Master of Strange Dao

Later, he became a top-tier warrior, always carrying that sickly seedling and taking care of it meticulously until the secret was revealed. Then he disappeared without a trace, and no one could find a clue about him.

Now it surfaced again that the old King Qi had a piece of Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasure infused with the breath of Immortal Herbs, allowing his line, which hadn't seen a Ninth Tier in generations, to produce one.

Li Xingchen, just thinking about it, felt exhausted. Waving his hand, he urged his subordinates to get busy while he hurried to meet Emperor Zhen.

King Qi deliberately left these things behind. They could suppress the news, but with King Qi's treacherous approach towards Emperor Zhen, he surely had backup plans.

This news definitely couldn't be kept under wraps.

Just after Li Xingchen met with Emperor Zhen, news came from his subordinates.

The rumor that King Qi wasn't dead mysteriously spread.

Then, the news about King Qi having two maps pointing to the location of the Immortal Herbs also began to circulate.

Li Xingchen covered his face, cursing.

"What the hell, just let it spread. Spread the word that the one who died back then was just King Qi's incarnation; his true self escaped. As for the Immortal Herbs, who knows, let whoever wants to do whatever."

Since it couldn't be hidden, he might as well confirm the news of King Qi's survival to prevent other kings from being suspicious all the time.

Finding an excuse to divert others' attention wasn't a bad idea either.

A few days later, Yu Ziqing, far away in Almsgiving Town, noticed that some rumors had started to circulate there as well.

It was said that the old King Qi had a top-tier piece of Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasure infused with the breath of Immortal Herbs, and King Qi killed his father for this.

That's why King Qi was Ninth Tier now.

Moreover, King Qi still held two maps to the location of the Immortal Herbs, and he had gone to the Abyss.

The rumors spread with such detail that even Yu Ziqing found them plausible.

Except for the part about King Qi being Ninth Tier.

Yu Ziqing specifically asked Yang about it; for a cultivator to advance to Ninth Tier, even with external help, that help could only play a secondary role and could never account for eighty or ninety percent of the credit.

Unless that external help was a true Immortal Herb.

But the rumors claimed that King Qi relied on resources to barely scrape into Eighth Tier, then used a top-tier piece of Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasure infused with Immortal Herb breath to reach Ninth Tier.

The accuracy of the Immortal Herb story was thereby confirmed.

These sources came from Dazhen, and it was said that even the Dazhen court confirmed that King Qi indeed wasn't dead and had escaped quietly.

Thus, all these rumors were authenticated by the Dazhen court and deemed true.

This sudden outburst of information left Yu Ziqing puzzled as to who intentionally leaked it.

Regardless of the truth, the number of cultivators entering the Abyss through the Abyssal Rift was slowly increasing.

Within a few days, cultivators came out of the Abyssal Rift. Upon seeing people, they claimed to have found traces of King Qi, but everyone was killed. After saying this, they died on the spot.

Things developed quickly, and the rumors spread rapidly.

In less than ten days, the first Ninth Tier to enter the Abyssal Rift appeared, an elder Ninth Tier nearing the end of their lifespan.

Yu Ziqing sighed inwardly; people would die for wealth and birds for food; it can't be stopped.

The early birds that show up certainly have the highest chances of acquiring treasures.

Yu Ziqing could restrain himself from taking action but couldn't help paying closer attention, let alone others.

During these days, listening to the entertainment frequencies from the Jade Tablet of Kuihou Country, Emperor Kuihou, Qu Pingzhi, started to add some recent gossip topics in the mix, mentioning legends related to Immortal Herbs.

...

A thousand miles away from Almsgiving Town, two masked White Water Eggs met here.

Luckily, neither of them had faces; otherwise, their expressions would certainly have been very unpleasant.

King Qi, recklessly stabbing in the back, was absolutely beyond their expectations.

They had just flipped the table and spread the news, yet before their information began to disseminate, some fragments had already started circulating outside.

How could they not understand that this was definitely King Qi's intention?

The White Water Egg marked with the number Eight at the edge of the mask said,

"What do we do now? That King Qi knows more than we imagined.

He deliberately muddied the waters, even putting himself in danger; we've all underestimated him."

The White Water Egg marked Ten gritted his teeth and said,

"Then we'll fan the flames, draw more people in and create greater chaos.

Not only should we lure in the Sea Clan from the East Sea and the Demon Clan, but also the Devil, and Jinlan Mountain.

Bring them all in.

The confrontation between Dazhen and Dali was puzzling.

Dazhen reclaimed half of the lost territory, and yet Emperor Li and the Crown Prince could endure.

Instead, they sent more forces to the Southern Border to confront Daqian, which was utterly puzzling and unlike their usual conduct."

The White Water Egg marked Eight shook his head.

"What do you mean unlike? Do they really dare push Dazhen to the brink?

Daqian is the greatest threat, and the Crown Prince wishes to achieve a great victory in the confrontation with Daqian.

She had long planned for it, and pushing the Dali Country's border southward before ascending the throne would be prestigious.

Cornering Dazhen would only halt the disputes within the Divine Dynasty and unite them against external foes.

That would be counterproductive; she surely hopes for Dazhen to maintain the status quo ideally."

"There's no need to guide the Sea Clan or the Demon Clan, and letting out news is enough for the Devil.

As for those sects, they are also easy. Those strong warriors nearing the end of their lifespan can't help themselves.