Desolate Devouring Art

High atop Windmoon Mountain, Elder Meng stared across the vast distance toward the Shadow Divination Gate, never allowing his gaze to waver. He had endured a long wait for this precise moment.

Destroying the Shadow Divination Gate's geomancy had never been his true objective. Everything he had done was to help Liu Wuxie obtain the Heavenly Derivation Codex.

The mysterious patterns covering the strange boulder began weaving themselves together, their complex lines gradually shaping an extraordinary image. Liu Wuxie appeared within it first, and then the vision expanded to reveal the entire grand hall around him.

Inside that hall, Liu Wuxie stood quietly behind Enchantress.

Without warning, the Heavenly Dao Book stirred. An unseen power slipped from its pages without producing the faintest sound and began stripping away Liu Wuxie's Heavenly Dao before anyone could notice.

The Heaven-Earth Lockdown, Worldly Reversal had taken effect. It sealed every trace of information connected to Liu Wuxie's past and present lives while rewriting the course of his destiny.

The sudden power enveloped Liu Wuxie like an invisible shield, preventing the sect master of the Shadow Divination Gate from seeing through his true identity or uncovering the secrets he carried.

Liu Wuxie already knew who had intervened to protect him.

"Sect Master, I believe this man has come here with malicious intentions," Black Tiger declared, stepping forward. "He may be a spy planted by the Heavenly Divination Gate to infiltrate our Shadow Divination Gate. We should execute him immediately."

Black Tiger hadn't forgotten how Liu Wuxie had prevented him from seizing the Fragrant Yin Wood at the Yin Market, and resentment still burned within him.

"Guardian Black Tiger, what utter nonsense," Liu Wuxie shot back, glaring at him with open fury. "You deliberately targeted me at the Yin Market and have held a grudge against me ever since. Now you're falsely accusing me of being a spy for the Heavenly Divination Gate."

"Such insolence," Venomous Viper snapped. "You dare claim that Guardian Black Tiger is slandering you?"

A strange bamboo materialized in Venomous Viper's hand and shot toward Liu Wuxie, carrying enough force to kill him where he stood.

"Get lost. Who permitted you to touch someone who belongs to me?" Enchantress snarled. She struck with her palm, sending Venomous Viper staggering several steps backward.

Liu Wuxie didn't matter greatly to her, but he was still her man. If Venomous Viper killed him inside the grand hall, how could she ever hold her head high within the Shadow Divination Gate again? Allowing that would amount to admitting she couldn't even protect one of her own subordinates.

Neither faction showed any willingness to retreat, and the atmosphere hardened into a dangerous stalemate.

From the beginning of the confrontation, the sect master had remained silent. Yet his gaze never left Liu Wuxie. He moved his right-hand fingers with a slow, deliberate rhythm as though performing a calculation no one else could perceive.

The Heavenly Dao Book suddenly rustled again. Words appeared across its final page, gradually recording the life of an unknown person. Before the account could fully materialize, the writing began dissolving. A second mysterious force emerged immediately afterward and tried to trace Liu Wuxie's origins.

Liu Wuxie recognized both forces at once. The first most likely came from Meng Nong's grandfather, who was fabricating a false identity to deceive the sect master. The second belonged to the sect master himself, who was using the Heavenly Derivation Codex to uncover Liu Wuxie's origins.

Obtaining the Heavenly Derivation Codex was one of the primary reasons Liu Wuxie had risked his life to infiltrate the Shadow Divination Gate. He couldn't permit anyone to uncover his true identity, no matter how remote the possibility might seem.

Once he destroyed the Heavenly Derivation Codex, his enemies would lose the ability to use it to track his whereabouts.

A suffocating silence engulfed the grand hall. Until the sect master spoke, none of the Four Great Guardians dared utter another word.

Lines of text flashed in and out of existence across the Heavenly Dao Book until a dazzling radiance erupted from its pages. Both invading forces carried the power of the Heavenly Dao, and the book devoured them without the slightest hesitation.

After consuming the two forces, the Heavenly Dao Book became noticeably heavier. An invisible struggle immediately erupted against the opposing powers, though Liu Wuxie maintained a calm exterior. He knew that without the Heavenly Dao Book's protection, their combined pressure would have torn his destiny apart.

To everyone else, Liu Wuxie merely stood motionless within the grand hall. Only he understood that a deadly battle was raging around him, hidden beyond mortal sight.

