"Han Li! You dared murder an elder within the sect?!"
Nangong Wan's cool voice rang out like beads of ice falling onto a jade plate, carrying unquestionable authority as it shattered the oppressive killing intent inside the Pill Refinery. Her white robes outshone snow, and frost seemed to veil her face. She unleashed the full spiritual pressure of her mid-Foundation Establishment cultivation, dispersing some of the fiendish aura coiling around Han Li.
Han Li paused. His raised right hand slowly lowered, but the dark spiritual power gathered at his fingertips did not dissipate. He turned and calmly looked at Nangong Wan, who had suddenly burst in, several thoughts flashing through his mind.
Why had she appeared at this exact moment? Was it coincidence, or had she anticipated this?
At the sight of Nangong Wan, Mo Juren seized upon her like a drowning man clutching a straw. He struggled and screamed, "Elder Nangong! This boy... this boy has a wolf's heart and savage ambitions! Not only has his cultivation soared unnaturally, he means to murder an elder! Quickly... seize him!"
Nangong Wan's beautiful eyes swept over the gravely wounded, dying Mo Juren and his feeble aura, then the wrecked Pill Refinery and its destroyed formation. Finally, her solemn gaze settled on Han Li, a barely perceptible flicker of astonishment passing through her eyes. She could sense that the spiritual fluctuations he emitted had actually reached the ninth level of Qi Refining! Moreover, the purity and domineering force of his spiritual power far surpassed those of ordinary Qi Refining cultivators. It even carried a fiendish aura that faintly set her own heart trembling!
This boy had only been away from the sect for a little over a month, yet he had undergone such an earth-shaking transformation! What extraordinary fortune had he encountered outside?
"Han Li, is Elder Mo telling the truth? Why did you fight him here and reduce the Pill Refinery to this state?" Nangong Wan's voice remained icy, but the accusation in her tone softened slightly, sounding more like an inquiry into the cause. She did not belong to Mo Juren's faction and was even somewhat wary of him. Her intervention was driven more by a desire to uphold the sect's rules and by curiosity.
Han Li's thoughts raced, and he instantly made his decision. Confronting Nangong Wan head-on now would be anything but wise. Besides, he needed to borrow her influence.
The icy killing intent on his face swiftly vanished, replaced by a complicated expression mingling "anger," "grievance," and "lingering fear." He cupped his hands and bowed to Nangong Wan, his voice carrying just the right measure of agitation:
"Elder Nangong, please judge fairly! I came today at Elder Mo's invitation, filled with gratitude. Never did I imagine... never did I imagine that he harbored such sinister intentions!"
He pointed at the lingering traces of Heart-Illusion Incense and the shattered formation markings on the floor, declaring fiercely, "Elder Mo set up a Spirit-Locking Formation and Heart-Illusion Incense in this Pill Refinery! Under the pretense of teaching me a cultivation art, he intended to cloud my mind and possess my body! Had I not recently encountered a stroke of fortune, improved my cultivation, and possessed a reasonably firm will, I would likely have already fallen victim to him, my soul scattered into oblivion! I was forced to fight back in self-defense. Only then did I inadvertently wound Elder Mo and damage the Pill Refinery. I had no other choice! Please uphold justice for me, Elder Nangong!"
His account mixed truth with falsehood, turning a deliberate act of revenge into forced self-defense and instantly placing him in the position of the victim.
"Body possession?!" Nangong Wan's pupils contracted slightly, and her gaze toward Mo Juren instantly sharpened like a blade. In the cultivation world, possessing another person's body was a universally condemned taboo, something the righteous path would never tolerate! If Han Li's words were true, Mo Juren deserved death and more!
"Utter nonsense! Elder Nangong, do not listen to his vile slander!" Shocked and furious, Mo Juren hurried to defend himself. "This boy practices a demonic art, and his mind has fallen into depravity! He coveted my pills and suddenly attacked me! Elder Nangong, seize this demon at once!"
