Chapter 271 – Sky Wrath Feathered Serpent Deity, I Have a Grand Plan to Benefit the Evil Martial Alliance

A twisted blade of wind clashed against the palm of the man with four wings, as majestic and resplendent as a night sovereign, producing a sound like clashing metal and jade.

The man lightly rubbed his fingertips, conjuring a surging black flame.

In an instant, the entire hurricane was dyed black, transforming into a black flaming tornado.

The black flame seemed to burn something, and a “hiss” sound, akin to a serpent’s hiss, echoed in the air.

The hawk protector and his two companions saw, with their naked eyes, distorted, semi-transparent marks emerging from the black flame tornado, resembling countless transparent venomous snakes shooting towards the four-winged man.

The man’s gaze remained calm, and invisible ripples emanated from around his body.

As the ripples swept through the void, the motion of the countless transparent, twisted snakes halted immediately.

In a fraction of a second, they began to reverse direction, following their original path back.

The hawk protector and his two companions, also swept by the ripples, felt an inexplicable surge of overwhelming fear rise from within them.

For a moment, they even felt an impulse to turn and flee regardless of their pride.

This impulse, driven by pure panic, felt eerily familiar.

The three of them seemed to have remembered something; their eyes widened, and they were about to shout out a certain name.

At that moment, everything before their eyes quickly darkened.

In the wilderness, pure darkness descended.

In the sky, the position of the full moon was replaced by an enormous blood-red crow’s eye.

The eye stared coldly at the three of them, and in that instant of eye contact, a bone-chilling cold nearly froze their blood and marrow.

The three of them stood rigidly, their expressions dazed and unseeing.

They didn’t know how much time had passed when the illusion finally faded, and they gradually regained their senses.

Looking at the scene again, they were astonished to find that the previous hurricane, flames, and distortions had all disappeared.

In the desolate and vast wilderness, a pale full moon hung high in the sky.

Beneath the full moon, the four-winged man floated silently, his arms wrapped in black crystal armor extended, his fingers clenched tightly as if he were strangling something in his grasp.

The hawk protector and his two companions stood transfixed, watching intently.

Before long, the radiant moonlight in the man’s hand began to outline a twisted, peculiar serpent-like figure.

The silhouette’s color gradually deepened…

Finally, a bizarre creature with a serpent’s head and body, possessing arms and wings, fully materialized before the three of them.

Their pupils contracted slightly, and only now did they truly comprehend what the monstrosity that had almost driven them to despair looked like.

Once the form of the serpent monster with small wings completely emerged, its body quickly began to petrify.

In no time, it fully transformed into a stone statue of equal size.

The statue then began to decay, weathering away like sand flowing through the four-winged man’s fingers.

The man’s eyes flickered slightly.

As the last grains of sand slipped through his grasp, he turned his head and walked towards the hawk protector and his companions, stepping lightly upon the moonlight.

Behind him, massive black wings unfurled, and his majestic, resplendent armor reflected a crystalline sheen in the moonlight.

The Red Spider Lily mask on his face gradually vanished, revealing a young and handsome, tranquil face.

Seeing the man’s visage, the hawk protector and his companions’ suspicions were finally and fully confirmed.

Their bodies trembled slightly, and then all three knelt deeply, bowing respectfully as they addressed him, “Greetings, Demon Emperor, my Lord.”

Lu Yuan nodded slightly, though his mind still lingered on the winged serpent monster he had just slain.

His mental power scanned the area, and his expression suddenly shifted.

Soon, a gray stone slab buried in the sand flew up and quickly landed in Lu Yuan’s hand.

“That thing…”

Lu Yuan casually held the stone slab, looking down at the hawk protector and his companions as he calmly inquired, “Did it come out from this stone slab?”

“Yes.”

The hawk protector nodded and hurriedly shifted blame onto the horse-faced middle-aged man beside him. “It was him. He was messing around, and ended up releasing the evil energy guard sealed within the stone slab…

If not for your timely arrival, my Lord, we would all likely have been killed because of him!”

