“Hai Zongming, fifty-four years of age, a towering figure, and one of the twenty-four true power elders of the Diao Hai Lou. His cultivation stands at the peak of the Outer Building realm, with four Sacred Buildings already erected. There is no record of him having obtained any divine abilities. Nine years ago, during a life-and-death clash with cultivators from the Tian family in the Outer Building realm, where both sides fought with true abandon, no divine abilities were witnessed. Therefore, it can be reasonably concluded that he did not acquire any divine abilities during his time in the Inner Mansion realm.”

“His primary cultivation art is the Diao Long Dian, a technique passed down from the Diao Hai Lou’s founder, Diao Long Ke, which espouses using oneself as the fishing rod to ensnare all things.”

“He is proficient in wind movement and water movement dao techniques. The most potent dao technique he has displayed is the first-grade superior wind movement technique, Cang Qing Nine Kills. Its specific might and the countermeasures provided by Uncle Chu Liang will be detailed in a subsequent letter. Hai Zongming’s most recent public combat was last year; it is unclear if he has mastered any new dao techniques since then, but without a realm breakthrough, a significant leap in power is highly improbable. Furthermore, Hai Zongming favors a fierce, close-quarters combat style, wielding a pair of water-splitting stabs.”

“The most formidable magical artifact he has revealed is the Prisoner Dragon Rope, which ensnares upon contact. It is imperative to avoid its touch.”

“Finally, Hai Zongming is no longer within the Diao Hai Lou.”

“Hai Zongming’s absence from the Diao Hai Lou signifies that he has already set forth.”

“It means he has learned of Jiang Wang’s departure from the Qi border and is now on his way to pursue and kill him!”

“Zhong Xuan Sheng’s intelligence was meticulously detailed, lacking only the knowledge of what tea Hai Zongming drinks daily.”

“This intelligence required considerable effort to gather, involving the near-sea archipelago. Relying solely on Zhong Xuan Sheng’s forces would not have been sufficient to obtain a complete picture, thus it undoubtedly benefited from the contribution of his fourth uncle, Zhong Xuan Ming He.”

“And precisely due to matters of the previous generation, Zhong Xuan Sheng has always only been close to his Hall Uncle, Zhong Xuan Chu Liang. As for his elder brother, Zhong Xuan Ming Guang, there is no need to speak of him. Zhong Xuan Ming He often resides in the near-sea archipelago, rarely returning to Lin Zi, and in truth, there has been virtually no interaction between them.”

“Yet, for Jiang Wang’s sake, Zhong Xuan Sheng still sought him out.”

“These matters Jiang Wang could infer, but he said nothing, merely nodding, ‘I know what to do.’”

“Do not be careless, you must not be careless.” Zhong Xuan Sheng spoke with grave seriousness, “On the Hell No Door side, no matter the asking price, I can afford it.”

“He knew of Jiang Wang’s relationship with Yin Guan and approved of inviting Hell No Door to act as the optimal choice.”

“Because Hai Zongming has already set out, even if Jiang Wang were to turn back now, he might not necessarily reach the Qi border before Hai Zongming intercepts him.”

“Rest assured, I have my considerations,” Jiang Wang simply stated.

“Knowing that Hai Zongming had not acquired divine abilities, Jiang Wang had in fact already made up his mind.”

“He intends to attempt to kill Hai Zongming relying on his own strength!”

“Inner Mansion challenging Outer Building is perhaps the most common cross-realm challenge among cultivators. This is primarily due to the existence of the Divine Abilities Inner Mansion level.”

“In ancient times, the Inner Mansion realm was actually called the Divine Abilities realm. Without acquiring a divine abilities seed, one could not be considered to have entered this realm. However, because divine abilities were difficult to come by, too many cultivators became trapped in this realm, finding it hard to advance even an inch.”

“Through the improvements made by generations of talented cultivators, practitioners today can bypass divine abilities and advance to the Outer Building realm with ordinary Inner Mansion attainments. Thus, the number of cultivators in the Outer Building and subsequent realms grew rapidly.”

“This stands as one of the proofs of the continuous development of the cultivation world.”

“From that point on, divine abilities ceased to be a barrier. Possessing divine abilities did not guarantee Divine Arrival, nor did their absence prevent one from ascending to Cave True, or even cultivating to the pinnacle of the Extraordinary.”

“However, within specific realms, one point remains an undeniable fact — the Divine Abilities Inner Mansion possesses the qualification to contend with an ordinary Outer Building.”

“Thus, the Divine Abilities Inner Mansion is highly respected. Even to the extent that the qualification for appointing county guards in the Qi Kingdom, which was originally restricted to the Outer Building realm, has been extended to the Divine Abilities Inner Mansion.”

