Chapter 371: Lin Ruoxi is Missing
Lei Yunhai made no secret of his plans, openly issuing a notice announcing his participation in the Dongshan Martial Dao Competition in three days.
Furthermore, Lei Yunhai sent word that the Hu and Zhu Families were to bring their successor, Cheng Yuan, to Donghua Mountain to await his judgment.
Upon receiving this news, the Hu and Zhu Families became extremely tense.
Lei Yunhai was a genius from Hidden Dragon Valley. Even if they could defeat him, they couldn’t afford to provoke Hidden Dragon Valley!
Hu Yidao called Cheng Yuan immediately.
"Xiaoyuan, did you offend Lei Yunhai?"
Cheng Yuan wasn’t the least bit panicked. "I suppose so? I just crippled his nephew. What about it?"
Hu Yidao was frantic. "Xiaoyuan, you can’t just brush this off! Lei Yunhai is a genius from Hidden Dragon Valley! His cultivation has already reached Martial King Peak, and he’s just a hair’s breadth from breaking through to Martial Emperor! He’s spread the word that in three days, he will attend Dongshan’s annual Martial Dao Competition, and he expects the Hu and Zhu Families to bring you to Jiuhua Mountain to be dealt with by him."
Cheng Yuan laughed. "To be dealt with by him? Who the hell does he think he is?"
Hu Yidao gave a bitter smile. "Xiaoyuan, I know you’re incredibly talented, but a genius who hasn’t reached their full potential is just a fleeting illusion! Hurry and ask your two sworn brothers to mediate for you. With the protection of Prince Duan and Master Danba, Lei Yunhai shouldn’t dare to touch you."
’Just a Martial King Peak,’ Cheng Yuan thought, completely unfazed. He asked calmly, "Uncle Hu, where is the Martial Dao Competition being held?"
"On Donghua Mountain, on the outskirts of the Provincial City."
"Got it. I’ll be there on time."
Cheng Yuan hung up, returned to Villa Number One, and began to focus on his cultivation. ’If I can break through to the Martial King Realm in three days,’ he thought, ’I’ll have a much better chance at the Martial Dao Competition.’
Until now, Cheng Yuan’s cultivation had been completely unimpeded. This was the first time he had ever sensed a threshold.
According to the Celestial Witch Inheritance, only upon reaching the Martial King Realm could one be considered to have truly stepped onto the path of cultivation.
The mark of a Martial King was the comprehension of the Celestial Dao Laws, which allowed them to borrow a portion of the Celestial Dao’s power!
Empowered by the Celestial Dao Laws, the might of one’s cultivation technique would increase dramatically!
The Celestial Witch Inheritance stated that one only needed to send out their Spiritual Power to sense Energy Factors of different attributes. By following these Energy Factors, one could naturally make contact with the Celestial Dao Laws.
Cheng Yuan released his Spiritual Power, radiating it outward with his full strength. He did indeed sense numerous Energy Factors in his surroundings.
Cheng Yuan attempted to use his Spiritual Power to connect with the Energy Factors. But to his surprise, they reacted as if they had seen the most terrifying monster, scattering in fear!
This was incredibly frustrating. ’What is wrong with these Energy Factors?’
’Why are they so terrified?’
Cheng Yuan tried to imbue his Spiritual Power with a sense of goodwill before approaching the Energy Factors again.
But the result was no different. Like mice seeing a cat, the Energy Factors fled in terror!
After hundreds of attempts, Cheng Yuan was forced to give up.
Cheng Yuan carefully reviewed the contents of the Celestial Witch Inheritance in his mind but found no answer.
However, Cheng Yuan didn’t lose heart. He quickly thought of a solution.
’Xuanyuan Potian practices a castrated version of the Celestial Witch Heart Method. If he could reach the Martial Emperor realm, he must have a way to solve this Energy Factor problem!’
Cheng Yuan took out his phone and dialed Xuanyuan Potian’s number. The call connected quickly, and Xuanyuan Potian’s respectful voice came through. "Young Master, what are your instructions?"
"Potian, I want to ask you something. When you broke through to the Martial King Realm, did you encounter any trouble?"
"Young Master, are you referring to the issue of connecting with the Energy Factors?"
