After washing up, I changed into my Blood Blades uniform and readied for the trip to the plaza. Unsurprisingly, Tong Xue wasn"t in his apartment, probably taking his shift at the front of the gates. I was supposed to help out, but I reckoned that my attempt to control (or enslave) Tian Yu Di would reap more benefits for our defense than my Castellax battle-automata. While my six Castellax battle-automata could help our lines last against the Martial Arts Alliance a.s.sault for a bit longer, our defeat would inevitably encroach until they broke into our main grounds. On the other hand, if I wasn"t mistaken, Tian Yu Di could probably overturn the situation by himself.

Provided I found a way to control him, of course.

The Great Elders and Sect Leader Zi didn"t know about that, of course. I had told them that I was looking for ancient technology or Spirit Formations or martial arts, and they bought that. Obviously they knew better than to demand for results almost immediately, so I still had some time before their suspicions were aroused. Hopefully I would be able to settle the deal with Tian Yu Di by then and provide a proper solution.

After exchanging a few pleasantries with Blood Blades on my way to the plaza, I settled down and sat in front of one of the Spirit Engraved Pillars. Closing my eyes, I expanded my consciousness and communed with the Spirit Engraved Pillars, finding my spiritual self stepping into the Spirit World once again.

"You"re back."

Tian Yu Di looked a little surprised that I had returned so soon after our last exchange, but he smiled.

"This means you"ve found a way to unchain me and free me from the seal, right?"

"That"s right," I admitted. "I"ll begin right away."

"Good. Very good!"

Tian Yu Di laughed, delighted. He pulled against his chains excitedly, almost impatient to s.n.a.t.c.h the freedom that I was presenting to him.

"Hurry!" he rasped when he saw that I was only standing there and watching him. "What are you waiting for?"

"I need to make preparations," I replied, studying the Spirit Engraved Pillars and the chains. Taking a deep breath, I approached warily.

To be honest, I still wasn"t very confident that this was the right thing to do. Tian Yu Di was undoubtedly a very dangerous person, one I normally wouldn"t deal with if the sect wasn"t in such a crisis. Tian Yu Di had lived for over nine hundred years, and I knew how ruthless and merciless he was from the history books I read about the Heaven and Earth Sect (and other demonic sects). He was definitely an old demon who had spent his life conspiring and scheming, and no doubt he would have left a trap or two for me even though I was technically helping him secure his freedom. In the end, it was possible that I would end up being devoured by such a fiend over the course of trying to bargain with him.

However, I didn"t have a choice. The civilians had nowhere to go, and evacuating them through the demon-infested underground tunnels and pa.s.sageways wasn"t a safe option. The ten sects from the Martial Arts Alliance had been held back by our army of battle-automata, and while we could hold out against the siege indefinitely, it was likely that the royal family would abandon us and not send the Imperial Guard. We could only depend on ourselves, after all.

Moreover, the Martial Arts Alliance was a vast organization. If they got too impatient and thought that the ten sects were too slow in trying to conquer and invade Nine-Tailed Fox Sect, or if they were afraid that the royal family would intervene and send the Imperial Guard before the ten invading sects could succeed in defeating us, then they would undoubtedly send more of their forces in the form of other sects.

Especially if they sent the other major sects…then Nine-Tailed Fox Sect would be doomed for sure, even if we had another hundred or so battle-automata.

The Blood Blades would be killed to a man, including me, and all the blacksmiths and Spirit Engravers enslaved. Of course, I recognized the irony of enslaving an old demon to save my fellow sect members from being enslaved, but I had little choice right now.

On the other hand, I would be more than happy to let Tian Yu Di go and grant him his freedom as long as he helped us overcome this crisis. Until he turned on us, of course, but I would worry about that problem when it happened. As it was, we would be destroyed long before Tian Yu Di could wreck havoc on the Great Zhou Empire. And to be honest, I doubted that Tian Yu Di destroying the hypocritical Martial Arts Alliance was a bad thing.

Those b.a.s.t.a.r.ds deserve death for what they were doing to Nine-Tailed Fox Sect, and now that I thought about it, to Heaven and Earth Sect too.

