Chapter 83 The Chaotic Prelude, The Hidden Mist Assassination

[Late April, late at night.]

[The phantom of the 'Inverted Mountain' finally revealed its true form before the world.]

["Roar—!!!"]

[The Spiritual Qi tide triggered by the phenomenon instantly ignited the ecology of the entire canyon.]

[Countless exotic beasts lurking in the depths let out hair-raising roars, surging toward the periphery like a tide.]

[The beast tide has erupted.]

[However, this first wave of impact did not affect you at all.]

[The massive amount of high-purity beast repellent powder you scattered on the mandatory paths of the canyon worked wonders.]

[Those exotic beasts, whose eyes were originally blood-red and wanted nothing more than to devour humans, smelled the scent they instinctively loathed.]

[They actually came to a dead stop and detoured.]

[Although some traps were inevitably triggered, most of the core arrangements were preserved.]

[A few days later.]

[As the beast tide receded, Martial Artists with sharp senses moved upon hearing the news.]

[Chiyang County, a small town usually ignored by everyone, became overcrowded overnight.]

[The streets were filled with Wild Hunterss carrying weapons and wearing fierce expressions.]

["Have you heard? Treasures have appeared in Sunset Canyon! The phenomena are non-stop!"]

["Nonsense! Didn't you see the purple light that night? That's definitely a supreme treasure being born!"]

[Countless greedy eyes turned toward the depths of the canyon.]

[However, the good times did not last long.]

[A week later, a well-equipped black motorcade brazenly charged into Chiyang County.]

[And they set up a cordon at the entrance of the canyon.]

[Tannan Heavy Industry!]

[This behemoth entrenched in Tiannan Province finally bared its fangs.]

[Relying on their superior numbers, they began to forcibly clear the area.]

["This place has been taken over by Tannan Heavy Industry! Unrelated personnel, get out immediately! Otherwise, you will be killed without mercy!"]

[Fully armed private soldiers set up heavy machine guns at the periphery of the canyon, and there were even several exoskeleton mechs patrolling.]

[Although the independent Martial Artists were furious, facing the heavy firepower of the conglomerate, they could only swallow their anger and were forced to retreat to the periphery.]

["Hmph, a bunch of rabble."]

[Inside the temporary command post of Tannan Heavy Industry, a middle-aged man in a tactical vest sneered.]

[He was the deputy commander of this operation, an expert at the Ninth Stage of Qi and Blood.]

["Pass down the order: the first squad is to advance to Cobble Beach and establish an outpost!"]

["Be sure to clear the area before the Enshrined Elder arrives!"]

[However, he never dreamed that this was exactly the 'big meal' you had prepared for them.]

[Hiding in a cave above the One-Line Sky, you watched through a surveillance screen as that squad of arrogant private soldiers stepped into Cobble Beach.]

[A cold smile curled at the corner of your mouth.]

["Welcome to my home field."]

["Ah!!!"]

[Just ten minutes later, screams came through the communication channel.]

["Ambush! It's poison spikes! Dammit, I can't feel my legs!"]

["Watch out! Flashbangs! Ah, my eyes!"]

["Where is that rat who set the traps?! Find him!"]

[Cobble Beach instantly turned into a shura field.]

[The traps you set were interlinked; although not fatal, they were extremely disgusting.]

[Soldiers who stepped on armor-piercing spikes instantly lost their combat capability, and those who triggered flashbangs became temporarily blind.]

[And those unlucky enough to try and find cover had their positions locked by hidden vibration sensors.]

[What greeted them were cold arrows you controlled remotely.]

[Tannan Heavy Industry's advance was hindered, and they suffered heavy losses.]

[What frustrated them even more was that they didn't even know who the enemy was.]

[The furious private soldiers began to fire blindly, even turning their weapons toward the independent Martial Artists on the periphery, believing they were the ones responsible.]

[Violent bloody conflicts broke out between the two sides, and the entire canyon entrance turned into a mess.]

[It wasn't until Tannan Heavy Industry's Origin Opening Realm Enshrined Elder personally took charge and relied on his powerful strength to forcibly suppress the riot.]

[Only then did the situation barely stabilize.]

["Investigate! Investigate for me! Exactly which rat is causing trouble behind our backs!" the Enshrined Elder roared.]

[But they were destined to find nothing.]

[And what awaited them next was the even more insidious 'Soul-Bewildering Grass'.]

[As they went deeper into the One-Line Sky, those small grasses emitting a faint fragrance began to take effect.]

