At the peak of Mount Han was a blue lake of unknown depth. Even though the surroundings were extremely cold, the surface of the lake still exuded a mist.
On the cliffs by the lake, in the weeds, stones of various sizes could be seen everywhere. Of course, even more stones were still soaking in the lake. Some were at the bottom of the lake, some had their sharp edges exposed. Quite a few dragons and cranes that had flown over from the south for the summer stood on these stones, contentedly preening their feathers.
This lake was the Heaven Lake, formed from a hot spring that had come from some unknown place. These stones were Heavenstones. They had descended from the heavens in the early years of the Primordial Era. Although they were not like the monoliths in the Mausoleum of Books that received the worship and worship of tens of thousands of people for generations, in this remote Mount Han, they lived more freely and enjoyed more of the wild.
An old man sat on a stone by the lake, his eyes closed as if bathing in the sun to rest his mind.
In the pavilions behind the stone, there were at least several hundred attendants and subordinates, but none of them made a sound.
The Pavilion of Heavenly Secrets had always been the most famous and most mysterious place on the continent.
The various rankings issued by this place were the most impartial and objective, the most authoritative, and no one had ever dared to question them. It had an extremely resounding reputation in the world, and it also operated various merchant guilds with its tentacles reaching everywhere. Even the common people knew of the name of the Pavilion of Heavenly Secrets, but very few people knew where it was.
But to the powerful figures of the upper echelons of the cultivation world, the location of the Pavilion of Heavenly Secrets had never been a secret.
The Pavilion of Heavenly Secrets possessed countless properties on the continent, countless manors, and even twenty-some famed mountains as dwellings.
Wherever the Elder of Heavenly Secrets lived was the Pavilion of Heavenly Secrets.
The old man by the lake was the Elder of Heavenly Secrets.
When he closed his eyes to rest, everyone in Mount Han naturally had to maintain their silence.
Suddenly, the Elder of Heavenly Secrets opened his eyes.
His eyes, which were full of wisdom and vicissitudes, were filled with shock. He was the head of the Storms of the Eight Directions, his cultivation level unspeakably high, and he was especially skilled in calculation. What in the world could escape his eyes? What was it that could surprise even him?
Without hesitation, the Elder of Heavenly Secrets raised his right hand and pointed at the mist on the surface of the Heaven Lake.
A faint and tenacious Qi traveled from his fingertip to the surface of the lake, instantly causing the mist to surge.
In the surging mist, many images could faintly be seen.
These images were reflected in his eyes, becoming countless fragments of thoughts.
"Just what happened?"
"Why did you leave Xuelao City and adventure in Mount Han?"
"How did you manage to hide from my eyes? Black Robe … is that you? "
"The confluence of the north and south, of course the demons will find a way to destroy it, but there's no reason for you to come here in person. Besides, what's the point of coming here?"
"A thousand years ago, you were heavily injured by Zhou Dufu. Afterwards, you hid in Xuelao City to recuperate. Even when Black Robe planned to surround and kill Su Li, you only used the night sky to help, not daring to take half a step out of Xuelao City. Wasn't it because you were afraid that Su Li might explode and injure you? Then why do you dare to leave Xuelao City today?"
"There can only be two reasons for you to leave Xuelao City. The first is that your wounds have healed, and the second is that you've found a method to cure your old wounds."
"That method is currently in Mount Han?"
"Who is it?"
"Is that him?"
"What treasure does he have on him? Or do you just want to kill him? "
"Why does Tianhai want me to see him? Is there any connection between the two? "
"What exactly is it … that even I can't see through?"
"Chen Changsheng, just who are you?"
"If you wanted to kill Chen Changsheng, why didn't you do it on the way? Why did you have to come to Mount Han? I understand, it was because Mao Qiuyu and Linghai Zhiwang accompanied him the entire way. It was even possible that the Pope had them bring a treasure of the Orthodoxy with them. You were worried that they would hold you back … you were worried that this was a trap arranged by us. "
"After that matter, whether it was you or us, everything seemed like a trap."
"So you chose to come to Mount Han to kill Chen Changsheng. As long as you could hide it from me, it was fine."
"However, you did not expect that Liu Qing and Xiao De would see through it in advance, forcing you to buy so much time."
"Then, what comes next depends on what choice I make."
Countless thoughts emerged in the mind of the Elder of Heavenly Secrets, countless calculations simultaneously carried out, countless minute Qi condensing into a picture in his sea of consciousness.
A bolt of lightning flashed through the clouds, a wisp of morning mist scattered before the light. In an extremely short amount of time, he had thought of so many things.
At the same time, his fingers trembled in the lake wind, tearing countless paths through the mist on the surface of the water.
An indescribably powerful Qi enveloped the entire Heaven Lake.
Countless stones left the grass, left the cliffs, left the lake water, and flew into the sky.
The lake gurgled, bits of grass and mud rustled to the ground, the surface of the lake restless.
Extremely far away from the summit of Mount Han, the sky was filled with floating stones.
Every stone was a black dot, and between two black dots was an invisible line. Countless invisible lines weaved together to form a net.
This massive net of stones enveloped an area of five hundred li around Mount Han.
The middle-aged scholar was within it.
Yet the worry in the Elder of Heavenly Secrets's eyes did not lessen. On the contrary, it deepened.
Even now, he still could not calculate just what on Chen Changsheng's body could cause this person to leave Xuelao City and risk his life here.
… …
… …
Snow slowly drifted down the mountain path. Dark clouds shrouded the mountains like night, and from the distance, one could faintly hear the sound of tearing.
Chen Changsheng had no idea that these were countless Heavenstones floating in the air, transforming all of Mount Han into a cage.
His mind was completely focused on the middle-aged scholar by the stream.
In the next moment, his gaze met the middle-aged scholar's gaze.
It was like a clap of thunder had exploded in his mind. His face grew even paler, devoid of any blood.
Snow could cover up all color, and only blood could produce color.
He had already guessed at who the middle-aged scholar was. At this moment, he understood the message in the scholar's gaze and knew why he had come.
In a little while, what awaited him was not death, but an ending even more terrifying than death.
Starting from that night in the old temple many years ago, this was the ending he feared the most.
… …
… …
Dark clouds gathered at the summit of the mountains. Night had come.
Mao Qiuyu and Linghai Zhiwang simultaneously sensed this and raised their heads to look into the mountains, their expressions abruptly turning grave.
"It's no good to make things too big."
Mao Qiuyu drew back his gaze and stared at Linghai Zhiwang, his eyes sharp. His sleeves moved despite the lack of wind, his hands seeming to grasp something within them.
Linghai Zhiwang had an abnormally nasty expression as he growled, "It has nothing to do with me!"
The abnormality in Mount Han truly had nothing to do with Linghai Zhiwang. Just as Chen Changsheng and the others had deduced, as the strongest contender for the position of next Pope, Xiao De's rebellion on the mountain path truly had been arranged by him and some people behind the scenes. But how could he have invited this darkness?
… …
… …
(Next chapter, 8 p.m.)
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