Chapter 580 - 580: Conspiracy of Outer Divinities

"So, you guys didn't notice this?"

Jun Tianyun pointed at the coffin of the previous Heavenly Demon, the Crimson Thunder Demon. Standing with him were the Bright Moon Maiden, First Elder Mo Liuzhi, and the Blood Poison Hand.

The corpse of the Heavenly Demon looked pale, but it was still fresh, as if he were merely sleeping in the extreme cold. With a single slash, Jun Tianyun opened the corpse's chest.

"Ahem, Cult Leader, you shouldn't disrespect…" The Bright Moon Maiden felt awkward as she tried to intervene, but her face fell the moment she realized what was missing.

Mo Liuzhi and Blood Poison Hand trembled, their expressions morphing into a mix of shock and fury.

The corpse… its heart was gone.

"IMPOSSIBLE! Which bastard did this?!"

"Damn it! The tomb is heavily guarded," Blood Poison Hand cursed. "The formations haven't been broken either. Priestess, you saw for yourself that we only just unlocked the seal!"

The Bright Moon Maiden remained silent, countless thoughts racing through her mind.

Jun Tianyun pondered for a moment, then shook his head. "Don't worry, I will uncover the truth."

Using his Eyes of Fortune, Jun Tianyun could effortlessly peer into the past. Several strings of fate emerged from the corpse, and he plucked one.

*BZZZTTT!*

To his surprise, Jun Tianyun caught only fragmented images rather than a seamless, silk-like stream of information.

*'Impossible! With my current level of authority, viewing the past shouldn't be an issue,'* Jun Tianyun thought.

*'Wait, this is…'*

His fingers twitched as if performing complex calculations. The Heavenly Luopan spun wildly in his palm, filling the onlookers with anticipation.

"Hmm, I know the Jun Clan is proficient in divination. The Cult Leader must possess exceptional skills," Blood Poison Hand said, excitement creeping into his voice.

"Indeed, divination is rare, and truly skilled practitioners are rarer still," the Bright Moon Maiden agreed. "Tianzhong Manor only rose to power because they stole the inheritance of the Jun Clan's Heaven branch."

"Tsk, tsk. The Bandits of the Three Heavens didn't earn that name for nothing," Mo Liuzhi clicked his tongue.

Blood Poison Hand glanced at him. "If I remember correctly, an elder from the Jun Clan once swindled a Heaven-and-Earth treasure right out of your hands."

"That bastard…" Mo Liuzhi huffed, shaking his head. "At least he held up his end of the bargain, even if I got the short end of the stick."

However, Jun Tianyun's expression grew grim as he stowed the compass away.

*'I half-expected it, but still… to think something of this scale is at play.'*

Jun Tianyun had observed everything from the man's birth to his final moments. Yet around the time of death, the timeline fractured into pieces.

*'Someone deliberately wiped all traces of the heart being stolen, likely to thwart divination. Even so, I can still piece together part of the puzzle.'*

What truly unsettled Jun Tianyun was the faint trace of divinity. Someone had utilized divine power to erase the evidence.

A traditional Eastern esoteric ritual would have been plausible, the martial path was vast, and numerous soul techniques could sever karmic traces. But true divine power required the backing of a deity.

And on this world, there was no native deity other than Jun Tianyun.

*'Damn it, who is meddling right under my nose?'* Jun Tianyun bristled with annoyance.

"Hmm, this is troubling indeed. There is a faint divine residue here. Looks like you might be running into some old acquaintances," Su Qingyao's voice echoed in his mind.

"Hmph. Old acquaintances?" Jun Tianyun scoffed. "How many bastards even have the power to interfere here?"

"Hehe, see for yourself," Su Qingyao replied with an enigmatic smile.

Jun Tianyun pieced together the scattered visions. First, the Crimson Thunder Demon had cultivated the Heavenly Demon Internal Energy Art alongside a lost, arduous method known as the Great Sky Replacement Art.

The Great Sky Replacement Art allowed a practitioner to bifurcate their middle dantian, substantially boosting their internal energy reserves. More importantly, it cultivated a supreme internal organ capable of pulling a cultivator back from the brink of death.

The Crimson Thunder Demon had successfully mastered the art, establishing himself as one of the most terrifying figures across the Azure Cloud Domain.

However, during an attempt to break through to the Xiantian Realm, an anomaly occurred, forcing him to condense all of his demonic energy directly into his heart.

He perished as a result. Following his death, an intruder slipped into the tomb and carved out the heart. Before leaving, the culprit applied a salve that fully restored the flesh, leaving the corpse looking pristine.

*'I still can't see the culprit's identity, nor what drove the former Heavenly Demon to make such a reckless move. Even so, the prime suspect is obvious: the Martial Court,'* Jun Tianyun deduced.

*'I need to uncover which bastard deity is backing these fools. Meddling in my territory? Courting death!'*

Jun Tianyun turned around and gestured toward his subordinates. "It's the work of someone from the Martial Court. I haven't pinpointed the exact culprit yet, but they used an ointment brewed from Thousand-Turn Blood Sun Grass to mask the wound. That's why none of you noticed anything amiss."

"What? Thousand-Turn Blood Sun Grass?" Blood Poison Hand gasped. "Damn it! To think they acquired such a mythical herb. I thought only the Medicine Saint ever succeeded in refining a Life-Returning Pill from it, capable of regenerating severed limbs and organs!"

"The Martial Court is treacherous, and their motives remain unclear," Jun Tianyun said, surveying the trio. "The cult is stable for now, so I leave its management to the three of you."

"What about you, Cult Leader?" the Bright Moon Maiden asked.

Jun Tianyun chuckled coldly. "What else? I'm heading to the Central Province. It's time I toured the jianghu."

---

"And the winner of the tournament is… Cloud Walker!"

A young man wearing a pale jade mask stood in the center of the arena, his blade gleaming spotless. Beneath his feet, the stage was soaked in fresh blood beside a motionless corpse.

"*Hiss!* To think he actually killed Zheng Zhishan—the man ranked 12th on the Dragon and Phoenix Prodigy List!"

"Heh, so what?" another spectator sneered. "Now that Zheng Zhishan is dead, the entire Zheng Clan will hunt him down. Does this nameless brat really think he can survive the wrath of a whole clan?"

Cloud Walker heard the murmurs but remained indifferent. Behind the mask was Feng Chu, who had entered the tournament under a false identity.

He bent down and claimed Zheng Zhishan's storage pouch and enchanted boots. By the arena's rules, the spoils of the fallen belonged entirely to the victor.

*'Decent magic tools. With a few modifications, I can draw out even more power,'* Feng Chu mused, a grin hidden beneath his mask.

Yet magical artifacts were not his primary objective.

Moments later, the Vice Hall Master of the Dragon Commerce Hall approached. "Well fought, Cloud Walker. As champion, you have earned this Lesser Heaven Energy Pill, alongside the rest of your promised rewards."

Feng Chu cupped his fists in a formal salute. "May I exchange the Lesser Heaven Energy Pill for something else?"

"Something else?" The Vice Hall Master blinked in surprise, then nodded quickly. "Name it."

"I want the Three Purities Bright Lotus."