96: Chapter 96 The Coronation of the Supreme Ruler

Lin Chen's consciousness was nearly torn to shreds at this moment.

On one side was the excruciating pain brought about by his Divine Soul forcibly traversing space; on the other, the backlash from that strange erosive power in his right arm, which had suddenly become active after devouring the spatial turbulence.

Two types of extreme pain collided within his body, as if they were about to burst him apart from the inside out.

But he did not retreat.

That pale, blood-stained left hand, with its five fingers like iron hooks, was locked tightly onto the Faceless Man's crown.

The Faceless Man stiffened, feeling fear for the first time.

It was not from the sharp Sword Qi of Sect Master Shen Cang of the Iron Sword Sect behind him, but from the hand on his head.

He could clearly feel that the last trace of his Divine Soul connection with the shadow devouring banner was being forcibly severed and devoured by this hand in an unreasonable manner.

"No..."

His voice beneath the mask revealed terror for the first time, but he only managed to utter one syllable before Lin Chen's left hand, clamped on his head, exerted sudden force.

"Soul Search!"

Accompanied by a low shout, Lin Chen's left hand erupted with a faint yet concentrated spiritual light.

He did not possess profound Soul Searching secret techniques; he used only the crudest method—stabbing his own Divine Sense like a steel needle, forcibly into the opponent's Sea of Consciousness!

"Ah—!"

The Faceless Man let out a shrill, inhuman scream.

Almost at the same time, in the deepest part of the Lin Family dungeon, Qin Ruowei was coldly watching the scene before her.

It was dark and damp here, and the walls were covered with Restriction runes that isolated spiritual power and Divine Sense.

An iron pillar as thick as a person could embrace stood in the center, also covered in vermilion Talismans, emitting a faint smell of blood.

The Faceless Man was firmly locked to the iron pillar by dozens of rune-engraved iron chains entwined with electric light, in an extremely humiliating posture.

His black robe was long since shattered, revealing a body as shriveled as withered wood; the pure white mask on his face was also half-broken, revealing a plain, yet twisted, scarred face beneath.

His limbs and bones were pierced by specially made silver needles, sealing all his Meridians.

Qin Ruowei held a thinner, longer silver needle, its tip slightly reddened by the candlelight.

She walked slowly to the Faceless Man, the air filled with a heavy mixture of blood and medicinal water.

"I will ask one more time," her voice was without the slightest ripple, as if she were discussing the weather, "Who is the backer of the Shadow Moon Pavilion in the Central Continent?"

The Faceless Man made a "he-he" sound in his throat. Beneath the shattered mask, a pair of bloodshot eyes glared at her, filled with resentment and madness.

"You... will all die... The Co-Lord... will, for me..."

Before he could finish, Qin Ruowei's eyes turned cold. The silver needle in her hand moved like lightning, stabbing without hesitation into the nail bed of his left index finger, then flicked upward with force!

"Ah!"

With a stifled groan of pain, a complete fingernail was forcibly torn off, leaving a bloody mess.

Master Chiyang, who stood to the side—a Loose Cultivator with Golden Core cultivation who had volunteered to stay from the reinforcements—could not help but twitch his eyelids at this sight.

This Madam Lin was even more ruthless and decisive than rumors suggested.

Qin Ruowei seemed not to hear his screams; she merely wiped the blood off the silver needle with a silk handkerchief, her tone remaining calm: "My patience is limited. Next question: the list of the seventeen forces in the Southern Region that you turned."

The Faceless Man gasped violently, sweat mixed with blood sliding down his forehead, yet he laughed wildly: "Kill me! If you have the ability, kill me! You will never know..."

His laughter stopped abruptly.

"Boom!"

The rune-engraved iron chains binding him erupted with blinding light without warning, vibrating violently!

The Talismans on the iron pillar twisted crazily like living things, emitting groans of being unable to bear the burden.

A destructive, violent spiritual power was surging madly from within the Faceless Man; he was actually attempting to self-detonate his Golden Core!

"Not good!"

Master Chiyang's expression changed drastically. He took a step forward, his large, fan-like hand grabbing Qin Ruowei's shoulder and pulling her violently backward.

"Retreat!"

He shouted explosively, his entire body's spiritual power surging to form a thick, earthy-yellow light shield in front of him.

Almost the moment they retreated, that indestructible iron pillar was blasted into dust filling the sky by the destructive power from within, amidst a deafening roar!

Smoke and dust filled the air, and the violent shockwave of spiritual power cracked the walls of the entire dungeon.

When the dust settled slightly, Master Chiyang dispelled the light shield, only to see a huge deep pit left in place; the Faceless Man was gone, leaving no bones behind.

Qin Ruowei steadied herself, looking at the wreckage. Her beautiful face showed no emotion, and she said calmly: "He lied. He didn't have a Golden Core at all."

