On Reputation Mountain of Nine Dragons Island, miasma lingered year-round, and plague qi faintly coiled through the air.
Shen Gongbao gazed at the distant mountain and straightened his robes.
Just then, a deep voice suddenly rang out from Reputation Mountain. "Fellow daoist Shen Gongbao, you have come from afar. What brings you here?"
Shen Gongbao stopped and called out, "fellow daoist Lü Yue, I have come with a matter of utmost importance to tell you. Please show yourself so we may speak."
As his words fell, Spirit Light flickered beside him, and a figure slowly materialized.
The man had an unusual appearance: his face was indigo-blue, his hair vermilion-red, and his fangs slightly exposed. He was born hideous and terrifying.
Most cultivators could alter their appearance at will and conceal their flaws. Yet his ferocious visage was clearly natural, not something deliberately assumed.
There were only two possibilities. Either he disdained to alter his outer appearance, or he was afflicted by deadly poison and curses, with his Divine Ability sealed, leaving him unable to change his features.
Shen Gongbao swept his gaze over that dreadful face and understood at once. Yet his expression did not change in the slightest as he calmly cupped his hands. "Greetings, fellow daoist Lü Yue."
Lü Yue looked back coldly, his tone casual but carrying a hint of distant arrogance. "You are the current Imperial Preceptor of Yin Shang, busy with court affairs all day. How do you have the time to set foot on this remote Reputation Mountain of mine?"
Shen Gongbao did not beat around the bush. He went straight to the point, his tone grave. "Fellow daoist, do you know that the Four Sages of Nine Dragon Island have all perished?"
The moment those words were spoken, Lü Yue's aura froze, and