"Primal Beast Sect, Que Chen!"
The handwriting on the note was messy and hurried. Han Yi could easily imagine Zhuo Qun's panic as he scribbled the message.
"Primal Beast Sect... this must refer to the Primal Beast Sect," Han Yi mused. "The note's meaning is clear enough, and Que Chen's name sounds familiar."
Han Yi frowned. The name rang a bell. Over the past year, he had learned about many Golden Core cultivators in Great Qian, including those from the Primal Beast Sect, who had once allied with the Profound Pill Sect.
The Primal Beast Sect was located northeast of Shu Capital, closer to Jinyun Immortal City than the Profound Pill Sect, though not by much. This Beast Taming Sect had once maintained close ties with the Profound Pill Sect, even hosting joint Great Competitions.
However, after the Heavenly Soul Sect assassinated Su Changkong and launched an attack on the Profound Pill Sect, the Primal Beast Sect retreated from the alliance, keeping a low profile.
When Yuan Shun narrowly broke through to True Monarch during a crisis and the Profound Pill Sect ascended to become a Nascent Soul Great Sect, the Primal Beast Sect grew even more cautious, fearing retaliation from their former ally. In reality, the Profound Pill Sect's Profound Pill Death Tribulation was far from over, leaving them no time to address their strained relationship with the Primal Beast Sect, allowing their delicate balance to persist.
Han Yi knew that the Primal Beast Sect, though lacking a True Monarch, boasted eleven Golden Core cultivators. Among them was a man named Que Chen.
"Only Zhuo Qun would have known about this hidden compartment and been authorized to open it. This note must have been left by him. Judging by the messy and hurried handwriting, it was likely written shortly before his disappearance."
"What could have happened during his disappearance to make a Foundation Establishment cultivator write so frantically?"
"In that case, Que Chen of the Primal Beast Sect seems to be the most obvious lead."
"Therefore, my next steps are to investigate the Inner Sect disciples stationed at the compound for further clues, then wait for Martial Uncle Zhuge to arrive. Once he's here, we'll search for Que Chen of the Primal Beast Sect together."
Han Yi had no intention of acting rashly on his own. Aside from the risk of alerting the culprit, he wasn't even confident he could handle them alone. Against an early-stage Golden Core cultivator, he could at least flee if he couldn't win. Facing a mid-stage Golden Core cultivator, he'd have to fight for his life. And against a late-stage Golden Core cultivator, escape would be impossible.
He was indeed strong, but his current cultivation realm was only late-stage Foundation Establishment. Moreover, he had only reached this stage a year and a half ago. The mere fact that he was confident he could hold his own against an early-stage Golden Core cultivator would astonish many.
Han Yi reviewed the remaining documents, finding only critical bills and no other irregularities. He returned them to the hidden compartment, placing the note back on top but leaving it undisturbed. He then ascended to the fourth floor and thoroughly searched it again, but found nothing else of interest.
His figure flickered as he reappeared behind the Profound Immortal Pavilion. With a light stroke of the Demon-Slaying Dagger, he vanished once more using an Escape Technique, his Spirit Light seamlessly repairing the space and leaving no trace behind.
Less than three breaths later, Han Yi landed in the encampment behind the Profound Immortal Pavilion, transforming into a shadow that scoured the area. He soon encountered a familiar Inner Sect Disciple.
Waking the disciple, Tian Chengxu, Han Yi suppressed his instinctive attack with the overwhelming pressure of his Late Foundation Establishment cultivation, immobilizing him completely.
"Tian Chengxu, it's me, Han Yi."
Han Yi's appearance shifted as he dispelled the Disguise Technique, revealing his true face. Tian Chengxu's heart jolted with shock, but he quickly regained his composure, though his eyes remained wary and his mind uncertain.
Tian Chengxu was an Inner Sect Disciple from Azure Dragon Peak, having advanced to the Seventh Layer of Qi Refining around the same time as Han Yi.
