Chapter 153: The Origin and Evolution of All Things

Fang Yexu looked toward the other two individuals. "State your identities, and make it quick!"

The late-stage Golden Core cultivator on the left hurriedly spoke, "I am Xiao She, the Vice Sect Master of the Double Sun Sect, and this is Gong Hemao, the Second Elder of Longwhale Island. Senior, this matter has nothing to do with me. I only arrived tonight to visit friends and family. The person on the ground is Grand Elder Gu Qiuchuan."

Fang Yexu let out a cold snort. "Tell me, how does this have nothing to do with you? If you truly are an outsider, we can consider letting you go—it all depends on your attitude!"

Xiao She raised a hand to wipe the sweat from his brow and said, "I was still at the Double Sun Sect when Island Master Meng died. This time, I merely came to offer my congratulations!"

A thought stirred in Fang Yexu's heart, and he looked toward Che Shangguan.

Che Shangguan kept his eyes tightly closed and remained silent, but the trembling of his lips betrayed the terror deep within his heart.

Beside him, Gong Hemao hurriedly chimed in, "The poison for Island Master Meng was administered by me. I was forced to do it by Island Master Che; he holds evidence of my greed!"

The master of Longwhale Island was named Meng Hetang, an early-stage Nascent Soul cultivator. Through the competing confessions of Xiao She and Gong Hemao, Liu Junhuai and his companion finally managed to piece together the whole story.

It turned out that Meng Hetang and Che Shangguan had long-standing frictions, and the two of them were even fellow disciples under the same master.

Che Shangguan had plotted Meng Hetang's murder for a long time. As early as half a year ago, he had directed Xiao She to poison him in secret. This was a poison called Dream Rakshasa—colorless, odorless, and with a prolonged incubation period. To deflect suspicion, anticipating the days when the poison would take effect, Che Shangguan had found an excuse to leave far in advance, and only returned to the sect today upon receiving word from within the island.

Xiao She himself had been entirely unaware of the cause of Meng Hetang's death. Because Che Shangguan was a longtime friend and had summoned him to take over as the new island master, Xiao She had hurried over to offer his congratulations.

A thought flickered in Liu Junhuai's mind. He pulled Fang Yexu aside and lowered his voice. "Hall Master Fang, the death of Meng Hetang happens to give us a legitimate opportunity to move directly into Longwhale Island. We must make full use of the timing of Che Shangguan's upcoming succession to attract members of the Blood-Slaying Alliance. We can simply cast a wide net right here and wait for them."

Hearing Liu Junhuai's proposal, Fang Yexu's eyes lit up. Waiting here for the prey to walk right into the trap might be even faster than hunting them down one by one, and more importantly, it would not arouse the attention of the Blood-Slaying Alliance members.

Fang Yexu nodded, turned back, lifted the restriction on Gong Hemao, woke up Gu Qiuchuan from the ground, and called them into a nearby room.

As for Liu Junhuai, he struck Che Shangguan unconscious with a single palm strike and began a detailed interrogation of Xiao She. Through his observation with the Eye of Heaven, Xiao She indeed had no ties to the Blood-Slaying Alliance, but he provided a crucial lead that greatly satisfied Liu Junhuai.

According to Xiao She's confession, Che Shangguan maintained close ties with Shao Quedi, the Grand Elder of the Broad Sword Sect. Once, when they parted ways after drinking, Xiao She had accidentally witnessed Che Shangguan bowing deeply to Shao Quedi, looking very much like a subordinate.

Not long after, Fang Yexu and the other two emerged from the adjacent room, the injuries on their faces completely gone.

***

Fang Yexu called Liu Junhuai to the side and said, "I have already placed restrictions within the seas of consciousness of these two men, and they have agreed to cooperate with us. I think the reception of incoming guests over the next few days should be handled by them. Che Shangguan must be restrained and kept out of sight for now. Let our people enter as well, disguised as congratulatory guests!"

