After a series of flickers, Xu Changxing arrived at the location indicated by that wisp of aura.
It was a seemingly unremarkable mountain valley.
Deep within the valley, a decrepit Avatar Realm cultivator sat cross-legged.
The old man was not cultivating, but staring blankly into the distance.
Where his gaze fell stood a boy of only fifteen or sixteen.
"Is this... possession?"
Xu Changxing could tell at a glance that the Spirit Transformation Realm old man's soul was somewhat out of sync with his body.
Clearly, the reason he had survived to this day was that he had performed possession.
Judging by these circumstances, that youth should be the old man's next target for possession.
Yet judging by the state the old man displayed, he did not seem eager to act.
Xu Changxing did not intend to look deeper into this. After all, he had not come here to punish evil and champion good.
He had only come to find the cause of that battle all those years ago.
With a flicker, Xu Changxing appeared before the old man.
Under the old man's astonished gaze, Xu Changxing had already pressed a finger against his forehead.
Only after subduing the old man's divine soul with Daoist arts did Xu Changxing ask:
"Did you take part in the battle that destroyed Demon-Suppressing Mountain back then?"
The old man nodded blankly. "Yes!"
Xu Changxing continued, "Then do you know what caused that battle?"
Still wooden-faced, the old man said, "Back then, Demon-Suppressing Mountain monopolized all the heavenly materials and earthly treasures in this world, sealing off every rogue cultivator's path to advancement.
"Only cultivators willing to be enslaved by them could earn the right to advance.
"In the beginning, Demon-Suppressing Mountain was powerful.
"The rogue cultivators of my grandmaster's generation dared not voice