Chapter 0757: Undercurrents

Chapter 0757 Undercurrents

The middle-aged leader of the Wanxing Sect was no slouch either.

Seeing how young Qin Yun was, he sneered skeptically, "Anyone can brag! A kid like you, claiming to be a Runes Master and even the leader of some 'Mystic Rune Sect'? Yeah, right! I could just as well say I'm a Mystic Rune Master—would you believe me?"

Qin Yun smiled faintly, produced a talisman paper and a deceptively simple carving knife. With swift strokes, he quickly engraved some runes onto the paper.

In no time, he had crafted a talisman.

Qin Yun floated the talisman toward the man and said, "This talisman was just made by me. If you don’t believe I’m a Runes Master, press it onto the back of your hand!"

"Hahaha, you doodled some marks and call it a talisman? Are you trying to fool a child?" The middle-aged man from the Wanxing Sect barked a laugh.

The other disciples of the Wanxing Sect also howled with laughter.

"Press it onto your hand, and you’ll find out whether it’s real or not," Qin Yun said with an easy smile.

The female disciples of the Demonic Moon Island were clueless about what Qin Yun was up to, so they simply watched from the side. They knew full well that Qin Yun’s talent in runes was second to none among the younger generation!

The middle-aged man from the Wanxing Sect smacked the talisman onto the back of his hand, then raised it high, laughing loudly, "Everyone, behold! This is the talisman crafted by the leader of the Mystic Rune Sect! What a masterpiece, hahaha... Even a child could do better!"

The Wanxing Sect disciples cackled.

But just as their laughter peaked—

*Slap!*

A crisp sound abruptly cut the laughter short.

The middle-aged man from the Wanxing Sect had just viciously slapped himself across the face!

The man gaped at his traitorous hand in horror.

*Slap!*

He struck himself again.

Then, as if his hand had a mind of its own, it kept slapping his face repeatedly.

The women behind Qin Yun burst into giggles.

"Someone help me get this damn talisman off!" the middle-aged man yowled, unable to remove it himself.

Several disciples rushed over and struggled for a while before finally prying it loose.

"You... you bastard!" The man’s face was flushed red from his own slaps as he pointed furiously at Qin Yun.

"You were the one who stuck it on your hand," Qin Yun said with a chuckle. "Told you so."

"Bastard, I’ll kill you!" the middle-aged man from the Wanxing Sect snarled.

The middle-aged woman from Demonic Moon Island quickly planted herself in front of Qin Yun, and said coldly, "Try it if you dare!"

"So what if we do? What can a bunch of women like you possibly do to us?" The man sneered viciously. "Brothers, seize them! Let’s have some fun with these ladies!"

"Wanxing Sect, you filthy scum!" The women of Demonic Moon Island seethed with fury.

"Charge!" "Attack!"

"Take those women down, hahaha..."

The disciples of the Wanxing Sect all sneered with malicious grins, drawing their weapons and charging forward.

Qin Yun saw the Wanxing Sect disciples approaching and tossed out two binding talismans, then shouted sternly, "Take them out now!"

The female disciples of Yao Yue Island were also elite disciples, reacting swiftly as they surged forward, wielding their weapons mercilessly.

In an instant, the hundred-odd disciples of the Wanxing Sect were cut down by the several dozen female disciples of Yao Yue Island, left writhing and wailing on the ground.

The women of Yao Yue Island were no pushovers—when it came to killing villains, they didn’t even blink.

Now, several female disciples stepped forward to deliver the killing blows!

"The sect leader is truly amazing!" An alluring woman laughed coyly as she walked over.

"Alright, you all should head to the Sword Immortal Tower as well. Be careful on the way, and we’ll talk more once we return to the Divine Armory City. If I can make it in time, I’ll join you at the Sword Immortal Tower for some fun!" Qin Yun said with a smile.

Finally, he reminded the women once more not to reveal his return.

...

Qin Yun flew through the sky, hurrying back to the Divine Armory City.

Along the way, he found a secluded spot and took out the Immortal Entombment Scroll to drip blood on it, yet still failed to contact Xie Qirou.

He desperately wanted to know what had happened to her—why she hadn’t contacted him for so long.

The gates of the Divine Armory City were even more heavily guarded now, with everyone entering subjected to interrogation and special devices to detect Demon Cultivators.

This was because the Divine Armory City had become the enemy of several major factions.

The *Long Family* of Tenglong Province had united all the branch clans across multiple provinces, forming an incredibly formidable force—even declaring themselves the foremost family in the Spiritforsaken Mortal Realm.

Then there was the Jian Family!

The branch clans and subordinate sects of the Jian Family from several provinces were now all heading to the Sword Immortal Tower!

Feeling the threat from the *Long Family*, Jian Shitian had leveraged the Sword Martial Conference to gather Jian Family members from across the provinces.

As for the Yue, Yang, and Tian Families, they also wanted to unite, but internal disputes had arisen.

None were willing to submit to another, and with the need to elect a leader, they preferred ruling their own territories rather than merging into one force.

Thus, these once-promising great families had become a disorganized rabble.

Standing outside the city gates, Qin Yun pondered for a moment before activating the Piercing Mystic Art to phase through the barrier.

Since he had cultivated the Immortal-Demon Physique, there was a high chance he would be detected.

Once inside the Divine Armory City, he headed straight for the Immortal Armament Palace.

Qin Yun quietly returned to the Immortal Armament Palace, with almost no one aware of his arrival.

After returning, he immediately went to the courtyard of the Protectorate Hall to see Granny Ma.