"A demonic art?" Nangong Wan looked at the sinister fiendish aura that had yet to fully dissipate around Han Li, her brows drawing together slightly. His spiritual power did indeed have an eerie quality, utterly unlike the orthodox cultivation arts of the Seven Mysteries Sect.
Han Li immediately replied, his tone full of grief and indignation. "I possess a dark spiritual root, so naturally, my cultivation art differs from those of others, and my spiritual power leans toward cold yin. Elder Mo is using that very fact to slander me! I am utterly loyal to the sect. How could I practice a demonic art? On the contrary, Elder Mo secretly practices vicious, evil techniques and needs cultivators' souls to refine pills that prolong his life. The disappearances of several disciples from the sect must surely be connected to him! I am willing to swear an oath upon my inner demons that every word I have just spoken is true! If even half a sentence is false, may heaven and earth destroy me!"
An oath upon one's inner demons! For a cultivator, this was an extraordinarily serious vow! Han Li's willingness to swear it carried tremendous weight!
Nangong Wan's expression changed again, and her eyes filled with disgust and killing intent as she looked at Mo Juren. She had already heard rumors of some of his activities. Coupled with Han Li's accusations and the evidence at the scene, she now believed most of his account.
Seeing Nangong Wan's expression, Mo Juren knew things had taken a disastrous turn. He cried hoarsely, "Nangong Wan! Do not let him deceive you! This boy must be hiding an earth-shattering secret! Help me capture him, and we can share it! Otherwise..."
"Otherwise what?" Nangong Wan cut him off coldly, her voice freezing. "Mo Juren, you are an elder, yet you committed such vile acts. With the evidence undeniable, how do you still have the face to argue? Under the sect's rules, anyone who plots against a fellow disciple and attempts body possession must have their cultivation crippled and be expelled! Today, I shall enforce those rules on the sect master's behalf!"
With that, she raised her delicate hand. A concentrated strand of white sword energy flickered at her fingertips, locking onto Mo Juren!
At the sight, despair and madness completely consumed Mo Juren's eyes. He knew that once Nangong Wan acted, he had no chance of surviving today! He abruptly turned toward Han Li and spat out one last venomous curse. "Little bastard! You will die a wretched death! The cult leader... will avenge me!!"
Before his words had faded, the remaining spiritual power in his body suddenly reversed its flow in a frenzy, and his body swelled as though being inflated!
"Watch out! He's going to self-detonate!" Nangong Wan's expression changed. Her sword energy shot forth, and at the same time, she swept her sleeve, sending a gentle white light to pull Han Li several steps backward!
BOOM!!!
A muffled, thunderous explosion erupted inside the Pill Refinery! Mo Juren's body burst apart, scattering flesh and blood! A violent surge of spiritual power, mixed with a foul-smelling mist of blood, utterly demolished the already tottering Pill Refinery!
Nangong Wan had been prepared. A white barrier enveloped her, blocking every trace of the blast. She had also pulled Han Li behind her, keeping him out of harm's way.
The dust gradually settled, leaving only a charred crater and the pervasive stench of blood. Mo Juren, a guest elder of the Seven Mysteries Sect, had been destroyed in both body and soul!
Nangong Wan dispersed her barrier and looked at the scene before her, her brows deeply furrowed. The "cult leader" Mo Juren had mentioned before his death put her on guard. The Black Fiend Cult? This matter was probably far from over.
She turned toward Han Li, who appeared "still shaken," and softened her tone a little. "Han Li, are you all right?"
With "lingering fear," Han Li shook his head. "Thank you for saving me, Elder Nangong."
Nangong Wan gave him a searching look. This boy's composure and quick reactions were far beyond those of ordinary people. After a moment's consideration, she said, "Mo Juren met the end he deserved. I will report this matter to the sect master myself. You acted in self-defense, so you will not be held accountable for destroying the Pill Refinery. However..."
