Void Cultivation

Silence once again descended upon the hall. The seven elders remained motionless, offering neither approval nor disapproval of Grey’s words.

Several moments later, another voice finally broke the silence.

Unlike the previous speaker, this voice belonged to a woman.

It carried a calm authority tempered by age, gentle on the surface yet impossible to question.

From its tone alone, Grey guessed that it most likely belonged to an elderly woman.

"Junior Disciple Violet," the female elder said, "is there anything you wish to add?"

The question caused Violet to lift her head slightly.

After taking a brief moment to gather her thoughts, she respectfully shook her head.

"This disciple has nothing further to add, Sect Elder." Violet said calmly. "However, this disciple’s thoughts are in complete agreement with Grey’s. The crimes committed by Daoist Kaien are punishable by death under the laws of Sky Mist City, regardless of whether the offender is an outsider or a disciple of the Bizarre Broken Sect. This disciple only hopes that the Sect Elders will take this fact into careful consideration before rendering their judgment."

Her voice remained tranquil from beginning to end.

There was not the slightest trace of anger, hatred, or excitement within her tone. It was as calm as still water, as though she were merely stating an unquestionable fact rather than determining another person’s fate.

The enormous hall fell silent once more. No elder spoke again.

The only sound that disturbed the suffocating silence was the faint rustling of chains and restraints as Kaien desperately struggled against the invisible force binding his body.

His breathing had become increasingly erratic.

Fear had completely replaced the arrogance he once carried as one of the Heaven’s Chosen of the Bizarre Broken Sect.

Several long seconds passed. Finally, one of the elders let out a soft sigh.

"Very well," the voice said calmly. "You may both leave."

Neither Grey nor Violet lingered. After respectfully bowing toward the seven elders once more, they slowly retreated from the great hall.

Before leaving, they had already provided a complete account of everything that had transpired on the night they investigated the disappearances within the Market District.

From the discovery of the hidden underground chamber... To Kaien’s crimes...

To every detail of the battle that followed. Nothing had been concealed.

Grey only hid the secret of his Soul Devouring Everlasting Bird and called it another name. He also called the shadow a bizarre existence that he had managed to subdue.

Violet also recounted how she had caught and killed the bodyguard protecting Kaein. However, there were some parts that sounded off or misspoken. But not one elder stopped to question her in that regard.

It was her secret, and in his world, having yoir own secret was nothing to be shameful about. If you didn’t have something you kept secret, then there would be no reason why you are still alive up till now.

Especially since the two of them pulled off a shocking feat of defeating a Heaven’s chosen while possessing lower cultivation bases.

It was only after confirming that there was nothing further to ask did the Sect Elders permit the two disciples to depart.

The moment Grey stepped beyond the temple’s entrance, the familiar sensation returned.

It felt as though his entire body were once again passing through an impossibly thin membrane.

Yet unlike an ordinary barrier, this invisible layer seemed to separate not merely two locations...

But two entirely different spaces.

Perhaps even two different dimensions.

For a brief instant, Grey felt his senses become strangely distorted.

Space around him seemed to stretch and time itself appeared to slow. The sensation was incredibly mysterious.

Instinctively, Grey attempted to hold onto that fleeting feeling, hoping to understand even the slightest trace of the profound mystery hidden within it.

Unfortunately...

The strange sensation vanished almost as quickly as it had appeared.

Within only a few breaths, it completely disappeared, leaving behind nothing but a vague memory that was impossible to grasp.

Grey secretly sighed.

He had a feeling that whatever method the Sect Elders used to create that mysterious temple was far beyond his current realm of understanding.

The gap between them was simply too great.

By the time both Grey and Violet fully emerged outside, the blurry temple standing behind them had already begun to fade.

Its indistinct walls gradually became increasingly transparent.

The ancient pillars dissolved into countless strands of mist. The lofty entrance quietly disappeared.

Within only a few moments, the entire temple had completely vanished, as though it had never existed at all.

Only the dense mountain mist remained.

Grey silently stared at the empty space where the temple had once stood before exhaling softly.

With the matter concluded, he prepared to descend the mist-covered mountain.

However, before he could take more than a few steps, Violet suddenly called out to him.

"Little Grey."

Grey stopped and turned around.

"What is it?"

Violet looked toward the place where the temple had disappeared before asking in a thoughtful voice,

"I’m sure you noticed something rather unusual about the council of elders... didn’t you?"

Grey’s eyebrows furrowed slightly.

