"Who goes there?"
"Hmm? You carry the aura of Chan Master Wu Chao. Could it be that you are…?"
Sanye Dao Ren, sensing a similar aura to Chan Master Wu Chao, didn't hesitate. He immediately understood a few things. While warily on guard, he pondered.
Should he hand over the Hetu, as instructed by Patriarch Kunpeng, to this newcomer?
He was still contemplating.
The Hongri Tongzi on the opposite side immediately spoke with insolence!
"So it's Sanye Dao Ren from the Northern Darkness Sea. This young master is but Hongri Tongzi, a disciple of Chan Master Wu Chao. I thought some monster dared to pursue my master's future disciple, Jin Chanzi."
"Brother Sanye, are you not cultivating your demonic arts in the Northern Darkness Sea? Why have you come near Wu Chao Mountain? Do you wish to spar with this young master?"
"Have you forgotten that your master, Patriarch Kunpeng, was once a lackey of our Chan Master? How dare you defy him?"
"Jin Chanzi has already recovered thirty percent of his cultivation and is the future Tang Sanzang as designed by our Western Teachings. How can you possibly disrupt this?"
What an arrogant Hongri Tongzi.
Born from an esteemed lineage, being the Golden Crow feather of Chan Master Wu Chao, he possessed an exceedingly haughty tone.
Every word and action displayed the arrogance of an ancient demon.
He despised his own kind more fiercely than outsiders.
Having spoken thus.
Without waiting for Sanye Dao Ren to prepare, he immediately produced the Hongri Banner, chanted incantations, and from it spewed two powerful forces.
One, like a flood, was a crimson radiance, scalding hot, unbearable even for immortals, rushing towards Sanye Dao Ren.
This forced Sanye Dao Ren to immediately defend himself.
The other force transformed into a meteor-like white light, soaring above them, like a searchlight, constantly monitoring Sanye Dao Ren's movements.
Combined with the former, it formed a terrifying pressure that made Sanye Dao Ren gasp in awe!
"Well done, Chan Master Wu Chao!"
"He knows the might of my master and dares not come out easily. He also knows that Jin Chanzi's flesh is coveted by countless beings, and fearing an ambush, he sent only a mere disciple, yet one so powerful."
"If we were to purely compare cultivation, I, Sanye, am at least a Great Perfection Taiyi Golden Immortal, definitely not inferior to this disciple's Great Perfection Heavenly Immortal cultivation."
"Alas, my master had long instructed me not to engage in prolonged combat. Even more unfortunately, the Hongri Banner in this fellow's possession carries the life force of Chan Master Wu Chao. Though it is a common innate spiritual treasure, its power is tenfold that of its peers."
"What am I to do now?"
"Must I truly abandon the Hetu and flee alone?"
Facing the fierce assault of the Hongri Banner, Sanye Dao Ren was in a genuine predicament. He had initially intended to unleash his full power, combined with the Hetu, to fight back.
But upon second thought, doing so would foil his master's plan, and upon his return, any merit would be overshadowed by demerits.
It would be better to grant a favor and, by extension, let Chan Master Wu Chao's people become overconfident, so that they would underestimate him in future encounters.
With this thought.
Without a word, Sanye Dao Ren, while feigning to unleash waves of green demonic light to desperately resist the two forces from the Hongri Banner, seized the opportunity of being forced back.
He decisively produced the Hetu.
Originally, he could have uttered the incantation and unleashed the infinite power of the Hetu, capable of annihilating ten thousand Hongri Tongzi without breaking a sweat.
However, to lure Hongri Tongzi into seizing it, he intentionally refrained from doing so.
As expected.
At this moment, Hongri Tongzi saw the Hetu, the renowned top-grade innate spiritual treasure, in Sanye Dao Ren's hand. He was first filled with dread, then overjoyed.
Without overthinking if it was a trap.
He struck the Hongri Banner, dividing its two forces. The crimson radiance continued to strike Sanye Dao Ren, causing him to fall from the sky.
The white light, however, locked onto the Hetu in Sanye Dao Ren's hand. Taking advantage of his "inattention," it forcefully struck and brought it back!
"Hongri Tongzi, you dare to snatch my master's spiritual treasure! One day, you will die without a burial place!"
"And so will your Chan Master!"
Sanye Dao Ren, using the opportunity of receiving a minor injury, deliberately fell from the sky.
He cursed loudly.
In his heart, however, he was secretly pleased.
He had finally "given away" the Hetu!
"Ten thousand curses are not as effective as one move!"
"Brother Sanye, don't blame Hongri for ambushing you. It's your master who failed to properly teach his disciples. Truly useless, after so many years of cultivation, you're still rubbish."
"We won't kill you, as our two sides share the same origin. But this Hetu, you should hand it over to our Chan Master. Go back and tell your master not to get angry. Getting angry can lead to cultivation deviation."
"This item originally belonged to my Chan Master's father! It's a return to its rightful owner!"
After a few laughs, Hongri Tongzi, completely brainless and without a second thought as to how the Hetu could be so easily taken by him,
Immediately, he rushed to Chan Master Wu Chao with it.
"Chan Master!"
"It's the Hetu! It's the Hetu of the former Emperor! That Kunpeng is brainless to have gifted it to Sanye Dao Ren, and then I… Ouch!"
Before Hongri Tongzi could finish speaking and request a reward, Chan Master Wu Chao, on Wu Chao Mountain, divined some unfavorable karma.
He immediately flew into a rage!
However, despite his anger and resentment towards Patriarch Kunpeng's scheme, he still needed this disciple to handle the current situation.
Thus.
While Hongri Tongzi was dumbfounded and confused, Chan Master Wu Chao, with a fake smile, helped him up, and handed him a pill for healing and recovery.
At the same time, he took the Hetu but dared not use it. Instead, he immediately sealed it.
And gave Hongri Tongzi a new mission!
"You will go out on my behalf and welcome Jin Chanzi. Furthermore, give each of the representatives from other factions a Golden Crow Fruit as thanks for their 'protection' of Jin Chanzi along the way."
"Remember, do not be arrogant this time. These people are not as easily dealt with as Sanye Dao Ren."
Upon hearing this, Hongri Tongzi genuinely believed it was a good task for him and readily accepted the order and departed.
After Hongri Tongzi had gone far.
Chan Master Wu Chao's eyes shot out even more chilling intent!
"Well done, Kunpeng!"
"Well done, Sanye!"
"Well done, Jin Chanzi and Sun Wukong! Humph, you think you can use this to disadvantage me? You're still too green. This Chan Master will not rest!"
…
On the other side, Sanye Dao Ren, having completed his mission, barely managed to regulate his breathing. He had intended to return directly to the Northern Darkness Sea to present the hairpin to Patriarch Kunpeng.
Unexpectedly.
He was intercepted halfway by someone.
The intruders were none other than…
"Marshal Ma, Marshal Liu, I, your old Sun, often tell you, whether you're a person or a monkey, you should be polite and have manners."
"Must we court death and torment each other just because we are on opposing sides?"
These two were indeed Marshal Ma and Marshal Liu.
And the one who acted so shamelessly, who caused the most trouble and tormented others the most, yet posed as a good person,
Was none other than Sun Kong!
"Tell Sanye Dao Ren that we are here to be the fuse. If we don't detonate the various factions and see rivers of blood, how can it be exciting?"