Chapter 456: Temporary Residence on Wu Huang Star

Inside the Lingjie Lin Tianjun’s Mansion.

Today, in a secret chamber within the mansion, only Lin Tianjun and the other three Great Heavenly Lords, along with the powerful cultivator Li Jiu from the Mahayana stage, were present.

A strange array was laid out on the ground, with various mysterious runes flashing among them. An unusual energy filled the entire chamber. The five of them sat in seiza position above the array, with Li Jiu seated at the very center, while the four Great Heavenly Lords sat at the four endpoints of a “ten” shape.

At that moment, the five of them awoke from their meditation at the same time. First, Lin Tianjun sighed softly, “He escaped again…”

The expressions of the other three Heavenly Lords were also grim. The white-haired elder shook his head and said, “What kind of force is it that has devoured the energy within our projected bodies?”

Faced with this question, the others remained silent—clearly, they had no answers.

Li Jiu, who controlled the array, though calm in expression, also sighed slightly. “It’s a pity that this projection array of mine is not a true Great Dao technique. The projected bodies of you four possess not even 10% of their original strength. Otherwise, even if they encountered that mysterious force, they wouldn’t have had their divine techniques destroyed by the self-explosion of someone in the mid-stage of Lianxu…”

Li Jiu, who was about to ascend to the Immortal Realm, had spent his entire life studying array techniques and was a renowned master of arrays in the Lingjie. He could even use arrays to simulate the miraculous powers of certain Great Dao techniques, such as the projection array before them.

Yet, after all, mortal array techniques still couldn’t compare to true Great Dao techniques. The projected bodies sent to the cultivation world through this array could at most exert one-tenth of their original strength—strictly speaking, not even reaching the strength of those in the early stage of Daguan.

Moreover, seven or eightpercent of the energy within the projected bodies of Lin Tianjun and the others had been devoured by that mysterious shadow. Even if the remaining energy were fully unleashed, it wouldn’t be enough to withstand the impact of a self-explosion from someone in the mid-stage of Lianxu, who would sacrifice their life in doing so.

Due to these reasons, the capture plan, which should have been almost certain, ended in a disappointing failure.

The five of them, including Li Jiu, certainly hadn’t anticipated such an outcome. All they could say was that human plans often fall short of fate’s will—there are always unforeseen factors, and that’s beyond control.

However, a minor setback like this couldn’t shake such powerful figures. After sighing briefly, the five of them quickly regained their composure.

“Tian Yu has indeed settled on Wu Huang Star for eight years. It seems the intelligence we had back then was quite accurate.”

Lord Lin Tian said solemnly, “It’s obvious that Tian Yu has a deep connection with the Witch Clan. This is extremely unusual!”
“Yes.”
Li Jiu nodded slowly, a hint of concern on his face. “Back then, when I heard he had taken refuge on a planet inhabited by the Witch Clan, I had a very badpremonition. I’ve suspected more than once that the great calamity to befall the world in a hundred years might be related to this Tian Yu… If that’s the case, it will be troublesome!”
All four of Lord Lin Tian’s companions nodded. They could all imagine the consequences involved.
If the Witch Clan rose up against heaven, it would bring endless disasters to the Spirit Realm and the Immortal Realm. However, Lord Lin Tian and the others weren’t too worried about this, as they had already thought of ways to avoid it.
The most critical issue was that if Tian Yu were connected to the Witch Clan or even played a significant role in the great calamity, he would eventually attract the attention of the immortals in the Immortal Realm. In that case, ordinary figures like Li Jiu and Lord Lin Tian would have to step aside and could no longer take any action against Tian Yu.
Humans cannot fight against immortals. Once Tian Yu became the focus of the immortals, which mortal cultivator would dare to target him?
Ordinary cultivators who dare to compete with immortals for prey will only end up becoming prey themselves.
Therefore, what Li Jiu and the others were most worried about now wasn’t how capable Su Che was, but rather the magnitude of the trouble he might cause.
Mortal cultivators have no right to punish or sanction someone who has caused such a huge disaster…
“This matter must be kept secret for now. It must not reach the Immortal Realm under any circumstances.”
Li Jiu’s gaze turned cold, his tone sinister. “Apart from us five, you know what to do with those who shouldn’t know about this, right?”
All four of Lord Lin Tian’s companions nodded.
Just a few short sentences determined the fate of a group of people. For now, cultivators like Tai Hong, who were still in the cultivation world, would face an extremely tragic end if they returned to the Spirit Realm…
At the same time, Su Che and Tian Yin had returned to the Witch Yellow Tribe and stood before the elders once again.
They had only been away for less than half a day before returning. The elders were filled with curiosity, guessing that they must have forgotten something and had to come back…
“We were ambushed as soon as we left…”
Su Che and Tian Yin briefly recounted the crisis they had encountered earlier.
“In that case, the outside world is full of dangers. Your father and Great Witch Tian Yin must not leave again so carelessly.”

