Chapter 241
Chapter 241: Walking Forward
Cang Wu clenched his teeth, gathering all the qi in his body into his palm and thrusting it forward with a shout: “Get lost.”
Wang Jie raised his hand calmly, his guardian qi condensing into his palm to meet the attack head-on.
Another soft boom echoed, but this time, luck had abandoned Cang Wu. He flew backward, slamming heavily into the mountain rocks, embedding himself deeply. His striking hand had snapped, twisted and broken, as murky qi swirled chaotically around him, slowly leaking away.
Wang Jie released a slow breath. In that fleeting instant, his guardian qi had blocked the murky energy, yet the lingering sorrow and despair had flashed through his mind like lightning, leaving a painful trace.
If their strength had been equal, he might not have endured the anguish that palm strike carried.
[Is this what a Death Realm battle technique feels like?]
Step by step, he walked toward Cang Wu.
Cang Wu crawled painfully from the shattered rock, gasping heavily, his right arm trembling. His eyes watched Wang Jie as if staring at a monster. [How did he grow so powerful? When we first met, his strength was nowhere near enough to defeat me with such ease.]
[He has grown stronger yet again.]
[This man is truly an unrivaled prodigy.]
Wang Jie stopped just a few meters from Cang Wu, gazing down coldly from above: “Let’s talk. For instance, about your origins.”
Cang Wu met Wang Jie’s gaze, seeing only icy coldness within those eyes. His will deflated; helpless, he answered bitterly: “Corpse Sect. Hundred Coffins candidate, Cang Wu.”
Wang Jie was speechless. [No wonder he saw through my disguise immediately back then. This man himself is from Corpse Sect.]
“So that’s why you realized right away I wasn’t a Corpse Sect cultivator?”
Cang Wu nodded slowly: “You don’t have the scent of my kind.”
“What does that mean, ‘the scent of your kind’?”
“Corpse Sect cultivators handle corpses all year round. You don’t have that stench of death. The longer you are in contact with it, the harder it is to cleanse, no matter what methods you use.”
“And here I thought you knew Chu Yao.”
Cang Wu shook his head. “Corpse Sect cultivators rarely know each other. Each one hides deeply. Perhaps a bone you step on by chance is actually a living cultivator, so it’s impossible for us to know one another.”
Wang Jie crouched in front of Cang Wu: “What are you doing here?”
“A Hundred Coffins task. To bring back the head of a Hundred Star Realm expert is the only way to become one of the Hundred Coffins.”
“You? Claiming the head of a Hundred Star Realm expert?” Wang Jie was stunned by the absurdity. [The gap is immense; any random Hundred Star Realm expert could instantly kill him.]
Cang Wu gave a bitter smile: “This is Death Realm. Otherwise, after countless years, why are there only the Hundred Coffins in Corpse Sect? And even among them, not every coffin is filled. It’s said not even half have succeeded. If I want the head of a Hundred Star Realm, my only chance is on the battlefield, hoping to find a severely injured and isolated master.”
“So you betrayed Black White Heaven disciple’s identity to exchange information with Phoenix Cry Hall.”
Wang Jie understood clearly. “Then that woman from Phoenix Cry Hall isn’t from Death Realm?”
Cang Wu shook his head. “She isn’t. She’s just someone who receives intelligence. You must have noticed already. You’ve tracked me more than once, haven’t you? Her qi has never fluctuated.”
Wang Jie nodded, having tracked them twice, observing carefully.
Indeed, the woman’s qi never showed signs of cultivation movements. Of course, disguises were possible. Thus, he fed a Truth Speaking Pill to Cang Wu.
Cang Wu helplessly swallowed the pill. Wang Jie repeated his previous questions, and Cang Wu’s answers remained unchanged.
“What does the Truth Speaking Pill feel like?”
“Nothing special.”
Wang Jie frowned slightly. [Could it be defective?] He continued asking, “What about Corpse Sect itself? I’d like to understand more.”
“Where exactly are you from?”
“I’m the one asking the questions,” Wang Jie flicked his finger lightly, and a thin wind pierced through Cang Wu’s body, clearing off the bloodstains.
Cang Wu sneered bitterly, “Just kill me. You won’t let me live anyway.”
