Chapter 566: Full of Doubt

"Yan Song, you were the one who met them. How strong is the group Gale Light Academy sent this time?"

The old man seated cross-legged on the chair asked faintly, his voice carrying a strange, imposing pressure.

Yan Song bowed slightly. "Sect Master, Gale Light Academy’s delegation is led by Ge Puzi. Apart from him, there are several Tier Seven Second Layer and Tier Seven First Layer Martial Kings. Their overall strength is rather average."

From Yan Song’s form of address, it was clear this man was none other than the Sect Master of the Nine Yang Sect, Qiu Diantian.

Qiu Diantian nodded. "Have you seen Vice Sect Master Duan Tianlang and the others from the Profound Mystery Sect?"

Yan Song frowned. "I have not seen them. I don’t know where Ge Puzi has hidden Duan Tianlang and his people. Should I continue to investigate?"

This peace negotiation between the Profound Mystery Sect and Gale Light Academy also involved a hostage exchange, so Duan Tianlang and the others must have been brought along.

Qiu Diantian shook his head. "There’s no need. Just continue monitoring Gale Light Academy’s movements. Duan Tianlang’s fate is the Profound Mystery Sect’s problem. The Nine Yang Sect has no need to risk life and limb for him."

Yan Song frowned. "Sect Master, but haven’t we already allied with the Profound Mystery Sect? If Tang Zhao holds us responsible..."

"Hmph." Qiu Diantian snorted and shot him a look of displeasure. "We are allied with the Profound Mystery Sect, but that doesn’t mean we take orders from them. The Profound Mystery Sect is being incredibly secretive about these peace talks. Who knows what that snake Tang Zhao is plotting? He told me Huangfu Xiuming has already fallen, but that news has yet to be confirmed. We just need to operate from the shadows without revealing ourselves. That way, we can advance or retreat as we please if trouble starts."

An expression of admiration instantly appeared on Yan Song’s face as he hurried to flatter him, "Sect Master is brilliant."

Qiu Diantian waved his hand. "Enough. You may go. Don’t come here too frequently, or you’ll arouse suspicion."

"Yes, sir." Yan Song immediately retreated with respect.

After Yan Song left, Qiu Diantian’s brow furrowed slightly, as if he couldn’t quite put his finger on something. He took out a white Compass and quickly channeled several runes into it. The Compass immediately began to pulse with a faint blue light, blinking like a firefly in the night as it responded.

Only then did Qiu Diantian’s expression soften, a confident smile spreading across his face. ’Tang Zhao,’ he thought, ’what you told me had better be true. If you dare to deceive me, you’ll find that I am not someone to be trifled with.’

For the next few days, Ye Xuan remained within the Gale Light Academy’s residence, cultivating without wasting a single moment.

Ge Puzi and the others did the same, only occasionally sending someone out to ask when the Profound Mystery Sect’s people were expected to arrive.

However, day after day passed with no news of the Profound Mystery Sect’s experts arriving in the city.

This puzzled Ge Puzi and his group. With only a week left before the peace talks were set to begin, the Profound Mystery Sect, which had agreed to the terms so readily, had yet to make an appearance. It made them all grow suspicious.

In a secret chamber within the residence, Ye Xuan sat cross-legged, his body flickering with streaks of rainbow light that cast the entire chamber in a pulsating glow.

As the light flickered, terrifying streams of Heaven and Earth Profound Qi swirled around him, flowing into his body with each breath.

An unknown amount of time passed.

POP!

A faint popping sound suddenly emanated from within Ye Xuan’s body. Immediately after, an even more terrifying aura of Profound Power radiated outward.

WHOOSH!

He slowly exhaled a breath of impure air. When Ye Xuan opened his eyes, they were as brilliant as stars, and for a moment, the entire secret chamber seemed to brighten.

’I finally broke through to the Tier Six Third Layer.’

Ever since breaking through to the Tier Six Second Layer with the help of a Gumo Menglan Pill, Ye Xuan had been cultivating diligently.

For a Martial Artist, breaking through to the next layer within the same tier is primarily a matter of condensing Profound Power, so there are no major bottlenecks. After many days of arduous cultivation and consuming a large number of Pills, Ye Xuan had finally advanced from the Tier Six Second Layer to the Third Layer.

However, advancing from the Tier Six Third Layer to the Tier Seven Martial King Realm was a leap to a whole new Great Realm. Achieving such a feat would require more than simple, bitter cultivation.

’Why do I still have this unsettling feeling?’

Ye Xuan had just emerged from his closed-door cultivation. Before he could even feel a sense of joy, his heart clenched. It was a disquieting feeling, a premonition that something was about to happen.

He spread out his Profound Sense but couldn’t detect anything amiss.

He frowned and muttered to himself, "This won’t do. I’ve had this feeling since I first entered the city, and it still hasn’t gone away. Something is definitely wrong."

As a Soul Refiner, Ye Xuan had great faith in his intuition. The fact that the feeling persisted reminded him of when he was being stalked by Lv Feng in the Endless Mountain Range. Something was definitely about to happen.

