The Prodigies War-Chapter 2724 Another Hidden Murderous Intent
Putting away the Evil Spirit Heart, Lin Xun, who had intended to leave, suddenly remembered something and turned back along the old path. He stopped before the massive aerial city and spread his spirit sense. A long time later, his brows furrowed.
During the battle, the Evil Spirit Lord had used a bone finger, which was probably an extraordinary Immortal-grade artifact, but that treasure was currently nowhere to be found. Lin Xun instinctively looked up at the distant city.
Huh?
In the vision of his spirit sense, he spotted a familiar figure sitting cross-legged on the black altar at the city's center. It was none other than the blood demon youth who had guided him earlier!
“Why did you return?” exclaimed the blood demon youth whose eyes flew open in shock, clearly having also sensed Lin Xun’s presence.
“It’s truly expected. You concealed yourself so well that even I was deceived,” said Lin Xun as he entered the city and approached the black altar.
The blood demon youth's expression flickered dimly. “You've already obtained the Evil Spirit Heart, which is enough to exchange for a nine-star merit. Why did you come back?”
Lin Xun appeared even more surprised. “You seem to know a lot about the Origin Sect?”
The blood demon youth said expressionlessly, “Your members have frequented this place since forever. It's not that hard to find out this kind of information."
“I see,” Lin Xun acknowledged and swept his eyes over the black altar.
The platform, extremely eerily, resembled an open eye. It was impossible to tell what it was made of, but it emanated waves of sinister, evil aura. The former Evil Spirit Lord had designated this altar as its place of cultivation.
“Where is that finger bone?” Lin Xun turned back to the blood demon youth.
“I cannot give you that item. If you wish to live, then go now and go quickly. Otherwise, even the sect token in your hand cannot save you.” The youth rose to his feet, his expression calm and his voice steady. It was a stark contrast to the fearful demeanor he had displayed during their first encounter.
Lin Xun stared at him for a moment, about to speak.
“Someone’s coming! Hide inside the altar!” The blood demon youth’s expression suddenly dropped. With a flick of his sleeve, a secret portal silently emerged at the base of the black altar.
Lin Xun was taken aback. “Why hide?”
The blood demon youth harshly replied, “Because they're coming to kill you!”
Lin Xun's gaze sharpened. “Who?”
The youth was anxious. “You'll see for yourself. First hide quickly, or else you'll get me killed too!”
“Alright, I'll trust you this once.” Lin Xun darted into the portal.
Beneath the altar was a secret realm, though extremely small at only ten thousand square feet in area. The furniture included some meditation mats, a cauldron, a bed, and a desk that were all neatly arranged and spotless.
Lin Xun was surprised once more, and it was difficult not to. This was the Sin World, a place of unimaginable cruelty and bloodshed, and the black altar was where the Evil Spirit Lord had cultivated. Yet, right underneath it was such a simple, clean secret realm.
Soon, his attention was drawn by a bronze mirror, the smooth surface of which reflected the scene outside on the altar. The blood demon youth was standing there, seeming extremely fearful with his expression shifting constantly.
Before long, an air-ripping sound echoed, and a magnificent figure shrouded in a boundless aura of immortality appeared above the altar.
Wearing a high hat and broad waistband, this person had a tall, big build and stern features. The might he emitted by just standing there casually dispelled all the blood-red malevolent energy in the surrounding.
Peak master of the Third Peak, Nan Bohong!
Lin Xun's mind was rattled. He almost couldn't believe his eyes. Was this person among those that the blood demon youth had said wanted to kill him?
“Where is he?” Nan Bohong's eyes were ruthless as he looked down at the blood demon youth.
“Reporting to Peak Master, he has just left earlier,” replied the youth with fear and respect.
“He left?” Nan Bohong's expression darkened.
A golden whip suddenly formed in his grip, and he lashed it at the blood demon youth so viciously that the latter's skin split open. The youth crashed to the ground, his body convulsing in pain.
“Please don’t be angry, Peak Master. Junior Brother Lin Xun's combat prowess is unmatched. I brought him here so that the Evil Spirit Lord would kill him, but to think that it was no match for him. The battle ended in seconds. By the time I tried to stop him, it was already too late...” explained the youth through gritted teeth. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎
The words ‘junior brother’ sent another shock through Lin Xun's heart, and he could not calm down. This blood demon youth was actually a senior disciple in the Origin Sect? But how was this possible?
Nan Bohong asked with a gloomy look, “How did he, a supreme Emperor Ancestor, kill the Evil Spirit Lord?”
“Please see for yourself, Peak Master,” the blood demon youth took out a finger bone and gently tapped it in the air. The scenes of Lin Xun previously slaying the Evil Spirit Lord was instantly projected.
“Time Stopping!” Nan Bohong's expression instantly displayed a series of drastic changes.
As the Third Peak Master, an ancient elder of the Nan Clan, one of the Donghuang's Four Clans, and also a Nirvana Spirit expert himself, how could he not recognize that the technique Lin Xun had used was one of the divine abilities of the Grand Abyss Heaven Devourer?
