Chapter 1209: The Bronze Mask's Demand

"No! If a Sage Clan were involved, they would act openly and directly crush me; there would be no need for stealth..." After the initial shock, the bronze-masked figure frowned, realizing the discrepancy.

The Zhang Clan of the Sages, renowned as the foremost clan on the Master Teacher Continent, possesses countless experts. If they truly knew the secret of this painting, they would have long since come for me and effortlessly eliminated me; there would be no need for concealment. Although the Master Teacher Pavilion oversees most matters and emphasizes rules, in the face of true power, rules can also be overridden. The Zhang Clan possesses precisely this kind of overwhelming power.

"What I saw was a beauty bathing, plain and simple..." Seeing the other party's disbelief, Zhang Xuan shook his head, "If you really don't believe me, you can ask around. I, Zhang Xuan, have always had an excellent reputation..."

"Enough! I brought you here because I want this painting restored!" Knowing that dwelling on this issue would be endless and waste a lot of time, the bronze-masked figure snorted coldly. Even though new content had been added to the original painting, it could still be restored if the calligrapher and painter's skill was sufficient. After all, the ink was of different eras; with enough skill, it shouldn't be difficult. The person before him could easily break the seal, accomplishing something even he and President Meng Chong couldn't. In the art of calligraphy and painting, this individual had reached the highest level in Qingyuan Empire, on par with the venerable Wu Bei of old. If he were to undertake the task, the chances of success would be extremely high.

Zhang Xuan continued to shake his head, "It's not that I don't want to, but rather, I can't..."

"Can't?" The bronze-masked figure sneered, eyes glinting with killing intent. "You still don't seem to grasp your situation! What I've brought here is your soul... meaning... your physical body is already dead. You are currently a dead person!"

"A dead person?" Zhang Xuan's eyes widened in horror. "I'm dead?" He glanced down, saw his translucent body, then his vision blurred, and he fainted from fright.

"..." Seeing the actions of the fellow before him, the bronze-masked figure clutched his hair, a hint of madness in his demeanor. He had extracted the other party's soul with a secret technique; anyone with a functioning mind would surely know! Yet, when he mentioned it, the fellow deliberately feigned shock, then pretended to faint... "Brother, you're a soul! Can a soul even faint?" His soul was confined, unable to escape or dissipate, and his physical body was dead... Under normal circumstances, shouldn't he be terrified, dare not speak much, and meekly follow orders? What was with this attitude?

"Stop pretending. On this altar, you can't even faint, let alone die..." Fuming, wishing he could just palm the fellow to death, the bronze-masked figure gritted his teeth.

"I can't faint, huh..." Zhang Xuan sat up with a sigh of regret. "Well, then, I won't faint for now. However, what you asked, I truly cannot do!" The painting concealed a projection of Master Kong, masked by the 'Beauty Bathing' image. It was destined not to be revealed, and restoring it was absolutely impossible.

Seeing that this fellow had indeed been feigning unconsciousness without an ounce of shame, the bronze-masked figure was so enraged he felt he might explode, but he forcefully suppressed it. His eyes narrowed, and his voice became sinister and cold: "Don't think that just because you're a soul, I can't punish you! Since I could apprehend you from another place and bring you here, I naturally know some potent secret techniques that can make you wish you were dead but unable to die!"

"I'm already dead anyway; you might as well just kill me!" With a casual lift of his eyelids, Zhang Xuan said languidly.

"You..." His chest heaved, and the bronze-masked figure's breathing grew ragged, whether from anger or suppression. "Since you refuse to be sensible, I will employ the Soul-Searching Art. After a soul search, your spirit will scatter, and you will be utterly annihilated!"

Swish! Without waiting for Zhang Xuan's reply, he extended his palm in mid-air and unleashed a crushing force.

"That's... a Vicious Soul Master's technique!" Seeing his movement, Zhang Xuan's eyes gleamed. He had willingly allowed himself to be apprehended this time, wanting to see who this fellow truly was and what he intended. He hadn't expected the other party to directly employ a Vicious Soul Master's technique...

Buzz! Despite his inner shock, Zhang Xuan did not resist the incoming force, allowing it to enter his mind. He realized the moment it was unleashed that it wasn't the Soul-Searching Art but a Soul-Probing Art. The Soul-Searching Art was violent; once used, it could indeed extract information from the target's mind but would also damage the soul, ultimately leading to its dissipation or even death. The Soul-Probing Art, however, was different; it could uncover the desired secrets without harming the target. It seemed this fellow still hoped he could help restore the painting and dared not kill him directly.

"Let's see what you really know!" With a cold shout, the bronze-masked figure's consciousness immediately roamed through Zhang Xuan's mind, quickly uncovering some desired information.

"He really doesn't know the secret beneath the seal..." The more he probed, the tighter his brow furrowed. Through the soul probe, he discerned that the other party genuinely knew nothing about the content beneath the seal. In other words, the 'Beauty Bathing' image likely had nothing to do with him! Furthermore, the probe revealed that the other party was merely straightforward, had an excellent reputation, and was an honest and talented Master Teacher.

