Immortal Creation.

Chapter 689 Visit
The main gate of the Wanxiang Sect.

A certain entrance to the martial arts hall.

Liu Fu stood before his opponent with a gloomy face, transmitting his thoughts: "Chen Er, why did you do this? What benefits did Ning Zhuo give you that made you so willing to offend Lord Yu Heye and be so stubborn as to accept my challenge?"

Ning Zhuo hired a group of people to rent Benshan's cave dwellings on a large scale, forcing Liu Fu to take the initiative to confess and plead guilty to Yu Heye.

Yu Heye ordered his men to cause trouble for the cultivators who had rented the cave dwellings.

This is the main gate of the Myriad Manifestations Sect. Internal conflicts among cultivators are usually resolved through the Martial Arts Hall.

The Internal Affairs Hall is mainly used to handle major conflicts among members of the Myriad Manifestations Sect.

Even in cases where the conflict is not major, the Myriad Manifestations Sect encourages its members to practice martial arts in private to resolve disputes.

This system is very suitable for the Wanxiang Sect.

There are simply too many people in the Myriad Manifestations Sect! The friction among them leads to numerous conflicts. If we were to adopt the typical governance methods of a super-powerful sect, it would inevitably require a large number of personnel dedicated to resolving these conflicts.

This kind of rule by man inevitably leads to a lot of corruption and even wrongful convictions.

After all, the Myriad Manifestations Sect is not a cultivation kingdom. The latter can rely on officials to investigate and judge cases, and with the help of divine insight and official power to cast spells, they can often uncover the truth.

In the lead-up to the Flying Cloud Conference, people from all walks of life flocked to the main gate, resulting in an even larger crowd!
Many cultivators from outside the Myriad Manifestations Sect will come here to stay for a short period of time.

Therefore, a huge number of disputes and conflicts will arise.

The Myriad Manifestations Sect basically ignored these matters, leaving them all to be handled privately by each other.

This approach not only saves a significant amount of governance costs but also fosters a competitive and meritocratic atmosphere within the sect, ensuring that those who stand out in the Myriad Manifestations Sect are often those with formidable combat prowess!

With its high combat strength and large number of personnel, the Myriad Manifestations Sect is unable to restrain itself and confine itself to its old territory due to the irreconcilable contradictions that arise within it.

To avoid excessive internal strife, the higher-ups of the Myriad Manifestations Sect would naturally shift their internal conflicts to the outside world.

In this way, more space can be created for internal members to maneuver.

Over time, the power of the Myriad Manifestations Sect continued to expand. Those who temporarily lost in internal competition often chose to establish outposts outside the sect in an attempt to turn the tide. This resulted in the Myriad Manifestations Sect's influence reaching ever greater and greater extent.

Therefore, when Yu Heye discovered that someone had interfered with the mountain he had chosen, he naturally chose to use martial arts to resolve the issue.

Most of the cultivators Ning Zhuo gathered chose to avoid battle, dared not ask for the ten mid-grade spirit stones, and voluntarily cancelled the cave rental.

However, a few were stubborn enough to accept the challenge.

The "Chen Er" standing in front of Liu Fu was one of them.

From Liu Fu's perspective, it was naturally very puzzling.

He had already discovered that Ning Zhuo's rallying cry for these low-level cultivators was ten mid-grade spirit stones. Now, for ten spirit stones that were no longer available, was Chen Er willing to risk his life?

There are quite a few examples of people dying while practicing martial arts.

Little did he know that Chen Er was merely a temporary alias; his true identity was Ning Zhuo's cook.

The old cook remained silent, only beckoning Liu Fu with his finger.

Liu Fu was furious: "Stubborn to the end!"

He waved his hand, sending out ten talismans. The talismans ignited in mid-air, transforming into streams of water arrows that formed a wave of attack, enveloping the old cook.

With a sudden thought, the old chef took out a "shield" and placed it in front of him.

At the same time, the old chef pushed off the ground forcefully, used his agility to move quickly.

Bang bang bang.

The "shield" was extremely flexible, moving at will, surrounding the old chef and intercepting all threatening water arrows.

The old cook reached into his robe and then threw a handful of glutinous rice into the air.

The glutinous rice grew wildly in mid-air, transforming into giant, white worms that surrounded Liu Fu.

Liu Fu's heart skipped a beat: "A Gu cultivator?"

Liu Fu took out his prized magical artifact, a sword box he had acquired from the market.

He infused his magic power, opened the sword box, and streams of faint golden sword energy shot out from it.

The sword energy was sharp, piercing through the worm, and its momentum continued, circling back to pierce it again. This happened several times, until the giant worm lost its life.

The old chef smiled to himself.

Liu Fu's use of sword energy to attack the giant worm was definitely a mistake.

The old chef's original intention was to use it for consumption. Liu Fu spent a lot of magic power to condense sword energy, but only killed the worms, directly handing over the initiative in this battle.

If the sword energy were to be aimed at the old chef, he would certainly be on full alert, resulting in a stalemate.