The horse-faced middle-aged man looked embarrassed, and though he felt a bit indignant, he found no grounds for rebuttal.

Lu Yuan inspected the gray stone slab in his hand under the moonlight.

The front of the slab was inscribed with numerous ancient characters that he didn’t recognize.

The shapes of these ancient characters were peculiar, with each symbol appearing like a serpent twisted into a different form.

On the back of the stone slab was an image-

A serpent-like creature standing upright, with a body covered in numerous wings, and human-like arms cradling a heart-shaped gem at its chest.

The creature’s tail was a multitude of countless smaller tails, each ending in a long, fluffy feather.

As Lu Yuan studied the stone slab, he felt a slight tremor from one of his professional panels.

He called up the display to check.

It showed the [Ancient Language Expert] and [Student] panels.

The fusion progress of the two panels, previously stuck at 45%, had unexpectedly advanced to 46% upon contact with the stone slab.

“Is there a story behind this stone slab?” Lu Yuan thought to himself.

The stone slab seemed ordinary, and it appeared to have become a mere mundane object after releasing the serpent monster that Lu Yuan had just killed.

Lu Yuan looked down at the bedraggled hawk protector and his companions and asked, “Where did this come from?”

The three exchanged glances, and the elephant protector, who was missing an arm, was the first to speak. “Reporting to the Demon Emperor, this was found among the relics of the predecessor before last of the Evil Emperor.”

“It is said that it concerns a monumental secret and an unimaginable treasure…”

“Yes,” the hawk protector quickly agreed. “Many in the alliance have been searching for this stone slab. We found it by chance and intended to offer it to you immediately, Demon Emperor. But this happened on the way…”

As he spoke, he turned and berated the horse-faced middle-aged man beside him, “It’s all your fault for being so careless!”

The latter’s face was flushed with anger, but he didn’t dare utter a word.

“A secret… a treasure…” Lu Yuan’s eyes flickered with interest. He pondered for a moment and then held up the stone slab, asking the three, “Do any of you recognize the characters on this?”

The hawk protector and the elephant protector shook their heads. The horse-faced middle-aged man, Lin Protector, who had been silent throughout, finally seized the opportunity to speak.

“While I don’t know what the characters on the stone slab mean, I do know what the image on the back represents.”

“Speak,” Lu Yuan said calmly, his gaze fixed on the horse-faced middle-aged man.

The horse-faced man dared not hesitate and quickly explained, “It symbolizes the Sky Wrath, the feathered serpent deity. This stone slab was accidentally obtained by the predecessor before last of the Evil Emperor from a feathered serpent deity sect ruin…”

Before Lu Yuan could respond, the hawk protector widened his eyes in disbelief and snapped, “You knew about this all along and never mentioned it?”

“Do you two deserve to know?” the horse-faced middle-aged man retorted, giving him a sidelong glance. “This stone slab is for the Demon Emperor. Only he is privy to its secrets.”

“You…” The hawk protector gritted his teeth but couldn’t find a valid reason to argue further in Lu Yuan’s presence. Instead, he asked suspiciously, “Where did you hear this information?”

The horse-faced man replied nonchalantly, “The former Evil Emperor had a favored woman who knew many of his secrets. She told me all of them… Otherwise, with everyone in the alliance searching for this stone slab, how did we manage to find it? Do you really think it was just luck?”

The hawk protector was stunned but unwilling to believe him. He couldn’t resist challenging, “Why would the empress of the predecessor before last share such vital secrets with you? What did you give her in return?”

“Return? Why would I need to give her anything?” The horse-faced man smirked boastfully, shaking his body slightly. “Because even though I don’t use a weapon, people call me ‘Divine Gun, Horse Protector!'”

“…”

While they bickered below, Lu Yuan didn’t pay any attention to their squabble.

He directly transcribed the strange characters and images from the stone slab, inputting the information into the Yellow Bear’s internal database to search for related information.

