Taiyi Dao Fruit

Third Young Master Jiang Zhuyun should be over twenty years old by now.

Jiang Li had never met him, but he believed that quite a few distant relatives of the Jiang Family must have seen him, and the Jiang Family's political rivals should also know what he looked like.

"So, he not only changed his name, but also his face. It's just unclear whether he used a new name and face to join the Dinghu Sect, or whether he directly replaced another disciple's identity," Jiang Li speculated in his mind.

If it was the former, he hadn't heard of any disciple advancing in their Dao Fruit rapidly to become an Inner Sect Disciple in the last two years, so this so-called Third Young Master must still be in the Outer Disciple.

If it was the latter, then what he needed was status and identity, so being an Outer Disciple wasn't necessary. Only the status of an Inner Sect Disciple held value. In that case, Jiang Zhuyun must have taken the Divine Attribute path, not the Human Species.

A Daoist's Dao Fruit required admission into the path for three years, whereas the Heavenly Weapon Dao Fruit had no time constraints.

The Heavenly Weapon Dao Fruit required one to wash their body with Qi, refine impurities, and thus prepare for the rebirth, to bear the Heavenly Weapon Dao Fruit. If cultivated normally, that would take at least two to three years, but with secret medicines and resource investment, this time could be significantly shortened.

Also, with the help of people from the Jiang Family, Jiang Zhuyun's integration progress with the Heavenly Weapon Dao Fruit was also likely not slow, allowing him to rapidly advance, matching his realm to his false identity without letting others detect anything amiss.

However, no matter how quick his progress, only three years had passed since the major upheaval in the Jiang Family. Jiang Zhuyun could at most attain the Seventh Rank now, and no higher.

Deducing the range of his power, Jiang Li felt certain in his heart.

He then looked at Yang Chong and asked, his eyes blazing, "One last question, why do you want me dead?"

To Jiang Li's disappointment, Yang Chong, a mere underling, had no idea of Jiang Zhuyun's purpose, and he didn't even know the identities of other Jiang Family members in the Dinghu Sect. Yang Chong didn't even know whether the person who ordered him, Luo Yi, had the surname Jiang.

Being an insignificant character, it was convenient to dispose of him in case of any issues. That was Yang Chong's position.

"Please spare me, I beg you," Yang Chong pleaded, having spilled everything he knew. He was terrified of water torture, and now his only thought was to escape the threat.

Seeing his behavior, Jiang Li was pretty certain of the truthfulness of his words. However, for reassurance, Jiang Li repeated his questioning several times. Upon finding no inconsistencies, he truly spared him.

"Don't worry, Senior Brother, I have said before, I won't kill you."

Jiang Li adjusted Yang Chong's collar to make him look less disheveled, "But that Third Young Master may not necessarily feel the same. Senior Brother, you wouldn't want him to know what you've said, right?"

After saying this, Jiang Li took a talisman from his sleeve.

"A Sound Retention Talisman?! Uh—"

Before he could finish speaking, Jiang Li drew his sword and knocked Yang Chong unconscious with a strike.

This move was a spare piece, which might become useful sometime. At least, it could make Yang Chong conceal that Jiang Li had already learned the inside story.

And...

[Record, Jiang Zhuyun likely did not receive the help of an Inner Sect elder. Or rather, his actions should not be known by the sect, which has sheltered him but does not stand on his side.]

The Karma Collection automatically recorded the message, Jiang Li put away the Water Spirit Talisman in his hand.

This was naturally not a Sound Retention Talisman, but merely a Water Spirit Talisman facing away from Yang Chong.

The Sound Retention Talisman was a Ninth Grade Talisman, and Jiang Li's current assets didn't allow him to afford it.

The exchange record was only accessible by the Pavilion Guardian Elders and Inner Sect Elders of the Daoist Law Pavilion; Yang Chong didn't know whether Jiang Li had exchanged a Sound Retention Talisman or not, indicating that Jiang Li's enemies were not overwhelmingly powerful.

They were ultimately limited to the level of disciples, not rising to the level of Inner Sect Elders.

Indeed, if they truly had power to stir winds and call rains within the sect, they wouldn't have designed to kill Jiang Li, a mere Outer Disciple.

Wanting Jiang Li to die on a mission indicated that the enemies did not want the sect to investigate.

However, all of these were mere calculations, and Jiang Li felt he needed a bit more assurance.

He walked a few steps and, bathed in the moonlight spilling through the bamboo forest, cast divination.

Emperor Wen's coins fell six times without any obstruction.

"Seems like my estimation of his strength range is not mistaken," Jiang Li thought to himself.

All men and women in the world are like stars. A person's fate is also like the stars, possessing different "gravitational" forces due to their size.

Potential, intellect, and strength—the stronger they are, the more flourishing the fate, the stronger the "gravity," with strength being the highest proportion. If a weaker party tries to spy on a stronger party's momentum through divination, they will encounter interference from "gravity," face many obstructions, even potentially get caught by the "gravity," crash into the "star," resulting in injury or death.

Those of high position and authority gather masses under them, akin to all stars guarding around, various "graviational" forces form a complex gravitational field around them, swirling underneath like the ocean, distorting divination and Observing Qi results, even counterattacking.

Strength is the key.

Jianghu magicians may possess high skills in divination, but even attempting to foresee minor fortunes can greatly reduce their Essence Qi, and involving powerful or noble figures might even result in vomiting blood in severe volumes. Meanwhile, a powerful figure calmly speculates with a flick of the fingers, mastering the Heavenly Mechanism, withstands the backlash even if wrong.

Jiang Li's own cultivation wasn't superb, but it wasn't bad either; he was also a member of the Jiang Family and a disciple of the Dinghu Sect, inherently close to the target, so he wouldn't face much interference from family or sect. The only restraint on him was the gap in strength.

His divination faced little interference, indicating that the target's strength gap could be bridged by his divination skill.

It was at most Seventh Rank.

"But my divination method isn't exceptionally profound. I can't directly divine his current identity," Jiang Li thought to himself.

The Six Trigrams Calculation Scripture he studied was basic knowledge, accessible to all Outer Disciples. Reaching this level depended entirely on Jiang Li's hard efforts, and not because the Scripture itself was profound.

If it were the sect's foremost Dunjia scripture, the Dragon Armor Divine Chapter, then let alone the opponent's identity, he probably could divine every detail about him.

Unfortunately, not even Inner Sect Disciples had access to the Dragon Armor Divine Chapter, and Jiang Li, an Outer Disciple, didn't even have the qualifications to yearn for it.

Muttering a few praises for the Dragon Armor Divine Chapter in his heart, Jiang Li looked at the divination results again.

"Kun above and Kan below, water in the middle, Earth Water Master."

Those who get this divination are fraught with difficulties and worries, but it's not hopeless; encountering a noble person could turn calamity into fortune.

And "Master" indicates a multitude of soldiers. Only by choosing respected and esteemed elders to lead an army can one achieve auspiciousness without faults.

"Noble person, elder..."

Muttering these words, two figures flashed across Jiang Li's mind.

Very few people met these two criteria, at least among those Jiang Li knew, not many, in fact, only two.

Those were Elders Wan and Yun.

If reliability was also considered, he could directly pinpoint it to only Elder Wan.