"Of course."
Chen Qi knew Fang Shuwen was referring to the incident outside Flying Snow City.
He then took a slip of paper from his robes, placed it on the table, and slid it over to Fang Shuwen.
After opening it, Fang Shuwen saw a very complicated route detailed on it.
It even included instructions on how to contact people at certain locations, how to disguise oneself, and how to finally reach Undying Island after a series of indirect twists and turns.
As Fang Shuwen read on, he suddenly felt that something was amiss.
He looked up at Chen Qi.
"You said the Undying Dragon Emperor is invincible near the Dragon Gate."
"So why is he being so cautious and careful?"
Chen Qi froze for a moment; it seemed he hadn’t considered this point before.
After a brief moment of thought, a flicker of alarm flashed in his eyes.
"Could it be... that he’s wary of something?"
"That’s what you need to find out."
Fang Shuwen stood up.
"But from the looks of it, perhaps he isn’t as invincible as you think."
"..."
Chen Qi fell silent.
Fang Shuwen had already taken flight and departed. After this farewell, who knew when they would meet again.
Chen Qi didn’t linger either. He was now a public enemy.
Those final words he spoke in the Earth Palace were intentional.
Not to divert attention, but for another purpose... It was now time for him to leave the Eastern Domain as well.
He took some silver from his robes and placed it on the table. He glanced at the leftovers, thought for a moment, then sighed and gave up on his plan to steal the two fifty-year-old jars of Bamboo Leaf Green from the Shopkeeper’s cellar.
"Hopefully, I’ll get a chance to drink it next time I come back."
...
...
On the way back, Fang Shuwen kept replaying his conversation with Chen Qi.
The Undying Dragon Emperor, the Dragon Gate, Qilin Hall...
The old grudges, the current Young Venerable.
Many things were, in fact, quite strange.
But after sorting through his thoughts, Fang Shuwen realized that these matters didn’t have much to do with him.
He wanted to cause trouble for Dragon Emperor Hall for only one reason: they wanted to kill him.
He could disbelieve everything else Chen Qi had said, but he firmly believed that Dragon Emperor Hall would retaliate against him.
Therefore, this feud had to be settled sooner or later.
But he decided to take Chen Qi’s advice and not go to Undying Island for the time being.
It wasn’t that he was truly worried about the Undying Dragon Emperor’s invincibility. He just felt there was something fishy about it; it might not be as absurd as Chen Qi claimed.
Of course, he couldn’t let his guard down completely.
Although Fang Shuwen knew his Martial Arts were formidable, he never considered himself invincible.
As for whether the Undying Dragon Emperor’s invincibility was exaggerated... he would only know after going there himself.
The main reason Fang Shuwen postponed his trip to Dragon Emperor Hall was that he had killed Ye Bai and Ye Wucheng.
If he went out to sea now, who knew when he would be able to return?
Although Ye Wufeng wouldn’t dare to easily set foot in the Eastern Domain due to the Seven Eastern Sects, even a tiger dozes off sometimes. If Ye Wucheng could sneak in, who was to say Ye Wufeng couldn’t?
Hadn’t even the Seven Eastern Sects been on guard against Ye Wufeng possibly coming to the rescue when they decided to execute Ye Wucheng?
Under these circumstances, if he left the Eastern Domain, he might return to find that Ye Wufeng, unable to find him, had slaughtered everyone at the Four Seas Martial Arts Hall. Even if Fang Shuwen could avenge them then, it would be pointless.
In contrast, on the Dragon Emperor Hall side of things, he had Chen Qi’s promise that no one would come looking for trouble with him for a short while.
Moreover, the situation had already changed, starting with Chen Qi’s statement in the Earth Palace.
In the struggle for the Seven-String Ancient Chapter, the one who ultimately obtained it was the Young Venerable of Dragon Emperor Hall.
This would spur many people to venture out to sea and explore.
It would no longer be just the people of Dragon Emperor Hall invading the Eastern Domain.
Instead, people would tirelessly travel to the sea in search of Dragon Emperor Hall.
This group could be the ones to test the path...
Desire is limitless. To obtain the Seven-String Ancient Chapter, some people would do anything.
In this situation, if anyone from Dragon Emperor Hall were to set foot in the Eastern Domain again, they would be swarmed and attacked by the masses, without the Seven Sects even needing to lift a finger.
With these two factors in play, Dragon Emperor Hall probably wouldn’t dare to venture into the Eastern Domain anytime soon.
Plus, with the Seven Sects monitoring the Jianghu, it bought Fang Shuwen a lot of time. It should at least be enough for a trip to the Northern Domain.
By the time he returned to his residence, the sun was already setting in the west.
He stepped over the pit in front of the door, opened the main gate, and saw Chen Yan sitting at a table, his face a ferocious scowl as he wrestled with a notebook.
One moment he was crossing things out, the next he was writing furiously.
He was completely oblivious to Fang Shuwen’s return.
Fang Lingxin was busy with dinner in the kitchen, while the little donkey lay by the kitchen door, yawning out of boredom.
All was peaceful between them.
After greeting Fang Lingxin, Fang Shuwen ignored the scowling Chen Yan and went straight into his room.
The first thing he saw was Yu Yaoguang, sitting in his room.
She was holding a book, studying it intently.
Fang Shuwen’s heart skipped a beat.
"What are you reading? Go back to your own room to read..."
"Hm?"
Yu Yaoguang turned to look at Fang Shuwen, then turned the book in her hands to show him the cover. On it were written the words: "Sixty-four Trigrams Maze Array."
Fang Shuwen froze.
"Where did you get that?"
"From the Eight Trigrams Mechanism Box."
Yu Yaoguang’s phoenix-like eyes swept over him.
"What did you think... I was reading?"
"Nothing. What else could you be reading? Of course, you were reading... this Sixty-four Trigrams thing."
Of course, Fang Shuwen wouldn’t tell her he thought she was reading the Cloud Rain Harmony Technique.
"Really?"
How could Yu Yaoguang possibly believe him?
Fang Shuwen walked over and sat down on the bed.
"What does this Sixty-four Trigrams Maze Array talk about?"
"It’s about that maze Array underground, of course."
Yu Yaoguang’s eyes lit up slightly.
"You know, we were in considerable danger this time..."
"If this Array hadn’t been worn down by the passage of time, it wouldn’t have been so easy for us to get out unscathed."
"Was it really that powerful?"
Fang Shuwen asked casually.
Yu Yaoguang spoke with a serious expression.
"This Array has eight layers in total. The outermost layer has sixty-four gateways."
"Based on celestial timing, it rotates once in a little over a quarter of an hour."
"In one full day and night, it rotates a total of sixty-four times, corresponding to the sixty-four trigrams."
"With each rotation, all eight layers move simultaneously—some forward, some in reverse, some for long durations, some for short. The trigrams and directions all change with every rotation."
"If you can’t see through its mysteries, you’ll be lost in the Array until you die."
"Not only that, but each layer of the maze also follows the principles of life and death of the eight trigrams. Find the path of life, and your way is clear. Find the path of death, and you’ll face countless traps."
"Life and death are uncertain, changing with the Array’s shifts. The profundity of it all... In my opinion, the person who created this Array might have already reached the pinnacle of mastery in the art of Arrays."