Chapter 214 – Inner Demon!

A fair, slender, and smooth hand that looked more elegant than most women’s hands rested on a can of soda.

The fingers hooked onto the tab and gently pulled it up.

“Pop”

A lightly colored, fruit-flavored soda fizzed out, flowing over the fingers.

But the man in the black trench coat, with his handsome features, didn’t seem to care at all.

He lifted the drink and slowly brought it to his lips, taking a delicate sip.

Closing his eyes, he savored it as if it were an expensive glass of red wine.

“Still the same taste as before… I wonder if Teacher still likes it…”

He murmured to himself, seemingly lost in thought.

Suddenly, a voice boomed in his ears.

“Pei Ye!”

The man’s eyes snapped open.

“Whoosh”

Around him, a torrential downpour began without warning.

It was black rain.

Droplets fell one by one, hitting the ground and spreading into inky black splotches.

This darkness quickly spread, dyeing everything around him the color of night.

Everything around him seemed to recede rapidly.

His memories pulled him back to that night fifteen years ago.

“Are you Pei Ye?!”

The voice echoed again.

In the man’s vision, a massive shadow appeared.

The shadow’s features were indistinct, only the eerie glint of its eyes could be seen.

At the shadow’s feet, a figure like a pile of mud knelt pitifully.

“I heard you are Liu Daoyuan’s most beloved disciple?”

“He must really care about you. Knowing he was about to meet a tragic end, he sent you away first, so you wouldn’t have to die alongside him…”

“Speak! Tell me Liu Daoyuan’s escape route and contingency plan, and I’ll spare you today.”

“I don’t know… I don’t know…”

The mud-like figure shook his head, retreating, but the shadow quickly caught up.

The man sat amidst the black rain, holding his drink, watching quietly.

He watched the mud-like figure being cursed, beaten, tortured. The figure pleaded incessantly, screamed, and trembled, begging like a dog.

In the end…

He survived after all.

“Haha, a disciple of trash is indeed trash!”

“You’ve done well; we really should thank you.”

“Liu Daoyuan isn’t dead… so you don’t have to die either. You must live well. By living, Liu Daoyuan will know that it was his most beloved and valued disciple who betrayed him. He will remember forever what kind of ingrate he personally cultivated!”

“Hahaha”

The black rain poured even harder as the shadow laughed maniacally.

Meanwhile, the figure on the ground clutched his head in agony, letting out painful, beast-like roars as he writhed and rolled in the muddy water…

The man’s previously calm face began to show ripples of emotion.

These waves grew stronger, and soon faint blue veins appeared on his pale cheeks.

His expression twisted into a grimace, and the soda can in his hand exploded into a cloud of silver mist.

An invisible, terrifying force erupted from within him, forming unseen tentacles that tore everything around him to shreds.

“Boom!”

The black rain and the shadows vanished, and bright daylight dispelled the gloom.

Everything returned to normal.

“Huff, huff”

The man’s body was hunched over, his chest heaving like bellows.

He was sitting on a park bench, the slightly chilly autumn wind carrying a faint scent of blood.

Slowly, he regained his composure.

He lifted his head gradually, and the intricate patterns of veins around his eyes quickly faded away.

He straightened up and stood from the bench.

Around him, within a radius of dozens of meters, the area looked ravaged as if by a storm or earthquake.

A shattered vending machine, broken and collapsed trees, plowed ground…

And scattered limbs and flowing blood on the ground.

A woman in a pink tracksuit lay several meters away from him, her broken and twisted body twitching faintly.

Not completely dead, she clutched tightly to an empty nylon pet leash in her hand, her wide eyes staring at the man, still filled with undisguised terror and shock.

The man only glanced at her casually before withdrawing his gaze indifferently.

“Your inner demon seems to be getting stronger…”

A deep voice sounded from behind the man.

A massive figure, silent as a mountain, slid into view. This figure was entirely draped in an extraordinarily large black robe, with hair hanging loosely, concealing its features, except for a pair of blood-red eyes.

“If you don’t conquer this inner demon, you’ll never truly become the Evil Emperor.”

“I’m more aware of that than you,” the man replied in a cold, hard tone. He adjusted his trench coat slightly and walked forward without any expression.

The burly black-robed man followed behind him, continuing to speak.

“Now that our plan has been disrupted by that disciple of your Crane Style teacher, what do you intend to do?”

“Can you deal with him?”

“That person seems to have connections with Yellow Bear. If it’s not necessary, I advise you not to make a move against him…”

“Yellow Bear? Looks like Teacher’s latest disciple is quite capable,” the man sneered, his expression quickly turning indifferent. He waved his hand dismissively.

“Don’t worry about it. A few low-level characters like him won’t cause Yellow Bear to come after us specifically. If he knows what’s good for him, he’ll back off. But if he overestimates himself, then…”

A cold, murderous intent flashed fiercely in the man’s eyes.

The black-robed man frowned but chose not to say anything.

“We’ll proceed according to the original plan.”

The man walked forward with a calm stride, his black trench coat billowing behind him like a wide cape in the autumn wind.

He looked up and saw the lonely sky and drifting white clouds overhead, and a glimmer of old memories seemed to surface in his eyes.

He murmured to himself,

“Teacher… The events of fifteen years ago are about to replay. This time, I won’t let you down…”

The alternating flashes of blue and red lights, the piercing sounds of police sirens, and the long yellow caution tape created a chaotic scene.

Lu Yuan stood outside the crowd, watching from a distance as bodies covered with white sheets were loaded into vehicles.

A woman’s hand slipped out from under one of the white sheets, her blood-stained fingers clutching a pet leash tightly.

Lu Yuan retracted his gaze, his fair and handsome face devoid of any visible emotion.

“Any leads?”

