Chapter 1368: The Hall of Heavenly Secrets

"Then I'll trouble Brother Luo!"

Just as he was unfamiliar with the Holy Son Hall and couldn't find his way anywhere, upon hearing Luo Xuanqing's confident assurance, Zhang Xuan's eyes lit up immediately.

With someone leading the way, it would save a lot of trouble. Besides, he was more than willing to go beat up Zhang Chun, and that fellow still owed him spirit stones—it was time to collect the debt.

"No need to stand on ceremony with me..." With a hearty laugh, Luo Xuanqing took the lead and walked forward.

Although the man before him was not highly cultivated, he possessed extraordinary abilities in both setting up formations and guiding others to break through. Befriending him would be greatly beneficial.

He naturally wouldn't let such an opportunity slip by.

As they walked, he transmitted a message using a jade talisman. After a moment, he smiled slightly and turned to Zhang Xuan: "That fellow isn't in the inner courtyard but at the Hall of Heavenly Secrets. Let's go there and corner him!"

"Hall of Heavenly Secrets?" Zhang Xuan frowned.

"Yes, the Hall of Heavenly Secrets, like the Array Masters Guild where we took the assessment, is a branch of a special profession within the Holy Son Hall," Luo Xuanqing said.

"You mean... Heavenly Secret Masters?" Zhang Xuan's eyes lit up.

He had heard rumors of this profession before. It was one of the upper nine professions, extremely mysterious, capable of using special techniques to predict events in the near future, deduce fortune and misfortune, and foresee good and bad luck.

Saint clans usually employed several such masters for ceremonies and to judge various decisions.

Throughout his journey, he had only heard rumors but never seen one. He hadn't expected the Holy Son Hall to have them.

"That fellow just got beaten by your beast pet. He probably thinks it's a bad start and wants to go get a divination, or maybe he wants someone to deduce your origins!"

Luo Xuanqing laughed.

Being able to quickly learn that Zhang Chun was at the Hall of Heavenly Secrets meant that the Holy Son Hall had many informants. Knowing the other party's intentions wasn't too difficult.

"Deduce my origins? Why not just ask someone?"

Zhang Xuan shook his head.

Did his origins even need deducing? Asking around would be simpler and more accurate!

"The Zhang family has always been superstitious and worships this heavenly secret divination the most. Not to mention others, the current patriarch, the Rising Dream Sword Saint, has invited all the nine-star Heavenly Secret Masters on the continent over the years!"

Luo Xuanqing sneered.

"Why invite Heavenly Secret Masters?" Zhang Xuan was curious.

The Zhang family, as the number one family on the continent, had stable power and countless geniuses. What more could they be dissatisfied with that required Heavenly Secret Masters to deduce?

"Who knows! Anyway, the Zhang family is the most eccentric. If you encounter them, you must be careful..." Luo Xuanqing waved his hand.

The Hall of Heavenly Secrets, like other professional assessment centers, was located in the Wisdom Hall. The two moved quickly and soon arrived.

Although this place was within the Wisdom Hall's domain, it was completely different from other professional assessment centers. It looked very ancient, exuding an aura of antiquity.

The entire building resembled an overturned turtle shell, its surface covered with various strange cracks that seemed to contain the will of the Heavenly Dao, or perhaps a special formation peering into the mysteries of heaven and earth.

The doors of other assessment centers were wide open, but here they were tightly shut.

"This is the Hall of Heavenly Secrets?"

"Yes, I also studied the Heavenly Secret profession. I researched it for several days but couldn't even get started, so I gave up! This profession—sometimes it's accurate when it comes to deception, but if you take it as truth... relying on a few tortoise shells and copper coins to deduce fortune and misfortune is hard to accept. I'm not too clear on the specifics either!"

Luo Xuanqing shook his head.

"If it exists, there is a reason. This profession has been passed down for tens of thousands of years without being buried by history, which shows it indeed has its value," Zhang Xuan remarked.

History always moves forward. Being able to endure for so long and be sought after by countless masters means it's not as simple as it appears on the surface.

"Why do you sound like my sister now? Last time we talked about Heavenly Secret Masters, she said the same thing..."

Luo Xuanqing glanced at him and shook his head.

His sister had said the same thing.

"It's my honor to share the same thought as the little princess..." Zhang Xuan smiled lightly.

"No need to flatter me!"

Luo Xuanqing looked wary: "I advise you not to set your sights on my sister. First, with your strength, she wouldn't think much of you. Second, the wills of the Zhang and Luo families are not something an outsider like you can contend with! You'd better drop that idea!"

Through these days of contact, he had also noticed that this Zhang Xuan was good in every way except that he cared too much about his sister.

If it were anyone else, he would have beaten them up long ago, but this man had helped him a lot and enabled him to break through successfully... so he couldn't help but advise him.

Although he also wanted this man to become his brother-in-law, he understood that it was absolutely impossible.

As a member of the Luo family, and with the most core bloodline, he couldn't change his sister's fate, let alone a small figure at the peak of the Nascent Soul realm!

So, better not to think about it. The more he thought, the more it would hurt. He didn't want a friend he had finally recognized to fall into danger because of his sister.