However, while Han Yi had surged to Late Foundation Establishment in just a few decades, Tian Chengxu had been ambushed by Robber Cultivators during a mountain expedition, suffering severe injuries. Though he eventually recovered, his progress had stalled at the Eighth Layer of Qi Refining. This expedition with Zhuo Qun was his desperate attempt to gather more resources and break through to the Ninth Layer.
To gain Tian Chengxu's trust, Han Yi briefly described several encounters they had shared on Azure Dragon Peak.
"Of course, if you suspect I stole your memories to manipulate you, there's no need to worry. If I could steal your memories, why would I bother pretending to awaken you?"
Han Yi's words secured ninety percent of Tian Chengxu's trust. The remaining ten percent stemmed from caution and a lingering wariness.
"Tell me everything," Han Yi said in a deep voice, releasing his oppressive aura. "What exactly happened?"
Tian Chengxu stood up and bowed respectfully. "Greetings, Elder Han."
"Here's what happened. Ten days ago, Elder Zhuo suddenly disappeared in the middle of the night. We only discovered his absence the next morning. Senior Brother Wei gathered us and said he had already notified the Sect. We were instructed to guard the Profound Immortal Pavilion until reinforcements arrived."
"For the next three days, Senior Brother Wei looked increasingly unwell. At first, I thought he was worried about Elder Zhuo's safety, concerned for his master's well-being. But on the third day after Elder Zhuo vanished, Senior Brother Wei went berserk, as if possessed by a Demon Beast. He tore cultivators apart with his bare hands and charged out of the pavilion, where he was immediately killed."
"That's all we know," Tian Chengxu said. "We don't have any other information."
Han Yi frowned at one particular detail. "Pale complexion, uncontrollable rage, acting like a Demon Beast?"
Tian Chengxu recalled the horrifying scene of Wei Tushen's rampage, a memory that still made his heart race. "Exactly. I once completed a Sect Mission in the Myriad Demon Mountain Range, hunting Demon Beasts. Looking back, Senior Brother Wei's eyes seemed strange even before he went berserk, like a Demon Beast on the verge of losing control."
"Right! When I participated in the Joint Grand Competition with the Primal Beast Sect, I noticed the Primal Beast Sect cultivators' Contracted Demonic Beasts would glare at strangers with the same unsettling intensity Senior Brother Wei displayed before his outburst."
Tian Chengxu's account solidified Han Yi's suspicions. The disappearance of Zhuo Qun and Wei Tushen's rampage were almost certainly linked to the Primal Beast Sect.
A moment later, Han Yi vanished from the Profound Immortal Pavilion's encampment. Before leaving, he reassured Tian Chengxu, "I'll go ahead. Supreme Elder Zhuge Wuyou will arrive later. Don't worry—just continue with your duties."
Then, with a subtle flicker of movement, Han Yi slipped away from the encampment.
With his Return to Simplicity Light Body Technique and Disguise Technique, Han Yi could conceal his presence from all but Golden Core cultivators or Nascent Soul True Monarchs.
In less than ten breaths, he slipped back through the window he had escaped from, returned to his room, secured the window, and activated the Seven Stars Profound Origin Formation.
After a moment's contemplation, he realized the Primal Beast Sect remained the prime suspect. His earlier gains didn't matter much; Zhuge Wuyou would have found the hidden compartment and deciphered the note regardless.
This whole charade was for nothing, Han Yi thought with a shake of his head. Since there were no further leads to investigate, he could only await Zhuge Wuyou's arrival. He decided to use the time to continue cultivating, retrieving a Spirit Stone and beginning his practice.
Fifteen minutes later, he abruptly opened his eyes, his expression darkening with alarm.
"Something's wrong."
By the time Han Yi sensed the danger, it was too late. A strange, invisible aura had already merged with the Spirit Qi during his cultivation and infiltrated his body. Only when this aura coalesced in his Sea of Consciousness and began seeping into his Divine Soul did Han Yi suddenly realize the gravity of his situation.