”If this man is allowed to live to become an Immortal, he'll become the second Luo Tongtian. No, he's also a successor of Fangchun Mountain, so his future is bound to be much more terrifying than Luo Tongtian’s...”
In Sin World, Nan Bohong no longer concealed his true feelings. His expression was filled with thick killing intent, and the aura he emitted was so overwhelming that the blood demon youth felt as though he would suffocate to death.
“Worthless trash!” Nan Bohong, thinking of how such a great opportunity had passed him by, lashed his whip at the blood demon youth again. The latter writhed in agony, showing cracks all over his body.
As Nan Bohong prepared to depart in rage, the youth asked tremblingly, “Peak Master, when can I have your permission to leave?”
“You ruined my plans. You’ll never leave here in your lifetime!” Nan Bohong’s frosty voice drifted in the air as he vanished.
After a long time, the blood demon youth struggled to his feet, his eyes filled with hatred. “I knew this would happen. You old beasts will meet your demise sooner or later!”
He then waited for a long time. Only after he was certain that Nan Bohong had left the Sin World did he open the portal beneath the altar and step inside.
Lin Xun had been waiting there this entire time. Seeing the severely injured youth, he tossed him a jade bottle. “This contains divine healing pills.”
The youth caught the bottle and shook his head, his voice bitter and full of despair, “They are useless. My body has become that of a blood demon’s, so all the sacred medicines of this world are poison to me.”
Lin Xun asked, “What exactly is going on?”
The youth sat down on the bedside and looked at Lin Xun, “Before you came here, I had already received word that this was an opportunity to kill you within this Sin World. So I deliberately waited there and revealed my presence once you arrived. As expected, you fell for it.”
At this part, he continued with a strange look on his face, “If you had died, that would have been that. If you had survived, then I would have found another opportunity to kill you. That was the plan.”
Lin Xun said, “But you didn't do that. Instead, you hid me here and helped me escape a deadly crisis.”
The blood demon youth mocked himself, “Who knows what the hell is wrong with me? I thought my conscience was gone, and I'd be a sinful scoundrel for the rest of my life, but when it came down to the actual action, I still held on to a glimmer of hope.”
Lin Xun offered, “Do you want me to help you escape?”
The youth laughed, but it was a sorrowful one. “Escape? It is easy as it sounds indeed. I could leave Sin World at any time, but once those old beasts find out, they can obliterate my soul with a single thought no matter where I hide.”
Feeling the deep sadness and hatred in the blood demon youth's heart, Lin Xun said, “Could you tell me about your situation? Perhaps I can be of help.”
The youth said, “Though hope is faint, I can share my story with you.”
The look in his eyes then showed that he had begun a trip down the memory lane. Long ago, he was a disciple of the Origin Sect, boasting extraordinary talent and heritage. Even after joining the Third Peak, his strength was considered outstanding among the disciples there.
Third Peak Master Nan Bohong, who highly appreciated him, promised to secure him all the cultivation resources he needed to reach the path of immortality, but only under the condition that he swore an oath with his dao heart to be loyal to Nan Bohong for life.
Repulsed by such a demand, he refused. Nan Bohong said nothing in response, but from that day on, his circumstances changed. The fellow disciples of the Third Peak began to resist and exclude him. Even the sect's cultivation resources were frequently withheld from him through various means.
He knew he had angered Nan Bohong and was being neglected as a result, but he did not care. However, he would discover later on that aside from him, nearly every disciple of the Third Peak had secretly sworn an oath to be loyal to Nan Bohong for life.
He finally realized the severity of the situation and resolutely chose to report the matter to Origin Sky Pavilion. Little had he expected that on the very day he made that report, Nan Bohong remained unharmed while he himself faced misfortune.
Nan Bohong, using his position as the peak master, lured him out of the Origin World and brought him to this Sin World, personally shattering his physical form, extracting his spirit, and imprisoning him here!
From then on, he became a blood demon in this realm. Hearing his story, Lin Xun was deeply shaken. “You, a disciple of the Origin Sect, suddenly disappeared. Did the sect never investigate it?”
The blood demon youth murmured, “If Nan Bohong was alone, he would never have dared to do such a thing. But behind him are many powerful figures. When they conspired against a disciple like me, who would know?”
Lin Xun was puzzled. “Over the years, many other disciples have come to the Sin World to train. Why didn't you seek their help?”
“I would be putting them in danger if I did,” said the youth. “Anyone who learns the truth and dares to expose it will face certain doom. You are different, though. Even if I told you nothing, Nan Bohong will still try to kill you, so I might as well.“
Understanding the whole thing, Lin Xun realized that the Origin Sect Ancestral Court was far from as peaceful as it appeared on the surface, and that there were countless dark and cruel secrets underneath. If he hadn't encountered the blood demon youth this time, he wouldn't have believed that Nan Bohong, a peak master, would dare to be so unscrupulous!
