CHAPTER 178: NANTIAN YIJIAN EXPOSED. FIRE PHOENIX CAPTURED.

Eggy sat on Lu Chen's shoulder, tightly wrapping its tiny arms around his neck. "Master, Master, Eggy will take you to find Phoe-Phoe and Fish-Fish, and ground them..."

Nantian Yijian had just noticed Eggy hiding behind him. Seeing its round, chubby form, he asked in astonishment, "This tiny creature... Could it be the boss's spirit beast? I've never heard of a spirit beast like this before. Phoe-Phoe and Fish-Fish... what exactly are they?"

Watching Eggy, Jun Laoye felt an inexplicable familiarity, as if he had encountered it somewhere long ago. Hearing Nantian Yijian's question, he looked curiously at Lu Chen. "Little Lu, what exactly is Eggy? Why do I feel this strange sense of familiarity toward it? This feeling... It's as if it's engraved deep in my blood. Watching its movements, I feel as if we've known each other for a very, very long time."

Lu Chen chuckled awkwardly. "Ah... this? I'll explain it later. There are still a few more troublemakers I need to find first."

He quickly walked away, leaving Jun Laoye's curiosity unsatisfied.

Seeing Jun Laoye still puzzled and noticing Lu Chen's reluctance to explain, Nantian Wan'er stepped in to smooth things over. "Brother Jun, they're all treasures of Lu-gege. Just like Lord Wind Dragon, they're spirit beasts he obtained in the secret realm."

"I see." Jun Laoye nodded, his gaze fixed on the direction Lu Chen had gone. "But why do I feel this strong sense of familiarity with Eggy?"

"Perhaps it's because you're familiar with the power of the Void. I've heard grandpa say that it's a force possessed only by the Heavens," Nantian Wan'er said softly, lowering her gaze to start organizing the scattered items.

"That could be it. The power of the Void is indeed very important," Jun Laoye murmured, dispersing his spear and joining her in tidying up. "In my clan, we're only allowed to inherit the laws of Void once we break through to the Earth Core Realm."

"All of this sounds incredible... Void, spirit bodies... I know nothing about any of it," Nantian Yijian snorted, following Jun Laoye and muttering under his breath, "If only I were from a clan like that, I'd know all these secrets and wouldn't have to hold the boss back."

"Hm?

" Jun Laoye raised his head at Nantian Yijian's words. "Little Jian, isn't your surname Nantian? Aren't you a disciple of the Nantian Sect? I recall that the sect holds the Nantian name in high regard. Only direct disciples can use it, right?"

Nantian Wan'er lifted her head, curious to hear his explanation.

"Well... my surname is indeed Nantian, but I've been cultivating outside the sect since I was little. My elders only told me my surname and never brought me back to the Nantian Sect," Nantian Yijian said, cold sweat trickling down his forehead. "Then those elders suddenly disappeared, and I couldn't return. The Nantian Region is vast. Even if I knew where the sect was, without guidance, I still couldn't get back."

Recalling her memories of the sect, Nantian Wan'er said, "I see... I remember grandpa saying that every ten years, the sect sends many young disciples out into the world to prevent crises and preserve bloodlines. These disciples secretly use the surname Nantian. If no crisis occurs within ten years, they can return. Perhaps the ones meant to guide Brother Yijian encountered difficulties during their mission, which is why he couldn't return in time."

Hearing Nantian Yijian's explanation, Jun Laoye thought inwardly. So this is how the Nantian Sect handles covert disciples! Could Little Jian be a secret operative...?

He then shifted the topic. "We still have a long way to go on our path of cultivation. Once we grow stronger, there will definitely be a chance to return."

Seeing that he had sidestepped the issue, Nantian Yijian wiped the sweat from his forehead and hurriedly agreed. "Yes, yes, I'll definitely return someday."

Nantian Wan'er smiled gently. "No need to wait. When grandpa comes to pick me up, Brother Yijian, you can come back with us too."

"Alright, alright, then we'll go back together..." Nantian Yijian said nervously, before quickly running off. "Let's split up to clean. It'll be faster that way."

Something feels off about Little Jian, but I can't quite put my finger on it. Jun Laoye pondered as he watched Nantian Yijian scurry away, then bent back to organizing.

Seeing the group quiet, Nantian Wan'er activated her senses to track Lu Chen's movements.

***

On the other side of the central stone pillar.

Lu Chen carried Eggy as he advanced slowly. He had already sensed the locations of the Fire Phoenix and the black and white fish. Acting nonchalant, he quietly approached the pillar.

Lu Chen extended his right hand. "Spirit Light Chains."

