Chapter 390 - 387: The Cause

Chapter 390: Chapter 387: The Cause

"As expected of a peerless genius renowned throughout the world! Fellow Daoist Shen, your methods are truly astonishing. To capture the enemy with such ease... I dare say few among us could have managed it!"

"Indeed! Truly a promising young man. To have reached a level of strength at only twenty years old—a level it took us the better part of a lifetime to achieve—is truly humbling."

"If I’m not mistaken, the lingering aura from that man was at the Soul Emergence Sixth Layer, wasn’t it? *Hiss!* He truly is a peerless Demon of the younger generation..."

He was surrounded by flattering smiles and endless praise.

Most of those who managed to reach the Soul Emergence Realm were beings who had lived for decades, even centuries.

Naturally, they had plenty of pleasantries ready for the occasion.

"Seniors, you flatter me. It was a simple trick, not worth mentioning."

"This man is likely a Gu Cultivator. All his strength lies in his Gu Insects, making him a paper tiger. That’s why once I used a Tier Two Magic to close the distance, I was able to defeat and capture him easily."

"If it had been any of you Seniors, I’m sure you would have captured him even faster..."

Faced with the praise from the crowd of seniors,

Shen Changchuan replied humbly.

To be honest,

he didn’t actually enjoy being famous.

Fame

meant becoming an easy target.

Especially with the ongoing war between the Righteous and Evil Daos.

In the past, by holding back and staying hidden, any enemies sent to deal with him weren’t overwhelmingly powerful, which allowed him to turn the tables and kill them instead.

But if his enemies started to take him seriously,

things wouldn’t be so easy anymore.

Shen Changchuan would rather his enemies underestimate him than overestimate him.

Moreover,

this wasn’t entirely him being humble.

Shen Changchuan discreetly glanced out of the corner of his eye at the skinny figure he was holding, who was limp as a dead dog.

He recalled the battle from just moments ago.

The corner of his eye couldn’t help but twitch.

This guy...

He had talked a big game, saying something about teaching Shen Changchuan a lesson for treating him like a pushover.

At the time, Shen Changchuan had taken him seriously, considering the man had managed to leave the array-protected Barbaric City without alerting anyone.

He was also at the Soul Emergence Sixth Layer.

He hadn’t dared to be the least bit careless.

So, he had gone all out.

And the result?

The moment the fight started...

Shen Changchuan was left completely speechless.

If not for his extremely precise control over his Magical Power and techniques, which allowed him to hold back at the last second,

the guy who was just talking trash would have been deader than dead on the spot.

Countless thoughts flashed through his mind,

but this didn’t stop him from exchanging pleasantries with the group of Soul Emergence Realm seniors.

However,

suddenly,

Shen Changchuan noticed, hiding behind the crowd,

the figure of a seemingly unremarkable old man in a purple robe.

’That’s,’

’the Third Elder of the Shen Family?’

’So he’s been in Barbaric City all this time.’

’But,’

’after all this time, he doesn’t seem to have any intention of coming over to speak with me.’

’Is he trying to avoid suspicion?’

’Or... could he be one of the First Lady’s people?’

A cold glint flashed through Shen Changchuan’s mind.

His expression, however, remained unchanged,

betraying nothing.

And at this moment,

the Shen Family’s Third Elder felt like he was on pins and needles.

He had noticed Shen Changchuan’s glance.

’He saw me!’

’That kid definitely saw me!’

’Damn it!’

The Third Elder’s expression flickered with uncertainty.

Even though his Cultivation Realm was a layer higher than Shen Changchuan’s,

he still felt a tremor of fear in his heart.

...

「One hour later,」

In a dark dungeon.

The skinny man’s Dantian Magical Power had been sealed, and he was locked in a cell with special restraints.

"It’s really him!"

"I can’t believe he was so bold! Daring to sneak into Barbaric City to ambush me!"

Wu Tianhao, some color having returned to his face, stood outside the cell bars. He stared at the shackled, unconscious figure with disbelief in his eyes.

"Oh? It seems Senior Brother Wu recognizes this man."

"Of course I do. He goes by the moniker Shadow. He comes and goes without a trace and is a top figure among the Demon Cultivators who have risen to prominence in the Nanyue Kingdom over the past decade."

"In fact, I went to Golden Wind Valley precisely to investigate his whereabouts."

Wu Tianhao explained without holding anything back.

"Ah, could you tell me more, Senior Brother? There are some things about this man I’d like to understand..."

Shen Changchuan thought of the items he had just taken from Shadow’s Storage Bag.

After a moment’s hesitation, he couldn’t help but press for more details.

"Of course. If it weren’t for you, I would’ve been a dead man."

"Besides, it’s not as if any of this is some great secret."

Wu Tianhao shook his head.

He took a moment to organize his thoughts before continuing.

"Over thirty years ago, a major event occurred in the Nanyue Kingdom. The long-lost legacy site of a Profound Pill Realm Zhenren, who had a heaven-defying rise five thousand years ago, was discovered!"

"As he was the only Profound Pill Realm Zhenren in the history of the Nanyue Kingdom, the appearance of his legacy site naturally caused immense chaos. The entire Nanyue Kingdom was plunged into a bloodbath, and even powers from the Outer Realm got involved. People from my own Yuqing Immortal Sect went as well."

"Speaking of which, the only reason I was able to join the Yuqing Immortal Sect was because a senior brother from the sect happened to pass through Wu Family Town, and I managed to build a connection..."

"I don’t know the final outcome of the battle over the legacy site."

"However, rumor has it that the most important inheritance within the site, the Minghuan Gu Scripture, was torn to shreds during a struggle between Divine Travel Realm experts. The fragments scattered into the void and vanished."

"Not long after, rumors began to circulate that a few incredibly lucky individuals had found a page or two of the scripture, allowing them to soar to prominence with a heaven-defying rise in power."

"This man, Shadow, is one of those suspected individuals."

"Many masters of the Demon Dao have hunted him, but he has always managed to elude them."

After briefly explaining Shadow’s background,

Wu Tianhao then began to explain how he himself got involved.

"Lately, the fighting on the front lines at Broken Soul Mountain has been intense. Due to the insidious and secretive nature of Gu Techniques, many of our allies have been struck down by them, suffering terrible fates."

"Those on the front lines are hoping that we in the rear can find a way to counter them."

"But Gu Cultivation Techniques are not easy to master. A hastily-gained understanding can’t possibly stand against techniques passed down through generations, let alone against those who have practiced them since childhood as their sole means of survival..."

"Aside from refining some Insect-Repelling Pills, which provide limited help, we’re otherwise powerless. We certainly can’t change the tide of battle on the front lines."

"So we have no choice. While continuing to research ways to counter Gu Techniques, we’ve also had to look for other solutions."

"That’s when the Minghuan Gu Scripture, the one that caused such a huge uproar thirty years ago, came onto our radar."

"Three months ago, we got word that Shadow had appeared near Golden Wind Valley, so I led a team to track him down..."

At this point,

Wu Tianhao’s expression turned grim.

"The rumors all claimed his cultivation was merely at the Soul Emergence Fourth Layer. No one could have imagined he was actually a Cultivator at the Soul Emergence Sixth Layer!"