Wang Jie stared into his eyes: “Are you afraid of death?”
“What do you think?”
“Right. Spending your life among corpses, you probably don’t fear death anymore. Especially since your realm is called Death Realm.” Pausing briefly, Wang Jie raised his eyes: “I’ve heard that Death Realm cultivators possess a strong desire for exploration. I’ll satisfy your curiosity if you satisfy mine. How about it?”
Cang Wu stared back at Wang Jie coldly. “What curiosity would a dying man still have?”
“Chu Yao. He was one of Corpse Sect’s Hundred Coffins. I’ve met him.”
Cang Wu’s eyes suddenly brightened with intensity: “You’ve met someone from the Hundred Coffins?”
Wang Jie nodded.
Cang Wu exhaled deeply. Becoming one of the Hundred Coffins had been his greatest dream in life, and his curiosity towards them naturally soared. “Fine. What do you wish to know?”
“Corpse Sect.”
“I can’t answer that clearly. As I said before, Death Realm cultivators rarely know each other. How could we possibly understand Corpse Sect fully? I spent so many years there, yet the most I ever saw were eyes and endless corpses, or the people who joined Corpse Sect alongside me. Beyond that, I’ve never seen anyone else, nor been anywhere else.”
[An eye? Probably the same kind Chu Yao gave me. It helps observe qi.]
“Where is Corpse Sect located?”
Cang Wu laughed softly, “You’re too naive. Many know Corpse Sect’s general location, but no one has ever truly scouted it. Otherwise, the powerful sects would have destroyed Death Realm long ago. Even if I tell you, it won’t help.”
“Whether it helps or not is my problem.”
Cang Wu stared deeply into Wang Jie’s eyes, then slowly drew a map of Corpse Sect on the ground.
“This is all I can provide. It’s the route I remember walking. As for what’s around it, I truly don’t know.”
Wang Jie quietly took the map.
“What’s Chu Yao like? What kind of abilities does he have?” Cang Wu asked, curious.
Wang Jie replied plainly, “He’s a cosmic parasite who seems honest but loves staring at women’s chests.” He looked seriously at Cang Wu and added, “He gives off a gloomy vibe, like someone who tries to be creepy but can’t quite manage it.”
Cang Wu tried imagining such a person but couldn’t form a clear picture in his mind.
“Have you truly met him?”
“Yes, truly.”
“How can I believe you?”
“Do you even have any value left for me to bother proving it?” Wang Jie countered calmly.
Cang Wu frowned. His understanding of the Corpse Sect was too shallow. “I have information about Ming Huang Hall.”
Wang Jie shook his head lightly, “That won’t matter much anymore. On the Ying Yang Battlefield, Black White Heaven holds absolute superiority. Ming Huang Hall will lose sooner or later.”
Cang Wu felt helpless. He had no value left to offer.
Wang Jie continued, “You’ll perform the movements I instruct and give me the method you use to contact that woman. In exchange, I’ll draw Chu Yao’s appearance for you. You might not believe it’s him, but all I can say is—I haven’t lied.”
“Just as you mentioned that eye earlier, it was exactly through that eye that I saw qi for the first time and began cultivating.”
This statement slightly restored Cang Wu’s trust. After all, the Eye was the Corpse Sect’s unique death weapon.
“Then draw him,” Cang Wu finally relented. Whether he believed it or not, he had no choice but to trust Wang Jie. The Hundred Coffins had always been his life’s ambition. To see one before dying would at least grant him satisfaction.
Wang Jie indeed drew Chu Yao’s face.
And Chu Yao was indeed one of the Hundred Coffins of the Corpse Sect.
Cang Wu stared at the image Wang Jie had sketched, mouth wide open in disbelief, “He’s… one of the Hundred Coffins?”
“You’ve seen him before?” Wang Jie asked, intrigued.
Cang Wu smiled bitterly. “Never thought he’d be one of the Hundred Coffins. It turns out, I’ve met him long ago.”
Wang Jie grew curious.
Cang Wu laid directly on the ground and murmured quietly, “When I first entered the Corpse Sect, a man brushed past me and smiled. At the time, I thought he must be mad. Who could still smile in a place as dark as the Corpse Sect?”
