Chapter 851: Blatant

Ye Chen raised an eyebrow. "Can't even think of it no matter how hard you rack your brain?"

Xingchen Daoshen leaned against a rock, speaking leisurely and full of deeper meaning. "I heard you went to Huan Hai with the Xuan Ling Zhi Ti. I also heard you both suffered some kind of terrifying backlash, and that you were ambushed by Yaozu experts."

"What exactly are you trying to say?"

"Chu Xuan went to Huan Hai the day after you left." Xingchen Daoshen coughed dryly.

"The very next day?" Ye Chen was stunned on the spot.

"Absolutely true." Xingchen Daoshen shook his head. "According to what the land god and mountain spirit said, it was right on the day after you left Huan Hai."

"How is that possible?" Ye Chen frowned again. "Huan Hai is in Nan Chu, and if she was in Nan Chu, there's no reason she wouldn't return to Heng Yue."

"Then I don't know about that."

"Did they say what my master went to Huan Hai for?" Ye Chen asked again.

"She didn't do anything." Xingchen Daoshen scratched his ear. "She just stood outside Huan Hai, quietly staring at it for the whole night. They said it looked like she was searching for something."

"Then what?"

"Nothing after that." Xingchen Daoshen shrugged. "When the land god and mountain spirit woke up, your master was gone. I'd say she was probably tired and found a place to sleep."

"So, it's possible my master is still in Nan Chu," Ye Chen murmured.

"I don't know if she's in Nan Chu, but she's definitely not back in Heng Yue. She might have gone to Youming Zhi Gu." Xingchen Daoshen scratched his head. "Da Chu's five forbidden grounds and one great danger zone—she's already been to five, leaving only Youming Zhi Gu."

Hearing this, Ye Chen fell silent again, his mind shrouded in a fog of confusion.

"Boss, I've been having dreams lately. What should I do?" While Ye Chen was silent, Xingchen Daoshen rubbed his head.

"Get lost."

"I'm serious." Xingchen Daoshen jumped up immediately. "Boss, guess who I dreamed about? I miraculously dreamed of Shen Xuan Feng, and it nearly scared me to death. I—"

"You can head back to Bei Chu now." Ye Chen cut off Xingchen Daoshen's words, not wanting to listen to his nonsense.

"This works for me." Xingchen Daoshen chuckled and scampered down from the rock. "Little Yueyue, I'm coming."

"Chu Xuan, what exactly are you up to?" Ye Chen looked up at the hazy void and murmured to himself.

Even with his usual wisdom, he couldn't make sense of it. Chu Xuan's actions were strangely unconventional, and he couldn't find any reason to explain it all.

At some point, he withdrew his gaze, donned a black robe with a wave of his hand, and headed straight for his next target.

Ah!

Watching Ye Chen leave, Fu Ya in the grand hall of Tianxuan Gate, in front of the Huan Tian Water Curtain, couldn't help but sigh quietly. "Holy Lord, I only now understand what it means to be at the mercy of fate."

"I'm not interested in their romantic entanglements." Donghuang Taixin said leisurely from the side. "What interests me is the relationship between Ye Chen and Hong Chen, and between Xingchen Daoshen and Shen Xuan Feng."

"Why don't you use the Kunlun God Eye to check?" Fu Ya suggested tentatively, glancing at Donghuang Taixin.

"The Kunlun God Eye is suppressed by the ultimate Dao Emperor weapons, and besides, Hong Chen and Shen Xuan Feng are beyond Da Chu's six paths of reincarnation. Even if I activate the God Eye, it might not reveal their origins." Donghuang Taixin took a deep breath. "What we can be sure of is that they all have intricate connections to Ye Chen."

As they spoke, Ye Chen had already entered a vast ancient city.

The city was bustling, filled with cultivators coming and going. When Ye Chen entered, the places where cultivators gathered were buzzing with discussions, mostly about the major events of the past couple of days.

Ye Chen ignored all of it. His target was clear: the pavilion at the very center of the ancient city.

This pavilion was a branch of the Shixue Dian, and the third true successor of Shixue Dian, Sun Hao, was inside.

"Fellow Daoist, we're closed for the day." As soon as Ye Chen walked in, an elderly voice came from the pavilion.

"A guest is a guest—there's no reason to turn them away." Ye Chen made himself comfortable, sitting down and scanning the pavilion with his eyes.

The pavilion was like a shop, forming a vast space inside, selling all sorts of treasures that made his eyes light up with greed.

"Fellow Daoist, please leave." A middle-aged man in purple glanced at Ye Chen.

"I've been traveling all night and I'm tired. I'll rest here for a bit." Ye Chen casually held a wine gourd, drinking with great enjoyment.

"I see you're the type who won't drink when offered and insists on the hard way." The purple-clad middle-aged man snorted coldly and struck out with a palm.

Boom!

With a loud boom, the purple-clad middle-aged man was sent flying out of the pavilion, crashing through the wall of the opposite tavern and creating a huge hole.

"What's going on?" On the lively street, crowds of passing cultivators turned to look.

