Talisman Emperor

Being shouted at by Xue Yun in such a way caused Xue Yinghai's expression to become unsightly and change indeterminately. He stood on the spot for a short moment before he hurriedly followed her.

"There's something off about this…." Chen Xi muttered.

"You noticed as well?" Li Wentai glanced at Chen Xi and seemed to be lost in thought as he said, "Even someone like you was able to discern that something isn't right. Looks like something really is wrong."

Swoosh!

His voice hadn't finished resounding through the air when Li Wentai's figure had teleported through space and charged into the Offering Hall.

Chen Xi rubbed his nose and laughed endlessly at himself.

Even though Li Wentai's words didn't contain any curses, it indirectly revealed that Chen Xi was merely an insignificant fellow in his heart.

In the end, Chen Xi shook his head and followed them in.

…

The Offering Hall that was pure like snow was covered in pitch black decorations and furniture.

A pitch black corridor, pitch black stone pillars, pitch black chairs…. Walking within the hall was like walking from day into night, and its solemn atmosphere carried an oppressive aura that struck directly at the heart.

When Chen Xi walked into this hall, the first thing that entered his eyes was a jade cauldron. It was pure white like snow, clear like jade, and around 3m tall. It resided at the center of the hall, and it didn't fit in with the darkness that covered the surroundings.

Dense and complicated markings were inscribed on the surface of the jade cauldron, and Chen Xi could faintly discern various ancient and mysterious diagrams like that of flowers, birds, insects, fish, the alternation of the sun and moon, the scene of sacrifices being offered during the ancient times, and so on and so forth.

The jade cauldron stood there silently yet emanated an oppressive aura that assaulted the face. It didn't seem like a cauldron, and it seemed like a peerlessly extraordinary expert instead!

It was an extraordinary Natural Spirit Treasure!

Chen Xi had instantly discerned that its origins were definitely extraordinary, and it was even to the extent that it could compare with the Overarching Heaven Net and Copper Coin of Treasurefall that he possessed.

A clan that resided in Serene Swallow Universe actually possessed such a precious treasure. This caused Chen Xi to be unable to help but feel slightly surprised.

After all, regardless of whether it was the Overarching Heaven Net or the Copper Coin of Treasurefall, they were from Oracle Mountain and the Sovereign Sect.

However, this jade cauldron in the Xue Clan actually possessed a might comparable to those two treasures, so it was clearly extraordinary.

But in merely an instant, Chen Xi didn't have the chance to sigh with emotion because he acutely noticed that the atmosphere in the hall was slightly strange!

Especially when he saw everything else within the hall, his eyes couldn't help but narrow.

Xue Yun stood all by herself in the grand and spacious hall while a row of people sat in front of her.

The person sitting at the center of this row was a middle aged man who wore refined clothes, had a fair and clean shaved face, and held a snow white feather fan in his hand.

His bearing was warm and refined while a smile hung on the corners of his mouth, but his aura was like a bottomless abyss. Moreover, he faintly emanated a haughty aura of supremacy.

The aspect that shocked Chen Xi was that this refined man was actually a Region Lord!

There were eight more people sitting on both sides of the refined man, and there were men and women of all ages amongst them. Even though they had various different appearances and bearings, every single one of their auras was powerful to the extreme. Surprisingly, they were 8 Imperial Monarchs!

Chen Xi was sure that it was impossible for them to be members of the Xue Clan. Because at this moment, Xue Yinghai who'd entered the hall earlier was actually standing humbly like a servant at the side. His hands sagged at his sides, and his face was covered in a flattering expression.

On the other hand, Li Wentai's expression was livid, and he couldn't conceal his rage while he stood at the side.

All of this took a long time to describe, but such a strange state had actually been present in the hall since Chen Xi entered it, and merely an instant had passed until now.

Swoosh!

Many gazes in the hall had swept over when Chen Xi had just arrived, and then they couldn't help but shake their heads and withdraw their gazes when they noticed that it was a young man who possessed a weak aura.

It was like they saw an ant enter their territory, and they couldn't be bothered to pay any attention to it.

Chen Xi's heart sank. He'd roughly determined that the Xue Clan hadn't just suffered an unexpected event, it had simply encounter great trouble that would determine its life and death.

Chen Xi suspected that the disappearance of the Xue Clan's clansmen and servants were probably related to those fellows who were seated in the hall.

It was even to the extent that the injuries suffered by the Xue Clan's Patriarch, Xue Changkong, was related to these fellows.

Something else that was worthy of suspicious was Xue Yun's second uncle, Xue Yinghai's, role in this string of events, and he should have been playing the role of the enemy's 'spy'!

All of this caused Chen Xi to sigh with slight emotion. As expected, all of this isn't simple at all. I'm afraid that even Xue Yun and Li Wentai probably never imagined that such a shocking and unexpected change would actually occur in the Xue Clan while they were away.

"Who are all of you? What are they doing in our Offering Hall?" Xue Yun spoke in a sharp voice that carried extreme rage, and it reverberated within the hall.

Obviously, she still didn't dare believe all of this.

Unfortunately, those seated figures didn't answer her, and they revealed expressions that were filled with pity and mocking. It was like they were hunters that saw their prey enter their trap obediently.

This caused Xue Yun's expression to grow even more unsightly. Her heart was in chaos, and she was on the verge of being overwhelmed by anger.

"Second Uncle! Tell me! Who are they?" Her eyes were like icy cold blades as they descended onto Xue Yinghai.

Xue Yinghai coughed dryly, and then he said with a solemn expression, Xue Yun, don't be rude. These are great figures of the Gongye Clan!"

