At this moment, Lord Yu came to the realization that he had fallen into the scheme plotted by Chen Jingzhai.

Initially, he thought that his hunt would certainly succeed. From the looks of it, he had underestimated Chen Jingzhai.

Chen Jingzhai had acted against Lord Yu’s expectations. He had not escaped towards where his sect members were.

Instead, he brought Lord Yu to the depths of the sea, where giant sea monsters resided.

Lord Yu regretted being too careless!

On second thought, he believed that he was not to blame for his current predicament.

This brute had purposely angered him by commanding all Zhenjuns to exchange their disciples for spiritual herbs. Then, Chen Jingzhai intentionally poked at his relationship with Lord Dong. This lad had most likely plotted this scheme since the beginning. No one among the Eastern Ocean Triad had an audacity comparable to that of Chen Jingzhai.

“You are a dignified Nascent Zhenjun, an elder figure of a celestial sect. You are actually bullying a junior who is merely at the Foundation Establishment Plane. News of this has most likely gone out by now. Not only will the Mystic Sound Pavilion be disgraced, the pressure they face will increase greatly. Lord Yu, have you considered a way out of this predicament?” said Chen Jingzhai from the darkness of the canyon.

Even though he had locked onto the direction of Chen Jingzhai’s voice, Lord Yu did not attack.

The suction cups of the gigantic octopus monster had occupied him and his magic treasure.

The consequences would be dire if he was distracted now.

Chen Jingzhai was also very cunning. The former had intentionally lured him to attack just now.

Lord Yu retorted, “A way out? After I seize the spiritual treasure and the cave residence of Venerable Ning from you, do you think I will go back to my sect? Don’t think that you can kill me with this deep sea gigantic beast.”

With a sinister expression, he declared, “It can only trap me here for a while. After I break free from its grip, I will surely kill you.”

The more audacious Chen Jingzhai was, the more Lord Yu would not let him live. If such a person were allowed to develop to maturity, he would pose a threat to him.

Before this, due to Chen Jingzhai being from the Luo Sheng Sword School, Lord Yu did not want to burn all bridges.

However, Chen Jingzhai’s behavior left him with no choice.

“Have you finally revealed your true nature? From the start, you have never intended to spare me!”

Chen Jingzhai’s voice gradually became clearer. He then appeared on the octopus.

There was a playful smile on his face. He was not afraid of Lord Yu.

“You! How is this possible? Why doesn’t it attack you?”

Shocked, Lord Yu stared at Chen Jingzhai with his eyes widened. He nearly collapsed from astonishment.

Even he himself was not confident that he could kill this giant octopus.

Furthermore, he could tell that this beast was extremely ferocious. It was not at all tameable.

How did Chen Jingzhai manage to get close to it and even stand on top of it?

“That is not important. I am very curious. Lord Yu, you are from the Mystic Sound Pavilion. Why are you going so far for a mere spiritual treasure, even going to the extent of offending the Luo Sheng Sword School?” asked Chen Jingzhai as he looked at Lord Yu with a playful look.

The tentacles of the giant octopus moved around frenziedly, leaving no space for any attack to penetrate through its defense. The sound of the drum had no effect on it.

Lord Yu wanted to attack Chen Jingzhai, but he couldn’t find a chance to do so.

He forced himself to calm down and snorted, “A mere spiritual treasure? How dare you speak with such an arrogant tone. That’s right, the Luo Sheng Sword School has vast resources and you are a Little Master-Uncle. I believe that when you reach the Nascent Plane, your sect will even have a spiritual treasure custom made for you. Yet, that is not true for the Mystic Sound Pavilion.”

He continued expounding, “Aside from the Emerald Wave Island, the resources of the Mystic Sound Pavilion and the Mingyuan Dao Sect are all in the hands of the Spirit Plane Grand Elders. In the Mystic Sound Pavilion, the families control the sect and the inheritances of the techniques are restricted. Aside from rendering meritorious service, one still needs to swear fealty to the families.”

“I am a Nascent Zhenjun. Because I did not swear fealty to them, my access to resources was greatly reduced. I do not possess a single spiritual treasure. I was not even bestowed follow-up cultivation methods. Is such a sect worth my effort?”

“Why do you think so many members of the Mystic Sound Pavilion team up with rogue cultivators? If it wasn’t for the lack of resources, who would want to have any dealings with them?”

Lord Yu’s words were full of overwhelming resentment. He did not have the airs of a Zhenjun.

However, if the Mystic Sound Pavilion really did everything as he claimed, his resentment was justified.

Who would be happy if they did not receive the treatment and acknowledgment they deserved?

Nevertheless, Chen Jingzhai was slightly doubtful about his words.

Perplexed, Chen Jingzhai asked, “Are you serious? The Mystic Sound Pavilion is one of the members of the Eastern Ocean Triad after all. Why would they be so miserly with resources? You are a Nascent Zhenjun.”

Every celestial sect had its rich foundation.