The Grand Elder said solemnly, “I ask the two of you to stay on Witch Yellow Star for ten to twenty years. We will work hard to break through the Five Elements Locking Star Formation. By then, with the protection of our warriors, your safety will be assured.”

These Witch Clan elders all had lifespans of hundreds of thousands of years, so ten to twenty years was indeed merely a ‘temporary stay’ for them—similar to what ordinary people would call ‘staying overnight and leaving the next day.’

Su Che hesitated not at all and immediately agreed. No matter how dull life on Witch Yellow Star might be, he couldn’t risk his life. Survival came first; everything else could be discussed later.

Thus, peaceful days resumed on Witch Yellow Star. Each day was mainly spent on cultivating his vital energy, integrating the bones of the Demon Gods, and creating the Immortal Prison World. From time to time, Su Che would also meet up with Tian Yin for a chat or a walk.

Of course, with his current Yuan Ying cultivation level, spending ten to twenty years in such a mundane manner wasn’t a big deal. Under normal circumstances, many Yuan Ying cultivators would spend several years in seclusion.

During this time, Su Che often talked to his shadow, saying things that made no sense and were almost incomprehensible to outsiders.

So far, Su Che could be fairly certain that this mysterious and strange shadow posed no harm to him and might even help him resolve crises at critical moments. The projection of the Four Great Heavenly Lords last time was the best example.

Now, the shadow’s color had become as black as it could get, as deep as it could go. If there were any further changes, Su Che could no longer tell.

While others’ shadows were so faint they were barely visible, his shadow remained pitch black, unaffected by the surrounding light.

What was even more amusing was that often, Su Che’s actual movements didn’t match his shadow’s at all, creating a very strange sensation. For example, when Su Che was drinking tea or playing chess, his upper body moved in various ways, but his shadow on the ground remained motionless, as if asleep or lazy.

Conversely, sometimes when Su Che was completely still, his shadow would scratch its head, fidget, and move around restlessly, as if suffering from ADHD.

It would even often do extremely strange and funny things in front of Tian Yin, making her laugh uncontrollably, while Su Che felt extremely embarrassed.

Although he was discussing a serious matter with Tianyin, it suddenly started rolling around on the ground and turned into a puppy’s shadow, lifting one back leg to pee on Su Che’s instep… In short, this strange shadow indeed caused Su Che a lot of trouble at first, but over time, all the discomfort gradually turned into habit and acceptance. After all, no matter what it did, Su Che was currently powerless against it. As the saying goes, what can you do to your own shadow? Another year passed in the blink of an eye. Though life was plain, Su Che never forgot the promise he had made to the master of Juechen Valley. After all, he had sworn an oath not to break his word easily. However, considering that those from the Spirit Realm might still be lurking in the starry sky, Su Che couldn’t take the risk himself, so he summoned his powerful subordinate, Hengyi, who was at the mid-stage of Lianxu, from the Immortal Prison. He recounted to Hengyi everything related to the master of Juechen Valley and gave him instructions: “Hengyi, go to Mulan Star to keep my appointment and explain my situation to the master of Juechen Valley. If he agrees to come to Wuhuang Star to see me, then bring him here.” “Master, rest assured. I know how to handle this situation.” With nearly two thousand years of life experience, Hengyi didn’t need much guidance from Su Che; he knew exactly what to do. Su Che nodded slightly and added, “Remember, safety first. If you can’t complete this mission, retreat immediately. We can think of another way. In any case, it’s not worth risking your life for this.” “Understood, master.” After bowing, Hengyi left right away. Wuhuang Star was only over 100 million li away from Mulan Star. At Hengyi’s flying speed, it would take less than fifteen minutes to reach there. Su Che believed that even if Hengyi encountered dozens of opponents of the same level along the way, he could easily avoid them in the vast starry sky and escape. Of course, if he unfortunately ran into the projection of some Heavenly Monarch, that would be another matter. In less than three days, Hengyi returned safely. “Master, after arriving at Mulan Star, I found that master of Juechen Valley right at noon that day and told him everything you instructed me to say.” Hengyi reported in detail, “Then, the master of Juechen Valley asked for two days to think it over, so I waited on Mulan Star for two days…”

Hearing this, Su Che suddenly waved his hand to interrupt him: “Stop talking for now. Let me guess. I think he must have… agreed!”
“Your master is truly prescient!”
Heng Yi smiled and said, “He did agree and came to Witch Yellow Star on his own to meet your master, but he has two conditions.”