Lu Yuan turned to ask Owl Blade, who stood beside him.

Owl Blade shook his head. “We’re still investigating. From the remaining evil energy wave at the scene, there are traces of the Bewitching Demon…

The Bewitching Demon is a creation of the True Word Divine Sect, but they haven’t been active in our area for many years.”

“Bewitching Demon… True Word Divine Sect…”

Lu Yuan’s eyes flickered slightly as he casually took the crime scene video footage from Owl Blade. All that was visible were masses of black holes caused by evil energy interference.

“Pei Ye.”

Lu Yuan softly uttered the name.

This brutal murder case that occurred near the venue of the Hundred Cities Martial Arts Tournament in Pan City, in the south, along with the series of bizarre events targeting Crane Style before the competition…

Lu Yuan’s intuition told him that all of this was most likely related to the Eighth Senior Brother who had defected from Crane Style fifteen years ago—Pei Ye.

“Evil Martial Alliance… Night Emperor.”

After pondering for a moment, Lu Yuan gently closed his eyes, emitting the mental power stemming from his 21 intelligence points after a limit break.

Under the influence of his mental power,

The residual evil power at the crime scene flickered like unburned sparks in ashen woods, glowing dark red intermittently in the darkness.

Following the traces of this evil power, Lu Yuan continued to spread his mental power outward.

He quickly noticed similar traces scattered around the Hundred Cities Martial Arts Tournament venue and its surrounding areas.

“It seems like Crane Style is being targeted, suggesting someone’s incitement. Perhaps a power that bewitches the mind…”

Lu Yuan thought to himself, continuing to trace these traces further out.

These traces were akin to messy footprints in the snow, each needing careful identification, with no clear indication of where they ultimately led.

While Lu Yuan’s mind raced, swiftly piecing together the vast and complex clues, hoping to unravel and trace the whereabouts of Pei Ye.

Suddenly…

“Beep beep beep—”

An urgent alert sounded from the consciousness-linked neural network communication.

“Whoosh—”

Lu Yuan’s eyes snapped open, meeting Owl Blade’s serious face, tinged with a hint of nervous tension.

Before Lu Yuan could speak, Owl Blade urgently said:

“Lord… the elephant deity emissary has appeared!”

…

In a villa.

Crane Style.

Liu Daoyuan stood in the center of the living room, arms outstretched, as Liu Si carefully attached a new mechanical prosthetic to him.

The intricate satin shirt was buttoned meticulously, one by one.

His white hair and beard were groomed to perfection.

Once everything was ready, the “Celestial Crane of Sky Water,” appearing as ethereal and otherworldly as ever, re-emerged before everyone.

Liu Daoyuan examined himself in the mirror carefully, a satisfied smile spreading across his emaciated, aged face.

Then he motioned for Liu Si to remove the mirror.

“Teacher…”

Zhuang Xiujie hesitated for a moment before speaking, “Are we still going to attend the opening of the Tournament?”

“Why not?” Liu Daoyuan glanced at her indifferently.

“But we have withdrawn from the competition, and Little Senior Brother also…”

Zhuang Xiujie paused. Despite a whole night’s effort to calm down, she still couldn’t contain her disbelief and shock whenever she thought about it.

“Performed such a… feat!”

The only word to describe it now is “feat”!

Four hours, at such a young age, defeating thirteen top martial arts schools, and besting fifteen True Intent level sect leader level experts in a row!

True Intent level!

Fifteen of them!!

Such an achievement is so explosive that even in the golden era of the Ancient Martial Arts world, it would have been an extraordinary event.

Sufficient to cause a tremendous sensation in a considerable part of the martial arts community!

“Teacher already has many enemies. After what Little Senior Brother did, if you appear at the Tournament today, you’re likely to face a lot of hostility from various sects,” Zhuang Xiujie said gently.

Liu Daoyuan scoffed, squinting his eyes with a cold smile. “When have I ever been afraid of others’ hostility? They think that just because Xiao Yuan disrupted thirteen sects last night and our Crane Style withdrew from the competition, I’m scared. They assume I won’t dare show up at the Tournament, and that I must have fled overnight with my disciples…

But they’re wrong! Not only am I going, but I’m also going to make a grand entrance. I want to strut before them and watch their jaws drop in shock.

I want to show them… my True Disciple is the best in the world!”

Liu Daoyuan’s final statement was resolute, filled with an undeniable sense of pride and satisfaction.

Once his emotions had settled, he looked at Zhuang Xiujie with a gentle expression, earnestly imparting, “Let me teach you another life lesson.”

“Please, teacher.”

Hearing this, Zhuang Xiujie immediately composed herself.

Liu Daoyuan’s voice then floated over, “Wealth unshared with your hometown is like wearing brocade clothes in the night.”

“Huh?!”

Zhuang Xiujie’s mouth hung slightly open, looking a mix of understanding and confusion.

Next to them, Liu Si couldn’t help but smile, fully grasping Liu Daoyuan’s moment of triumph.

“Oh, right,”

Zhuang Xiujie suddenly remembered something and quickly said, “This morning, the Penglai Holy Envoy sent a message requesting an explanation for last night’s events. They said to bring enough ‘sincerity’…”

She emphasized the word “sincerity.”

Liu Daoyuan took the teacup from Liu Si, sipped it slowly, and, without even lifting his eyelids, casually replied, “Tell him to go eat shit.”

“…”

Zhuang Xiujie worked to calm herself, took a deep breath, and asked one last question.

“Teacher, after the opening ceremony, should we return directly to Crane Style?”

Liu Daoyuan’s hand motion stilled slightly. He slowly set down the teacup, his eyes reflecting a hint of thought as he quietly said, “You can all go back first. I still need to help Xiao Yuan… get something.”