Liu Junhuai agreed readily. "Such an arrangement is excellent! From my interrogation of Xiao She, I learned that Shao Quedi, the Grand Elder of the Broad Sword Sect, is highly suspicious and appears to act as Che Shangguan's subordinate. Furthermore, we must arrange a proper excuse for why Che Shangguan cannot show his face. Fortunately, we do not need to give those suspicious individuals a chance to react. While stepping up the interrogation of Che Shangguan, anyone under suspicion must be promptly detained for questioning. Hall Master Fang, you will need to use your status and authority to intimidate them."

Fang Yexu waved a hand. "No intimidation is necessary; we will simply detain them in secret. We are racing against time with the Blood-Slaying Alliance. Hall Master Guan must be informed promptly so information can be relayed. Our manpower is insufficient, and the workload this time is quite substantial. While carrying out arrests and detentions, we must also be extremely careful not to leak any information."

Liu Junhuai's worry was whether they could crack Che Shangguan's mouth in time. "Will that female cultivator proficient in the art of蠱 (gu sorcery) be able to make Che Shangguan confess quickly? His testimony is absolutely crucial. We must finish this before the succession ceremony. Letting even a single spy from the Blood-Slaying Alliance slip through could lead to major complications."

"Then let us begin right now, making use of every available second!" With those words, Fang Yexu stepped into the room, instructed Gu Qiuchuan and Gong Hemao to bring in the people waiting outside, and arranged the necessary security and confidentiality measures.

Xiao She and Gong Hemao were exceptionally cooperative. Although they did not know the exact purpose of this hall master from the Western Domain Prefecture's visit, they knew it must be of extraordinary significance. Their proactive performance would certainly earn them merit, especially since this high-ranking official had promised to consider the two of them for the position of island master, provided they fully cooperated.

Before long, all the cultivators from the Sect Alliance had arrived. After a brief setup, the interrogations commenced swiftly.

Che Shangguan's residence was quite spacious, easily accommodating several dozen people without any sense of crowding. Special interrogation rooms and holding cells were quickly designated. With Fang Yexu, an advanced Integration-stage expert, holding down the fort, security was thoroughly assured.

Most of the Sect Alliance members possessed ample experience in conducting interrogations against figures of Fang Yexu's caliber. Left temporarily with nothing to do, Liu Junhuai spoke briefly with Fang Yexu and decided to enter the Myriad Phenomena Tower.

Mo Sitong entered the Divine Consciousness Pagoda. After a brief conversation with the Old Steward, the two of them arrived at the scripture chamber on the fifth floor.

The recruitment of disciples for the Myriad Phenomena Sect was now complete, and it was essential to find a few techniques that could be passed down as foundational inheritances within the sect. Moreover, advancing to the Nascent Soul stage would unlock another portion of the restrictions, filling Liu Junhuai with anticipation for new discoveries.

The Old Steward had mentioned earlier that the *Thunderous Eight Directions Art* needed to be practiced, as it offered tremendous benefits against every heavenly lightning tribulation. Another purpose of Liu Junhuai's visit was to search for thunder-attribute techniques for comparison, as he always felt the techniques in the Myriad Phenomena Tower were of superior quality.

Although this was not his first time inside, looking at the various martial arts manuals and skills packed densely across the wooden shelves still left Liu Junhuai feeling dazzled, entirely unsure of which one to pick.

Take the *Swift Wind Sword Technique*, for instance—it could maximize the speed of drawing a sword, doing so completely silently, making it exceptionally difficult for enemies to detect. Or consider the *Eight-Step Heaven-Reaching Fist*, where every single strike carried the might of piercing the heavens, capable of doubling the user's inherent combat power. Then there was the *Soul-Shattering Severing Slash*, which incorporated divine consciousness during use to generate blade qi specifically designed to attack an enemy's soul—truly a rare technique combining martial prowess and Daoist arts. And there were many more...

Calming his mind, he decided to start with martial techniques. He projected his divine awareness into the jade slips and began carefully sifting through them. Many of the swordsmanship, boxing, and palm techniques here, if casually tossed into the outside world, would be considered earth-shattering arts.

Having never joined a sect before and lacking on-site guidance from a master, he had never systematically studied the techniques of cultivators. The only technique he could proudly display was the *Five Elements Chaotic Blade*, which he had figured out and practiced bit by bit based on a manual. As for the *Escaping Blade Technique*, Liu Junhuai rarely used it anymore; it was a low-grade Profound-tier technique he had found in Cold Water Pool before he even stepped into the Innate realm. Back then, a Profound-tier technique had seemed incredible, but viewed now, it was far too low-grade.

