30: Chapter 30 You'll suffer a great loss if you look down on the locals.

When Xie Feng returned to the Sect, it was pitch black.

The on-duty Disciple at the mountain gate saw the state of the three people, and the lantern in their hand almost dropped to the ground.

Tu Ziguan's hem was covered in pine needles and mud, one end of Tie Rong's long staff was wrapped in dried grayish-white mycelium, and the cold iron sleeve at the end of Xie Feng's blind stick was also stained with the same thing.

None of the three spoke as they walked inward along the mountain path.

Tu Ziguan stopped at the fork in the road. "I am going to the Affairs Hall to submit the mission."

"Absolutely not!" Xie Feng said.

"Let Tie Rong go, and you come back with me immediately!"

Tie Rong nodded.

Although she didn't understand, judging from Xie Feng's tone, something big must have happened.

Tie Rong turned toward the Affairs Hall, her footsteps fast and hurried.

"What are the hounds?"

"Damn it, sigh..."

As soon as Tu Ziguan returned, he was locked by Xie Feng inside a spherical iron ball.

Early the next morning, Xie Feng was awakened by a commotion outside his door.

Footsteps, lowered murmurs, and spiritual power fluctuations. It wasn't just one or two people peeping, but at least a dozen people surrounding the outside of his residence, keeping a distance, not daring to approach, yet unwilling to leave.

Xie Feng tied up his veil, tapped the ground with his blind stick, and pushed open the door.

"Something the matter?" Xie Feng asked.

Someone in the crowd took a step forward.

Xie Feng recognized his spiritual power fluctuation; he was an executive Disciple from the Affairs Hall.

"Senior Brother Xie, the mission report submitted last night... The executive asked me to invite you and Senior Brother Tu. The Elder is waiting for you in the Discussion Hall."

"What about Tie Rong?"

"Senior Sister Tie is also in the Discussion Hall. She hasn't come out since she went in last night."

Tie Rong had spent the entire night in the Discussion Hall; she had been detained.

"Let's go."

Then, amidst everyone's puzzled gazes, a super-large iron ball was pushed out from next door.

Like a dung beetle, Xie Feng pushed the ball toward the grand hall.

"Slow down, I'm going to throw up!"

"Just run along inside!"

Everyone around cast sideways glances.

There was more than just Elder Liu in the Discussion Hall.

When Xie Feng walked in, his spiritual power swept across both sides of the long table; Elder Zhao was there, and Elder Pu was there as well.

A chill ran down his spine.

There were also three Inner Gate Elders he rarely interacted with, but Xie Feng recognized them at a glance. Although one of them was old, those squinting eyes were identical to Wen Yushu's.

Sect Master Shen Du sat in the prime seat, his beard and hair graying, wearing a somewhat worn green robe loosely.

Everyone cast surprised gazes.

"Where is Tu Ziguan?" Elder Liu asked.

"In the ball."

"Here."

Two voices answered simultaneously.

Everyone present looked at Xie Feng and the iron ball beside him with strange expressions.

Shen Du was also stunned, but he didn't mind.

"Everyone is here." Shen Du's voice wasn't loud, but the entire Discussion Hall quieted down. "Tie Rong, repeat what you said last night."

Tie Rong swallowed hard, but still recounted everything that happened in the Black Pine Forest from the beginning. When she reached the part where Xie Feng turned around and cursed the Anomaly, her speech suddenly sped up, as if she was rushing to spit out the most unbelievable part as soon as possible.

"Xie Feng turned around, tapped his blind stick on the ground, and said to that mass of mycelium, 'What are you running for', and the mycelium stopped. Then he said, 'It is already here, no matter where you run it will find you. Your only chance is to grind off the patterns on the stone disk before it finishes eating those believers'. The mycelium understood, and then it did as told."

"It's really hard on her, this child doesn't like to talk."

"No one asked you to speak, silence!" an Elder reprimanded.

"Do you think I'm paying attention to you?"

Xie Feng couldn't be bothered to entertain him. If worst came to worst, he could just lift his veil and let you old fogies see the Universe.

"Arrogant!"