Granny Ma was training some disciples in the training grounds when she suddenly sensed Qin Yun’s presence and spotted him—dressed in black and wearing a conical hat.

Overjoyed, she hurried over and led him into a hidden chamber.

"Granny Ma, I'm back!" Qin Yun smiled.

"Good to see you back!" Granny Ma also let out a sigh of relief, looking at Qin Yun with a cheerful expression.

"Have the sect master and the others gone to the Sword Martial Conference?" Qin Yun asked.

"Yes! We brought two to three hundred people this time!" Granny Ma's expression suddenly turned solemn. "The Sword Martial Conference might look like a grand event, but it's actually the Jian family gathering all their elite forces!"

"The situation outside the Spirit-Desolate Mortal Domain is so tense—could there be a hidden hand manipulating things?" Qin Yun also seemed to realize something.

"Exactly! The Profound Domain is in chaos right now, with several factions opposing each other. They’re bound to clash sooner or later! And they're worried that once the fighting starts, the powerful forces of our Mortal Domain might invade!" Granny Ma nodded.

"If the Profound Domain can plunge our Mortal Domain into chaos, then they won’t have to worry!" Qin Yun sneered.

"Right! That’s why the Jian family called this Sword Martial Conference—to gather all their forces in Ao Xingzhou and unite with our sects to stabilize the region!"

"Then they’ll fake chaos. Once war breaks out in the Profound Domain, we’ll charge in and carve out a place for ourselves!"

"Qin Yun, this is a secret—don’t spread it around!" Granny Ma warned.

"What about the Long family? It seems they have similar intentions!" Qin Yun asked.

"The Long family is backed by forces from the Profound Domain! Their gathering is meant to stir up chaos in the Mortal Domain!" Granny Ma said. "Even Qiao Feng was summoned back—she’s no longer a disciple of our Immortal Armament City!"

After chatting a while longer, Qin Yun bid farewell to Granny Ma and headed to the Immortal Armament Hall.

From Granny Ma, he also learned that Jian Linglong, Jian Ruyan, Jian Mang, and other members of the Jian family had gone to the Sword Immortal Pavilion.

...

Qin Yun arrived at the Immortal Armament Hall, where Bingxing sat in her usual spot by the celestial pool, serene as ever.

As soon as Qin Yun stepped inside, seeing this ethereal and peerless Star-Spirit Fairy, he felt a deep sense of reassurance.

Bingxing also knew Qin Yun had returned. Though inwardly excited, she remained outwardly composed, slowly opening her starry, beautiful eyes, her flawless face calm.

"Bingxing, I'm back!" Qin Yun grinned. "Did you miss me?"

"No!" Bingxing snorted lightly. "I figured you were dead!"

"Sorry for skipping our cultivation sessions these past few years." Qin Yun walked over and handed her a small vial.

"With the CelestialDemonic Sacred Body Art, I can still cultivate quickly!"

Bingxing took the vial and saw it contained many Nine Cycles Celestial Power. Her heart swelled with warmth—Qin Yun had clearly been thinking of this all along.

"You managed alright these years, didn’t you?" Bingxing gazed at Qin Yun, a trace of tenderness flashing in her beautiful eyes.

"Not bad! I forged a Mystic Dao Crystal in the Darkmoon Desolate Domain!" Qin Yun sighed and slowly sat down, explaining why it had taken him years to return.

After finishing, he cursed under his breath, "Damn that spatial passage—it stole years from me!"

Bingxing said, "Making it back at all is impressive. Shiyue visited me many times, discussing ways to enter the Darkmoon Desolate Domain to rescue you, but we never found a good method."

"Sister Yang’s got my back!" Qin Yun laughed happily.

"Come, let’s use the Sun Moon Celestial Bed and enter the Sun-Moon Realm. I’ll show you some core techniques of the CelestialDemonic Sacred Body Art to help you unleash greater power through your ImmortalDemon Physique!" Bingxing took Qin Yun’s hand and pulled him into the celestial pool.

Now, Qin Yun could lie with Bingxing on the Sun Moon Celestial Bed for four days—his mind living through four years’ worth of time.

With his comprehension and Bingxing's help, he made significant progress in various martial arts over the four years.

"Qin Yun, you still have some time. Take this time to absorb what you've learned these days!" Bingxing said. "I'll go out first!"

Bingxing left the Sun Moon Temporal Realm but still held Qin Yun's hand, leaving him inside alone.

At this moment, Qin Yun couldn’t sense what was happening outside and focused intently on practicing various martial techniques.

"Xiao Yun, Sister Bingxing is pulling her tricks on you again!" Ling Yuner giggled. "Hurry up and wake up!"

"This sly Celestial Fairy—I really can’t do anything about her!" Qin Yun muttered, trying to wake up but failing.

Before long, Qin Yun awoke from the Sun Moon Celestial Bed, while Bingxing stood calmly by the bedside.

Qin Yun didn't know whether to laugh or cry, unsure why this fairy always enjoyed sneaking in some advantage over him.

"Are you going to attend that Sword Martial Conference? Yuemei mentioned it to me a while ago—she’s planning to join the fun too!" Bingxing said.

"I’m not interested in that Sword Martial Conference. I need to find Yuemei—I have something important to discuss with that brat. Because of an accident, I was delayed for years!"

Qin Yun suddenly remembered his Soul-Refining Plan and sprang up from the Sun Moon Celestial Bed.

"Qin Yun, Yue You has contacted Shiyue. You can ask Shiyue about this matter!" Bingxing added.