Chapter 171: The Footsteps of the Search Have Never Stopped

Li Jing fell silent for a moment, unsure whether he should blame the Great King.

After all, Nezha was lost right here under the Great King's watch.

Yet, even without the Great King, Nezha would still have been taken away by Master Taiyi. Li Jing did not delude himself into thinking he had the ability to protect Nezha against Master Taiyi.

"The Great King need not reproach himself; this is simply Zha'er's destiny."

Madam Yin, standing nearby, regained her composure and offered Jiang Yuan a strained smile.

She knew the Great King could not be blamed for this.

No matter where one was, if Primordial Lord of Heaven wished to take someone away, no one save a Saint could possibly stop him.

She was entirely correct; this was Nezha's fate.

Jiang Yuan looked at Madam Yin with a trace of guilt, his eyes resolute as he said, "Rest assured, Madam Li, this monarch will personally and safely bring Nezha back."

"The Great King only needs to do his best. Saints cannot be opposed by mere mortal might, and Zha'er naturally has his own destination. I believe he will turn misfortune into blessing," Madam Yin said with a faint smile.

She had cherished the child Nezha since he was young, and thus never concealed her deep affection for him.

Even in front of Jinzha and Muzha, Madam Yin never hid her partiality.

Jinzha and Muzha understood their mother's special fondness for Nezha; after all, she had carried him in her womb for three full years, so an extra measure of pampering was only natural.

Besides, their mother's affection for the two of them had not diminished in the slightest, so they harbored no grievance whatsoever regarding the matter.

"General Li, could you tell me more about the Daoist Master Duer? This monarch suspects that Daoist Master Duer might know some inside information concerning Nezha's situation, and I intend to pay him a visit."

Jiang Yuan asked with a smile, looking at Li Jing.

He figured this must be a deeply hidden, mysterious powerhouse.

Li Jing frowned in deep thought, then replied, "My master's master appears to be Grand Supreme Elderly Lord, one of the Three Pure Ones."

This revelation caused turbulent waves to churn within Jiang Yuan's heart. Daoist Master Duer was actually a disciple of Grand Supreme Elderly Lord?

This was truly mind-boggling. Wasn't it said that Grand Supreme Elderly Lord had only a single disciple, the Great Master Xuandu?

How could a Daoist Master Duer suddenly emerge from nowhere?

"What about the Great Master Xuandu, then?" Jiang Yuan asked subconsciously.

"He is my junior grand-uncle, as well as my grand-master's final closing disciple," Li Jing replied as a matter of course.

Jiang Yuan's expression grew solemn. As a disciple of the Saint Grand Supreme Elderly Lord, his status must be extraordinarily high. Why would he choose to conceal himself so thoroughly?

Jiang Yuan knew a little about the Great Master Xuandu; rumor had it that he was none other than the legendary Ghost Valley Master.

His exact strength remained unknown, marking him as an intensely enigmatic figure, but as a Saint's disciple, his standing in this world was undoubtedly supreme.

"Where is this Eight-Treasure Liguang Cave located, the one belonging to the Daoist Master Duer you just mentioned?" Jiang Yuan asked curiously.

"I wonder if Senior Bai Ze might be able to divine such matters?" Jiang Yuan asked with lingering curiosity.

Bai Ze shook his head. Since the person in question was a disciple of the Saint Grand Supreme Elderly Lord, his identity was naturally mysterious and intentionally concealed.

His own divine powers would certainly have no effect against such a figure.

Perhaps Daoist Master Duer had even reached the Semi-Saint realm, seeing as he was capable of becoming a direct pupil of the Saint Grand Supreme Elderly Lord.

His innate talent and combat prowess would undoubtedly be extraordinary.

Li Jing answered promptly, "The Eight-Treasure Liguang Cave is situated at Mount Jiuding Tiecha in the Western Kunlun Mountains."

Jiang Yuan nodded gravely. Regardless of Daoist Master Duer's actual strength or his attitude toward him, he was determined to make this trip.

When it came to Nezha's true identity, Daoist Master Duer would undoubtedly possess far more comprehensive knowledge.

