Chapter 1225: An Odd Pair of Master and Disciple

"This..."

Feeling the pressure, everyone's body went rigid.

The head before them was simply too large, its power boundless. Though it hadn't moved, the aura it emitted had already sealed the space, making escape impossible.

"This is... the peak of the Out-of-Body realm!"

Swallowing his saliva, Wu Shi said.

With his strength, he could easily tell that the other party had reached the peak of the Out-of-Body realm—a power they could not contend with!

"Indeed, it's the peak of the Out-of-Body realm..." Zhang Xuan nodded.

As he had guessed back in Qingyuan City, this ruthless figure had indeed reached the peak of the Out-of-Body realm, his strength several times greater than Qingtian Huang's.

"Then what do we do?"

They looked over urgently, filled with anxiety.

If it were any other strength, even the late stage of the Out-of-Body realm, they could put up a fight with effort. But this peak Out-of-Body powerhouse, and with such a massive head... how could they fight?

No matter how they fought, they would lose!

"Zhang Xuan, you're very clever, able to come up with a method of breaking the formation to destroy the altar... a brilliant move... But precisely because of your brilliance, you freed me from my shackles, haha! How does it feel? You've always wanted to kill me, yet you personally released me, and now you can only flee passively—don't you regret it?"

Stabilizing in midair, the face grew clearer, looking over coldly with a playful smile in its eyes.

The surrounding space had been sealed by him; even if these people wanted to escape, they couldn't. They were like fish in a barrel, nothing to fear.

"I do regret it... but since it's come to this, regret is useless. I'm just curious—who made that altar, and how did it manage to trap you?"

With a look of remorse, Zhang Xuan gritted his teeth and couldn't help asking.

This was something he had never understood.

The altar was clearly something of the Alien Spirit race, so why was it used to trap him?

"Anyway, you're about to be devoured, so explaining it to you won't hurt..."

With a cold laugh, the floating head opened its mouth, its voice like thunder: "That thing was made by that fellow Qingtian Huang!"

"Qingtian Huang?" Zhang Xuan was puzzled, full of surprise. "Isn't he... your student? Didn't he learn the art of spirit possession from you?"

How could his own student set up an altar to imprison his teacher?

"Hmph, over two thousand years ago, I summoned him here. At that time, I was nothing but a pair of shattered eyes and a fragment of thought..."

The ruthless figure snorted coldly. "I taught him the art of spirit possession with the simple goal of using his power to help me find my other parts and restore my strength!"

"Mm."

Zhang Xuan nodded.

This was something he could guess without thinking.

If someone could be called a ruthless figure, they were naturally a vicious character. How could they be so kind as to take on a student and teach them the lost art of spirit possession for free?

There had to be a purpose.

"That fellow was indeed very diligent, treating me as his teacher... He even captured countless Heavenly Artisans and Artifact Refiners, gathered countless treasures, and helped me forge this head!"

The ruthless figure said.

"Forged by Heavenly Artisans?"

Zhang Xuan recalled the dense rooms he had seen underground.

He hadn't known their purpose before, but now it seemed they were the grooves inside the head.

Forging such a massive head must have cost countless treasures and consumed immense manpower. It seemed that over the past two thousand years, many master teachers had died, and even more Heavenly Artisans and Artifact Refiners.

However, most had been attracted by the Ghost Cavern's mind-tempering effects, and the methods were subtle, so they hadn't been discovered.

"But at first, this fellow treated me with utmost respect. I always thought it was out of loyalty, but I never expected... he was plotting against me!"

The ruthless figure's voice was filled with indignation. "At some point, he found an altar. Ostensibly, it was to help me recover my strength quickly, but in reality, it was combined with the head forged by the Heavenly Artisans... forcibly trapping me! I couldn't escape and was imprisoned here..."

"Imprisoned?"

"That's right, he didn't just imprison me! In fact, his purpose in obeying me and learning spirit possession was simple from the start: he intended to seize my memories and replace me..."

The ruthless figure sneered.

Qingtian Huang, the emperor of the Alien Spirit race, how could he easily submit to anyone, even if that someone was the Ruthless Emperor?

"Seize and replace..."

Shaking his head, Zhang Xuan sighed and looked over with pity. "You're an old monster who has lived for tens of thousands of years and once fought with Master Kong... and you were outwitted by a mere Qingtian Huang?"

After all, this figure before him had once fought with Master Kong.

Not only was his strength formidable, but his survival skills were also numerous.

To be reduced to this state by a Qingtian Huang, who couldn't even outplay him, was simply unbelievable.

"I knew his intentions long ago, but when I first awakened over two thousand years ago, my strength hadn't even reached the Saint realm, and I couldn't resist! I had to rely on his power and resources..."

Snorting, the ruthless figure's eyes flickered. "But he wanted to kill me—how could I be killed so easily? I secretly left a thought in his mind; if he tried to harm me, it would annihilate both his body and soul!"

"This..."

His mouth twitching, Zhang Xuan shook his head.