He released the chains, then placed Eggy on his shoulder and concealed himself, moving backward.

The black and white fish sensed the fluctuation of spirit qi in the Heavenly Pool. They cautiously moved backward before leaping down from the pillar. Midway, Lu Chen flashed forward and caught them.

By the time he landed, he held both fish firmly in his hands. They struggled, but couldn't escape. Eventually, they pressed their heads against his palm, transmitting the Fire Phoenix's location.

"Two little freeloaders again. Let's see how I deal with you later," Lu Chen muttered, a faint smile playing on his lips as he placed the black and white fish on his left shoulder.

The white fish noticed Eggy perched on Lu Chen's right shoulder. It chirped once and immediately flew over Lu Chen's head to land on his right shoulder. Eggy seemed to understand instantly and shot into the air, bouncing between the two fish.

"You guys really are a bunch of little rascals," Lu Chen shook his head fondly. "You can't even finish a single sentence, and the two of you don't respond, yet all three of you are causing trouble everywhere."

With his right hand, he traced a seal in the air, over his shoulder, releasing a barrier of Yang Purifying Water to keep the three little creatures from falling.

"Next up, it's your turn," he said. "Are you coming down on your own, or do I need to catch you?"

Muttering an incantation, Lu Chen activated his third eye and spotted Fire Phoenix hiding atop the stone pillar. "Still not moving? Then I'll have to take action."

Eggy darted above Lu Chen's head, calling up to the pillar, "Phoe-Phoe, you're being naughty. If you don't behave, Master will ground you..."

Fire Phoenix flinched at Eggy's voice. "Chirp...

"

It lowered itself, trying to stay hidden.

Lu Chen's third eye closed briefly, then reopened as the Eye of the Ancestral Dragon. A white beam shot from his brow. By now, he had already mapped out the general usage of the fourth button, the Eye of the Ancestral Dragon, as well as the black and white lights.

The fourth button could currently only add black and white lights to the Hunyuan Greatsword, giving it Void's power. The white light carried immense creative and restorative ability, while the black light held extreme devouring and destructive power.

Creation and destruction were opposing forces. As for the temporal power Wind Dragon had mentioned, Lu Chen hadn't touched that yet. Nevertheless, in his analysis, he discovered many things, including that the Eye of the Ancestral Dragon and the fourth button still had many locked functions.

This left him suspecting that someone had clearly tampered with both the Hunyuan Greatsword and the ocular art.

Lu Chen pondered for a moment, immediately deciding the green-robed Daoist was the one to blame. After all, on the second floor of the Scripture Hall, where even the best manuals were of low-grade quality, it would have been impossible to encounter an ocular art of world-creation caliber. Even if such a manual existed, the black-robed men outside would have surely seized it.

Thinking it through, only one possibility remained. The green-robed Daoist had deliberately left him the ocular art.

Lu Chen looked up at the top of the stone pillar. The Eye of the Ancestral Dragon on his forehead faded, replaced by the Fire Phoenix Mark. The mark connected him directly to the phoenix, allowing him to sense its condition clearly. Fire Phoenix crouched atop the pillar, shivering under the white void light surrounding its body.

"If you don't come down, I'll come up there myself."

When the phoenix still refused to move, Lu Chen drew the Hunyuan Greatsword and pressed Eggy against its hilt. White light flashed, and the sword shattered space to appear beside the Fire Phoenix.

"Chirp..."

With a long cry, the Fire Phoenix shot off the pillar. The white light flickered again as the Hunyuan Greatsword returned to Lu Chen's hand, once more piercing through space.

Jun Laoye looked up just in time to see a blazing phoenix streak past. "What was that? A Fire Phoenix?!"

Nantian Wan'er waved casually at the bird. "That's also Lu-gege's treasure. An extraordinary beast."

Jun Laoye's body trembled uncontrollably. "I don't know much about Eggy, but I've seen this beast in the Demonic Beast Archive. When fully grown, its combat power can rival a top-tier sect. What kind of background does Little Lu have to possess such a powerful creature?"

"Hehehe, all of this is Lu-gege's fortunate encounter. Brother Jun, you'll get your own fortunate encounter one day as well."

On the other side of the pillar, Lu Chen twirled the Hunyuan Greatsword in his hand, pressing the teleport button with his left hand. Space flickered. In rapid succession, he appeared beside Nantian Wan'er, then beside Nantian Yijian, and finally hovered above the Fire Phoenix.

Watching Lu Chen vanish and reappear through space repeatedly, Jun Laoye shouted in astonishment, "This is spatial teleportation! Wan'er, are you seriously telling me... when did Little Lu learn these skills... or has he been hiding his strength all along?"