548: Chapter 58 Grudges

"How did you end up in a feud with the daughter of the Ghost King Sect Master?"

Hearing Meng Li's question, Old Nian replied truthfully, "The last Great War between the Righteous and Demonic was led by the Ghost King, but it ended in a crushing defeat. The Blood Refining Hall suffered heavy losses because of it. This Disciple was indignant, so I sought an opportunity and ambushed the Ghost King's wife and daughter near Qingyun Mountain."

"Not long after, the Ghost King's wife, Xiao Chi, passed away."

"So that's how it was." Meng Li realized, then asked again, "In all these years, that Ghost King hasn't sought revenge on you?"

"Furthermore, since the Xiao Chi you mentioned was the Ghost King's wife, her cultivation shouldn't have been too low. With your cultivation, how did you manage to seriously injure her?"

Old Nian replied, "The Ghost King was wounded by the Sword Qi of the Qingyun Sect's zhu xian sword during the last Great War. This Sword Qi is extremely formidable. Xiao Chi spent hundreds of years of spiritual power and even sacrificed her lifespan, yet she couldn't heal the Ghost King. Instead, her own cultivation was greatly damaged."

"The Ghost King's injuries haven't healed, so he has been staying in seclusion at Huqi Mountain."

"Many matters were left to Xiao Chi and his subordinates, which gave this Disciple an opportunity."

"As for why the Ghost King hasn't come to seek revenge later, it's likely because his injuries still haven't healed. Besides, this Ghost King is an ambitious man. Matters of sentiment like avenging a wife probably aren't that important in his heart."

Meng Li understood.

It wasn't surprising that a devoted woman falling for an ambitious man would lead to such an outcome.

Bi Yao's eyes dimmed.

You Ji sighed in her heart.

Clearly, they understood this as well, but one was the Ghost King's daughter and the other was his subordinate; neither could make him change.

Turning his head, Meng Li said with a smile, "This seat heard that you are looking for the Wanfu Ancient Cave and have designs on the Dripping Blood Cave."

"Tell me, how far have you progressed?"

Hearing this, Old Nian, Jin Binger, Bi Yao, and You Ji were all stunned.

Wait, what's going on?

Normally, anyone would be angry to hear someone was targeting their own Daoist field, let alone a grand demonic cultivator like the Black-Hearted Old Man.

Why was the person before them not only not angry, but instead seemingly interested, as if he had heard something amusing?

Seeing they remained silent, Meng Li called them out directly: "Hall Master Nian, tell me, how much progress has the Blood Refining Hall made in searching for the Wanfu Ancient Cave?"

Old Nian shuddered and knelt on the ground in fear, saying, "This Disciple is terrified; I wouldn't dare let the Old Ancestor call me 'Hall Master'."

Meng Li glanced at him sideways: "If I don't call you 'Hall Master Nian', do you expect this seat to address you as a superior?"

Old Nian was stunned for a moment, then realized that his name indeed sounded a bit presumptuous. He immediately bowed his head and said, "This Disciple wouldn't dare."

Meng Li got back to the point: "Tell me about the progress."

Old Nian looked ashamed: "To answer the Old Ancestor, this Disciple has just arrived in Yudu City. There has been no progress in searching for the Wanfu Ancient Cave yet."

"Just arrived, huh?" Meng Li tapped his finger on the table and turned to look at You Ji and Bi Yao: "What about your Ghost King Sect?"

You Ji remained silent.

Bi Yao said, "Aunt You and I have also just arrived in Yudu City. There's no progress."

As soon as she finished, Old Nian said, "Old Ancestor, she's lying! I've seen the guard commander of Yudu City before and discovered he is the Sacred Envoy Azure Dragon, who joined the Ghost King Sect years ago. Jin Binger knows about this too."

Hearing this, Bi Yao and You Ji's expressions changed drastically, but they returned to normal in an instant.

Meng Li noticed this, understood the situation, and looked at Jin Binger.

Jin Binger hurriedly said, "This Disciple hasn't seen Azure Dragon, but Old Nian has. And the guard commander of Yudu City, Dongfang Qingcang, did indeed arrive just a few years ago."

