Chapter 1057: Far Away on the Horizon, Close Before the Eyes

"Are you looking for that practitioner of the Void-Stream Lightning Force?"

The Old Man of Heavenly Secrets scratched his scalp, revealing dirt under his fingernail.

Venerable Heart-Demon's eyelid twitched.

He took a small step back and said, "The Old Man of Heavenly Secrets truly has uncanny foresight."

The Old Man of Heavenly Secrets grinned, revealing a gap where his front tooth was missing, and said, "Does this even need calculation? You're scouring the entire Grand Prefecture of Taicang for a Void-Stream Lightning Force practitioner; even a three-year-old knows that."

Venerable Heart-Demon's face showed a hint of embarrassment: "That practitioner is elusive and unpredictable. Finding him is extremely difficult. Today, I've shamelessly come to ask for your help in locating him."

The Old Man of Heavenly Secrets shook his head, saying, "What if I don't help?"

Venerable Heart-Demon's eyes glinted with a profound look, and he smiled faintly: "Since you claim to know everything in the world, you should have known I'd come looking for you. Yet you remained here, not leaving, which means you intended to wait for me. Just tell me what you want in exchange for your help."

The Old Man of Heavenly Secrets chuckled. He didn't deny it. With his ability to intercept heavenly secrets, no one could find him if he didn't want to be found.

The Old Man of Heavenly Secrets didn't beat around the bush; he pointed to the ancient millennium city ahead and said, "I want to go in there for a trip. I'll need the essence of thunder for protection. I trust you won't be stingy, will you?"

The essence of thunder?

Venerable Heart-Demon's expression subtly changed, and he said in a deep voice, "Isn't your asking price a bit too high? This was bestowed upon me by the Young Emperor, to help me overcome the tribulation of Heaven and Man. How could I just give it to you?"

He had expected that the Old Man of Heavenly Secrets would ask for a considerable sum. However, he hadn't anticipated that the Old Man would demand the most precious item he possessed.

The Old Man of Heavenly Secrets scoffed: "Do you think it's so easy for me to divine? Intercepting heavenly secrets is defying the Heavenly Dao, and it will inevitably bring down divine retribution. Moreover, helping you find an innocent person is like assisting a tyrant in his evil deeds. The consequences of divine retribution will be even more severe. If I didn't need to see the Sage of Misfortune to confirm something, I wouldn't help you even if you offered ten essences of thunder."

This was also why Venerable Heart-Demon had never been able to find the Old Man of Heavenly Secrets before. Initially, the Old Man of Heavenly Secrets had been unwilling to help him. The Young Emperor, having cultivated the Void-Stream Lightning Force himself, forbade anyone else from doing so and decreed that all other practitioners be eradicated. How tyrannical was that? Helping them would be akin to assisting a tyrant in his evil deeds, which the Heavenly Dao would surely not tolerate.

However, he had no choice but to enter that perilous place. And the essences of thunder and fire were among the few things that could withstand the black mist and the skeletons of venerables. That was why he made an exception and allowed Venerable Heart-Demon to find him.

Venerable Heart-Demon frowned, lost in thought. He was utterly unwilling to hand over the essence of thunder. However, time waited for no one. The Young Emperor had only given him two more months. If he failed to find the person, the Young Emperor would surely cross realms to kill him.

Gritting his teeth, he took out a thumb-sized thunder imprint and said, "Here you go! You must help me find this person!"

The Old Man of Heavenly Secrets swept his sleeve, accepting the essence of thunder. A smile spread across his dirty face: "Don't worry, in the Grand Prefecture of Taicang, there are few people I can't divine."

He immediately closed his eyes and began divining, his fingers forming intricate gestures. A faint, ethereal, profound aura emanated from the Old Man of Heavenly Secrets' body and ascended into the sky.

