Several days later, in the underground cavern.
Chen Mu moved his fingers, silently calculating using the Nine Cups Calculation Scripture.
At this moment, a misty scene emerged in his mind. It was as if he was floating amidst a thick fog where he couldn't see his own hand.
As the calculation proceeded, a star point appeared within the fog, continually expanding.
A green valley shrouded in white mist suddenly flashed into view.
"Got it." Chen Mu slowly opened his eyes.
Over the past five or six days, while Zhou Tong and others were busy constructing the Five Cloud Shuttle, Chen Mu wasn't idle either.
He reversed practiced Primordial Qi to reshape the Jade Seed, controlled Ghosts to simulate setting up the Ghost Gate, and practiced the Nine Cups Calculation Scripture.
The first two tasks went alright, but the Calculation Scripture didn't make much progress. Out of ten calculations, only five correctly determined the location of the Five Cloud Shuttle.
"A fifty percent accuracy rate is somewhat risky, but the Calculation Scripture is only halfway through the Third Rank, so that's understandable." Chen Mu felt quite at ease.
"According to Zhou Tong and others, the Five Cloud Shuttle might take quite some time to successfully cross the void. That's enough time for me to further advance the Nine Cups Calculation Scripture." He silently planned.
After outlining a cultivation schedule, he used the Vermilion Feather Sword to perform the Truthful Listening Divine Power, investigating surroundings of the Fire Dao City.
A group of three-meter tall, pale-skinned people with an extra eye on their foreheads stood guarding various parts of the city, showing no intention of expanding their territory.
"Not expanding their territory is good."
"It provides Zhou Tong and the others plenty of time to escape."
With a cheerful smile, the Truthful Listening Divine Power expanded from the Vermilion Feather Sword in the valley. A sleek, white shuttle appeared like a giant egg in his mind.
Upon careful inspection of its inner structure, Chen Mu couldn't help but smile.
"In at most two more days, this shuttle should be completely built."
"At that time, the Vermilion Feather Sword can hitch a ride on the wind to leave Fire Dao Star."
"Then I could also use the Ghost Gate to escape the danger."
He was just celebrating.
A crisp breaking sound suddenly erupted, with lightning-like twisted cracks appearing on the surface of the Five Cloud Shuttle.
The top suddenly exploded, as Zhou Tong and Fei Zhao, using Escape Light, fiercely collided and then dashed into the sky like lightning.
The nearly completed Five Cloud Shuttle was torn in half by the shockwaves from their battle.
The smile on Chen Mu's face instantly froze, like a stone statue.
Wasn't everything fine just yesterday?
How did you two end up in a conflict in a blink of an eye?
If you want to fight, fight, but why damage my Five Cloud Shuttle?
At this moment, Chen Mu wished he could dash to the valley and kill those two bastards!
"Junior Brother, are you insane?" Zhou Tong shouted angrily at Fei Zhao.
Seeing the Five Cloud Shuttle on the verge of completion and about to escape Fire Dao Star, he never expected his previously close junior brother to launch a sudden sneak attack.
If he hadn't always been cautious, it might have been him split in two just now, instead of the shuttle!
"I think it's you who's insane!" Fei Zhao shouted furiously.
"The compartments inside the Five Cloud Shuttle are isolated from one another, disabling communication among the Daoist Soldiers within."
"If any unit of the Daoist Soldiers fails to supply Sealing Demon Power, you'll be quietly abandoned."
"Am I also one who can be abandoned?" His face was dark and ominous.
"What nonsense are you spouting! I already gave you control over one-third of the Five Cloud Shuttle! How could I possibly..." Zhou Tong argued incredulously, shouting back.
"You actually admitted it?! I'm your dear junior brother, like your own sibling!" Fei Zhao interrupted with a face full of anger and sadness.
When the hell did I admit that?!
Are your ears filled with donkey hair?!
Were you even listening to me?!
"Give me your life!" Fei Zhao, eyes blood-red, charged recklessly at Zhou Tong.
Zhou Tong gritted his teeth in anger.
