63: Chapter 63 The Mist

"What exactly happened?" Su Jiuchuan asked, feeling somewhat anxious.

Seeing him like this, Zheng Xinyue did not dare to keep him in suspense and said, "After learning the news at that time, I found several scouts from the Zhenfu Bureau who were skilled in tracking and investigation, and we went to Xuande Temple to check together."

"When we arrived, Xuande Temple had been completely destroyed. Everyone else in the temple was dead; only Su Yunxia, Su Yuanjiang, and Abbot Dao Qi were missing. However, Abbot Dao Qi likely escaped after being heavily injured, while your eldest brother and second sister... there was absolutely no trace of them."

Su Jiuchuan's heart went cold. Even Abbot Dao Qi, who was in the Xiantian Realm, had been heavily injured; the two of them, who were not even Martial Artists, were likely in grave danger. An irrepressible wave of sorrow surged into his heart.

As someone who had experienced Transmigration, he had always viewed himself as a mere passenger in this body. Even when using the simulator, he had the illusion that he was just playing a game from his previous life.

But the sorrow that was inexplicably surging now seemed to come from the depths of his Soul. It turned out that he had long since merged into one with the Su Jiuchuan of this world.

"We did not find their bodies at the scene."

After a long while, Su Jiuchuan asked, "Did you find out who did it?"

Zheng Xinyue continued, "According to the wounds on the corpses and the destruction at the scene, it must have been the work of three or four monsters."

"Not humans?" Su Jiuchuan was somewhat incredulous. "And it was three or four monsters?"

Zheng Xinyue also knew this was truly absurd, but this was indeed the conclusion of those scouts from the Zhenfu Bureau.

If this conclusion held true, it meant that those monsters might possess intelligence, or perhaps were even being directed by someone.

Thinking of such a consequence, Zheng Xinyue turned pale and shook her head desperately, trying to shake off the terrifying thought.

Su Jiuchuan looked up at the sky, but in reality, he was silently chanting for the simulator in his heart.

[At eighteen, you become a First-grade Martial Artist. You go to Xuande Temple and discover that the temple has been completely destroyed. You only find a row of graves here, presumably buried by Zheng Xinyue.]

[You are unwilling to give up and continue searching in the nearby mountains for several days, but you still find nothing.]

[On this day, just as you are about to give up, you unexpectedly encounter a bear monster. You are no match for it. Just as the bear monster is about to kill you, it suddenly stops and leaves.]

[Two months later, you encounter a man in black in the mountains and are killed by him on the spot. You die at the age of eighteen.]

Seeing the results of this simulation, Su Jiuchuan felt heavy-hearted. Zheng Xinyue's theory was very likely correct, but why did the bear monster stop killing him in the end?

Su Yunxia and Su Yuanjiang were just two ordinary people; why would several monsters of the Innate level come to cause trouble for them?

Everything was shrouded in mist!

Since a force at the Innate level was involved, Su Jiuchuan knew that he currently had absolutely no ability to resolve it, not to mention that mysterious man in black who had suddenly appeared.

Su Jiuchuan felt heavy-hearted; his desire for strength was unprecedented. However, he still tried his best to calm his mood and cupped his hands to Zheng Xinyue, "Thank you for coming to inform me this time."

Zheng Xinyue's face turned even paler, and she said coldly, "I thought we didn't need to say thank you between us."

After saying this, she turned and left.

"Where are you going?" Su Jiuchuan finally noticed that she was somewhat angry, but he didn't understand what he had done wrong, so he could only ask.

"The imperial court is recalling my father to the capital, and I am going with him." She replied coldly and continued walking forward.

Su Jiuchuan nodded and muttered, "The capital, huh? I will go there too."

Hearing this, Zheng Xinyue paused for a moment before quickly walking away, though a trace of shyness appeared on her face.

However, Su Jiuchuan's mind was occupied with another matter. Currently, he had no clues about a Xiantian Technique, and the only one he had obtained, the Shouyang Scripture, was an incomplete version.

Although Wen Shuyu had once said that as long as he joined a noble family, he would be able to obtain a Xiantian Technique. Su Jiuchuan could completely use the simulator to try joining, and then obtain the technique.

However, he still retained the caution from his previous life. If one could obtain a technique simply by joining a noble family, then how would the noble families ensure the loyalty of these people?

The only method he could think of was to tamper with the technique—either by removing parts of the content so that the technique's power could not be fully unleashed, or by giving only a portion of the technique, with the rest depending on the mood of the noble families.

Su Jiuchuan could not feel at ease with a technique obtained in such a way.

Now, the only path for Su Jiuchuan to obtain a Xiantian Technique was the treasure map he had obtained from Ouyang Xian. As someone in the Destiny Realm, why did Ouyang Xian leave behind a will and the black blade at the end, but not the technique?

Perhaps he had left it behind all along, it was just that Su Jiuchuan hadn't discovered it.

Thinking of this, Su Jiuchuan's eyes lit up. Perhaps Ouyang Xian's technique was obtained from the location of that Treasure Trove, or perhaps he had stored his technique at that Treasure Trove location. In any case, he needed to go there to explore.

And to decipher the text on the treasure map, according to Master Cai Jing, he needed to go to the Imperial Academy in the capital to find some learned scholars to answer it.

Therefore, Su Jiuchuan had just casually said that he would also go to the capital. By the time he came back to his senses, he discovered that Zheng Xinyue had already left.

Su Jiuchuan shook his head and strode off to find Cai Rujin and the other person.

...

At this moment, in Tianshui City.

A man in black slowly walked in front of the inn with a cold expression.

"Guest, please come in. Are you staying for lodging or just for a meal?" the waiter asked eagerly, stepping forward.

The man in black waved his hand and asked, "I heard that Su Jiuchuan, who fought against Young Master Lin Yanyi in Tianshui City that day, is staying at your inn?"

The waiter smiled and nodded repeatedly, saying, "Are you asking about Young Master Su? He is truly a Dragon among men..."

Ever since Su Jiuchuan won the fight against Young Master Lin Yanyi, he had become very famous, and many people came to the inn to inquire about him. A few days ago, Squire Wang in the city even waited at the door for three hours before he managed to see Young Master Su.

Every time the waiter met someone asking about Young Master Su, he would brag extensively and often receive some rewards. Especially that time with Squire Wang, he had received a full ten taels of silver. Just as he was calculating how much he could get this time, he felt a tightness in his chest.

He hurriedly looked down and saw that the man in black was pressing his sword scabbard against him, and a trace of killing intent flashed in the man's eyes. The waiter was instantly terrified.

"Speak, which room is he staying in?"

The waiter hurriedly said, "Young... Young Master Su checked out and left this morning."

The man in black frowned and asked, "Where did he go?" He slowly pushed the scabbard forward.

"I... I don't know..." The waiter felt the scabbard pressing painfully against him. He had no doubt that this scabbard could break his ribs.

"They... they went to Tianmu City!"

A flash of inspiration struck him, and he remembered that the beautiful girl who was with Young Master Su seemed to have said that to her mute servant.

Immediately, the waiter felt his chest lighten; the man in black had already disappeared.

This man in black was none other than Lan Heguang, who had come to seek revenge on Su Jiuchuan.