Secret Orders Hidden in Mystery

The view here was excellent, allowing him to vaguely sense the energy fluctuations coming from the direction of the Immortal Cave while perfectly hiding himself with the help of the elevation and the Breath Concealment Art.

He held the "flowing cloud secret edict" in his palm, examining it carefully.

The token felt cold to the touch; it was neither metal nor jade, and its material was unknown.

The cloud patterns on its surface were not static but flowing slowly, as if a small piece of living dark cloud were sealed inside.

When his Divine Sense probed into it, he immediately felt the obstruction of a powerful Restriction.

"As expected, it's not that simple." Nightmare was not surprised.

Flowing Cloud was famous for his Formations and evasion techniques; how could the key to his core Legacy be easily opened?

He attempted to circulate the Starfall Demonic Art, slowly injecting pure Demonic Essence into the token.

The token vibrated slightly, and the speed of the Flowing Cloud patterns on its surface increased a little, but that layer of Restriction remained solid.

"Is Demonic Essence not enough..." Nightmare pondered for a moment, then suddenly had an idea. He activated that wisp of "dark golden Azure Qi and Blood" he had obtained from the true blood of the Azure Ancestor within his body.

When this wisp of noble and ancient aura touched the token—Hum!

The flowing cloud secret edict suddenly erupted with a soft yet firm black light!

The cloud patterns on the surface seemed to come alive, swirling rapidly, and finally condensed into a line of tiny ancient characters on the front of the token: "Deep in the clouds, the location is unknown; in a single thought, illusions vanish. Where the heart points, the edict directs."

After flickering for a moment, the characters slowly dissipated. At the same time, Nightmare felt an extremely faint "pulling force" from the token in his hand, pointing towards the southwest.

"Where the heart points, the edict directs?" Nightmare pondered, "Does it require a specific Mind-Cultivation Technique, or... a specific state of mind to activate it, eventually leading to the true treasure location?"

This token was indeed profound. Forcibly cracking it would likely trigger a self-destruct mechanism; it seemed he needed to find another way.

Perhaps the true Legacy location of Flowing Cloud had been set up with a trial that only those with the corresponding state of mind or Cultivation Technique could enter.

He put away the secret edict; now was not the time to explore. He cast his gaze once again toward the direction of the ancient Cultivator's Immortal Cave.

The sounds of fighting there had ceased.

The outcome was not hard to guess.

As the son of destiny, even if Lin Hao was trapped, ambushed, or had his Opportunity stolen for a moment, it was absolutely impossible for him to die easily at the hands of a Foundation Establishment deacon affected by a demonic seed.

The most likely outcome was that both sides were injured, or Lin Hao escaped by relying on some trump card.

Sure enough, a moment later, a slightly disheveled figure rushed out of the cave entrance; it was indeed Lin Hao.

His clothes were torn in several places, there was blood at the corners of his mouth, his face was livid, and he left quickly without looking back, heading toward the Inner Sect area.

After another while, Deacon Zhao Qian stumbled out, clutching his chest. His face was pale, and in his eyes, apart from greed, there was even more fear and lingering dread.

He clearly hadn't gotten the better end of the deal either and might have even suffered a loss.

"Trash." Nightmare evaluated them coldly. He was not satisfied with the performance of these two chess pieces, but it was within his expectations.

He no longer paid attention to Deacon Zhao Qian and turned his gaze toward the Inner Sect area.

Lin Hao had suffered such a huge loss and had nearly lost his life; he would now completely identify him as an enemy and would inevitably retaliate and investigate frantically.

"Investigate me?" A mocking smile curled the corners of Nightmare's mouth.

In his previous life as a Demon Lord, he had already reached the pinnacle in methods of hiding himself and manipulating human hearts.

In this life, with the assistance of the System and the Breath Concealment Art at his side, was he really so easy to track down?

However, he could take this Opportunity to send Lin Hao another "grand gift."

Nightmare's figure drifted down from the isolated pine tree. He did not return to his Inner Sect residence, nor did he go back to the secret cave; instead, he headed in the direction of the "Sect market."

The market of the Starfall Pavilion was located at the boundary between the Inner and Outer Sects. It was crowded with Disciples and mixed with all sorts of people; it was the place where information spread the fastest.

He altered his temperament, used the Breath Concealment Art to suppress his cultivation to that of an ordinary Late Foundation Establishment Stage, and used Demonic Essence to slightly distort the light around his face, making it difficult for people to see his true appearance and easy to overlook his presence.

Upon entering the market, he did not stop at any stall but walked directly to a dark corner at the very edge of the market.

There was a gray-market stall there that specialized in posting anonymous tasks and selling various pieces of information.

The stall owner was a Cultivator shrouded in a large black robe, with a cold and sinister aura.

Nightmare used a hoarse voice and spent a few Spirit Stones to post two tasks:

1. "High-price purchase of 'Soul-Yin Wood' or 'Heart-Eroding Grass'" (these two Materials were both needed for cultivating unorthodox Demonic Techniques or refining poisonous Medicinal Pills, and their uses were sensitive).

2. "Spread a rumor": It is rumored that the Inner Sect Disciple Nightmare (specifically mentioned) is suspected to have discovered an ancient Cultivator's relic somewhere in the back mountain and obtained a great treasure, causing his cultivation to advance greatly.

