The devastating news of the battle at the martial arts arena was delivered to the Zhou Family residence of the Heavenly Gift Dynasty in just half a day, traveling thousands of miles.
The news that Zhou Jingxuan, who once held an unparalleled position as the top disciple in the outer sect, had his cultivation level reduced to the Third Tier by a junior who came from a menial background.
Like a thunderclap, it enraged the entire Zhou Family.
The Zhou Family has been entrenched in the Heavenly Gift Dynasty for generations. Their members have cultivated in the Ancient Path Holy Land for many years and operated in the outer sect for decades. Never before have they lost face so thoroughly.
Inside the main hall of the Zhou family mansion, the Zhou Family patriarch, Zhou Jingxuan's biological father, sat in the main seat with a livid face and a chilling aura emanating from his body. He slammed his palm down and shattered the jade table in front of him, sending shards of jade flying and leaving a mess on the ground.
"Useless! Absolutely useless!"
He roared angrily, his chest burning with rage.
He wrote a letter well in advance, instructing him to crush Zhang Shun and eliminate any possibility of the Zhang Family rising again.
They thought everything was under control, that their son had the upper hand, and that he could easily crush a newcomer and solidify the Zhou Family's position in the outer sect.
Who would have thought that Zhou Jingxuan would not only fail at the last moment, but also have his cultivation crippled in public, his dignity trampled, and the Zhou Family's century-old reputation completely ruined on the outer sect martial arts arena!
Several core members of the Zhou Family stood with their heads bowed, their faces grim, filled with anger and hatred.
"Patriarch, that Zhang Shun is nothing more than a lowly servant and discarded son who only experienced a lucky surge in cultivation. How dare he be so unscrupulous and humiliate the offspring of my Zhou Family!"
"My nephew Jing Xuan possesses the Zhou Family's secret medicine, and his plan was meticulously laid out. Logically, there should be no reason for it to fail. This matter is far too suspicious!"
"No matter what tricks he has up his sleeve, anyone who cripples my Zhou Family must die! This matter cannot be left unresolved!"
The crowd erupted in voices, their killing intent palpable.
Suppressing his rage, the Zhou Family patriarch's eyes flashed with a sinister light as he coldly said, "Jing Xuan's defeat was due to his underestimation of his opponent and carelessness, which ruined everything. But Zhang Shun dared to cripple a member of my Zhou Family in public; he is now sworn enemies with the entire Zhou Family."
"He is still at the outer gate of the Holy Land, not yet having entered the inner gate. His foundation is not yet stable, making this the best time to eliminate him."
As soon as he finished speaking, he immediately gave the order to send out a clan member who was skilled in stealth and poisoning.
This person's cultivation level is at the Eighth Stage Early Stage. He is cunning and treacherous, and is proficient in the silent and deadly Bone-Eroding Essence-Withering Poison.
This poison is a hundred times more potent than the Meridian-Sealing Secret Medicine used by Zhou Jingxuan. It is colorless and odorless, and once it enters the body, it Lie Dormant and does not erupt immediately. Instead, it quietly gnaws at the cultivator's True Essence and decays the foundation of their meridians.
It slowly eroded the cultivator over a full month, eventually causing his True Essence to dissipate and his meridians to rupture, resulting in a silent and sudden death without any trace of human intervention.
This is the Zhou Family's most secret and insidious method, specifically used to silently eliminate thorns in the side within the sect.
Night fell over the Ancient Path Holy Land, and the outer gate area was completely silent.
Under the cover of night, the Zhou Family's secret guard evaded the sect's patrol officers and, relying on his stealth skills, silently infiltrated the outer disciples' courtyard.
He pinpointed Chen Du's residence, peered over the courtyard wall for a moment, and seeing that the atmosphere inside was calm and unguarded, a cold and arrogant smile curled at the corner of his mouth.
In his eyes, Zhang Shun was nothing more than an insignificant nobody who rose to prominence through a stroke of luck.
He won a duel by chance and became arrogant and conceited, not realizing that the real catastrophe was just about to befall him.
Zhou Jingxuan's defeat was frustrating because he underestimated his opponent and was too soft-hearted.
And when he strikes, he never misses; he never shows mercy.
The guard condensed a barely perceptible wisp of transparent poison from his fingertip and flicked it lightly through the window paper.