Tian Yu Di was watching me as I set about, engraving a Spirit Diagram in the ground around us. He nodded in approval, even though he had no idea what the purpose of the Spirit Diagram was. He believed that the Spirit Diagram I was engraving into the ground functioned to neutralize the seals and free him.

Obviously I had no intention of correcting him of his erroneous a.s.sumption.

After I had completed engraving the Spirit Formation around the entire area, I sat down in the center, some distance away from Tian Yu Di, and began to focus on the nodes where the chains were joined to the base of the Spirit Engraved Pillars. I began to break them apart one by one. It took me a few hours, and a lot of qi, but I eventually succeeded, decoding the Spirit Engravings and breaking them apart. All while feeding the qi of the Spirit Engravings and Spirit Seals into my Spirit Formation to further strengthen it.

The Spirit Formation that I engraved into the ground glowed brightly, but Tian Yu Di being unaware of its true purpose a.s.sumed that the Spirit Formation was helping me progress with freeing him. He grew more excited.

"Finally…!" he wheezed. "I"ll finally be free!"

I worked away at the last one, decrypting the Spirit Engravings and reversing them with my qi. Slowly, but surely, the Spirit Diagrams were disa.s.sembled and absorbed into my Spirit Diagram. The last chain fell away, and Tian Yu Di yanked his arm out of his shackles.

"I"m free!" he chuckled. "I"m finally free!"

A bloodthirsty aura flooded the entire Spirit World, tinging it red, and I almost collapsed from the sheer force of it. Gasping, I tried to rise to my feet, my chest constricting as I suffocated under the sea of killing intent and vast ocean of qi.

This guy…he truly was a monster!

What have I done? I realized, suddenly feeling a tinge of regret. I"ve really unleashed an outrageous monster on this world!

"I have to thank you, kid. I knew you were capable, but even I didn"t expect you to pull this off so quickly." Tian Yu Di turned to me. "As expected of someone from the Heaven and Earth Sect. You really are my grand disciple."

"Uh, well…ha ha, it"s a pleasure to serve you, Ancestral Master." I wasn"t sure what else to say, and bowed my head humbly. Then remembering the whole reason why I released him, I raised my head. "Ancestral Master, if you wouldn"t mind helping me protect Nine-Tailed Fox Sect and destroy the Martial Arts Alliance besieging us…we could even get revenge on the Martial Arts Alliance for destroying Heaven and Earth Sect."

"Indeed." Tian Yu Di nodded. "But for that to happen, I"ll require one last thing from you, grand disciple."

I swallowed, suddenly feeling a premonition. Just as I suspected…

"What is it?" I asked instead, concealing my discomfort and fear.

Tian Yu Di suddenly appeared in front of me before I could react. My eyes widened a little as I ogled at him for a second, astounded that I couldn"t follow his movemnts. Before I could respond, Tian Yu Di grabbed my throat.

"I"m so sorry to have to do this to you, my grand disciple. But you wouldn"t mind sacrificing yourself for the sake of our sect, would you?" his grip tightened and I choked, my airway totally cut off as I tried desperately to breathe. "Like I told you before, I require a host body, and yours is the most suitable one." His smile widened. "Rest a.s.sured, I"ll help you get revenge for our sect, by destroying the Martial Arts Alliance."

"…"

I tried to say something, but with his fingers crushing my trachea, nothing came out. Taking no notice of my desperate attempts, Tian Yu Di c.o.c.ked his head, as if pondering over an insignificant detail, and smirked.

"Oh, I"m afraid I don"t know who is your Nine-Tailed Fox Sect, and who isn"t. Well, it doesn"t matter. I"ll kill all of them." his grin widened. "After all, it was the previous sect leader of the Nine-Tailed Fox Sect who sealed me in here, after all…that b.a.s.t.a.r.d, Jiu Wei Hu."

Too late, I recalled that Jiu Wei Hu was the founder of Nine-Tailed Fox Sect, and that he was the last one who had met Tian Yu Di. I was confused that Tian Yu Di claimed that Jiu Wei Hu was the last Nine-Tailed Fox Sect member he met, but he evidently had met Xue Jian before. Either Xue Jian didn"t tell him that he was a Nine-Tailed Fox Sect member (which would be wise of him, considering that Tian Yu Di clearly held a grudge against our sect), or Tian Yu Di was lying to me (considering his current betrayal, it wasn"t all that surprising). Either way, it didn"t matter to me, because I was on the verge of being strangled to death.

