At the top of the mountain peak, inside the small dwelling.

Gu Qing stood with his hands hanging by his sides.

In front of the tea table, Zhao Hansheng was using his spiritual power to infuse a jade slip, displaying a combat scene – precisely the battle between Gu Qing’s painting clone and Ning Zhuo’s Golden Core puppet.

Gu Qing’s lips were tightly pressed, his eyes bloodshot, as he watched the battle unfold in mid-air. It was a scene he could not bear to recall!

“That scoundrel Ning Zhuo is so despicable and shameless!”

“He used such a deceitful trick to swindle me!”

“It’s truly hateful and abominable!”

Gu Qing had suffered a great, silent loss. He had initially thought it was a “tacit agreement battle.” Now, wanting to hold Ning Zhuo accountable for breaking the agreement, he had no contract in hand whatsoever, not even a verbal agreement or a spiritual communication.

As Gu Qing watched the battle scene before him, he also reviewed the entire combat process.

He realized he had fallen into a trap from the very beginning.

“No, to be more precise, I fell into the trap after receiving Ning Zhuo’s reply letter!”

“That guy was constantly putting on an act, making me believe that he would maintain the same tacit understanding with me.”

“Then, at the beginning of the battle, he even deliberately only used martial arts, seemingly implying that he intended this to be a tacit agreement battle. In the end, it was all a trap to lull me into complacency!”

But there was one thing Gu Qing couldn’t understand at all.

Why?

Why did Ning Zhuo hate him and go to such lengths to deal with him?

All along, Gu Qing had believed that Ning Zhuo would be a potential ally. Because if he put himself in Ning Zhuo’s shoes, he too would be happy to make friends with people like Zhao Hansheng and Gu Qing.

As a result, this battle completely revealed Ning Zhuo’s identity as an enemy.

As the magic performance concluded, Gu Qing once again saw his painting clone frozen within a giant block of ice.

“Insidious, truly too insidious.”

Gu Qing trembled slightly with anger, wishing he could turn back time. He would definitely take it seriously, go all out, and beat Ning Zhuo into submission.

On the other hand, Zhao Hansheng was watching with great interest.

He even replayed the final battle scene over and over again.

This seemingly humiliating act first caused Gu Qing’s eyes to fill with blood and his body to tremble even more violently. But gradually, Gu Qing came to his senses, and miraculously, his expression and mood calmed down.

Zhao Hansheng took in Gu Qing’s state. When the time was right, he smiled faintly and said, “Qing’er, isn’t the meaning of your current journey and travels precisely this?”

These words were like a basin of ice water, completely cooling Gu Qing down.

Gu Qing’s breathing returned to normal, and he lowered his head slightly: “Teacher, you are right. In the future, when faced with such situations, I will be extremely cautious.”

Zhao Hansheng stretched out a finger, pointing to the final battle scene: “Even if Ning Zhuo hadn’t used tactics, or if his tactics had failed, you might not have won.”

Gu Qing: ?!

He quickly looked closely at the battle scene in mid-air.

Zhao Hansheng considerately began to replay it. The replay was not extensive, limited only to the final moments of the battle.

After three replays, Gu Qing’s expression changed again, revealing a look of shock.

“At the last moment, Ning Zhuo’s Golden Core puppet burst forth with a mysterious power.”

“Compared to before, this power was not large in scale, but it concealed a qualitative change.”

“That’s why he ultimately won the battle and completely froze my clone!”

“What method did he use?”

Zhao Hansheng: “Judging solely from this jade slip, this method has some hints of divine abilities, almost like the application of innate talent.”

Gu Qing frowned: “Is that possible? A puppet is not a real living person. Furthermore, most living people also lack innate talent.”

Zhao Hansheng shook his head slightly: “More cannot be seen for now. However, this is a golden age of cultivation, with new cultivation arts emerging endlessly. Ning Zhuo’s background is clearly extraordinary, so it’s normal for him to possess some unique methods.”

Gu Qing showed a look of shame: “Teacher, I lost my reason. After this battle, I have been filled with anger, losing even basic judgment.”

Zhao Hansheng: “It’s good that you’ve calmed down. What will you do next?”

Gu Qing narrowed his eyes, falling into thought for a moment.

As his thoughts deepened, the more he analyzed in his heart, the uglier his expression became.

After a long while, he said in a hoarse voice, “Teacher, my current situation is very troublesome.”

“It’s one thing that Ning Zhuo outmaneuvered me to win.”

“The crucial thing is that at the end, he used the results of this battle as a benchmark, pressuring other geniuses to fight me with all their might.”

“This is an open conspiracy, a development that the public loves to see.”

“I’ve already been placed on the fire by him. It will be very difficult for me to get off this high platform and fire pit!”

Zhao Hansheng did not speak, merely looking at his student calmly.

Gu Qing gritted his teeth: “The upcoming battles cannot be withdrawn. Not only have the challenge letters already been sent out, but I have also publicly stated my intentions. If I were to retreat now, my reputation would be completely ruined.”

“Therefore, I must fight with all my strength, showcase my prowess, and prove my strength to the public.”

After a pause, he continued: “Although this is exactly what Ning Zhuo wants to see, I have no choice but to do it.”

The thought of having to follow Ning Zhuo’s arranged script next made him feel deeply disgusted.

