Jingshan, all the rest were disciples from the Wisdom King seats that Arhat Shengle had dispatched at the last minute.

They had once scattered like birds and beasts.

However, while Wang Ping, Heaven-Stealing Thief, and Xianfu were making their moves, Baohu hadn't been idle. She had gathered these Brahma Cultivators back together.

"Junior Brother Jingshan, do you know what this means?"

Turning her head, Baohu said softly, "The sword battle has already ended, yet we cannot leave. The arhat cannot take action to guide us out, either. This means an even stronger entity has placed a piece on the board."

"That is why that Dousheng was able to defeat us."

"This is infighting within the Immortal Gate."

"And since the anomalies have yet to be withdrawn, it shows the situation is currently in a stalemate. Under these circumstances, our Brahma Nation's stance becomes exceedingly important."

Jingshan nodded upon hearing this. "What you say is very true, Senior Sister."

This was nothing strange. From Refining Practitioners all the way up to True Persons, the Immortal Gate's internal conflicts frequently pulled the Brahma Nation into the fray, using their combat power to tip the scales.

"The grand situation right now is nothing more than a struggle between the chess players—the True Persons of the Immortal Gate—and the chess pieces within the sword battle's battlefield who are unwilling to be manipulated. There is an even stronger figure supporting those pieces, while the True Person chess players are unwilling to let them slip out of their control. The two sides are currently deadlocked."

So here was the question.

"If either side wishes to win over our Brahma Nation and bring the arhat into their camp, what would they do, and what should they do?"

As Baohu's voice faded, Jingshan pondered for a moment before replying in a low voice, "The True Persons of the Immortal Gate are easy to figure out. They just need to casually promise some benefits to the arhat. The Brahma Nation is austere and desolate; the higher-ups are never picky about the benefits they take."

"What about the other side?"

Baohu continued, "What benefits can those chess pieces who refuse to be manipulated offer?"

"What benefits could they possibly have?!" Jingshan shook his head instinctively. "Unless the stronger entity behind them makes a promise, the arhat won't even spare them a second glance."

"You're right."

Baohu nodded, but her expression turned increasingly sinister. "However, there is one method that can force the arhat to stand on their side and oppose the Immortal Gate's True Persons."

"What method?" Jingshan blinked.

But this time, Baohu didn't state it clearly. Instead, she lowered her eyelids, concealing all her expressions, leaving only her increasingly heavy mood and thoughts.

'What method could there be?'

'By participating in the Immortal-Brahma Sword Battle this time, Arhat Shengle could only gain two possible benefits. The first is me—helping me cultivate the Deep Blue Eyes Phase.'

'Unfortunately, after continuous crushing defeats, there isn't much hope for that now.'

'The second is a heavenly estate of the Great Rebellion. Although the resources, precious materials, Dao scriptures, Dharma scrolls, and martial arts inside cannot compare to me, obtaining them would still ensure he doesn't suffer a loss.'

'That only requires the Immortal Gate's True Persons to nod in agreement, so the hopes are very high—but the premise is that the Heavenly Frost Cave Abode and the Heavenly Craft Cave Abode can remain stationed in the mortal realm.'

'If both of them completely vanish into hiding, then it will just be empty talk.'

'Based on this judgment, the answer becomes very simple:'

'As long as Arhat Shengle gets absolutely no benefits and even suffers a huge loss, then out of consideration for the Brahma Nation's interests, he naturally won't let the Immortal Gate's True Persons gain any benefits either. To that end, he will inevitably fall out with them. The result is equivalent to him indirectly standing in the camp of those True Person chess pieces.'

'So, how do they make Arhat Shengle suffer a huge loss?'

'First, stop the Heavenly Frost Cave Abode from appearing in the mortal realm, and force the Heavenly Craft Cave Abode to hide away once more. This way, Arhat Shengle will get absolutely no benefits.'

'And then... kill me!'

'How precious is a disciple of a Bodhisattva in the Brahma Nation? If I were to die in a mere sword battle, it would undoubtedly be a catastrophic loss for Arhat Shengle.'

At this thought, everything suddenly became clear in Baohu's mind:

'Bastards!'

'This bunch of Biyang's... want to kill me!'