"There should be no mistake about this."

Old Nian followed up: "Azure Dragon is the Ghost King's trusted general. He wouldn't come to Yudu City for no reason, let alone serve as a guard commander here. The Ghost King Sect likely knew long ago that the Wanfu Ancient Cave was in Yudu City and sent Azure Dragon to go undercover and investigate."

"Azure Dragon is quite capable. Having been undercover for so long, it's impossible for him to have made no progress."

"Anything else?" Meng Li asked.

Old Nian shook his head: "No, this is all this Disciple knows."

Meng Li understood in his heart.

The excavation marks he found earlier while investigating the Wanfu Ancient Cave's Restriction situation must have been left by Azure Dragon.

It was clear the other party already knew the location of the Wanfu Ancient Cave. The reason they hadn't entered was likely because the Restriction was difficult to break, and a forced Breakthrough would cause a huge commotion. If that attracted others, given that the Wanfu Ancient Cave was already fraught with danger, it might end up being more trouble than it's worth, or even benefit someone else.

Instead of that, it was better to find the correct entrance and then secretly slip in to explore.

The Wanfu Ancient Cave was a Daoist field the Black-Hearted Old Man built for himself. Logically, even if there was a Restriction, it couldn't be completely sealed off; there must be a secret passage for entry and exit.

But what Azure Dragon didn't know was that although the Wanfu Ancient Cave was built by the Black-Hearted Old Man, the outermost Restriction was set up by someone later and was completely sealed.

Even if he found the secret passage left by the Black-Hearted Old Man, he couldn't bypass the Restriction. Furthermore, the entrance and exit of that secret passage were in the City Lord's Manor's garden, located in the center of Yudu City. If there was any movement, it would be virtually impossible to go unnoticed.

Looking at everything together, the one who set the Restriction was most likely a previous City Lord of Yudu City.

The current City Lord, Wei Qiong, likely knows about this, and may even bear the responsibility of guarding it himself.

After all, even if the Black-Hearted Old Man is dead, the Wanfu Ancient Cave still contains many hazards.

For example, those tens of thousands of Blood-sucking Bats, the Blackwater Xuan Snake, and the remnant soul of the Beast God that might be summoned by evildoers.

However, these things had little to do with Meng Li.

So, after a brief thought, he set them aside and turned to Autumn Snow and Winter Moon: "Release their Restriction."

These words made everyone freeze for a moment.

Autumn Snow and Winter Moon did as told.

Then, Meng Li said to Bi Yao: "Don't you want to avenge your mother? You can make your move now."

Bi Yao was startled.

Old Nian's expression changed: "Old Ancestor, what do you mean by this?"

Meng Li said indifferently: "This seat heard from Jin Binger that you are intent on leading the Blood Refining Hall to restore the glory of my unification of the Demonic Cult back then. This ambition is commendable, but to achieve it, you must have sufficient strength. If you can't even handle the revenge of a young girl, what talk is there of unifying the Demonic Cult?"

"If you win this battle, this seat will bestow upon you the Blood Demon Realm Cultivation Technique of the Blood Refining True Skill."

"It can allow you to absorb the power of that thousand-year-old Blood Kun, greatly increasing your strength."

"At that time, even if the Ghost King recovers from his injuries, he might not be your match."

Hearing this, Old Nian was instantly moved, and at the same time, the doubts in his heart regarding Meng Li's identity lessened a bit.

Since the Blood Refining Hall's Legacy was severed, some of its Cultivation Technique information had changed. Ordinary Blood Refining Hall Disciples only knew that the Cultivation Technique was divided into nine levels. Ancient divisions like the Blood Fiend Realm and Blood Demon Realm were only known to successive Hall Masters.

Since Meng Li could casually mention the 'Blood Refining True Skill Blood Demon Realm', it certainly couldn't be fake.

Therefore, Old Nian hurriedly said: "Thank you, Old Ancestor. This Disciple will certainly not fail your expectations."

After saying that, he turned to stare at Bi Yao and revealed a pair of steel claws hidden in his sleeves.

Bi Yao pulled out the dagger she carried with her.

...