But now, with no external pressure, Chef Lao can easily free up his hands to deal with Liu Fu.

He took out a gourd, which sprayed out a large amount of golden oil droplets.

Hundreds of thousands of oil droplets formed a torrential rain, enveloping Liu Fu.

Having lost the initiative, Liu Fu could only activate the talisman to form a golden bell-like light shield to protect himself and temporarily stabilize the situation.

The golden bell-shaped protective shield was quite sturdy; oil droplets hitting it shattered into pieces, scattering residual oil everywhere. For a time, it was impossible to penetrate.

"This is a talismanic treasure." Shen Xi was watching the battle.

A simple martial arts competition wouldn't have attracted him at all. But since it concerned Ning Zhuo and his own influence within the alliance, he became somewhat interested.

Shen Xi: "What do you think, cousin?"

He took the opportunity to train Su Lingkou.

Without hesitation, Su Ling said, "Liu Fu is not good at fighting. He made two wrong choices. The first time, he deliberately lost the initiative. The second time, he seemed to be as steady as Mount Tai, but in reality, he made himself a target."

“Especially the first time.” Su Ling shook her head, her face full of disdain. “Liu Fu actually used sword energy to attack the worms; he was utterly stupid!”

Shen Xi smiled slightly: "I can understand him. The methods of Gu cultivators are always unpredictable and strange. Liu Fu's choice to deal with these worms first is a prudent approach."

"It's just that he has poor judgment. Chen Er is not a Gu cultivator, so he should have mastered some cooking skills."

The beholder is clear.

Shen Xi noticed the details and recognized that what the chef had poured out was not a Gu worm, but glutinous rice.

Su Lingkou: "Liu Fu is going to lose. This Chen Er should be Ning Zhuo's response."

"He's hiding his real experts here. Yu Heye's subordinates won't let this go easily after failing in their challenge. In the end, it's very likely that Yu Heye will have to take action himself."

"Mm." Shen Xi nodded.

He watched intently, then pointed at the old cook: "Cousin, I need to investigate him."

Shen Xi needed to determine whether the chef was hired by Ning Zhuo at a high price or was one of Ning Zhuo's own subordinates. There was a huge difference between the two.

No sooner had he finished speaking than the old chef unleashed a decisive blow, severely injuring Liu Fu.

After winning, Chef Lao did not leave the martial arts hall. There were still a second and a third match to come.

Because it was a concentrated challenge, the Martial Arts Hall arranged the conflict between Ning Zhuo and Yu Heye's subordinates together.

The two fighters in the second match were one tall and one short.

The tall man roared, his arms bulging with muscles like the roots of an old tree, and slammed his fists into the ground.

A serpent burst from the ground and charged toward the short man.

The short man chuckled and, with incredible agility, leaped onto the earth python's back, charging head-on at the tall man.

The tall man snorted and sent out more than a dozen talismans, which instantly ignited.

The talisman transformed into numerous stone cones, shooting towards the short man. The short man's speed increased dramatically, leaving afterimages behind him, as he crashed head-on into the stone cones.

Amidst the barrage of stone spikes, he constantly shifted his position, swaying left and right, managing to dodge all the attacks before finally reaching the tall man.

The tall man, skilled in ranged magic, was quickly overwhelmed by the short man's close-range attacks wielding a dagger.

Seeing that things were not going well, the tall man had no choice but to admit defeat.

The third, the fourth, the fifth...

Yu Heye's side actually lost!
The overwhelming victory surprised Su Lingkou greatly.

Shen Xi's eyes flashed with a sharp light: "Where did Ning Zhuo find these skilled fighters? Cousin, investigate all of them thoroughly and find out their identities." He realized he had underestimated Ning Zhuo's strength and couldn't help but think to himself, "I need to re-evaluate this person."

at dusk.

"They've all been defeated?" Inside the training room, Yu Heye suddenly looked up, his eyes wide, staring at Liu Fu.

Liu Fu, his face deathly pale, stammered out the details.

Finally, he handed Yu Heye another visiting card.

The visiting card still came from Ning Zhuo!

Yu Heye frowned deeply, staring at the visiting card. After a short silence, his brows relaxed, revealing a smile: "A mere Foundation Establishment cultivator, hehe."

His impression of Ning Zhuo had begun to change slightly.

Although he is still only a Foundation Establishment cultivator, there seems to be a force that needs to be taken more seriously in terms of overall strength.

Of course, it wasn't given much attention.

Yu Heye was well aware that the cultivators who had attached themselves to him were not particularly strong.

He was a major practitioner of the "Reverse Five Elements Demonic Art," and his physical condition had been deteriorating day by day. He still had to risk breaking through to the Nascent Soul stage.

If they were elites in the Foundation Establishment stage and wanted to attach themselves to a powerful figure, they certainly wouldn't choose him.

A flame rose from his palm, burning the visiting card to ashes.

Yu Heye shook his hand and looked at Liu Fu: "The enemy came prepared, and you were caught off guard. It is only natural that you were defeated."

