Taiyi Dao Fruit

The copper coins fell and struck the table, making a thudding sound.

Six times in succession, the divination revealed itself: Lake above, Thunder below—it was the Sui Trigram.

"Zelei Sui, compliance and harmony, steadfast and self-contained; one must follow the flow of fortune and not be overbearing," Gongsun Qingyue looked at the divination pattern and said, "Those who receive this divination should follow the general trend, and their endeavors will succeed, it's an auspicious divination."

"A good omen." Qi Changsheng spoke while reaching into his storage bag.

Regardless of whether it's a good situation or not, since an anomaly has appeared, one must not relax.

In a sense, Qi Changsheng and Jiang Li were of the same ilk, just not as extreme as Jiang Li. To protect his life, he even specifically learned divination.

This could also be considered a case of birds of a feather flocking together.

"What's better is, I haven't detected any obstruction." Jiang Li laughed as he picked up Emperor Wen's coins one by one.

Actually, if there were someone with profound skill intervening, it would be possible to subtly guide and make Jiang Li come up with incorrect results. But such individuals were extremely rare, and ever since Jiang Li had absorbed the Dao Fruit of Li Chunfeng and Elder Tianxuan had given him personal instruction, his progress in divination had advanced by leaps and bounds each day. He felt that even if someone was interfering, he would be able to detect it.

At present, the biggest factor that could limit Jiang Li was not other matters but the difference in Grade.

And since he wasn't disturbed, it indicated that the disparity in Grade couldn't be greater than three, which meant the participant in this anomaly was at most Sixth Rank.

Considering the other party's secretive behavior, one could even deduce a lower Grade, which would be Seventh Rank.

"Shopkeeper, are there any other shops within thirty li from here?" Jiang Li shook the copper coins and then questioned the shopkeeper.

A middle-aged man in coarse hemp clothing was deftly cleaning up the leftover food. Hearing the question, he looked up and replied, "No, within fifty li, there's only this shop."

"Then congratulations to the shopkeeper. I see this downpour won't stop for a while. Travelers, unless willing to brave the rain and push on for more than fifty li, will likely have to stay here," Jiang Li said with a smile.

The more people there were, the more issues arose, which is why incidents often occurred at roadside inns or decrepit temples.

Because these places were the preferred resting spots for travelers.

Jiang Li's motive for sending people on their way included avoiding potential murderous encounters, among other reasons.

Of course, the most important was to cast a stone and ask for directions.

Emperor Wen's coins dropped six times again, and Jiang Li drew another divination.

And this time, the significance of the divination pattern was completely different from before.

Lake above, Water below; Lake represents, Water seeps beneath the Lake, the Lake dries within—it was the image of the Confinement Hexagram, which signified being trapped.

"Younger brother, what did you divine this time?" Gongsun Qingyue raised an eyebrow.

The two hexagrams showed contrary omens; this either meant Jiang Li was unskilled in his craft and inaccurate, or he was divining something else.

"The previous hexagram, I divined our journey to Yong Province," Jiang Li slowly gathered the copper coins, his words seemingly possessing a magic power that commanded everyone to listen intently, "And this hexagram, is about the situation now upon returning."

He wasn't divining the target direction but had unexpectedly started to divine the return direction, which was indeed surprising.

The shopkeeper stopped his movements.

"Shopkeeper, tell us, what would happen if we now returned the way we came?" Jiang Li said slowly.

The direction they came from was exactly where the Escort Agency and others had left, and Jiang Li and his group would likely find numerous signs of battle, and...

Suddenly, the shopkeeper threw down his rag and turned to flee, but he was caught by an invisible suction force.

Luu Wangji's fingers made a grasping motion in the air, and his palm slightly concaved inward, he executed the Dragon Capturing Skill, the suction firmly capturing the shopkeeper and pulling him in.

The shopkeeper had not a hint of a cultivation foundation, otherwise, Jiang Li and the others would have noticed. But from his current reaction, it was clear the shopkeeper was hiding something.

"With the heavy rain pouring, it forces travelers to halt here, and the Escort Agency's deadly fate is likely to transpire here," Jiang Li continued, "But to kill some escorts, is it necessary to alter the heavenly phenomena? Unless..."

