As Ding Chongshan left, the disturbance quickly passed.
With the Immortal King Changning's methods, settling this matter took no more than a few casual words.
There were no longer reports flooding the skies. Aside from the viewers who had watched the livestream, no one could find any video footage of the incident through other channels.
The academy continued its classes as usual, but everyone felt as though a boulder weighed upon their hearts, making it hard to breathe. This was especially true for those in Class A-A. None of them dared glance back at the youth holding the yellow dog. Who knew whether this lunatic might go mad again and cripple them too?
Ding Family Immortal Mansion.
Ding Chongshan paced back and forth outside a room, his heart in turmoil.
Creak.
The door opened, and an elderly man emerged with a grave expression.
Seeing that look, Ding Chongshan's heart skipped a beat. He had gone to great lengths to invite this Saint Hand Medical Immortal lineage from Medical Valley. If even they could not treat a cultivator's injuries, then there was basically no hope left.
"Physician Wang, this... how is my child?"
Physician Wang merely shook his head and sighed. "Your son's Life Artifact has shattered, and the foundation of his Great Dao has been damaged. His life is not in danger, but repairing that Life Artifact is almost impossible. Moreover, although he regained consciousness after I used the Nine Revolutions Golden Elixir, his condition is extremely abnormal."
With another sigh, Physician Wang looked at Ding Chongshan and said gravely, "I hope you are mentally prepared. In this situation, your son's Dao Heart may have shattered. He is currently in a crazed and witless state. I have tried many methods, but all have been futile."
The words struck Ding Chongshan like five bolts of thunder.
If the Dao Heart shattered, what use would it be even if the Life Immortal Sword were repaired? Cultivation relied on that single surge of drive. Now his child had lost both—how would others look at him in the future?
His entire body trembled. "Then... then there is no way?"
"If we can find the source of his shattered Dao Heart and resolve that problem, your son may still have a chance of recovering his senses."
After saying that, Physician Wang shook his head and left.
Clearly, he knew something about the earlier sensational incident. He did not think highly of the Ding Family, after all. Behind the youth who had reduced Ding Yang to this state stood an Immortal King.
Ding Chongshan clenched his fists. He did not enter the room, instead turning toward the rear mountain.
He did not dare look at his child, afraid that he would be unable to restrain himself.
Inside a stone cavern, Ding Heshan was meditating. As the Ding Family's only True Immortal expert, he had long ago handed the family's authority to his son in order to climb another hundred-foot pole and advance further. He had secluded himself to study the Great Dao.
Countless inscriptions were branded across the stone walls, shining brilliantly as Ding Heshan strove to comprehend them.
Ding Chongshan called softly, "Father."
Ding Heshan slowly opened his eyes, frowned, and saw that his son's emotions were clearly amiss.
"What is it?"
After Ding Chongshan explained the entire sequence of events, Ding Heshan flew into a rage.
What the hell was this? He had crippled his grandson over a dog!
Our Ding Family was, at the very least, an Aristocratic Clan of cultivators with a long inheritance. Even if you have an Immortal King backing you, my Ding Family may not fear you!
"Fine. The Immortal King Changning has stepped in, has he? Let me make a deduction and see what background this brat has!"
With that, Ding Heshan formed a hand seal, and countless threads of veins and meridians began to emerge around him.
After a long while, Ding Heshan furrowed his brows, and the threads around his body suddenly burst into light.
"What is going on? Why can't I find him?"
Ding Heshan muttered to himself. Logically speaking, since this person had formed such karma with his grandson, there should have been a major connection between them in the unseen realm. Why could he not find him?
"There is something strange about this person!"
Ding Heshan rose to his feet and had Ding Chongshan bring him to Ding Yang's residence.
"Wuu-yi-ya, wuu-yi-ya..."
Ding Yang now wore a foolish expression, drool running from the corner of his mouth as he lay on the bed staring at the ceiling and babbling endlessly.
Ding Heshan's old face twitched. He looked at his son in disbelief, truly unable to accept that the one lying on the bed was his obedient grandson.
Ding Chongshan gritted his teeth, forcefully holding back his tears as he nodded.
At that moment, three generations of grandfather, father, and son were gathered in the room.
The silence was so complete that a dropped needle could be heard. The servant girls who had been attending nearby had long since withdrawn.
"Fine, brat. If I do not kill you, everyone in my Ding Family swears we are no longer human!"
Ding Heshan was equally enraged. He walked to Ding Yang's side and began gathering his power. With Ding Yang himself as the medium, deducing that person should have been much easier.
Sure enough, Ding Heshan truly found a trace of a lead.
Feeling as though the clouds had parted and the moon shone through, he hurriedly pressed his advantage. Yet the sea of his immortal consciousness suddenly shook violently. He felt dizzy and disoriented, then spat out a mouthful of old blood that splashed all over Ding Yang.
"Ah!"
Seeing blood again, Ding Yang let out a terrified scream, frightening Ding Chongshan badly.
Seeing his child frightened, Ding Chongshan hurriedly cast a spell to put him to sleep, then supported Ding Heshan, who staggered as if about to collapse, his aura weak and withered.
Horror could not be concealed from his face. His father had merely made a deduction—how had he suffered such a severe backlash?
"I cannot see through this person!"
For the first time since entering the ranks of True Immortals, Ding Heshan felt fear.
That sensation just now had seemed as though it would swallow him whole. If he had not forcibly severed the connection, he might have lost his life today because of that single deduction!
"Father, could it be that we simply let this matter go?"
How could Ding Chongshan accept that? Likewise, Ding Heshan, who had swallowed this insult in silence, was also unwilling to let it rest.
"How could that be? The Immortal King Changning must have placed a restriction on that brat, causing me to suffer like this. Set out at once and go to Black Abyss. Put that brat's name up there—they are not afraid of the Immortal King Changning!"
After hearing this, Ding Chongshan settled his father and headed directly for the Endless Sea.
Located in the far west, the Endless Sea was rumored to contain a mysterious city beneath its waters. Unlike the technological civilizations common on the continent, they pursued only one line of research: how to kill targets faster and more efficiently.
As an assassin organization relying primarily on technology, they had a fanatical interest in hunting cultivators. They were all madmen who only wanted to prove that so-called cultivation could not compare to the creations of the advanced civilizations they revered.
Therefore, if the Immortal King Changning wanted to protect him, using this organization was simply the most fitting choice. They would absolutely devote themselves to completing this task.
Ding Chongshan arrived at the shore. The surroundings were barren, dusk was falling, and there was not a soul in sight. Only several lonely fishing boats with black sails hung upon them floated nearby.
Having altered his appearance, he was not worried about being recognized. He strode onto one of the boats.
The fisherman was clearing his nets, looking somewhat absentminded. He neither looked at Ding Chongshan nor spoke.
Ding Chongshan silently took out three sticks of incense, planted them at the bow, and bowed three times. Then he sat quietly inside the cabin, his face revealing neither joy nor sorrow.
Seeing his actions, the fisherman silently gathered the net, turned and pushed off with his pole. The small boat headed out to sea and soon vanished from the surface.
Before you continue