The Bone-Eroding Essence-Withering Poison transformed into the finest particles of primordial energy, drifting into the cultivation room with the wind. It quietly seeped into Chen Du's body, silently Lie Dormant along his meridians, and began to slowly devour his physical True Essence.
Having done all this, the guards left no trace, their figures disappearing silently as they withdrew from the holy land overnight and sent back the news.
Upon receiving the secret report, everyone at the Zhou Family residence was completely relieved, their faces beaming with arrogance and confidence.
"Once the Bone-Eroding Essence-Withering Poison enters the body, there is no cure! Even a Seventh-Tier Peak Stage cultivator can only wait to die!"
"A mere servant boy dares to challenge my Zhou Family? What good is winning a duel? He's still just a short-lived ant!"
"Within a month, his meridians will surely decay and his True Essence will be exhausted, leading to an unexplained death. At that time, we can simply announce to the outside world that he suffered a cultivation deviation, and the sect will be unable to investigate further, thus ending the matter!"
"Poor thing, he was overjoyed, thinking he had won the battle, little did he know that his death was already sealed by us!"
The Zhou Family members filled the hall with unrestrained laughter and arrogance.
In their eyes, Chen Du was already dead, nothing more than an ant clinging to life, waiting to die.
Meanwhile, in the cultivation room, Chen Du, who was sitting cross-legged, had already seen through everything.
That supposedly incurable Bone-Eroding Essence-Withering Poison, the moment it seeped into his meridians, was instantly crushed and reduced to nothingness by the Fundamental Law of Thunder Lie Dormant deep within his body. Not even a trace remained, let alone corroded his body or decayed his foundation.
He sat with his eyes closed the entire time, his expression calm and his heart undisturbed.
Just as the Zhou Family members were arrogant and smug, certain that he would die within a month, his sea of consciousness suddenly trembled, and the system panel popped up!
[Target force detected: The entire Zhou Family is intent on a kill, their malice is at its peak, and their arrogance is at its highest level! The talent for Deliberate Revenge has been triggered! Base Hatred Qi Value increased by 2,000!]
[Super Ascension triggered! Talent multiplier activated! Ascension Enmity Qi calculated! Gained Ascension Enmity Qi: 20,000 years!]
A faint, cold glint flashed in Chen Du's eyes.
Zhou Jingxuan was frustrated by his defeat, but these members of the Zhou Family were even more arrogant and ignorant than he was.
They thought they were in complete control, that their poisons were invincible, and that they could silently decide someone's life or death, indulging in a sense of superiority that came from being in control of everything.
Little did they know that all their insidious schemes and extreme malice had become opportunities delivered to him.
Will I die in January?
Chen Du chuckled inwardly.
Then he will wait patiently.
Wait until the month is up, until everyone in the Zhou Family thinks they've won a great victory and is waiting for his sudden death, then I'll personally shatter all their illusions.
Let this entire arrogant Zhou Family taste the extreme frustration and despair of falling from grace and having all hope shattered.
The real show is just getting started.
A whole month passed quietly and uneventfully.
The turmoil outside the sect has gradually subsided, and the sensation of the battle in the training ground has slowly faded.
Everyone remembers Zhang Shun's earth-shattering battle that crippled Zhou Jingxuan. While filled with awe, many others secretly watched from the sidelines.
Because only the Zhou Family knew that they had set up an unsolvable deadly trap.
The Bone-Eroding Essence-Withering Poison, lasting for one month, will erode your True Essence, decay your foundation, and lead to certain death.
During these thirty days, the Zhou Family, far away in the Heavenly Gift Dynasty, waited for news every day.
They had already concluded that on the 30th, Zhang Shun would inevitably suffer from collapsed meridians and depleted True Essence, dying suddenly in the cultivation room.
In the end, he could only suffer a cultivation mishap, leading to his death, and no one could find a trace of the Zhou Family.
The entire Zhou Family, from the patriarch to the elders, was relaxed, waiting for news of their impending death every day, their hearts filled with a sense of superiority as if they were toying with ants.
In their eyes, Chen Du's survival over the past month was nothing more than a death throes, a feeble struggle to stay alive.
One day, ten days, twenty days, thirty days...
The one-month deadline has passed.
Outside the sacred grounds, Zhang Shun's courtyard remained peaceful and undisturbed.