The terrible pain left Chu Feng not daring to place any more of his body into the icy bathtub. He even had to retract his leg a little before he could withstand it.

  What he had to endure wasn’t just pain but the pressure of the fluid too.

  As the golden fluid flowed into his bones, he felt the corrosion piercing right into his soul.

  He knew that he had to take it slowly, or else he might just lose his life.

  “It’s not a problem. I can take it,” Chu Feng forced out a smile and said.

  However, it didn’t console Zi Ling at all. It only made her cry even harder.

  The golden fluid formed a beautiful golden pattern upon seeping into Chu Feng’s bones, but Zi Ling knew that he was put being through unbearable torture.

  His smile swiftly froze in place as he knew that he had to immerse more of his body into the icy bathtub soon after a short moment of adaptation. He gritted his teeth and tried to bear with the pain, but his face only got even more distorted.

  Unable to bear watching Chu Feng’s flesh corrode under the fluid, Zi Ling chose to turn her head away.

  If there was any other option, she would have surely advised Chu Feng to stop, but there was no alternative here.

  While Chu Feng was undergoing the tempering, all of the elders and disciples of the Hidden Dragon Martial Sect gathered together beneath the Dragon Bell.

  The sectmaster personally explained the situation to them before informing them that they would be activating the Hidden Dragon Heavenly God Formation tomorrow morning in order to resolve the calamity.

  Everyone was still terrified a moment ago, but the sectmaster’s words allowed them to regain their composure. When the junior learned that this matter was caused by Chu Feng and it could be solved, the respect they felt toward him deepened.

  However, those of the older generation still harbored some reservations.

  The younger ones might not be familiar with the Hidden Dragon Heavenly God Formation, but they had heard of it before. They weren’t sure if Chu Feng, a junior, would be able to bear the tremendous energy from the Hidden Dragon Heavenly God Formation.

  Having decided on their next course of action, everyone quickly headed off to make preparations. Even the sectmaster was no exception either.

  The vice sectmaster, on the other hand, followed the sectmaster back to her residence. He kneeled before the sectmaster in her grand hall, and the sectmaster revealed a conflicted look on her face.

  “Lord Sectmaster, I’ve never begged you before in my entire life. You know that I always put the sect above all things, and I’d never do anything that would hurt the sect.

  “I’m not asking you for anything else. I just want to know the truth. Lord Sectmaster, tell me, has Youyu met with a mishap?”


  The vice sectmaster seemed to have already guessed Zuoqiu Youyu’s fate. Despite having yet to receive confirmation, his eyes were already filled with tears.

  The sectmaster had always been a lofty existence who couldn’t be easily swayed by those around her. There was no one who could challenge her in the Hidden Dragon Martial Sect.

  Yet, the vice sectmaster’s question put her in a spot.

  She closed her eyes tightly for a moment before finally exhaling deeply. Then, she opened her eyes and looked at the vice sectmaster.

  “Chu Feng is not to be blamed for this matter. Zuoqiu Youyu was the one who did wrong first.”


  The sectmaster was intending to inform the vice sectmaster of this matter only after breaking the calamity, but their many years of relationship made her unable to bear rejecting the vice sectmaster’s request to know the truth, especially when he was already pleading with her like this.

  In the end, she gave in and told him the truth.

  “Thank you for telling me,” the vice sectmaster said.

  He rose back to his feet and began walking out, but his body suddenly caved in, causing him to stumble a little. Even though he quickly recovered from this mistake, his footsteps still looked a little unstable.

  Overwhelming sorrow had left him in an unstable state of mind, resulting in his frailty.

  The sectmaster didn’t step forward to console him despite seeing his state. She had already expected this.

  Despite the vice sectmaster’s stern front, he doted on his grandson a lot, especially for Zuoqiu Youyu. He bore high hopes for the latter.

  Yet, his two grandsons were both killed by Chu Feng one after another. She knew just how great the pain could be.

  “Putting aside whose fault it is, the Hidden Dragon Heavenly God Formation tomorrow will determine the survival of our sect. I hope that you, as the vice sectmaster, will put aside your personal differences and devote your everything to help me control the Hidden Dragon Heavenly God Formation,” the sectmaster said.

  “Lord Sectmaster, I’d be lying if I said that I didn’t hate Chu Feng. However, I’ve fought alongside you for many years now. You should know what kind of person I am. I’ll prioritize the sect above all things else. I’ll be there tomorrow morning.”


  After saying those words, the vice sectmaster walked away with a depressed slouch.

  The sectmaster sighed softly, but she did trust the vice sectmaster.

  What she didn’t know was that after the vice sectmaster returned to his residence, he entered a secret chamber. The chamber was dark and wet, and a powerful stench of blood immediately assaulted his nose the moment he walked in.

  However, the vice sectmaster was already used to it.

  Advancing further forth, he soon arrived at the origin of the stench.

  At the depths of the secret chamber laid over ten thousand corpses. All of these corpses had already started decomposing, though all of them bore a common trait—there was a hole in their dantian.

  “You’re delivering a new batch of food for me so early?”


  A weird voice sounded from the corpses. Surprisingly, it was from a black pearl.

  “I need your help,” the vice sectmaster said.

  “My help? Do you think that a mortal like you is worthy of talking terms with me just because you have served me for several thousand years? Return my body to me, and we’ll discuss this matter!” the pearl sneered in disdain.

  “I need you to kill a person for me. As long as you can do so, I’ll return your body to you and set you free. If you don’t help me, I’ll dissipate your soul here,” the vice sectmaster said as he whipped out a black dagger.

  The black dagger had an antiquated design, but what was interesting was that there was a balck heart lodged onto its blade. The heart looked incredibly ugly, but it was emanating the same stench as the black pearl.

  Even though green fluids were flowing ceaselessly from the wounds of the heart, it was still beating powerfully.

  “You dare to threaten me?”


  Black aura gushed out from the pearl and morphed into a terrifying face. It was so huge that it covered the entire secret chamber.

  Before it, the vice sectmaster looked incredibly small and insignificant.

  “You know my motive for imprisoning you here. However, all I’m asking of you is to help me kill that person. As long as you succeed, I’ll return your body and set you free,” the vice sectmaster repeated once more.

  He kneeled onto the floor and kowtowed to the massive face above him.

  “Milord, I know that I’ve done you injustice over the years, but I’m begging for you this one time,” the vice sectmaster said while prostrating before the black pearl.

  “Ki ki ki…… Interesting, truly interesting! I’m interested to see who’s the person you want me to kill that you’re willing to compromise despite having obstinately stood your ground for several millennia.”


  A contemplative glint flashed across the eyes of the massive face above.