Inside the pavilion, Ye Chen remained seated, still sipping from his wine gourd as if nothing had happened.

"Fellow Daoist, you're being far too arrogant." A cold voice rang out immediately, and before the words faded, a ghostly figure appeared not far from Ye Chen. It was a gray-robed elder, followed by dozens of burly black-clad figures.

Ye Chen said nothing, just turned his head and scanned the group.

"Where's Sun Hao?" Not finding his target, Ye Chen fixed his gaze on the gray-robed elder.

In response, the gray-robed elder thrust a finger straight at Ye Chen, knowing he was here to cause trouble and wasting no words.

"Is Zhun Tian Jing that impressive?" Ye Chen sneered, suddenly rising. A streak of blood-red lightning tore from his sleeve, and a crimson killing sword flew out. His strike was fierce and dominant, with no defense at all.

Pfft!

Pfft!

Two sprays of blood splattered instantly. The gray-robed elder's finger pierced Ye Chen's chest, but Ye Chen's sword pierced straight through the elder's brow.

This happened in the blink of an eye. A full Zhun Tian Jing expert was killed head-on in an instant, something even the gray-robed elder himself hadn't expected.

After slaying the gray-robed elder, Ye Chen slowly advanced toward the dozens of figures, sword dripping with blood in hand.

Yet, the group from Shixue Dian—over a dozen Kong Ming Jing experts—collectively stepped back in fear. A Zhun Tian Jing had been killed in one move; just how strong was this masked white-haired youth?

No time to waste with you all!

Ye Chen took a sudden step forward, his form like a ghost, appearing and disappearing unpredictably. Each time he appeared, blood sprayed, and a head fell. The scene was incredibly bloody.

Where do you think you're going!

In the midst of the slaughter, Ye Chen abruptly turned and swept out a palm, forcing someone hiding in the space to reveal themselves. That person was none other than Sun Hao, the third true successor of Shixue Dian.

"The mighty third true successor of Shixue Dian—is this an attempt to escape?" Ye Chen looked at Sun Hao with interest.

"Ye Chen." Sun Hao scrambled to his feet, staring at Ye Chen with shock and fear. "You're still alive."

"Oh, wow! I didn't notice you have a Tian Yan." Ye Chen eyed Sun Hao's brow curiously, where a fine slit had opened, resembling a Tian Yan like the one belonging to that old Zhuge fellow.

"Shen Zhu." As Ye Chen marveled, Sun Hao's Tian Yan suddenly activated. Centered on his eye, space began to distort, and invisible ripples spread rapidly.

Ye Chen's body trembled at once, feeling as if he were bound by some mysterious force.

In the next moment, ancient runes crawled over Ye Chen's body, circulating and combining along certain paths, all carrying sealing power.

"A Tian Yan with sealing abilities—I like it." Ye Chen smiled faintly, and his left eye's Xian Lun activated, the wheel mark in his pupil slowly rotating.

Then, his Xian Lun Eye formed a black hole vortex, forcefully drawing in all the ancient runes on his body.

Pfft!

Sun Hao spat out blood immediately, suffering a terrifying backlash from his divine ability being broken.

"Any other tricks up your sleeve?" Ye Chen grinned at Sun Hao.

"Arrogant fool." Sun Hao roared and thrust his sword straight toward Ye Chen's brow.

Ye Chen didn't move, just watched Sun Hao with a growing smirk.

Just as the sword was about to strike, Ye Chen acted, pulling out the God-Striking Whip and smashing it squarely onto Sun Hao's crown.

Ah! So satisfying!

The once-fierce Sun Hao slammed into the ground with a thud, forming a perfect spread-eagle.

Ye Chen held back; Sun Hao was at Kong Ming Jing sixth level, while he was Zhun Tian Jing. If he'd used full force, Sun Hao would've been turned to pulp on the spot. Since he was here to capture, not kill, he didn't go for the kill.

"The Tian Yan is mine now." Ye Chen stepped forward and waved his hand to take Sun Hao's Tian Yan essence.

With that done, he didn't idle around. He scoured the entire pavilion, taking every valuable treasure without exception—practically emptying the place.

Once the looting was complete, he hoisted Sun Hao over his shoulder and walked out of the pavilion.

Outside, a dense crowd had gathered, and they all froze at the sight of Ye Chen, their expressions a mix of astonishment.

"It's him again." Someone muttered.

"If I'm not mistaken, he's carrying Sun Hao!" Another person swallowed hard.

"Is this outright kidnapping?" Many elder cultivators twitched their mouths, thinking they'd better keep a close eye on their juniors— who knows when this guy might snatch one away.

"Fellow Daoists, please pass along a message to Shixue Dian: Get the ransom ready. I'll come collect it when I have time!" As he spoke, Ye Chen pulled out a Kunxian Rope, tied it around one of Sun Hao's legs, and casually ascended into the void.

Below, the packed crowd collectively craned their necks upward.

Looking up at the sky, the scene was quite ridiculous: Sun Hao from Shixue Dian dangled like a frog, utterly comical.