"Oh! Has the Five Poisons Holy Land decided to attack Tianyuan and stop my father from attaining the Great Emperor realm?"
Looking at the old man before him, a large crimson snake coiled around his neck, Chen Mu answered rather casually.
Because he simply did not believe the Five Poisons Holy Land had the strength to contend with the Tianyuan Holy Land.
If they came, they would only be asking for a beating.
The Tianyuan Holy Land's strength did not come from Chen Tianlin alone.
"Young Master, I heard it with my own ears and saw it with my own eyes. It is absolutely true, without the slightest hint of fabrication!" Huo Ke solemnly assured him.
"Judging by your outfit, you're from the Five Poisons Holy Land?" Chen Mu asked to confirm.
Huo Ke shook his head, then rapidly transformed from head to toe.
He became an entirely different person—a middle-aged man.
The Disguise Art?
Chen Mu was not sure whether that was the right term.
The Disguise Art he knew only changed someone's face into another person's. This rapid, head-to-toe transformation was truly a first for him.
System: [This man is named Shan Yurong, known throughout the martial world as the Thousand-Faced Devil Lord. He is proficient in disguise and the Transformation Art. To this day, no one knows his true appearance...]
"The Thousand-Faced Devil Lord, Shan Yurong." Chen Mu had indeed heard a few things about this man.
"It is truly an honor to be known to you, Young Master." Shan Yurong placed a hand over his left breast and bowed slightly.
"So, how did you learn about this?" Chen Mu asked again.
Shan Yurong then held nothing back, recounting the entire sequence of events exactly as it had happened.
As it turned out, Shan Yurong had infiltrated the Eastern Pole Holy Land from the outset.
He was the one who had volunteered to guide Huo Ke to the main hall, where they met Holy Lord Zhao Guizhen.
Afterward, Shan Yurong had followed Huo Ke all the way down the mountain.
He discovered that Huo Ke had come to a river, removed the Red Snake coiled around his neck, and intended to drip venom from its fangs into the water.
This river fed countless wells, large and small, throughout the Eastern Pole Holy Land. Had he been allowed to do it, the casualties would have been immense.
Thus, Shan Yurong had acted decisively, killing him without leaving even a trace behind.
He then turned the scheme to his own advantage, infiltrating the Five Poisons Holy Land and accompanying its elders to the rear mountain to meet the Five Poisons Holy Lord...
After learning that the Five Poisons Holy Lord had ordered his men to gather and attack the Tianyuan Holy Land to prevent Holy Lord Chen Tianlin from breaking through to the Great Emperor realm,
Shan Yurong had immediately set off for Qingyun Prefecture in Tianyuan.
As for his purpose, Chen Mu knew without even having to think: he either wanted the Tianyuan Holy Land to owe him a favor,
Or he had come for a Lifespan Pill.
System, look into this man for me.
[Query in progress...] [Query successful!]
The moment the system finished speaking, every last detail of Shan Yurong's identity appeared before Chen Mu.
From the misery surrounding his birth, to how he and his younger sister had depended on each other to survive, to how he had stumbled upon the Thousand Transformations Method and hoped to find a way to prolong his sister's life through "Hundred-Family Meals"—everything was recorded in perfect detail...
Honestly, with this backstory and the addition of a younger sister,
Chen Mu even felt that, back in his previous life, the man could easily have been the protagonist of a novel in the trash-to-triumph genre.
His sister surely isn't as simple as she appears. She must possess some special constitution...
Of course, this was merely Chen Mu's unfounded speculation.
He did not dwell on it or take it to heart.
He continued, "You want a Lifespan Pill to prolong the life of your younger sister, whose life is hanging by a thread, correct?"
He did not beat around the bush, instead driving straight to the heart of the matter to strike fear into Shan Yurong.
He wanted the man to understand clearly that he knew him like the palm of his hand. That little disguise art of his was nowhere near enough to fool him, so he had better not entertain any crooked ideas.
Chen Mu believed this man could be very useful and could be recruited into the Tianyuan Holy Land.
"..." Shan Yurong's heart jolted.
Then he smiled in acceptance. "The Tianyuan Young Master truly is just as the rumors say—terrifyingly powerful!"
He freely admitted, "That's right. I came for a Lifespan Pill. Please grant me one, Young Master! In return for saving her life, I, Shan Yurong, will serve you like a loyal hound or horse for all eternity! I will bow myself to the task and exhaust every ounce of strength until death!"
Looking at Shan Yurong kneeling before him, prostrate on the ground and curled into a ball,
Chen Mu could readily tell that his younger sister was precious to him, like the very flesh of his heart.
"Remember your words!" Chen Mu took out ten Veined Longevity Pills and placed them in a blue jade bottle small enough to hold in one hand.
This would keep the medicinal essence from dissipating and affecting the pills' potency as much as possible.
[Veined Longevity Pills successfully gifted! Hundredfold rebate triggered. Congratulations, host! You have received Veined Longevity Pills +1000!]
"Thank you, Young Master!" Looking at the blue jade bottle in his hand, Shan Yurong trembled with excitement.
After searching for so many years, he had finally found them!
"Mm. Hurry back and have your sister take the pills." Chen Mu waved him away.
"Yes!"
Shan Yurong left Qingyun Prefecture at top speed, unwilling to waste even another second.
Watching him leave, Chen Mu pillowed his head on his hands and murmured, "With that talent, perhaps he could join my sister's Heavenly Secrets Pavilion. If he did, its business would surely grow even bigger!"
"Transformation Art, huh? It really does seem convenient..."
Chen Mu could not help wondering what it would feel like if he, too, could turn into other people at will.
[Signing in...] [Sign-in successful! Congratulations, host! You have received the Ten Thousand Transformations Art!]
Well, damn!
Other people get a thousand transformations, and you give me ten thousand outright?
System: [Naturally, my host must have whatever anyone else has!]
Hearing its matter-of-fact tone, Chen Mu did not argue. He had even less reason to do so.
He could hardly wait to try it.
"Who should I turn into?"
"All I have to do is picture that person in my mind, and I can transform?"
The first person Chen Mu thought of was Ye Qingcheng, whom he had spent the most time with lately.
In the next instant, he transformed from head to toe into her exact appearance when she had gone out that day.
Coming to the pond beside the artificial rockery in the courtyard, Chen Mu looked at his reflection in the water and exclaimed in surprise, "Oh! Not bad. It really looks like her—no, I should say it's identical!"
He straightened and moved around, feeling no discomfort whatsoever, as though this body had belonged to him all along.
He rolled up a sleeve, revealing a pale arm, and stroked it.
"Even the texture of her skin has been perfectly replicated?"
Although Chen Mu had never touched Ye Qingcheng's hand, he could say with certainty that this felt entirely different from his own skin—finer, smoother, softer...
He lowered his head again and could see only the tips of his toes.
She does have a nice figure.
Chen Mu could not imagine what would happen if such an ability fell into the hands of people with ulterior motives.
If it existed in the world before his rebirth, it would probably cause even greater havoc.
"Terrifying. Truly terrifying." He shook his head with a sigh.
Just then, the sound of the courtyard gate opening suddenly rang out.
It creaked.
Chen Mu turned to look and saw Ye Qingcheng, her cheeks flushed as she panted lightly. "Young Master, s-something's wrong! I heard..."
She stopped halfway through her sentence as their eyes met.
"..." Ye Qingcheng's delicate brows knitted tightly, and she began to question reality itself.
Before you continue