What self-detonated was merely a type of Restriction that the Shadow Moon Pavilion used to control their dead soldiers. The lead was broken.

She turned and walked out of the dungeon; the daylight outside was perfect.

Inside the Council Hall, the atmosphere was even heavier than in the dungeon.

"Although the lead is broken, he mentioned a 'Co-Lord' before he died." Qin Ruowei made the results of the interrogation public, her gaze sweeping over everyone present.

Today, the layout of the Council Hall was completely different from three days ago.

The main seat was empty; that was Lin Chen's place.

Qin Ruowei sat beside the main seat, and opposite her sat Family Head Zhu Mingyuan.

However, this time, Zhu Mingyuan's demeanor was much more respectful than it had been three days ago.

Beside him, Zhu Waner was dressed in a simple, elegant green dress today, standing quietly behind her father. Her clear eyes occasionally glanced at the empty main seat, carrying a trace of imperceptible worry.

"Madam Ruowei," Zhu Mingyuan stood up and bowed deeply to Qin Ruowei, his posture extremely low. "This is what Waner compiled overnight."

Zhu Waner stepped forward and slowly unfurled a huge piece of animal hide on the long table in the hall.

It was a map of the Southern Region, but unlike ordinary maps, the mountains and rivers on it were all outlined with the blood of some Spirit Beast, emitting faint fluctuations of spiritual power.

And in various corners of the map, seventeen points were highlighted with vermilion sand powder.

"This is the 'Dark Cache Map' drawn by my Zhu Family, compiled over generations and combined with the memories of some peripheral members of the Shadow Moon Pavilion, after mutual verification." Zhu Waner's voice was crisp and soft, yet carried an unquestionable certainty.

"The seventeen small forces in the Southern Region that were turned—the locations of their true Family storehouses, Spirit Field cores, and secret paths are all on this."

Her slender, fair fingertips traced lightly across the map, finally landing on a desolate area in the western part of the Southern Region called "Black Wind Plains," and she tapped it gently.

"We also discovered that these seventeen forces secretly transport seventy percent of their profits here every three months." Zhu Waner's tone deepened slightly. "According to the Divine Soul fragments of a captured minor leader of the Shadow Moon Pavilion, this place... also hides half the hull of a damaged standard flying vessel of the Shadow Moon Pavilion."

Once these words were spoken, everyone present was shocked.

A flying vessel, even just half of one, had value and strategic significance far exceeding the entire assets of an ordinary Golden Core Family!

Just at this moment, a series of neat and heavy footsteps came from outside the hall.

Everyone looked toward the sound and saw Sect Leader Shen Cang of the Iron Sword Sect, wearing blood-stained armor and holding a Sect Leader command flag also stained with dark red blood, walking into the Council Hall step by step.

His face was pale, and his aura was somewhat unstable; obviously, he had suffered significant injuries in that battle.

Behind him followed twelve solemn, injured Disciples of the Iron Sword Sect.

Each of them carried a sword on their back, their eyes as sharp as knives.

Shen Cang did not look at anyone, walking straight to the center of the plaza outside the Council Hall. Under everyone's gaze, he gripped the command flag tightly with both hands and thrust it fiercely into the bluestone slab in the center of the plaza!

With a "puchi" sound, the command flag sank three inches into the stone, standing firmly.

Then, Shen Cang turned around, facing the direction of the Lin Family Council Hall, knelt on one knee, his voice like a booming bell:

"Shen Cang of the Iron Sword Sect, together with the twelve surviving Disciples, now honors the Lin Family as the Co-Lord of the Southern Region! We are willing to wield our swords for the Lin Family, and will not hesitate to go through fire and water!"

The twelve Disciples behind him moved in perfect unison, kneeling on one knee simultaneously, unstrapping the long swords from their backs, and together with the swords at their waists, "clanged" them into the ground in front of them.

Immediately afterward, they took out sword after sword—broken, damaged, or even just half-remnants—from their Storage Pouches. There were over three hundred of them, densely filling the ground around them, forming a tragic forest of swords.

This was the highest gesture of submission for a Sword Cultivator—the "Sword-Bearing Return to the Sect."

Every broken sword represented an Iron Sword Sect Disciple who had sacrificed themselves in the previous battle to protect the Sect and the Alliance.

They offered the legacy and honor of their fellow Disciples to the new Sect Master.

The impact of this scene was far more shocking than any words.

On the other side of the Council Hall, Manager Han of the Wantong Trading Firm witnessed this scene with his own eyes. His hand, which was twisting his goat-like beard, could not help but tremble slightly.

He lowered his head and took out a brand-new contract and a pre-drafted old contract from his sleeve.

He walked to Qin Ruowei and, in front of everyone, tore the old contract—which stated the Alliance of the three families—into pieces, bit by bit, with his slightly trembling hands.

Then, he respectfully handed over the brand-new contract.

