Silence fell once more in the quiet room.
Looking at the young man in the blue robe who was only seventeen or eighteen years old, Wen Jiao felt a surge of emotion.
He witnessed the brutal deaths of his parents at a young age, mistook a traitor for his father, and slept every night with the weight of his blood feud on his shoulders. Now, he is being used as a medicinal ingredient for pigs raised in captivity, and his death is imminent.
How tragic.
How utterly hopeless.
The cruelty and darkness of the cultivation world were laid bare at this moment.
Chu Yunfei's expression remained unchanged as he lightly tapped his fingertips on the table.
"Why are you so sure I can kill Ling Zhantian?"
"He now possesses three Dao Profound and is protected by a city-protecting formation. With my current strength, I can't even force my way into the palace."
Ling Chengxuan straightened up, a stunning smile playing on his lips.
"Because Brother Chu is an exception."
" The Cangwu Mountain Range, Jingyuan Hall, the desolate mountains of the imperial city, the Jade Firmament Sect..."
"In just a few short months, Brother Chu has gone from a mere body-refining martial artist to traversing the Divine Sea, slaying powerful enemies one after another. Such a monstrous speed, defying the laws of nature, is unprecedented throughout history."
Ling Chengxuan's gaze was intense. "As long as my sister is still in the palace, Brother Chu will never back down an inch. You and Ling Zhantian will inevitably clash sooner or later."
"What you lack is simply... time."
Chu Yunfei's eyes flickered slightly.
The seemingly frail third prince before us possesses an extremely terrifying intellect and insight.
Chu Yunfei remained noncommittal, then abruptly changed the subject.
"Tell me about the Blood Baleful Intent Tower."
"Since you've been colluding with them for so many years under the guise of the Young Master, how much do you actually know about this force?"
Upon hearing the words "Blood Baleful Intent Tower," Ling Chengxuan's bitter smile vanished, replaced by extreme solemnity.
He didn't speak immediately, but instead took out a special jade slip that was completely black and emitted a faint light from his storage ring, and solemnly pushed it in front of Chu Yunfei.
"Brother Chu, this jade slip contains a list of all the high-ranking members of sects and royal spies within the Eastern Continent who have been secretly infiltrated by the Blood Baleful Intent Tower."
Ling Chengxuan took a deep breath and uttered a startling statement:
"But I must remind Brother Chu that the Blood Baleful Intent Tower's terror... far exceeds what people can imagine."
"There are at least five Dao Mysterious Realm Deputy Tower Masters who have appeared in the Eastern Continent alone."
"I know of more than thirty masked assassins at the Divine Sea Realm, and the number of assassins at the Heavenly Origin Realm and lower ranks is countless."
boom!
Wen Jiaojiao trembled violently, her beautiful eyes widened, and she exclaimed in horror, "Five Dao Mysterious Realm Deputy Tower Masters? More than thirty Late Divine Sea Realm?!"
How is that possible?
Looking across the entire Eastern Continent, among all the top-tier sects, there are only one or two Dao Mysterious Realm ancestors on the surface.
A hidden assassin organization actually possesses five Dao Mysterious Realm?
However, Ling Chengxuan's next words were like a heavy hammer blow, completely shattering Wen Jiao's rationality.
"Even the deputy head of the building is like this..."
Ling Chengxuan's voice was extremely low, even carrying a hint of uncontrollable trembling:
"That elusive Blood Baleful Intent Tower Master... just recently broke through his shackles and entered... the Dao Mysterious Realm Fourth Layer."
"The number one person in the Eastern Continent today."
"Without exception!"
hiss...!
The sound of gasps for air could be clearly heard in the quiet room.
Wen Jiao's face was deathly pale, and she stopped breathing.
Dao Mysterious Realm Fourth Layer.
The middle period of Dao Profound.
Even someone as inexperienced as her clearly understood the immense, chasm-like gap between the Early Dao Mysterious Realm.
The highest realm currently recognized in the entire Eastern Continent is only the Dao Mysterious Realm Third Layer.
For many years, no one has been able to break through this Dao Profound.
But now, the Blood Baleful Intent Tower Master has actually overcome that?!
what does that mean?
This means that, if this sect leader so desires, he alone could easily sweep aside any first-rate sect in the Eastern Continent.
Chu Yunfei's pupils also contracted slightly.
Dao Mysterious Fourth Stage...
No wonder the purple-faced deputy tower master moved freely and acted recklessly above the palace that day.
It turns out there was a monster standing behind them that had broken through the barrier.
"Such talent..."
Chu Yunfei narrowed his eyes, a chill creeping into his heart.
To be able to break through Dao Profound the middle stage of Dao Xuan in a remote region where the upper limit is only the early stage of Dao Profound, this person's foundation and methods are definitely extraordinary, and it is even very likely that he can cross the minor realm to fight against the Dao Xuan Fifth Layer Realm.
"Since the Blood Baleful Intent Tower possesses the power to sweep away everything..."
Chu Yunfei tapped his index finger lightly on the table and calmly pressed, "Then why didn't they just raze the palace to the ground? Why did they go to all this trouble to use me to stir up chaos in the competition?"
