The Prodigies War

The Dark Spring was a forbidden land within the Dark Zone known to almost no one. What terrors lay concealed within it? The white-robed elder did not know. What he did know was that beside the Dark Spring lurked a terrifying Mist Spirit King!

Many years ago, he had personally led a group to investigate that place. Yet before they had drawn near, their presence was detected by the Mist Spirit King. In the end, only by sacrificing three Immeasurable Realm experts did the rest of them manage to escape with their lives. From that day onward, none of them ever dared approach that ominous region again.

Suddenly, a voice sounded from outside the hall, “Brother Tushan.”

Seated alone upon the central throne, the white-robed elder slowly put away the geomantic map in his hands and lifted his gaze toward the figure striding hurriedly into the hall. The man wore robes the color of blazing fire. His features were sharp and handsome.

“Qingkui has sent word,” the fire-robed man announced, unable to conceal his excitement. “Lin Xun has appeared!”

Lin Xun!

The white-robed elder’s eyes narrowed. Despite that, there was no joy in them. Instead, his brows knit faintly. “So that troublesome pest has finally come...”

“Troublesome?” The fire-robed man’s smile faltered. “Brother Tushan, with all fifty-seven of us from the Xun Department stationed in this Dark Zone acting together, could we possibly still encounter trouble?”

The white-robed elder stated slowly, “If he were ordinary, the Lord would not have ordered us to act with full force. Lin Xun is no common figure. He is a successor of the Lord of Fangchun Mountain. He is regarded as an unprecedented variable in all of history.”

He paused briefly.

“Not long ago, news arrived from the Mortal Transformation Zone saying he single-handedly suppressed the five dao manifestations jointly ranked first and obtained in unprecedented Chaos Dao Fruit. His achievement rivals even that of Master back then.”

Silence fell.

“Such a person,” the elder concluded calmly, “is not easy to deal with.”

The fire-robed man’s expression changed repeatedly as he grasped the weight of the matter.

After a long moment, he said in a lowered voice, “Brother Tushan...what do you propose?”

The elder brought the beast hide map back out. “Where did he appear and which direction did he go?”

The fire-robed man stepped forward at once and pointed to a marked region. “Here...near Azure Flame Mountain. Qingkui reports that Lin Xun and a woman appeared roughly one thousand three hundred miles from there and headed southwest. If they do not change course, they will inevitably pass through Remnant Ridge, Sky Fiend Mountain, and Fire Soul Desert...”

He added, “The Dark Zone is shrouded in dense fog. They dare not teleport recklessly. If they rely on flight alone, their speed will be limited. Catching up will not be difficult.”

For over countless years, the mighty figures of the Xun Department had painstakingly explored this Dark Zone, mapping much of its vast territory. Even amid dense, obscuring fog, they could still discern the precise contours of mountains and rivers.

“Southwest from Azure Flame Mountain...” The white-robed elder murmured. A strange glint flickered in his eyes. “What if we mobilize our forces and lure them toward the Dark Spring? We could make use of the Mist Spirit King’s power to deal with them. In that case, we would not need to engage Lin Xun in close combat and we would naturally avoid unnecessary casualties.”

The fire-robed man’s eyes flashed. “Borrowing another’s blade is indeed a clever strategy,” he said. “But how do we draw them there?”

The white-robed old man fell silent for a moment before speaking. “When dealing with such a figure, we either do nothing at all...or if we act, we must strike in one breath and end it swiftly. If the first blow fails, we will only alert the snake.”

He rose slowly from his throne. “Youjiang, deliver the order: gather all members of the Xun Department at the foot of Sky Fiend Mountain.”

Youjiang’s heart jolted. “Are we truly prepared to stake everything on a single battle?”

The white-robed elder’s clouded eyes suddenly sharpened, gleaming like unsheathed blades. “When dealing with such a dangerous figure, we must go all out!”

Youjiang nodded.

......

The fog hung thick and heavy, impossible to dispel.

Two hours later—Boom!

The mist churned faintly. A mist spirit drifted silently closer, stealthy as a shadow. Before it could strike, Lin Xun’s palm swept out as though he had already foreseen its approach. His palm descended like a bottomless abyss.

Though the mist spirit possessed strength comparable to that of a Greater Boundless Realm cultivator, it could not withstand such terrifying force and was instantly suppressed and seized.

“That makes five,” Lin Xun said with a faint smile.

Over the past two hours, he and Xia Zhi had continued forward in the same direction. Along the way, mist spirits had struck repeatedly from the depths of the fog. However, without exception, every one of them had been subdued with ease.

So far, each of them had captured five. At this rate, within twenty hours they would each gather forty-nine mist spirits and thus earn the opportunity to leave the Dark Zone.

“Aside from the fog suppressing our spirit sense, this place doesn’t seem particularly dangerous. Compared to the Mortal Transformation Zone and the Calamitous Zone, it’s rather dull,” Xia Zhi remarked softly.

Lin Xun chuckled. For ordinary Greater Boundless Realm cultivators, this place would be perilous beyond imagination. In contrast, for the two of them, it posed little real threat.

Just then—Shua!