At the very top of the contract, written in the highest-grade vermilion ink, were five large characters—"Lin Family Trading Firm."

Below that, it was detailed that all industries, channels, and personnel of the original "Wantong Trading Firm Southern Region Branch" would be merged into the Lin Family Trading Firm, with Manager Han serving as the Head Steward, responsible to the Lin Family Head.

When handing over the contract, his peripheral vision could not help but glance at the corner behind Qin Ruowei.

There, in the dim light, thirty-seven hideous, severed heads were stacked neatly.

These people were some vendors in Qingxuan City, some waiters in restaurants, and some Guest Elders of other families... but they all shared a common identity—secret agents planted everywhere by the Shadow Moon Pavilion.

These heads were more convincing than any words.

Manager Han withdrew his gaze, his forehead already covered in cold sweat.

Three days, only three days.

The Lin Family had completed the restructuring of power in the Southern Region with thunderous speed.

In the inner courtyard of the Lin Family, on a sickbed in a sun-drenched Meditation Room.

Lin Haoyu opened his eyes abruptly.

He struggled to sit up, feeling sore all over, especially his right side, which still retained the bone-chilling coldness from being eroded by the shadow power.

But after inspecting his inner body, he found his spiritual power was full and his Meridians were resilient; it seemed that after breaking, he had stood again, and his cultivation even had faint signs of a Breakthrough.

His gaze swept over and saw something lying quietly by his pillow.

It was a short rod, half a foot long, pitch black all over, as if it were made of the purest shadow.

It was the remains of the shadow devouring banner's pole.

He subconsciously reached out and picked it up; it felt ice-cold in his hand, with a texture that was neither metal nor wood.

He rubbed the crack on the banner pole that he had slashed with his sword, but next to the crack, he felt some extremely subtle, faint carvings.

He injected spiritual power into his eyes and leaned in to look closely.

They were lines of small characters, thinner than a hair, directly branded into the material of the banner pole using incredibly concentrated Sword Qi.

The first six characters made his heart tremble violently—"Supplement to the Basic Sword Manual."

"The sword is sharpness. It is also protection. If sharpness is too great, it is easily broken; if protection is excessive, it is foolish. The so-called clear Sword Heart is not about being flawless or unblemished, but about the unity of knowledge and action..."

This was the handwriting of his father, Lin Chen, and even more, his father's insights into the Dao of the sword!

Meanwhile, in the innermost restricted secret room of the Lin Family.

Lin Chen stood alone, quietly.

His face was still pale, but his eyes were shockingly bright.

His right arm had returned to its flesh-and-blood form, though some faint gray-white crystal patterns remained on the skin, like some strange tattoo.

In front of him lay a pile of captured Materials containing spatial attributes.

There were fragments of "Void Gazer stone," scraps of "Void Wood" left over from refining that damaged flying vessel, and the section of the shadow devouring banner's pole that contained spatial power.

The rough stone ring on his thumb was now emitting an unprecedented faint light. Wisps of visible, tiny spatial power were being extracted from those Materials and flowing continuously into the stone ring.

The rough stone surface of the stone ring was gradually becoming warm and translucent, as if undergoing some transformation.

Lin Chen waited quietly, feeling the pulsation of the stone ring connected to his own Bloodline.

Finally, when the last trace of spatial power was devoured, all the Materials in front of him turned into fly ash in an instant.

The light of the stone ring suddenly converged, returning to its simple, unadorned appearance.

But in Lin Chen's mind, a line of cold and ancient small characters appeared clearly.

[Detected sufficient exotic spatial energy; core rules meet the conditions for evolution.]

[Family Infrastructure Module - 'Rift Stabilization', consume all energy to evolve into - 'Spatial Folding'?]

Lin Chen looked at these words, took a deep breath, and chose "Yes" without hesitation.

He had a premonition that this was the capital he truly needed to gain a foothold in that strange valley.

The night deepened, and Qingxuan City fell into temporary tranquility under the new order.

In a remote guest room of the Lin Family.

Liu Ruxu—the extraordinary woman "borrowed" from the Wantong Trading Firm, who was well-versed in various miscellaneous studies and secret lore, and had just been personally settled here by Qin Ruowei—sat alone under the lamp.

She confirmed that no one was around, and took out a seemingly ordinary piece of letter paper from her bosom.

The letter paper was blank.

She did not use fire to heat it, nor did she soak it in water; instead, she walked to the window, opened it, and let the cold moonlight shine on the letter paper.

Under the reflection of the moonlight, on the back of the letter paper, a line of text as thin as a mosquito's legs, written with a special medicinal liquid, slowly emerged.

It was an extremely ancient, complex-stroked script, definitely not from the Southern Region.

Liu Ruxu's pupils contracted sharply, and she read out that line of text in a barely audible voice:

"The Divine Descendant Bloodline is reviving, the 'Key' has appeared in the Southern Region, seize it immediately..."