Venerable Heart-Demon looked up. His pupils contracted as he discovered that the boundless sky had actually split open! The crack rapidly expanded, and soon, it formed a colossal eye spanning across the heavens. A moon-like eyeball slowly rotated. It seemed like the eye of the heavens, gazing down upon the land of Taicang.

Such a miraculous sight filled Venerable Heart-Demon with silent awe. Who exactly was this Old Man of Heavenly Secrets?

A few breaths later, the Old Man of Heavenly Secrets opened his eyes, and a peculiar look flickered in their depths.

Venerable Heart-Demon asked, puzzled, "You couldn't find him?"

The Old Man of Heavenly Secrets shook his head, his expression calm: "I found him. What's strange is that he has heavenly secrets obscuring him, so I couldn't discern his appearance. Furthermore, there are two distinct streams of heavenly secrets. It's truly odd that there's such a peculiar person in the Grand Prefecture of Taicang. Strange, indeed."

He stroked his beard, a hint of surprise on his face. "Venerable Heart-Demon, I advise you and your Young Emperor to give up on this. I've seen people whose fates are obscured, but for two streams of heavenly secrets to conceal him is truly rare. There's an extraordinary person or an extraordinary item by his side. It would be best if you didn't provoke him further."

Venerable Heart-Demon's brows furrowed deeply. Someone whose fate is obscured?

He said in a deep voice, "What if I insist on killing him?"

The Old Man of Heavenly Secrets looked up at the sky and murmured, "Heaven's ways are unpredictable, and human fortunes are fleeting. You can only pray that your luck is strong enough to withstand the backlash from those two heavenly secrets."

Venerable Heart-Demon's gaze flickered. He didn't believe in such vague and ethereal concepts. The martial world relies on strength, not some abstract luck!

"Then tell me his identity."

The Old Man of Heavenly Secrets nodded: "Alright. I can't see his appearance, nor can I glimpse his name or confirm his exact location."

Venerable Heart-Demon's face turned cold: "Then aren't you just stating the obvious?" Knowing nothing was no better than the list of sects he already held.

However, a glint of light flashed in the Old Man of Heavenly Secrets' eyes, and he said, "I don't know, but you do. He is both far away in the sky and right before your eyes."

With that said, he clutched the essence of thunder, patted the large green ox's flank, and stepped into the boundless black mist.

Venerable Heart-Demon's heart jolted, and his old eyes contracted sharply: "I know his name? Or is he someone close to me? That's impossible; everyone by my side has been inspected, overtly or covertly. No one could have been missed."

He closed his eyes, and his mind raced through all his experiences from the moment he entered the Grand Prefecture of Taicang until now, like a fleeting glimpse of flowers on horseback. The faces of people he had met flashed one by one in his mind.

Suddenly, the scene in his mind froze at the end of the Ancient Path to Ascension. His eyes snapped open, and a deep gasp escaped his lips: "Jiang Fan! My registered disciple! The one whose name I know and who is both far away and right by my side! And what's more, coincidentally, he was exhausted that day, so I didn't test him! Furthermore, someone had used Void-Stream Fire Force on the Ancient Path to Ascension that very day!"

This registered disciple, whom he had completely forgotten and never thought of again, was now highly suspicious! It had to be him!

Venerable Heart-Demon laughed in fury, his eyes brimming with murderous intent: "No wonder that day, he refused to become my disciple. So he was worried that being by my side would expose his Void-Stream Lightning Force! Heh heh! Hahahahaha!"

Suddenly, he stomped his foot on the ground. Half a mountain instantly exploded! Profound rage appeared on his aged face: "To think he managed to fool me right under my nose! And even let me take him as a registered disciple! You deserve to die ten thousand deaths!"

The person he had so desperately sought had played him for a fool. This completely enraged Venerable Heart-Demon!

Filled with boundless fury, his gaze swept towards the direction of the mainland. "Heavenly Secret Pavilion, Jiang Fan, was it? Your doomsday has arrived!"