The Captain had clearly learned some unusual technique that allowed him to figure out where Xu Qing was and what he was doing; the door to the private chamber swung open, and the Captain strolled in looking very pleased with himself.

“What do you think, little Ah Qing? This technique is specifically designed to open the doors of private chambers sealed with warding spells and spell formations. Very amazing! I actually learned it from a good friend of mine that I made after arriving here in the imperial capital. She taught it to me.”

Xu Qing looked at the Captain and then the door of the private chamber. He had to admit he was intrigued. After all, the private chamber was sealed, not only with a powerful warding spell, but also, some of Xu Qing’s own methods. Although it couldn’t be considered completely flawless, it still wasn’t supposed to be easy to open the door. Yet the Captain had opened it with seemingly no effort at all.

“What technique is it?” Xu Qing asked.

The Captain seemed very pleased to hear such a question. “I, your Eldest Brother, have been going out every day since we got to the imperial capital. I wasn’t just fishing for information. I actually assumed a secret identity, then went and made a bunch of friends. And one of them is extremely mysterious.

“Of course, you know me. How could I possibly be the kind of person just anyone becomes friends with? Therefore, I initially refused her. However, she was so anxious to become my friend that she taught me the technique. But, enough of that. You’re done with your cultivation, right? Come with me.”

With a face full of anticipation, the Captain grabbed Xu Qing’s arm. There wasn’t much Xu Qing could do. There weren’t many people in the world who he couldn’t refuse, but the Captain was one of them.

“What are you up to this time?” he asked as he rose to his feet.

Pushing Xu Qing toward the door, the Captain answered, “I need you to come with me to the Star Emperor Preeminence Sect. To steal something.”

Xu Qing stopped in place. “Count me out.”

He had no choice but to refuse. After all, he wasn’t looking to get killed.

The Captain cleared his throat. “It’s one of their branch sects. Not the main headquarters. Look, it’s no big deal. The strongest person there is a Void Returning expert. As long as we don’t make a big scene and attract the attention of their main headquarters, we can be in and out before anyone realizes it.”

Xu Qing thought about it briefly, then agreed.

It was dark outside, and there was a strong breeze. Waves rippled across the surface of Ningyan’s pond. Xu Qing and the Captain sped out of the mansion.

“I already set the time and place with this mysterious friend of mine. Tonight, we’re going to a restricted area in the Star Emperor Preeminence Sect branch sect to get that item.” The Captain took out a mask and tossed it to Xu Qing. “Put that on. I liberated it from the old man’s stockpile before we came to the imperial capital. It can conceal your identity. As long as you keep your aura reined in, you can temporarily prevent anyone from recognizing you.

“After all, I’m not really sure who this mysterious friend of mine is. She’s probably just using me to keep her true identity secret. And she probably has other motives as well. But in the end, it doesn’t matter, as I really have to get into that restricted area. I need something from there for our next big job.

“Incidentally, I’m not worried about her at all. I’m pretty sure she has no idea who I really am. But just to be safe, I’m bringing you along to watch my back. If it turns out she’s planning to betray me, you need to put her to death immediately! What’s more, after she and I go in, if she comes out alone, then you need to stop her. I’m worried that she might try to sell me out.”

Xu Qing nodded and put on the mask. The mask’s special construction ensured that it fit comfortably onto Xu Qing’s face immediately. He rubbed it as he sped along with the Captain. This wasn’t his first time doing things like this with the Captain. As he continued on his way, he thought more about the Xeno-Immortal School’s techniques, and how to use the different weaving methods.

Theoretically speaking, my godsource soul threads should be able to weave my second-level god state. That said, my control over the soul threads isn’t at that level yet. I need more practice with the weaving techniques. But with additional training, I’ll be able to do it.

Of course, the first state is actually very simple. I have enough soul threads, and I can weave it almost instantly. I can even transform into that state…. This is actually perfect for the imperial capital, as there are some situations in which I want to hide my identity.

Xu Qing did some weaving in his sea of consciousness, causing his aura to transform. The Captain noticed what was happening and looked over in surprise, although he didn’t ask any questions.

And thus, the two of them sped through the night in full concealment. About two hours later, they reached the northwestern part of the capital. It was a relatively remote mountainous area that was currently choked with snow. One of the mountains in the mountain range seemed capable of absorbing starlight. It glittered brightly, and created a seven-colored glow in the snowflakes. This was the location of a branch sect of the Star Emperor Preeminence Sect. It obviously contained a different dimension, and this was the entrance.

“Finally here.” As the Captain looked at the dazzling mountain, he squatted, licked his lips, and looked at Xu Qing.

Xu Qing closed his eyes and continued working on the weaving in his sea of consciousness. His aura was now completely different from before.

Sensing that transformation, the Captain couldn’t help but ask, “What are you up to, little Ah Qing? I told you to rein in your aura, not completely change it! How are you doing that anyway? That change to your aura is so dramatic that, with the mask on, I really can’t tell it’s you….”

“It’s just a technique I learned recently,” Xu Qing said, opening his eyes. He gave no further explanation.

The Captain was very curious and was about to ask some follow-up questions when a faint whistling sound reached them. The Captain and Xu Qing both looked up.

