Demon Sword Sect's Undercover-Chapter 739 - 738: The Substitute 1

Ku Ji still seemed bewildered when the cultivator said with a warm smile, "Just do as I told you, and there won’t be any problems; as long as the Earth Spirit Fake Pearl is here, you won’t become a criminal of the tribe, and your position as chief will be secure as rock."

After struggling internally, Ku Ji finally chose to yield. There were many reasons: the living environment of the tribe, the immense external pressure, the interference of the Northern Heavenly Gate, and certainly not because his position or the fact that his eldest grandson would be sent to Yiting for the best education—certainly not.

Having realized this, Ku Ji slowly appeared at the entrance of the Ancestral Temple, raising his hands high; the tribal people also gradually quieted down upon seeing their chief. After all, he had been in the position of chief for twenty years and commanded a certain level of authority.

"Fellow fathers, mothers, brothers, and sisters, I don’t know where you heard the news from, saying that people from Yiting are coming today to open the coffin and take the pearl? It might be someone spreading rumors deliberately, or it might be an error passed on by the uninformed, but what I’m going to tell you now is, this is not the truth!"

Someone from below shouted, "Then what are they here for? Are they here to invite us to dinner?"

Ku Ji pressed down with his hands, "Everyone, please be quiet and listen to me! The fact is, considering the voices of our vast tribe, the sanctity of Saintess Xing Huan is inviolable. Lord Mo from Yiting has sympathized with us and ultimately decided not to take the Earth Spirit Pearl away, letting the Earth Spirit Pearl stay with Xing Huan forever, with this land."

"However, the Earth Spirit Pearl is mystical, and the Upper Cultivators from the Northern Heavenly Gate wish to inspect the Earth Spirit Pearl on site. This is to ensure the Earth Spirit Pearl can exert its effects better, and there are no other ill intentions."

Beneath, a great cheer went up, as gullibility is a defining trait of the common folks, whether they be winged beings or humans.

But there were some who were more skeptical, "We believe you, but we do not trust the visitors from Yiting, nor do we trust those cultivators from the Northern Heavenly Gate! Hearing is false, seeing is believing. Unless you let everyone see with their own eyes, who can prove that you haven’t lied to us, chief?"

Ku Ji inwardly sighed, amazed by the foresight of the Northern Heavenly Gate cultivator who had anticipated all of this,

"Alright, since you don’t trust us, then let the facts speak for themselves! The Ancestral Temple is small and can’t accommodate too many people, something you all know. Therefore, I will earnestly request the Immortal Master to demonstrate great magical power and project an image outside, so everyone can see!"

At his gesture, an image appeared above the Ancestral Temple, like a layer of water curtain, crystal clear; within the image, several people were conversing—black-robed guests from Yiting, tribal elders, and two hooded cultivators from the Northern Heavenly Gate. Every single movement was lifelike.

Such a miracle rendered ordinary winged beings dumbfounded, amazed at the marvel of the image and deeply wary of these cultivators from the Northern Heavenly Gate, also finally understanding who they were opposing.

The voices became somewhat softer because they lacked conviction. Yet, there were still some who were persistent. Xing Kong stepped forward,

"Even so, who knows if such an image is real or fake? Not too many people can enter the Ancestral Temple, but a few, maybe a dozen, always can, right? If you allow us to be observers, then we will also not reject the demands of the great cultivators from the Northern Heavenly Gate..."

This was not his idea, but his mother’s. By today, having understood who they were up against, they also knew that they could not refuse; with Northern Heavenly Gate cultivators intervening, they might avoid it this time, but not in the future.

Opening the coffin to view the pearl was inevitable, seeing as the Earth Spirit Pearl was right on Xing Huan’s forehead, desecration was inescapable. But they needed to maintain their bottom line—that the Earth Spirit Pearl, something Xing Huan and those hunters had protected with their lives, was not to be taken away.

Such was the wisdom of the elders, knowing that with the strength of these common people alone, they could not stop what was happening, and they should settle for the next best thing.

Yet, what they did not know was that they could have possibly achieved their goal if they persisted, simply lacking in understanding the mysteries of nature.

Ku Ji was troubled, not knowing how to respond, since he knew all of this was false, just lies told to deceive people. Just then, the voice of that cultivator echoed in his mind,

"Agree to it! No more than ten people!"

With the order received, Ku Ji felt greatly relieved, "In that case, we will limit it to eight people. The choice of individuals is up to you."

He agreed so readily that the ordinary winged beings below believed him even more, and promptly, eight representatives stepped forward, among them Xing Kong and his mother as the kin, as well as Uncle Jiu, Old Man Huang Tu, Sister Lin, and other influential figures in the tribe.

Watching these people enter the Ancestral Temple and then seeing them appear in the skyward image, even turning their heads back to greet everyone, the last shreds of doubt vanished from the winged beings, and their interest in the coffin opening grew.

The Earth Spirit Pearl is a treasure, but where is the treasure? To most people, their impression of the Earth Spirit Pearl also lies in legend, rarely seen with their own eyes; they had also heard that Saintess Xing Huan remains lifelike and uncorrupted a decade after her death—is this true?

From opposition to anticipation, the common winged beings unwittingly allowed themselves to be manipulated without realizing it, demonstrating the truly terrifying aspect of cultivators.

...Inside the Ancestral Temple, two cultivators from the Northern Heavenly Gate looked at each other, their smiles holding a tinge of disdain, looking down upon the scene; nothing but a bunch of ignorant mortals, so what if their numbers were many?

Both were Golden Core Cultivators from the Northern Heavenly Gate and their purpose for coming here was clear—to collect the Earth Spirit Pearl.

Knowing full well that beneath the ground there were many more cultivators from beyond the mountainous Continent, some even in the Tongtian Realm, they had to act carefully and not be careless.

The Northern Heavenly Gate had made long preparations for this operation, including persuading Yiting to exert pressure, understanding the basic situation of the tribe, and secretly winning over the tribal elders. They had not dared to send Tongtian Third Realm disciples, fearing they would not be able to hold up the facade, nor did they dare to send the old ancestors undergoing Nascent Transformation, fearing a repellent reaction from the Earth Spirit Pearl. In the end, they sent these two Golden Core Cultivators, one named Huang Hou and the other named Bai Dou, both meticulous individuals skilled in the Earth Element Power.

The tribal Ancestral Temple was a place they had already visited many times, and for them, sneaking into the buried chamber was more than easy—undetectable by anyone. They initially thought it would be easy as taking something right into their hands, yet when the time came to open the coffin, they were stumped.

They couldn’t open it!

How could mortals’ coffins not be opened by them, Golden Core Upper Cultivators? Even if it were a solid block of iron, under their power, it could be squashed or twisted with ease, so it wasn’t the coffin—it had to be the Earth Spirit Pearl meddling with it.

They couldn’t forcibly open the coffin, possessing neither the ability nor wanting to risk backlash. So, having been in the tribe for a long time, they had been considering an appropriate course of action.

In the end, they discovered that their inability to open the coffin was linked to the collective will of the winged beings of the tribe. The people here revered Saintess Xing Huan from the bottom of their hearts, and such respect, under the influence of the Earth Spirit Pearl, had formed a protective barrier. Unless every single winged being in the tribe agreed, no one would be able to open the coffin.