The True Culprit

Feng Wuhen relaxed when he heard there was no harm.

Just now, he had been afraid there was something wrong with the incense. Since there was no problem, he could finally breathe deeply without worry.

But he had relaxed too soon. Bing Ling had yet to finish speaking. "Not only is this incense harmless, it can even make our potential erupt."

The moment Feng Wuhen heard that, he knew something was wrong. Holding his breath, he took the storage ring he had hidden in his hair. Luckily, he had plenty of hair, or it truly would not have fit.

"Senior Brother, hold your breath first! There's something wrong with this incense. Forcing out one's potential is terrible for the body. Once all that potential bursts out, a person will be drained dry and ruined!"

Feng Wuhen felt that the purpose of those people forcing out their potential was to ripen them prematurely—like ripening fruit before its season—squeezing every last drop of potential from them until they became better materials.

Hearing him, Bing Ling quickly held his breath as well. Feng Wuhen took out a bottle of pills from his storage ring and poured out two.

They each swallowed one. Since they had not been poisoned, they could not take antidote pills. Under such circumstances, the best choice was a Heart-Clearing Pill, which could suppress the effects somewhat.

From the time they entered this room until they woke up, less than two minutes had passed. That thing should not have taken effect yet.

If they still could not rest easy, then once they got out, they could have Shen Ziheng take their pulses. Though he was a spell cultivator, he had come from Divine Physician Valley, so ordinary diagnosis through observation, listening, questioning, and pulse-taking would not be a problem.

After swallowing the pills, Feng Wuhen used spiritual power to lift the door bolt from outside. The two of them cautiously walked out.

Once outside, they saw a long row of side rooms opposite them. Feng Wuhen counted five in total, and there were five side rooms on their side as well.

At the far ends on both the left and right stood courtyard walls of gray bricks and black tiles. The moon gates in the two walls were tightly locked, but that was no obstacle for Feng Wuhen and Bing Ling.

However, neither of them hurried to leave. Feng Wuhen headed toward the opposite side. "Senior Brother, I'll check whether there's anyone in these five side rooms. You check the other rooms in the row where we were held."

The two searched every side room in the courtyard. All ten rooms held people, though some held more than others.

And it was not just children. There were adults too. One room even held a pair of twin Demon Cultivators.

Feng Wuhen and Bing Ling stood in the courtyard, looking at the side rooms to either side. "Senior Brother, there's something strange about this. The mission we accepted only said that children had gone missing in Radiant Moon City. It never mentioned cultivators disappearing. And those two Demon Cultivators I just found are clearly still cubs.

"I remember the Cultivation Guide mentioning that most Demon Cultivators live in the south of the Qiankun Continent. Unless they reach the Golden Core Realm, they will not set foot in human cultivators' territory.

"Furthermore, cubs are extremely important to the Demon Race. They could not possibly have appeared alone in human cultivators' territory. Those two Demon Race cubs must have been abducted.

"If that is the case, then this matter is likely far more dangerous than we imagined.

"They went to such great lengths—children, cultivators, and now even Demon Race cubs. Their scheme is probably no small one."

When Bing Ling had heard him mention Demon Cultivators earlier, he had assumed they were in the Golden Core Realm like himself, or perhaps in the higher Nascent Soul Realm. He had never imagined they would be two cubs.

This made him extremely angry, both at the mastermind behind it all and at the Demon Race.

Once this was over, he decided, he would write back to the Demon Race and fiercely scold those Demon Race elders. Just how were they doing their jobs?

They had actually let someone abduct cubs from their own territory.

Fortunately, he had gotten involved in this matter and infiltrated the place with Feng Wuhen. Otherwise, those cubs might never have been able to return.

"Then what do we do now?"

Feng Wuhen felt that it was too dangerous for only the two of them to stay here. He planned to wake the cultivators. No matter what, those people had to be stronger than them, right?

Even if they could not help, they could at least look after the children so they would not be caught in the crossfire when a fight broke out.

"Senior Brother, let's wake those cultivators and see whether they still have any fighting strength. If not, we'll leave them some things so they can protect themselves while also protecting the children who were captured, as well as those two Demon Race cubs over there.

"When we start fighting later, we may not have time to look after them.

"Once they're settled, the two of us will put on breath-concealing talismans and thoroughly investigate this residence."

Bing Ling listened to him, so the two brought everyone from the side rooms out. Unsure how to wake them, they chose a very practical method.

Bing Ling rolled up his sleeves, raised his palm, and slapped everyone twice across the face. The crisp slapping sounds rose and fell one after another, like a cheerful tune.

Though his method was not exactly a good one, it was effective. Those who had fainted were awakened by the stinging pain in their faces.

When they woke, they saw two ordinary-looking children watching them. The taller one said, "How are you feeling? Can you still use spiritual power? If not, we'll leave you some things to save your lives.

"But there is one condition. While protecting yourselves, I hope you can also help protect these children, as well as those two Demon Race cubs over there."

The cultivators' spiritual power had all been drained away. Even if they began meditating to recover now, they would not regain much—only enough to activate a single talisman.

The oldest cultivator agreed to Feng Wuhen's request and advised him, "Protecting them is naturally no problem. It is nothing more than lifting a hand. But you two—I can see that your cultivation is not very high. You should hurry and find a way to escape!

"If you can get out safely, I must ask you two to find someone to rescue us. It would be best if you could find a great expert in the Body Integration Realm. If we are still alive by then, we will surely repay your immense kindness someday."

Feng Wuhen felt that he seemed to know something. Focusing his gaze, he looked over. So that's how it is. No wonder this uncle insists that we leave. These cultivators were all lured here, and the Radiant Moon City Lord had people trick them into coming.

The cultivators and the two Demon Cultivator cubs heard Feng Wuhen's voice, yet they did not see his lips move. They stared at him in astonishment.

Feng Wuhen was still thinking about the Radiant Moon City Lord and did not notice. Bing Ling saw that their expressions were strange and that they kept staring at Feng Wuhen. Realizing that they could hear his thoughts too, he gestured for them to keep quiet.

They did not understand, but they nodded anyway.

After all, being able to hear someone else's inner thoughts was simply too inconceivable.

*This Radiant Moon City Lord's lifespan is nearly at its end. He does not want to die, so he has tried every possible method to prolong his life.

*A demonic cultivator taught him an evil art that could extract others' spiritual power and lifespan to extend his own. These cultivators and those two cubs were prepared for precisely that purpose.

*As for those children with spiritual roots who had never cultivated, he found a damaged secret art in that demonic cultivator's storage ring after killing him.

*The secret art said to find children who possessed spiritual roots but had never cultivated, extract their spiritual roots, and refine them into pills. After consuming them, one could improve one's talent.

*When the Radiant Moon City Lord saw this, he was tempted. While extending his lifespan, he also wanted his cultivation to break through into the Body Integration Realm!

*Absorbing others' spiritual power and lifespans to extend his own life would be discovered sooner or later. But if he could break through, he would gain several thousand more years of lifespan.

*When he was extracting that uncle's spiritual power, his identity was exposed. Thinking that the uncle would not be able to escape anyway, he told him everything he had done and everything he was thinking right in front of him.

Otherwise, there would truly have been no way to discover who the real culprit was from this uncle.