Chapter 288

Chapter 288: The Wicked Man Complains First

"Ah!" Fang Lie said, feeling very frustrated, "So, does that mean I’ve gotten a useless piece of junk?"

"Not exactly," the old bird comforted. "You can still use it in the future. There are two ways to use powerful treasures. One is the soft way—build a good relationship, and if it takes a liking to you, you can use it. The other way is the hard approach—forcefully subdue it. If it doesn’t submit, erase its consciousness. Generally, they know to fear and will naturally submit."

"When will that be?" Fang Lie quickly asked.

"About the time you reach the strength of a Fire Tribulation Immortal!" the old bird replied.

"Fire Tribulation Immortal?" Fang Lie sounded even more disheartened. "I don’t even know if I can reach the Golden Pool realm; the Fire Tribulation Immortal seems so far away!"

"That’s different. The Fire Tribulation Immortal I’m talking about is the weakest one. The Golden Pool is just a few hundred miles, but they have opened the Purple Palace, nurtured the Nascent Soul, and endured both Wind and Fire Tribulations. Their magic is profound. To reach their level of magic as a Qi Sea cultivator, you need at least a vast Qi Sea of ten thousand miles!" the old bird explained. "With your current cultivation speed, it shouldn’t take long!"

"Oh, in that case, I feel relieved!" Fang Lie smiled. "I’ll temporarily set it aside for now and deal with it later. Right now, I need to focus on my cultivation. I’m already not far from a fifty-mile Qi Sea; I must work hard!"

With that, Fang Lie continued to refine the spiritual energy from heaven and earth within him.

While Fang Lie continued his cultivation, the outside world was in chaos.

The Fire Tribulation Immortal Jie Kong from the Great Thunder Sound Temple actually died at Fang Lie’s hands? This was incredibly shocking! One was a powerful Fire Tribulation Immortal from a major sect, whose combat power was comparable to a Thunder Tribulation Immortal among scattered cultivators, and who even had an Eighth-Rank Treasure for protection, yet he was killed by an ordinary Qi Sea cultivator. Who would believe it?

When the news first spread, no one believed it. However, as more information was released, particularly after the deceased’s relatives received Jie Kong’s belongings and the Shadow Record Stones, the news was confirmed with solid evidence, creating a huge uproar!

Various factions were in disbelief that Fang Lie was actually this strong. Not only did he kill Jie Kong, but he also seemed to have withstood the Puppet That Dies in Place Divine Lightning.

Though the Shadow Record Stones erased Jie Kong’s tragic demise, the fact that Fang Lie was still alive while Jie Kong had vanished was enough to determine the victor.

Thus, many people began to speculate on how Fang Lie had killed Jie Kong. Eventually, nearly everyone attributed the victory to the Benevolence Token from the Mo Sect.

After all, apart from this Ninth-Rank Treasure, they couldn’t think of any other secret weapon that Fang Lie could use against a Fire Tribulation Immortal possessing an Eighth-Rank Treasure.

Even the Fire Spirit Peak wouldn’t work; that resource had suffered too much damage and, even after half a year, it was impossible to recover to the point of killing a Fire Tribulation Immortal.

After all, Jie Kong was no fool, and though the Fire Spirit Gu was powerful, it merely caused tremors and was definitely incapable of stopping the formidable Jie Kong. If Jie Kong wanted to leave, the Fire Spirit Gu would not be able to hold him back without billions of them.

However, getting the Fire Spirit Gu from the Fire Spirit Peak to reach a number in the billions was unthinkable; even if Fang Lie had two or three years, it would be unlikely.

Because of this, everyone fixed their focus on the Benevolence Token, considering Fang Lie as the candidate Token Lord of the Benevolence Token. When Fang Lie faced the threat of the Puppet That Dies in Place Divine Lightning, it was unlikely that the token would stand idly by.

In this situation, rumors spread more and more wildly, evolving into a tale where ‘the monk Jie Kong arrogantly visited, Fang Lie was furious, and with a single order, he was struck down!’

As the saying goes, good news doesn’t travel far, but bad news spreads like wildfire. The clash between two significant righteous cultivators, culminating in the death of a Fire Tribulation Immortal, was indeed fascinating. Many wanted to see the spectacle and didn’t hesitate to spread more rumors, causing the news to spread rapidly. Before long, half of the Wanxing Sea was buzzing with it.

Thus, Fang Lie gained widespread fame, while Jie Kong and the Great Thunder Sound Temple also became well-known.

However, Fang Lie’s reputation was positive, whereas Jie Kong and the Great Thunder Sound Temple were getting negative attention.

The mighty Fire Tribulation Immortal bullying a Qi Sea cultivator was embarrassing enough, but to have it backfire and end with Fang Lie effortlessly killing him was beyond ridiculous!

Moreover, many of the cultivators killed by Jie Kong had connections in the righteous sects, and their families began to demand an explanation from the sects.

These sects were not to be trifled with; they quickly united, led by representatives from West Kunlun, to demand answers from the Great Thunder Sound Temple.

To their surprise, when they arrived, they discovered that Jie Kong’s master, Bai Lian Chan Master, had already gone to the Mo Sect to seek an explanation.

It turned out that high-level cultivators have their own Soul Lanterns in the sect, and once they die, they are immediately detected.

So when Jie Kong died, the Great Thunder Sound Temple’s members learned of it instantly.

