Extra's Strategy: Cultivate Protagonists, Become Invincible-Chapter 242: Monster

"Now that I have broken through to the Soul Reformation realm, our original plan to ride on two boats at once has become obsolete and meaningless."

Chen Yan pulled out a wooden mask from his robe and placed it over his face. The unsettling aura of a monster in human skin was completely restrained by the mask.

"A Soul Reformation realm cultivator doesn’t need to pay an exorbitant sum to ride on the voidboat and enter the Inner Court of the Crimson Snow Sect. That means you can use my unaffiliated voidboat ticket and accompany me to that place.

This gives us some room for maneuvering in that new world. We don’t need to expose your Lineage Seal there to claim cultivation resources, which would have attracted our enemies sooner or later. That seal is a cursed treasure, better left to be used as a final life-saving straw."

Xiao Mei couldn’t utter a word for a long time. Chen Yan’s breakthrough was too abrupt, too unexpected.

With great effort, she finally whispered, "What’s the plan now?"

Chen Yan answered emotionlessly, "Divide the sect. Pit the old faction of Elders against Xuan Zi. Create a deadlock that necessitates authoritative intervention from a third party. Then use that third party to oust Xuan Zi, which will guarantee our acceptance into the Inner Court."

"So you’re just depending on those old fogeys and their desperate plan. Are you confident that they can invite a third party who can suppress Xuan Zi?"

Chen Yan smiled under the mask, seeing Xiao Mei nervously glancing in every direction, paranoid.

"Don’t worry, your highness. I can’t guarantee the capability of every outsider who might be invited by the Elders, but there is one person who is duty-bound to come! And as long as he comes, we have nothing to worry about."

Xiao Mei seemed to have guessed who Chen Yan was referring to, her countenance sinking.

"Plane Inspector Fang Xie?"

"That’s right. In fact, I won’t be surprised if he’s here already, hiding amidst the crowd. His bizarre temperament is well known..."

Xiao Mei’s forehead began to sweat.

The secret of their bloodline could never be leaked. Since childhood, she had been taught a firm lesson to tiptoe around truly powerful and knowledgeable cultivators.

A cultivator like Inspector Fang Xie, who, according to rumors, grew up in the deepest macrocosmic layers, was exactly the type of expert she never wanted to face.

"Can’t you sense him?" She urged Chen Yan. "You should already have formed a powerful spiritual perception. If he’s here-"

"Even if he were standing behind us, I wouldn’t be able to sense him if he didn’t want me to. Inspector Xie began his Dao Integration many years ago, which means he is at least two major realms above me. Are you underestimating the gap between our cultivation?"

Chen Yan laughed, appearing so carefree that it almost dazzled Xiao Mei. Convinced by his confidence, she was about to stop worrying unnecessarily as well, but...

Since when had she allowed Chen Yan to exert this much influence on her mind?

Belatedly, she came to an ominous realization.

Chen Yan had awakened his bloodline before her. An awakened bloodline was bound to have a coercive effect on a repressed bloodline seedling like her.

This was outside the expectations of their clan elders. Back when they had entrusted her to him, their calculation had been simple.

Chen Yan wasn’t supposed to break through to the Soul Reformation realm before her. He had been ordered to perfect his foundation at the peak of the Physique Transformation realm while waiting for Xiao Mei to awaken her bloodline.

That way, the dog could never escape the control of its master.

She knew that it was unfair to Chen Yan. Even though he was the son of a servant of her clan, he still had the opportunity and talent to compete against a core clan descendant like her.

Considering that angle, had he been truly content to restrain himself at the peak of the Physique Transformation realm?

But this incident revolving around Han Xuhan had given Chen Yan an opportunity!

They only had one voidboat ticket, but needed at least two. To get a second or a third ticket, the quickest and safest way open to them was to rob weak but rich cultivators.

Han Xuhan fit those requirements perfectly. He was a malicious fraud who deserved to be punished anyway.

But when they did attempt to rob him, things had exploded out of their control. At this stage, could her clan blame Chen Yan for violating their order and stepping into the Soul Reformation realm?

He could shield himself against the wrathful clan elders with a perfect excuse. He could claim that he had no choice but to violate their orders!

An impending sense of horror began to take root at the deepest corner of her heart.

Chen Yan couldn’t have... deliberately guided the situation into this deadlock, could he?

Xiao Mei’s thoughts raced like lightning in a storm. She looked back at the past chain of events that had led them here, and small details here and there began to add up!

Why did Chen Yan not personally take action immediately upon learning about Han Xuhan’s wealth? Why had he allowed his juniors to mess things up for so long?

Was it truly because he feared being caught by the Sect Master? In that case, how come he hadn’t harbored the same fear when he had robbed other targets in the past?

Not even counting Chen Yan’s influence over the outer court, some of his Mystic Arts might have been sufficient to steal much of the precious materials stored inside Han Xuhan’s hut. Xiao Mei had seen those techniques in action!

Why had he never chosen to employ those methods against Han Xuhan? Why had he always backed off after half-hearted attempts at blackmail?

Even when Han Xuhan was beating and humiliating every disciple of their mountain peak, Chen Yan had excused himself from taking action for an entire month, claiming that he needed to weed out some internal spies.

She had trusted his words back then, but how come he couldn’t unearth a single spy? Was he truly putting any effort into it?

Or was he actually attempting to break through to the Soul Reformation realm this entire time?