Chapter 2596 - 2660: The High Priest
Li Yifei arrived alone at a place called Grandview Residence. It was located on the outskirts of the city but was not a remote area. In fact, it backed onto a scenic area, and currently, only one mountain peak in the entire scenic area was open to the public. The other mountains and landscapes within the scenic area were not open to the public; it was private property, purchased by Fu Yingwei through the government, turning it into private land. There were always patrols, and outsiders were strictly forbidden to enter.
This piece of land was vast in scope. Although Fu Yingwei hadn’t stayed here for the past few days, after analysis, they still believed this place was highly suspicious. After consulting Meng Father and son, they also agreed with this viewpoint. Of course, this could also be a potential location where Zhang Tianxing’s three teams could have gone.
Fu Yingwei would be on high alert, but he still didn’t know that a group of people was already watching him. Conducting a search unexpectedly like this should yield some results.
There was a moon tonight, but also clouds. When the clouds covered the moonlight, the ground darkened considerably. Dressed in sportswear without any special disguises, Li Yifei appeared outside the perimeter wall. After scanning the area with hawk-like eyes to confirm it was safe, Li Yifei moved stealthily like a phantom. With a light tap of his toes on the wall, he landed inside and even advanced tens of meters.
This level of infiltration was incredibly easy for him. At the same time, Li Yifei noticed a few night patrolmen, all ordinary people dressed as security guards. Although their breath was steady and they had no qi within, they were clearly trained martial artists.
Li Yifei easily bypassed several people and arrived at the villa known to outsiders as the Qing Palace. This villa was built by Fu Yingwei at a cost of over one hundred million; built, not bought, making the price for construction more luxurious than buying. It looked very imposing.
The exterior had protection, but the interior did not? Li Yifei landed not far from the villa, slightly puzzled. He released his imposing aura, extending it for a hundred meters, yet felt no presence of threat. He couldn’t help but feel doubtful, as this place was said to be one of Fu Yingwei’s favorite residences where he often stayed, but... it was empty.
Li Yifei frowned. The reality of exploration differed from the analysis. After a slight pause, he decided to go in. A cloud rolled by, and Li Yifei took advantage of the darkness, leaping onto a third-floor balcony. He tested the window and found it was tightly shut, but it was no obstacle for Li Yifei. He easily opened the window and entered. After a few steps, he stopped; a strong smell of blood filled the room, permeating the entire space.
Something was wrong. Li Yifei immediately channeled True Qi, staying on guard at all times. The bloody stench was so intense, as if dozens or even hundreds of people had died there. Li Yifei even heard wailing in his ears. Gathering True Qi, invoking the malevolent qi, Li Yifei advanced further into the room—a large bedroom, seemingly Fu Yingwei’s. One side of the wall displayed a tiger skin, a complete specimen. Li Yifei glanced at it lightly and was about to turn away when he struck suddenly, sending a beam of white light formed by True Qi straight at the tiger’s head. The tiger head wobbled, then deflated like a punctured balloon.
"Childish trick!" Li Yifei sneered. He had just sensed the vague oddity’s cause. This place indeed had a heavy aura of evil and thick resentment—enough to prove the anomaly.
If a common person came in, they might have been frightened to death if not harmed. Unfortunately, it encountered Li Yifei, who effortlessly unraveled the strings of peculiarities. At that moment, Li Yifei found himself on the underground level of the villa—the crux of its oddness.
Upon descending to the first floor, Li Yifei discovered a fluctuation from the Formation Method, heightening his alertness. Just as he was about to investigate, he sensed someone approaching. Outside, two cars returned, and eight individuals stepped out, prompting him to withdraw as the basement was too open, making it hard to hide.
Two stood guard at the door while six quickly entered. Li Yifei retracted his aura but still perceived at least four cultivators among the six. The other two, while unqualified, were not far off.
As expected, there was something unusual. Li Yifei thought to himself as he saw the entrants immediately descend the stairs. Once all six had gone down, Li Yifei revealed his body, maintaining heightened sensory awareness to track their locations, allowing him to boldly advance to the stairs and even to a corner.