I knew it. There was no way Tian Yu Di would so magnanimously forget about his nine-century old grudge against the Nine-Tailed Fox Sect, not after being sealed inside this Spirit World for almost a millennium. Of course the first thing he would do after being free would be to seek revenge on the sect who descended from the despicable enemy who locked him up for so long. I probably would have done the same thing, except that I wouldn"t betray my benefactor, but this was one of the most terrifying villains in the history of the Great Zhou Empire whereas I was a goody-two-shoes who was being slammed by readers for not being an edgelord.

"Don"t worry, I"ll make good use of your body. Your sacrifice will not be in vain."

Fat lot of good that would do me. I would much rather be alive than sacrifice myself for this b.a.s.t.a.r.d. Closing my eyes, I threw out my hand.

Noticing my gesture, Tian Yu Di chortled at what he perceived to be the utter futility of it.

"It"s useless! I know the defense of your Spirit Shield is formidable, but now that all the spiritual restraints that have been sealing me are released, even your Spirit Shield will not be able to withstand a single hit from me!"

I know. That was why I didn"t summon Snow Aegis.

Instead, I activated the Spirit Formation, and the arcane symbols inscribed in it flared blindingly, taking Tian Yu Di by surprise. He cried out as he let go of me, new spirit chains materializing and emerging from the Spirit Formation to wrap around him.

"You! What is this?!"

Unfortunately, I wasn"t able to reply at that time. I was sprawled on the ground, coughing violently and desperately drawing deep breaths into my oxygen-starved lungs, my throat raw from his earlier a.s.sault.

Wheezing, I looked up at him and smiled. Even without me saying a word (I wasn"t stupid enough to brag to my opponent and give away information on my techniques), Tian Yu Di understood that the Spirit Formation was a trap.

"Ha ha ha ha! Very good! You truly are a disciple of the Heaven and Earth Sect!"

Far from being enraged, Tian Yu Di burst out laughing. He pulled against his new shackles, which flared brightly and branded his skin with seals. He frowned and studied them for a moment, and then broke into a smile.

"I see. An enslavement Spirit Formation. You intend to enslave me!"

I replied with a cough and sat up, rubbing my throat. More of the spirit chains were wrapping around him, branding fresh Spirit Seals into his thin flesh and skeletal body. It would have been a cruel sight, but I was reminded how close he was to killing me and taking over my body earlier. Even my Snow Aegis"s spiritual defense wouldn"t have endured his attack, given how he had regained a significant portion of his power after I unsealed him.

Fortunately, I had prepared for this scenario, which was the only reason why I was willing to release him. Otherwise I would have stayed far away from the plaza as possible, and continue upgrading the spiritual defense of my Snow Aegis. This way, I would have a powerful p.a.w.n in my a.r.s.enal, one I could unleash on Nine-Tailed Fox Sect"s enemies, and take revenge on the despicable and hypocritical Martial Arts Alliance.

"You"ll be under my command," I told him hoa.r.s.ely. "Don"t worry. There are plenty of other host bodies available for you, and you"ll still have your revenge. Mostly. But I won"t allow you to touch Nine-Tailed Fox Sect or take over my body. That"s the only thing I definitely won"t compromise on."

I would have added my family to that list, but I didn"t want Tian Yu Di to know about my family, or he would take them hostage in future. Well, if the enslavement brand succeeded, I wouldn"t have to worry about that, but why take unnecessary chances?

Tian Yu Di nodded in amazement. "I"m actually impressed!" his grin grew wider. "You really have thought this through. Initially I thought you were a naïve, gullible brat who would just stupidly trust me and walk into his own demise, but you"ve certainly prepared well for this! Your master had taught you well! It really is such a waste to kill you!"

I felt a chill and instinctively conjured my Spirit Armament. Snow Aegis floated in front of me, ready to protect me from any unexpected outcome.

"The idea was good, and the execution is nearly flawless." Tian Yu Di was still nodding in approval, his grin expanding further. "It"s just too bad that…you"re too weak."

"?!"

