Heavenly Dao Seed, Blood Sacrifice, an Evil Cultivator?

Nan Xunran's gaze fell on the Thousand-Illusion Buyao, and his brows lifted slightly. "A female cultivator's artifact?"

Bathed in moonlight, the buyao shimmered with dazzling, enchanting colors. Its pearls and jade ornaments swayed gently, a testament to its exquisite craftsmanship and splendor.

Nan Xunran watched it quietly, thinking that he would give the Thousand-Illusion Buyao to his mother the next time he visited her.

Then the corners of his mouth rose slightly, and he gave a quiet chuckle.

He tapped his finger and brought up the character panel.

His gaze was drawn to newly added bold text in the system shop: shop update: Heavenly Dao Seed 160/160.

A small ball of light that had emerged from his sea of consciousness was circling him merrily.

Nan Xunran turned his head slightly and asked, "The Heavenly Dao Seed? The Heavenly Dao of the Sacred Domain?"

The system's voice sounded beside his ear. "That's right, host."

He raised an eyebrow slightly. "Then what happened to the original Heavenly Dao?"

The system fell silent for a moment, evidently making a quick search for the reason. After a while, it replied, "I don't really know the details, but from what I know so far, the Heavenly Dao's disappearance seems to have some connection to your Nan Clan."

A barely perceptible flicker passed through Nan Xunran's eyes. "Interesting."

He then gazed quietly at the panel before him, where the words were displayed clearly: exchange 10,000 Villain Points for Heavenly Dao Seed x1.

His gaze shifted to the Villain Points needed to reach the peak of the True God Realm. The number was written there in plain sight: 16,820 Villain Points.

Under the current circumstances, the importance of the Heavenly Dao Seed went without saying. After all, his current cultivation realm already made him invincible among his peers.

And as long as he could obtain the Heavenly Dao Seed of this world, it would be tantamount to sweeping the entire Sacred Domain into his pocket.

Besides, the Villain Points he currently possessed were nowhere near enough to exchange for the peak of the True God Realm.

At that thought, Nan Xunran lowered his eyes slightly and tapped the panel before him with a slender finger.

A "ding-dong" sounded, followed by a system notification: "Ding-dong! Congratulations, host, you have obtained Heavenly Dao Seed x1."

Nan Xunran then shifted his gaze to the corpse on the ground.

He slowly raised his hand, and an invisible force surged from his palm, drawing out the blood in Nanyang's body that had yet to coagulate, along with faint, nearly imperceptible wisps of blood Qi.

The surrounding air seemed to be tainted by the evil blood Qi, growing even more oppressive.

A formation appeared on the ground, radiating an eerie black-and-red glow.

Wisps of blood Qi coiled around the formation and spread through the air, forming a layer of dark red mist.

Blood Sacrifice was an Evil Art he had once obtained by chance from an evil cultivator he had slain in a small world. It required one's own blood as a catalyst in exchange for greater power.

With his movements, all the preparations were complete. On the surface, it looked exactly as though Nanyang himself had used Blood Sacrifice, without a single flaw to give it away.

Nan Xunran then removed the sound barrier. His divine sense swept over the people from the Discipline Hall standing outside, and he instructed Jiang Ruxi, who was guarding the entrance, "Tell them to come in."

Jiang Ruxi immediately turned and walked over to the people outside the dungeon. "My master wants you to go in," she said.

As soon as she spoke, the people from the Discipline Hall hurried into the dungeon.

When they saw the ghastly sight inside the cell, some of them went limp and collapsed to the ground. Their stomachs churned violently, and the sounds of vomiting rang out incessantly.

"E-evil Art?!" someone cried out in terror.

"Nanyang was an evil cultivator?!" The cry of shock echoed through the dark space.

The Discipline Hall master hurried over to Nan Xunran, his eyes full of concern. "Lord Divine Son! Are you all right?" he asked urgently.

Nan Xunran's expression did not change. "I'm fine."

The hall master thought to himself, How strange. How could someone in the Nan Clan use an Evil Art, and even try to harm the Divine Son?

Nan Xunran spoke again. "Bring everyone from the Second Attendant's branch to the Discipline Hall."

The hall master hurriedly bowed and answered respectfully, "Yes."

The hall

Everyone had gathered together, panic and helplessness written all over their faces.

"Did we do something wrong?" someone could not help crying out in panic, his voice trembling noticeably.

"Sob, sob..." Muffled weeping sounded intermittently, making the already tense atmosphere even heavier.

"Everyone, be quiet and wait!"

A guard's cold, stern voice rang out, like a bucket of cold water poured over everyone's heads.

In an instant, the cell fell utterly silent. Even the sobbing stopped abruptly, and no one dared make the slightest sound.

A moment later

A faint sound broke the silence in the hall as a figure slowly walked in.

The Discipline Hall master followed close behind him.

Everyone froze for a moment, their gazes converging on the figure.

The Second Attendant was the first to recover from his shock. He lowered his head slightly and said respectfully, "Lord Divine Son!"

Nan Xunran seemed oblivious to everything around him. He walked straight to the seat of honor and slowly sat down.

He casually raised his right hand, resting his slender fingers lightly against his temple. Tilting his head slightly, he looked indifferently at the people below.

His left hand rested on the armrest, his index finger slightly bent as he tapped it.

Each crisp tap was clearly audible in the silent hall. Every one seemed to strike the hearts of those present, making their minds tremble.

Nan Xunran's gaze swept slowly over the crowd before settling on one person. He raised a hand, pointed at him, and said evenly, "You, come here."

Nan Fei, the one he had pointed at, was stunned, his face full of shock and confusion.

Nan Fei took a deep breath and said respectfully, "Lord Divine Son."

Nan Xunran's tone was even. "Were you close to Nanyang?"

Nan Fei hurriedly answered respectfully, "Yes, we grew up together."

Nan Xunran continued, "Was there anything unusual about him recently?"

Nan Fei thought for a moment, then said earnestly, "There was. He used to be nothing but an ignorant, incompetent young master. Three months ago, his strength suddenly increased by a great deal, and he started causing trouble everywhere. Later, there was also the incident where he stole a Wind-Thunder Beast."

Nan Xunran raised an eyebrow slightly and pressed, "His strength suddenly increased?"

Nan Fei lowered his head slightly, seemingly choosing his words. A moment later, he raised it again and said with a trace of doubt in his eyes, "Yes, Lord Divine Son. Nanyang was born with severed meridians and was unable to cultivate, so everyone in the branch family thought something was wrong when his cultivation suddenly advanced so much. And..."

At that point, Nan Fei instinctively turned to glance at the Second Attendant, whose heart immediately tightened.

He continued, "And because the Second Attendant deliberately kept it hidden, none of us dared ask too many questions."

Hearing this, Nan Xunran slowly turned his gaze to the Second Attendant and said indifferently, "Is that so?"