"..."
Zhang Xuan's cheeks twitched as he froze on the spot. He didn't know whether he should stop or not, but he didn't know what he should do.
If you have talent, so be it. If you don't have talent, so be it... Why did it explode?
I only used a little of my Heaven's Path zhenqi to disguise myself and the Library of Heaven's Path. I didn't use anything else...
Judging from how Elder Feng had taken out the tortoise as if it was his family heirloom, how could it be reduced to dust just like that...
Just as Zhang Xuan was at a loss for what to do, he suddenly saw the smiling old man standing before him. Looking at the shattered tortoise shell on the ground, his cheeks trembled uncontrollably, as if he was on the verge of going insane.
"Teacher..."
Not expecting such an outcome, Yu Chen dared not say a word.
Others might not understand the importance of the tortoise shell to his teacher, but he knew full well how important it was to his teacher. For it to be reduced to dust was no different from taking his life.
"My tortoise shell..."
As expected, Elder Feng stretched his hand forward and touched the shattered pieces on the ground, and in an instant, he seemed to have aged several years.
"Elder Feng, he didn't do it on purpose. Why don't I find someone to help you stick it together? Look at your tortoise shell, there are already many cracks on it, and it's on the verge of breaking. Last year, I met a craftsman in the Chen Village. His craftsmanship is exquisite, and his price is fair as well.
Elder Feng nodded.
"Pu!"
Unable to take it any longer, Elder Feng spurted a mouthful of blood.
"Cough cough..."
Zhang Xuan rolled his eyes at his brother-in-law speechlessly.
If you don't know how to console others, why don't you just leave it at that?
A tortoise shell of this caliber was incomparably valuable. Would it work if it was stuck together?
"Elder Feng, since it has already shattered, there's no need to be sad. It's just a tortoise shell. I'll catch a few more tortoises for you tomorrow. Feel free to get as many as you want. Their meat can be used to make soup as well..."
Zhang Xuan pondered for a moment before speaking earnestly.
Pu! Pu!
Elder Feng spurted even more blood.
"Why don't I make another one for you?"
Seeing how the more he tried to console the other party, the more the other party spurted blood, Zhang Xuan was at a loss for words.
Just by touching it, the Library of Heaven's Path had generated a book on it. Even though the tortoise shell had a long history and was of a high tier, it was still flawed. As long as he was willing to work on it and collect enough books, he should be able to create another one that was of the same tier or even higher tier!
With such a thought in mind, Zhang Xuan's consciousness entered the Library of Heaven's Path once more. Just as he was about to continue studying the tortoiseshell, Yu Chen's anxious voice suddenly sounded.
"Teacher …"
His voice was trembling, as if it was filled with great fear.
Elder Feng, who was filled with grief, turned his head around when he heard his anxious cries.
"Look …"
Yu Chen pointed to the top of his head.
Elder Feng hurriedly raised his head and narrowed his eyes.
Seeing the strange expressions on the two's faces, Zhang Xuan and the others also raised their heads. With a single glance, they couldn't help but fall into a daze.
A huge crack had appeared on the tortoise-shell-like roof above his head, and it was slowly spreading upwards. The runes and formations that were used to stabilize the roof were completely useless, as if they had encountered an irreversible force.
"How could this be?"
Elder Feng couldn't be bothered to spurt blood anymore.
Sage Xi's Tortoiseshell had exploded just like that. It could be said that it had been around for a very long time, and it had been punished by the heavens due to the sheer number of people who had divined it. But this one … it had taken an incalculable amount of manpower and resources to construct, making it extraordinarily resilient. Even a Saint 8-dan pinnacle expert would be able to withstand a full-powered attack from it. So … why was it collapsing as well?
"Stop!"
Elder Feng roared furiously as he raised his hand to grab the roof.
He wanted to stop the collapse of the formation and protect his foundation.
However, no matter how hard he tried, he was still unable to stop the collapse of the formation and the roof. It felt as if there was an indescribable force invading his body that no human could withstand.
Before such a force, even a Saint 9-dan cultivator would be nothing more than an ant.
Kacha! Kacha!
Unable to withstand the collapse any longer, a series of resounding booms sounded, and countless rocks fell from the roof. The seers who were in the midst of their meditation suddenly widened their eyes in shock, and they hurriedly fled for their lives.
Zhang Xuan and the others were caught in a dilemma. Thus, they could only drive their zhenqi to form a zhenqi barrier to fend off the falling rocks.
Hualala!
A huge cloud of dust rose into the air, and in less than a minute, the ancient tortoiseshell building was reduced to rubble. The various formations harnessed within it were also destroyed.
"This …"
Zhang Xuan blinked his eyes in shock. "Isn't this a little too weak? If it was an ordinary person, wouldn't they have died on the spot?"
The tortoiseshell building outside looked rather nice, but who would have thought that it would be so useless? It was fortunate that Elder Feng was strong enough to withstand it. Otherwise, if it were to fall on his head, no ordinary person would have been able to withstand it.
"Pu!"
Elder Feng's body trembled once more, and he spurted another mouthful of blood.
"Teacher, what happened?"
Yu Chen hurriedly rushed forward and asked worriedly. He was afraid that his teacher would die from anger due to grief.
"It should be a backlash from the heavens …"
It took a moment for Elder Feng to regain his composure. Exhaling deeply, he looked at the rubble around him with a sorrowful expression.
"Backlash from the heavens?"
Yu Chen was perplexed.
