Chapter 65: Conjecture

It was precisely Zhou Shuo and Wan Yi who spoke up.

Refusing Zhou Tong outright was a decision driven by their respective considerations. The Hundred Sects Grand Tournament half a year from now was nominally an exchange between disciples of various sects, but the actual competition was bound to be exceptionally brutal.

Zhou Shuo wanted to help Zhou Tong elevate her cultivation level before then, so that she would have some capacity to protect herself when the grand tournament arrived.

As for Wan Yi, his reasoning was even simpler: he was heading out to hunt in the wild. Hunting down Emperor-realm powerhouses was no child's play; engaging in such a perilous endeavor where he could barely protect his own skin, how could he possibly dare to drag Zhou Tong along?

In the end, after much earnest persuasion from the two men, Zhou Tong finally agreed with a huffed, pouty expression.

Having soothed his precious daughter, Zhou Shuo turned back to Wan Yi and asked, "When do you plan to leave the mountain?"

"Your disciple will set off tomorrow."

Hearing this, Zhou Shuo asked no further questions. He retrieved a storage pouch and tossed it into Wan Yi's hands. "For the Hundred Sects Grand Tournament half a year from now, return to the sect a month early. I want to inspect the results of your training."

Upon inspecting the contents of the storage pouch, Wan Yi felt a warmth well up in his heart. It was filled to the brim with various medicinal pills, none of which were of low grade—clearly, Zhou Shuo was worried he might get injured while training out in the world.

Besides those, Zhou Shuo had also stuffed fifty thousand superior-grade spirit stones into the storage pouch.

Stowing the pouch away properly, Wan Yi bowed in gratitude.

His senior brothers and sisters, such as Leng Yanbing and Zhou Zihao, also stepped forward to stuff quite a few good items into his hands, repeatedly instructing him to be mindful of his safety while traveling away from home.

Early the next morning, amidst the farewell gazes of everyone, Wan Yi left the Vast Ocean Sect.

Seeing that there was no one around, he took out the Underworld Constable Token, focused his mind, and vanished from the spot.

Reappearing a moment later, he had already arrived in the Underworld.

Inside the Ministry of Soul Reapers, Yan Wuji listened as he recounted everything that had transpired yesterday on the Vast Ocean Sect's grounds.

The Heavenly Emperor Society suddenly showing itself in public gave him a very bad premonition.

After a long silence, he asked Wan Yi, "Little brother, what are your thoughts on this matter?"

Wan Yi took a deep breath, his expression grave. "I have a suspicion. This Heavenly Emperor Society might be related to the first generation of Emperor-realm cultivators."

Hearing these words, Yan Wuji's pupils constricted; clearly, he had been thinking along the exact same lines.

Wan Yi continued, "Older brother mentioned before that those first-generation Emperor-realm powerhouses had secluded themselves from the world and vanished from trace for many years.

"Were they truly in closed-door seclusion hiding from the world and wandering among mortals, or were they lurking behind the scenes, gathering together to brew a conspiracy? It seems we now need to carefully reconsider this.

"The Heavenly Emperor Society members who manifested yesterday were all ordinary members dressed in white robes, yet the cultivation level of even these ordinary members was already at the late Emperor-realm.

"Such a powerful organization—aside from being established by the gathering of first-generation Emperor-realm cultivators, I can think of no other possibility."

Yan Wuji concurred, "That is precisely what I think. Previously, I investigated their whereabouts to no avail and thought they were each acting independently, scattered in all directions. Never did I expect it to be like this..."

At this point, his tone shifted as he looked at Wan Yi. "What does my younger brother plan to do next?"

A wry smile appeared on Wan Yi's face. "You surely don't expect me to go look for them right now, do you?"

Yan Wuji hurriedly waved his hands. "Little brother, don't misunderstand; that is not what I meant. The Heavenly Emperor Society is clearly a behemoth. To go looking for them with your current cultivation would be no different from casting an egg against a rock.

"Therefore, your big brother wants you to temporarily keep a low profile and wait until you have elevated your cultivation before talking about anything else.