Her tone shifted, and she fixed Han Li with a piercing gaze. "Your cultivation has advanced with extraordinary speed, and your spiritual power is quite unusual. You need to give the sect a reasonable explanation. Also, was Mo Juren telling the truth when he said before his death that you possessed a secret?"
Han Li inwardly tensed, knowing this was the crux of the matter. He had already prepared his account and replied without haste or panic, "Elder, during my journey, I was fortunate enough to obtain part of the legacy of a senior known as Mysterious Bone in an ancient cultivator's cave abode in the Falling Cloud Mountains. That is why my cultivation improved. As for the nature of my spiritual power, that senior's cultivation art also favored cold yin and suited my spiritual root. It is not a demonic art. I am willing to offer the sect a copy of the cultivation art I obtained to prove my innocence."
He gave a half-true account of obtaining the Profound Fiend Asura Art, claiming he had received only part of the legacy and changing the art's name to the milder-sounding "Profound Yin Art." This explained both his soaring cultivation and his unusual spiritual power while also demonstrating his "loyalty" to the sect.
At his words, Nangong Wan's expression eased somewhat. Cultivators occasionally obtaining the legacies of their predecessors was a common stroke of fortune. As long as the cultivation art was not obviously evil, sects generally would not probe deeply and would instead welcome such developments. Han Li's voluntary offer to submit a copy of the art dispelled much of her suspicion.
"I see." Nangong Wan nodded. "Such an opportunity was your good fortune. We can discuss the copy of the cultivation art later. For now, come with me to see the sect master and report everything that happened today in detail."
"Yes, Elder," Han Li replied respectfully.
Just as the two were preparing to leave the ruins, hurried footsteps and shouts came from a distance.
"Grandfather! Martial Aunt Nangong! What happened in there?" Mo Caihuan's anxious voice drew nearer. The earlier explosion had clearly alarmed her.
When she rushed up to the ruined Pill Refinery and saw the devastation, with Nangong Wan and Han Li standing together, she froze as though struck by lightning. Her gaze fell upon the charred crater and the lingering bloody haze, and her small face instantly turned deathly pale.
"Grandfather... my grandfather..." Her voice trembled as she looked at Nangong Wan in disbelief, then at Han Li. Tears instantly welled in her large eyes, mingled with terror, bewilderment, and a trace of indescribable resentment.
Nangong Wan sighed softly and stepped forward, placing herself in front of Han Li. She said to Mo Caihuan, "Caihuan, your grandfather, Mo Juren, practiced evil techniques and attempted to possess Han Li's body. When his actions were exposed, he self-detonated out of fear of punishment and died. I witnessed this myself."
Mo Caihuan shuddered violently and staggered a step backward, tears spilling from her eyes. She looked at the expressionless Han Li, then at the solemn Nangong Wan. Suddenly, she screamed, turned, and fled with her face covered, weeping bitterly.
Han Li watched Mo Caihuan leave, his gaze indifferent and his heart barely stirred. Such was the cultivation world: cause and effect turned in an endless cycle, and retribution never failed. The cause Mo Juren had sown would now bear fruit for his granddaughter to endure.
"Let's go," Nangong Wan said quietly, taking the lead toward the sect master's hall.
Han Li followed close behind, his gaze passing over the familiar scenery of the Seven Mysteries Sect, his heart cold.
Mo Juren was gone, and a grave threat had finally been eliminated. Yet Nangong Wan's intervention, Mo Caihuan's resentment, and the "cult leader" Mo Juren had mentioned before his death all meant that fresh trouble was coming.
Still, that suited him perfectly.
Only the coming wind and rain could hone his edge. In the end, the Seven Mysteries Sect was merely a stepping stone on his path to greatness.
His sights were already set on the Blood-Colored Forbidden Land, where the geniuses of the entire Heavenly South would gather three years from now!
On the road ahead, he would kill without hesitation and press ever onward!
Before you continue