Chapter 564 - 311: Turbulent Undercurrents
Qin Tianlin glanced at the three people beside him. They positioned themselves behind him, to his left, and to his right. A hazy light bloomed, blanketing the area and distorting the light until he and Fan Zhao were invisible.
"Senior Uncle," Qin Tianlin called out with heartfelt sincerity. "How did you end up like this? Did that Wu Feng torture you for a confession?"
A complicated expression washed over Fan Zhao’s face. He answered evasively, "The Punishment Hall has its methods..."
He then asked in rapid succession, "What’s the situation outside? How is Master? Have people from the Four Great Sects and the Royal Court arrived yet?"
He had been imprisoned here for a long time and knew nothing of the outside world.
Qin Tianlin squatted down, grasped Fan Zhao’s hand, and spoke in a gentle voice.
"The Four Great Sects and the Royal Court arrived together a while ago. However, the Ancient King’s sudden appearance, along with signs that Flame Fire is recovering, intimidated the other Sects and the Royal Court, forcing them to back down from their aggressive stance."
"I don’t know the specifics, but Grandfather should be fine."
"The Ancient King appeared..." Fan Zhao murmured, his eyes growing more and more excited. "So... so you’re here to rescue me this time?"
His tone was cautious, laced with a probing question. After being imprisoned for so long, the worst torment hadn’t been the punishments or the various tests performed on his spirit and consciousness—it was the fall from his former status.
At his words, Qin Tianlin let out a soft sigh.
Fan Zhao seemed to collapse in on himself, as if his spine had been ripped out. He gave a wretched laugh. "I knew it. I knew it. The useless are always abandoned."
Hearing Fan Zhao’s words, a flash of indignation passed through Qin Tianlin’s eyes.
’Colluding with the Deceitful God to go after Su Chen... Even I never considered such a method. Not only did Fan Zhao do it, he botched it completely and gave them a handle on him. Now our Qin Family is in a bind, and he still has the gall to blame us.’
Qin Tianlin shook his head. "My father passed away."
"What?" Fan Zhao was stunned.
"Killed by the Deceitful God," Qin Tianlin added.
"The Deceitful God..." Fan Zhao’s expression shifted.
Qin Tianlin said bitterly, "Now, everyone outside is saying that if our Qin Family hadn’t colluded with the Deceitful God’s Followers, we wouldn’t have brought this disaster upon ourselves."
"That..." Fan Zhao trailed off, a hint of guilt in his eyes.
"Also, Su Chen defeated Wei Zhenghong. He’s now second on the Holy List."
"What?"
If Qin Guang’s death had merely surprised Fan Zhao, this news horrified him. "How is that possible?"
He blurted out, "He defeated Wei Zhenghong? Su Chen? *Him*?"
"I didn’t want to believe it either, but it’s the truth." Qin Tianlin gave a bitter smile. "I came here this time to ask for your help, Senior Uncle."
"That Su Chen... actually..." But Fan Zhao still hadn’t processed it all, murmuring to himself. The stronger Su Chen became, the slimmer his own chances of getting out were.
"Senior Uncle!" Qin Tianlin called out. Fan Zhao looked up blankly. "If I were outside, I could still help you, but now..."
"You can help me now, too," Qin Tianlin interrupted.
"How?" Fan Zhao looked at Qin Tianlin. For some reason, he suddenly seemed like a stranger.
"If you trust me, then don’t resist in a moment." Qin Tianlin gripped Fan Zhao’s wrist.
Fan Zhao looked down and felt a searing heat travel from the other man’s hand, spreading up his arm and quickly surging into his body.
He looked confused for a moment, but then the current grew hotter and hotter. A stabbing pain began to spread through his body as if he were being crushed from within. His head snapped back violently.
Fan Zhao let out a wail. "Tianlin! Qin Tianlin! What are you doing?"
"Senior Uncle, don’t you want revenge? Think about who’s responsible for putting you in this state! As long as you help me, I’ll get revenge for you! I’ll even find a way to get you out!"
Purple light flickered in Qin Tianlin’s eyes. His words reached Fan Zhao’s ears, causing him to calm down at once.
The pain made him instinctively resist, but when he thought about it, it seemed he had no other choice. He could only place his hopes in Qin Tianlin.
He clenched his jaw as faint purple flames began to leak from his eyes, ears, mouth, and nose. His body grew weaker and weaker, as if something was being drained from him.