"Junior Sister, this kid's been driven mad by the Nether Demon Blood Light! Help me restrain him!" Zhou Tong shouted to Li Jiu, who was not far away.
"I didn't expect you two to have such a relationship?!" Li Jiu's face turned red, filled with shame and anger.
"You dare flirt so blatantly in public! You two are Thousand Mechanisms Sect Elders!"
"You bastards, handle your own mess!" After saying that, Li Jiu flew into the sky in a huff, using Escape Light.
No way, are your ears filled with donkey hair too?
What on earth did you hear?
I just knew that this Nether Demon Heaven Blood Light was no good.
Zhou Tong was almost exploding with anger!
"This is a disaster."
In the underground cavern, Chen Mu watched as the valley was destroyed by the aftermath of Zhou Tong and Fei Zhao's battle, with numerous dead and wounded Daoist Soldiers forced to scatter and flee, his eyelid was twitching uncontrollably.
He never expected that with the Five Cloud Shuttle almost completed, the three core elders would fall into internal conflict.
"No wonder the Nether Demon and the Demons from Nether Demon Heaven haven't launched a slaughter or siege on these Daoist Soldiers."
"With the influence of this Nether Demon Blood Light, pursuit and siege aren't needed, the survivors will be thrown into disarray." Chen Mu gritted his teeth.
Being deep underground and having experience with Nether Demon Heaven, the Blood Light's influence on him was minimal.
But for the Daoist Soldiers of Fire Dao City, exposed without any protection, it wasn't the same.
The internal strife among those three Daoist Foundation Elders meant that those surviving Daoist Soldiers might make a big mess.
Expecting them to regroup and rebuild the Five Cloud Shuttle was practically impossible.
"The smuggling plan using the Vermilion Feather Sword is screwed."
Chen Mu, hiding in Thousand Lanterns City and practicing Reversed Primordial Qi, suddenly felt a tingle on his scalp.
It was like being zapped by the spark of a lighter, his entire body shuddered, and he hurriedly opened his eyes.
"Contractual Decree?"
Chen Mu immediately used the Truthful Listening Divine Power to inspect a mountain peak where Zhou Tong was located.
Sure enough, he saw Zhou Tong holding a Bronze Token, using the Contractual Decree to summon Daoist Soldiers.
"Using the Contractual Decree as a constraint to forcibly control the Daoist Soldiers to build the Five Cloud Shuttle?" Chen Mu's eyes lit up.
The Contractual Decree comes with a countermeasure from the Pure Yang Daoist Ancestor. It might actually counteract the effect of the Nether Demon Blood Light and succeed!
He was just getting excited when he heard Zhou Tong atop the mountain shout aloud.
"Fei Zhao and Li Jiu betrayed the Thousand Mechanisms Sect. With their disruption, none of us can leave Fire Dao Star.
"We must attack the traitors and take their bounty as our reward!"
"Charge with me, everyone!"
All spoils will be given to you."
What the hell is he doing, fighting again?
This guy's gotta have been taken over by the Nether Demon Heaven Blood Light too!
Chen Mu's gut wrenched in frustration.
"Luckily, I have the Nine Cups Calculation Scripture, or I'd end up in chaos with these guys."
He was relieved, but couldn't help worrying once more.
"To use the Ghost Gate for Ground Shrinking, I need an accurate landing point."
In the past, he considered using Heavenly Demon Body as a point of landing for the Ground Shrinking technique through Ghost Gate.
But Fire Dao Star and Yunzhou are separated by thirty-thousand days above and below, the distance is beyond countless. Even if the location is connected, it's extremely difficult to calculate the landing point.
And Yunzhou's Vital Energy is declining, with the Netherworld secretly plotting, it's really not suitable for Qi Cultivation and Immortal Cultivation. He's extremely hesitant about it.
"If only I had Nine-Life Tribulation Splitting Technique, I wouldn't need to rely on these guys and their chaos."
"To use Ground Shrinking through the Ghost Gate, I need an accurate landing point."
So this means I'll have to pass through the Loach Dragon Fire Path once again and cross the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains to escape that big swamp in Yunzhou."