First Immortal of the Sword

Chapter 972 – Pi Mo’s Disciples

The man in black couldn’t help but frown in response to Su Yi’s questions. “Kid, you’re a prisoner now. What’s with all the questions?”

He sounded thoroughly displeased.

However, the old man sensed that something wasn’t quite right.

This young man was just too calm, as if he had no idea how dangerous his predicament was. He was even seizing the opportunity to ask questions.

As if he were entirely unaware that he was now a captive!

“I’m just making idle conversation,” laughed Su Yi.

Now, the man in black realized something was amiss too.

Ordinarily speaking, those who found themselves intercepted were alarmed and enraged. That went for even Emperors! Would-be captives either thoroughly submitted to their fate or fought with everything they had.

It was practically unheard of for someone to be as calm and composed as the young man in blue.

“Aren’t… aren’t you at all afraid we’ll hurt you?” The black-robed man’s gaze was sharp and imposing.

“Why should I be afraid?” Su Yi laughed. “Seems to me that you two would be best off answering my questions properly. Otherwise, I’m afraid your lives will be in danger.”

The old man suddenly said, “Wei Hong, there’s a problem with that boy! Hurry up and capture him!”

The black-robed man’s pupils constricted, and he attacked directly, without any further delays.

Boom!

His right arm suddenly stretched forward, his fingers like a dragon’s claws as he reached for Su Yi’s shoulder.

A terrifying, golden burst of the power of the Laws wrapped around his fingers. It was dazzlingly bright, and it seemed to tear the skies apart. It was indomitably forceful.

“Why insist on pushing yourselves beyond your limits?” Su Yi sighed.

His robes billowed, and…

Bang!

A deafening impact rang out.

The power of the black-robed man’s strike collapsed, and he swayed on his feet.

Before he could steady himself, Su Yi took a step forward, appeared in front of him, and held him aloft by the throat as he might a chicken.

One direct, to-the-point attack was all it took to catch a mid-stage Profound Illumination Emperor!

“You…” The black-robed man’s face flushed red, and his face filled with astonishment. It seemed he dared not believe that a young Spiritual Revolution Realm cultivator had captured him in a single attack.

“There really is something wrong here!” The elder rose, his eyes flashing like lightning. His entire body burst with murderous intent.

However, inwardly, his heart was quivering.

He dared say with certainty that the young man in blue really was in the Spiritual Revolution Realm. There was no way he was faking it. Yet, despite this low cultivation, he’d captured an Emperor like Wei Hong with ease! This was simply unheard of!

Thud!

Su Yi tossed the black-robed Wei Hong to the ground and planted his foot on his chest. “I have no interest in cleaning up people of your level. Answer my questions honestly, and I’ll naturally let you both live.”

A young Spiritual Revolution Realm cultivator had his foot on his chest! Wei Hong’s eyes bulged as if about to burst; he’d never experienced such humiliation before.

The old man’s expression darkened, and his eyes flashed. “Friend, if you have something to say, let’s have a proper conversation. Let Wei Hong go first. I trust you don’t want a falling out with our Abstruse Force Alliance either, right?”

Crunch!

The tips of Su Yi’s toes pressed down, and the bones of Wei Hong’s chest cracked. He let out a muffled, agonized grunt, and his face contorted. His entire body convulsed.

Then, Su Yi said coolly, “My patience is limited. Any more wasted words, and I’ll kill him.”

His tone was light and airy, but his composed bearing made them tremble despite the absence of cold.

After a moment’s silence, the old man said, “I won’t lie to you, friend. We’re standing guard here on another’s orders. We’re supposed to capture a certain someone.”

“Who?”

“Not sure.” The old man sighed. “Our objective is to bring each and every expert who enters the Burial Ground of the Dao to Broken Souls Ridge. There, we’re to entrust them to His Excellency Pi Mo’s third disciple, Gu Ziming. As for the rest? I’m afraid we really have no idea.”

Broken Souls Ridge!

Su Yi laughed. One of the most mysterious forbidden zones in the Burial Ground of the Dao stood just thirty miles from the ridge——the Divine Cave of the Six Paths!

“What if you faced an opponent too great for you to overpower?” asked Su Yi.

He could tell that the old man was at the peak of the Profound Illumination Realm.

Were someone like him to face a Profound Serenity Emperor, he could forget about capturing them. Even just attempting it would be tantamount to suicide.

The old man took a deep breath and said gravely, “We’re from the Abstruse Force Alliance. Even if we face an enemy too great for us to defeat, they won’t dare provoke us lightly. Furthermore, we’ll assure them that so long as we confirm that they’re not the person the Abstruse Force Alliance is looking for, we won’t make things difficult for them.”

Su Yi snickered. “So, your strategy is to borrow another’s power to intimidate them. Worthless.”

The old man’s expression was unsightly, but he said nothing.

Su Yi went on to ask a few more questions.

Before long, he’d learned that the old man was called Fu Donghua. He was indeed from Nine-Star Sword Mountain, and he was working under one of Pi Mo’s disciples, Gu Ziming.

According to Fu Donghua, the experts of the Abstruse Force Alliance who’d entered the Burial Ground of the Dao weren’t limited to Pi Mo’s four disciples and their subordinates.

Four Profound Serenity Realm elders had come too!

After entering the Burial Ground of the Dao, Gu Ziming ordered groups of experts to stand guard over all thirty-six entrances to the Burial Ground of the Dao.

They’d gone to all this trouble, but all of this was to catch just one person!

This seemed difficult to understand.

Others entered the Burial Ground of the Dao in search of opportunities and good fortune.

But the Abstruse Force Alliance had come here to capture someone. This was far too strange.