Bai Lian Chan Master was furious and ordered an investigation. Within just two days, the news arrived in only a few short sentences: Jie Kong died at the hands of Fang Lie from the Mo Sect. It was estimated that the murder was carried out using the Benevolence Token from the Mo Ancestor.

Bai Lian Chan Master was nearly driven to madness. In truth, he knew that Jie Kong had gone to confront Fang Lie; he was even the one who plotted to raid the Chongming Ancient Temple’s Secret Vault. Aside from him, there were hardly any juniors in the Great Thunder Sound Temple bold enough to touch the possessions of Master Tianlong’s illegitimate child.

Bai Lian Chan Master originally did not want to confront Master Tianlong, but a few years ago, he accidentally came across a secret record that clearly stated there were two super Buddhist treasures in Chongming Ancient Temple: the Wonderful Bodhi Tree and the Banana Leaf Golden Scripture!

Other items could be ignored, but these two treasures were what Buddhist disciples dreamt of. Even he felt quite envious. Bai Lian Chan Master immediately discussed with the abbot to see if they could open the Secret Vault there and retrieve those treasures.

This matter was important, so Master Tianlong also agreed. In truth, he had only discovered the Secret Vault but had not looked inside because at that time, he was already close to being a Semi-Immortal, free from desires. He thought Chongming Ancient Temple was nothing special and believed he wouldn’t care for what was inside.

So, he simply left everything for his son as a surprise. But now that he heard it contained the Wonderful Bodhi Tree and the Banana Leaf Golden Scripture, he immediately regretted it. However, once something was given away, could he take it back? With his status, he couldn’t do such a thing.

Thus, he allowed Bai Lian Chan Master to take action but had one request: they must not harm the Man-Eating Demon Monk, who was seemingly his illegitimate son. Bai Lian Chan Master understood that he was negotiating for his child’s benefit, so he readily agreed.

He sent a disciple to discuss with the Man-Eating Demon Monk, but unexpectedly, the disciple arrived just as he was entering and had not even met the outgoing Man-Eating Demon Monk before being chased out of Chongming Island by Fang Lie.

He hurriedly sought information and sent it back to the Great Thunder Sound Temple. Bai Lian Chan Master was immediately shocked and quickly dispatched Jie Kong to find Fang Lie and find a way to retrieve the items from Chongming Ancient Temple and the Man-Eating Demon Monk.

Bai Lian Chan Master knew that the Man-Eating Demon Monk was protected by Master Tianlong’s divine skill and could not die. He was definitely captured alive by Fang Lie.

However, unexpectedly, Jie Kong was a foolish person who looked down on everyone. Not only did he mess up the matter, but he also lost his own life. Cultivating a disciple was not easy. Jie Kong had diligently practiced under Bai Lian Chan Master for hundreds of years, having been beside the old monk since he was young. Over the years, the bond between master and disciple was deeper than that of a father and son!

Upon hearing the news of Jie Kong’s tragic death, Bai Lian Chan Master was heartbroken and, with three disciples, went to confront the Mo Sect, preparing to hold them accountable.

Although Bai Lian Chan Master was not the abbot of the Great Thunder Sound Temple, he was still one of the top five figures. The Mo Sect naturally did not dare to neglect him and sent the Righteousness Token Lord Huo Wufang to receive him, with the Head of the Bai Family accompanying him.

When they heard the reason for his visit, they were all dumbfounded. Huo Wufang, astonished, said, "I say, Master Bai Lian, are you mistaken? Fang Lie is merely at the Qi Sea level; how could he possibly kill your esteemed disciple? If I remember correctly, Jie Kong should be Fire Tribulation Immortal, right?"

"Yes, it seems that your Great Thunder Sound Temple’s Eighth-rank Treasure, the Gold Dragon Monk Staff, is also under his control. He could blow a breath and destroy Fang Lie a hundred times over. How could he have been killed by Fang Lie?" the Head of the Bai Family added, equally astonished.

"This news comes from my disciple in Wanxing Sea; it is absolutely true and cannot be false!" Bai Lian Chan Master said fiercely. "While Fang Lie may not be remarkable, it is said that he is the candidate Token Lord of the Benevolence Token in the Mo Sect. Is this true?"

"Well…" Huo Wufang replied with a wry smile, "It is true!"

"Then that simplifies matters!" Bai Lian Chan Master said calmly. "This matter is likely due to him using the Benevolence Token!"

Huo Wufang and the Head of the Bai Family exchanged worried glances. They knew that Fire Tribulation Immortal was already considered a high-ranking figure in the sect, especially being Bai Lian Chan Master’s core inner gate disciple. If this matter was not handled properly, it could lead to a sect war, which was a significant event that no one wished to see.

Thinking of this, Huo Wufang immediately said, "I will summon Fang Lie back at once. If he truly killed your temple’s high monk for no reason, my Mo Sect will definitely give you an explanation!"

"Alright, I will wait!" Bai Lian Chan Master replied!

Huo Wufang wasted no time and arranged for them to have food and lodging, and then he hurried off with the Head of the Bai Family to find Mo Sect Leader Mo Qianxun.

Upon hearing this news, Mo Qianxun was also shocked, barely able to believe it was true. The Head of the Bai Family took the opportunity to scold Fang Lie, calling him an unworthy ancestor.

Mo Qianxun frowned and sent Mo Wanfang to find Ice Second Brother, instructing him to relay the message to Fang Lie as quickly as possible.

As a result, just a few short hours later, Fang Lie appeared before Mo Qianxun.