Chapter 3085 — The Dark Phoenix Guiding Stone

"My lady, for the time being the Grand Elder will not move against the young miss and the young master. Her mind is not on them—the heir to the Dark Phoenix bloodline is what matters most to our Dark Night Palace. The Grand Elder is in a temper now. Once she finds the Dark Phoenix bloodline heir and her mood improves, we can go and plead with her again, and she should be willing to call it off..." Elder Li consoled.

Whether the Grand Elder could truly be made to change her mind, Elder Li was not at all certain; but to keep Ye Rou'er from grieving, he could only paint things in the brightest colors.

"You're right..." Ye Rou'er let out a breath. "Elder Li, let us go back first. Could you help me ask around about how Yaoyao is doing?"

"I will do what I can..." Elder Li sighed. "My authority over the Shadow Group has already been handed to Zhao Qibing, that black-robed disciple. If I want to learn such things now, I can only rely on the loyal followers I once cultivated in the Shadow Group. But for those followers to act on their own without Zhao Qibing's consent is easier said than done!"

"Elder Li, then I have truly troubled you!" Ye Rou'er said with a bitter smile. She knew that the Grand Elder now guarded against both her and Elder Li, and had stripped away as much of their power as she could, leaving them with no voice at all within the Dark Night Palace.

The Grand Elder led the assembled elders and disciples of the Dark Night Palace to the Dark Phoenix Shrine at the summit of the Dark Phoenix Mountains, where the ancient divine artifact, the Dark Phoenix Guiding Stone, was kept. This stone had originally been meant to locate the Dark Phoenix itself, but an ancestor of the Dark Night Palace had discovered by chance that it could also be used to seek out heirs bearing the Dark Phoenix bloodline—and that discovery had been put to use ever since.

As the Grand Elder of the Dark Night Palace, activating the Dark Phoenix Guiding Stone was a simple matter. Once her preparations were complete, she activated it.

Beneath the Dark Phoenix Guiding Stone lay an enormous map of the world, its coordinates precise to a startling degree. When the stone was activated, the little rock that had looked so unremarkable suddenly blazed with golden light and soared into the sky, climbing to such a height that, were it not for its dazzling radiance, the gathered members of the Dark Night Palace would not have been able to see it at all.

Yet the light was so brilliant that even with the stone several thousand meters overhead, everyone could still see the golden glow it cast—such was the power of an ancient divine artifact.

Only, this artifact served solely to seek out heirs of the Dark Phoenix bloodline; it could not be used as an earth-tier divine weapon. Otherwise, its might would surely have been immense.

The Grand Elder and the others gazed at the Dark Phoenix Guiding Stone in the sky, holding their breath. They knew the stone was now searching for the Dark Phoenix bloodline heir, sweeping the vast world for any who carried that blood.

It was the first time Zhao Qibing had witnessed such a marvel, and he clicked his tongue in astonishment. This Dark Phoenix Guiding Stone was truly formidable—had he not seen it with his own eyes, he would have thought he was watching a science-fiction film.

The hidden factions knew far too little about such artifacts, which was also why even Elder Zhao had never possessed an earth-tier divine weapon: the hidden clans simply did not have the foundation to possess such formidable things.

Even among the ancient sects, few earth-tier divine weapons survived, and not every earth-tier expert could find a divine weapon suited to his own use and pleasing to his heart.

This was also why Wei Zhao, back in the Snow Valley, had been able to trade a divine weapon the valley favored for certain benefits and advantages—otherwise, would the Snow Valley have been willing to swallow so great a loss?

The Dark Phoenix Guiding Stone circled ceaselessly in the air, casting forth dazzling golden light. Every member of the Dark Night Palace present was tense, hearts racing, and the Grand Elder herself held her breath.

What the Dark Phoenix Guiding Stone revealed would determine the future of the entire Dark Night Palace. If it failed to find an heir to the Dark Phoenix bloodline, then the Dark Night Palace was finished.

In truth, the stone did not circle in the sky for long—one might even say its flight was brief. Yet those mere ten-odd minutes felt to those present as though each day were a year. Even Zhao Qibing was somewhat nervous; after all, if the Dark Night Palace grew mighty, then he, Zhao Qibing, would grow mighty with it. And if the Dark Night Palace fell, how would he ever take his revenge on Wei Zhao?

So Zhao Qibing prayed silently in his heart that this time the Dark Phoenix Guiding Stone would succeed in finding an heir to the Dark Phoenix bloodline.

Gradually, the golden light upon the Dark Phoenix Guiding Stone dimmed and faded, and the stone began its descent.

Either the Dark Phoenix Guiding Stone had found an heir to the Dark Phoenix bloodline, or it had not—those were the only two possibilities, and the answer was about to be revealed.

With a resounding "whoosh," the Dark Phoenix Guiding Stone landed upon a point on the map. But wherever it landed, so long as it did not fall upon the point of origin, it meant an heir to the Dark Phoenix bloodline had been found!

"Found it, found it, Grand Elder, it's been found!" Zhao Qibing pointed at the map and shouted. In his eyes, the Dark Night Palace was about to rise, and he, Zhao Qibing, would rise along with it.

"What are the coordinates? Write them down and look them up on the computer!" The Grand Elder was also greatly excited. She had not expected it—it had truly been found! Besides the bloodline heirs of the Dark Night Palace, could there really be others in this world who carried the Dark Phoenix bloodline?

After all, the Dark Phoenix Guiding Stone could not be wrong. If it said there was one, then there most certainly was.

And now, checking the coordinates no longer required digging out the original maps—computers existed now, and the Dark Night Palace had adopted such high-tech equipment as well. One need only input the coordinates where the Dark Phoenix Guiding Stone had come to rest, and it could be pinpointed precisely to a certain city.

True, it was only the scope of a single city, but once the general area—that range of distance—was known, the Grand Elder could sense the presence of the Dark Phoenix bloodline heir, and all she need do was follow that sense to find them.

"Yes, Grand Elder!" No sooner had her words fallen than a disciple of the Dark Night Palace came forward carrying a laptop.