After a long time, Qin Tianlin finally released his hands.
Fan Zhao collapsed to the ground, panting heavily. His expression was a mixture of shock and suspicion. "What did you do to me?"
He vaguely felt that something was different about his body, but in his sealed state, it was difficult to tell for sure.
’Is it done?’ Qin Tianlin asked in his mind.
’It’s done. This man and your Holy Profession are of the same sequence. He has already fully initiated it, lacking only the final forging. I used his Life Origin to fuse a wisp of Holy Power. It will allow you to wield the Power of the Immortal Vajra Holy Profession.’
Qin Tianlin’s eyes lit up, but then he heard the voice in his ear say, ’However, this power can only be used once before it is completely consumed.’
"Only once?" Qin Tianlin’s expression soured. He looked at the utterly weakened Fan Zhao. ’This was a Tier Eight dual-Professional with an incredibly solid foundation. According to that thing, I’ve practically crippled him.’
’But the power I extracted can only be used once.’
’Getting one use out of it is already quite good. If he hadn’t been somewhat cooperative, you wouldn’t have even gotten that,’ the voice in his ear said indifferently. ’Besides, it’s enough.’
"Indeed." Qin Tianlin’s brow relaxed. ’A Tier Six with the Power of a Holy Profession... It’s unprecedented. Everyone assumes the title of Little Star Head is Su Chen’s for the taking. Little do they know, there’s always someone better out there!’
’Remember what you promised me. The fame is yours; the Morning Star Essence is mine.’
"What exactly do you need that Morning Star Essence for?" Qin Tianlin reined in his thoughts and asked probingly.
’I know what you’re thinking. My things aren’t so easy to take. Don’t push your luck,’ the voice in his ear warned, but then added:
’The Morning Star Essence has astonishing vitality. I can use it to achieve a brief Transformation and use certain methods. Don’t worry, our target is still the same: Su Chen...’
Qin Tianlin snorted coldly to himself, offered a few placating words to Fan Zhao, and left without looking back.
...
With the arrival of numerous factions from the Dust Star Sea, the Bronze Sect finally became bustling with activity. It recalled a large number of the Bronze Guard Army to be stationed at the Star Port and on Dragon Abyss Star.
Logically speaking, this was already considered the core territory of the Bronze Sect, so there shouldn’t be any reckless fools who would dare cause trouble.
But based on past experience, there were always a few who were courting death and would try to fish in troubled waters.
The Star Port was a scene of utter clamor. At all times, spaceships of various designs emerged from the Star Gate, their engine nozzles trailing blue or purple ion flames as they docked.
Large crowds disembarked, following glowing Guiding strips on the ground that led personnel of different statuses and Tiers to their corresponding channels. Translucent holographic signs also floated in the air.
The guards stationed here were all elites of the Bronze Sect, clad in black heavy armor. Using the composite sensors in their helmets, they scanned every person passing by while being deployed to various posts according to system assignments.
Tier Seven Professionals were everywhere, and one could even see Tier Eight Professionals patrolling back and forth, unabashedly releasing their life auras.
This was to intimidate those who were growing impatient from the long queues.
"There are way too many people. It’s been three or four days, right? And it’s still this congested." In a corner, Ming Lin leaned against a wall, clicking his tongue in amazement.
He glanced at the somewhat silent, gaunt man beside him and said teasingly, "Senior Brother Teng, have you sensed any Deceitful God’s Followers?"
Teng Liang and the others had been doing a fine job distributing goods outside when Su Chen suddenly had the two of them pulled back to assist with security screening at the Star Port.
’Su Chen did give me some specific tasks, but I’m curious what role Senior Brother Teng has been assigned.’
Teng Liang was silent. He shot him a glance, not bothering to reply.
’Senior Brother Bu is more lively...’ Ming Lin thought to himself. Unbothered, he smoothly changed the subject. "How is the Spiritual Imprint process going for the other senior brothers?"
Hearing Ming Lin ask about serious matters, Teng Liang finally spoke in his muffled voice, "The imprinting was completed half a month ago. It’s the highest-grade version. If anyone tries to scan their memories, it will trigger an automatic disintegration."
"The Spiritual Imprint Master said this self-disintegration is extremely rapid. Due to the unique nature of the Spirit Body, once the process begins, the person will be turned into a mindless imbecile, even if it’s interrupted."