Chapter 640 - 379: The Queen Mother’s Teachings
Since coming to the Northern Domain, Zou Feng had dealt with the Tribulation Cultivators of the Ninefold Celestial Court on numerous occasions.
Zou Feng had long since grown to understand these beings who proclaimed themselves Immortals of the Celestial Court.
Furthermore, because he cultivated the Outer Alchemy Dao, he could likely infiltrate the Ninefold Celestial Court directly and go undiscovered for some time.
After reporting to Jiang Wanzhao, Zou Feng naturally had to rush off to investigate whether Wang Buyi was truly a traitor.
As a key figure in the Celestial Hearing Tower’s command center, Wang Buyi’s workload was understandably heavy, especially with the approaching wedding of Zhao Feixiong and Luo Zhen.
But after making some inquiries, Zou Feng quickly found an opportunity to orchestrate a "chance" encounter with him.
A building as ridiculously tall as the Celestial Hearing Tower, which pierced the clouds, was naturally equipped with numerous lifting platforms powered by Spirit Stones.
These lifting platforms were essential. Otherwise, even if the Cultivators could all jump and fly, the chaos of so many people constantly leaping up and down was easy to imagine.
Zou Feng had specifically lain in wait near a lifting platform Wang Buyi often used. Seeing the man stride onto the platform with two Guards, his gait powerful and imposing, Zou Feng immediately darted out and followed him inside.
Wang Buyi had thick eyebrows and large eyes, his face filled with an air of righteousness. He possessed a natural authority that was intimidating even without anger.
Based on his appearance alone, it was hard to imagine he could be a traitor.
"Brother Wang!"
Once inside the lifting platform, Zou Feng smiled and took the initiative to greet him.
Wang Buyi squinted, sizing up Zou Feng for a moment before giving a slight nod in response.
He obviously knew Zou Feng, but his expression showed he wasn’t particularly fond of him and had no intention of exchanging pleasantries.
After they had all taken their positions, the lifting platform slowly began to descend.
Wang Buyi and his two Guards were all expressionless, making the atmosphere on the platform incredibly somber.
As the platform’s speed gradually increased and the sound of rushing wind grew louder, Zou Feng finally sent a private voice transmission to Wang Buyi: "May the Queen Mother be blessed with boundless fortune and peace!"
Those words made Wang Buyi jolt, and he immediately whipped his head around to stare at Zou Feng in astonishment.
At that moment, Zou Feng purposefully let a hint of the Outer Alchemy Dao’s aura leak from his body.
’After all,’ Zou Feng thought, ’if Wang Buyi is compromised, it’s highly likely the two Guards who are always with him aren’t clean either. So, showing my hand a little right now shouldn’t be a problem.’
When he sensed the aura of the Outer Alchemy Dao coming from Zou Feng—an aura that already showed considerable mastery—the shock on Wang Buyi’s face deepened.
After a moment of stunned silence, he finally replied subconsciously via voice transmission, "May the Queen Mother be blessed with boundless fortune and peace!"
"Fellow Daoist Zou, you’re one of us too...?"
Zou Feng nodded. "Not long after I arrived in the Northern Domain, I was enlightened by a Golden Body Celestial General and had the honor of listening to the Queen Mother’s teachings from across the void!"
A Golden Body Celestial General was the equivalent of a White Impermanence, a Celestial General at the Dao Foundation Realm Late Stage.
As for this "enlightenment" by a Golden Body Celestial General and "listening to the Queen Mother’s teachings," it was actually a very potent brainwashing ritual used by the Ninefold Celestial Court.
But not all Cultivators were "fortunate enough" to participate in this brainwashing ritual.
One had to be judged as a "fated one" by a Golden Body Celestial General and already possess a certain curiosity and reverence for the Ninefold Celestial Court to be allowed to take part.
Once the ritual began, the master of the Ninefold Celestial Court—the Queen Mother herself—would transmit some vague, unintelligible ravings from an unknown distance across space.
According to previous intelligence, what each participant heard and the "enlightenment" they gained from it were never the same.
To put it simply, the "Queen Mother" would spout some gibberish, and the listeners would each interpret it in their own wildly different ways.
Those who achieved the "deepest enlightenment" would have their heads explode on the spot, directly achieving Ascension to the Turquoise Pool for an audience with the Queen Mother.
Hearing that Zou Feng had also listened to the Queen Mother’s teachings, Wang Buyi sighed with deep conviction. "If I hadn’t heard the Queen Mother’s words back then, I’m afraid I still wouldn’t know the truth of this world, nor would I have understood what the true path of the Dao is..."
Although he was conversing with Zou Feng via private voice transmission, it was impossible for the two Guards standing so close not to notice something was off.
Yet, these two Guards remained as still as old monks in deep Meditation, completely unmoved even when Zou Feng had revealed his Outer Alchemy Dao aura.
"Fellow Daoist Zou, your mission is..." After his moment of emotion, Wang Buyi got straight to the point.
Zou Feng immediately countered, "And what, Fellow Daoist Wang, is your mission?"
The corners of Wang Buyi’s mouth twitched into a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. "Forgive my indiscretion."
Wang Buyi’s question had actually been another test for Zou Feng.
The Tribulation Cultivators who infiltrated the Ninefold Celestial Court were, of course, all on a mission.
Or perhaps they were only responsible for a single part of a mission, so that if something went wrong and they couldn’t "return to the Turquoise Pool," they wouldn’t give up too much information under interrogation.
Therefore, even if the Celestial Generals of the Ninefold Celestial Court—especially those embedded deep within enemy territory—discovered each other’s identities, they wouldn’t necessarily know the details of one another’s missions.
For added security, asking another operative about their specific mission, as Wang Buyi had just done, was strictly forbidden.
Thus, if Zou Feng had simply made up a mission and told it to Wang Buyi, Wang Buyi would have immediately known he was dealing with a double agent.
Fortunately, Zou Feng had Refined and interrogated enough Celestial Generals to know the rules of their game.
It was a pity, however, that this also meant he couldn’t ask what Wang Buyi’s mission was.
But there was no need. Now that he had confirmed Wang Buyi was compromised, all he had to do was report back to Jiang Wanzhao.
Then, if all went smoothly, they would naturally be able to pry open Wang Buyi’s mouth.