[Many elite Martial Artists responsible for scouting began to experience symptoms of dizziness and decreased judgment.]

[Someone clearly saw flat ground but stepped into thin air and fell off a cliff, becoming paraplegic.]

[Someone was slashing at the air as if fighting an invisible enemy.]

[Tannan Heavy Industry's pathetic state became a laughingstock among the independent Martial Artists on the periphery.]

["Haha! These are the elites of the conglomerate? They can't even walk straight!"]

[In your shelter, you leisurely drank hot tea while watching the farce of them dog-eating-dog through the surveillance.]

["Waste away, get angry."]

["The more chaotic you are, the greater my opportunity."]

[Time slowly passed in chaos and confrontation.]

[Finally.]

[May 14th, late at night.]

[You were sitting at the mouth of the cave, wiping the long saber in your hand.]

[Suddenly.]

[A heart-palpitating fluctuation came from the deepest part of the canyon.]

[You jerked your head up.]

[In the distant sky, that 'Inverted Mountain' that had been flickering in and out of view suddenly lit up with a blinding purple light.]

[Immediately after, like a popped bubble, it disappeared without warning.]

[Then, a Spiritual Qi tide erupted like a tsunami!]

["It's here!"]

[You stood up abruptly, a sharp light bursting from your eyes.]

[This is the moment the dimensional secret treasure descends!]

[Without the slightest hesitation, your figure flashed as you rushed out of the cave.]

[This time, you were no longer a spectator who could only watch from afar.]

[You are a Kaiyuan Realm Expert, the true master of this hunting ground.]

[You activated the dual breath-concealment of 'Hiding the Edge' and 'Profound Water Spirit Body'.]

[Your entire being was like a stone without any life aura.]

[You silently lurked into a forest at the edge of Cobble Beach.]

[That was precisely the location where the 'heavenly river water lotus' was about to fall in your memory!]

[In the sky, as the phantom of the Inverted Mountain shattered, several purple streaks of light fell like a meteor shower.]

[They had no specific trajectory but were randomly scattered in various corners of the canyon.]

["Buzz—"]

[A dazzling purple light pierced the night sky, landing exactly dozens of meters in front of you.]

[As the light dissipated, water-blue ripples wafted out.]

[A strange flower, crystal clear throughout and emitting extreme vitality, was slowly squeezing from illusion into reality.]

["Now!"]

[Without any hesitation, you exerted force with your feet, and your whole body turned into an afterimage as you rushed over.]

["Snap!"]

[Before anyone else could react, your palm had already firmly grasped that water-blue strange flower.]

[Without the slightest delay, you directly circulated your Yuan Qi and instantly completed the absorption!]

["Boom!"]

[A majestic energy surged into your body.]

[But this time you chose to stand still, and layers of water mist began to rise around you.]

[After a short while, a terrifying aura attacked from the side and rear.]

["What gall! You dare to snatch my things!"]

[It was that familiar old man again! Tannan Heavy Industry's Origin Opening Realm Enshrined Elder!]

[Seeing you succeed, his eyes nearly split with rage, his entire body's Yuan Qi erupted, and he pounced like a goshawk.]

[That withered large hand, carrying a sharp wind that tore through the air, grabbed straight for your shoulder.]

[Facing this certain-kill strike, you not only didn't dodge but instead stood perfectly still.]

[Your figure suddenly became somewhat illusory.]

[The Enshrined Elder's large hand grabbed your shoulder fiercely.]

["Puff!"]

[The sensation was wrong! That wasn't flesh and blood, but a cluster of shattered water shadows!]

["An illusion?!" The Enshrined Elder was shocked.]

[Just then.]

["Boom—!!!"]

[The twenty sets of high-explosive high-potency explosives you buried under his feet detonated simultaneously at this moment!]

[A massive firelight instantly swallowed everything.]

[Even for a Kaiyuan Realm Expert, taking such a high-dosage explosion head-on while completely unprepared was definitely not pleasant.]

[The Enshrined Elder let out a scream, and his entire body was blown dozens of meters away by the massive shockwave.]

[The exoskeleton battle armor on his body shattered instantly, and his protective Yuan Qi was also shaken apart.]

[Covered in blood, he fell to the ground in a pathetic state.]

[He struggled to get up to adjust his breathing.]

[But the next second, a cold blade edge emerged without warning from the water mist behind him.]

[It precisely pierced through his chest.]

["Puchi!"]

[Blood gushed out.]

[Holding the hilt of the saber, you leaned in close to his ear and whispered:]

["Long time no see, you old thing."]