"This monarch understands. Rest assured, General Li, no matter the outcome, I will exert my utmost strength to bring Nezha back," Jiang Yuan promised.

"Then this humble subject thanks the Great King in advance," Li Jing said, deeply moved.

"What realm has General Li attained as of late?" Jiang Yuan asked, looking directly at him.

It was a classic case of asking a question to which he already knew the answer, completely ignoring the fact that the system bug allowed him to view Li Jing's precise stats.

Relying merely on his current strength, Jiang Yuan could easily perceive that Li Jing was at the Great Golden Immortal Peak realm.

To think that after all this time, he was still lingering at the Great Golden Immortal Peak. It seemed Li Jing's cultivation talent was indeed rather mediocre.

No wonder he had descended the mountain so early to serve as the General Guarding Chentang Pass. If not for the awakening of his own system, Jiang Yuan figured Li Jing would likely have eventually defected to Xiqi, especially since he always had the lingering feeling that Daoist Master Duer had plotted all of this out in advance.

Even the fact that his disciple Zheng Lun came to assist him was arranged so that Daoist Master Duer's disciples could accumulate more merits.

Even the name Nezha, which would eventually resound across the Three Realms, had been bestowed by Daoist Master Duer. What else was beyond his ability to calculate?

There were simply too many enigmatic occurrences in this world; Jiang Yuan felt a twinge of helplessness. Why did he always feel like an utter novice?

Sooner or later, he would tear away every single veil of mystery covering this world!

"Reporting to the Great King, this subject is dull-witted and remains at the Great Golden Immortal Peak," Li Jing said, looking somewhat embarrassed.

Even he himself could never quite figure out why his master had been willing to accept him as a disciple.

He was well aware deep down that he possessed virtually no natural talent for cultivation.

Now, however, he finally understood why his master had taken him in; it appeared Daoist Master Duer had long since foreseen that he would eventually father Nezha.

"Well, as one of this monarch's capable pillars, merely resting at the Golden Immortal realm is somewhat insufficient," Jiang Yuan said calmly.

It was time once again for his habitual display of dominance. * * * * * "Stupid system, how many tyrant points?" Jiang Yuan called out in his mind.

"488 tyrant points."

The system's response was invariably swift whenever there was business to be conducted.

"Why does it cost so much? Hasn't Li Jing been lingering at the Great Golden Immortal Peak for quite some time already?" Jiang Yuan asked, profoundly puzzled.

Was this damn system trying to fleece him yet again?

"Li Jing originally lacked the innate aptitude to ascend to the Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal realm. If the host wishes to force his breakthrough, a corresponding price must naturally be paid," the system explained flatly.

Damn it, his attempt at showing off had misfired yet again.

Next time, he must remember to consult the system beforehand.

However, this situation was different. No matter how many tyrant points the system demanded, Jiang Yuan intended to go through with the transaction.

This could also be considered a form of compensation from Jiang Yuan to Li Jing.

"Execute the trade." Jiang Yuan did not waste another half-word with the system.

He was even too lazy to mentally curse it as a damn system.

This was primarily because Jiang Yuan felt the wretched system was seizing the opportunity to ruthlessly shear him of his points.

"Ding! Transaction successful. The host may elevate Li Jing to the Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal realm at will. 488 tyrant points have been deducted, leaving a current balance of 7,209 tyrant points!"

Without changing his expression, Jiang Yuan looked at Li Jing and smiled faintly, "General Li has worked tirelessly during this period. Let this Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal realm serve as this monarch's reward to you."

Li Jing felt as though a surge of supreme, enlightened energy had been poured directly into the crown of his head.

The bottleneck that had trapped him for many long years was shattered in a mere instant. He felt an unprecedented wave of comfort and clarity washing through his entire body.

"This subject expresses his gratitude for the Great King's grace," Li Jing said respectfully.

He was not particularly elated, however, because deep down he understood: the more generous the Great King was to him, the slimmer his chances of ever seeing Nezha again would become.

"What is Madam Li's current realm?" Jiang Yuan smiled and nodded at Li Jing, then turned his gaze to Madam Yin standing beside him.

