I'm Not Some Murderous Demon King!

Zhao Jiuxiao reacted with astonishing speed. He swiftly dodged at once, flicking his palm as six pale-yellow talismans flew out, rapidly enlarging as they shimmered with rosy light and merged into the void.

The entire void seemed to tremble violently.

Six enormous, dazzling spheres of light appeared.

Each sphere was filled with a different kind of power.

The six spheres spun rapidly with a thunderous roar, as though they had transformed into the Six Paths of Reincarnation, swallowing toward Lu Chen.

At the same time, his body swayed as though he had activated some secret technique, concealing cause and hiding effect. His body swiftly merged into the void and vanished outright.

Even Lu Chen's expression changed.

Because the densely packed karmic threads in his eyes suddenly vanished by more than half at that moment.

"Not good!"

"This Zhao Jiuxiao also understands karmic arts. He has concealed his karmic power!"

Yet Lu Chen still slashed out at once.

Whoosh!

Bang bang bang bang...

One karmic thread after another snapped apart at high speed.

Boom!

The wildly spinning Six Paths of Reincarnation collided directly with Lu Chen's blade technique. A fierce explosion erupted between them, thunderous and energy-shaking, like dozens of volcanoes exploding at once.

Lu Chen's body was sent flying on the spot. He spat out a mouthful of blood and smashed fiercely into the distance, shattering an entire mountaintop.

But his body soon shot into the sky, returning to midair as the wounds on him healed at a speed visible to the naked eye.

The sixth style of the Seven Styles of Divine Extinction circulated. All the karmic threads related to Zhao Jiuxiao vanished from before his eyes.

There was no longer any trace of the other man's aura anywhere in heaven or earth.

But he knew Zhao Jiuxiao was definitely not dead.

Because he had only severed a small portion of the other man's karma just now.

At the critical moment, all of the other man's karmic ties had vanished.

"No wonder even my Master praised this man so highly, saying he had countless methods and was extremely difficult to kill..."

A tempest churned in Lu Chen's heart.

That the other man could evade his Karma Blade at the very first instant was beyond anything he had expected.

At the same time, he realized something.

The Karma Blade was not guaranteed to work one hundred percent of the time.

True experts could avoid it outright!

He surveyed the area, searching everywhere.

After searching for a while without finding anything, he made a snap decision and immediately left, shooting into the distance.

Only after he had been gone for more than two hours—

On a mountaintop dozens of miles away.

Zhao Jiuxiao emerged again, his face deathly pale and his mouth stained with blood, his eyes filled with shock and uncertainty.

"Emperor of the Sky... such powerful karmic force... who is this person..."

"Damn it, that one slash injured many of my meridians. It will be difficult to recover without at least a year and a half..."

Zhao Jiuxiao's gaze darkened, and a trace of fear surfaced within it.

If he had not studied karma so deeply and understood karmic power.

That slash just now would have been no small matter.

No matter who the other party was, the fact that he had fixed his sights on him meant Zhao Jiuxiao was no longer safe.

He could no longer show his face openly in the future, or he might truly die.

Whoosh!

His body flashed, vanishing once more.

In the distance.

Lu Chen did not stop, racing all the way toward the Imperial City.

Several hours later, he finally arrived at the Imperial City.

This was his second time entering this place.

The last time he had come was to help execute prisoners in the Heavenly Prison.

He had not had the time to wander around the Imperial City at all.

This time, having arrived eight days early, he had time to take a proper look around.

"Old man, I've arrived at the Pacification Bureau headquarters."

Lu Chen directly sent a message to Zhao Xuantian, ancestor of the Imperial Family.

"So soon? Then what about Xuantian Gate?"

Even Zhao Xuantian's voice trembled as he hurriedly replied.

"Zhao Jiuxiao got away."

Lu Chen replied, "But don't worry. He doesn't know it was me."

"He got away?"

Zhao Xuantian's expression shifted. He had known it would not be that simple.

Zhao Jiuxiao's nickname was the 'Undying Man.'

For Heaven's Secret Pavilion to give him such a nickname, one could well imagine his methods.

Back then, even three Golden Body Realm experts from the Northern Barbarians had failed to contain him, let alone Lu Chen.

"What about the other disciples of Xuantian Gate?"

Zhao Xuantian could not help asking another question.

"Those who committed evil are naturally dead. Those who did not are naturally alive."

Lu Chen replied, "I'm not some murderous demon king. It's not like I kill everyone I see."

"Alright."

Zhao Xuantian's mouth twitched.

That was only what you thought, wasn't it?

In everyone else's eyes, you were no different from a murderous demon king.

"By the way, where is my Master?"

Lu Chen asked.

"Master Dugu was invited away by an expert from an Ancient Clan to survey that secret realm. I don't know when he will return."

Zhao Xuantian replied, "By the way, there are quite a few Ancient Clan members in the city. Many of them want to join the Pacification Bureau. What do you think?"

"What do I think?"

Lu Chen frowned. "The Pacification Bureau belongs to your family, not mine. What do you mean, asking me what I think?"

"Ahem, you are now the chief of the Pacification Bureau..."

"Fine, then. If they want to join, let them join. I'm at the Pacification Bureau now. Have them come over."

Lu Chen said.

"Alright, I'll send them word at once and tell them you agreed. Oh, and be careful. Some of them may be thorns in your side..."

Zhao Xuantian added.

"What? You want me to worry?"

Lu Chen asked.

"Ahem, I forgot. You've already broken through to Golden Body."

Zhao Xuantian, ancestor of the Imperial Family, gave an awkward laugh.

