Deep Underground

A second ago.

Qing Yuanzi had still faced Lu Yun with the posture of one looking down from above.

At that time.

He had already condensed eight spiritual energy stars, while Lu Yun had only four.

Yet.

Who would have thought that in the blink of an eye, this disciple he had just taken in would already surpass his master.

It could be said that aside from gifting him a cultivation technique, he had practically picked up a Nirvana Realm disciple for free.

In an instant.

Countless emotions flickered through Qing Yuanzi's eyes.

He said with deep feeling, "Little fellow, I never expected you to possess such heaven-defying talent. Taking you as my disciple was truly the wisest decision I have ever made!"

Hearing this.

Lu Yun said with a smile, "Master, you flatter me."

Yet Qing Yuanzi shook his head. "No, I am not flattering you in the slightest."

"In truth, even in the previous great age, your talent in the martial path would still have qualified you as an unparalleled prodigy."

Those words came entirely from the bottom of his heart.

Even though he had seen countless martial arts geniuses in this lifetime, compared to Lu Yun, those so-called geniuses were nothing more than chickens and dogs of the earth, not worth mentioning at all.

At that thought, a trace of contemplation flashed through Qing Yuanzi's eyes.

A moment later.

He finally made up his mind and said to Lu Yun:

"Originally, I thought I would need to wait a while longer before telling you the truth."

"However, your talent has far exceeded my original expectations. Moreover, you are now a Nirvana Realm expert, fully qualified to learn of Unfixed Pagoda's origins."

Lu Yun was slightly stunned. "Master, you know the origins of Unfixed Pagoda?"

Qing Yuanzi slowly nodded. "That is right! I do indeed know the origins of Unfixed Pagoda!"

As he spoke, Qing Yuanzi's figure flashed, and he instantly arrived before Lu Yun.

Lu Yun was slightly startled.

Then he heard Qing Yuanzi explain, "Disciple, back then, I was the personal disciple of Ouyang Jie, the fifty-second generation sect master of Mirror Moon Sect. Long ago, I entered Unfixed Pagoda and learned many of its secrets within it. I also mastered many secret arts of formations!"

"It can be said that in my youth, Unfixed Pagoda was the trial ground of our Mirror Moon Sect!"

Lu Yun asked in confusion, "Then Unfixed Pagoda already existed in Martial Grandfather's era. How did our sect decline afterward?"

Hearing Lu Yun's question, Qing Yuanzi fell into reminiscence. Only after a long while did he slowly begin to speak:

"It is said that Unfixed Pagoda was built by one of Mirror Moon Sect's predecessors, who spent several hundred years completing it."

"Because this object was too precious, and to prevent others from coveting it, that predecessor of our sect exhausted endless effort to refine a restriction specifically for it."

"In other words, if matters reached an extremely urgent juncture, the person who controlled that restriction could activate it to suppress the enemy."

Lu Yun nodded thoughtfully, a trace of understanding appearing in his eyes.

It seemed that the sect must have encountered some powerful enemy back then, forcing them to activate that restriction at the final moment.

Seeing Lu Yun's expression, Qing Yuanzi knew he had surely guessed how matters unfolded afterward. He sighed and said:

"You guessed correctly! Our sect did indeed encounter a great calamity then."

"It is just that this is a long story..."

About half an hour later.

"Whew—"

Lu Yun let out a long breath, finally understanding the entire chain of events.

He cupped his fists toward Qing Yuanzi. "In that case, I will set off immediately."

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"Master, rest assured. Your disciple will certainly not fail his mission!"

Qing Yuanzi nodded. "Now that you are a Nirvana Realm expert, there should be no danger if you are only going to reinforce the chains binding that beast."

"These past few days, I have sensed that the beast's strength seems to be continuously recovering. Hurry to the depths beneath the pagoda."

Hearing this, Lu Yun cupped his fists toward Qing Yuanzi once more.

"Master, then this disciple shall take his leave first!"

With that, he turned and departed, speeding toward the bottom of Unfixed Pagoda. Before long, he vanished without a trace.

Qing Yuanzi gazed in the direction Lu Yun had gone, momentarily lost in thought as he murmured:

"My disciple is truly too formidable! Even now, I can scarcely believe that he reached the Nirvana Realm so quickly!"

He turned to look at the entrance to the black hole beneath Unfixed Pagoda, determination showing in his eyes.

"Beast, this old man has finally found a suitable disciple this time. Just wait to be suppressed at the bottom of the pagoda forever!"

Meanwhile, on Bluestone Square beneath Unfixed Pagoda, the dense crowd had yet to disperse.

Everyone was waiting for the final outcome.

Of course.

At this point, the vast majority of them shared the same goal: once Lu Yun came down, they wanted to strike up a friendship with him.

Just as they anxiously awaited the appearance of the man himself, a streak of light suddenly flashed across the sky. When they looked closely, the arrival was actually Lu Yun.

The clamorous Bluestone Square instantly fell so silent that one could hear a needle drop.

Everyone's gazes turned in unspoken unison toward the same direction.

Lu Yun naturally sensed that everyone was looking at him, and he could not help feeling somewhat awkward.

When he casually turned his head, he suddenly discovered that his name was clearly reflected on the stone monument, which was still continuously flashing with light.

"Looks like... information spreading too quickly is not necessarily a good thing."

Lu Yun did not dare waste too much time now.

According to what his master Qing Yuanzi had just said, the Thunderclap Venom Xun Python suppressed deep underground beneath Unfixed Pagoda had grown increasingly violent these past few days. He had to hurry down and reinforce its confinement.

Otherwise, once that beast broke the seal, unless a Void Transformation Realm great expert appeared, no one in the world would be able to subdue it.

At this moment...

Among the crowd, many experts led by Eastern King Gu Yuanwei were already walking toward Lu Yun with beaming smiles.

Rather than spend time slowly explaining things to them, it would be better to leave immediately.

With that thought, Lu Yun formed hand seals, instantly opening a spatial rift outside Unfixed Pagoda.

Then.

Without the slightest hesitation, he stepped inside and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

Gu Yuanwei and the others, who had just approached, were immediately rooted to the spot.

"H-he-he... where did he go?"

"Heavens! Why do I feel his aura beneath us? Could he be heading to the bottom of Unfixed Pagoda?"

"What exactly is going on?"

Everyone wore shocked expressions. Even Eastern King Gu Yuanwei's face was filled with astonishment.

Because Lu Yun's action was simply too unusual.

Everything had been perfectly fine. They had been about to congratulate him, so why had he left without a word—and gone underground at that?

What exactly was he planning to do?

Gu Yuanwei's brow furrowed even tighter as an inexplicable sense of foreboding surged into his heart. He suddenly felt stifled, as though something bad was about to happen.

"No! We need to hurry down and take a look too!"

At this moment.

The spatial rift Lu Yun had opened had not yet closed. As he spoke, Gu Yuanwei took the lead and jumped in, with many others immediately following after him.

In an instant, the once packed Bluestone Square was left with only a scattered few people.