The cultivator was about to resist again when he felt a pressure on his chest. Then, a powerful energy suppressed him, causing him to be unable to move. His head buzzed, and he felt a splitting headache. He tried his best to see the other party’s appearance, but he only saw a pair of deep and bright soul-stirring eyes. He felt goosebumps erupting on his flesh when the eyes looked at him. It was as though the eyes could kill. Intimidated by the pair of eyes, he hastily explained, “No, I, I don’t know…”
Lu Zhou’s gaze was cold, and his voice was even colder as he said, “I’ll give you one last chance…”
Then, Lu Zhou waved his right hand.
The other party flew toward Lu Zhou, looking as though he was taking the initiative to send his neck into Lu Zhou’s hand. He trembled violently. As long as Lu Zhou exerted force, his neck would snap.
Meanwhile, the other four cultivators gulped, looking as though they were facing a fearsome enemy. In the entire Great Void, who would dare to cause trouble in Sacred City? They did not dare to ponder too much on this question. In the past 100,000 years, almost no one had the courage to speak about or think about that person.
The cultivator’s face turned red from the lack of oxygen, and his vision began to swim.
Lu Zhou’s face remained expressionless. He did not feel nervous or afraid just because he was in Sacred City. He calmly waited for the answer from the prey in his hand. Seeing that the cultivator was silent, he tightened his grip slightly.
Upon seeing this, the four cultivators quickly waved their hands and cried out in unison, “No!”
One of them, in a bid to rescue his comrade’s life, pointed to the top of an oval-shaped building in the distance and said in a shaky voice, “T-there… That, that way…”
“Very good.”
Lu Zhou loosened his grip, and the cultivator fell to the ground with a loud thump.
“The death penalty can be avoided, but he still has to be punished.”
“Ah?”
The five cultivators were frightened out of their wits. They were about to call for help when they discovered that time seemed to be standing still. They heard a faint noise in their ears before a powerful energy burst forth into their minds, causing them to collapse to the ground immediately.
Lu Zhou waved his hand casually, sweeping the five men to a corner with a wave of energy. Then, he looked at the empty and quiet surroundings before he flew toward the most brilliant building in the city.
Lu Zhou’s altitude was not too high as he used the great power of teleportation consecutively until he arrived at the foot of the building.
The structure of the building was very strange. It was narrow at the bottom and wide at the top. The top was oval-shaped and looked like a pavilion.
Lu Zhou used the Heavenly Writing’s powers to sense his surroundings for hidden cultivators. It was very quiet, and no one was around.
‘Strange…’ Lu Zhou thought to himself as he flew up.
The size of the building was truly amazing. Lu Zhou felt the same way he did when he first visited the Great Abyss Land’s Pillar of Destruction. The difference was one came from nature while the other was man-made.
When Lu Zhou arrived at the top, he still did not sense anyone, making him even more puzzled.
‘Is there really not a single cultivator in here? Or is it a trap?’
Lu Zhou looked at the long silver steps that led to the entrance of the Sacred Temple. The golden plaque with the words ‘Sacred Temple’ hanging in the sky was dazzling.
Lu Zhou flashed and appeared at the entrance of the Sacred Temple. He sensed his surroundings again, confirming there was no trap before he stepped into the Sacred Temple.
The magnificent main hall of the Sacred Temple was enough to show Ming Xin’s status.
Lu Zhou looked at the throne in the main hall. A golden dragon with mysterious patterns could be seen behind the throne.
Lu Zhou walked forward with his hands on his back. When he reached the center of the hall, he came to a stop, looking as though he was deep in his thoughts.
It was extremely quiet. It was so quiet that Lu Zhou began to hear ringing noises in his ears. He confirmed again that there were no cultivators in his surroundings using the Heavenly Writing’s powers.
“Not here?” Lu Zhou frowned slightly. He had come here to see Ming Xin. Even if he could not see Ming Xin, he could keep an eye on Ming Xin to make sure Ming Xin could not make a move against his disciples or continue with his schemes. However, it seemed like his plan had failed. An ominous feeling rose in his heart as he wondered if Ming Xin had gone to the Great Abyss Land.
However, after thinking about it for another moment, he thought that was unlikely. Not all of his disciples had comprehended the Great Dao yet. His fourth disciple, Mingshi Yin, had deliberately delayed comprehending the Great Dao. It did not make sense for Ming Xin to make a move now.
‘Is it possible that Ming Xin’s plan doesn’t need all ten of them to comprehend the Great Dao?’ Lu Zhou could not help but feel slightly worried. Up until now, they had only speculated about Ming Xin’s plan and had not really confirmed anything. With this, the possibility of making mistakes was high.
Thinking that his disciples might be in danger, Lu Zhou turned around and appeared outside the hall in just a flash.
Primal Qi surged as one figure multiplied into ten, flashing around the Sacred Temple. After ten breaths, he confirmed that there was no one around. After that, he quickly contacted Si Wuya through a talisman.
When Si Wuya saw where Lu Zhou was, he quickly said, “Master, what are your orders?”
Lu Zhou said, “Ming Xin isn’t here. You have to be careful. If necessary, just give up on comprehending the Great Dao in the Great Abyss Land.”
