Chapter 377 – Kasha, Sudden Change

Lu Yuan was practicing his punches.

In a courtyard neither too large nor too small, the sunset cast its slanting rays.

There was no noise, no wind, only his solitary dance.

Starting with basic movements, then transitioning to Sky Water Stream Crane Style, Dragon Sect, Whale Body Ocean Encompassing Style… and finally to Heavenly Palace Style.

These martial arts, inherited from a hundred families, flowed from his hands like water.

From the crude to the exquisite, from the simple to the complex.

His momentum was like myriad rivers converging, layering like waves upon waves.

Finally, they culminated in a torrential surge, seamlessly transitioning into Divine Elephant Style and Underworld Crow Style.

Lu Yuan’s mind and body were calm, gradually entering a state of complete absorption.

Divine Elephant Style and Underworld Crow Style continuously interchanged in his hands.

The former focused on gravity, the latter on intention.

Lu Yuan’s mind and body separated, with only the Divine Elephant Style remaining in his practice.

This, in fact, was his most used combat technique.

The most familiar, ingrained into his muscle memory, had become a sort of instinct.

In his mind, he began to visualize the projection of an elephant deity with three heads and six arms, an eternally cracked earth, and a towering, indomitable demon mountain…

These images infused themselves into his punches and kicks.

In a trance, Lu Yuan suddenly sensed a thick and unknown barrier.

He extended his punches, attempting to break through this barrier.

But it felt like pressing against an incredibly elastic ball, only to be bounced back forcefully.

“Buzz-“

Like a bowstring stretched to its limit suddenly snapping back.

An intangible but pure terrifying power erupted.

In an instant, the bricks on the courtyard floor, and the walls surrounding the courtyard… everything silently turned into a fine dust even finer than sand.

Lu Yuan halted his movements, staring fixedly at his hands with a look of strangeness and surprise in his eyes.

He hadn’t used any force, whether physical strength or Qi energy.

It was purely from practicing moves, yet it caused such an astonishing effect.

“It seems… to be an additional boost from the Miracle Domain?”

Lu Yuan pondered.

He had once touched upon two different “Miracle Domains.”

One was the “Miracle Domain” related to strength enhancements, which he touched upon in the Elephant Deity Ming King Stance.

The other instance occurred when he activated the Death Messenger professional panel and channeled death energy to perform Underworld Crow Style martial arts, touching upon a “Miracle Domain” that had special lethality towards the soul.

This time, it was undoubtedly the former.

But the manner in which he accessed it was completely different from before.

Previously, he was in the Ming King Stance, using various secret techniques to continuously boost his physical strength to a certain level, forcibly linking up with the corresponding Miracle Domain.

Just now, the process was subtler, and he naturally touched the threshold of that mysterious domain.

Based on Lu Yuan’s experiences and his understanding of the “Miracle Domain,” it was undoubtedly an incredibly huge treasure.

It felt somewhat similar to the True Intent of martial arts or the will of a Grandmaster, but in actuality, it was completely different.

It was not “illusory”!

It wasn’t a mental intimidation but a real, tangible strength augmentation and infusion-it was “real.”

Moreover, Lu Yuan was very sure that this “treasure” was not something within him but came from an external source.

He merely happened to stumble upon a “key” and inadvertently pried open a crack in this treasure.

Yet even so, the incredible energy that leaked out was astonishing.

“In some way, it’s quite similar to the power of the natal star diagram described by the supernova…

When they comprehend the power of their natal star diagram, they can ‘borrow’ additional energy from the universe to use in their attacks.

This is very much like how I, upon touching the Miracle Domain, gain extra power from it…”

However, Lu Yuan had never formally practiced Starry Sky martial arts, and when receiving the strength infusion from the Miracle Domain, he didn’t feel any signs of cosmic energy being mobilized.

“I can’t figure it out…”

Unable to come up with a conclusion, Lu Yuan decided to set it aside for now.

“In any case, it’s a good thing for me.”

Lu Yuan considered this might be a major direction for his future progress.

He increasingly felt that as his power level rose, simply accumulating energy was far from sufficient.

Lu Yuan attempted to touch the “Miracle Domain” again while in a normal state and without using any Strength, but he couldn’t recapture the previous state.

That moment was too rare; it was A Moment of Inspiration, fleeting like a blossoming flower.

Lu Yuan thought that maybe one day, when he no longer had to rely on luck and could find that state at will, his understanding of the “Miracle Domain” would truly be considered foundational.

“Young Sect Master.”

A gentle middle-aged man’s voice came to his ear.

Lu Yuan turned towards the sound and saw Liu Si standing respectfully outside the courtyard.

Despite the mess of debris around his feet and in the vicinity, he seemed completely unbothered.

“The person you wanted to see has arrived; he is waiting in the side hall.”

“Oh? Lead the way.”

With a flash of light in his eyes, Lu Yuan straightened himself up slightly and signaled Liu Si to lead the way.

Fifteen minutes later.

A tall, thin, middle-aged foreign man hurriedly walked out of Linghexuan, got into a black sedan, and quickly drove away.

In the side hall of Linghexuan, Lu Yuan sat expressionlessly.

The person he had just met was Sackford of the Mosa Sect, considered a direct subordinate, although Lu Yuan had long since forgotten about him.

Now, planning to enhance his professional level of [Spear Bearer (Extraordinary)], he had called Sackford in for questioning.

The results, however, did not satisfy Lu Yuan.

“Because all my public identities in Xia State under the name Yellow Bear have been erased, the current Silver Spear Bearers in Xia State do not recognize my status.”

“Moreover, Mosa Sect seems busy with other matters lately and has no time to send someone over to verify or handle my affairs…”

Lu Yuan felt a tinge of annoyance.

