549: The shock of Guiyuan Valley, Mo Chen!

Deep within Guiyuan Valley, in a secluded meditation chamber, Valley Master Mo Chen sat cross-legged at the center of a Spirit Gathering Formation.

Pale golden Spiritual Qi flowed around his body like water, condensing into brilliant specks of light at his fingertips, which slowly sank into his body with the rhythm of his breathing.

Immortal-grade Spirit Stones embedded in the chamber walls emitted a warm glow, releasing an incredibly dense Spiritual Qi, transforming this place into a Holy Land for Cultivation, rarely seen even in the entire Central Region.

He had been in seclusion here for three months, just a step away from Breaking Through to the Seven-Source Supreme realm. At this moment, the Spiritual Qi fluctuations around him grew deeper and more profound, even causing the air to subtly tremble under the pressure.

“Dong dong!!!”

A sudden, urgent knocking on the door broke the tranquility of the chamber.

Mo Chen’s brows furrowed slightly, and the spiritual light of the Spirit Gathering Formation flickered with a hint of disorder.

Only the Disciples guarding important areas were permitted into this Forbidden Ground; no one would dare disturb his Cultivation unless it was an emergency of the highest order.

“Valley Master! Valley Master! Something terrible has happened!”

The panicked shouts of Disciple Zhao Qing came from outside the door, his voice clearly trembling:

“Please come out quickly, Seventh Elder… his Soul Tablet is shattered!”

“Presumptuous!”

Mo Chen’s voice, imbued with the pressure of Spiritual Qi, boomed, making the door vibrate:

“Yuansi is on a mission in a safe location; how could his Soul Tablet shatter without reason? If you dare to speak nonsense again, you will be punished according to the valley rules!”

“It’s true! This Disciple would not dare to deceive the Valley Master!”

Zhao Qing’s voice grew more urgent, even tinged with a sob:

“Just now, news came from the Soul Hall. Seventh Elder’s Soul Tablet suddenly burst into red light, then shattered into pieces. The Senior Brothers guarding the hall all witnessed it with their own eyes!”

Mo Chen’s heart sank abruptly, and the Spiritual Qi around him instantly spiraled out of control, exploding with a loud bang.

He suddenly opened his eyes, a golden flash appearing and disappearing in their depths, his figure already appearing like a ghost at the chamber entrance.

Before Zhao Qing could react, Mo Chen grabbed him by his collar, his powerful aura lifting the Disciple completely off the ground:

“Explain yourself clearly! When did the Soul Tablet shatter? Were there any unusual phenomena?”

Zhao Qing struggled, his face flushed, his breathing constricted by the pressure:

“Just… just a quarter of an hour ago! The Soul Suppressing Stele in the Soul Hall suddenly vibrated violently, and Seventh Elder’s Soul Tablet first emitted a dazzling red light, then cracked into a spiderweb with a ‘kacha’ sound, finally dissipating into specks of spiritual light!

The Elder guarding the hall has confirmed that the shattered Soul Tablet means… it means Seventh Elder’s life force is extinguished!”

“Impossible!”

Mo Chen roared, his grip on Zhao Qing’s hand unconsciously tightening.

He and Yang Yuansi had known each other for many years, and he knew his Junior Brother’s cautious nature well; he would never act without certainty!

Furthermore, he possessed the Cultivation of a Three-Source Supreme, especially skilled in Formation defense. Ordinary Four-Source Supreme Cultivators could not harm him!

Moreover, he was apparently traveling with a close friend; how could he suddenly perish?

Before he finished speaking, an incredibly terrifying Spiritual Qi fluctuation suddenly erupted from Mo Chen’s body.

The originally clear sky instantly became overcast, the Spiritual Veins around the meditation chamber surged violently, the ground immediately cracked into a spiderweb of fissures, and space was constantly torn apart, quickly filling his surroundings with cracks!

The Formation runes on the ceiling of the chamber flickered wildly, but they could not quell this violent power. The air was filled with a suffocating sense of oppression.

“Who? Who killed Yuansi?”

Mo Chen’s voice sounded as if it came from the Nine Nether, carrying an bone-chilling coldness.

He abruptly released his grip, and Zhao Qing stumbled to the ground, gasping for breath.

The surging killing intent in the Valley Master’s eyes made him shiver, as if he had seen a Vicious Beast about to go berserk.

Mo Chen’s figure flickered, and he appeared in the Soul Hall of Guiyuan Valley.

Dozens of Disciples were gathered before the Soul Suppressing Stele, their expressions terrified.

Among the hundreds of thousands of Soul Tablets embedded in the stele, the uppermost ones belonged to the Elders.

At this moment, the spot belonging to Yang Yuansi was empty, leaving only a faint residue of Spiritual Qi.

Mo Chen walked to the stele, his fingertips tracing the cold stone surface, feeling the faint but familiar aura rapidly dissipating.

At this moment, his heart was twisted with agony!

Scene after scene from the past flashed through his mind.

Once, he and Yang Yuansi’s father were sworn brothers, but during a great calamity, he sacrificed his life to save Mo Chen!

In his dying moments, he entrusted Yang Yuansi to Mo Chen, asking him to take good care of him… Mo Chen had since treated him almost as his own son, providing meticulous guidance in every aspect, and cultivating his cautious personality from a young age.

He thought that this way, he would be able to live safely… but in the end, something still happened to him, and even the contingency plans he had set up for him were not used.

Thinking of this, Mo Chen’s mind reeled, and an incredibly strong sense of guilt flooded his consciousness.

He instantly fell to his knees, his hands braced on the ground, his entire body trembling.

A powerful aura continuously emanated from him; everyone felt as if a colossal mountain was pressing down on them!

“Everyone, withdraw!!!”

Mo Chen roared in pain, and the numerous Disciples, as if granted a great pardon, all retreated from the Soul Hall.

His eyes crimson, he took out a completely black Jade Slip from his Storage Pouch, then muttered incantations. The Jade Slip suddenly lit up with blood-red runes, transforming into a streak of light that shot into the Soul Suppressing Stele.

This was Guiyuan Valley’s secret technique, the Soul Tracing Art!

It could trace the deceased’s last location through the residual aura of their Soul Tablet.

However, after half an incense stick’s time, Mo Chen suddenly spat out a mouthful of fresh blood, and the blood-red runes instantly dimmed.

Only a blurry phantom flashed across the Soul Suppressing Stele before it completely fell silent. His face pale, he looked at the extinguished runes on the Jade Slip, his eyes filled with incredulous shock:

“This… how is this possible… even the Soul Tracing Art failed? I can’t even get revenge…”

The Elder guarding the hall beside him asked with a trembling voice:

“Valley Master, isn’t there another possibility…?”

“He’s no longer in the Central Region…”

Mo Chen slowly closed his eyes, his voice filled with exhaustion and anger:

“Someone erased his last aura. With Yuansi’s Formation attainments, the person who could do this… must at least have the Cultivation of a Five-Source Supreme, or perhaps even higher!”

He abruptly opened his eyes, his killing intent even fiercer, and spoke with cold words:

“Issue an order: convene an emergency Elder meeting!”

Half an hour later, the atmosphere in Guiyuan Valley’s council hall was solemn.

Beneath the vaulted ceiling supported by twelve Dragon-coiled pillars, dozens of Elders wore various expressions, but all shared a common heaviness. Mo Chen sat at the head, the low pressure around him rendering the entire hall silent.

“You should all have received the news. Seventh Elder has fallen…”