301: Chapter 301 Planting the Corpse Seed!

Wherever that aura passed, his Meridians, flesh, and bones... were all being eroded by something!

Especially his Dantian—

The target of that fleshy ball was clearly his Dantian!

He could feel the thing slowly wriggling toward his Dantian. Wherever it passed, his spiritual power seemed frozen, and he could no longer mobilize it at all!

"Ugh... ah..."

Li Xuanfeng let out a whimper as his consciousness began to blur.

The scene before him became distorted and overlapped. The dark figure's silhouette turned into a series of afterimages, flickering between reality and illusion, impossible to see clearly.

The sounds in his ears also grew more distant and muffled, as if separated by a thick curtain of water.

He wanted to struggle, but his body no longer obeyed him.

He wanted to scream, but he couldn't open his mouth.

His consciousness was sinking into the abyss bit by bit.

The dark figure quietly watched as Li Xuanfeng's eyes changed from terrified to vacant, a satisfied smile slowly curling at the corners of his mouth.

He waited for a moment, and after confirming the other party had completely lost self-awareness, he finally spoke in a raspy, low voice:

"Alright. Now, tell me everything you know about Ye Changge."

"Ye Changge..."

Li Xuanfeng muttered the name repeatedly, and a ripple of emotion actually surfaced in his vacant eyes.

That ripple wasn't clarity, but rather—

Unforgettable hatred.

Even though his consciousness had fallen, that hatred was still deeply etched into his bones, impossible to dispel.

"Ye Changge... Ye Changge... he is not an ordinary Foundation Establishment Cultivator..."

Li Xuanfeng began to speak, his voice mechanical and flat, like a controlled Puppet, word by word, devoid of emotion.

"He... obtained the Legacy of an ancient ruin... it's a top-tier Talisman Array Legacy..."

"Talisman Array?" The dark figure's brow twitched slightly.

"Yes... the Talismans in his hand... are not ordinary goods... most are refined by himself... he can even refine second-tier High Grade Talismans... and..."

Li Xuanfeng paused, a trace of fear flashing through his vacant eyes.

"And he has a talisman treasure in his hand."

"A talisman treasure?"

The dark figure's voice grew slightly more serious.

"What talisman treasure?"

"I don't know... I haven't seen it with my own eyes... but I heard the Third Old Ancestor say before he died... that the talisman treasure's pressure is comparable to a Golden Core True Person's Lifebound Treasure... once activated, a Foundation Establishment Cultivator has no power to fight back..."

Li Xuanfeng's voice grew lower and lower, as if he were stating something that made him feel hopelessly powerless.

The dark figure fell silent for a moment.

A talisman treasure...

A talisman treasure refined from a Golden Core True Person's Lifebound Treasure was indeed not something a Foundation Establishment Cultivator could contend with.

No wonder Ye Changge could carve out such a large territory in just a few years with his Foundation Establishment Early Stage cultivation.

Being a dual Cultivator of Talismans and Arrays, plus having a talisman treasure in hand, he certainly had the capital for it.

But what Li Xuanfeng didn't know was—

That Ye Changge likely hid an even greater secret.

For example... what exactly was his relationship with that Lin Fengmian?

"What else?" the dark figure continued to ask. "Are there any people close to Ye Changge?"

"Yes..."

Li Xuanfeng nodded.

"Although Ye Changge appears aloof and proud to the outside world... he is extremely good to his own people... he has three very intimate wives... they have been with him since his days of hardship... Ye Changge treats them exceptionally well... every time he returns from a trip, he goes to see them first... if anyone were to harm them, Ye Changge would surely tear them into ten thousand pieces..."

Hearing this, a sinister light flashed in the dark figure's eyes.

Three wives...

Intimate people...

Those are weaknesses.

The dark figure calculated in his heart.

Since Ye Changge had such achievements in the path of Talisman Arrays and held a talisman treasure, a head-on confrontation was indeed unwise.

Who knew how many trump cards he still had hidden?

Things like Talismans were the most difficult to guard against.

Perhaps the man carried a few Talismans on him that could heavily injure a Golden Core Cultivator...

If he couldn't achieve a one-hit kill and the opponent became alert, he would instead expose his own tracks.

When that time came, let alone extracting Lin Fengmian's secrets from Ye Changge's mouth, he might not even be able to get close to him.

Therefore—

He had to use strategy.

The dark figure pondered for a moment and then asked, "Do Foundation Establishment Families like yours have to report to the Qingyun Sect every year?"

"Yes..."

Li Xuanfeng answered mechanically.

"Foundation Establishment Families must make a report to the Lingxiao Sect once a year... including the new Cultivators added that year, their cultivation Realms, the output of Spiritual Lands... and at the same time, pay a tribute of Spirit Stones... if they fail to pay for three consecutive years, the Lingxiao Sect has the right to reclaim the Spiritual Lands..."

The dark figure nodded.

It was just as he thought.

He had heard before that the Foundation Establishment Families within the borders of the Zhao State were nominally vassals of the Lingxiao Sect.

Every year they had to report the Family's situation to the Lingxiao Sect and pay a hefty sum of Spirit Stones as tribute.

This was the Lingxiao Sect's method of controlling the families below them.

It was also the value of these families' existence—to provide fresh Cultivator blood and a steady stream of Spirit Stones for the Sect.

"When?"

"Generally, it's in one month..."

Li Xuanfeng replied.

"The specific date depends on the Lingxiao Sect's arrangements... but it's generally around this time period... this year should be no exception..."

Hearing this, a smile from a successful scheme slowly curled on the dark figure's lips.

In one month...

Ye Changge will go to the Lingxiao Sect to report.

At that time, he will surely leave the Ye Family and head to the Lingxiao Sect.

And his three intimate wives should remain at the Ye Family.

That will be the best opportunity.

While Ye Changge is away, capture his wives alive.

Using them as hostages, he could interrogate Ye Changge about Lin Fengmian's secrets.

A man can be cold and ruthless to outsiders and keep his secrets under lock and key.

But what if his closest kin are held hostage?

He didn't believe Ye Changge could still remain stubborn.

Moreover...

If he could find out Lin Fengmian's secrets from Ye Changge's mouth, it would be a massive contribution!

At that time, the Master would surely reward him handsomely!

Thinking of this, the dark figure felt increasingly satisfied.

He glanced at Li Xuanfeng, who was still suspended in mid-air with vacant eyes, snorted coldly, and then raised his hand to snap his fingers.

*Snap—*

The crisp sound echoed in the Immortal Cave.

Li Xuanfeng's vacant eyes jolted violently, and then slowly began to focus.

The pitch-black chains also loosened simultaneously, dissipating into the air as specks of black mist.

*Thud—*

Li Xuanfeng fell heavily to the ground. The puncture wounds on his limbs were still seeping blood, and the pain made him gasp.

He snapped his head up to look at the dark figure before him, his eyes filled with terror and rage:

"You... what did you do to me?!"

The dark figure looked down at him, a cold smile curling on his lips.

"This seat has planted a Corpse Seed within your body."

His voice was raspy and unhurried.