"Enough, shut up! If you could get an Anomaly to shine my shoes, you could talk like that too." Shen Du interrupted that Elder.

Another Elder spoke first.

"Tie Rong, do you know what you are saying? Anomalies cannot be communicated with; this is an iron law that has never been overturned since the establishment of the Sect. Low-level Anomalies lack intelligence, and high-level Anomalies only have predatory instincts. Never has anyone been able to make an Anomaly understand human speech, let alone make an Anomaly follow human words."

"Disciple knows." Tie Rong's voice was trembling, but she didn't step back. "Disciple saw it with her own eyes."

"What you saw with your own eyes may not be true. Anomalies are best at bewildering human minds. At that time, you were in the Black Pine Forest, mycelium was everywhere, spiritual power was suppressed, and perception was interfered with. What you saw might be what the Anomaly wanted you to see."

"What about the Dark Young?" Tie Rong's voice suddenly grew loud. "When that thing crawled out of the shadows, the mycelium in the entire forest was fleeing for its lives. Do Anomalies feel fear too? If the mycelium only has predatory instincts, what is it afraid of? Why did it listen to Xie Feng's words to grind the stone disk? Was this also what the Anomaly made me see?"

"It's driving the poor child crazy."

Xie Feng chimed in again. The Elder glared at him, and Xie Feng responded by flipping him the middle finger.

The few of them looked at each other in dismay; they had no idea what the Dark Young actually was.

The Elders weren't convinced; rather, they couldn't answer.

Elder Zhao opened his eyes. "Tu Ziguan."

"Here." Tu Ziguan's voice came from inside the iron ball.

"Were your mind and soul also bewildered by the Anomaly?" Elder Zhao asked.

"What I saw was the same as Tie Rong's."

The Discussion Hall fell silent again.

"Dark Young? Describe it." Shen Du suddenly frowned.

Tie Rong and Tu Ziguan once again described the Dark Young.

"Three-legged Greed Nightmare?" Shen Du murmured.

Xie Feng couldn't hold it in and almost chuckled out loud.

"What kind of Sinicized name is this? This Sect Master is extraordinary! Looks like he knows about it, and has even seen it. The most awesome part is that seeing that thing requires losing sanity points, yet he didn't go crazy? But it's not strange either; he already Cultivates. If an ordinary person's willpower points are 50, he probably has at least 200."

Then, Xie Feng suddenly realized something was wrong.

That's right! If this world is the same as Blue Star, how could these Advanced Cultivators have never seen any traces of myths? This didn't make sense; Advanced Cultivators seemed awfully strong!

Shen Du looked at Xie Feng. "Xie Feng, take off the veil."

This was a joke.

Xie Feng even glanced at Pu Huai nearby, who wore an expression of someone eager to watch a big spectacle.

"Sect Master, there are no eyes in my eye sockets."

"I know." Shen Du's voice was very calm. "Take it off."

"Sect Master, if I take it off, you might die."

The inside of the Discussion Hall grew silent, immediately followed by an Elder's furious scolding.

"Arrogant and rebellious, insane and unreasonable! What is your Cultivation Realm! The Sect Master is an eighth-Realm Cultivator! You..."

"Shut up!"

"If he knows about the Three-legged Greed Nightmare, this words really doesn't sound like boasting."

"Rest assured, take it off. I have seen the projection of the Mother of Mists here, let alone Her progeny."

Now it was Xie Feng's turn to be dumbfounded; his brain stopped turning and he blurted out.

"A massive dark cloud, with sheep's hooves and all?!"

Shen Du was also shocked!

"You've even seen the Mother of Mists?!"

"You're not dead? Sect Master!"

"You're still alive, kid!"

The Elders beside them couldn't cut into the conversation, looking completely bewildered as they listened to the old man and the young man talk.

Xie Feng's heart was churning with towering waves, the kind that came wave after wave.

Listening to this address? This was Shub-Niggurath! If it was one of the Outer Gods, it seemed it wasn't impossible to show it to him?

Sect Master, I somewhat looked down on people. I was thinking this world wasn't that awesome? Habitual thinking kills people! No wonder you can be the Sect Master, you really have some skills.

"Fine, but everyone must close your eyes." Xie Feng hardened his heart and agreed.