Previously, the Mosa Sect had been “begging” him to attend the Spear Bearer meetings, preparing to formally induct him into the sect. He had felt it unnecessary and did not attend.

Now, intending to develop further within the Mosa Sect, they had no time for him.

Was this a case of the formerly dismissive Mosa Sect now being too high and mighty for him?

“At the time I obtained the Silver Spear Bearer’s status, my Strength was at level S; even Silver Spear Bearers top out at SS, which is roughly first-stage combat power.

The Golden Spear Bearers above them are probably at the second or third stage. Even if there are higher levels above the Golden Spear Bearers, their strength is probably average…”

Lu Yuan tapped the armrest of his pear wood chair rhythmically with his fingers. He thought to himself, given the strength and foundation of the Mosa Sect, he should be capable of resolving the issues on his own, even without leveraging the power of Yellow Bear.

If the front door wouldn’t open, then he would force his way in.

The only concern was not to make too much noise and draw attention from the Distant Star Federation.

“Should I make a trip to the Mosa Sect Headquarters?”

Lu Yuan felt a bit tempted and was about to urgently contact Yuwen Tong to ask her to help him find the address of the Mosa Sect Headquarters and inform Lord Tong about this matter.

Just then, Liu Si hurriedly brought someone into the room.

“Young Sect Master…”

As soon as Liu Si began to speak, Lu Yuan’s gaze fell on the person behind him.

Upon seeing Lu Yuan, the individual immediately bypassed Liu Si, knelt before Lu Yuan, and lowered their head in reverence, murmuring, “Sovereign Emperor.”

Lu Yuan narrowed his eyes, his presence gathering, and spoke faintly, “Speak.”

The kneeling person raised his head, revealing a ghastly pale, bloodless face, and said through gritted teeth, “We… have encountered trouble.”

…

Kasha.

A small country neighboring Xia State.

With a dry and hot climate, half of its territory is desert, while the other half is lush, dense jungle.

Kasha boasts rich tourism resources, attracting a large number of tourists, archaeological teams, and exploration teams from around the world every year; it’s a sparkling gem in the middle of the Gobi Desert.

In the azure blue sky, several planes roared past.

A rickety old intercity bus, black and yellow from age, rattled down the sandy road before stopping in front of a small desert town with exotic charm.

The bus door opened, and a tour guide holding a small red flag switched languages proficiently, loudly calling the passengers to disembark.

Two figures, wrapped head to toe in black and blue checkered cloth, mingled with the bustling group of tourists, disembarked, and quickly left the group, merging into the sandy town in front of them.

The two figures, one following the other, weaved through the alleyways of the town, making several turns.

Finally, they stopped in front of a low wooden door.

The guide knocked softly on the door. From inside came a low, husky voice speaking the native language of Kasha, its harsh tones filled with a cold edge.

“Who is it?”

“It’s me.”

Impatiently, the guide pushed the door open and removed the cloth that had been used for concealment, revealing his right arm, which ended in a stump, and a sinister, fierce face.

The room was unlit, with only a faint light filtering through the cracks in the earthen walls and window.

Inside, there were only two other people.

One was an old man with slicked-back hair, wearing sunglasses and exuding a calm, authoritative air.

The other was a slightly younger man, thin and wrapped in blood-stained bandages on his chest and arms.

“So you’ve come. Then…”

The bandaged, pale-faced middle-aged man asked the sinister old man in front of him with a stern face.

Before he could finish speaking, a calm voice sounded from behind him.

“I’ve come too.”

A protective cloth fell away, revealing a young man with hair as white as snow and a handsome, serene face as he walked forward slowly.

The two original occupants of the room exchanged glances and then respectfully lowered their voices, “Greetings, Sovereign Emperor.”

“Mm.”

The handsome young man responded indifferently.

The newcomers were none other than Lu Yuan and the Hawk Protector, who had traveled all the way from Xia State.

There had been an unexpected turn of events involving the Eight Great Protectors of the Evil Martial Alliance, who were supposed to retrieve the Heart of the Feathered Serpent Deity for him.

Lu Yuan remained unruffled.

The strength of the Eight Great Protectors of the Evil Martial Alliance was not particularly outstanding. If they had smoothly delivered a legendary-level artifact to him, that would have been more surprising.

Having already prepared for a trip here, this was just part of the original plan.

On the way, Hawk Protector had briefed him on the situation.

Now, it was time to understand the specifics.

“We were hunted down like stray dogs and forced to hide here… We must ask for your understanding, Sovereign Emperor…”

The small house was barren, not even furnished with a single chair to sit on.

The pale man wrapped in bandages was the Spider Protector, one of the Eight Great Protectors. Blood was still oozing from his wounds, indicating that his injuries were quite severe.

Although he mentioned there wasn’t a place for Lu Yuan to sit and expressed regret that Lu Yuan had to stand, the main focus of his words was on the first half of the sentence, laced with a subtle hint of resentment.

“No matter.”

Lu Yuan didn’t mind.

The Spider Protector and his companions had been forcibly subdued by Lu Yuan’s strength. They hadn’t benefitted from him at all and now were wounded as a result of carrying out his orders. A bit of resentment was only to be expected.

The main reason, though, might be that…

The dominating and invincible image he had in their minds had faded over time.

Or rather…

A more powerful, more terrifying presence…

Had replaced him in their hearts.

They started to feel that he was not as invincible and unbeatable as they once believed.

Lu Yuan mused casually, his gaze shifting to the silent Protector Lei standing nearby.

Through the sunglasses on Protector Lei’s face, Lu Yuan saw a hollow eye socket, freshly scabbed over.