"As for the Heavenly Emperor Society—well, we lacked clues about them before, but now that they have reared their heads, let me first have my men investigate their movements thoroughly, and then the two of us can discuss a countermeasure."

As he spoke, Yan Wuji stood up, picked up a stack of dossiers from his desk, handed them to Wan Yi, and continued, "These are the intelligence reports gathered recently. They record detailed information on some newly advanced Emperor-realm cultivators. Little brother, you can use them to warm up first."

Yan Wuji's action coincided precisely with Wan Yi's intentions. Taking the stack of documents, Wan Yi smiled and said, "Thank you for the trouble, Big Brother. I was thinking along the exact same lines myself."

What he needed most right now was precisely this kind of intelligence. Without these materials, he would be like a blind man running out into the outside world to try his luck in pitch darkness, searching for clues about Emperor-realm cultivators amidst a vast sea of humanity.

Flipping through the documents in his hand, Wan Yi wore a cold sneer. The records detailed twenty-seven individuals, and not a single one of them was a decent person.

These newly advanced Emperor-realm cultivators, relying on their high cultivation levels, bullied the weak, killed people to seize treasures, and at the drop of a hat would wipe out entire clans and destroy others' dao lineages. The evil deeds they committed were simply too numerous to record.

Looking at Wan Yi's angry expression, Yan Wuji also wore a helpless look.

"These people are merely a drop in the ocean. More information will be delivered to your hands later.

"Previously, I was willing but powerless, unable to do anything about these damned scoundrels, and could only watch helplessly as they committed evil.

"Now it is different. With my little brother taking action, not only can you uphold justice on behalf of heaven, but you can also use them to elevate your own cultivation, allowing your big brother to vent some pent-up anger as well!"

Having properly stored the documents, Wan Yi stood up and left the Ministry of Soul Reapers.

After sending Wan Yi off, Yan Wuji wore a grave expression as he produced a sound-transmission talisman. Holding it in his hand, he transmitted his voice: "Exalted Underworld Lord, Wan Yi has just brought back the latest news regarding the Heavenly Emperor Society. The two of us have analyzed that this Heavenly Emperor Society is very likely..."

On the other side, after leaving the Underworld, Wan Yi used the Underworld Constable Token to teleport directly deep into the mountains.

Looking at the verdant, lush green mountain scenery around him, and then glancing down at the token in his hand, Wan Yi's lips curved upward slightly. "This Underworld Constable Token truly is a wonderful artifact."

He had discovered the wonderful utility of this token earlier, but simply hadn't had the opportunity to put it into practice. Trying it out today, it was indeed just as he had surmised.

This token was practically a cheat code. Using the Underworld as a transit station, it could teleport him to any place he desired.

To put it into perspective, one second he was at the Vast Ocean Sect, and after using the token to reach the Underworld, the next second he could teleport from the Underworld straight into these deep mountains.

Exploiting this bug was immensely satisfying; it allowed him to be free from geographical limitations and instantly shuttle across various regions relying on the Underworld Constable Token.

However, all of this came with a prerequisite: he had to know the precise coordinates of his destination. Otherwise, the token could not possibly teleport him to a purely imagined location.

As for the deep mountains where he currently stood, it was the exact location detailed in the dossiers. The target of his trip was hidden within a canyon located in these very mountains.

Putting away the Underworld Constable Token, Wan Yi sent a voice transmission to Mo Ying, who was attached to his chest: "Come out and get some fresh air. Haven't you wanted to see the scenery of the outside world for a long time?"

As his voice trailed off, Mo Ying's joyful voice immediately rang in his ear.

The next second, a wisp of mist drifted out from the seams of Wan Yi's garments, landing beside him and transforming into a human figure.

Mo Ying looked around with a face full of curiosity and asked with slightly excited emotions, "Master, where are we?"

Wan Yi pulled out a dossier, glanced at the records upon it, and said, "Ten miles ahead, there is a canyon named Luo Long Valley.

"The target we are hunting this time is hiding inside that valley!

"However, things in that Luo Long Valley are somewhat troublesome..."

To be continued...