The Portrait Burned Itself, Everyone Mobilized

Light and shadow winked out; stagnant qi began to flow.

With one kick, as though he had punched through a hole, Chu He's mind spun, and the little stone house before him began to shake violently and collapse.

His foot passed through the man's body. As Chu He's consciousness was about to be stripped away, he only heard the man say slowly, "Congratulations, you answered correctly!"

Chu He: "..."

In an instant, the heart in the man's left palm shot into Chu He's chest like a streak of light and vanished in the blink of an eye.

When Chu He came back to his senses again, he was already back in the main hall.

"Your composure is quite good. You broke free of the illusion so quickly."

A gentle female voice sounded beside Chu He's ear.

Chu He turned his head and discovered that Aunt Lan had appeared beside him at some point. Sweeping his gaze around, he saw that apart from himself, two other people were in the hall, heads lowered and eyes shut, their minds wandering elsewhere.

One was the freckled girl. The other was a handsome man with a face like jade, dressed in white, carrying an air of transcendence.

"I told you that you would be one of them. See..."

Rip—

The Patriarch's portrait burst into flames without warning, turning to ashes in the blink of an eye.

The gentle voice abruptly cut off. Even Aunt Lan, who was soft as jade and dignified in bearing, could not help widening her eyes as she stood frozen in place.

"This... this..."

Aunt Lan staggered forward, stammering.

Her pale jade fingers touched the scattered ashes, and her expression changed drastically.

"Ugh..."

"Hiss... My head hurts!"

The man and woman suddenly woke. It was as if their brains had been struck by a heavy blow; each clutched their head, their faces filled with pain and bewilderment.

"I need to report this matter to the hall. Stay here and do not go anywhere. You must wait for me to return, understand?"

The gentleness vanished from Aunt Lan's face as she spoke sternly.

"Understood."

Chu He nodded, his expression calm and utterly unchanged.

The other two nodded instinctively, not understanding what was going on.

Seeing this, Aunt Lan tapped the ground with her toes and drifted away like a falling blossom. The three remained in the main hall, staring at one another, none of them knowing what to do.

Chu He lowered his head slightly, inwardly startled. He realized that kick of his had probably kicked the Patriarch's portrait into burning itself up.

More importantly...

He summoned the panel, and all the information appeared.

[Chu He]

[Martial Arts: Golden Bell Shield (Third Layer), Red Line Fist (Third Layer)]

[Mutated Organ: Crimson Refining Heart]

[Energy: 50]

The suddenly appearing line of text was what stunned Chu He the most.

Mutated organ? Crimson Refining Heart?

Was this the red stone given to him by the Armor Forging Hall's Patriarch?

Wait...

Chu He seemed to have noticed something even more incredible.

His consciousness focused slightly as he looked at the energy field.

50... 50 points of energy!?

Chu He could not help clenching his fists tightly. He suppressed the sudden joy in his heart, controlled his facial muscles, and continued to maintain a blank expression.

Where had this energy come from? Could it have been brought by the Crimson Refining Heart? But what exactly was a mutated organ?

One question wrapped around another.

There were far too many questions in Chu He's heart that he wanted answered, but he was destined to slowly explore such secrets alone.

"Brother, do you know what happened here?" The man in white slowly approached Chu He and cupped his hands in greeting. "By the way, my name is Zheng Hao. May I ask how I should address you?"

"Chu He."

Chu He came back to himself and gave the man a once-over.

"I don't know what happened either. Like you, all I know is that the Patriarch's portrait seems to have burned."

Zheng Hao revealed a trace of disappointment, his expression uneasy.

Chu He's heart stirred, and he asked, "Brother Zheng, do you know something? Could you reveal a little to me?"

"I only heard it from others."

Zheng Hao waved his hand, lowering his eyes as he openly revealed, "The Patriarch's portrait looks ordinary, but I heard it is a priceless treasure of the Armor Forging Hall. It is only displayed during the third stage of the test."

"I do not know its precise purpose, but it holds great significance for the Armor Forging Hall. If they pin the crime of the portrait burning itself on us, not only will we fail to enter the Armor Forging Hall, we will also..."

Thinking of the Armor Forging Hall's overbearing ways, the consequences went without saying.

That was precisely why Zheng Hao was so uneasy.

After hearing this, a trace of gravity appeared on Chu He's face as well.

He became even more certain that he had to conceal what he had done in the illusion. They absolutely could not learn that the portrait had burned because of him.

After only a few exchanges, Chu He suddenly sensed something and sharply turned his head. Several figures rushed over from different directions.

At a rough glance, there were more than twenty people.

Every member of the Armor Forging Hall had been mobilized!

Leading them was an elderly woman in luxurious black-and-gold robes, a wooden hairpin in her hair. Her temples were streaked with white, her back bent in a slight hunch, and her eyes narrowed into slits.

She held a dragon-headed cane. With a single stride, she appeared before the spot where the portrait had burned as though she had teleported.

Her withered, rough old hands trembled as they held the pile of ashes. Her ever-narrowed eyes finally opened into a thin crack.

The others entered the main hall together. Chu He and the other two immediately retreated to one side. This group was not someone he could afford to provoke right now.

Seeing that the Patriarch's portrait had truly burned, everyone wore expressions of shock, confusion, and incomprehension. Speculation erupted all around them.

"The Patriarch's portrait burned itself. What sort of omen is this?"

"I don't know. I've never heard of the Patriarch's portrait burning itself. We may need to go to Jianye City and ask about the exact reason."

"Could it be related to these three little ones? Capture them and give them a harsh interrogation. We might gain something!" An old man with sunken cheeks coldly suggested, then cast a sinister look at them.

Chu He quietly stepped half a pace back.

If they forced the issue and tried to seize him, then even if he had to risk his life, he would fuse his martial arts and break through to the fourth layer, showing these people what he was made of.

"Enough, don't frighten them." Aunt Lan frowned slightly and looked at the old man with displeasure. "Everyone knows that the Patriarch's portrait is made of special material, impervious to water and fire. Even cultivators of the third realm, the Spirit Fusion Realm, cannot do anything to it. How could those in the first realm possibly damage it?"

"You can't say that for certain. What if one of them has a problem?" The old man swept his gaze over the three and still refused to let it go.

"I was at the scene, and I was the only one who remained conscious. By your logic, does that mean I have a problem too?"

Aunt Lan's expression changed, her demeanor turning icy.

"Hehe, I never said that..."

The old man let out an ambiguous chuckle.

Aunt Lan knew he was deliberately picking a fight, and she was greatly angered.

"Enough. There is no need for everyone to suspect one another. If the portrait burned itself, then it burned itself. We only need to report the matter afterward. There is no need to quarrel."

The aged elder slowly turned his head.

The dragon-headed cane in his hand lightly tapped the ground.

"Another day, I will personally make a trip to the prefectural city and investigate the reason for the portrait's self-immolation. If you have nothing else to do, you may all disperse."

"Yes, Hall Master."

Everyone cupped their hands in salute, their expressions solemn.

Even the old man immediately became obedient.

"And..."

The Hall Master of the Armor Forging Hall turned toward the three in the corner.

"You three little ones, come with me."