Chapter 216 - 213: The Black Canopy
’Good. It seems things haven’t reached the worst-case scenario yet...’
In a corner of some ruins,
Shen Changchuan opened his eyes, removing his hand from the head of the lifeless Shen Zeyu.
A look of clear relief spread across his face.
Perhaps because the information he needed was all from the recent past,
Shen Changchuan had still managed to obtain everything he needed to know, even with his unpracticed and forceful Soul Search technique.
The result was quite favorable for Shen Changchuan.
Although these few had been secretly plotting against Dawan Village,
they had wanted to monopolize the profits. To avoid their own shares being diluted by bringing others in, they had all agreed to keep the specific details to themselves.
They never intended to let any outsiders know the truth of their secret plan to take Dawan Village.
Because of this,
the secret of Dawan Village had not been spread.
Moreover,
because of Shen Chong’s sudden appearance, they had been forced to immediately give chase.
As a result, their plan to plot against him and seize Dawan Village never even had a chance to begin.
More importantly,
during the period when Shen Changchuan had lost their trail,
they had managed to catch up to Shen Chong.
And then,
they had suffered a disastrous defeat.
They probably never imagined that after not seeing him for just a few short months, Shen Chong’s strength had grown far beyond their wildest expectations!
In the end, only two of them escaped.
One was severely injured.
And that severely injured one...
When Shen Zeyu had fled just now, he had left that person behind to stall Shen Chong.
He was now likely as dead as could be!
This way,
with Shen Zeyu now completely devoid of Vitality after Shen Changchuan’s forceful Soul Search,
it could be said that everyone who knew the secret had been eliminated!
"It’s finally over!"
Letting Shen Zeyu’s body fall to the ground, Shen Changchuan couldn’t help but heave a long sigh of relief.
Shen Changchuan had never expected to hide the prosperous income from Dawan Village from his family forever.
Nor did he think he could keep receiving such a substantial income of Spirit Stones from Dawan Village indefinitely.
’I just need to buy one year’s time, that’s enough!’
’Within at least a year, I can accumulate barely enough wealth to attempt a breakthrough to the Soul Emergence Realm, and raise my Cultivation to at least the Qi Introduction Ninth Layer Peak.’
’After that, I can go explore those hidden cave ruins and plot to get the treasures and inheritance inside.’
’Coupled with the opportunity Shen Tingchu promised me,’
’it might not be impossible for me to glimpse the Soul Emergence Realm!’
’At that point, even if I fail to break through and the First Madam discovers the truth about Dawan Village and starts targeting me,’
’I can just disappear for a while,’
’and lay low temporarily.’
’I can use other identities to stir things up and seek opportunities to break through to Soul Emergence.’
Shen Changchuan was confident.
’After I reach the Ninth Layer Peak in a year,’
’my enhanced strength might not make challenging those in higher realms as easy as eating and drinking,’
’but at the very least, I’ll be able to contend with a Cultivator who has just broken through to the Soul Emergence Realm!’
’With my powerful Divine Sense that can leave my body, I could even masquerade as a Cultivator who just recently reached the Soul Emergence Realm and scheme for more Immortal Cultivation Resources!’
’So, a year of stable development,’
’is absolutely necessary!’
Right now, he was far from being able to contend with a Soul Emergence Realm Cultivator.
’I still need more time to develop!’
Shen Changchuan first took the Storage Bag from the body, then casually cast a Fireball Technique, incinerating Shen Zeyu’s corpse completely.
"Brother Nangong, we can go now."
"Is everything taken care of?"
"No problem. It’s all over... Thank you for your help this time!"
"What are you saying? If you hadn’t helped me, I’m afraid I would have died outside the Wu Family Collection. This was a trivial matter, don’t mention it!"
Since the matter was concluded,
Shen Changchuan had no intention of staying any longer.
He prepared to leave with Nangong Cheng.
To this,
Nangong Cheng had no objections.
However,
just as they were about to leave,
BOOM!!!
Following a massive roar, the ground suddenly began to tremble violently.
Immediately after,
wisps of black smoke, filled with a malevolent and ominous aura, rose from beneath the earth and ascended high into the sky.
Shen Changchuan’s Divine Soul throbbed violently at this moment, screaming a warning!
A great danger was approaching!
"Not good! Let’s go, quickly!"
Shen Changchuan’s expression changed drastically.
He didn’t know what was happening, but he could clearly sense the danger from within that darkness!
He immediately urged Nangong Cheng to leave with him!
However,
a black canopy that had appeared in the sky at some unknown point was now spreading rapidly, already enveloping the entire Qi Family Town!
The entire world
was plunged into darkness!
"What... what in the world is happening?!"
Nangong Cheng stared in astonishment at the scene before him, his feet stopping involuntarily.
His mouth fell slightly agape, terror filling his eyes as his body became drenched in a cold sweat.
Although he wasn’t as powerful as Shen Changchuan and his perception wasn’t as keen,
he could still clearly sense that this space seemed to have been devoured by darkness,
torn away from the rest of the world!
It felt as if he had plunged into an abyss!
At the same time,
within the void,
a terrifying, omnipresent pressure filled every corner.
The crushing weight, like a thousand-pound boulder, made it almost impossible to move!
It was as if some terrifying, primordial beast had escaped its cage, unleashing a horrifying pressure that promised death to all living things in the world!
Nangong Cheng felt as if every inch of muscle in his body was trembling.
His body was stiff, unable to move!
"I don’t know, but this is definitely not a good thing!"
"Go! We have to leave as soon as possible!"
As Shen Changchuan’s voice fell,
Nangong Cheng felt an invisible force cover his body,
lessening the immense, crushing pressure that felt like a thousand-pound weight on his shoulders.
The feeling of being completely immobilized also dissipated somewhat.
Although the pressure still struck fear into his heart, he could at least move freely now.
Nangong Cheng shot Shen Changchuan a grateful glance.
He knew that the other man was using his Divine Sense to help him bear the weight of that pressure.
Without a moment’s hesitation,
he forced himself to muster his strength and followed Shen Changchuan’s footsteps.
The two of them moved quickly through the dark canopy,
retracing their path from memory, wanting to escape this bizarre dark canopy as quickly and as far as possible...
...
「At almost the same time.」
In the underground cavern where the Qi Family’s Treasury was located,
Shen Chong’s figure quietly appeared outside.
At this moment, he stood with his hands behind his back, exuding the air of an old Grandmaster, a demeanor completely at odds with his youthful appearance.
His gaze was fixed on the pitch-black darkness ahead, where not a single speck of light could be seen. A pale light swirled within his pupils, making them look impossibly deep.
"Interesting!"
The voice that slowly emerged from Shen Chong’s mouth was both young and crisp, yet also ancient and weathered.