Evil Soul Master, Possibly Involved in Drug Development

Xie An generally understood what was going on: the Spirit Pagoda was researching drugs to suppress emotions and sending them to the Xie Family, leading outsiders to mistakenly believe that the War God Temple Master was also involved.

"Could you elaborate on the drug research?"

The middle-aged man retracted his smile, looking somewhat annoyed. Not wanting to waste any more breath, he revealed his eight spirit rings—two yellow, two purple, and four black—intending to use his status as a Spirit Douluo to pressure Xie An into retreating. After all, in his eyes, Xie An was at most a four-ring spirit master.

As a senior Spirit Douluo, he felt it necessary to let this little guy know that some things were extremely dangerous and better left unasked.

"Sigh, why won't you listen to reason, kid? I told you it was dangerous; did you really have to force me to use my cultivation to suppress you?"

Who would have thought that Xie An would control his power to the level of a Title Douluo? Under deliberate disguise, nine spirit rings—two yellow, two purple, and five black—slowly rose.

"I'd like to see exactly what kind of danger there is."

"Title, Title Douluo..."

According to the middle-aged man's explanation, he suspected that this matter might involve the War God Temple Master himself, or perhaps Xie An. If he used his true identity to pressure him, it might confirm the other party's suspicions, making it even less likely that he would tell the truth.

He couldn't resort to the vicious method of soul-searching either; if he used his spiritual power to forcibly probe or induce an eight-ring Spirit Douluo, it would inevitably cause the other party irreversible damage.

Therefore, Xie An disguised his cultivation as that of a Title Douluo. Although times had changed and Title Douluo were no longer as rare, in this small Eastsea City, it was still enough to intimidate the man before him.

The middle-aged man hurriedly bowed, "So it is a Title Douluo senior. May I ask how to address you, Your Excellency? This junior is Sun Wenxuan."

Cold sweat broke out on Sun Wenxuan. Who could have guessed that a random young man picked up in the black market would be a Title Douluo? The other party looked so young—he was either a top-tier prodigy from some major faction or some old monster who hadn't lost his youthful heart. Although his behavior just now wasn't exactly rude, what if the other party was the type to hold a grudge?

Sun Wenxuan was merely an eight-ring Spirit Douluo with Two-Word Battle Armor. Trying to escape from a Title Douluo—especially one who likely possessed Three-Word Battle Armor—was nothing short of a pipe dream.

"Alright, I don't mean to blame you. Can you tell me about the drug research now?"

Xie An dissipated his Title Douluo pressure and asked.

After a period of internal conflict, Sun Wenxuan finally hardened his heart and said, "Senior, can you swear an oath that you will not leak this matter?"

In Douluo Continent cultivation, although the Abyss Plane had not yet been devoured and evolved, violating an oath would not trigger a heavenly tribulation. However, cultivation emphasized conforming to the heavenly dao and having a clear conscience. If one violated an oath, at best, they would develop inner demons that would cause failure when nearing a breakthrough; at worst, their spirit power and cultivation would never advance another inch.

Xie An pretended to ponder for a moment, then held up two fingers and said solemnly, "I swear to the heavens that what is said next will not be leaked. If I violate this, I shall suffer divine punishment."

It should be noted here that although the God Realm had been swept away by a spatial turbulence, for most people, a Title Douluo was the unreachable peak. As for the disappearance of the God Realm, only those who reached the level of Limit Douluo were qualified to know.

Sun Wenxuan was filled with awe; every spirit master on Douluo Continent knew that the God Realm truly existed.

Of course, apart from those at the Limit Douluo level, few people knew that the God Realm had already vanished.

To ordinary people, the Spirit Pagoda Master from ten thousand years ago, Huo Yuhao, and the Tang Sect Master from twenty thousand years ago, Tang San, had both ascended to the God Rank. As for whether anyone else had ascended in between, who could say?

"Senior, let's not stand here. Come to my home, and I will tell you in detail."