With all the major powers gathered in Ancient Yang City, Ye Xuan knew he wouldn’t be able to rest until he figured out the source of this feeling.

’Since there’s nothing out of the ordinary in the residence, I’ll go take a look around the city.’

Ye Xuan did a lap around the residence and found nothing unusual. He then went to find Ge Puzi to state his request.

Ge Puzi was initially reluctant to agree. After all, with only a week left before the negotiations, it would be disastrous if Ye Xuan were to be abducted by the Profound Mystery Sect in Ancient Yang City.

However, considering how extraordinary Ye Xuan was, Ge Puzi eventually agreed after some deliberation.

Instead of leaving through the main gate, Ye Xuan slipped quietly into the residence’s rear courtyard.

Hmm?

His brow twitched. He could feel a faint wisp of Profound Sense materializing nearby.

’Looks like someone is watching this place.’

Ye Xuan’s gaze fell upon a tavern a few hundred feet from the residence. After a moment’s thought, he released a wave of his own Profound Sense to envelop himself. Then, transforming into a streak of light, he shot out of the residence, vanishing from the range of that faint, probing Profound Sense.

At that moment, in a private room of a tavern a few hundred feet from the residence, two middle-aged men were drinking, their Profound Senses periodically sweeping over the Gale Light Academy’s estate.

"Honestly, the Vice Sect Master ordered us to keep a constant watch on the Gale Light Academy residence, but I really don’t get what’s so interesting to watch," one of the men complained.

"Who cares? We just do as the Vice Sect Master says."

"True enough. Come on, drink up. Heh, this surveillance gig isn’t half bad. We get to drink every day. Not a bad life."

Suddenly, both men felt something flit past their Profound Senses. When they looked up, there was nothing there.

"Hey, did someone just leave?" one of them asked, bewildered.

"I felt it too."

The other Martial Artist also frowned. The two of them rushed to the window, but no matter how hard they looked, they couldn’t see a soul.

"What do we do?"

They looked at each other. The Vice Sect Master had demanded to be notified of any and all movements from the Gale Light Academy personnel. But they hadn’t even seen who left. How were they supposed to report that?

If the Vice Sect Master found out they had been drinking and missed something important, he would probably have their hides.

The mere thought of the Vice Sect Master’s methods made them both shudder.

"Ahem," one of them said with a straight face, "I think that must have been my imagination just now. With our level of strength, how could someone possibly get by us without being seen clearly?"

The other man’s expression flickered, but he nodded in agreement. "That’s what I was thinking. We must have been seeing things."

"Right, right. Let’s keep drinking."

The two men picked up their cups and resumed their drinking.

In a quiet corner, Ye Xuan applied a simple disguise. A moment later, a handsome, dapper-looking young gentleman emerged.

Ye Xuan still didn’t know where the sense of danger was coming from, so he simply began to wander through Ancient Yang City.

As the date of the peace talks drew near, more and more Martial Artists flocked to Ancient Yang City, making it exceptionally bustling.

As far as the eye could see, the city was filled with Martial Artists, almost all of whom were Tier Four, Tier Five, or higher. Aside from the local residents, it was nearly impossible to find any low-tier visiting Martial Artists.

This was a result of Ancient Yang City’s limited capacity to host visitors, as well as the major powers strictly controlling entry into the city.

Many Martial Artists seized the opportunity to trade treasures and materials, causing several large trading markets to spring up in Ancient Yang City.

Even the local auction house, which now held daily auctions, was still flooded with people, unable to meet the overwhelming demand.

As Ye Xuan wandered about, he kept his senses extended. That faint sense of danger followed him wherever he went, a persistent, omnipresent weight on his mind.

"Huh?"

Walking aimlessly, Ye Xuan let the crowd carry him along until he found himself standing before a massive structure.

Before him lay a magnificent architectural complex in the heart of Ancient Yang City, radiating an aura of ancient history.

Countless Martial Artists milled about in front of the complex, stopping to admire and discuss it.

"This is the imperial palace of the Ancient Yang Empire. According to historical records, the empire was once the foremost power on the Dream Realm Plain. But due to its tyranny and misrule, it angered several other major powers and was eventually destroyed by their combined forces."

"It’s tragic. A grand empire, turned to ash in an instant."

"No matter how powerful you are, if you lose the support of the people, it will all come to nothing in the end."

"Come on, let’s go inside for a look. The Ancient Yang Imperial Palace is now the biggest tourist attraction in Ancient Yang City. I heard the bathing halls of the imperial concubines are perfectly preserved. Let’s go check it out. Hehe, the beauties may be gone, but we can still pay our respects to their memory."

Groups of Martial Artists wandered everywhere, exploring the imperial palace.

Ye Xuan followed the stream of people into the palace grounds.

The buildings within had long fallen into disrepair, yet even after several thousand years, the main hall and other key structures remained largely intact. The carved dragons and phoenixes adorning them were a testament to the past glory and grandeur of the Ancient Yang Empire.