NOVPUBBefore him sat a man clad in black robes.
Without a hint of when he arrived, nor any trace of movement.
The man simply sat before him.
Shrouded entirely in black, only his gloomy eyes were exposed.
"I knew you would come sooner or later," the crazed man said flatly.
"Considering that you didn’t expose me today, I won’t kill you," the man in black responded.
"What are you here for?"
"Just to give you a reminder," the man in black replied.
"Your Sect Gate’s elder uncle and Sect Master are in my hands. If you don’t want them dead, you’d better behave."
"I am aware," the killing intent flashed in the eyes of the crazed man before he responded indifferently.
"My patience is running thin with you," the man in black said coolly.
"Hand over the fragments of the Divine Sword, and I’ll release your Sect Gate’s people. It’s a win-win."
"Do you think I don’t know?" the crazed man replied indifferently.
"Without the fragments of the Divine Sword, we can survive.
If you get hold of the fragments, we’ll have no reason left to live."
Upon hearing the man’s words, the man in black fell silent for a moment, before saying, "Do as you wish.
It won’t take long, the fragments of the Divine Sword will still be mine."
As the words of the man in black ended, silence filled the room.
Just as the man in black was about to turn and leave, his figure froze in place.
There, leaning askew on the window ledge, was a figure.
Unnoticed, he had listened carefully to their entire conversation.
"Are you done talking?" Xu Zimei looked at the two men and asked with a smile.
"When did you get here?" the man in black asked flatly.
Previously, he hadn’t noticed at all.
"I suppose I’ve heard both what I should and should not," Xu Zimei said with a smile.
His gaze shifted to the side at the crazed man, asking, "Why aren’t you pretending to be foolish anymore?
I saved you, yet you’ve deceived me.
It’s truly heartbreaking!"
The man in black’s gaze tensed, as he contemplated leaving through the main door.
But as the door swung open, King Qinyou’s figure calmly stood there.
"No running away now, take off your mask so I can see who you are," Xu Zimei said with a smile.
"I think we must know each other!"
"That depends on whether you have the ability," the man in black snorted coldly.
The aura of someone at the peak of the Saint Vein Realm burst forth from within him.
He was the first to attack Xu Zimei.
A punch thundered down, endless sharpness spreading between his knuckles.
"Ridiculous," Xu Zimei replied indifferently.
He lightly sidestepped, evading the man in black’s assault.
Reaching out with his right hand, he directly grasped the other’s wrist and forcefully snapped it.
Then, with a kick to the abdomen, he sent the man in black flying.
Although it was just a few simple moves,
Xu Zimei did not hold back, employing his greatest strength.
The man in black lay on the ground, all limbs broken, a viscous trail of fresh blood oozing from his mouth.
He was like a lump of mud sprawled on the ground.
However, the Spiritual Energy around him was also automatically healing his injuries, and it seemed he would recover before long.
Xu Zimei walked over to the man in black, pulled off his mask,
And took it off.
"Although it’s you, I am not surprised," Xu Zimei said with a light laugh.
The person in front of him was indeed the Little Acolyte he had met today.
"The enemy you mentioned who would destroy the Sword Twilight Sect, I’m afraid that would be yourself," Xu Zimei said with a smile.
The Little Acolyte sighed softly and said with his head down, "One wrong step leads to another."
"How about a deal?" Xu Zimei asked, looking at the crazed man.
"Exchange those fragments of the sword for the lives of your entire sect."
"You’re just like him, why should I trust you?" the crazed man replied indifferently.
"You don’t have the luxury of choice," Xu Zimei said.
"I don’t have that much patience. If you don’t agree, I will simply take you for a Soul Search."
Upon hearing the words "Soul Search," the crazed man’s eyes narrowed slightly.
He could tell Xu Zimei was not an ordinary person; the Soul Search technique was not something just anyone could grasp.
Moreover, this method was extremely cruel, those subjected to it either died or went completely mad.
Such methods went against the harmony of heaven, so even within the True Martial Holy Sect, this technique was seldom used.
"I’ll do the trade with you," the crazed man pondered for a moment before finally speaking up.
"That’s more like it," Xu Zimei smiled.
"I only want the fragments of the Divine Sword. I have no grievances with your Sword Twilight Sect."
After speaking, Xu Zimei turned to the Little Acolyte and asked, "Do you want to live?"
"I understand, I’ll take you to where they are imprisoned," the Little Acolyte said, shaking his head as if resigning to his fate.
Then the Little Acolyte stood up and led Xu Zimei and the others to a room within the monastery’s dining hall.
He tapped the side of the room’s wall with his right hand. 𝚗𝚘v𝚙𝚞b.𝚌𝚘m
A rumbling sound came from beneath the ground.
A staircase leading underground appeared beneath their feet.
The Little Acolyte led the way through the hidden passage, with everyone following closely behind.
The passageway wasn’t too dark, with Luminous Pearls embedded on both sides.
The interior was hollow, and footsteps echoed clearly as they walked.
Going down the stairs, the space inside began to widen.
There was a pungent smell in the air.
As the stone gate in front of them opened, everyone was shocked by the sight inside.
It was a huge iron cage where a group of people were chained and caged like animals.
Under the dim yellow light on both sides, at a glance, there appeared to be close to a hundred people.
All of them had gaunt faces and lifeless eyes, clearly having suffered a great deal.
The odd scent in the air was intense, as all the detainees’ eating, drinking, and excreting were done in this place.
Seeing this scene, the crazed man stood rooted to the spot.
"Master, Third Uncle," he cried out frantically, rushing towards the people inside the iron cage.
The people inside looked at him numbly, their eyes devoid of any emotion.
Just then, another loud "boom" came from above.
The Little Acolyte’s figure had already disappeared, and a cage made from positions in all directions trapped Xu Zimei and the others inside.
Or rather, the secret chamber itself was a hidden cage.
A round of clapping came from the side.
The Little Acolyte emerged from a hidden spot, looking triumphantly at the people he had trapped.
"Bet you didn’t expect that," he said, laughing unrestrainedly at the captive group.
"Although I had no intention of sparing you, what you have done indeed angers me," Xu Zimei said calmly.
He looked around; this cage wasn’t made from ordinary material.
Rather, it was forged from a type of ore called Heavenly Gang and Earth Sha Stone.
Such stone was inherently indestructible; even a Divine Vein expert couldn’t break it in a short time.
"It seems you were prepared," Xu Zimei said, narrowing his eyes in response.