With a flex of his qi, Tian Yu Di utterly obliterated my Spirit Formation. His blood-red qi washed over the spirit chains, corroding them, and with a casual shrug, he shattered them and stepped out. My Spirit Formation blinked in an alarming manner, the arcane symbols melting away into nothingness as Tian Yu Di"s qi flowed over them, erasing them from existence.

In less than half a minute, the Spirit Formation I had so carefully prepared was completely wiped out.

You"ve got to be kidding me!

Tian Yu Di moved, and my Snow Aegis hovered in front of me to block his strike, only for a single swing of his arm to bat my Spirit Shield out of the way and sent it flying uncontrollably. He was so fast that my mobile turrets couldn"t lock on to him, their qi beams missing entirely, and the shockwave from his strike not only sent my Snow Aegis spinning but also buffeted me and threw me off my feet.

"Ugh!"

I hit the ground and rolled, coughing and hacking from the blow. Trying to rise to my feet, I drew my Azure Lotus Sword while simultaneously unleashing a volley of qi beams that criss-crossed into a deadly net in front of me.

To my utter astonishment, Tian Yu Di merely raised his arm and swatted the qi beams away, the intense lances of energies dissipating harmlessly against his skeletal arm. He chuckled mockingly as he walked toward me.

To my horror, I realized that I had underestimated the ancient demon that was Tian Yu Di. There was no way I could fight against such a powerful martial artist at all! He shattered my Spirit Formation so easily and even dispelled my volley of qi beams. The difference between our strengths was too vast, to the point I felt myself falling into an abyss of despair.

What have I done?

In my arrogance, I had unleashed a monster on the world. I had doomed myself. And I had destroyed Nine-Tailed Fox Sect. The only consolation was that I probably annihilated the despicable Martial Arts Alliance along with us, but mutual destruction wasn"t that much of a comfort when we weren"t alive to enjoy our revenge.

"Kuh…"

However, as long as I was alive, I refused to give up. I was going to struggle until the very end, refusing to submit or yield to this monster.

"AAAAAAAH!"

With a determined yell, I rose to my feet and charged at the leisurely approaching Tian Yu Di, thrusting my sword forward. Tian Yu Di would have knocked me off my feet, but at the same time I distracted with another barrage of qi beams from my Snow Aegis, forcing him to raise his arms to shield himself.

No. It might be my imagination, but for some reason Tian Yu Di"s movements were slower than before. He was grimacing a little as he held his chest, but since I hadn"t attacked him there, and none of my qi beams had struck him in that area, I doubted he was suffering an injury.

Instead, I focused on attacking him, knowing that if I took my foot off the pedal, he might kill me.

"Hmm, what"s this?" he sounded remarkably curious as he stared at my rapidly darting mobile turrets. "I"m a.s.suming Spirit Armament technology has progressed and improved since the millennium I had been sealed in here?"

I didn"t reply. Instead, I stabbed his shoulder with my Azure Lotus Sword, taking him by surprise. He grimaced in pain and glanced down in astonishment.

"This is…a Treasure Spirit Weapon?" he scowled. "d.a.m.n it, I shouldn"t have underestimated you. To think you actually have a weapon capable of piercing through my defenses…"

I didn"t waste time on banter, and instead unleashed my technique.

"Release Recollection!"

The entire s.p.a.ce was suddenly shrouded in ice, frozen lotus flowers appearing atop a glacial sea that expanded rapidly across the Spirit World. Tian Yu Di struggled, his body caught in the ice and locked within the frozen tomb.

"This technique…it"s a combination of Heaven and Earth Formula and…something else!" His eyes flickered in recognition. "I see…you"ve combined Heaven and Earth Formula with whatever martial arts techniques you learned from Nine-Tailed Fox Sect!"

At least he wasn"t claiming that I ripped this off from Sword Art Online: Alicization Arc. He was right, in any case. Other than the name, the technique itself was a combination of Heaven and Earth Formula and Nine-Tailed Frost Fox Formula.

"An impressive technique," Tian Yu Di praised, his voice filled with admiration. "For you to pioneer such a technique at your age…you certainly will be the future of the Heaven and Earth Sect if circ.u.mstances are different."

I grinned, my breath misting in front of me as fog billowed about us, the temperature plummeting to extreme levels.

