Something Related to the Gods?

"Brother Lin."

Ning Fengzhi's voice came from behind.

Lan Aotian withdrew his hand and turned to look at the Sect Master of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

Ning Fengzhi's expression was solemn as his gaze fell on the three carriages. "What exactly is so special about this shipment that the other side would make such a huge effort?"

Lan Aotian looked at him but did not answer immediately.

After a moment, he said indifferently, "Sect Master Ning wants to know?"

Ning Fengzhi smiled wryly. "I'm merely curious. Anything that could make someone from within Spirit Hall take action must be extraordinary. But if it's inconvenient for Brother Lin to say, Fengzhi won't press you."

Lan Aotian shook his head. "I truly don't know. I'm only a guard, not the owner."

A flicker passed through Ning Fengzhi's eyes. Clearly, he did not quite believe that explanation.

But Lan Aotian had no intention of continuing his explanation.

He turned and walked toward the assassins hanging from the trees.

Of the fifteen men, fourteen were still alive.

Lan Aotian stood before the Soul Saint at the front and looked up at him.

The Soul Saint's face was deathly pale, and his entire body trembled.

Just now, he had witnessed with his own eyes how this man in the dark-blue Jinzhuang had effortlessly crushed the leader's fist and taken his life with a single finger.

That overwhelming disparity in strength left him with no thought of resisting.

"I ask, you answer." Lan Aotian's voice was calm.

The Soul Saint nodded frantically.

"Who hired you?"

"I... I don't know! We really don't know! Shadow Tower accepted the mission. We're only the ones carrying it out!" The Soul Saint's words came out incoherently.

Lan Aotian nodded.

Then he raised his hand and pressed a fingertip against the Soul Saint's brow.

A flash of blue light flickered.

The Soul Saint's body suddenly stiffened, and his Pupils instantly lost their focus.

A moment later, the light vanished. His head drooped weakly, and all signs of life disappeared.

Lan Aotian withdrew his hand and walked toward the next one.

"I told the truth! I really don't know!" that Soul Saint screamed in terror.

Lan Aotian ignored him and raised his hand in the same way.

Another one.

The third.

The fourth.

When he walked toward the fifth, that Soul Saint finally broke down and shouted hoarsely, "I'll talk! I'll talk! The employer... the employer is a Red Robe Cardinal from Spirit Hall! But we don't know who exactly! Shadow Tower never reveals an employer's identity when accepting a mission! I only know... I only know that shipment is related to... to the gods!"

Related to the gods?

Lan Aotian's finger stopped.

Ning Fengzhi and Chen Xin exchanged a glance, both seeing the shock in the other's eyes.

Gods?

There had been no divine manifestation on Douluo Continent for nearly ten thousand years.

Anything related to the "gods" was a secret important enough to shake the entire continent!

Lan Aotian looked at the Soul Saint and slowly said, "Continue."

The Soul Saint nodded desperately. "I only heard it by accident! When the leader was talking with an elder from Shadow Tower, I vaguely heard words like 'God-given Item' and 'Inheritance Key'! I truly don't know anything else! Please, spare my life!"

Lan Aotian fell silent for a moment.

Then he raised his hand and pressed a fingertip against the Soul Saint's brow.

Blue light surged into him.

The Soul Saint's eyes widened, filled with despair.

But a moment later, he froze.

He had not died.

The light circulated through his body once, then withdrew.

Lan Aotian looked at him. "There's a restriction left inside your body by Shadow Tower. If you're captured or betray them, it will detonate automatically. I've already removed it for you."

The Soul Saint was stunned.

The remaining assassins were stunned as well.

Lan Aotian turned and walked toward the three carriages without looking back. "Let them go."

Claude was shocked. "Your Majesty! This..."

Lan Aotian offered no explanation.

Ning Fengzhi thoughtfully glanced at the assassins, then suddenly smiled.

"Brother Lin, what a move."

Letting these men go was equivalent to releasing living evidence.

Once Shadow Tower learned that the restrictions inside their bodies had been removed, it would inevitably cause internal unrest.

The information about the "God-given Item" mentioned by that Soul Saint would also spread through the assassins' mouths throughout the underground world.

By then, the forces hidden in the darkness would surely make a move.

And Lan Aotian only needed to wait and see who would jump out first.