"It seems I was wrong..." After confirming this, the bronze-masked figure's consciousness retreated. He had thought this fellow modified the painting, but now it seemed that wasn't the case. However... since he had already captured him, he had to make him find a way to restore the original content. Otherwise, years of effort would be wasted.

"Indeed, he is a Vicious Soul Master, and he has a close relationship with Tian Qing and others..." As the other party's consciousness entered his sea of consciousness, Zhang Xuan was also subtly probing him. However, this wisp of consciousness was too small and contained little information. Otherwise, the other party's motives and intentions would have been fully revealed. His understanding of vicious souls far surpassed the other party's, so setting up a false facade to deceive him was easy. Through his investigation, it seemed King Zhongqing and Tian Qing both had some close connection to him. It was precisely because of this that Tian Qing dared to risk luring Master Wu and the others, while he secretly hid here and apprehended Zhang Xuan's soul.

"I originally wanted to perform a soul search, but if I did that, you would certainly die, and then I would truly have nothing... So, I'll give you two choices!" Knowing that the person before him was indeed ignorant, the bronze-masked figure snorted. "First, help me restore the painting. If you succeed, not only will I not kill you, but I can also bring you back to life, even stronger than you are now!"

"Second, I perform a soul search, and you vanish completely from this world! To be frank, while you possess extensive knowledge of calligraphy and painting, there are countless artists of your caliber across the continent. If you refuse, I will eventually find someone else to restore the content."

"Bring me back to life?" Zhang Xuan asked, puzzled.

"Precisely!" With a flick of his wrist, the bronze-masked figure produced a physical body before them. "This is a Soulless Golden Figurine. As long as you agree to the first condition, I can let your soul temporarily inhabit it. This way, you'll have a physical body again and can live and exist like a normal person!"

"A Soulless Golden Figurine..." The Soulless Golden Figurine the other party possessed was far superior to any Zhang Xuan had seen before. It appeared to have been refined from the physical body of a peak Primordial Spirit realm expert. Not only that, the crafting technique was incredibly refined, making it indistinguishable from a real person; no flaws could be seen. It could be said that if a soul truly entered it, it would be just like coming back to life. Even an ordinary 7-star Master Teacher would likely find it difficult to detect anything amiss.

"As a Master Teacher, even if you're unfamiliar with the Vicious Soul Master profession, you must have heard of Soulless Golden Figurines, right? Not only can they drastically increase your strength, but they can also allow you to change your identity and become a person of high status and power!" Seeing his shock, the bronze-masked figure sneered.

"Become a person of high status and power? Could it be... that Tian Qing and King Zhongqing are both Soulless Golden Figurines?" Recalling something, Zhang Xuan's pupils contracted.

For Tian Qing to become a Vice Hall Master of the Master Teacher Pavilion, his background must have been impeccable, and his past experiences certainly clean. Could his betrayal of humanity be because he was refined into a Soulless Golden Figurine, and then another soul was forcefully injected into him? And King Zhongqing... If that were truly the case, it would be terrifying. A dignified Soulless Golden Figurine becoming a Vice Hall Master without anyone noticing... The crucial point was that these two only exposed themselves because they wanted to kill him. So, how many more remained unexposed? A secret technique to extract a soul, then replace it with another soul entering the body... No wonder the Master Teacher Pavilion had ruthlessly suppressed Vicious Soul Masters in the past; this single ability alone was too terrifying! Because if it were widely used, you would never know whether those around you were friends or foes.

"King Zhongqing is not a Soulless Golden Figurine. Such things are not easily refined!" The bronze-masked figure shook his head.

"He isn't?"

"He is merely a toy loyal to me!" the bronze-masked figure snorted.

"Then... what about Tian Qing?" Zhang Xuan continued to gaze at him.

"Tian Qing?" The bronze-masked figure scoffed, not answering directly, but instead looked at Zhang Xuan. "Do you want to know what I look like under this mask?"

"Yes!" Zhang Xuan nodded. "If I knew who you truly are, I might be able to trust your words and agree to your conditions! Otherwise, I'm already dead anyway, so there's no need for me to help the person who killed me!"

He had always been curious about this bronze-masked figure. However, since meeting him, the fellow had never used any martial arts techniques. The Soul-Probing Art just now was a technique unique to soul masters, not a martial art. Because of this, no book had formed in his mind about the bronze-masked figure, so he didn't know who he truly was. It would naturally be best if he could remove his mask.

"I conceal my appearance simply because I don't want others to discover me. You can't escape now, and your life or death is solely at my whim, so there's no harm in letting you see..." With a cold sneer, the bronze-masked figure slowly reached up and removed the mask from his face. The other party's soul was under his control; his life and death rested entirely on his command. He had no fear of any resistance, so revealing his true face was inconsequential.

As the mask came off, Zhang Xuan quickly looked over. With just a glance, his pupils contracted, his face filled with utter disbelief. "How... how could it be you?"