"What do you mean?"

Violet let out a quiet sigh before slowly explaining.

"Inside that temple, there were nine seats."

She paused briefly.

"But only seven of them were occupied."

Grey remained silent.

Seeing that he was listening, Violet continued.

"Furthermore, the Fourth Elder entered at almost the same time we did."

"In other words..."

"When the meeting first began, only six elders were actually present."

She narrowed her eyes slightly.

"And yet this was a council that was supposed to be attended by all of the Sequence Elders."

Grey looked at Violet with a thoughtful expression.

It was not suspicion born from disbelief. Rather, it was the look of someone carefully considering the implications of her words.

He had indeed noticed that there had been nine seats within the hall.

However, at the time, his attention had been focused almost entirely on the overwhelming pressure radiating from the elders themselves.

He had not given much thought to the empty seats.

Now that Violet mentioned it... It truly seemed rather strange.

Sky Mist City contained a total of nine Sequences.

Each Sequence was governed by a single Central Elder, making a total of nine elders responsible for overseeing the city’s cultivation system.

Every Sequence possessed its own unique cultivation path, responsibilities, and areas of expertise.

The Third Sequence, for example, specialized in life upon the Dead Sea.

Many of its disciples spent the majority of their lives cultivating aboard enormous spiritual ships or within settlements built upon the sea itself.

This was largely because the Third Sequence governed nearly all of the major ports, harbors, and waterways connected to Sky Mist City.

Their influence over maritime trade and transportation was unrivaled.

The Seventh Sequence, on the other hand, focused almost entirely on alchemy.

Its disciples devoted themselves to refining medicinal pills, studying spiritual herbs, and researching countless methods of healing and cultivation enhancement.

It was also the very Sequence to which Ange belonged.

As for the Eighth Sequence...

Its disciples practiced extreme cultivation arts that tempered both body and mind.

Their training methods were notoriously harsh, often pushing practitioners to the very limits of endurance in pursuit of overwhelming physical strength and unbreakable mental resilience.

Naturally, every Sequence possessed its own strengths and unique traditions.

And presiding over each of them stood a single Central Elder.

Nine Sequences, nine Central Elders. Yet during such an important judgment...

Only seven seats had been occupied. Or perhaps...

Only six had truly attended from the very beginning.

The realization left an uncomfortable feeling lingering in Grey’s mind. Something about the situation didn’t seem quite right.

In the end, this matter was not something they could involve themselves in. Despite their current cultivation bases, the roles they could play in an affair of this magnitude were still insignificant. It was a conflict that belonged to the sect’s highest authorities, not to two newly advanced Foundation Establishment cultivators.

Grey’s eyes flickered thoughtfully as he pondered the situation. After a brief moment of silence, he let out a faint sigh before turning around, making no attempt to linger any longer.

Since they had already delivered Kaien to the Council of Elders, there was no longer any reason for them to remain on the mountain. Although both he and Violet had stepped into the Foundation Establishment Realm and had technically earned the qualifications to reside on the mountain, they could not simply choose a residence and stay there immediately. Such matters required proper arrangements and approval from the sect.

This was especially true for Grey, who had yet to pay a single spirit stone after returning from their previous mission alongside Violet. Until everything had been settled, remaining on the mountain would only invite unnecessary attention.

"We should leave anyway," Violet said softly as she walked beside him. A faint smile curved across her beautiful face, carrying an air of amusement. "But, little Grey, you should learn to hide your killing intent from others a little better."

Grey halted in his tracks and turned to look at her.

"Although wanting to kill him isn’t necessarily a bad thing," she continued calmly, "letting everyone else know that you intend to do so is another matter entirely. Your enemies will become wary of you, and even your allies may begin to question your judgment."

She folded her arms behind her back before adding in a gentle yet meaningful tone, "Sometimes, the deadliest blade is the one that remains hidden until the very last moment. If you wish to survive in this cultivation world, you must learn not only to conceal your strength but also your intentions. There will be times when you’ll have to hide your true thoughts from both your enemies... and even your friends."

Grey remained silent after hearing her words. A thoughtful expression slowly appeared on his face as he carefully considered every sentence she had spoken. Although he disliked disguising his true intentions, he could not deny that Violet’s advice contained a great deal of wisdom. In a world where strength ruled above all else, openly exposing one’s killing intent could often bring more trouble than the act itself.

He nodded at her before the both took off and left the mountain. Returning to the Detective agency department in a matter of minutes.