A streak of sword qi suddenly burst forth from the dense fog, like an unrivaled beam of light cleaving through the gloom. It was dazzling, blinding, and boundless in ferocity.

Almost at the same instant, an azure battle spear was thrust out from another direction, a vast silver sea of flames surged into being, a black furnace descended like a crushing mountain, and a bolt of golden lightning split through the haze.

Each radiated immeasurable laws and might. All of them converged at once upon Lin Xun and Xia Zhi.

Rumble—

The heavens trembled and the fog roiled violently. Dazzling dao light intertwined with terrifying murderous intent, erupting as though a hundred thousand volcanoes had exploded at once. There was no doubt that this was a long-prepared killing strike!

In this mist-shrouded world, where spirit sense perception was completely suppressed, such an ambush could be fatal. However, Lin Xun and Xia Zhi remained utterly composed. Not the slightest ripple disturbed their expressions.

As the killing force closed in, Lin Xun stepped forward. With a sweep of his sleeve, boundless sword intent surged forth, like countless stars bursting into existence across an endless night sky. At the same time, Xia Zhi raised her slender hand. A vast river of time surged into being, rolling and boundless, encircling both her and Lin Xun within its flowing current.

It was the profound power of the Seal of Temporal Restriction.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Thunderous explosions erupted one after another, as if heaven and earth were being torn apart. The blazing sword qi shattered into dust, the silver sea of ​​flames collapsed like a torrential rain, and the golden lightning split apart inch by inch.

As for the azure battle spear and black furnace, they suffered devastating, irreparable damage, shrieking as they were violently blasted backward. With the sweep of Lin Xun’s sleeve, boundless sword intent continued to surge outward. From within the surrounding mist came a chaotic chorus of sharp screams, furious shouts, and muffled groans of pain.

In the next instant, the fog in the surrounding region was crushed and swept away by the collision. The world became clear and several figures could be seen gathered together in the distance, already turning to flee. Seeing their strike fail, they fled without hesitation!

“Why did they target us?” Xia Zhi asked

“Catch one and we’ll have our answer,” Lin Xun replied.

Even as he spoke, Lin Xun had already moved. Xia Zhi followed close by at his side. Moments later, the fog rolled back in once more, swallowing the battlefield as though nothing had ever happened.

......

The enemies fled at astonishing speed, seemingly unconcerned about colliding with the mist spirits scattered throughout the fog. Lin Xun frowned slightly. His spirit sense was useless in this place, greatly hindering his pursuit.

Fortunately, when the enemies broke through the air in their retreat, they had caused considerable disturbance in the fog. By following those trails, he would not lose them.

During the chase, he determined that there were six attackers in total. They clearly belonged to the same faction and were also extremely familiar with the terrain of the Dark Zone. Moreover, such coordinated withdrawal when the ambush failed indicated that they had likely conducted similar operations here many times before.

Something isn’t right!

Then, Lin Xun’s eyes narrowed.

If they were seasoned Greater Boundless Realm cultivators accustomed to ambush tactics, how could they leave such obvious traces during their escape? Even an ordinary cultivator would deliberately stir the fog and erase their trail when fleeing.

Unless...they’re trying to lure us...

Lin Xun halted abruptly. “Something’s off. Let’s not chase after them.”

“You think they’re baiting us?” Xia Zhi asked calmly.

“Most likely.” A sharp light flickered in his eyes. “In the All-Wonder Dominion, I have no shortage of enemies, but those stationed within this Dark Zone and also come from the same faction...there are only a few. If my guess is correct, those people just now were Heavenly Mandate Apostles under the Alpha Origin Master.”

He paused briefly before continuing, “When we first arrived here, I sensed someone watching from the shadows. That person must have belonged to their faction. They relayed our movements, which led to the ambush earlier.”

Xia Zhi frowned slightly. “Then why lure us into pursuit instead of confronting us directly?”

Lin Xun pondered for a moment. “If they can defeat us through strategy, why risk their lives in a head-on battle? In short, these opponents are undoubtedly harboring malicious intent. If we continue chasing them, what awaits us may be an unpredictable and deadly calamity.”

“What should we do?” Xia Zhi asked.

Lin Xun’s eyes were cold and unfathomable. “Their plan has failed, so they will not give up. We just need to wait. We can’t let them lead us by the nose.”

“Then shall we continue hunting Fog Spirits?”

“That was my thought exactly.” Lin Xun smiled faintly, and the two turned back into the depths of the fog.

After no more than the time it takes to brew a cup of tea...

A group of figures appeared at the very spot where Lin Xun and Xia Zhi had stood earlier. Each of them bore injuries of varying severity, and every wound was inflicted by sword intent. These were none other than the enemies Lin Xun had pursued moments before.

“I didn’t expect them to see through our plan...” One of them muttered, his expression dark and unsettled.

The others’ faces shifted as well, their expressions flickering with unease. After a long silence, one of them finally spoke in a low voice, “In my opinion, we should head to Sky Fiend Mountain first and report the matter to Brother Tushan. Let him decide.”

“Agreed,” the others responded.

Unexpectedly, just as they prepared to depart, an indifferent voice suddenly echoed from within the surrounding fog, “You may leave...but your lives will stay behind.”

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