Chapter 553: Shangguan Yuting

Chapter 553: Shangguan Yuting

Li Huowang had previously engaged in transactions with the Upper Extreme Gate. When he saw the anomaly before him, he realized immediately that something was terribly amiss. The secrets Shangguan Yuting had claimed were to be traded—those words were nothing but excuses, lies meant to deceive him.

Everything around him shifted in an instant. A dark wind composed of various inscriptions emerged from the crack in the clay statue, forming a funnel shape as it drifted upward into the sky.

The moment Li Huowang laid eyes on it, he understood at once. It was the Upper Extreme Gate. Through it, he glimpsed some intimate secrets.

The Upper Extreme Gate was attempting to flee, yet how could the Astronomical Bureau have been unprepared? At some point, the sky above had transformed into a mirror. What existed below would also manifest above in reverse.

As the Upper Extreme Gate floated upward, it crashed directly into a black shadow on the ground. The shadow of the clay statue began to fluctuate—sometimes growing, sometimes shrinking.

"Not exchanging, but stealing," Zhuge Yuan said just as the scene shifted. The black shadow beneath suddenly expanded, transforming into a dense cluster of eyes.

The environment around them began to shift—twisting and coalescing—giving Li Huowang a sensation as if he were about to return to the hospital.

Feeling something was wrong, he immediately retreated, not wanting to become collateral damage. Having already witnessed the Astronomical Bureau's methods, Li Huowang didn’t want to experience such a thing again.

As for helping the Upper Extreme Gate, he had no intention of doing so. From the current situation, it wouldn’t affect his own plans. There was no reason to interfere.

Once Li Huowang left, the modest land temple collapsed completely. Various illusions appeared and vanished one after another, leaving the observing Li Huowang dizzy and disoriented.

Li Huowang finally understood. It seemed the Astronomical Bureau had never intended to trade peacefully with the Upper Extreme Gate from the beginning—they had planned to act forcefully all along.

"Can one not only exchange secrets but also steal them directly?" Li Huowang asked Zhuge Yuan, who stood beside him.

Zhuge Yuan gazed toward the distance, his face showing hesitation. After a long sigh, he answered Li Huowang’s question.

"A normal person could never do it. They couldn’t even touch the Upper Extreme Gate. Yet the Astronomical Bureau managed it with just one illusion. His origins must be extraordinary."

"He uses strange illusionary arts to drag people unknowingly into a dreamlike state, and even injects illusions into their surroundings. Brother Zhuge, what do you think this Astronomical Bureau’s background is?"

"Hmm... Such a strange power must not be ordinary illusionary art. I believe it’s something beyond my knowledge."

"Beyond your knowledge?"

Zhuge Yuan shook his head slightly, watching the chaos afar. "No. This sect’s name cannot be spoken by mortals, nor can it be recorded in writing. That is why they are called 'Unutterable.'"

"Unutterable?" Li Huowang pondered the word silently.

"I’m not omniscient. I only learned a little while traveling overseas, from a decaying bamboo slip retrieved from the water."

"It is said that the Unutterable was born from emptiness, vanished into emptiness, and died in emptiness. For ordinary people to see him is nearly impossible—only during moments of life or death, or when crying at graves, might they catch a fleeting glimpse."

"To see him even once is extremely difficult for common folk; to seek him as a master and learn his powers is even more impossible. Surely, the Astronomical Bureau must have had some extraordinary encounter in the past."

Li Huowang stared at the bizarre scene before him, hesitatingly asking again, "Then this Unutterable... is he the Fate Keeper? Which heavenly path does he oversee? Why is his power so strange?"

Zhuge Yuan thought for a moment, then shook his head gently. "I’ve only seen a brief mention of him in a bamboo slip soaked by seawater, written in Baiyue script. I know very little."

"It seems the Astronomical Bureau truly deserves its reputation. That’s good—it means our chances against this mysterious sect will be high."

While Li Huowang spoke with Zhuge Yuan, the commotion in the distance gradually subsided. A vast expanse of blinking black shadows spread out from the collapsed land temple toward him.

There were over a hundred eyes, and Li Huowang remembered them well—the eye in the reflection of the water at his brow also bore a similar mark.

This sight sent chills down his spine. But what came next was even more horrifying.

Shangguan Yuting, who had entered the shadow earlier, re-emerged as if stepping up a staircase, her body returning from within the shadow.

Her figure remained the same, graceful and elegant, but her head had changed entirely. Her previously delicate face was now covered with countless eyes—large and small, blinking and spiraling.

Looking at her, Li Huowang felt as though he were staring through a kaleidoscope, overwhelmed by nausea.

Shangguan Yuting nodded slowly with her swollen, eyeball-filled head, her voice soft and clear emerging from the mass of eyes. "Elder Ear, I'm done. Let’s go home."

"Why do you need so many secrets? Do you really have to know everything?" Li Huowang looked away, drawing his spine sword.

A silver bell-like laugh rang from Shangguan Yuting’s face. "Then you should ask the Astronomical Bureau himself. I only handle tasks. I don’t know anything else."

With the matter resolved, Li Huowang had no reason to stay in Great Qi anymore. He passed through the fissure he had carved and returned to Great Liang.

The environment around him changed instantly. Before him stood reapers cutting wheat in golden fields, giving Li Huowang a sense of time passing like tides.

"Now, can you inform the Astronomical Bureau that I’ve completed the task he assigned?" Li Huowang asked Shangguan Yuting, who stood behind him.

All was ready now—only the wind remained. It was time to deal with the dice.

"Don’t worry. You go to the capital first. I’ll find a way to inform the Astronomical Bureau. He’ll return as soon as he finishes his duties."

"After dealing with the dice, I’ll try to find a way to trade with the Upper Extreme Gate for another secret, to rescue Bai Lingmiao!"

With determination in his eyes, Li Huowang quickened his pace toward the village ahead.

Upon reaching the village, he found a wealthy household and bought a sturdy horse.

Though he hadn’t brought much money this time, fortunately, he still carried a jade pendant from Qingfeng Monastery, which he had kept with him since then.

He didn’t know the value of the jade pendant originally given by his senior brother Xuan Yang, but when he offered it in exchange for the horse, the family readily agreed without delay.

His injuries were still severe—charred skin mixed with protruding flesh. Fortunately, Li Sui supported him, preventing his body from collapsing.

Thus, dragging his battered frame, he rode tirelessly toward the capital.

———

Next chapter updates at 00:02

(End of Chapter)