The six wore black robes, akin to a religious ceremony, with one elderly man among them—the strongest in cultivation Li Yifei sensed. The elder took a box handed to him from behind, opened it, and retrieved three items sequentially, engendering a fierce Spiritual Qi wave. No, not just Spirit Qi, but evil qi, as if the entire underground was quaking, something beneath seeming eager to emerge.
The three items were something altar-like, a bowl, and lastly, a bottle of blood—bloody beyond belief, even reeking atrociously. The blood was poured into the small altar, at which point the elder stopped, and the group prostrated, murmuring what appeared a religious rite.
By Li Yifei’s knowledge and experience, such acts typically belonged to evil cults; rational people wouldn’t conduct such mystical ceremonies. Just as he concluded, pondering whether to apprehend these six for interrogation—knowing these individuals must be linked to Fu Yingwei, who surely knew about them—Li Yifei weighed his options.
The ceremony continued for several minutes before concluding. Li Yifei witnessed the six unveil from their robes, revealing their true faces—Westerners with blond hair and blue eyes, alongside black-haired, black-eyed individuals, including one old yellow-skinned man. As they conducted their rituals, they uttered a peculiar language Li Yifei had never heard, with an odd tone.
As Li Yifei observed this mix, he sensed more cars arriving outside, prompting him to retreat; it wasn’t yet time to act lest he alert them.
A car arrived, disembarking four passengers. Li Yifei sensed two staying outside, standing at similar positions as before, while the other two entered the villa. Upon seeing them, Li Yifei instantly recognized the thin, tall, sullen man leading—Fu Yingwei, whom he’d seen in files, unexpectedly arriving there.
What luck... Li Yifei almost chuckled, as he was seeking Fu Yingwei’s evidence of wrongdoing, and this guy delivered himself into Li Yifei’s hands. After they descended, Li Yifei quietly followed, witnessing Fu Yingwei perform a grand ritual toward the three items and bow again to the elder in the group, addressing, "High Priest, I apologize for being late."
"It matters not. You’re an Outer Disciple, not bound by rules!" croaked the old man.
Fu Yingwei hastily replied, "Disciple wishes to join the Inner Sect, but mundane matters entangle me, preventing entrance. Once resolved, I shall devote myself wholeheartedly to cultivation."
"We can discuss that later. Tonight’s call was for you to observe the ceremony, but you arrived late!" said the elder without a change in expression, leaving Fu Yingwei looking shamefaced, repeatedly apologizing.
The elder reassured, "Yingwei, have no qualms, for we of the Wishful Sect pursue the Heavenly Path, not an evil cult!"
"High Priest, I am aware of this; otherwise, I wouldn’t be so devout."
"Good, your body’s matter can be resolved tonight. This way, you might soon produce offspring, continuing your lineage and resolving your worries."
"Thank you, High Priest," Fu Yingwei expressed, clearly excited. This fellow still fixated on offspring, especially since Fu Changsu was now as fat as a pig and incapacitated, utterly incapable of continuing the line.
From around the corner, Li Yifei rubbed his nose at the mention of the so-called Wishful Sect, a name he’d never heard, nor did it register in his knowledge as anything good, especially given he destroyed waves of resentment earlier, confirming his judgment entirely—how could a righteous sect harbor such intense resentment, if not for a joke?
Two minutes later, the eight were about to ascend when the ground suddenly shook violently, even causing the High Priest’s face to change drastically: "Darn, the Earth Dragon’s awake!"
"What shall we do?" Fu Yingwei and others asked urgently, panic visible on their faces. The elder advised, "Stay calm. The Earth Dragon’s premature awakening requires pacification; otherwise, its release might wreak great havoc, disrupting our plan."
"High Priest, what shall we do?"
"Human blood, sacrifice human blood. Find blood quickly, at least from five people," the elder urged hastily.
Hearing of human blood didn’t surprise them, even to Fu Yingwei, who seemed to regard it as ordinary. However, Li Yifei’s eyelids twitched hearing that. Seeing Fu Yingwei dispatch his men to obtain human blood, Li Yifei retreated again. As one man ascended, taking out a phone to issue orders, Li Yifei swiftly immobilized his acupoint, dragging him into a room. Securing him and unlocking his acupoint, the man tried to scream but found himself mute, eyes wide with terror.
"Answer my questions, and perhaps you’ll live; otherwise, death is your only future," Li Yifei declared.