"Seers seek out fortuitous encounters and steal the secrets of the heavens, so it's only natural that they would be loathed by the heavens. However, we used some special means to conceal our aura from the heavens, preventing the heavens from noticing it … However, our means seemed to have suddenly lost its effect, and the heavens' authority seemed to have burst forth from within, resulting in the current situation … "
Elder Feng hesitated for a moment before explaining.
As a Nine Stars Seer, even though the destruction of the tortoiseshell and the collapse of the building was a little bizarre, he was still able to deduce some things through careful divination.
Regardless of which occupation it was, once one reached the pinnacle, they would incur the envy of the heavens. Take the Leaving Aperture Ordeal and Dimension Sundering Ordeal for example, those were the punishments of the heavens.
As seers, it was easier for them to be punished if they tried to peer into the heavens. It was just that they had taken precautions beforehand. For example, if the police were to arrive at a certain place, they would hide the money and people in advance. Since it was a place of entertainment, there was no gambling involved. Even if they were unable to apprehend the culprit, it wouldn't be too serious a crime.
Since seers were able to peer into the heavens, naturally, they would have taken precautions. Yet, who could have thought that even with so many precautions, they would still be discovered? Not only was the tortoiseshell destroyed, the entire Seer Hall of the Sanctum of Sages, which had been built over tens of thousands of years, was destroyed in an instant …
Elder Feng clutched his chest in agony.
Zhang Xuan's eyebrows shot up in astonishment.
He had thought that it was because the tortoiseshell and the building weren't sturdy enough, but who would have thought that it was actually related to the heavens?
Previously, he had made use of the Library of Heaven's Path to examine the tortoiseshell, and the tortoiseshell had shattered … Then, when he was calculating whether he could carve the tortoiseshell, the Sanctum of Sages had collapsed …
Could it be that the current situation was really related to the heavens?
If that was the case, he would have a huge responsibility on his shoulders.
Zhang Xuan's face alternated between redness and paleness. Just as he was at a loss for words, Elder Feng suddenly looked at him with a bitter smile.
"Zhang Shi, there's no need for you to blame yourself. This matter has nothing to do with you. Perhaps, our Heavenly Secrets Hall has been slacking off recently, resulting in such an unforeseen event. Under normal circumstances, even though we have to be careful with our words and actions and pay attention to the harmony of the heavens, the occupation itself is still very safe. "
"Safe?" Seeing that the other party didn't blame him, Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief.
There was no way he could reveal the matter regarding the Library of Heaven's Path. Since the other party hadn't noticed anything, it would be best for him to keep a low profile and feign ignorance.
As for the other party's loss, he would just have to find an excuse to compensate for it.
"Indeed. What you saw was an accident. Such a situation doesn't happen even once in ten thousand years …"
Fearing that the genius he had finally met would back down, Elder Feng hurriedly explained. "If you don't believe me, take a look at the library over there. There's nothing wrong with it."
After saying those words, he gestured to the side.
Following the direction that Elder Feng was pointing at, Zhang Xuan saw a building standing not too far away. Even though it was connected to the massive tortoise shell, it wasn't affected in the slightest. Rows of bookshelves were arranged side by side in the room. Despite the dust in the surroundings, the building was as clean as new.
"These are all your books?"
Zhang Xuan's eyes lit up in excitement.
As long as he could browse through the books, he would be able to compile a Heaven's Path Divine Art. This was a good opportunity for him to make up for the other party's predicament.
"Indeed!"
Elder Feng nodded proudly. "Our Sanctum of Sages' Seer Hall has fewer members than the other occupations, but our collection of cultivation technique manuals is in no way inferior. Even though Sage Xi's tortoise shell was damaged in an accident, you can still browse through the books to assess your aptitude."
Previously, when Elder Feng wanted to browse through the books to assess whether he was suited for the occupation, he didn't agree to it as he felt that it would be too troublesome.
Now that Sage Xi's tortoise shell had been damaged, it would be impossible for him to assess his aptitude even if he wanted to. Thus, he could only resort to the most primitive method.
"Alright, I'll take a look then …"
Hearing that he could browse through the books, Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief. Before he could even walk up to the library, he had already swept his gaze across the books. At the same time, he muttered in his heart, Flaws!
Hong long!
But before he could finish his words, the books before him suddenly burst into flames, and in the blink of an eye, they were reduced to ashes. Following which, a huge crack appeared on the entire building, just like what had happened to the tortoise shell.
In just a few breaths, the entire building collapsed into a pile of rubble.
"Library …" Elder Feng's face reddened once more as he spurted another mouthful of blood.
What in the world was going on? Why would something happen to the Seer Hall one after another in the blink of an eye?
If it was just once, it could be said that he had failed to conceal his aura properly, resulting in him being discovered by the heavens. However, for it to happen three times in a row … Even he didn't know how to explain this anymore.
Zhang Xuan's lips twitched once more. Could it be because … he was reading the books?
If it was just a moment ago, he wouldn't have dared to confirm it. However, this time around, the collapse of the Library of Heaven's Path right after he took a look at the books had already confirmed his suspicions.
Turning to look at the dazed old man, Zhang Xuan couldn't help but feel pity for him. "Elder Feng, Elder Feng, Elder Feng …"
He called out three times, but the other party didn't respond at all. The more he thought about it, the more apologetic he felt. Just as he was about to take a closer look at the other party to see if he had suffered too much of a blow, a thick bolt of lightning suddenly struck the other party's head.
Kacha!
Elder Feng collapsed to the ground.
"Elder Feng, you …"
Zhang Xuan's lips twitched as he hurriedly rushed forward.
Peng peng peng peng!
The bolt of lightning completely drowned the old man, leaving only a single leg twitching outside. Even his shoe had fallen off from the trembling.
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