Instead of blaming them, he gave Liu Fu and the others a way out.

"In that case, let's try to find some connections."

“Ning Zhuo wants to gather a large number of independent cultivators to settle here. There is a key element to this: the active cultivators in the Internal Affairs Hall who are helping him.”

"Whether it's a warning, a threat, or an offer of bribes, the key is to get this crucial person under control, which could very well silence Ning Zhuo."

Yu Heye started to think.

He already knew how Ning Zhuo operated, and thus saw one of the key aspects of this operation.

Breaking this will cause considerable disruption to Ning Zhuo.

But the next moment, Liu Fu smiled bitterly: "Sir, we have just found the Internal Affairs Hall cultivator who is cooperating with Ning Zhuo."

"His surname is Cao, and his given name is Cao Gui."

Yu Heye frowned immediately: "Is it that Cao?"

Liu Fu was an old follower of his; otherwise, Yu Heye would not have entrusted him with the task of expelling the cultivators.

Liu Fu nodded.

Yu Heye frowned even more deeply: "It seems the other side came prepared."

Back then, he offended someone on the main peak—the Cao family. To resolve this issue, he almost exhausted his entire fortune.

Although the Cao family did not lay a hand on him, he could not compete for the position of Golden Core True Disciple—how could the Cao family allow an enemy to become the sect's true disciple?

Ning Zhuo's advance intelligence gathering was well worth the money.

When this approach failed, Yu Heye thought of another way: "It's a bit strange that these people can be used by Ning Zhuo. Go and investigate your opponents and find a way to bribe them."

With the Cao family involved, Yu Heye dared not make any big moves.

He'd rather pay money to avoid trouble.

Liu Fu nodded, accepted the order, and left.

Half a day later.

Su Lingkou, feeling disappointed, reported to Shen Xi.

Shen Xi raised an eyebrow slightly: "You're saying you can't investigate them at all?"

Su Ling nodded: "Yes, it's like it appeared out of nowhere."

Shen Xi's face showed a solemn expression.

It is not uncommon for outsiders to be brought to the Myriad Elephants Sect.

Since he is not a rogue cultivator, this means that Ning Zhuo has a powerful force backing him.

Ning Zhuo was immediately shrouded in mystery in Shen Xi's mind.

Liu Fu gave Yu Heye a similar response.

After Yu Heye dismissed Liu Fu, he remained silent in thought.

This step was not a mistake either.

Like Shen Xi, Yu Heye also raised his opinion of Ning Zhuo once again.

"Why is this person making such a fuss and putting me in such a difficult position? Is it because I lost face by driving him away?" Yu Heye wondered.

The solution is simple: just confront Ning Zhuo face to face.

but……

He burned all the visiting cards!

Just as Yu Heye was feeling regretful, his gaze suddenly sharpened. Beside him lay a visiting card, quietly placed.

？ ！！

Yu Heye was greatly surprised.

He had no idea when the visiting card was placed in his hands.

Since the other party can send a formal invitation, can't they also approach him at will and take his life without a second thought?

"Ning Zhuo, which faction do you actually rely on?!"

Yu Heye unfolded the visiting card and quickly read it.

The letter of invitation was very simple: Ning Zhuo was visiting Yu Heye to exchange ideas on the "Reverse Five Elements Demonic Art".

Yu Heye laughed in exasperation: "A mere Foundation Establishment cultivator dares to discuss Dao with a late-stage Golden Core cultivator like me?"

This attitude of equal exchange made Yu Heye quite unhappy.

But this time, he ultimately did not tear up the invitation.

After careful consideration, he spoke to Liu Fu again: "Make the arrangements. Tomorrow, I will entertain Ning Zhuo with some fine wine and food."

Liu Fu: "Yes."

The next day.

Ning Zhuo kept his promise and arrived at the Rock Cave on time.

He was very polite and addressed Yu Heye as a senior, which calmed the latter down considerably.

After exchanging pleasantries, Ning Zhuo frankly stated that he hadn't wanted to linger there and that it would be more convenient to choose another cave dwelling with the ten spirit stones. However, Shen Xi had come looking for him with other important business.

As for what the "important matter" was, Ning Zhuo gave a brief introduction.

"I see." Yu Heye stroked his beard, his face expressionless.

Ning Zhuo: "Therefore, please rest assured, Senior Yu. Although I am relying on the power of the Cao family, this matter is not something the Cao family is doing by using me to make things difficult for you."

Words are often heard in reverse.

In other words, if Ning Zhuozhen wanted to deal with Yu Heye, he could have made even deeper use of this power.

Yu Heye gave Ning Zhuo a deep look: "What do you intend to do?"

Ning Zhuo changed the subject: "I have been studying the 'Reverse Five Elements Demonic Art' recently and have some questions. I would like to ask you for your guidance, senior."

Yu Heye snorted coldly, impatient with Ning Zhuo's roundabout way of speaking, but he still stroked his beard and raised his head slightly: "Speak freely."

(End of this chapter)