What a fine pair of master and disciple—you guard against me, I guard against you; you want to kill me, I want to kill you...

They were really good at playing mind games!

"Once the head was completed, for me to revive and gain combat power, I had to spread my consciousness across the entire island... This would cause a brief coma... It was at that moment that he used the altar to secretly strike against me..."

Thinking of this, the ruthless figure seemed still ablaze with anger. "Just as he was about to kill me, the thought I had left in his mind took effect... He didn't want to die, so he had to obey me again. But he also had a backup plan, and I dared not actually kill him, so we remained in a stalemate..."

"This..."

Wu Shi, Hall Master Xing, and the others exchanged glances.

The bond between master and disciple was extremely important. On the Master Teacher Continent, once a student was found to have betrayed or killed their teacher, they were executed without question.

Because of this, everyone on the Master Teacher Continent, including ordinary cultivators, held great respect for 'teachers.'

Heaven, Earth, Parents, Teacher, Ruler!

The teacher's status was only below that of parents, even surpassing the ruler!

With such status, it was rare across the continent for a student to plot against their teacher... But these Alien Spirit people—the teacher constantly thought of using the student, and the student constantly thought of how to seize the teacher's body...

Truly bizarre!

"The Alien Spirit race only pledges loyalty to the Spirit God; they don't care about 'teachers'..."

Seeing their confusion, Zhang Xuan explained.

He had encountered many Alien Spirit people and dealt with many, even wiping out the entire Qingtian lineage from 'emperor' to 'king.' He knew their habits well.

They only served the Spirit God, obeying its commands and offering sacrifices to it. The so-called 'teacher'... meant nothing to them.

Not only would they plot against a teacher, but even killing one was considered normal in their eyes, not a grave offense.

Because of this, although Qingtian Huang and this ruthless figure had been together for over two thousand years, they each harbored their own schemes and secretly contended.

Otherwise, with the ruthless figure's insight and experience, plus an emperor, how could he still be trapped here after two thousand years?

In fact, Zhang Xuan even suspected that the ruthless figure in Wu Yangzi's underground palace had gained consciousness because of Qingtian Huang.

"For even the mighty ruthless figure to be hesitant, I wonder... what exactly is Qingtian Huang's backup plan?"

After explaining, Zhang Xuan looked up and continued asking.

What could it be that made this ruthless figure, even with the advantage of leaving a thought in the other's mind, dare not act?

"It's news about the World Heritage Talisman!"

The ruthless figure said.

It seemed that being trapped for so many years had made him憋坏了, and facing these master teachers who could be killed at any moment, he had a chance to speak.

"The World Heritage Talisman?"

Having searched Qingtian Huang's soul, Zhang Xuan already knew this news and wasn't too surprised.

But Wu Shi and the others' pupils contracted.

Ignoring their shock, the ruthless figure snorted and continued, "It was a puppet loyal to him that uncovered this news. As master teachers, you should know how precious this thing is!"

Everyone nodded simultaneously.

The World Heritage Talisman was personally left by Master Kong and involved the [Spring and Autumn Canon] personally created by him. Its value was enough to drive not only ordinary master teachers mad but even the nine-star master teachers at the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters, who would likely be unable to resist upon hearing the news.

"If I can obtain the talisman, I can escape this neither-human-nor-ghost state, easily find my scattered parts, and restore my peak strength! I might even seize the Spring and Autumn Canon and surpass Master Kong..."

The huge eyes flickered continuously, the ruthless figure filled with excitement.

Ordinary Alien Spirit people might not know how to use the World Heritage Talisman, but this ruthless figure, who had fought Master Kong countless times, surely knew how to use it and maximize its effects.

"In my current state, I cannot leave. To obtain the World Heritage Talisman, I have to rely on him... So I must keep him alive! Moreover, he knows the location of some of my scattered parts. If I kill him, it will be difficult to merge them!" the ruthless figure continued.

"This..." Zhang Xuan nodded.

The allure of the World Heritage Talisman was simply too great, coupled with the desire to restore his strength, so it was understandable that he dared not kill him.

"You said... a puppet loyal to Qingtian Huang uncovered this news... even Vice Hall Master Tian Qing didn't know about it... This puppet must be of high status, right?"

With a thought, Zhang Xuan caught the issue in his words and asked again.

Vice Hall Master Tian Qing was Qingtian Huang's own consciousness, not a puppet.

Loyal Qing Wang could only be considered a lackey, even less so. This puppet, who could obtain news of the World Heritage Talisman, must have a high status... Who could it be?

Why was there no record in Qingtian Huang's memories?

"Don't try to pry it out of me. This one has already pledged loyalty to me..."

The ruthless figure sneered, seeming to have finished explaining what needed to be said. Not wanting to say more, his eyes turned cold, and a murderous aura spread straight toward the group. "Alright, now that you know so many secrets, you can be on your way!"

Boom!

A mighty force suddenly pressed down, and everyone's breathing became rapid, their chests feeling as if they would explode.