Back on Windmoon Mountain, Elder Meng continued casting his technique. Liu Wuxie's image shifted across the sky above him, gradually assuming the appearance of his current disguise.

"Change of destiny, complete!"

Elder Meng bit through his tongue and spat out a mouthful of blood. Every pattern across the boulder blazed into startling clarity, then surged together, fusing with Liu Wuxie's image.

At that same instant, new lines of text surfaced across the Heavenly Dao Book before Liu Wuxie's eyes.

"Jian Zongcheng, twenty-four years old. Born into an ordinary family in Moonveil City, he grew up cultivating under his master. He later wandered into the Yin Market by accident and was subsequently brought to the Shadow Divination Gate..."

After concealing the profundities of heaven and earth, Elder Meng had woven this identity specifically for Liu Wuxie.

The Shadow Divination Gate's sect master abruptly stopped moving his fingers. His gaze sharpened into twin flames, burning so fiercely that Liu Wuxie felt as though it might set him ablaze.

Liu Wuxie's heart clenched beneath that scrutiny. The sect master's cultivation had already advanced infinitely close to the Golden Immortal Realm.

The Golden Immortal Realm stood above the Divine Immortal Realm, followed in turn by the Great Golden Immortal Realm.

A Great Golden Immortal already possessed enough power to earn a formidable reputation anywhere in the celestial realm.

"What is your name?" the sect master asked.

Liu Wuxie turned an innocent, uncertain gaze toward Enchantress. He needed to know whether he should answer with "Number 179" or use the name Elder Meng had created for him.

"Tell the Sect Master your real name," Enchantress instructed. Before the sect master, her usual arrogance had vanished, leaving her as docile as a kitten.

"This humble one is named Jian Zhongcheng," Liu Wuxie replied, calmly repeating the name recorded within the Heavenly Dao Book.

"How did you end up in the Shadow Divination Gate?" the sect master continued, his voice calm as the interrogation pressed onward.

Liu Wuxie began recounting the life recorded inside the Heavenly Dao Book. As he spoke, he deliberately altered several minor details and scattered subtle discrepancies throughout the account to further cloud the sect master's calculations.

Reciting every detail with flawless precision would have made the story sound unnaturally perfect and only deepened the sect master's suspicions.

The man standing inside the grand hall was no longer Liu Wuxie but Jian Zongcheng. Jian Zongcheng genuinely existed, and Elder Meng had temporarily transferred that man's destiny onto Liu Wuxie, preventing the Shadow Divination Gate's sect master from uncovering Liu Wuxie's past.

Liu Wuxie described every detail surrounding his arrival at the Shadow Divination Gate. As Enchantress and Black Tiger listened, the color gradually drained from their faces.

When Demon King and Venomous Viper examined Liu Wuxie again, they no longer were suspicious. They knew that the sect master would have uncovered it if anything had truly been wrong with him.

"The three of you may leave!" the sect master ordered, dismissing Demon King, Black Tiger, and Venomous Viper. Only Liu Wuxie and Enchantress remained inside the main hall.

"Take him to the appointed place and wait there for me," he said, rising from his throne.

"Understood," Enchantress replied with a bow, and Liu Wuxie immediately followed her example.

Enchantress waited until the sect master departed before fixing Liu Wuxie with a long, searching stare. She could no longer see through him. Something about his presence stirred an inexplicable unease within her, sending a cold shiver down her spine.

Liu Wuxie had remained standing beneath the combined pressure of Demon King, Venomous Viper, and Black Tiger. He looked scared, but she couldn't see that fear in his eyes.

Matters had already progressed too far for Enchantress to turn back. She could only lead Liu Wuxie toward the Purification Pool.

"Follow me," Enchantress said with a weary sigh.

She guided Liu Wuxie out of the hall but did not retrace their original route. Instead, she moved toward the building behind it, where the path narrowed with every step.

Among the Four Great Guardians, only Enchantress had permission to enter this restricted region.

Liu Wuxie followed without speaking. He secretly activated Ghost Pupil, seeing through the surrounding landscape. When he added Divine Tribulation Pupil, every structure and contour instantly unfolded into a vivid three-dimensional image within his vision.

"Guardian Enchantress, where are we going?" Liu Wuxie asked, despite already knowing that their destination was the Purification Pool.