A quick glance revealed that Madam Yin was still only at the Mysterious Immortal realm, a level he hardly dared to look at twice.

In this grand scale of warfare, the Mysterious Immortal realm was essentially cannon fodder tier.

It seemed the couple's cultivation aptitude truly left much to be desired; Jinzha and Muzha's future achievements likely wouldn't reach any impressive heights either.

"Your humble servant is still merely at the Mysterious Immortal realm," Madam Yin said, looking even more abashed.

"Stupid system, name your price," Jiang Yuan stated bluntly.

When dealing with the system, one had to ruthlessly bombard it with tyrant points before it would obediently toe the line.

"I cannot name a price," the system replied indifferently.

"What? Does Madam Yin lack even the qualification to ascend? Or has your conscience finally awakened, decided not to cheat me out of my tyrant points?" Jiang Yuan asked coldly.

"Would the host care to use his brain and recall whether he actually specified what realm Madam Yin should be elevated to?" the system retorted calmly.

"..."

Jiang Yuan felt a wave of awkwardness. This was no different from a social death; he was actually capable of pulling off such brainless operations.

Fortunately, only the damn system knew about it.

Otherwise, he would have truly suffered a social death on the spot.

"Of course I want to elevate Madam Yin to the Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal realm. Do I look like such a stingy person?" Jiang Yuan asked with a haughty expression.

"988 tyrant points," the system replied.

Jiang Yuan pondered the figure carefully. This time, the wretched system didn't seem to be ripping him off; slaughtering a Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal roughly commanded a similar price.

It appeared the system's conscience had finally stirred after swindling him so many times, granting him a discount for once.

"Execute the transaction directly," Jiang Yuan commanded with a wave of his hand.

Today, he was determined to rectify and compensate for everything within his power.

At the very least, he could not allow Li Jing and his wife to meet with any unexpected mishaps in the upcoming wars.

Otherwise, if Nezha returned in the future and discovered that both his master and his parents were gone, he would undoubtedly undergo a dark transformation.

"Ding! Transaction successful. The host may elevate Madam Yin to the Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal realm at will. 988 tyrant points have been deducted, leaving a current balance of 6,218 tyrant points!"

"Madam shall also step into the Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal realm. The Li family has already suffered enough through the loss of Nezha, causing this monarch immense self-reproach; we cannot afford any further mishaps." Jiang Yuan said calmly.

Upon hearing these words, Madam Yin was initially bewildered, before she too felt the same majestic, boundless divine power pouring into her crown, mirroring what her husband had experienced.

Following that, her cultivation realm skyrocketed by leaps and bounds!

It did not stop climbing until it reached the Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal realm!

For a moment, Madam Yin was at a loss; such a roller-coaster-like breakthrough in realm was simply too unbelievable to fathom.

Was she living inside a dream?

"Quickly, thank the Great King," Li Jing whispered, tugging at Madam Yin's sleeve to snap her back to reality.

"Oh, oh... Your humble servant thanks the Great King," Madam Yin expressed with overwhelming gratitude.

Li Jing's state of mind grew increasingly complex. Viewed in this light, his chances of ever seeing Nezha again in this lifetime were virtually nonexistent.

Jiang Yuan waved a hand dismissively and said, "General Li and Madam Li must ensure you survive this war. This monarch knows what you are both thinking, but Nezha—I will definitely bring him back!"

Jiang Yuan offered them yet another firm reassurance.

With that, Jiang Yuan turned his gaze toward Jinzha and Muzha, a warm smile gracing his face as he said, "This monarch also hopes that you two brothers will eventually become the pillars of the Great Shang, just like your father."

Jinzha and Muzha merely nodded mechanically. To them, Jiang Yuan, as the Human Sovereign, felt far too loftily distant.

This was the lingering influence of the absolute loyalty to the sovereign and the state that their father had instilled in them since childhood.

"Very well, this monarch must now go pay a visit to Daoist Master Duer."

Jiang Yuan finally stated his intention.

Ignoring the half-hearted attempts of Li Jing and his wife to dissuade him, he turned on his heel and strode out of the military tent.