Ling Chengxuan shook his head and smiled bitterly.
"Firstly, the Blood Baleful Intent Tower Master was severely injured twenty years ago and only recently emerged from seclusion to break through to a higher level."
Secondly... Ling Zhantian is hiding his true intentions too well.
" The Great Qian Imperial Family is not as small as it appears, with only a few retainers. Ling Zhantian is secretly cultivating a force, but no one outside knows about it, and he rarely reveals it."
"Even more fatal is that the Nine Dragons Heaven-Locking Grand Formation of the Imperial City has drawn upon the ten-thousand-year fortune of the Great Qian Dynasty and its endless earth veins. As long as Ling Zhantian remains within the Imperial City's formation, even if Dao Mysterious Fourth Stage cultivator were to personally arrive and attempt to break through, he would inevitably pay an unbearable and devastating price."
Ling Chengxuan paused, then looked at Chu Yunfei with a complicated expression:
"My original plan was to use Brother Chu's status as the prince consort to ignite conflict among the younger generation of various sects, forcing the royal family and the high-level combat forces of the seven sects to intervene, thus depleting each other's resources."
"Once both sides are severely weakened, the Blood Baleful Intent Tower will reap the benefits and completely wipe out the Great Qian."
Chu Yunfei sneered.
"Unfortunately, despite all your calculations, you didn't anticipate that I could cure the Soul-Devouring Nether Poison, nor did you foresee that Ling Zhantian coveted the essence within me and left the city prematurely to assassinate me, thus thwarting your plans."
Ling Chengxuan looked embarrassed, but there was no trace of shame or anger in his eyes as he readily admitted it.
"Indeed, Brother Chu is a variable; he has completely shattered this game."
"Later, through the battle outside the city, I deduced that Ling Zhantian had awakened. Knowing that the situation was hopeless, I completely severed all ties with the Blood Baleful Intent Tower."
"I have no idea how they are planning for the competition now."
"All I know is that the Blood Baleful Intent Tower's first step was to destroy the Great Qian, and the second step... seems to be related to a large formation..."
Chu Yunfei's eyes flickered slightly, and a flash of lightning suddenly struck his mind.
" The Myriad Spirits Blood Rite?"
Ling Chengxuan abruptly raised his head, his face filled with astonishment and shock. "Brother Chu, how do you know about this formation?!"
Even he only heard it by chance from a deputy building owner.
Chu Yunfei had only recently arrived in the capital; how could he have known this?
Chu Yunfei didn't explain, but simply picked up his teacup and said, "I found out by chance."
Ling Chengxuan gave Chu Yunfei a deep look, but didn't ask any further questions.
There were so many mysteries surrounding this person that even Ling Zhantian and the Blood Baleful Intent Tower working together might not be able to truly control his life or death.
Ling Chengxuan slowly stood up and smoothed out the wrinkles on his blue robe.
"Brother Chu, everything I know is here."
"I have offended you and plotted against you in the past, but considering that I have not indiscriminately killed innocent people, and that I have spoken frankly today..."
Ling Chengxuan raised his bloodshot eyes, filled with a death wish, and hissed, "If Brother Chu ever razes the palace to the ground, I hope you can avenge me... and demand this blood debt of annihilation from that beast!"
After speaking, Ling Chengxuan bowed to Chu Yunfei.
Chu Yunfei sat in the chair, looking at him indifferently.
" Ling Zhantian, I will kill him."
"But I killed him not to avenge you, nor for the sake of justice for your entire clan."
"It was he who touched my woman, who had thoughts he shouldn't have had."
"He deserves to die, that's all."
Chu Yunfei raised his eyelids, a hint of inquiry flashing in his eyes. "However... there is something I don't understand."
"Since you know how important Xueyao is to me, and you know that even if you hadn't come to deliver the message, Ling Zhantian and I would eventually have a battle, why did you still risk your life to come here?"
"Why don't you even use this as leverage to force me to shelter you and let you live a miserable life within the Pill Pavilion?"
Upon hearing these words...
This young man, who had lived through countless conspiracies and bloodshed since childhood, surprisingly showed a relieved smile on his face.
"Stay in the Pill Pavilion?"
Ling Chengxuan shook his head with a bitter smile, "How many more days can I live by merely eking out a living in the Pill Pavilion?"
"Indeed, if I hadn't come, I could have lived a little longer, and I might even have gambled on Brother Chu suddenly storming into the palace and killing Ling Zhantian without his knowledge."
The boy turned his head and looked out the window at the gloomy sky above the imperial city, a complex and inexplicable longing rising in his eyes.
"But what if I don't come..."
"Brother Chu would not have known this cruel truth beforehand."
"By the time Brother Chu truly discovers this, perhaps not only will I be dead, but even my imperial sister... will have already turned into cold ashes beneath that great formation."
He got up, pushed open the door, and murmured softly, his back to the warm sun in the courtyard.
Brother Chu...
"She was the only one in this filthy palace who ever genuinely called me 'Third Imperial Brother'."
"I... don't want her to die."