Such a situation was undoubtedly quite passive.

But Gu Qing could only do this; after all, he had fallen into Ning Zhuo’s trap.

Zhao Hansheng deliberately asked: “Have you considered finding a suitable opponent and reaching a tacit understanding with them to jointly stage an intense and prolonged battle? On one hand, to prove your strength, and on the other, to break the time comparison trap that Ning Zhuo mentioned at the end?”

Gu Qing nodded: “Teacher, I have thought about it.”

“But I found that there is no suitable candidate at all.”

“Most of the people I sent challenge letters to are from the righteous path. Each has a powerful background in Fei-yun Guo. They would have too many concerns, and someone of my stature would find it difficult to persuade them to take the risk to their reputation by agreeing to a tacit battle with me.”

“And I can’t trust the individual demonic or evil sects!”

Zhao Hansheng nodded, satisfied with the result of this small test. He sighed: “We, master and student, are new here, unfamiliar with the people and places, and this puts us at a great disadvantage.”

“When we try to do things, we are constantly constrained.”

“However, precisely because of this, we must gain control of the Confucian cultivator community here.”

Gu Qing pondered: “We lack reliable and effective intelligence too much. To this day, I still don’t know why Ning Zhuo is against me. Now it seems there might be some hidden secrets behind the two Xing-yun Xiao-shi held by the Confucian cultivator community before.”

At this thought, a name suddenly popped into Gu Qing’s mind.

His eyes lit up. Just as he was about to speak, Zhao Hansheng spoke first: “You want to learn the relevant inside story from Situ?”

Zhao Hansheng shook his head: “I have already asked. Situ Gu said he could not answer me.”

Gu Qing’s expression changed: “Situ Gu longs for Hua-zhang Guo and is the first Confucian cultivator we managed to win over. His answer to you, Teacher, alone is enough to explain the problem.”

Gu Qing struck his palm with his fist: “So that’s it. The top positions in the two Confucian cultivator trials were very likely designed around Ning Zhuo.”

“So, we intercepted the third Xing-yun Xiao-shi, which incurred Ning Zhuo’s hostility!”

Zhao and Gu, master and student, were well-versed in the righteous path. After a period of analysis, they immediately detected the inside story.

Even without evidence, they felt that this speculation was extremely close to the truth!

Zhao Hansheng asked the crucial question: “The next battle in the Yan-wu Tang is very important. Who do you plan to choose?”

Gu Qing fell into thought once again.

After Ning Zhuo was the first to send a reply, several others also replied. Some refused, but more agreed.

“The geniuses from the demonic and evil paths are excluded first. They are not trustworthy, and they also want to climb to power by stepping on me, disregarding rules.”

“Among the righteous path—although rumors say Situ Xing is at odds with Ning Zhuo, it cannot be fully believed. Ning Zhuo is too insidious; what if it’s a trap he deliberately set up in advance?”

“In my student’s opinion, Zhu Fenxiang is the most stable option.”

“Firstly, the Zhu family is a traditional righteous force, very rule-abiding, and good at maintaining the face of the righteous path. Secondly, the foundation of the Zhu family lies in their Spirit Summoning Art, which distinguishes them from other forces and organizations. They are more adept at maintaining relationships with people and spirits.”

“Lastly, Zhu Fenxiang and Situ Xing just had a great battle and won a hard-fought victory.”

“Even if Ning Zhuo and Situ Xing are at odds, it’s just an internal conflict. On matters of great right and wrong, he is certainly clear-headed. This means Zhu Fenxiang is definitely not aligned with him!”

“The enemy of my enemy is my friend. I might be able to use this to form some kind of alliance with Zhu Fenxiang.”

Zhao Hansheng nodded: “If that’s the case, then do it.”

From an analytical standpoint, Gu Qing made no mistakes.

The master and student were still disadvantaged by the lack of information. Of course, the relationship between Ning Zhuo and Zhu Fenxiang had already leaked within the Zhu family.

The master and student might well learn of it after some time.

Just as the two were discussing, a female cultivator, whose face was concealed, knocked on the door of the Qing-shi Cave Dwelling.

“What brings you here, fellow Daoist?” The old cook opened the door.

The female cultivator, her face veiled with thin gauze, had a full figure, exuding an air of elegance and nobility. She simply handed over a visiting card without speaking.

Seeing her extraordinary demeanor and composed, mysterious conduct, the old cook dared not be negligent. He took the visiting card, accompanied the female cultivator to wait briefly, and infused spiritual power into the card, sending it flying deep into the cave dwelling.

Ning Zhuo quickly received the visiting card.

His eyebrows rose slightly: “Zhu Gui-zhi, Zhu Fenxiang’s mother?”

“And she specifically instructed me not to inform Zhu Fenxiang. What is her purpose?”

Ning Zhuo immediately sensed an unusual implication.

“Is it because I learned the Zhu family’s Spirit Summoning Art?”

“Regardless of her purpose, I should meet and talk with her first to inquire about her intentions.”

He immediately interrupted his mechanical design for Xue-cai-nü Hui, rose, left the cultivation room, and personally went to greet Zhu Gui-zhi.

After all, she was Zhu Fenxiang’s mother, and according to etiquette, he should do so.