Ru Tianqi exerted all his might, squeezing out a thread of True Fire from within, and then drew out some minerals from his collection, melting them to patch the cracked brick wall of the Quiet Room. He intended to use a Talisman to isolate any Spiritual Sense detection, but Wang Qi waved his hand, and with a casual press of his right hand, the sword intent descended like an abyss, protecting the Quiet Room.

"Tai Chu Sword God Array…" Ru Tianqi's eyelid twitched. He hadn't expected that the formation his own sect had just set up had been stolen by this little thief!

Wang Qi said to him, "By the way, let me tell you, I've tampered with this Tai Chu Sword God Array, and now it can fool the Holy Emperor Venerable, so here, don't worry about the Holy Emperor Venerable, say whatever you need to. Also, don't think of seeking his assistance."

These words startled Ru Tianqi once again.

Who exactly was this Golden Core Cultivator, capable of contending with the Banished Immortal Mahayana Holy Emperor Venerable!

"Who are you, really?" Ru Tianqi barely suppressed his anger, astonishment, and fear as he asked.

"Lian Yichen's secretly cultivated disciple Xia Li" is certainly a false identity. He had to know what this guy's true purpose was, what his intentions were, and what his identity on the Shenzhou Continent was!

This would determine Ru Tianqi's future attitude!

"True name Wang Qi." With guidance from Zhen Chan, Wang Qi had a rough understanding of the other's thoughts, so he straightforwardly revealed his true name and stated his ultimate goal: "My purpose here is to sever the inheritance of you locusts of Heaven and Earth."

Initially, Ru Tianqi wanted to laugh. Because it was truly amusing. To mortals, Golden Core Cultivators are figures capable of overturning seas and controlling heavens and earth. But in the eyes of high-order cultivators, Golden Core is merely the beginning. To the true giants within the Immortal Dao, a mere Golden Core is insignificant.

If, one day, a Golden Core Cultivator claimed he would sever an Immortal Sect, Ru Tianqi would certainly think he was joking, and perhaps even snuff out the Golden Core Cultivator who told such a joke.

The majesty of the Mysterious Sect is beyond what a Golden Core Cultivator can bear.

Yet, when Wang Qi said these words to his face, he couldn't laugh.

The Divine Separation Stage is already the pinnacle combat power of the Ancient Method Immortal Sect, with only a little over a hundred members in total, all from before they left Shenzhou, and with each death, their numbers dwindled. Today, there are even fewer Divine Separation Stage cultivators than the Immortal Alliance's Carefree Stage cultivators. And as for the Body Integration Ancient Method Practitioners… aside from the Heaven Splitting Dao Body Integration who died in the Divine Capital a few years ago, there are only eight, fewer than the fingers on a hand.

If this guy could silently subdue a Divine Separation Stage cultivator… he might possibly be able to kill a Body Integration. And if he could kill a Body Integration… who in the entire Ancient Method Immortal Sect, besides the Holy Emperor Venerable, could escape his deadly hands?

After struggling to survive overseas for two thousand years, the ultimate conclusion is that they can't prevail over a Golden Core…

For some reason, Ru Tianqi suddenly felt a deadened heart.

Not just the "barrenness" of sword intent, but truly the despair greater than the death of one's heart.

At this moment, Wang Qi suddenly said: "Although I'm here to annihilate you, the guiding principle from above is 'kill less'… you understand, right? 'Kill less', not 'don't kill', and not specifying 'must leave survivors'. This phrase indeed leaves a lot of room for maneuver…"

"Bah! Don't bully me just because I don't understand your human language! That's not what Master meant at all!" At this time, Mi's illusion appeared in the Quiet Room, spitting: "Shameless!"

Wang Qi waved: "Yo, Senior Sister, how's the situation outside? Your human body hasn't been beaten to death yet, right? Haven't been captured out of spite…"

"Lian Xingling and Lian Xinjie 'rescued' me." Mi said emotionlessly: "I'm very unhappy now, Junior Brother."

"Senior Sister… Junior Brother…" Ru Tianqi then realized that the sister "Xia Mi" whom "Xia Li" always had by his side was no simple matter.

Such skill to silently and without notice infiltrate the Quiet Room, along with this Illusion Technique…

Wang Qi, however, first left aside Ru Tianqi and asked Mi: "Senior Sister, when you were in opposition to the Holy Emperor Venerable, what did you feel?"

It was something he hadn't had a chance to ask earlier.

Mi shook her head: "I don't know, he didn't recognize my true form immediately, nor my essence, compared to your description of Mei Gemu, he was somewhat lacking, should… have not seen my kind of life being?"

Wang Qi mused, "So, he's an uncultured immortal who hasn't seen much of the world?"

