Chapter 508: Lights Off
"Haha! Fine, I'll let this matter slip for the time being on your behalf. I, Zhao Shenlei, will temporarily let Cui Huan go. However, the debt she owes must be paid. That's all from me for now. We shall take our leave then."
Zhao Shenlei suddenly laughed out, waving his hand toward Shi Mu. He got up from his seat casually and turned around walking toward the exit.
Zhao Sanbao and the other attendants followed their young master.
Seeing the men leaving, Shi Mu's eyes flashed with a ray of color. It was unknown when, but Cai had perched on Shi Mu's shoulder.
"Shi Mu, why did you let them go? Someone weakling like Zhao Shenlei dares to walk into our residence unannounced. It is beyond arrogant. Why didn't you take the opportunity to force him to give up on the debt?" Cai asked.
"He may not be as strong but he's been here in the Holy Land longer than I. After all, I'm still new to this place. There's no need to be too eager, so we'll just let it be for now."
Based on Zhao Shenlei's character, he definitely would not give up. He did not want to strain the relationship between disciples but still, necessary steps must be carried out.
He knew that his life in the Holy Land of Qinglan had only just begun. For now, he would need to strengthen himself as soon as possible to have a footing in the Holy Land.
After some thinking, Shi Mu slowly stood up and took a deep breath as he walked toward the secret chambers.
...
Shi Mu's spirit was in midair, flying in the direction where Zhao Shenlei and his attendants headed.
Zhao Shenlei's expression was extremely dull as he marched forward in silence.
He suddenly stopped and turned around, looking at his attendants behind him.
"Zhao Sanbao, come over here."
Zhao Sanbao looked fearful but he did not dare disobey his young master. Slowly, he approached with his head down.
"Young master."
He bowed in respect.
However, Zhao Shenlei was clearly not in the mood. He suddenly waved his hand and slapped him hard on the face.
Zhao Sanbao's body flew out like a broken pocket. Blood spurted out of his mouth along with a few of his teeth. His body slammed heavily to the ground and rolled a few times.
Before he could even get back up, a foot seemed to descend from the sky and stepped on his face.
"This is the human waste that had recently upgraded to the mid level of his cultivation?"
Zhao Shenlei's face was stunned with anger, and he stepped on Zhao Sanbao with greater strength.
Zhao Sanbao's skull began to make a cracking sound, as if it would be broken open by his force anytime soon.
"Young master... Please spare my life..." Zhao Sanbao screamed and pleaded for mercy.
Several other attendants quickly kneeled down. They dared not say a single word.
"When you went there to look for Cui Huan before, what happened?" Zhao Shenlei stomped his feet a few more times on Zhao Sanbao's head as he shouted before gradually letting him go.
Zhao Sanbao immediately staggered to get up and kneeled at Zhao Shenlei's feet. He no longer dared to hide any information and told what really happened the last time he went to look for Cui Huan. As a result of what happened back then, everyone who went over was thrown out by Shi Mu.
"Damn!"
Zhao Shenlei was angered and he landed a kick on Zhao Sanbao once again. His body flew ten feet again and the sounds of his bones cracking could be heard clearly.
The others were horrified at the sound of it.
Zhao Sanbao screamed in agony as his body once again slammed hard on the ground. He rolled a few times on the floor before he could even muster the strength to suppress the pain and get out. Upon getting up, he held his ribs in pain.
Seeing Zhao Sanbao on his feet again, he landed another kick at him for the last time and turned his eyes away. His expression slowly calmed down as his eyes flashed a few more times.
"Let's go!"
After a moment, he waved his sleeves and turned to walk in the distance.
Zhao Sanbao quickly got back on his feet and followed close behind with the other attendants.
...
While Shi Mu and Zhao Shenlei were butting heads, something major happened in the always quiet land of Qinglan.
At the Temple of Stars in the depths of Qinglan was a long corridor where rooms were connected to one another.
The furnishings in each room were almost identical. There would certainly be a table, an ancient cyan lamp on top of it, and a wooden raft with a personal name on it.
This was an extremely important place in Qinglan. These blue lamps were known as the Lofty Soul Lights, part of the Lamp Of The Souls.
Outside the hall, three rays of light flew from a distance. As the flash fell, three figures emerged within the light.
Within the light was an old man in a green robe, a black-faced middle-aged man and a young woman in a white robe.The aura exuded by these three was extremely strong.
"Greetings, Three Holy Elders!" a middle-aged man ran from the hall and bowed in front of the three figures in a respectful manner.
"Rise," the old man in the green robe waved his hand and the middle-aged man stood up involuntarily.
The middle-aged man had a trace of awe across his eyes as he stood aside.
The old man and the other two elders looked eager and quickly walked toward the Temple of The Stars. It did not take long for them to arrive at a room at the end of the hall. This particular room was larger and less decorated than the others.
The three Holy Elders pushed the door open. There was a long table and a Lofty Spirit Lamp on top. There was no wooden sign in front of the lamp nor any names carved on it...
The old man in the green robe had a strange light in his eyes, a mix of happiness and sorrow.
