225: Tianxingbang

Lu Ze was dropped off by the taxi driver in front of a hospital.

This was the designated hospital for the Shennong City Demon Subduing Division, and it only treated personnel from various Municipal Demon Subduing Divisions. Everyone entering here had to register their identity.

After getting out of the car, Lu Ze glanced at his phone, and that number sent him a ward number again.

Lu Ze did not enter through the main entrance. Instead, he took advantage of the moonlight, circled around, concealed his Aura, and entered the hospital from the side.

Avoiding the hospital staff, Lu Ze smoothly arrived in front of the ward number he had received on his phone.

This single ward had its door ajar. The lights inside were dim, making it impossible to see what was within.

Lu Ze did not hesitate, pushing the door open directly, then closing it completely.

At that moment, the main light in the room suddenly turned on, illuminating the entire room.

The room, no more than ten square meters, contained only a hospital bed and a stool.

Qu Hongxi was half-reclining on the hospital bed, his face somewhat pale, but his eyes gazed at Lu Ze with determination.

“Brother Lu, you really did come.”

Qu Hongxi smiled slightly, then glanced at Qu Hongqing beside him.

Qu Hongqing nodded, got up, and offered the chair to Lu Ze, saying to both of them, “I’ll go get some water.”

After speaking, Qu Hongqing got up and left the room, closing the door.

“Buzz!”

A formation quietly rose in the room, completely encompassing this space.

Within this formation, Lu Ze and Qu Hongxi’s conversation would not be heard outside.

“Cough, cough, cough.”

Qu Hongxi forced himself to sit upright, but it seemed to pull at an injury. His face turned pale, his brows furrowed, and he coughed a few times.

Lu Ze walked to the chair and sat down, simply looking at Qu Hongxi without speaking first.

“Brother Lu, you can ask whatever you want.”

Qu Hongxi smiled faintly, like a spring breeze. He was still the man with the longevity braid, his face unchanged, but his entire Aura had undergone a tremendous transformation.

The previous Qu Hongxi was a hothead, like a sharp axe, fearlessly charging through heaven and earth.

But the one before him now had a significantly changed Aura; he had become calm, having reined in all his sharp edges, like a dagger hidden in a sleeve, unremarkable until it strikes, then astonishing!

“No need to ask. I’ve already guessed the main things.”

Lu Ze’s expression was calm, as if the tumultuous events of the past few days were all within his grasp.

“Oh?”

Qu Hongxi raised an eyebrow, picked up the water cup beside him, and smiled faintly, “Brother Lu, you should still ask. There must be some things you don’t know.”

“What don’t I know?”

Lu Ze’s lips curled up, “It’s nothing more than your business with the Xuan Yuan Family. Oh no, to be precise, it’s your business with Xuanyuan Sect. Perhaps you want him dead? No, you probably don’t just want him dead, but also want to ruin his reputation, right?”

“Moreover, from the very beginning when you came to find me, I already sensed something was wrong. You came to challenge me but didn’t even use your spiritual power, nor did you use any of your Family’s techniques. You lost to me, and you lost just right, making people suspicious but unable to directly deny it.”

“Even if you didn’t know the function of that soul gathering pearl, you should have understood that it was a rare item. You still let your sister wear such a good item, displaying it before me. The subsequent dual souls in one body might not have been within your control, but didn’t it also help you better understand how strong my methods are?”

“To put it bluntly, weren’t you just testing me repeatedly, to see what I was capable of, and if I could become your weapon to defeat Xuanyuan Sect?”

The water cup Qu Hongxi was about to bring to his mouth paused slightly. His expression towards Lu Ze became more inquisitive, and he finally sighed softly.

“Brother Lu, it seems I still underestimated you. I originally thought that after such a long setup, even if you could guess I was behind all this, you wouldn’t see so much.”

“Brother Lu, you’re right. I want to ruin Xuanyuan Sect’s reputation! Not only him, I want to tear down and abolish the ‘heavenly ranking list’!”

Lu Ze frowned slightly.

He knew about the heavenly ranking list; Fu Liang had told him about it before.

The heavenly ranking list had appeared many years ago, located at the edge of Yanjing, beneath three massive stone tablets, protected by countless intertwined formations.

These three stone tablets were divided into three lists, which could be called the Heaven List, Earth List, and Human List.

The Heaven List had no limit on names, no specific rankings. Those listed on the Heaven List were all above Ninth-Grade, starting from Half-Step Demon Slayer. Even if they died, they would be included in the Heaven List for people to admire.

The Earth List, on the other hand, was for those above Eighth-Grade, but below Half-Step Demon Slayer. To be on this list, one had to be alive, and there were only fifteen slots, ranked by cultivation. If someone on the list died, their name would be instantly removed!

The people selected for the Human List were only below Eighth-Grade and above First-Grade. It could be said that anyone capable of cultivation was within the selection range of the Human List.

However, the Human List only had fifty names in total, and they were not selected based on cultivation level, but rather by some mysterious rule.

There was once a person who had just stepped into First-Grade cultivation who reached the top of the Human List, but disappeared from the Human List after just one day.

The Demon Subduing Division had even investigated this person, but found no abnormalities.

To this day, many people are still studying the selection order of the heavenly ranking list’s Human List.

The existence of such a thing had little meaning to Lu Ze.

Regardless of why this thing was erected in Yanjing, those on the list received no benefits. At most, for people, if a listed person’s name disappeared, they would know that the person had likely died.

Lu Ze said, “It’s just a list. Does its existence or non-existence hinder you in any way?”

Qu Hongxi smiled, saying mysteriously, “Of course it does, Brother Lu. Not only does it hinder me, but it hinders you too, doesn’t it?”

“Oh?”

Lu Ze looked up, “How does it hinder me?”

Qu Hongxi put down the water cup, and said as if casually, “Brother Lu, do you know that you are currently number one on the Human List, and you’ve occupied the Human List for almost a whole month now? How many pairs of eyes are already fixed on you, practically unable to look away!”

“So what?”

Lu Ze didn’t care. What did being on the Human List or not have to do with him?

“Heh.”

Qu Hongxi chuckled, took out his phone, opened a specific application, then turned his phone over, presenting it to Lu Ze.

“Brother Lu, people on the Human List can be tracked in real-time, and no disguise works. Furthermore, through the Human List, everything you’ve seen, said, or heard can be recorded. As long as one has the means, it can all be found out, every word and sentence, not a single detail will be missed.”