"Not exactly. My teacher and Mr. Mai mentioned that my kind of life being is also quite rare in the Star Sea. Maybe in a past life, he never encountered one, or perhaps his memory hasn't fully awakened yet and he can't recall," Mi shook her head. "However, his response was quick. In the end, he identified the nature of my near Divine Tao essence. I think if I were to face him again, I might get injured by him."

"As expected of a Banished Immortal, able to see through your true form on the first encounter..."

Mi frowned, "Let's make it clear beforehand. I am currently limited by my body and cannot exert my full strength. If I were in my prime, not even ten Mahayana Venerable Emperors would faze me."

"Alright, alright, Senior Sister, you're amazing..." Wang Qi responded to Mi in a tone used to placate children, while thinking, "Hmm, so unless it's the final battle, the help Senior Sister Mi can provide is limited. But for the rest, I can handle it on my own."

He looked towards Ru Tianqi and asked, "Where were we just now... oh yes, I was here to sever your inheritance... and then what should I say — old man, pay attention, I'm talking to you!"

Wang Qi waved both hands in front of Ru Tianqi's eyes, and Ru Tianqi snapped out of his daze, pointing at Mi with a wry smile, "If what this... this young lady says is true, then it'll be easy for you to wipe us out, why even bother..."

He didn't understand what the Star Sea was, but he could discern from their tone when discussing the Mahayana Venerable Emperor.

"It really is easy to annihilate you," Wang Qi, showing remarkable patience, said, "If you want to put it bluntly, exterminating you is straightforward, just send a long-range magic artifact to do the job, no need for personal involvement. However, considering you have some value, killing you would be a waste, and would squander Heavenly Sword Qi, so they sent me."

Ru Tianqi focused on one word: "Our... value..."

"As empirical life's value, waste utilization." Wang Qi coughed and continued, "I invented a cultivation method that needs extensive empirical testing to be perfected. However, some experiments that yield quick results are not permitted by the Immortal Alliance, so I... ahem, you get the idea."

Ru Tianqi immediately stood up and said, "If that's truly the case, I'd rather die than cooperate with you! You don't consider the lives of others at all! If I were under your command, I'd eventually be treated as some empirical lifeform..."

"But you already are," Wang Qi corrected him.

Ru Tianqi grew angrier, saying, "If I'm doomed to die either way, I'd rather die with pride, fight you, the little thief, to the death, and then commit seppuku, perhaps suffering a little less!"

Wang Qi shook his head, "I told you, the guidance from above is to kill less. If I kill fewer people, it's beneficial for my future development, so there's no need for us to resort to violence; let's sit down and talk it over."

The words indeed sounded more credible to Ru Tianqi. However, he still didn't sit down, "I don't trust you..."

"Actually, my reputation on the Great Road isn't that bad. I am friendly, and I am helpful!" Wang Qi felt quite aggrieved, hitting the table, "I'm such a kind person, giving you a way out, how can you not believe me!"

"At most, we just kill people. But hypocrites like you who proclaim righteousness and kindness are the real evil of the world!" Ru Tianqi said, "I know I'm not a good person, not to mention a gentleman, but I do know that people who are extremely treacherous and evil cannot be trusted."

"Would you believe that back when I received the Dao Seed Award in Shenzhou, one of the topics was 'On the Necessity of Being a Good Person'?" Wang Qi seemed to have forgotten his notorious "Shame of Dao Seed", explaining to Ru Tianqi, "Being a good person requires a stable world, flourishing culture, and strict laws. In such a world, the probability of getting rewards for doing good is high. Just having a reputation of kindness can take you far. So in such a world, almost everyone, unless they're mad, will do good things. In the long run, it's beneficial. So, from the perspective of Yitian's law, I don't mind doing more good."

"At least, if I spare most Ancient Method Practitioners and let them switch to the Modern or Hybrid Method, I will gain a good reputation. With a good reputation, those big shots won't have a bad first impression of me, which will make obtaining resources much easier for me... understand?"

Ru Tianqi's Adam's apple bobbed noticeably.

He had to admit, he was starting to believe it.

Though Wang Qi didn't provide more solid evidence, based on his two-thousand-year experience contending with the Modern Immortal Path... this kid might not be lying.

The Modern Heretics operate just like this.

"Technically, you and I are in a state of war, so I could do whatever it takes," Wang Qi added, "And you guys who've retreated to Spirit Phoenix Island, every last one of you has shed the blood of our Modern Cultivator comrades, leaving a record. So, if I kill you all, there's no wrongful case... I don't need to specifically show you the Criminal Law Department's documents, do I?"

"So now, if you want to live, the only way is to listen to me, understand?"

"If you have a change of heart and take meritorious action to prevent more low-level cultivators from switching to the Modern Method, and voluntarily experiment with turning from the Divine Separation Stage to a Modern Cultivator... you still have a chance."