The Gongye Clan!

Xue Yun felt her mind drone while her entire body felt like it was on the verge of exploding. Even these damnable enemies of ours have actually appeared in the clan's Offering Hall, then wouldn't father and the others be….

Her extremely terror and rage caused Xue Yun to refrain from continuing on this line of thought.

The Gongye Clan!It really is them!

A wisp of imperceptible coldness flashed through Chen Xi's eyes that were like deep abysses, and then a thread of killing intent silently coiled around his heart.

At this moment, Li Wentai's expression was livid and gloomy to the extreme. He was unable to restrain the rage in his heart any longer, and he pointed his finger at Xue Yinghai and cursed. "I never expected that such a traitor would actually appear in the Xue Clan! You invited enemies into your own clan and harmed your fellow clansmen. How can you face the ancestors of your clan?"

"Tell me! Where is Brother Changkong and the others? Where are all the clansmen of the Xue Clan?" Li Wentai's voice was like a thunderclap that reverberated through the hall.

At this moment, how could he not be aware that this was a plot that had been planned for a long time? However, even he had never imagined that the Gongye Clan's forces would have infiltrated the Xue Clan in just a few months of time.

"Traitor?" Xue Yinghai frowned and said coldly, "Li Wentai, this is an internal matter of my Xue Clan, and the interference of an outsider isn't tolerated!"

He paused for a moment and continued. "However, I'll give my older brother face and tell you. Just as I said before, all the clansmen have been placed in the Divine Snowspirit Realm out of consideration for their safety. They have come to no harm, and that includes my older brother."

Li Wentai seemed to heave a sigh of relief when he heard this. However, his expression was already extremely livid as he said fiercely, "Why did you do all of this? Why did you invite enemies into your own clan?"

"It's very simple. I want to be the Patriarch." At this moment, Xue Yinghai couldn't be bothered to conceal anything any longer, and he said coldly, "You ought to be clearly aware that I have no chance at all because of my older brother's presence. So, I could only seek the support of these Fellow Daoists from the Gongye Clan."

Another bastard that doesn't hesitate to become enemies with his older brother for the sake of authority! A wisp of detest couldn't help but surge in Chen Xi's heart when he heard all of this. This fellow is really shameless and despicable!"Why can my older brother occupy the position of Patriarch, but I can't? I'm not inferior to him in terms of strength, nor am I inferior in terms of ability. But it just happens that he is the Patriarch!" Xue Yinghai seemed to be slightly agitated and shouted loudly. "Tell me, is this fair?"

Li Wentai's face turned livid from anger, and he couldn't even be bothered to argue with Xue Yinghai. He'd discerned that Xue Yinghai had become unscrupulous in order to seize the position of Patriarch.

"So, you acted against my father in secret and put him in danger just to seize the position of Patriarch? You betrayed your own clansmen and locked them up in the Divine Snowspirit Realm just to obtain the Gongye Clan's assistance?" Xue Yun's expression was surprisingly calm, and her voice was cold as ice and completely devoid of emotion.

As she spoke, she suddenly gazed at the members of the Gongye Clan who were seated there and watching the show. She said, "If I'm not wrong, then this traitor, Xue Yinghai, has already agreed to provide my Xue Clan's ultimate treasure, the Snowspirit Seven Secrets Energy, in exchange for your support, right?"

Clap! Clap! Clap!

The refined man who sat at the center clapped and praised. "What a smart young lady. You're right, this is an exchange indeed."

He paused for a moment, and then he sighed. "Actually, your father could have avoided all of this if he agreed to hand the Snowspirit Seven Secrets Energy over. Unfortunately, he just had to be stubborn and would rather die than comply. So… we had no choice but to work together with someone who agreed readily like your second uncle."

Chen Xi had seen many shameless people, but he'd never seen one like this refined man. The refined man clearly intended to seize the Xue Clan's treasure, yet he revealed an upright appearance as if he was thinking on the Xue Clan's behalf. Chen Xi felt that this was simply despicable and evil to the extreme.

Meanwhile, the refined man suddenly revealed a solemn expression, and he spoke with an oppressive and dignified tone. "Young Miss, let's get straight to the point. I presume you've discerned the situation. All your clansmen are being held within the Divine Snowspirit Realm, so hand the Snowspirit Seven Secrets Energy over if you want then to return with their lives!"

He paused for a moment and pointed at the jade cauldron at the center of the hall before he said, "Looks, your second uncle has even given the Daofuse Cauldron to me. So, if you continue refusing, then I'll just have to exhaust 10 years of time to make this cauldron mine! At that time, I'll still be able to obtain the Snowspirit Seven Secrets Energy."

Xue Yun's expression changed violently. She was both furious and sad, and she was utterly stunned on the spot while her mind had gone blank.

Even though she possessed a cultivation at the Universe Enlightened Ancestral God Realm, had she even experienced such an extremely unexpected event?

Not to mention that her opponents were a terrifying Region Lord and eight Imperial Monarchs from the Gongye Clan!

Chen Xi watched all of this from the side, and he'd roughly determined that the Snowspirit Seven Secrets Energy was definitely related to the treasure at the center of the hall which they called the Daofuse Control.

On the other hand, it was actually not the Patriarch, Xue Changkong, who was the key to opening it. It was actually his daughter, Xue Yun!

This was slightly unexpected to Chen Xi.

The biggest question Chen Xi had was what exactly the Snowspirit Seven Secrets Energy was? Because it actually made the Gong Ye Clan mobilize so many experts at the Imperial Monarch Realm!