Si Wuya frowned in confusion. “He’s not in the temple? Emperor Shang Zhang just received news that the pillar in the Great Abyss Land has further cracked, causing the upper core to crack as well. If we don’t comprehend the Great Dao now, we might not have a chance again…”
Lu Zhou frowned. “Investigate the cause of the cracks of the pillar at the Great Abyss Land.”
“Don’t worry, master. I don’t think Ming Xin will come to the Great Abyss Land. Even if he does, we have the White Emperor, the Azure Emperor, and Emperor Shang Zhang to deal with him. Even if he’s powerful, he’ll still think twice about making a move,” Si Wuya said.
A voice rang from the side on Si Wuya’s end.
“There’s also me…”
Si Wuya smiled and said, “Your Majesty, the Scarlet Emperor.”
Chi Biaonu walked into the frame with his hands on his back. He looked at Lu Zhou and said, “Unholy One, to be honest, I’m not sure how I feel about you. However, for the sake of the world, I’ll stand by you this time. Don’t let me down.”
With Chi Biaonu’s presence, the safety of Lu Zhou’s disciples had also increased.
Lu Zhou was about to speak when he sensed the sudden fluctuations in his surroundings. He quickly waved his sleeve, cutting off the projection.
…
On the other side, Chi Biaonu said with an unhappy expression, “Does he dislike me that much?”
Si Wuya smiled and said, “My master is now in Sacred City. Something must have happened for my master to cut off the communication. Senior, please don’t take offense.”
Chi Biaonu nodded. “That’s more like it.”
At this time, Ling Weiyang said, “Since it’s urgent, let’s not waste time. Let’s head to the Great Abyss Land. I’m also curious how far ten of you will go after comprehending the Great Dao.”
“Thank you, seniors,” Si Wuya said with a bow.
“Let’s go!”
…
At the same time, Lu Zhou flashed to the foot of the silver stairs. He heard faint and strange swooshing noises, and he quickly swept his blue eyes around. Then, he saw the strange flow of the Primal Qi around the Sacred Temple, and he noticed that the flow seemed to be getting faster and faster as well.
Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!
Suddenly, the Primal Qi formed one seal after another that weaved into a golden painting in the sky.
Following that, Lu Zhou heard a greeting.
“Greetings, my honorable teacher.”
Lu Zhou turned around. His eyes were like torches as he looked at the figure hovering about the Sacred Temple. Due to the backlight, the other party’s appearance was hidden. Then, he asked tonelessly, “Where’s Ming Xin?”
“His Majesty, the Great Emperor, has something important to attend to today so he won’t be meeting you. Before His Majesty left, he had predicted your visit so he ordered me to welcome you personally.”
Although the other party’s expression was hidden and his voice sounded calm, Lu Zhou could still sense a hint of nervousness. With the greeting and this, it was not difficult for him to figure out the other party’s identity.
“Wen Ruqing.”
When Lu Zhou called out Wen Ruqing’s name, Wen Ruqing’s body trembled involuntarily. After he adjusted his expression, he said, “It’s been 100,000 years, and yet, you still recognized your student so quickly.”
Lu Zhou said, “Zui Can and Hua Zhenghong have been killed by me for betraying the sect and their teacher. Guan Jiu has always been a coward and is afraid of me. Apart from you, Wen Ruqing, who else could it be?”
Wen Ru Qing chuckled before he said, “Teacher, you’re wrong. I’m also… afraid of you.” His tone seemed a little nostalgic as he continued to say, “Even His Majesty, the Great Emperor, doesn’t dare to confront you directly. What can I do?”
Lu Zhou scoffed lightly. “If that’s the case, why did you show yourself?”
“I don’t have a choice, I don’t have a choice…” Wen Ruqing said. His voice was like the strings of a zither, and it sounded as though it was on the verge of breaking.
Lu Zhou’s gaze turned piercing as he asked, “The person I’m looking for today is Ming Xin. Where is he?”
Wen Ruqing shook his head and said, “Teacher, you better give up. Great Emperor Ming Xin has said that he won’t see you… forever…”
Lu Zhou asked in a low voice, “Do you think that’s possible?”
Wen Ruqing was stunned; he did not know how to answer this question. Moreover, he did not know what Ming Xin was thinking or planning. He did not know why Ming Xin was unwilling to face the Unholy One directly and disdained to make a move.
After thinking for a while, Wen Ruqing said with a smile, “Regardless, you shouldn’t have come to the Sacred Temple today. No one dares to cause trouble in the Sacred City for a reason. You’re not an exception, teacher.”
The Primal Qi continued forming seals after seals.
At this time, Wen Ruqing lowered his altitude, revealing his face.
Just like 100,000 years ago, Lu Zhou thought that Wen Ruqing’s appearance did not change.
Scenes after scenes from the past appeared in Lu Zhou’s mind. At that time, Wen Ruqing was still young and innocent. Under everyone’s recommendation, he joined Grand Mystic Mountain and cultivated Taoist techniques. He was diligent in his cultivation, persisting day after day without stopping. He would practice his swordsmanship at the foot of the mountain and meditate in the training hall every day. When there was a big event, he would go to the main hall of Grand Mystic Mountain to pay his respect. He would kneel three times and kowtow nine times without fail every single time.
Alas, time continued to pass as the sun and the moon took turns shining down on the land. With the passage of time, people’s hearts changed as well.
Lu Zhou did not expect the once innocent Wen Ruqing would turn out like that. He dismissed the memories in his mind and asked expressionlessly, “Are you going to kill your teacher?”