Alas, even this old man of the Nine-Star Sword Mountain wasn’t sure of just who Pi Mo’s disciples were trying to capture.

“Is the Peach Haven Mountain Monarch with members of your Abstruse Force Alliance?” Su Yi asked suddenly.

The old man seemed surprised, and he asked in disbelief, “How did you know about that?”

Instead of answering, Su Yi asked, “Where is he now?”

After a moment’s silence, the old man said, “The day we entered the Burial Ground of the Dao, he entered the Divine Cave of the Six Paths. He said he was after the secrets of reincarnation.”

Su Yi’s eyebrows rose. The Divine Cave of the Six Paths was dangerous, even to Profound Serenity Emperors!

How could someone as overcautious as the old rooster be bold enough to venture inside? There’s got to be something I don’t know here.

“Friend, I told you everything I could, so… might you let him go now?” the old man said gravely.

Su Yi thought for a moment but chose not to make things difficult. “Next time I see you, I won’t be so merciful.”

With that, he took to the skies and left.

Su Yi didn’t kill the black-robed Wei Hong. The old man sighed in relief, but at the same time, his expression darkened.

As soon as he regained his freedom, Wei Hong said frantically, “Why aren’t you chasing after him, Your Excellency?”

“He overpowered you in a single attack,” the old man sighed. “Couldn’t he do the same to me?”

Wei Hong was instantly at a loss for words.

“However, we have to report this as soon as possible.” The old man instantly made a decision and slipped a golden talisman from his sleeves.

A moment later.

Bang!

A streak of glittering golden light arced into the air, piercing the firmament. A moment later, it disappeared.

As Su Yi shuttled through the distant wilderness, Su Yi caught a fleeting glimpse of that arc of golden light. He smiled, then paid it no further heed.

Causing a disturbance was a good thing.

The more cautious and suspicious the Abstruse Force Alliance members were, the more opportunities he’d have to exploit!

That was the real reason Su Yi hadn’t struck a lethal blow just now.

He needed those two to send word and cause a commotion!

Here in the Burial Ground of the Dao, he feared no one.

I’ll head to the Divine Cave of the Six Paths first and see if I can find the old rooster, Su Yi thought as he continued ahead.

……

Broken Souls Ridge.

A black mountain range tens of thousands of feet tall yet utterly devoid of life.

Numerous simple palaces were built on its slopes.

This was the Abstruse Force Alliance’s temporary encampment.

A silver moon hung overhead.

One of the palaces was thoroughly lamplit.

“Thus far, we’ve investigated all of the Burial Ground of the Dao save for a tiny handful of forbidden grounds. However, we’ve yet to locate anything relating to reincarnation,” said a cold, proud, delicate beauty.

Ni Shuang!

One of Pi Mo’s disciples, as well as a mid-stage Profound Illumination expert.

“In that case, our earlier deduction was most likely right on the mark. If the secrets of reincarnation are truly hidden in the Burial Ground of the Dao, they’re almost certainly located within one of its four forbidden grounds: the Platform of Rebirth, the Divine Cave of the Six Paths, the Mausoleum of the Gods, or the Abyss of Depravity,” said a man in wide-sleeved Confucian robes and a broad belt.

Shangguan Jie.

An early-stage Profound Illumination Emperor.

He, too, was one of Pi Mo’s disciples.

“We cannot visit the Mausoleum of the Gods. Recently, several top powerhouses of the Netherworld got trapped inside, and not one has emerged. I suspect that they’ve met with disaster,” said a young man in hemp clothing. He stroked his jaw and continued softly, “As for the Abyss of Depravity, it’s shrouded in strange Laws of Lightning year-round, and we’ve yet to find an opportunity to go inside and investigate. If we force our way in, we’ll die beyond a doubt.”

Gu Ziming.

He was in the late-stage Profound Illumination Realm.

Gu Ziming paused, then continued, “And the location of the Platform of Rebirth is still a mystery. To date, no one has located it. It’s to the point that no one dares say with certainty whether or not that forbidden ground of legend truly exists.

“Our only success was in the Divine Cave of the Six Paths. We found some leads there, but alas… it’s still far from enough.”

Here, he sighed softly.

Quite some time had passed since they’d entered the Burial Ground of the Dao, but they’d yet to truly uncover anything relating to the secrets of reincarnation.

As of yet, all they knew was that it seemed likely that such secrets were hidden in the Divine Cave of the Six Paths, but they still needed to go a step further and confirm that.

“Senior Apprentice Brother, are you really certain that someone capable of opening the bronze temple within the Divine Cave of the Six Paths truly exists?” a sallow-faced man in ornate robes couldn’t help but ask.

Cheng Tiankun.

He was in the mid-stage Profound Illumination Realm. He was one of Pi Mo’s disciples, just like Gu Ziming, Ni Shuang, and Shangguan Jie.

All eyes were instantly upon Gu Ziming.

All of them knew that there was a mysterious bronze temple within the Divine Cave of the Six Paths. However, its doors were tightly shut. The power of a mysterious, unknown Law held them fast. As of yet, no one had ever managed to open the temple doors.

Gu Ziming and the others couldn’t help but suspect that if leads to the secrets of reincarnation truly existed within the Divine Cave of the Six Paths, they were most likely hidden within the bronze temple!

“There’s definitely someone capable of opening the temple doors. There hasn’t been any question of that for a long time.” Gu Ziming’s eyes flashed. “Furthermore, when this person learns that the Burial Ground of the Dao has re-entered this world, they’re sure to come running!”

He’d only just said this when hurried footsteps resounded outside the grand hall.

“Your Excellency, a message from Fu Donghua of Nine-Star Sword Mountain has arrived!”