Futile Devices Scans

Chen Yixin walked out of the forbidden ground with a dark expression. The moment he saw Wenren Li waiting outside, his expression immediately changed. “A-Li, why did you come? Didn’t I tell you to wait for me outside?”

As he spoke, he happily took Wenren Li’s hand. After walking a few steps, he explained, “I was just scaring them a bit—making them behave.”

“Mm,” Wenren Li responded softly. His thumb gently rubbed over Chen Yixin’s hand. “As long as A-Rong isn’t affected.”

“I know,” Chen Yixin replied. His repeated visits to the divine well weren’t to predict the future—he wanted to see Wenren Li’s past. He had a feeling that before Wenren Li met him, his life hadn’t been easy. He wanted to know who had harmed his A-Li.

On the journey to the place where the immortal light appeared, besides the original group of eight and one companion beast, an additional squad of nearly a hundred Nascent Soul merfolk guards joined them. The reason was that news of the immortal light had spread—both the Northern Sea sea clans and cultivation sects from across the sea had sent people.

Naturally, the more powerful allies, the better. As for the Demon Palace guards and the people from Ze Fang and the Roc Demon Emperor, they were still inside the Burning Heaven Nether Palace. They would only be released once they reached the place where the immortal light appeared.

Chen Yixin could not keep them locked in the Burning Heaven Nether Palace forever. Even with powerful enemies all around, the trials they needed to face could not be avoided—only then would it truly be called cultivation experience.

Chen Yixin and Wenren Li still rode on Yinzi. Yinzi’s speed was even faster than that of Soul Transformation cultivators. Taking a different sea route, they once again returned to the edge of the Abysswind Territory, which could be considered the central sea region of the Northern Sea.

“Mother, there’s a lot of tasty things here,” Yinzi said while moving forward, its whiskers brushing against Chen Yixin as it subtly begged for food.

Back in the Upper Realm, Yinzi had been picky, refusing to consume anything less than true spiritual treasures. But after being trapped in the Burning Heaven Nether Palace for thirty thousand years, just to avoid starving, it had changed—from being selective to drooling at anything that looked even remotely edible.

Chen Yixin grabbed its whiskers, a thoughtful look flashing through his eyes. “Hold it in for now. When I tell you to eat, you can go all out.”

Whenever a rare treasure appeared, slaughter was inevitable. He had already set his sights on whatever was inside that immortal light—he would claim it. And when the fighting began, he could conveniently feed Yinzi as well.

Only after speaking did Chen Yixin remember Wenren Li beside him. He turned and gave him an especially gentle and obedient smile, as if the murderous intent from just moments ago had never come from him.

Wenren Li naturally did not mind Chen Yixin’s nature. He reached out to ruffle his hair, then lightly pinched the feather plumes on his forehead. The touch made Chen Yixin’s body tremble slightly before Wenren Li withdrew his hand.

This time, Chen Yixin shot him a glare. “A-Li, just you wait.”

Wenren Li wasn’t without weaknesses either—he wasn’t the only one who could be teased.

Wenren Li, unaware of Chen Yixin’s thoughts, looked at him with slight surprise, thinking he might have pinched him too hard. He gently pulled Chen Yixin closer and blew softly over the plumes he had touched.

Chen Yixin pressed his lips together, his face flushing even deeper, but he still endured it without a word.

Their intimacy unfolded right before everyone’s eyes—impossible to ignore. Ze Fang nudged the Roc Demon Emperor with his elbow. Seeing the emperor glance at him expressionlessly, he awkwardly rubbed his nose.

Alright, perhaps he had been influenced by Chen Yixin—he, too, was starting to feel a bit mischievous.

“Fellow Daoists ahead, who might you be? We are cultivators from the Lai Continent.”

They encountered another group of cultivators of comparable strength on a small island where they had temporarily stopped to rest. The location was already close to where the immortal light had appeared.

“So it’s fellow Daoists from the Merfolk Clan,” the opposing group said. The merfolk aura was unmistakable, especially with the hundred-strong merfolk guard—impossible to conceal from Soul Transformation cultivators.

“May I ask why Lai cultivators have come into Merfolk territory?” the Merfolk Emperor asked directly. The Merfolk Clan had never been friendly toward humans, known across the Northern Sea for their ruthless aggression. Few dared provoke them lightly.

“The Abysswind Territory isn’t Merfolk territory, is it?” the other party replied, unwilling to back down. Still, they had no intention of clashing with the volatile Merfolk Clan just yet. “We’ll meet again.”

Their attempt at intimidation failed, and they withdrew.

Chen Yixin, who had been expecting a fight, shrugged in boredom.

Ze Fang and the Roc Demon Emperor also felt somewhat disappointed, though their gazes shifted toward Wenren Li. They had witnessed his overwhelming strength before—and were eager to see it again.

Their pause here wasn’t due to fatigue. Rather, they were waiting to assess the situation within the Abysswind Territory—how many sea clans and cultivators had gathered, and how many enemies they would face.

Different circumstances required different strategies. That was why they paused briefly to observe and wait.

After nearly half an hour, the Merfolk Emperor returned from scouting. He approached Chen Yixin and Wenren Li and bowed.

“Cultivators from Lai  have brought an envoy. He spread the news, and now nearly everyone who can come has come.”

Regardless of strength, no one could resist trying their luck at such an opportunity. This stretch of sea would likely become more lively than ever before.