The connections to the “Sky Wrath,” the feathered serpent deity, the stone slab, its secrets, and the treasure were purely unexpected bonuses.

Lu Yuan hadn’t forgotten the real reason he came to find these three individuals.

Lu Yuan casually set down the stone slab, looking down at the three men from above. As he spread his four wings, a massive amount of death energy was released, transforming into roaring black flames that obscured the full moon above and much of the sky behind him. The invisible pressure falling upon the three men immediately silenced their argument.

Their faces turned slightly pale, and they all bowed deeply.

They had no idea why Lu Yuan had suddenly unleashed his aura.

They only felt an overwhelming pressure, like waves from a towering tsunami crashing over them repeatedly, bringing a suffocating sense of oppression.

The darkness swept around them, and just as the three thought they would be crushed by Lu Yuan in the next moment…

Lu Yuan’s calm, indifferent voice echoed in their ears.

“I have a grand plan to benefit the Evil Martial Alliance, but I need the full cooperation of you three…”

…

Longan was a small, remote county town.

It was located right next to the Longan Mountain range, less than five kilometers away from the deep forest.

On regular days, many people would come to visit, but as winter set in, the number of tourists dwindled.

On this particular day, at the Longan High-speed Rail Station.

A high-speed train pulled into the station.

An imposing old man, tall and wearing a baseball cap and sunglasses, stepped off the train with the crowd. He was dressed in a suit and scarf.

The old man carried an air of authority, with a presence that made him seem like a big shot.

Wherever he walked, the crowd naturally parted for him. Even those facing away from him would unconsciously make way.

Carrying a simple, small briefcase, the old man exited the station, hailed a taxi, and after giving the driver a location, settled comfortably into the back seat.

The taxi driver made small talk with the old man, but the old man remained silent, as if his mouth had been sewn shut.

When the driver realized he wasn’t getting any response, he soon stopped talking and focused on driving.

The car gradually left the urban area, heading toward the distant Longan Mountain range.

It was unclear how much time passed, but suddenly, the car came to an abrupt halt on a desolate road.

Winter had set in deeply in the mountains, and a thin layer of snow covered the roadsides.

The driver muttered a few curses under his breath, opened the car door, and stepped outside into the cold air to check the car.

After a quick inspection, he knocked on the rear window, signaling for the old man to get out.

“The car’s broken down. You’ll need to find another way to continue your journey. I can’t take you any further…”

The old man wearing sunglasses finally showed some reaction.

Through the car window, he glanced at the driver expressionlessly, then opened the door and stepped out of the car.

“It’s just a short walk from here. Follow this road for a few kilometers…” the driver said, exhaling white vapor and pointing in the direction with his left hand.

Sensing the old man was listening intently, the driver’s expression suddenly changed. His face twisted with malice, and his right hand, which had been tucked in his jacket pocket, shot out like a venomous snake.

In his hand, a blinding, cold flash of steel aimed directly at the old man’s throat.

This sudden, ruthless assassination attempt was theoretically unavoidable.

But the driver quickly realized in horror that his blade stopped several inches from the old man’s neck, completely unable to move further.

His right arm was raised high, the muscles bulging so much they nearly burst the sleeve of his leather jacket. Blue veins popped on his face, and white light from his inner strength flashed between his fingers.

No matter how much force he exerted, he couldn’t push the blade even a fraction of an inch forward.

It was as if an invisible, odd magnetic field surrounded the old man, firmly repelling his attack.

The driver’s jaw tightened as his body soon felt numb.

He then noticed with terror that the tip of his blade was flickering with faint purple electric sparks.

These purple sparks quickly jumped to his body, rapidly expanding into two-finger-thick electric snakes…

In just a moment, the driver was engulfed in a mass of electric light, and with a scream, he was reduced to a charred corpse.

“Lei Fusheng, you deserve to die!”

As the driver fell, an aged, cold voice filled with dense killing intent echoed through the mountains.

In no time, a dozen figures swooped down like hawks, landing swiftly around the old man, encircling him.