Let alone Nascent Zhenjuns, the sects could even afford to pay for the expenses of the True Venerable Spirit Plane cultivators.

Long-established sects were especially rich in inheritances and resources.

Lord Yu gave a snort and retorted, “The Mystic Sound Pavilion is not stingy, but it is worn down by dissent and imbalance in powers among the families. Why do you care? You are going to die soon anyway. Escape now while I am still trapped. Struggle to survive while you can.”

He was now in a tight spot. The tentacles of the giant octopus had him trapped.

The Ocean Taming Drum, which had always come in handy, was useless now. He found this hard to accept.

What was even harder to accept was that Chen Jingzhai had ripped open his wounds. His heart ached.

“Since you can’t kill me anyway, we might as well have an earnest discussion,” suggested Chen Jingzhai as he stroked his chin and sat on top of the giant octopus.

Lord Yu was filled to the brink with dissatisfaction as he looked at how relaxed Chen Jingzhai seemed.

It pained him to even think about it. He, a dignified Zhenjun, had actually fallen into this brat’s trap.

“What do you wish to discuss?” Lord Yu asked with a sullen expression.

“You are going to be kicked out of the Mystic Sound Pavilion anyway. Have you considered joining my side? I am the Little Master-Uncle of the Luo Sheng Sword School. I have also inherited the item alchemy teachings of Venerable Ning. In the future, I can easily make you a spiritual treasure,” Chen Jingzhai told Lord Yu as he sat carefreely.

Lord Yu was speechless as his expression changed.

At first, he was naturally frustrated. After all, Chen Jingzhai was a cultivator at the Foundation Establishment Plane.

However, Lord Yu discovered that this seemed to be the best option for himself after some thought.

He would not need to betray the Mystic Sound Pavilion nor face the wrath of the Luo Sheng Sword School.

He would also obtain a spiritual treasure by riding on the coattails of the Little Master-Uncle of the Luo Sheng Sword School.

With a smile on his face, Chen Jingzhai continued to persuade Lord Yu, saying, “Item alchemy is not my only forte. As a member of Daoxuan Peak, I am also well-versed in elixir alchemy. On top of that, I am knowledgeable in spiritual treasures, elixirs and formations. Joining my side is better for you than being cooped up in the Mystic Sound Pavilion.”

“Will the Luo Sheng Sword School agree to this?” Lord Yu asked, clearly interested in his offer.

“Of course!” Chen Jingzhai nodded while smiling.

“You liar!”

Lord Yu’s facial expression changed suddenly. His Twin Dragon Mallets transformed into two giant dragons and slipped past the tentacles. They charged straight toward Chen Jingzhai.

Chen Jingzhai did not move. He seemed to be stunned and could not evade in time.

Lord Yu revealed a cold look in his eyes, as well as a look of anticipation.

He had been pretending to comply with Chen Jingzhai while he waited for an opportunity to strike.

The chance finally came.

The scene of Chen Jingzhai’s head being smashed by the mallets surfaced in his mind.

Just when the Twin Dragon Mallets were about to hit Chen Jingzhai, the illusory figure of a tower appeared.

It was brilliant as it radiated spirit light. The light enveloped Chen Jingzhai within it.

Clang!

The Twin Dragon Mallets struck the illusory figure of the tower dead-on. With a sad clang, they fell from the sky.

Then, divine light flashed and the mallets disappeared.

Wah!

Lord Yu spat out three mouthfuls of blood. His face was pale as he stared at Chen Jingzhai with disbelief and shouted, “What kind of spell is this? How did you manage to remove my imprint on the magic treasure? Unbelievable!”

“You make much ado about nothing.” Chen Jingzhai stood up and looked at Lord Yu with a disappointed gaze. “I gave you a chance, but you did not take up my offer. Don’t blame me for being ruthless.”

“You were just coaxing me with pretty words,” Lord Yu was enraged as he finally spurted out his honest opinion, saying, “If I were to join your side, I would still be kicked out from the Mystic Sound Pavilion. Besides that, even though you have a high position in your sect, the cultivation world values ability above everything else. Putting aside whether me joining you is a plausible idea, even if it is, you will control me with various tricks in order to ensure my loyalty. If that’s the case, I might as well kill you and snatch the spiritual treasure away from you. Isn’t that a better idea?”

“As expected, your thoughts are impure. No wonder the Mystic Sound Pavilion did not give you a spiritual treasure,” said Chen Jingzhai as he shook his head. “Since you did not appreciate the opportunity I presented you with, then just wait to die!”

“Can you even kill me?” challenged Lord Yu as he laughed coldly. “Even though I have lost a magic treasure and am trapped here, what can you do to me? You are but a Foundation Establishment Plane cultivator!”

Chen Jingzhai looked indifferently at him. He did not say anything. A beam of light coalesced in his hand.

From within the light, a root extended outwards.

At first, the root was cautious. When it came in contact with the ocean water, it played dead and did not move.

Under the coercion of Chen Jingzhai’s divine mind, the root rapidly extended towards Lord Yu’s figure.