“Envoy…” Chen Yixin repeated softly, already committing it to memory with a grudge.

“It is said he came from the western shores of the Northern Sea, just like the Divine Son,” the Merfolk Emperor added.

Even he couldn’t help but feel frustrated. Originally, if Chen Yixin and Wenren Li obtained the treasure, the Merfolk Clan might at least get some leftovers. But now, with so many forces pouring in, there was no way some of it wouldn’t slip away—and that was under the most optimistic assumptions.

Ze Fang and the Roc Demon Emperor more or less shared the same thoughts. Everyone fell into silent worry—only Chen Yixin’s eyes lit up. Yet he said nothing. His hand rested on Yinzi, stroking it again and again, as if caressing a great treasure.

Only Wenren Li, who understood Chen Yixin’s mindset, remained silent as well. Since Chen Yixin intended to give everyone a surprise, revealing it in advance would ruin the effect.

Chen Yixin turned his head and blinked at Wenren Li, then looked toward the Merfolk Emperor. “Since that’s the case, there’s no need to overthink it. We’ll adapt as we go, and conserve our strength early on.”

His gaze swept across the others, and he couldn’t help adding with slight disdain, “Stay sharp.”

“Yes,” Ze Fang and the others responded together. Yet inwardly, he felt a mix of amusement and helplessness. Whether they could seize any benefits aside, preserving themselves would not be an issue—but Chen Yixin’s words made it sound as though they might meet with disaster at any moment.

It wasn’t that they might encounter danger—it was that if they weren’t sharp enough, they might end up becoming Yinzi’s snacks.

They set off again toward the place where the immortal light appeared. The journey was relatively smooth, though the whirlpools that constantly emerged within the Abysswind Territory slowed their progress.

“The immortal light! It really is immortal light!”

Chen Yixin stood up from Yinzi’s back, his eyes practically shining as he looked at the streams of immortal light. In all of Taixuan, only he could gather immortal light for Wenren Li—but that required Phoenix Flowers and a long period of accumulation. Here, however, it seemed far more immediate.

Aside from Wenren Li, everyone else assumed Chen Yixin was excited about the hidden realm within the immortal light. They did not realize that, in his eyes, the immortal light itself was far more valuable than any secret realm.

Without hesitation, Chen Yixin’s spiritual light surged, and he transformed from his half-demon form into a small chick. Like a streak of blue light, he shot forward. Wenren Li reached out instinctively—but he did not stop him.

Instead, he slowly withdrew his hand and extended his divine sense, watching without interfering.

The small blue bird darted through the immortal light within the sea. Soon, it called Yinzi over, and together they worked to intercept the dispersing light. After a full three hours, Chen Yixin finally returned with a fist-sized cluster of immortal light.

He glanced at Wenren Li and waved his hand. The immortal light entered Wenren Li’s brow, and a genuine, radiant smile spread across Chen Yixin’s face.

Ze Fang, the Roc Demon Emperor, and the others—who had been watching all this time—had never expected Chen Yixin’s actions to be entirely for Wenren Li. The smile on his face at that moment dazzled not only Wenren Li, but all of them.

Chen Yixin could be domineering, willful, unyielding, even shameless at times—but when it came to Wenren Li, he gave everything, holding nothing back. In this regard, the Roc Demon Emperor could not compare—he wasn’t even qualified to.

Wenren Li’s gaze rested on Chen Yixin’s face. He gently pulled him into his arms. “Thank you.”

Chen Yixin hugged him back, both happy and proud. “I promised you—I’d gather immortal light for you, to help nurture your little tree sapling.”

Wenren Li held him for a while longer before letting go. They continued forward, searching for more immortal light. Chen Yixin intercepted quite a bit—at this rate, the legendary hidden realm of immortal light would likely open soon.

Inside an undersea reef cave, Wenren Li—now in the form of a young boy—sat cross-legged. A faint silver rune flickered at his brow. In his arms rested a small blue bird. Three steps away, a silver orb hovered, its eyes turning vigilantly as it kept watch.

Two days earlier, Chen Yixin and Wenren Li had been separated from the Merfolk Emperor’s group. More precisely, they had been split apart during a clash with another cultivator group when a sudden spatial rift appeared.

They did not rush to reunite. After escaping the spatial rift, they continued gathering immortal light. Both Wenren Li and Chen Yixin reached breakthroughs, and the only one who could guard them was Yinzi.

The small blue bird in Wenren Li’s arms was the first to open its eyes. It flew out of the cave and rose to the surface, transforming into its half-demon form. A lightning tribulation descended, lasting an entire day before dispersing. Chen Yixin advanced directly from mid-stage Golden Core to the peak of late-stage Golden Core. One more step, and he could attempt to form his Nascent Soul.

A beam of immortal light descended. Chen Yixin reverted to his small bird form, gathering every trace of it without waste. Then a flash of silver light appeared, and as cultivators drawn by the lightning tribulation rushed over, they found nothing—everything had vanished.

“A-Li?”

Chen Yixin sensed no aura, yet the spiritual force restraining him felt strangely familiar.

“Mother, it’s Yinzi. Father asked me to take you away.”

The fastest way to leave was through the void. In Taixuan, aside from Wenren Li, only Yinzi could do this.

“Then where is A-Li?”

“Father said for you to wait for him in the Water Palace.”

Chen Yixin remained wrapped within a sphere of silver light, ensuring his safety as he traveled through the void.

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