A young woman approached, her facial features average, her clothing a black robe. Striding through the wind and snow, she reached the Captain and Xu Qing. After looking Xu Qing up and down, she said, “Who’s this, Chen Daqing?”

Upon hearing the name, Xu Qing looked over at the Captain. Clearly, ‘Chen Daqing’ was the Captain’s assumed name. 1

The Captain blinked a few times and said, “This is my good friend Ergou. He was worried about me doing this alone, so he came along.”2

The young woman said nothing further on that subject. With a final glance at Xu Qing, she shifted her attention to the Star Emperor Preeminence Sect. “Well then, shall we begin as agreed?”

“Let’s go!” The Captain took a deep breath, gave a final glance to Xu Qing, and then flew into the air.

The young woman followed, and together, the two of them approached the dazzling mountain.

Xu Qing watched as they got closer and closer until they blurred and disappeared. That wasn’t surprising. Given what the Captain was capable of, if he said someone was mysterious, that person had to be extraordinary. What was more, considering they were targeting the Star Emperor Preeminence Sect, there was no doubt this person was at least somewhat trustworthy.

Then again, considering the Captain’s suicidal personality, Xu Qing was actually slightly concerned. With that, he flew over to another nearby mountain to wait.

Time passed. Things seemed quiet in the Star Emperor Preeminence’s branch sect. About two hours later, the air outside the dazzling mountain rippled, and the young woman appeared. Without any hesitation, she burst into motion. However, she’d hardly moved when Xu Qing appeared in front of her, blocking her path.

“Why are you in such a hurry to leave, Fellow Daoist?” Xu Qing said calmly. “I think the safest thing would be to wait until Daqing comes out.”

The woman frowned and her eyes turned cold. “Screw off!”

She waved her hand, releasing a dangerous energy that converged in front of her to make a mirror. The mirror swept over Xu Qing, then shattered. Meanwhile, the woman unhesitatingly continued on her way. However, only a moment later, her pupils constricted as Xu Qing materialized in front of her again.

“Stop right there,” he said.

Her pupils constricted again. After looking him up and down again, she lifted her right hand and pushed out in front of her. The falling snow slowed, then transformed into a host of ice needles that shot toward Xu Qing.

His face remained expressionless as he performed an incantation gesture with his left hand. Instantly, black fire erupted around him and shot toward the woman. They clashed, exchanging magical techniques back and forth over the space of several breaths of time. It didn’t take very long for them to exchange over a hundred blows.

That said, both were being careful not to make too much noise or release any big fluctuations that might attract attention.

After ten breaths of time, the woman was starting to get anxious. Looking impatient, she said, “I don’t know what happened to Chen Daqing after we went inside. There’s no point in you stopping me. If you don’t buzz off… I’ll kill you!”

“You can leave once he comes out,” Xu Qing said quietly.

“Looking to die!?” the woman snapped, her eyes turning ice-cold. Suddenly, her forehead split open, and a white needle shot out, looking both graceful and extremely fast as it closed in on Xu Qing. The aura was different from what you would expect from cultivators. It was more like the pressure of a god. That said, it wasn’t exactly that of a god. However, the domineering nature of it was shocking to say the least. It was the type of force that, on a substructural level, was superior to everything else.

Xu Qing’s pupils constricted as he sensed sudden danger. Without any hesitation, he unleashed 310,000 soul threads from his sea of consciousness, which swept out to form a vicious projection around him. It looked like a huge beetle, pulsing with fluctuations of godliness that seemed very close to that of an actual god. This was the ‘earthchild’ that he had learned from the information from the Xeno-Immortal School. Earthchildren never got higher than the Spirit Trove level in their cultivation. But this one was actually in Void Returning, simply because it was formed from Xu Qing’s soul threads. As soon as it appeared, the conglomeration of 310,000 soul threads slammed into the incoming needle.

The woman’s eyes went wide, and she backed up. “Stop! Fellow Daoist Ergou, things will turn bad if we keep fighting. I can already see weaknesses in the warding spells I set up in the area. Let’s stop fighting. I’ll wait here with you!”

Even as she spoke, she nervously waved her hand to recall the white needle.

Xu Qing’s eyes narrowed. Waving his hand, he dispelled the earthchild and concealed his soul threads. That said, he could call them back at a moment’s notice if necessary.

Snow continued to fall on the two of them as they stood there quietly.

After about a dozen breaths of time passed, the woman looked at Xu Qing. Not attempting to conceal her surprise, she took a deep breath and cautiously said, “Fellow Daoist Ergou, were you just using the techniques of the Xeno-Immortal School? Those tens of thousands of soul threads… were very frightening…. I can’t believe someone advanced Xeno-Immortal School cultivation techniques to that level. Can I ask… who are you?”

1. Chen Daqing: Chen is the Captain’s actual surname. Da means “big, grand” and Qing is from Xu Qing’s name. I think you get the picture…. ☜

2. Ergou: Er is the same Er from the Captain’s name, which means “two, second.” Gou means “dog” (as opposed to the Niu “ox” from the Captain’s name). I think you get the picture…. ☜

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