This bizarre aura, intangible and undetectable by both Mana and Divine Sense, only materialized upon entering the Sea of Consciousness Space. In a mere instant, before Han Yi could react, it had already merged with his Divine Soul.
The Divine Soul, previously seated in meditation, suddenly convulsed and violently stood, a surge of destructive and murderous desires erupting within it. An overwhelming urge to tear everything apart and kill anyone in sight flooded its being.
Simultaneously, Han Yi's eyes in the real world turned bloodshot, a bloodthirsty glint blazing within them, as if he had instantly transformed into a Demon Cultivator on the verge of losing control.
"Damn it," Han Yi hissed, slamming his eyes shut. Within his Sea of Consciousness, his Divine Soul abruptly transformed into its Soul Tower form. But this time, the normally reliable transformation merely suppressed the destructive impulses, rather than completely eradicating them. A single misstep could send him spiraling into a berserk frenzy.
"This must be what drove Wei Tushen to his homicidal rampage," Han Yi realized. "And Zhuo Qun's disappearance... he likely fell victim to the same trap. Sensing something was wrong, he hastily left that messy note and fled. The fact that we haven't heard from him since proves he's likely dead."
Two thoughts flickered through Han Yi's mind, draining his already meager mental energy. Even so, the destructive urge suppressed within his Soul Tower surged back violently, nearly overwhelming him. He had no choice but to immediately abandon all distractions and focus solely on restraining the homicidal impulse.
Just as Han Yi poured every ounce of his mental strength into quelling this sudden eruption of bloodlust and destruction, a black shadow materialized in his room.
The shadow advanced toward Han Yi, its eyes burning with undisguised murderous intent.
"Whatever grudge you hold against the Profound Immortal Pavilion, your misfortune in crossing paths with me at this moment guarantees your death."
"Blame it on your bad luck."
The shadow pointed at Han Yi. A palm-sized shadow perched on its shoulder leaped down, transforming into a towering, two-meter-tall Demon Beast the instant it landed.
No, not a Demon Beast. Its aura identified it as a Demon Cultivator—a Golden Core Stage cultivator, in fact. Bound by a contract, it retained its beastly form rather than assuming a human appearance.
Within the Seven Stars Profound Origin Formation, Han Yi's eyes snapped open, his pupils dilating and constricting rapidly against bloodshot irises, trembling on the brink of losing control.
"Que Chen of the Primal Beast Sect!"
He let out a low growl, a sound that pushed him further toward the brink of slaughter, leaving him only a hair's breadth away from complete loss of control.
"Hmm?"
The Black Shadow, suddenly startled, hadn't expected Han Yi to know its name. Its expression shifted slightly, and with a thought, it sent a mental command to its Contracted Demonic Beast, the Golden Ni Beast.
Meanwhile, within the Seven Stars Profound Origin Formation, Han Yi had already produced a Spirit Talisman.
A Third-Tier Spirit Talisman: the Three Spirits Immortal Fall Talisman.
With his Divine Soul corrupted and his strength reduced to less than ten percent of its usual capacity, this talisman was his only chance.
Too fast.
The danger had arrived too quickly, leaving him no time to prepare.
The murderous impulse surging through his Divine Soul felt like a targeted poison, one designed to plunge him into destructive slaughter, utterly undetectable. Against such a toxin, all conventional strength proved useless.
Han Yi couldn't afford to dwell on it. Each additional thought only intensified the sense of impending loss of control within his Divine Soul.
Facing life and death, he barely managed to retrieve the Third-Tier Spirit Talisman.
But at that critical moment, as he summoned the talisman, a bizarre transformation suddenly unfolded within his Sea of Consciousness Space.
The black pearl, suspended high in the Sea of Consciousness Space, remained indifferent to Han Yi's Divine Soul, Soul Sword, or Soul Techniques, continuing to draw in the gray-white aura surrounding the Sea of Consciousness. Suddenly, it rotated halfway.
Han Yi froze completely. His Divine Soul, Spirit Sea, and the Mana flowing through his body seemed to be paused, utterly still, leaving only his consciousness active.
