On the official road from Xiuyue County to Cui Mountain Town.
CLIP-CLOP... CLIP-CLOP...
RUMBLE... RUMBLE...
The sounds of hooves and wheels echoed on the thick, packed-earth road. The iron-shod hooves struck the ground with a crisp, lively rhythm, while the spring-equipped wheels rolled with a steady, heavy sound.
The hour was getting late. The sun had just begun to set, and the sky was already growing dim.
At their current pace, it would likely be dark by the time they returned to Cui Mountain Town.
They, of course, were not afraid, but ordinary people dared not travel at night.
Even with Daluo Palace nearby, and even though rumors of Demon Ghosts harming people had greatly decreased in the past two years, "decreased" did not mean "nonexistent." Besides, there was no shortage of wild beasts like jackals, wolves, and tigers in the mountains and forests.
Most traveling Escort Teams and merchants made sure to reach the nearest county or town before sunset. Even if it was just a village or a roadside inn, they would avoid spending the night in the open.
So, by the time Gu Zhao’s group left Xiuyue County, the official road was already deserted.
The two Outer Disciples held the reins with composed expressions, their sharp eyes scanning from side to side.
Bai Ke was also leaning against the carriage’s small window, her Divine Sense spreading out. ’Where is that bad guy?’
"Whoa—" The Outer Disciple driving the carriage pulled on the reins.
The Silk Embroideress lifted the carriage curtain and saw a handsome man standing outside, regarding them with a beaming smile. He raised an eyebrow, the outer corners of his eyes crinkling with a hint of roguish charm, while his mouth curved into a malicious grin.
"You’ve got some nerve," the man chuckled. "Did you really think I wouldn’t dare make a move in Daluo Palace’s territory?"
Gu Zhao smiled faintly and vaulted off the carriage. "We’re barely ten miles from Daluo Palace. You dare to make a move here?"
"If you had stayed in Xiuyue County, it would have been inconvenient for me to act. After all, I don’t wish to attract the attention of the Daluo Palace Master just yet," the man replied with a smile of his own. "But you actually dared to leave Xiuyue County. Did your family elders give you this confidence?"
"My family elders..."
Gu Zhao glanced back at the two Outer Disciples driving the carriage, and then at the seven great beauties who had lifted the curtain and were peeking out curiously.
’I really do fit the profile of a spoiled young master.’
"You just said you don’t want to provoke the Daluo Palace Master?" Gu Zhao asked.
The handsome man nodded. "I still need to probe his true strength."
Gu Zhao’s eyes narrowed, and a flicker of vigilance rose in his heart.
’Daluo Palace’s battle record is well-documented. Both the Mo Lake Ink Flood Dragon and the Cloud Celestial Palace Master were Great Demons with thousands of years of cultivation, yet they both died at the hands of the Daluo Palace Master.’
’If this person knows of the Daluo Palace Master’s accomplishments and still dares to come and probe my strength, then his Cultivation must be anything but weak!’
’Weren’t the masters of this world supposed to be distributed in a Pyramid structure?’
’Those with over five hundred years of Dao Practice are rare, and those with over a thousand are great masters who can dominate a region. So how can grand masters with several thousand years of Dao Practice keep popping up out of nowhere?’
’Fortunately, I’ve also been getting stronger and stronger, or I might have had to call for backup right now.’
Gu Zhao grinned and patted his gourd. "Then this is your lucky day."
The man raised an eyebrow. "And why is that?"
"You can probe his true strength right now."
As soon as Gu Zhao’s voice fell, eight Banners flew out of his gourd, arranging themselves in the eight cardinal directions and instantly trapping the man within.
An expert’s skill is clear from a single move.
This ancient proverb from Celestial Xia was just as applicable in this Otherworld.
The moment Gu Zhao’s aura was revealed, a true master would be able to detect the clues. Even a single trace was enough to reveal its profound mysteries and depth.
So, the moment Gu Zhao made his move, the handsome man’s eyes narrowed sharply.
"You’re the Daluo Palace Master!"
As the handsome man spoke, he raised his hand and produced a Black Banner.