“I saw him twice more afterward. He told me he was just an errand-runner. I never imagined he was actually one of the Hundred Coffins.”
At that moment, he fully trusted Wang Jie’s words because Wang Jie had drawn someone he himself had encountered inside the Corpse Sect, yet Wang Jie himself clearly did not belong there.
As Wang Jie gazed at Chu Yao’s face, memories of Blue Star resurfaced in his mind. [If I’d followed that guy back then, who knows where I’d be now.]
After his decisive battle with Shu Mu Night, everyone assumed he was dead. That was why Chu Yao never took him along.
[Actually, that was quite unfortunate. Perhaps entering the Death Realm would’ve suited me better.]
Wang Jie brought out the Nine Form Diagram.
Cang Wu obediently performed the movements, finally revealing how he contacted the woman.
“You’re surprisingly trustworthy,” Wang Jie remarked calmly.
“Those from the Death Realm are far more trustworthy than you people,” Cang Wu scoffed.
Wang Jie stood up. “Then farewell.”
Cang Wu looked up, “Can I ask one last favor? Just pity me.”
“Speak,” Wang Jie said.
Cang Wu’s eyes filled with complicated emotion, “If one day you manage to reach the Corpse Sect, find a woman named Gu Ling for me. Tell her I did my best.”
Wang Jie nodded solemnly, then brought down his palm.
He couldn’t allow Cang Wu to live. Leaving him alive meant risk because he knew Wang Jie’s secret.
This was how the cultivation world worked. Had he lost to this person earlier, he would’ve already been dead. Cang Wu would’ve shown no mercy had their positions been reversed.
Having dealt with Cang Wu, Wang Jie quickly returned.
After regrouping with his team, he contacted Li Tong He with a plan he’d formed.
“No, it’s too risky. You’ll die if you’re exposed,” Li Tong He immediately refused.
“Senior, have you already forgotten how you were rescued before?”
Li Tong He fell silent.
“Senior, opportunities like this, which solve everything at once, come only rarely. Miss this, and it won’t come again. If not for the coincidence that allowed this junior to realize that person was a traitor, we wouldn’t have this chance.”
Li Tong He let out a heavy sigh, “Wang Jie, you’ve never been one to take such risks. Why do this now?”
Wang Jie gazed at the starry sky. Indeed, he shouldn’t be taking this risk—it wasn’t his nature.
“People change. Perhaps after another brush with death, I’ll revert to my previous self out of fear.”
He truly wanted to ascend higher during the Starry Martial Meet.
He genuinely wished to stand before Shu Mu Night once more, and give him a hard slap.
The decisive battle on Blue Star had been so difficult; the future would only get harder. Shu Mu Night brought despair at every level. Wang Jie had no choice but to climb upwards step by step.
This was the price he had to pay.
Several days later, Black White Heaven and cultivators from the Second Star Cloud fell into a chaotic battle. Amidst the confusion, Wang Jie secretly contacted the woman who’d been meeting with Cang Wu, disguising himself perfectly as the latter.
The woman’s face darkened immediately upon seeing him, “Why contact me at a time like this? You’ll get me killed!”
Perfectly mimicking Cang Wu’s voice, Wang Jie replied, “Black White Heaven is secretly dispatching large numbers of cultivators into the Ying Yang Battlefield. They’re planning to conquer this region completely. If I don’t tell you, you’ll all be doomed.”
The woman was startled, “When is this happening? How could we have received no news?”
“With Yue Jian already exposed, what news could you expect? If not for my connections in the sect, even I wouldn’t know.”
“How will they do it?” she quickly asked.
“They’re mobilizing twenty million Lock Force cultivators as a false siege around the Hanhai Sea. In reality, most are weak and easily defeated. But as you attempt to break out, they’ll send Hundred Star Realm and Wandering Star Realm cultivators to hunt you, forcing you towards the hardest path of escape, forming a perfect encirclement.” As he spoke, he handed her a detailed star map of the Hanhai Sea. “I’ve clearly marked a breach point here. When you find yourself surrounded, break through from there.” With those words, he turned and swiftly departed.
The woman wanted to question him further, but a distant beam of light swept in her direction.
Forced to retreat, she slipped silently into the shadows.