Sun Wenxuan invited Xie An to his home, used his spirit power to isolate the room, and scattered a handful of seeds outside. His eight spirit rings pulsed rhythmically, and soon the seeds sprouted and grew.

Sun Wenxuan brewed a pot of fine tea, poured a cup for Xie An, and then poured one for himself.

"This matter starts with my spirit. My spirit is the Tree of Life. Seven or eight years ago, my spirit power reached level 89, but I could never find a way to break through, so I thought I would travel across Douluo Continent to find an opportunity."

"After traveling for two years, I happened to arrive in Eastsea City and stayed in a remote inn. Because I have the Tree of Life spirit, I opened a clinic to treat people."

"After the clinic had been open for a while, I discovered a strange illness. Under the perception of my spirit, I found that while some people appeared emotionally depressed on the surface, their internal organs were actually in a state of imbalance."

"At first, I didn't pay much attention, thinking it might be some difficult or miscellaneous disease, or a congenital genetic defect. But as time went on, I found that many patients had this same illness, so I began to investigate."

"Through analyzing every patient, I discovered that they had all taken a spirit-enhancing potion from the Spirit Pagoda."

"Later, I dug deeper and found drugs circulating on the black market that were even more potent than the Spirit Pagoda's mental potions. Their effect was to first suppress people's emotions, followed by extreme agitation, and they were even somewhat addictive."

"I also secretly investigated the Spirit Pagoda, but unfortunately, I was discovered and chased out as soon as I entered."

Xie An was silent for a moment, then asked, "Does the Spirit Pagoda not know that these potions have side effects? And why are there similar drugs on the black market?"

"The Spirit Pagoda informs spirit masters of the side effects before they take the drugs, and some people do indeed improve after taking them."

Sun Wenxuan suddenly became a bit fidgety. "As for, as for the black market, perhaps, perhaps someone from the Spirit Pagoda leaked them on purpose?"

Xie An stared into Sun Wenxuan's eyes, noticing something amiss, and demanded, "What are you afraid of!"

"I, I, oh, this can't be said, otherwise both you and I will face a great disaster. Senior, please do not lead yourself astray."

Xie An thought for a moment, took out a token of a Tang Sect Offering, and said, "I am the Chief Offering of the Tang Sect. You can report anything to me truthfully."

As the War God Temple Master, Xie An shouldn't have joined the Tang Sect or the Spirit Pagoda, but in order to ensure that some of the War God Temple's policies were truly implemented at the grassroots level, some cooperation was inevitable.

Following the flow of events, the Tang Sect Master had gifted him an Offering Hall token.

When Sun Wenxuan saw the Tang Sect token, it was as if he had seen a savior; he knelt down immediately.

"This lowly one had eyes but failed to recognize Mount Tai, not knowing you were a Tang Sect Offering. I report: the Spirit Pagoda may be colluding with Evil Soul Masters."

He hesitated for a moment, then added, "The War God Temple Master may also be colluding with Evil Soul Masters."

"Everything I say is true! If I am slandering you, may I be struck down by the heavens!"

To add context, for most ordinary spirit masters, Shrek was like a heavenly entity. The War God Temple, under Xie An's leadership, had many pro-people measures, but because Xie An had been in power for a short time and belonged to the Federation military, there was a natural sense of alienation. The Spirit Pagoda was seen as corrupt and equally high and mighty, though it wasn't as apparent because Shrek stood at the forefront.

The Tang Sect, however, was considered the most approachable of the four major organizations. On one hand, ever since Huo Yuhao revived the Tang Sect ten thousand years ago, the sect had been committed to developing Soul Tools for civilian use; on the other hand, the Tang Sect's various halls were considered to have a lower barrier to entry.

Seconds ticked by, and Sun Wenxuan felt as if these few minutes were as long as a century.

Finally, he could no longer hold back. He looked up and found that there was no shock on Xie An's face, only a faint smile.

"Get up. I will ask, and you will answer."

Sun Wenxuan stood up and replied respectfully, "Yes, Elder. Your command, I dare not disobey."

"Do you have any evidence for what you've said?"