In an instant, black qi surged forth. A violent, bloodthirsty aura immediately filled the air, threatening to blast away the eight surrounding Banners.
When the man’s aura flared, Gu Zhao was also startled.
’He had initially thought the man only had a thousand years of Dao Practice. But when his opponent produced the Black Banner and unleashed his aura, Gu Zhao could tell he had at least three thousand years of Dao Practice, no less than that Ink Flood Dragon.’
’Not only that, but his Black Banner was also a top-tier Magical Treasure. The two combined to increase his power even further.’
"You are a disciple of the Six-Headed Divine Monarch," Gu Zhao said immediately.
"I am Mo He Divine Monarch. Hand over the Eye Sword and the Tail Map, and give me that Celestial Fox," the handsome man snarled, shaking the Black Banner. "If I’m feeling generous, I’ll leave you a complete corpse."
"Never heard of you. Why don’t you get out of my Eight Gates Golden Lock Array first, then we can talk," Gu Zhao said indifferently.
’If he had met this person a year ago, Gu Zhao would have called for backup without a second thought. But over the past year, not only had a group of old Daoists contributed Evil Qi by Exorcising Demons and Evil Spirits, but he himself had also commanded an Array to eliminate the Ink Flood Dragon and Yun Fei’ang.’
’For more than a year, although he hadn’t acted often, his Dao Practice Magical Power had advanced by leaps and bounds. At this point, not even Gu Zhao himself was sure just how powerful he had become.’
’Since he had happened to run into a relatively formidable opponent, Gu Zhao decided he might as well test his current abilities.’
’Of course, just in case, Gu Zhao still threw out the Eight Gates Golden Lock Array first to block his opponent’s escape route and ensure he couldn’t flee.’
This Array was a variation of the Nine Palace Eight Trigrams Array. The Eight Trigrams Array required one person to preside over each trigram, but the Golden Lock Array had no trigrams and could instead be controlled by a single person presiding over all Eight Gates.
The poles of these eight Banners were refined from eight-hundred-year-old deep mountain rosewood, and the Banners themselves were woven from the silk of five-hundred-year-old ice silkworms. The Runes were personally embroidered by Taoist Cheng Ping, an inheritor of the Su Embroidery tradition, and finally, Gu Zhao had refined them for eighty-one days before they were complete.
The moment the eight Banners appeared, they instantly sealed off the heavens and the earth, locking the handsome man, Mo He Divine Monarch, in the center.
Mo He Divine Monarch had yet to realize the gravity of the situation. He believed his Magical Power was profound and his Magical Treasure was superb. To be honest, he didn’t really take Gu Zhao seriously at all.
He had recently discovered that although both the Mo Lake Ink Flood Dragon and the Cloud Celestial Palace Master had died at the hands of the Daluo Palace Master, the Palace Master had actually relied on superior numbers, using the Elders of his palace to set up an Array.
’So, even though they had met on the road by chance, his own decision to act was a spur-of-the-moment one inspired by the Celestial Fox, meaning his opponent was likely unprepared as well.’
’Under these circumstances, Mo He Divine Monarch felt the advantage was his.’
That is, until he unleashed the power of his black Soul Banner and failed to break through the sealed void of the Eight Gates Golden Lock.
BOOM!
The black qi was blocked by the Eight Gates Golden Lock Array, but the array itself also shook violently from the turbulent aura.
’As expected of a great master with several thousand years of Dao Practice, and as expected of a top-tier Magical Treasure from the Six-Headed Divine Monarch!’
Ye Ruyan and Miaoyun Princess acted in unison, steadying the two carriages. At the same time, they enveloped the vehicles and their occupants, moving them all to a safe distance.
"So powerful!" Miaoyun Princess exclaimed in amazement.
Ye Ruyan was also startled when she felt the aura. "Sect Leader, do you need our help? Or should we return to the palace and get the Elders?"
"No need." Gu Zhao waved his hand dismissively.
’After one exchange, he didn’t know if his opponent had managed to gauge his true strength, but he had certainly gauged his opponent’s.’