"If you refuse to change your mind and stop killing me, then I"ll seal you here again." I closed my eyes briefly and activated Absolute Zero, which brought Tian Yu Di"s qi to a complete stop and sealed his movements totally, trapping him further. "It might cost me my life and I will be sealed in here with you, but I"ll make sure that you"ll never leave here to threaten Nine-Tailed Fox Sect."

"You certainly have proven your resolve," Tian Yu Di admitted with a sigh. Ice had covered almost his entire body by now, encroaching slowly onto his face. "For someone of your age, this is particularly impressive. I see now why you"ve been recruited into our sect."

His face abruptly hardened.

"However…as I said before, you"re too weak. Perhaps in five years…no, three years even, it"ll be difficult to say what the outcome of our match will be, but too bad for you…"

A violent burst of qi erupted from his body like a dormant volcano coming to life, shattering all the ice and frozen lotuses, and even overcoming my Absolute Zero. I was blasted away and sent hurtling across the wide s.p.a.ce, blood spurting from my mouth. Landing a distance away, I bounced amidst a cl.u.s.ter of broken fragments of ice, my protective aura the only reason why I didn"t suffer a hundred cuts as I crashed through the sharp edges.

"Ugh…"

I struggled to sit up, but was vaguely aware that Tian Yu Di was standing above me. I thought I was imagining things, but his face was contorted in a mixture of pain and rage. My Absolute Zero and Release Recollection must have more of an effect on him than either of us realized.

Not that it would help me. Right now, Tian Yu Di was still healthy enough to seek vengeance for the pain I had caused him.

He reached down and seized me by the neck, hoisting me to my feet. I dangled helplessly, trying to raise my Azure Lotus Sword, yet knowing that it was futile to fight back.

Of course. Of course it would end up like this. I should have known.

I wasn"t some protagonist with plot armor (okay, maybe I am) who conveniently had the tools on hand to survive or for things to go smoothly. I wasn"t Qin Lie, who happened to have mastered Heavenly Thunder Eradication or possess Soul Suppressing Orb to enslave Xue Li. I also wasn"t Chu Xing Yun who had a second chance at life and knew everything that was going to happen while retaining all his martial arts and spirit medicine-concoction knowledge to persuade Poison Yan into serving him in exchange for helping him dispel the Grim Blood Poison.

It would be great if I had cheats, lucky coincidences and contrived plot devices to help me along my journey, or if I was a perfect Mary Sue who never made any mistakes, but unfortunately reality was never like that.

And it turned out that my latest mistake would be my final one, and also the most fatal one.

Just before my consciousness faded away, I felt Tian Yu Di"s grip loosen slightly. Opening my eyes, I caught him staring with wide eyes at something on my chest. Glancing down, I saw that the ice fragments or the blast from Tian Yu Di"s qi – I wasn"t sure which one of them – had slit my uniform pocket open, revealing the Golden Dragon Medallion hidden within.

"Where did you get that?!" Tian Yu Di demanded, dropping to my feet and retreating a few steps, his face turning pale. Curious at his reaction, I reached into my pocket and took the Golden Dragon Medallion out.

"This?"

"Where did you get that?!" Tian Yu Di repeated vehemently. Now that he had let go of me, I could see a small line of blood trickle from the corner of his mouth. When did he get hurt?

"From my master," I replied, tilting my head in bewilderment. "Why?"

"Who was your master?"

"Tian Mo," I replied, and Tian Yu Di scowled impatiently.

"That"s not what I meant! Was your master the previous sect leader of Heaven and Earth Sect?!"

"Yeah," I confirmed. Master was the previous and last sect leader of Heaven and Earth Sect before his demise and the sect"s destruction. I still remembered him pa.s.sing the Golden Dragon Medallion to me all those years ago in the hospital.

That said, I vaguely recalled a bunch of seniors at Wu Ling Academy also reacting this exaggeratedly when they saw my Golden Dragon Medallion. Didn"t they say something about this being the proof that I was the current leader of the Heaven and Earth Sect, or at least I had inherited the Heaven and Earth techniques? Considering that Tian Yu Di already knew that I had inherited Heaven and Earth Formula, it must be the former…

"Then you are the current sect leader of Heaven and Earth Sect?" Tian Yu Di"s voice was filled with disbelief.