“Hai Zongming is at the peak of the Outer Building realm with four star buildings erected. His combat prowess can be roughly compared to that of Lei Zhan Qian after completing five mansions.”

“A gap certainly exists, but it is not an insurmountable chasm.”

“Especially now, Jiang Wang possesses a comprehensive advantage in intelligence. He can target every aspect of Hai Zongming and make arrangements in advance.”

“This is a tremendous advantage. It can even be said to be an advantage that has the potential to nullify the disparity in strength!”

“If he cannot properly seize this opportunity, Jiang Wang would not be worthy of being called a prodigy.”

“Of course, he will not rush headlong into battle, entrusting life and death entirely to the outcome of the fight.”

“After conducting a thorough battle deduction, he will truly make up his mind and then proceed to the nearest major city to seek a way to contact Hell No Door.”

“Hell No Door only accepts assassination missions, not protection missions.”

“Therefore, the task Jiang Wang will issue is to kill Hai Zongming. However, if Hell No Door acts before him and Hai Zongming is already dead, the mission will be canceled, and only the deposit will be required.”

“This is a two-pronged approach. It is better if he can resolve Hai Zongming directly. If not, then he will await Hell No Door’s action. However, to assassinate a peak Outer Building realm cultivator, the deposit alone requires fifty ten-thousand yuan stones, equivalent to a single first-grade Opening Pulse Pill.”

“Leaving Zheng country, Jiang Wang and Xiang Qian continued westward.”

“Jiang Wang’s fire source totem was formed by the combination of the white bone lotus flower and the Qing Huo Bu flame totem, undergoing changes that Jiang Wang still cannot comprehend. It gained the ability to accumulate the star power of You Tian star beasts but cannot directly draw upon the power of the starry sky.”

“This situation changed within Xing Yue Yuan. It was likely as Guan Yan said, that Xing Yue Yuan is one of the places in the current world closest to the starry sky, coupled with Guan Yan’s intentional gathering, which allowed him to accumulate some star power within Xing Yue Yuan.”

“Jiang Wang chose to store this star power within the white bone lotus flower portion, while the flame totem continued to accumulate totem power.”

“However, the star power derived primarily from the Yu Heng star was, after all, not as pure as that obtained from killing star beasts, and the amount also differed. A single night was far from sufficient to fill it. At the rate of star power accumulation in Xing Yue Yuan, it would require at least a month to fully replenish. Jiang Wang could not wait that long and only stayed for a single night before departing.”

“Now that he has decided to confront Hai Zongming, he should ideally return to Xing Yue Yuan to store more star power and increase his chances of victory.”

“But they had been traveling at a brisk pace. A sudden return to Xing Yue Yuan would undoubtedly alert Hai Zongming, causing him to lose his greatest advantage and ultimately prove more detrimental than beneficial. Thus, Jiang Wang chose to continue forward.”

“Since Hai Zongming has set out, it means he has a method to track me.”

“As they hastened on their way, Jiang Wang analyzed to Xiang Qian: ‘However, I do not know what method he uses. It is possible he went to Qing Yang Town or Lin Zi to obtain something related to me, or perhaps someone provided him with intelligence. But he can certainly track me, and this point can be exploited. I can lead him to misjudge my speed, thereby misjudging my strength. His understanding of me is at most based on my battle with Lei Zhan Qian.’”

“Then there is the matter of time. According to the strong judgment of the Zhong Xuan family, with his strength, he will likely catch up to me in two to three days. We must feign ignorance and continue our journey without stopping, but we can control our speed to potentially arrive at the predetermined battlefield.’”

“I have initially set the battlefield at Tu Feng Mountain. It is sparsely populated and would take a full day to travel out, making it suitable for setting an ambush. Furthermore, there is no water source nearby, an environment that greatly restrains Hai Zongming’s abilities. I cannot stop or turn back, so the matter of setting the ambush falls to you. Traps, formations, poisons… use everything at your disposal.’”

“I only wield the sword, but I have several sets of sword formations that can be prepared.” Xiang Qian pondered for a moment, then asked, “What if he doesn’t arrive at Tu Feng Mountain?”

“If the opportunity is not favorable, and he is overly cautious, then we can only pay to shed some flesh.”

“Jiang Wang sighed, ‘The intelligence I will provide to Hell No Door is at Tu Feng Mountain. We will only wait for one day before leaving; by then, Hell No Door’s killer should have arrived… What’s wrong? Why are you looking at me like that?’”

“Xiang Qian withdrew his languid gaze, ‘Suddenly, I feel a pang of sympathy!’”