The news had simply been too shocking.

It had made him almost instinctively overlook it, his mind still stuck on Lu Chen being a Grandmaster.

A Golden Body expert under seventeen years old—who the hell would dare believe that?

"Enough, I won't waste words with you. If anything else comes up, remember to contact me anytime."

Lu Chen said, putting away the token.

Pacification Bureau headquarters.

Dressed in a black robe, Lu Chen stood straight and tall, a saber hanging at his waist as he strode forward.

The entire Pacification Bureau headquarters had originally been bustling with activity.

But as Lu Chen walked in, everyone froze. They suddenly turned to look at him, their bodies trembling, their breathing quickening, excitement flickering in their eyes.

"L-Lord Lu!"

"Lord Lu has returned!"

"Quick, report to the others! Lord Lu has returned!"

The entire Pacification Bureau headquarters erupted.

Every Pacification Envoy was exceptionally excited.

They began cheering with joy.

Some had seen Lu Chen long ago, while others had only seen him in portraits.

Still others had only just joined and had merely heard of Lu Chen...

But at that moment, the truest thought in everyone's heart was this: he was too young.

This Lord Lu was far too young.

He was practically younger than those Ancient Clan members.

"Lord Lu..."

Shen Lian, Zhou Yun, Wang Yue, and Li Cangjian, the former guard of the Heavenly Prison, all emerged from within the Pacification Bureau at that moment, breathing rapidly as they clasped their fists with visible excitement.

They still did not know Lu Chen had secretly broken through.

They still believed Lu Chen was in the Grandmaster Realm!

A Grandmaster who was only sixteen years old!

It was truly unprecedented.

"Mhm."

Lu Chen nodded lightly and swept his gaze over them. "I heard a group of Ancient Clan members wants to join the Pacification Bureau. Have them come see me shortly."

"Lord Lu..."

Shen Lian's expression changed slightly. He quickly stepped forward and transmitted, "Some of these Ancient Clan people have ill intentions. They seem very eager to weigh you up, and their words are full of provocation..."

"Don't worry. Since I dare accept them, I'm not afraid of their provocations."

Lu Chen smiled directly. "That's that."

"But they are all Grandmasters..."

Shen Lian's expression was anxious as he transmitted again.

"I know. I've already spoken with your Master. Have them come!"

Lu Chen patted Shen Lian, giving him the air of someone telling him to put a hundred hearts at ease, then turned and left.

A tempest churned in Shen Lian's heart, his brows tightly furrowed.

No matter how he thought about it, he could not understand where Lu Chen's confidence came from.

Those were Ancient Clans...

They were all very young, and all Grandmasters.

Some were extraordinarily monstrous, even reaching the seventh or eighth level of the Grandmaster Realm...

He still decided to speak with his own Master. At the very least, he could have his Master come over to hold the fort.

Not long after.

A group of eight young men and women from the Ancient Clans entered the Pacification Bureau headquarters under the guidance of several Pacification Envoys.

"Everyone, follow me."

Shen Lian came forward to meet them and led them toward the main hall.

The eight young men and women from the Ancient Clans all wore smiles.

Their gazes roamed about, sweeping across their surroundings.

"So this is your Pacification Bureau headquarters? It doesn't seem like much."

"Mhm. To be precise, there are no noteworthy figures here. The strongest are merely in the Spirit Hidden Realm..."

"But then again, the environment here is quite good."

"Exactly. At the very least, it's much better than where we live. I really want to trade places with them. Why don't we simply move in?"

Several of the Ancient Clan youths chatted without restraint, seemingly interested in everything around them.

Shen Lian, walking ahead, could not help but have his expression shift, cold sweat trickling down his back.

"You must be joking."

"I'm not joking. I'm serious."

One of the burly Ancient Clan youths spoke calmly as he looked at Shen Lian. "Your imperial court is too weak. You cannot even produce a single decent expert, so you are fundamentally incapable of guarding the realm. Seven or eight thousand years ago, the dynasty was established by our Xu Family. Later, after our Xu Family withdrew from the world, the realm gradually changed beyond recognition. Now that we have returned, we do not intend to make your emperor abdicate. We only want to teach you how to govern the realm."

Their Ancient Clan Xu Family had sent a total of eight people.

Six had gone to the hidden Xu Family.

The other two had remained in the capital.

At this moment, they still had no idea that the Xu Family had already been destroyed.

Anger rose in Shen Lian's heart.

When all was said and done, how was this any different from forcing their emperor to abdicate?

"The Pacification Bureau is the sort of place that must have cost a fortune to build. What virtue or ability does that Lord Lu possess to live here?"

The burly Ancient Clan youth continued.

"Yeah, I heard this Lord Lu is still very young, not even eighteen."

"As a junior, it would have been one thing if he didn't come personally to pay us a visit, but he even made us come find him. What a complete overturning of heaven's order!"

"Tell me, could this Lord Lu be trying to give us a show of force?"

"A show of force? Then I'm really looking forward to it!"

Several Ancient Clan youths all burst into laughter.

Shen Lian was nearly unable to listen any longer.

If he had not just contacted his own Master, and if his Master had not told him to rest assured, he would definitely have been worried about Lu Chen's safety right now.

"Everyone, we've arrived at the main hall. Lord Lu is waiting for you inside, so I won't be going in."

Shen Lian could not help but say, coming to an abrupt stop.

Ahead of them stood a vast and magnificent pitch-black structure, like an enormous beast crouching there, radiating an indescribable pressure into the air.