"Think little of me? Not necessarily. The word 'fate' is hard to predict..." Zhang Xuan couldn't help but speak.

He and Luo Ruoxi had met in the vast mountains. Without those spirit beasts and his sudden impulse to help, they might never have known each other.

The word 'fate' sounds wonderful, and it often happens in that single moment of eye contact.

"Many before you thought the same, and I beat them crippled. Some were crippled by Zhang Chun..." Snorting, Luo Xuanqing was about to continue when suddenly he heard a "creak!" and the door before them slowly opened.

Then a young man in a long robe walked out.

"Two senior brothers, the master invites you!"

Coming before them, the young man cupped his fists and made a respectful gesture.

"Your master, you mean... Master Feng Zhongquan?" Luo Xuanqing was startled, his eyes lighting up.

"That's right!" The young man nodded, a proud look on his face.

"Master Feng Zhongquan is always elusive. I heard that Zhang Chun visited him seven times and was turned away each time... and he wants to see me?"

Filled with excitement, Luo Xuanqing nearly jumped up.

The Zhang family held Heavenly Secret Masters in great respect, and Master Feng Zhongquan was the most powerful in the entire Holy Son Hall. Zhang Chun had come to pay respects many times but was always refused. He hadn't even sent a name card, yet the other party had sent someone to welcome him. Didn't that mean he surpassed Zhang Chun by a lot?

If so, when he met Zhang Chun later, he could thoroughly mock him.

"You're overthinking it. He didn't want to see you. The master specifically asked to see the young friend beside you."

Seeing his expression, the young man raised his eyelids and waved his hand.

"Me?" Zhang Xuan was stunned: "Why?"

He had just arrived and didn't even know who the other was. Why would he want to see him?

"I'm not sure either. You'll know when you go."

In fact, the young man also found it incredible.

Given the master's status, even the acting hall master and elders of the Holy Son Hall could be ignored if he wished. Yet now he wanted to see a newcomer with no reputation, only about twenty years old, and even sent him out personally to welcome him...

He was full of doubts.

If the other party were like that little princess, possessing extraordinary strength, it would be understandable. But he was only at the peak of the Nascent Soul realm. Elsewhere, he might be considered a genius, but in the Holy Son Hall, such people were a dime a dozen and nothing special.

"See Zhang Shi?" Not only Zhang Xuan was surprised, but Luo Xuanqing's eyes also widened.

He had thought he finally had a chance to show off in front of Zhang Chun, but unexpectedly, the other party wanted to see the man beside him.

"Alright!"

Although curious, seeing that the young man didn't know either, Zhang Xuan said no more and followed behind him, stepping through the door.

The interior of the Hall of Heavenly Secrets looked even more ancient. Strange flagpoles were stuck into the ground, dividing one corner of the hall into countless small areas. Dozens of young people sat inside, some holding copper coins, some holding tortoise shells, eyes closed, deep in thought, as if deducing something.

Before them, a green-red beetle was being placed on blazing charcoal, seemingly on the verge of death at any moment.

"Is this... a lightning beetle that can survive in thunder?"

Zhang Xuan was full of doubt.

Although he had never seen a lightning beetle, he had read about them in books and heard rumors. It was said that this creature didn't eat or drink, only emerging from the ground during thunderstorms to rush into the sky, surviving by absorbing the power of lightning.

They were extremely rare. Some beast tamers sought them but couldn't find any. Yet here, they were being roasted over a fire... baffling.

He had never heard that this thing was edible. Even if one wanted to eat it, a beetle the size of a thumb wouldn't be enough to fill the gaps between a dozen people's teeth...

"This is normal training for Heavenly Secret Masters. They isolate themselves in sealed spaces, close off the six senses, use their minds to seek heavenly secrets, and deduce whether the lightning beetle will be burned to death by the charcoal fire or crawl out of it..."

Seeing his confusion, Luo Xuanqing explained via telepathy.

Although he wasn't a Heavenly Secret Master, he had come to study and knew the situation.

"This..."

Zhang Xuan was puzzled.

The lightning beetle was placed on charcoal fire, could be burned to death at any moment, but also had a chance to escape. Whether it lived or died couldn't be known without direct observation. Like Schrödinger's cat, it was a paradox. How could one deduce heavenly secrets from it?

"The lightning beetle, fearless of thunder, is actually contending with the Heavenly Dao, so it is also called the Heavenly Secret Beetle. Speculating on the life and death of this creature helps people better understand the elusive opportunities and the impermanence of the Heavenly Dao's laws!"

As if hearing their telepathic conversation, the young man turned around and explained.

"Oh..." Zhang Xuan half-understood. He glanced at the beetle on the charcoal and frowned: "With such scorching flames, this beetle should die soon, right?"

"Die?"

The young man smiled: "I have deduced this beetle. It can live a long life of a hundred years and won't die..."

Before he finished speaking, a sound like a balloon popping was heard. The lightning beetle lying on the charcoal suddenly expanded and exploded into powder in an instant.

Bang!

"Uh..." Zhang Xuan looked over, his expression strange: "Could it be... today is its hundredth birthday?"

"..." The young man.