Unless there was a more significant purpose behind this.

"Boom!"

A pallid streak of light cleaved through the wooden shack, and immediately, the wind and rain lashed in, accompanied by a dazzling thunder dragon with bared fangs and claws, hurtling towards them.

Fast! So fast it left no time to blink!

Strong! So strong it made the wind and rain part ways, and filled the field of vision with blinding lightning.

"Boom!"

The tavern exploded, wooden splinters flew through the air, and the smell of scorched wood mingled with the wind and rain, causing steam to rise and thick fog to billow.

"Thud, thud, thud—"

The ground-shaking noise rumbled forth as a massive figure charged through the storm, like a battle chariot rampaging across the battlefield.

But just then, an intoning voice suddenly resonated within the mist.

"Heavenly Pig, Heavenly Pig, Nine Elements Evil Child."

Bluish-purple thunder burst forth, paler than the previous bolt but no less staunch and tyrannical in its momentum.

The lightning struck the massive figure like a dragon, producing trails of blue smoke, while Innate Qi frantically transformed, sweeping out an immense heavenly might through the mist.

"Five Ding Du Si, Gao Diao Bei Weng.

Seven Politics and Eight Spirits, Supreme Hao Xiong."

"Boom!"

The thunder erupted, the unstoppable giant was blasted into the sky with serpents of electricity dancing wildly, dispersing the mist to reveal the figures of those present.

Amidst them, streams of sword shadows flitted above like gliding fish, forming an arc to block the relentless downfall of rain. Gongsun Qingyue pinched a sword formula, her Qi Mechanism fluctuating visibly, clearly the one who had taken action by setting up a Sword Array to stop the lightning.

Jiang Li stretched out one hand, within his palm ghostly images of talismans emerged, lightning coiling between his fingers.

It was he who had used a Thunder Technique to blast away the Powerful Warrior, blocking that overwhelming charge.

"With a Yellow Turban on his head and a Yellow Robe around his body, a Yellow Turban Warrior of the Taiping Sect."

In Jiang Li's eyes emerged enigmatic patterns, his gaze unhindered even by the heavy rain.

He clearly discerned the attire of the figure nearly ten feet tall and by combining his physique and strength, it wasn't hard to guess his origin.

For a creature of such stature and low-Grade, apart from demons, ghosts, and monsters, only the Yellow Turban Warriors of the Taiping Sect and the Vajra Warriors of Buddha Country come to mind.

"With Spell and magic that shake the Three Realms, the Heavenly Pig Divine Spell of Dinghu Sect."

In the midst of the rain, someone picked up Jiang Li's words, the voice sounding distantly, "Indeed worthy of the Thunder Technique created by Senior Tianpeng, truly possessing the unfathomable power of ghosts and gods."

"The Nine Heavens Jade Pivot Thunder of the Taiping Sect is not bad either," Jiang Li replied with a faint smile, speaking aloud.

"Hmph! Presumptuous!" The other snapped back coldly.

I praised your Thunder Technique for having the unfathomable power of ghosts and gods, and now you dare to say my thunder is not bad; don't you know anything about mutual flattery?

With that, a ripple of emotion stirred in his heart, subtly affecting his Qi Mechanism. It was so minute that even he hardly noticed, but Jiang Li's gaze shifted instantly, locking onto a certain direction.

"Flee from Ten Thousand Ghosts, the next strike divine.

To obliterate heaven's designs, body breaks the morning's shine."

The intoning voice suddenly became cryptic and inexplicable. Jiang Li's palm materialized a talismanic seed, making the Thunder Technique operate with exceptional speed, far beyond the norm.

"Sizzle—"

A beam of black light penetrated through, like a venomous snake striking its prey, shooting into the storm.

The reverse-chanted Divine Spell was the "Marshal Heaven and Earth Chaos Curse," which produced thunder significantly different from before, as it was Yin Thunder.

While as swift as Yang Thunder, Yin Thunder lacked the ferocity and instead harbored confined Qi Mechanism, dim like a phantom glow, far more secretive than Yang Thunder.

The adversary hadn't expected their position to be revealed with just a cold snort, let alone anticipate Jiang Li's rapid deployment of Thunder Technique. Caught off guard, this surprise attack took effect.