At that moment, a long-dormant suspicion resurfaced in his mind.
This black pearl... is it truly the eyeball of some creature? And now, as it rotated halfway, it felt to Han Yi as if it were staring directly at his Divine Soul.
In the next instant, an intangible aura was extracted from Han Yi's Divine Soul, shooting upward and merging into the suspended black pearl.
!
The pearl rotated back to its original position, as if performing a trivial task, then resumed drawing in the gray-white aura.
Everything appeared unchanged, except for one crucial detail: the murderous intent that had been consuming Han Yi's Divine Soul vanished completely.
All these changes occurred in the blink of an eye.
Just then, the towering, over two-meter-tall Golden Ni Beast extended a claw, slicing lightly forward and shattering the Seven Stars Profound Origin Formation. The Formation Plate cracked and shattered instantly.
This Formation Art had been a gift from Yuan Shun during Han Yi's Qi Refining stage. He habitually deployed it whenever he arrived at a new location, primarily as an early warning system. Now, facing a Demon Cultivator with Golden Core cultivation, the formation shattered effortlessly with a casual swipe of the creature's claw.
The Demon Cultivator's eyes gleamed with ravenous hunger as it gazed upon Han Yi, as if beholding a peerless spiritual treasure.
In the next instant, the crimson light in Han Yi's eyes vanished completely. Without hesitation, he activated the Three Spirits Immortal Fall Talisman. Simultaneously, a torrent of Divine Sense erupted from him, unleashing the fury that had been simmering on the brink of death. The purple sword artifact behind him shot forth with terrifying power.
Sword Control Technique, Li Fire Sword Manual, Third-Tier Immortal Fall Talisman.
In that split second, Han Yi's counterattack was decisive and ruthless.
The Three Spirits Immortal Fall Talisman struck the Demon Beast, followed immediately by the Seven Stars Kunwu Sword. As the talisman's flames died out, Han Yi pointed at the beast. A bolt of black lightning leaped from the void and crashed down upon its head.
But before the lightning could strike, intertwined strands of purple and red light flashed past, piercing through the Demon Beast's skull. Undiminished, the combined force surged forward, its momentum and speed increasing as it hurtled straight toward Que Chen.
In the blink of an eye, the tables had turned—a reversal so swift it didn't even last a kshana.
First, Han Yi was poisoned and unleashed the Three Spirits Immortal Fall Talisman. Then, Que Chen commanded his Demon Beast, which transformed into its True Form and tore through the Profound Origin Formation with a single claw. Sensing the danger, the black pearl within Han Yi's Sea of Consciousness intervened, purging the demonic poison from his Divine Soul.
Immediately after, Han Yi erupted in furious retaliation, unleashing his full power.
BOOM!
The room shattered, shaking the Ten Thousand Immortals Inn's defensive formation. Countless occupants were awakened, but the sudden surge of power clearly came from a Golden Core cultivator. Even the Peak Foundation Establishment cultivator guarding the inn chose to avoid the confrontation, unwilling to engage directly.
Horrifying thunderbolts pierced through multiple floors, demolishing a wall of the inn.
A Demon Beast was blasted out of the building, crashing onto the street in front and rolling hundreds of meters until it slammed into the Sealing Formation of the diagonally opposite Profound Immortal Pavilion, causing the formation to tremble violently.
Then, a blood-soaked figure emerged from the wreckage, fleeing with an Escape Technique. Hot on their heels was a Daoist in Sword Flight, relentlessly closing the distance.
In less than three breaths, aside from the ravaged Ten Thousand Immortals Inn and the injured cultivators on the floors above and below Han Yi's room, the only other anomaly was the corpse of a Demon Cultivator lying amid the debris.
Ten breaths passed before a Foundation Establishment cultivator from the Ten Thousand Immortals Inn dared to investigate the commotion. Another ten breaths elapsed before the cultivators from the Six Ministries of Great Qian arrived on the scene.