"Don't ask questions that don't concern you," Enchantress replied sharply.

Her mood had already soured. She had suffered from poor health for several days, and the pointless argument with Black Tiger and Venomous Viper had only worsened her temper.

They continued through the narrow corridor in silence. Before long, the roar of rushing water reached Liu Wuxie's ears. It resembled a waterfall, yet something about the sound felt distinctly different.

As they approached, Liu Wuxie discovered a small pool fed by a stream that cascaded through the dense forest.

Massive boulders enclosed the area on every side, concealing it exceptionally well. The pool itself occupied little space, but its water was remarkably clear.

Upon reaching the pool, Enchantress cast Liu Wuxie a cold glance and began removing her outer garments. Once only a single undergarment remained, she slowly descended into the water.

Liu Wuxie had already turned his back, presenting nothing but his rear profile to the pool.

Enchantress began circulating her cultivation technique. The pool's temperature steadily rose beneath her power, sending delicate ribbons of steam rising into the air until the water reached the ideal warmth for bathing.

Roughly fifteen minutes later, a black-robed figure arrived. The robe concealed every trace of his true appearance.

"Greetings, Sect Master!" Enchantress said, rising from the pool and bowing with deep respect.

The Shadow Divination Gate's sect master acknowledged her greeting with a slight nod. Only then did Enchantress lower herself into the pool again.

"Why are you still standing there? Hurry over and help the Sect Master change," Enchantress snapped, impatiently urging Liu Wuxie into action.

Liu Wuxie approached him cautiously, feigning terror as he forced his hands to tremble uncontrollably.

The sect master naturally noticed his behavior. "Hurry up. I'm not going to eat you," he said impatiently.

Fear had nothing to do with Liu Wuxie's hesitation. He deliberately slowed every movement, using the opportunity to search for the Heavenly Derivation Codex.

Still, the sect master was unlikely to carry the Heavenly Derivation Codex openly on him. He had probably stored it in his interspatial ring or hidden it somewhere else entirely.

When Liu Wuxie removed the sect master's outer robe, an unbearable stench assaulted his nostrils, and he nearly fainted. Thick pus coated the garment, and living insects writhed through the filth.

Liu Wuxie had already anticipated the sect master's condition, yet the gruesome reality surpassed even his darkest expectations.

Anyone who divulged heavenly secrets would inevitably face heavenly punishment. In mild cases, their flesh would slowly rot. In severe cases, their entire body would fester until nothing remained except a mass of putrefying flesh.

Only the sect master's face had escaped the punishment. From the neck downward, festering abscesses covered his body.

After removing the outer robe, Liu Wuxie found no sign of the Heavenly Derivation Codex. He swept the garment repeatedly with Ghost Pupil, but the codex remained nowhere to be found.

Without hesitation, Liu Wuxie activated Divine Tribulation Pupil and focused upon the sect master's left hand. He dared not probe too deeply, but with assistance from the Heavenly Dao Book, he still sensed something concealed there.

It really is hidden inside the interspatial ring! Liu Wuxie exclaimed inwardly.

Once the outer robe came away, Liu Wuxie retreated. He did not need to remove the remaining garments, which had long since fused with the pus and rotting flesh underneath.

The sect master leaped directly into the pool. As the springwater cleansed his body, streams of pus sloughed from his flesh.

Enchantress took up a clean cloth and gently wiped the sect master's body. Before long, the crystalline pool had turned murky black, and a nauseating stench filled the air.

Liu Wuxie had already sealed his five senses, preventing the foul odor from reaching him.

Enchantress remained beside the sect master, letting the filth rinsed from his body splash across her skin.

For the first time, Liu Wuxie found her somewhat pitiful. Perhaps this very existence had warped her personality and given birth to her peculiar habits.

His mind worked furiously. Whatever price he had to pay, he needed to seize the sect master's interspatial ring.

As time passed, most of the pus covering his body had gradually washed away.

When Enchantress began cleaning his left arm, the sect master lifted it himself. The interspatial ring had fused deep into his flesh, forcing him to pry it loose before setting it upon the shore.

The instant Liu Wuxie's eyes landed upon the interspatial ring, his heart began hammering violently against his ribs.

This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. If he allowed it to escape, obtaining the Heavenly Derivation Codex would become vastly more difficult.