Covering the Sky: A Guide to Proving the Dao Without Cheats

Upon hearing this, Luo Heng's face turned serious, and he slowly said, "If I'm not mistaken... this isn't just a matter of whether it can compare to the Nine Secrets. It's very likely a fragment of the 'Xing' character secret, one of the Nine Secrets!"

"What?" Ye Fan was genuinely surprised.

He never imagined that the footwork he had learned from the old madman had such an origin. After the initial surprise, joy followed: firstly, he was glad that he hadn't taken Luo Heng's benefits for nothing, and secondly, he was happy that he wasn't unlucky at all, having unknowingly acquired two of the Nine Secrets.

Next, the two began to discuss the key points of cultivation and application of the incomplete "Xing" character secret manual. At first, Ye Fan did the talking, with Luo Heng only occasionally interjecting a word or two. Later, it was mostly Ye Fan talking. As Luo Heng listened, he sensed something was amiss and glanced at Ye Fan, who was speaking eloquently across from him.

He had secretly and quietly connected with the Heavenly Heart Imprint within the Great Luo Heaven. In an instant, his thoughts were cleansed, his insight soared, and the subtle details and unfinished charm of the incomplete chapter became clear and transparent in his eyes.

When he spoke again, his tone was much more composed, and his insights suddenly became more profound. At first, he was just following along with Ye Fan's words, but later he unknowingly took the lead and began to teach Ye Fan.

When he got excited, he had a flash of inspiration and, following the outline of the incomplete piece, actually managed to complete a small part of it.

Ye Fan took a few steps as instructed, still somewhat doubtful. Sure enough, he was a dozen or two faster than before, which made him look pleasantly surprised.

At this moment, Ye Fan's gaze towards Luo Heng even carried a hint of admiration.

Even with Luo Heng's thick skin, he felt somewhat uncomfortable under that gaze. He coughed lightly, picked up his wine glass, and took a sip before changing the subject: "Ahem... We can discuss cultivation later. Why don't you continue telling me what happened afterward?"

Ye Fan smiled upon hearing this and readily agreed, continuing to recount his subsequent experiences.

Luo Heng listened from the side, nodding and agreeing from time to time. The slight awkwardness from before quietly dissipated in the gentle breeze and the aroma of wine flowing through the pavilion.

When Luo Heng got to the part about how Duan De "sold" him to the demon race with a drop of Qingdi's blood essence, he suddenly made him stop with a strange expression, and then took out a bright red crystal from his storage magic artifact and placed it on the table.

Ye Fan's eyes widened in astonishment: "Demon Emperor's essence blood?! No... how did this end up in your hands?"

"Yeah, I didn't expect it to be such a coincidence either." Luo Heng exclaimed in a pretentious manner, "That fat Duan De must have had some incredible luck to actually get his hands on the lid of the Ruthless Great Emperor's ultimate weapon—the Devouring Heaven Demon Jar."

"I just happened to hear about this, so I led a group to ambush him. After knocking him unconscious, we not only retrieved the jar lid, but also managed to steal this drop of Azure Emperor's essence blood from his body."

After hearing this, Ye Fan finally couldn't help but laugh and curse, "Serves him right! He really deserves it! That shameless fatso finally got his comeuppance." He then picked up the wine jug, filled Luo Heng's cup, raised his glass, and said with a smile, "Anyway, Lao Luo, you've gotten revenge for me. This glass is for you!"

Luo Heng smiled and clinked glasses with him.

Ye Fan continued his story, and when he mentioned Yan Ruyu, Luo Heng couldn't help but interject:

"Huh? You've met Yan Ruyu too! I've dealt with her once before, and we even made a deal. How should I put it... she truly lives up to her reputation as the undisputed number one beauty of the Eastern Wilderness, her looks, heh!"

Seeing his smug expression, Ye Fan could only roll his eyes helplessly.

"Wait, Lao Ye, what's with that expression?"

Luo Heng got excited and deliberately moved closer. "Hey, you wouldn't happen to have a crush on Yan Ruyu, would you? Let me tell you, Xiao Ye, Yan Ruyu is a princess of the demon race, a 'demon'! You're still too young to handle this. This kind of 'demon-slaying' work is best left to your brother Luo."

Ye Fan was both amused and exasperated by Luo Heng's rant. After Luo Heng finished speaking, Ye Fan shook his head and continued to recount his own experiences.

When he got to the part about Ji Haoyue running off to steal the Demon Emperor's sacred weapon, Luo Heng couldn't help but burst out laughing. Seeing Ye Fan's bewildered expression, he waved his hand, "It's nothing, it's nothing. I just suddenly remembered something happy. Go on."

The reason Luo Heng laughed this time was because he genuinely remembered something happy. When he heard the name "Ji Haoyue," he instantly recalled the teasing he had received from his fellow book lovers in his previous life.

Leaving aside the fact that he was fighting for the imperial weapon, the most outrageous thing is that when he was the brother-in-law, he couldn't beat "Yellow Hair". After finally becoming "Yellow Hair" himself, he was still beaten down by the brother-in-law.

What's even more absurd is that in the end, he still had to rely on his own sister's little "yellow-haired" friend to help him get revenge.

The word "miserable" hardly does it justice.

……

Luo Heng's expression only became "strange" when Ye Fan mentioned that he had accidentally entered the Bronze Immortal Palace and obtained the Xuanhuang Mother Qi.

"When you mentioned the Primordial Qi of Xuanhuang before, I guessed it might have come from the Bronze Immortal Palace... I didn't expect it to be true."

"Is there a problem with the Bronze Immortal Palace?" Ye Fan was initially surprised, then his expression changed, and he blurted out, "Could it be... the Ruthless Great Emperor..."

Upon hearing this, Luo Heng smiled faintly and explained, "That bronze immortal palace was originally left behind by the Ruthless Great Emperor, and the massive amounts of Xuanhuang Qi and Xuanhuang Mother Qi inside were naturally her doing as well."

"Actually, I've been inside the Bronze Immortal Palace before you—when I went, the Primordial Qi was still there. But for some reason, I didn't touch the Primordial Qi; I only collected some Primordial Qi and left. I didn't expect you to succeed in the end."

Ye Fan felt a little awkward again. He had taken something left behind by the Ruthless Great Emperor, and Luo Heng was the Great Emperor's successor. If Luo Heng were an enemy or even a stranger, he wouldn't have taken it, but the other party happened to be his friend... which made him somewhat uncomfortable.

Seeing that Ye Fan opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something, Luo Heng waved his hand and interrupted him with a smile: "Old Ye, don't overthink it. I'm telling you this not because I want to get back the Xuanhuang Mother Qi."

"If I really wanted to take it, I would have taken it when I went in. Besides, you just offered to share some with me, but I refused. Like I said, the Primordial Chaos Qi isn't the path I'm meant to follow."

He paused, his tone becoming more serious: "I'm telling you this for two reasons. First, it's quite a coincidence, and second, it's to remind you—by taking the Ruthless Great Emperor's things, you've essentially created a karmic connection with her. You should be more careful in your future actions."

"Ruthless Great Emperor..." Ye Fan murmured these four words, then looked at Luo Heng curiously, "Didn't you receive her inheritance? How much do you know about this ancient Great Emperor? Tell me about it."

Luo Heng put away his smile, sighed softly, and gave a brief account of the life of the Ruthless Great Emperor.

……