"Yes."
"I did run into trouble back then. I even started to doubt myself, wondering if my talent was lacking and that was why my efficiency in connecting with the Energy Factors was so low. It wasn’t until I made a trip to the Celestial Witch Sect that I discovered that for the Celestial Witch Lineage, the higher one’s aptitude, the harder it is to connect with Energy Factors."
"Why is that?"
"There’s a myth passed down in the Celestial Witch Sect. In ancient times, a war between the Witch and Demon Races tore through the Nine Heavens and Ten Lands, causing the Celestial Dao to shatter and all order to vanish. To this day, the Celestial Dao has not fully recovered. It is extremely hostile toward the Witch and Demon Races. Therefore, anyone who cultivates the techniques of the Witch and Demon Races will be suppressed by the Celestial Dao Laws."
"Then how did you become a Martial Emperor?"
"In the Celestial Witch Sect’s Secret Inheritance Holy Land, there is a strand of the complete, original Celestial Dao. This strand of the Dao doesn’t reject the Witch and Demon Races. It was in that Secret Inheritance Holy Land that I broke through to the Martial King Realm and eventually the Martial Emperor Realm."
Realization dawned on Cheng Yuan. ’It looks like I’ll have to find an opportunity to visit the Celestial Witch Sect!’
"Potian, arrange a helicopter for me. I need to make a trip to the Celestial Witch Sect."
"Yes, Young Master."
Cheng Yuan hung up. Suddenly, his phone began to vibrate violently. He had five missed calls and seven or eight text messages, all from a single person: Shen Youchu.
"Brother, is my sister with you? I can’t reach her."
"Brother, my sister hasn’t come to work for two days. Did she go back to Luocheng with you?"
...
"*Sob*, Brother, I’ve lost my sister!"
Cheng Yuan immediately called Shen Youchu, his voice tight with tension. "Ruoxi isn’t with me. Isn’t she at Yuanxi Pharmaceutical?"
"She’s not at Yuanxi Pharmaceutical. Everyone thought she’d gone back to Luocheng with you. But I felt like something was wrong. If my sister went back to Luocheng, why wouldn’t she have taken me with her?"
Cheng Yuan suddenly grew tense. "Youchu, I instructed you very clearly to stay by her side at all times. What happened?"
Shen Youchu sounded like she was about to cry. "Brother, I didn’t want to leave her! But she hired a tutor for me and ordered me to study for two hours every day. I couldn’t be with her during that time."
"I see. Don’t worry, maybe Ruoxi just went to see a client."
Cheng Yuan sounded relaxed, but inwardly he was extremely tense. ’I have so many enemies. If Ruoxi fell into their hands... the consequences would be unthinkable!’
Cheng Yuan immediately pulled out his phone and dialed the number for Zhu Jiang, the Second Master of the Zhu Family. The call connected quickly, and Zhu Jiang’s grave voice came through.
"Xiaoyuan, you’ve heard about Lei Yunhai, haven’t you? You need to go abroad and lie low for a while. Come back after the heat dies down. Don’t worry, I’ll keep a constant watch on Lei Yunhai’s movements for you!"
Cheng Yuan said urgently, "Lei Yunhai is a minor issue. Second Uncle, please help me investigate Ruoxi’s recent movements."
Soon, Zhu Jiang reported back.
"Xiaoyuan, I couldn’t find any travel records for Miss Lin. What’s happened to her?"
"Ruoxi has been missing for two days! Second Uncle, please help me check the surveillance footage from Yuanxi Pharmaceutical for the past two days. We have to find her!"
"Alright."
At Zhu Jiang’s command, the Provincial City Patrol Office sprang into action like a well-oiled machine, launching a full-scale investigation into the surveillance footage from Yuanxi Pharmaceutical and the surrounding area.
They watched carefully, frame by frame.
Soon, they found a trace of Lin Ruoxi.
Lin Ruoxi’s last appearance on camera was yesterday morning. She was wearing a hoodie that obscured her entirely, and she quickly vanished into a surveillance blind spot.
"Xiaoyuan, I’ve checked all the surveillance footage around Yuanxi Pharmaceutical, but I can’t find any trace of where Miss Lin went. It looks like... she’s missing."