Meanwhile, Han Yi had already taken flight on his sword, pursuing Que Chen.
Que Chen wasn't fleeing the city; instead, he was desperately rushing toward a specific location within its walls. His condition was dire: one arm was missing, blood spraying wildly from the wound, and he had no time to tend to it. His eyes were wide with terror.
"Damn it! How could this guy be so strong?"
"He's clearly only at the late Foundation Establishment stage, yet he killed my Contracted Demonic Beast in an instant and severed my arm!"
"Wait... could he be a Golden Core cultivator? If he knows my name, he must be from the Profound Pill Sect. But I know all their Golden Core cultivators... could it be their newly ascended elder?"
"No, that doesn't quite fit either."
"And most importantly, how could he be completely immune to my Chaos Spirit Demon Poison? That's utterly inconceivable!"
Caught off guard and with his Chaos Spirit Demon Poison, a treasured resource from his sect, rendered useless, Que Chen's mind was filled with mystery regarding Han Yi's true identity, cultivation realm, and power.
This was the primary reason he turned tail and fled without hesitation, paralyzed by overwhelming fear.
The Chaos Spirit Demon Poison, extracted from the corpses of Peak Golden Core Demon Cultivators by the Primal Beast Sect, was considered a priceless treasure even within the sect. It was virtually impossible for anyone below the Golden Core stage to purge it naturally.
For those below the Golden Core stage, the duration of its effects depended on the dosage. Given the amount he had administered, Han Yi should have succumbed to a berserk, bloodthirsty frenzy within mere breaths, completely losing his sanity and transforming into a mindless Demon Beast driven solely by slaughter.
Moreover, cultivators poisoned by this demonic toxin would be reduced to primal instincts during their killing frenzy, lacking both the robust physical bodies and innate Divine Abilities of true Demon Beasts. They couldn't even cast Spells properly, and their attacks would be pathetically weak.
This demonic poison didn't enhance the victim's strength; it shattered their sanity.
It was precisely because Que Chen was certain Han Yi had been poisoned with the Chaos Spirit Demon Poison that he dared to appear so relaxed before him.
Yet, for reasons he couldn't fathom, Han Yi had recovered with astonishing speed—a phenomenon that left Que Chen utterly bewildered.
Suddenly, the sword artifact behind Han Yi surged forward with explosive acceleration, hurtling toward Que Chen like a thunderbolt. His face paled as he activated two Spirit Talismans: a defensive talisman and a teleportation talisman.
The defensive talisman blocked Han Yi's Seven Stars Kunwu Sword, while the teleportation talisman instantly whisked him a hundred meters away, granting him a precious moment to catch his breath.
With his Imperial Beast slain and an arm severed, Que Chen's strength had dwindled to less than thirty percent of its former might. Overwhelmed by fear, he couldn't even muster the courage to meet Han Yi's gaze.
Before a quarter of an hour had passed, a cluster of buildings appeared ahead. Que Chen's eyes lit up with hope—if he could reach them, he might survive.
But at that very moment, behind him, Han Yi's face twisted into a ferocious mask, his eyes burning with murderous intent. Without a word, he flipped his hand, revealing a golden dagger: the Demon-Slaying Dagger.
Han Yi sheathed the Seven Stars Kunwu Sword and drew the Black Light Broken Sword. Unleashing a torrent of Divine Sense to empower the blade, he sent it hurtling forward at extreme speed. Terror etched across Que Chen's face as he activated two more Spirit Talismans.
However, this time, before the Black Light Broken Sword could strike the defensive barrier conjured by the talismans, it detonated with a thunderous blast, shattering the shield.
A golden streak followed immediately, flashing past in an instant.
A hundred meters from the explosion, Que Chen froze mid-stride. His eyes widened in horror as a fatal wound pierced his skull from back to front.
At that precise moment, he reached the airspace above the buildings he had been trying to escape to. A figure soared into the air from within the compound.
"Who dares cause trouble at the Ten Thousand Methods Sect's outpost?"
"Hmm?"