The elder turned his head around to the middle-aged man and asked "When did this happen?"
"It happened just awhile ago. When I was patrolling as usual, the lamps had been extinguished and there were no signs of anything unusual. I notified the Holy Elders as soon as I found out."
The old man in the green robe nodded and waved his hand. The middle-aged man got the signal and quickly retired.
Once he left, the green-robed elder asked the others "What do you two think?"
"He must have completely lost his soul by now. Hmph, good riddance!" The black-faced middle-aged man snorted and said.
"Since thousands of years ago, this child's soul light has been extremely bleak. After all, the first phase of the Nine Revolutions Mysterious Art was within him and it's hard to tell what would happen. Now that the light has faded, something must have occurred."
"What do you mean?" the young woman in a white robe said with a questioning expression.
"We'd have to verify the details of what really happened before we can come down to a final conclusion."
I will first report the matter to the ancestors. The others, I would leave it to the both of you." The green-robed man. With a wave of his sleeves, he turned around and left.
The white-robed woman and the black-faced man looked at each other. Without saying a word, both of them walked out of the room together.
In just half a day, news spread in the small area of Qinglan about the white light being extinguished. The sudden news caused quite a commotion.
...
In a white palace, two individuals sat opposite each other.
One of them was a black-faced middle-aged man with bulging muscles, while the other was a fair youth with antlers on his head.
Although the man did not deliberately release his spirit sense, his body exuded a very strong aura. It was apparent that his physical cultivation had reached an extremely high level.
"The light of the Lofty Spirit Lamp has been extinguished."
"That's great!" The youth with antlers stood up and said.
"This is a great opportunity. You possess the blood of Baize. You're the best candidate to cultivate the Nine Revolutions Mysterious Art. Don't let me down," the black-faced man said.
"Rest assured master, I won't let you down."
...
In a splendid cave residence, seven or eight youths had gathered.
"Have you heard? The ban on the Nine Revolutions Mysterious Art is finally being lifted. At last, we'll be able to learn it," said a young man with sharp eyes like an eagle and a pointy nose.
"Really?"
"Where did you hear it from?"
"It's the truth! It's from a reliable source and it happened just today!" the young man with sharp eyes said.
"That's wonderful!" the other man in the cave showed excitement as well.
"Hmph! Learning the Nine Revolutions Mysterious Art is not going to be easy for those who don't possess historical blood. However, there are some possibilities for success," said a young man with eyebrows as sharp as a sword.
As soon as the statement was spoken, everyone in the audience gathered their gaze around the man sitting at the side.
He looked like he was only ten years old, seemingly still in his early teens. However, his body was extremely tall and straight with his hair up. His eyes seemed to be fighting a chaos on its own without emitting any light in his body. Looking straight at them was like looking into a vortex, sucking the soul out of everyone.
"It seems that someone had something up their sleeves. The Nine Revolutions Mysterious Art is an art of cultivation, hence everyone can cultivate it to the very best," said a tall young man with a sinister grin at the corner of his lips.
"Brother Gu Shi, aren't you planning to learn the Nine Revolutions Mysterious Art?" a young man among them asked.
"That's not it. I possess the ancient blood, and I was seeking revenge. However, my energy was too powerful. The Nine Revolutions Mysterious Art is my only chance now and I will not let it go that easily. Based on what I know, the Nine Revolutions Mysterious Art requires a certain amount of Xuanling Point, and that's no small amount." The tall young man's eyes lit up as he spoke.
Several others could feel his gaze from a distance. Their expressions immediately changed.
"Though this is the case, several of us can also train it together. Through mutual cooperation, everyone will have the opportunity to compete fairly," the tall young man suggested.
The others were intrigued. It was obvious that everyone had the exact same thought.
...
In the depths of Qinglan, a young man with a sallow face held a bronze-colored broadsword. He was practicing some moves with the weapon, slashing through the air.
The sword came out and fell on the smooth side of the mountain, and suddenly the stone splashed.
After a few breaths, the young man stopped in his tracks.
The dust on the mountain wall fluttered and quickly dispersed. The slash marks were composed of a landscape painting. The mountain peaks were not only tall but straight as well. The water was like a cloud, painting a beautiful work.
There was so much power to control!
The young man's eyes fell on the mountain wall and shook his head as he twisted his wrists.
A large knife suddenly appeared, slanting on the mountain.
Bang!
The huge mountain peaks were like paper paste as they smashed into two pieces and collapsed to the ground.
The young man's body swayed and suddenly teleported in the air, avoiding the dust on the ground.
He immediately flipped his hand and took out a white token. The white light flashed and a few lines of text appeared.
The young man's eyes flashed and his expression was ecstatic.
"Great, it has finally been released!" he muttered to himself as he flew off into the distance like a yellow blur.
Although the news of the white light only spread within a small circle and was unknown to outsiders, it still caused waves.
In the Holy Land, whether it was in the Xuanling Tower or some other city, several kinds of medicinal herbs related to the Nine Revolutions Mysterious Art had suddenly doubled in price.