"No," I replied. "I just happen to be the sole survivor of Heaven and Earth Sect. I"m not the leader of anything."

Tian Yu Di shook his head and dropped to his knees, lowering his waist as he bowed deeply.

"This humble subject pays his respect to Sect Leader, and deeply apologizes for trying to kill you!" he didn"t hesitate with his next line. "If Sect Leader feels that it is necessary, then this humble subject will be willing to recompensate with his life! You may kill this humble servant for ever daring to attack you!"

Whoa, whoa! What the h.e.l.l?! Why the sudden change in att.i.tude? What was going on!?

Trying to absorb what was going on, I studied the glowing Golden Dragon Medallion. I still wasn"t completely sure what had just happened, but apparently this thing was the only reason why Tian Yu Di changed his mind and decided not to kill me.

"There is no need for that," I said as coldly as I could, trying to calm my hammering heart down. This was a huge chance. A very huge chance! If I wasn"t mistaken, I could use this to my advantage and gain a very powerful p.a.w.n. "But you"ve betrayed my trust. Even though I saved you from eternal imprisonment and freed you, you turned on me and tried to kill me. How do I know I can believe in you from now on?"

"…Sect Leader is right. This shameful servant offers no excuses. After what this humble servant did, you have every reason not to trust me."

Surprisingly enough, Tian Yu Di kept his head lowered. To be honest, if he wanted to kill me, he could have done so a minute ago without putting up this ridiculous display of deference and servitude. I doubted he was scheming to betray me again – there was no point when he literally had me on the edge of death.

Even so, I wasn"t gullible enough to trust him again, especially not after the latest treachery. So I pondered for a moment, and suddenly remembered the other Spirit Seal that I read about during my research in the library yesterday.

"I would like to place a Spirit Seal on you, to ensure your loyalty. This will be absolute, and you"re not allowed to break it."

"This humble servant obeys," Tian Yu Di said immediately, without any hesitation. I couldn"t help but be impressed not just by his sudden hundred and eighty turn in att.i.tude, but also his lack of hesitation to submit to what seemed like total slavery.

Calling up the images from the book through my gla.s.ses, I raised my Azure Lotus Sword. Tian Yu Di"s blood dripped from my blade, where I had stabbed him earlier, and I used a finger to scoop up a good amount of blood. Then I swiftly drew a Spirit Seal on the Golden Dragon Medallion using Tian Yu Di"s blood.

If I recalled correctly, the prerequisite for this Spirit Seal was an object of authority, and Tian Yu Di recognized my Golden Dragon Medallion as a symbol of my leadership. Suddenly I realized how hypocritical I was to whine about Qin Lie and Chu Xing Yun when I had the same plot device, convenient divine object and Deus ex Machina happen for me, but if it worked for me, then I had no complaints. I was willing to be a b.l.o.o.d.y hypocrite if I could save my sect and get revenge.

In any case, I completed the seal and watched as Tian Yu Di"s blood disappeared into the Golden Dragon Medallion, as if the dragon engraved into the golden surface was thirstily drinking his blood. Then I nodded in satisfaction when I sensed the qi emanating from the Golden Dragon Medallion. Relying on my Heaven and Earth senses, I could detect the strong link between the Golden Dragon Medallion and Tian Yu Di, which was in turn subordinated under me. I intuitively understood that this meant he was now completely subservient to me.

Tian Yu Di looked surprised when he saw the Spirit Seal I executed, but he said nothing. Instead, he kept his head lowered.

"This loyal servant hopes that you will now trust me. I will endeavor to obey any command you give me."

"Yeah. First, we"ll destroy the Martial Arts Alliance." I grinned. "We"ll begin that by wiping out the invading sects around Nine-Tailed Fox Sect." Before I could forget, I quickly added, "And you"re not allowed to harm anyone from the Nine-Tailed Fox Sect, or hurt Nine-Tailed Fox Sect. Treat it as part of the Heaven and Earth Sect from now on."

"This loyal servant obeys." Tian Yu Di grinned as well. "And it"ll be my pleasure to destroy the Martial Arts Alliance."

"Good." I nodded. "Let"s begin our preparations then. We"re going to need to find you a host body."