The first task was a smoke bomb, intentionally leaving behind a vague clue pointing toward a demonic Cultivator.

The second message, however, was the real poisonous bait!

After posting the tasks, Nightmare vanished quietly into the bustling crowd like a drop of water into the sea.

Soon, the news about "Nightmare obtaining a great treasure from an ancient Cultivator" began to spread quietly among some interested parties.

This news was half-true and half-false (he did indeed obtain a treasure, but not in any so-called "ancient Cultivator's relic"), making it extremely easy to spark speculation.

Once Lin Hao began to investigate him, it would be easy for him to find this rumor circulating in the market.

Given Lin Hao's current hatred for him and his desperate desire to reclaim his Opportunity, there was a high probability he would believe it and try to find a way to verify it and snatch it!

At that time, Nightmare could carefully set up a real trap to lure him in.

After doing all this, Nightmare quietly returned to the secret cave deep in the back mountain.

The Treasure-Seeking Spirit Weasel affectionately scurried onto his shoulder.

Nightmare stroked its little head, fed it a small Medicinal Pill, and then began to tally his gains from this trip.

It went without saying that his Luck value and villain points had increased significantly.

The most important things were that his cultivation had broken through to the Late Golden Core Stage, and he had obtained the flowing cloud secret edict.

He opened the System mall; now, holding a large amount of villain points, he could exchange them for some more powerful items.

His gaze swept past expensive items such as the [Heavenly Dao Shield (Elementary)], [Opportunity Compass (One-time use)], and finally landed on the Cultivation Technique category.

["Demonic Shadow Evasion Technique" (Spirit Rank Low Grade): Transform into a demonic shadow, traverse the Void Realm over short distances, extremely difficult to capture. Exchange cost: 1500 villain points.]

["Soul Shattering Finger" (Spirit Rank Low Grade): Condense Demonic Essence into a single point, specifically designed to break Protective Aura and directly damage the Divine Soul. Exchange cost: 1200 villain points.]

These two Cultivation Techniques, one for evasion and one for attack, perfectly compensated for the current deficiencies in his arsenal.

"Exchange for the 'Demonic Shadow Evasion Technique' and 'Soul Shattering Finger'." Nightmare did not hesitate.

[Exchange successful! Consumed 2700 villain points.]

A massive amount of cultivation methods flooded into his mind, and Nightmare immediately closed his eyes to contemplate them.

With his Realm as a Demon Lord in his previous life, understanding these Spirit Rank Low Grade Cultivation Techniques was not difficult; all that was needed was proficient application.

Inside the cave, silence fell once again.

There was only the obscure fluctuation of Demonic Essence occasionally flowing over Nightmare's body, and the jet-black eyes of the Treasure-Seeking Spirit Weasel vigilantly scanning the surroundings.

...

In the Inner Sect, inside Lin Hao's residence.

He took a Medicinal Pill, and his complexion looked slightly better, but the resentment in his eyes was almost overflowing.

"Night! Mare!" He chewed on this name over and over, his hatred monstrous.

He carefully recalled the few times he had crossed paths with Nightmare.

This person had previously been unremarkable in the Sect, even somewhat aloof and ostracized; why had he suddenly become so powerful and deeply calculating?

"Ancient Cultivator's relic? Great treasure?" He quickly heard the rumors circulating in the market from some channel and immediately believed it seven or eight parts!

"He must have had blind Luck in the back mountain and discovered some predecessor's Legacy, which is why his cultivation has advanced so much, and he dares to repeatedly oppose me!"

In his view, everything had a "reasonable" explanation.

"If you can rob me, I can rob it back!" A flash of ruthlessness crossed Lin Hao's eyes.

He suppressed the impulse to immediately go find Nightmare and fight to the death, knowing that he was in poor condition and the other party had obtained an Opportunity; rushing over rashly would likely result in a loss.

He needed help and a more thorough plan.

He thought of someone—the grandson of the Inner Sect's Law Enforcement Elder, Qin Feng.

This person had an arrogant temperament, his cultivation had already reached the Middle Golden Core, his relationship with him was decent on a daily basis, and he was extremely greedy for treasures.

"If I 'accidentally' reveal the news that Nightmare possesses a great treasure to Qin Feng..." A cold and sinister smile appeared on Lin Hao's face, "With Qin Feng's personality, he will definitely be unable to resist going to snatch it! At that time, perhaps I can sit back and reap the rewards!"

A poisonous plan to divert the trouble and borrow a knife to kill someone quickly took shape in his mind.

Yet he did not know that what he thought was "borrowing a knife to kill" was precisely falling into Nightmare's scheme of "beating the grass to startle the snake" and "luring the snake out of its hole."

Two nets, once again intertwined.

Beneath the undercurrents, a greater storm was brewing.

Nightmare was in the cave, focusing on cultivating the newly obtained evasion technique and finger technique, his Demonic Qi chillingly intense.

Lin Hao was in his residence, plotting and scheming, his hatred surging.

And the chess piece, Qin Feng, was still completely unaware of the vortex he was about to be dragged into.

The sky of the Starfall Pavilion seemed to be shrouded in an invisible haze. The mountain rain was about to come, and the wind was sweeping through the building.