"Very well."

Shen Du answered on their behalf. The various Elders and Tie Rong had no choice but to close their eyes.

As for Tu Wu?

It's fine, he's in the ball.

"Opening your eyes means certain death, absolutely do not look!"

Xie Feng raised his hand and untied the knot tied behind his head.

The veil slid down from his face, folded in his hand.

Xie Feng could feel gazes falling upon his hollow eye sockets, falling upon that quiet, soft light deep within his sockets that contained all colors yet possessed no temperature.

Shen Du looked into his eye sockets.

"That's enough." Shen Du said.

Awesome, Sect Master, you really are no ordinary badass!

Xie Feng felt like he had found a savior!

Xie Feng re-tied the veil, sealing The Guide's light back behind the veil.

"What was said is true, factored into the assessment! All three are promoted to the Inner Gate!" Shen Du's voice remained very calm. "An iron law being broken once might be a coincidence, but being broken three times is no longer one."

The Elders didn't speak again.

Shen Du stood up and pondered his phrasing for a moment.

"Xie Feng, push that... ball... and come with me."

Xie Feng followed Shen Du out of the Discussion Hall.

Shen Du stopped. "What did you say to the Anomaly in the Black Pine Forest?"

Xie Feng repeated what he had said back then.

After listening, Shen Du neither said he believed it nor that he didn't.

"You have been in the Sect for less than two years: Kumu Village, Mirror Tomb, Black Pine Forest. Three missions, three times encountering Anomalies far exceeding your Realm. Don't you think it's too coincidental?"

Xie Feng didn't answer.

"Who gave you the veil on your face?" Shen Du asked.

"Pu Huai, Elder Pu," Xie Feng said. "It was issued as a Sect reward after the Mirror Tomb mission."

Don't do it, Xie Feng thought to himself. Please don't launch a major investigation into him. You are no ordinary badass, but he is no ordinary Dongfeng super-missile either.

Shen Du fell silent for a long time.

The mountain wind blew in from the direction of the mine pit, rustling the weeds.

"Pu Huai has never made a mistake," Shen Du's voice was very calm. "But ever since you entered the Sect, every mission handled by Pu Huai led to you encountering high-level Anomalies. Have you never wondered why?"

Pu Huai was Nyarlathotep, who liked watching how he struggled.

How on earth was he supposed to say these words out loud?

If he said it out loud, Shen Du would go investigate Pu Huai.

If Shen Du investigated Pu Huai, Nyarlathotep would know.

Once Nyarlathotep knew, well then, goodnight to this world.

"I've thought about it," Xie Feng said. "I just couldn't figure it out."

Shen Du turned around and looked at the veil on Xie Feng's face. "Can your eyes still grow back?"

"A dog entering a toilet."

"What does that mean?"

"It's hopeless."

"Can your Cultivation continue to Breakthrough?"

"That is still possible."

"Then continue to Cultivate. Before your Cultivation is sufficient, do not take missions. The Sect doesn't lack just one person like you."

I will go through fire and water for you, Sect Master! Through fire and water! Sect Master! It was I who had dog eyes and looked down on you!

Xie Feng stood in place.

Shen Du's footsteps sounded, heading down the mountain path and gradually fading away.

"Brother Feng."

The ball beside him spoke.

"What is it."

"What on earth are the hounds?"

Xie Feng sat down and described the racial characteristics of the Hounds of Tindalos.

The materialization of angles, hollow long tongues, blue mucus, and the aura of traveling through time and space.

After listening, Tu Ziguan squatted in the ball without moving.

"You mean because of my Transmigration, those things might come looking for me?"

"Not might, definitely."

Xie Feng said.

"As long as someone has engaged in time travel, the hounds might notice him. They will definitely appear. I have The Guide on me, so they dare not approach me."

"Then what about me?"

"You have doggy biscuits."

Tu Ziguan fell silent for a long time.

"Is there a way?"

"Yes." Xie Feng pushed the ball and chased down after Shen Du.

A whole way of steps almost rattled Tu Ziguan inside to death.

"Ah! Ouch! Ah!"

"Slow down, you damn blind man!"