"About that…" Tian Yu Di frowned. "If I were to take over a body of someone who hasn"t learned Heaven and Earth Formula, then it"ll take me some time to a.s.similate his qi and dominate his body. It might require days, even."

"That"s fine. We"ll be able to hold out until then." I hoped.

Before we left, there was another issue that occurred to me, something at the back of my mind that just wouldn"t stop bugging me.

"You know, you could have just killed me and take over as the sect leader of Heaven and Earth Sect." I frowned. Now that I placed the Spirit Seal of enslavement on Tian Yu Di, I was in no danger of being suddenly betrayed by him. If he tried to attack me, he would be immobilized by the seal immediately, or worse, killed in an agonizing manner. "Why?"

I didn"t have a death wish. I just couldn"t stand not knowing the mystery. Knowledge was power, and understanding all the invariables and reasons would benefit me more than remaining ignorant about them. And I was sure I could make use of the information somehow.

"I already have that Spirit Seal of loyalty on me, binding me to the service of the first Heaven and Earth Sect Leader." Tian Yu Di chuckled, but he didn"t seem all that bitter or upset about it. I suddenly understood why he was confused when he saw me inscribing the Spirit Seal of enslavement earlier. He was already bound to the services of Heaven and Earth Sect by the same exact seal, so there wasn"t really a need for me to create a second, identical Spirit Seal. "I am bound by oath and soul to serve all subsequent Sect Leaders, such as you, my lord." he lowered his head. This time, his laughter was hollow. "If I killed you, I would be destroyed by the Spirit Seal."

Everything fell into place that instant.

That time, when I realized Tian Yu Di"s movements had slowed down. That was because he was suffering the backlash of the Spirit Seal when he attacked me, the person he recognized as his sect leader because of the Golden Dragon Medallion I carried. No wonder I was able to stab him – it wasn"t because he was distracted by my mobile turrets" bombardment of qi beams or because I took him by surprise – he was suffering from the Spirit Seal and his reflexes had slowed. That was also why his face was contorted in pain when he grabbed me by my neck earlier, and accounted for the trickle of blood from his mouth.

I had thought that my attacks had wounded the vastly more powerful martial artist, but I was merely flattering myself. My attacks had little to almost no effect on the ancient monster. He was just suffering the backlash from the Spirit Seal!

"Don"t worry. It"s not as if you wasted your time." Tian Yu Di was being a lot more submissive and humbler now that he recognized me as his sect leader. "You strengthtened the effects of the Spirit Seal." He shrugged. "Not that you needed to do that. I swore to serve every subsequent sect leader of Heaven and Earth Sect, and I intend to observe that oath."

"Yet you had no qualms killing me when you didn"t know I was holding this," I muttered as I waved the Golden Dragon Medallion.

Tian Yu Di looked ashamed of himself.

"That"s because I thought you were just an insignificant disciple. A particularly talented disciple, yes, but in the greater picture, your sacrifice was necessary to free me from capitivity. My loyalty is not to the disciples of the sect, but to the sect itself, and more importantly, personally to the sect leader."

In other words, if I didn"t have the Golden Dragon Medallion, I would be dead. What a comforting thought.

Well, I was still alive, and that was what mattered. It irked me that I had to rely on plot armor, Deus ex Machina and a plot device to survive, but with the situation becoming so desperate, I wasn"t going to be fussy over where solutions came from.

However, that reminded me.

"From now on, you"re also not to harm any member of the Heaven and Earth Sect, disciple, master, elder or sect leader." I looked at Tian Yu Di sternly, and he met my gaze unflinchingly. "I understand that you were desperate, and I sympathize with you being trapped in here for a millennium. But you should trust in your fellow sect members more to help you once they discover you here. You"re not to sacrifice your fellow sect members to free yourself, and to trust in them."

"If that is what Sect Leader commands," Tian Yu Di replied without hesitation. I thought he would be a little stiff, but he was surprisingly amendable to my selfish demands. Perhaps the prospect of taking revenge on the desc.i.p.able Martial Arts Alliance and the impending promise of freedom had improved his mood tremendously.

If that was the case, then it was time to reward him for his compliance.

"All right, then let"s get ready for our counterattack."

Saying so, I moved across the vast s.p.a.ce of the Spirit World, with Tian Yu Di close on my heels like a loyal hound.