Bai Qi waved his hand, signaling the Master of Imitation not to stand on ceremony. Then, his gaze turned towards the altar, and a hint of displeasure crossed his face as he asked, "How do you plan to deal with this altar?"
The Master of Imitation replied without a second thought, "Blow it up with dynamite."
Bai Qi nodded upon hearing this.
While Bai Qi found the Master of Imitation's method somewhat crude, it was undeniably direct.
The simplest way to break a seal was with the corresponding incantation, much like using the right key to unlock a door.
Of course, besides the matching key, there was another way to open a lock: external force. With sufficient force, any lock could be broken, but it would inevitably damage whatever was inside.
However, in the Master of Imitation's view, it would be best to strike the creature within while demolishing it, as otherwise, capture might prove even more troublesome.
What he hadn't anticipated was Bai Qi's sudden appearance just as the plan was about to commence.
Bai Qi's arrival caused everyone present to halt their work.
Especially when they saw the slight displeasure on Bai Qi's face, the Master of Imitation's heart sank. Had he done something to displease the other party?
"Sir, have I made a mistake? I... I hope you can..."
Before the Master of Imitation could finish, Fang Lei interrupted him.
"The reason I'm here is not because I don't trust you, but because I don't want there to be any, even the slightest, unexpected incident during this capture operation. I believe you understand. Furthermore, I don't want the God of Harvest to sustain too much damage."
"Yes, sir. I am fully aware. My decision on this matter was indeed flawed."
"You certainly were," Bai Qi interjected immediately after the Master of Imitation spoke. "But not because you didn't inform me. It's because you sent your subordinates to investigate the altar without knowing if it was dangerous. If this had been a trap, have you considered the consequences? We would have lost several excellent employees."
Bai Qi's voice wasn't loud, but his subordinates heard him clearly.
Just then, Bai Qi's tone shifted, and he continued, "Also, you shouldn't have ignored Kleven's advice. You should know your value to the company, to me. I don't want to lose my most capable subordinate over a declining creature that calls itself a god."
As he said this, Bai Qi deliberately lowered his voice, clearly intending it for the Master of Imitation.
It wouldn't be wrong to say Bai Qi was trying to win people over. Whether it was what he said earlier or in his lowered voice, one thing was certain: Bai Qi wasn't lying. The Master of Imitation was indeed Bai Qi's most capable subordinate, one of the earliest to follow him. Even with many skilled individuals under his command now, the Master of Imitation was undoubtedly the one Bai Qi found most effortless to work with.
"Alright," Bai Qi said. "You and your subordinates go to a safe location. I will open this altar myself."
The Master of Imitation wanted to say more, but upon seeing Bai Qi's gaze, he consciously signaled his subordinates to retreat.
After ensuring everyone had withdrawn to a safe distance, Bai Qi approached the altar. He glanced at the carvings on it, let out a dismissive chuckle, and began to chant a magical incantation.
However, Bai Qi wasn't reciting the script on the carvings; he was chanting his own magic.
With a single glance, Bai Qi had discerned the malevolent nature of the incantation on the carvings designed to break the seal.
At first glance, the incantation seemed innocuous, a perfectly normal seal-breaking spell. But during its inscription, several syllables had been altered and omitted.
Though the changes were minor, the resulting effect was entirely different.
The original incantation merely broke the seal. This modified version, when chanted, would drain the life energy from the caster's body, absorb it into the altar, and supply it to the Quetzalcoatl within.
Fortunately, the Master of Imitation had opted for the brute force method of detonation. If he had chosen to break the seal by chanting the inscription, Bai Qi would have had much more to say now, and they could have been collecting bodies.
The incantation Bai Qi was now using also had the effect of breaking the seal. The difference was that Bai Qi's spell, while breaking the seal, would also render the sealed entity severely weakened for a long period.
This would normally be a negative side effect, but in this situation, it was precisely what was needed.
As Bai Qi chanted, wisps of black energy materialized out of thin air, swirling around the altar. The black energy grew denser and more pervasive, causing the altar itself to tremble violently, as if in defiance.
With a loud boom, a golden pillar of light pierced through all the black energy and shot straight into the sky. From the pillar emerged a humanoid creature entirely green, with red eyes, dressed in attire that bore some resemblance to the long-vanished Maya civilization. It had a pair of enormous wings on its back, green on the outside, with yellow and orange hues blending within. It even looked somewhat dashing.
The Quetzalcoatl, as it emerged from the light, exuded an aura of a king returning. Bai Qi almost thought the weakening effect was useless against it.
In reality, the Quetzalcoatl was indeed affected and in a weakened state. What it displayed now was merely a facade.
"Insignificant mortals, your actions have angered..."
Before the Quetzalcoatl could finish speaking, it saw Bai Qi standing below. Sensing the terrifying aura emanating from him, it didn't hesitate. It spread its wings and flew towards the sky, making a swift escape.
The Quetzalcoatl in the air looked down at the rapidly shrinking figure of Bai Qi below. Confident that the other party wouldn't be able to catch up, it finally stopped, letting out a relieved sigh.
Damn it, I just wanted to put on a show when I came out, but I ran into such a terrifying existence.
"No, I absolutely cannot stay in this place any longer. I need to leave quickly."
With this thought, the Quetzalcoatl flapped its wings, preparing to head to a secret palace it had established years ago.
However, before the Quetzalcoatl could depart, a strong gust of wind blew against it. Then, a dark silhouette appeared before the Quetzalcoatl. Before it could react, with a loud thud, the heavily struck Quetzalcoatl's body, out of its control, plummeted downwards. Even though it flapped its wings with all its might, its pair of enormous wings seemed useless. No matter how it flapped, its body continued to fall uncontrollably until it crashed onto the ground.
Not long after the Quetzalcoatl hit the ground, a small, slender figure descended from the sky and landed on top of it.
"Holy Lord, I've done the favor you asked. We are now even."
The speaker was none other than the Sky Demon, Xi Mu.
Before coming here, Bai Qi had found Xi Mu, the Sky Demon. His proposition was straightforward: either return his eyes, or help him capture the Quetzalcoatl.