While the heritage of any sect might not be universally priceless, it always possessed unique qualities setting it apart from ordinary manuals, allowing it to be passed down from generation to generation. Since the establishment of the Myriad Phenomena Sect aimed toward the goal of becoming a super sect, the inherited knowledge naturally had to possess its own distinct uniqueness.

***

After a full hour of selection, Liu Junhuai finally made up his mind, picked out four or five techniques, and handed them to the Old Steward to seek his opinion.

After carefully inspecting them, the Old Steward said, "Anything meant for sect inheritance must require the majority of disciples to practice it uniformly, yet it cannot be imparted all at once. For instance, certain forms are taught at the Foundation Establishment stage, others at the Golden Core stage, and so on. This middle-grade Heaven-tier *Eight Desolates Heaven-Breaking Sword* is quite suitable. It has no strong ties to the five elements, meaning any disciple can practice it. Furthermore, its sixteen movement forms can be divided: six forms below the Golden Core stage, two additional forms for every realm breakthrough, making it applicable all the way up to the Mahayana stage.

"This lower-grade Heaven-tier *Floating Life Soft Palm* follows the same principle. Its twelve palm forms share similarities with the master's *Seven Killings Finger* and *Nine Transformations Mental Art*; they can be practiced from the Qi Condensation stage all the way to the Mahayana stage, with their power varying according to one's strength.

"As for these two, they can also serve as sect inheritances, but these upper-grade Heaven-tier techniques can only be mastered by those at the Nascent Soul stage and above. They can be classified as advanced techniques of the Myriad Phenomena Sect."

Liu Junhuai shared the same view. Of course, having the Old Steward's confirmation provided reassurance; after all, these were meant for sect inheritance, and caution was paramount.

Next came the selection of cultivation methods. Over another hour later, Liu Junhuai finally found a suitable cultivation manual.

The Old Steward took it, flipped through the pages, and a trace of pleasant surprise flashed in his eyes. "This upper-grade Heaven-tier cultivation method, the *Five Elements Origin Canon*, is a fine treasure. If the master did not already possess the *Nine Transformations Mental Art* and three supreme divine abilities, I would have recommended you practice this yourself. Just from the literal meaning, one can see that this method allows cultivation focusing on a single attribute. Its superiority lies in the fact that when practiced to its absolute depths, it can generate origin power within the body—though of course, one must ascend to the Immortal Realm and reach the appropriate realm and cultivation environment to actually manifest it; in the mortal realm, it remains true primal essence.

"Since the master has divine abilities backing you up, naturally you have no need to practice such a method. Your *Nine Transformations Mental Art* can be considered a lower-grade Divine-tier technique; even upper-grade Immortal-tier techniques lack the monstrous power-amplifying bonuses of the *Nine Transformations*, and its every form relies entirely on personal enlightenment to progress."

Liu Junhuai's understanding of cultivation was still quite sparse. "What kind of power is origin power? Is it even more advanced than immortal essence?"

The Old Steward replied, "Starting from the realm of cultivation, a cultivator's internal energy is categorized as follows: in the mortal cultivation realm, there is true primal essence; upon reaching the Immortal Realm, there is immortal essence; upon reaching the Divine Realm, there is divine power; and further beyond that lies origin power. Origin power is the very power of the five elements—metal, wood, water, fire, and earth—which also requires enlightenment. It is the primal, primordial energy form of all things, collectively referring to the foundational forces of fire, grass, wood, and a series of phenomena."

"The primal energy form? Isn't that just chaotic power?"

"Those are two different concepts! Chaotic power is the force left over from the creation of heaven and earth; it is the origin from which all things evolve and begin, out of which origin power—meaning the evolution of all things—derives. There is no absolute hierarchy of high or low between the two; the strength of the power unleashed depends primarily on the capability of the user."

Every conversation with the Old Steward allowed Liu Junhuai to deeply comprehend and realize new truths, which was the primary reason he held the Old Steward in such high respect.