Although Claude did not understand, he did not dare disobey the order and hurriedly instructed the guards to lower the assassins.

The fourteen assassins landed on the ground, almost unable to believe they had truly survived.

They looked at Lan Aotian with fear and a hint of complicated emotion in their eyes, then rushed into the darkness without looking back.

The bloody smell in the camp gradually dissipated.

Ning Rongrong poked her head out from behind Chen Xin, her little face full of curiosity and admiration.

It was the first time she had seen someone so powerful. Those assassins, who seemed overwhelmingly strong in her eyes, were like lambs awaiting slaughter before this man.

"Dad, that person is amazing!" she whispered to Ning Fengzhi.

Ning Fengzhi nodded, his gaze deep.

Sword Douluo Chen Xin had not said a word from beginning to end. He merely watched Lan Aotian's back in silence.

Faintly, Sword Intent circulated within that thin, hunched figure.

After a long time, he slowly spoke. "Sect Master, this person is worth befriending."

Ning Fengzhi was slightly taken aback.

Chen Xin rarely took the initiative to comment on anyone.

There were no more than a handful of people across the entire continent who could make him say the words "worth befriending."

"Uncle Jian means..."

"I cannot see through his strength." Chen Xin's gaze was deep. "But he has principles in the way he acts."

Letting those assassins go might seem like womanly kindness, but it was actually great wisdom.

A person like this was far more frightening—and far more trustworthy—than those reckless men who knew nothing but slaughter.

Ning Fengzhi nodded thoughtfully.

By then, Lan Aotian had already returned to his tent.

He sat cross-legged and took out the Stone Box he had obtained from the Dark Alley.

The ancient runes on the surface of the Stone Box faintly emerged. Compared with before, they seemed to have become slightly clearer.

He took out the gray Gemstone fragment and placed it beside the Stone Box.

Hum!

The Stone Box trembled slightly, and the runes suddenly lit up!

The gray Gemstone fragment also began to shine. It seemed as if some kind of connection had been established between the two!

A flicker passed through Lan Aotian's eyes.

As expected, this Gemstone fragment could activate the seal on the Stone Box!

He tried injecting more Soul Power into the Gemstone fragment.

The fragment's light grew brighter, and the runes on the Stone Box's surface became increasingly clear.

The runes flowed and shifted as if they had come alive, weaving themselves into complicated patterns across the surface of the Stone Box.

Click—

A soft sound rang out.

The lid of the Stone Box loosened slightly.

A sharp glint flashed through Lan Aotian's eyes.

There was hope!

He did not rush to open it. Instead, he withdrew his Soul Power and put away the Stone Box and Gemstone fragment together.

This was not the time to study them.

There were still people from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect outside, along with Spirit Hall's guards and enemies who might appear again.

He needed to find an absolutely safe environment before exploring the secrets of the Stone Box.

However, the information about the "God-given Item" had made him even more interested in this escort mission.

An object that could make someone within Spirit Hall fight for it, something Shadow Tower was willing to intercept and kill for at any cost...

The corners of his lips lifted slightly.

This muddy water was becoming more and more interesting.

Outside the tent, the sky gradually brightened.

Lan Aotian sat cross-legged inside the tent, with the Stone Box and gray Gemstone fragment placed before him.

He did not rush to open it.

After that slight loosening last night, the Stone Box had shown no further obvious change. Although the runes had become somewhat clearer, they remained dim, as if they lacked some crucial source of energy.

He had tried various methods: injecting Soul Power, dripping blood onto it, nourishing it with the Life Source... but all of them had produced minimal results.

"Something is still missing."

Lan Aotian put away the Stone Box, a thoughtful look flashing in his eyes.

The words that Soul Saint had spoken before his death continued to circle in his mind.

Related to the gods.

God-given Item.

Inheritance Key.

If this Stone Box truly contained an inheritance left behind by some god, it definitely could not be opened through brute force alone.

It required specific conditions, a specific opportunity, or even a specific bloodline.

He thought of the faint sense of familiarity he had felt.

That familiarity did not come from the Blue Silver Emperor's inherited memories. It was older, more ancient... as if it were some mark engraved deep within his soul.

"Could the Blue Silver Grass Clan be related to the gods?"

Lan Aotian's brows drew together slightly.