Chapter 362

Chen Mu readjusted his bones, aligning his height and build to match the other's.

He put on the demonic flame sect's outer robe, still faintly reeking of sweat and alcohol, and tidied the flame patterns along the cuffs.

In the next instant, a perfect replica—a seemingly tipsy, ordinary outer disciple of the Demon Flame Sect—was successfully "born."

After confirming his disguise was flawless, Chen Mu did not leave immediately.

Instead, he enveloped the corpse of the slain Demon Flame disciple in true qi, activated "Earth Submersion" again, and sank deeper underground, wedging the body into a natural crevice.

This ensured the man's disappearance wouldn't be noticed anytime soon, and prevented the corpse from exposing their trail.

Having cleaned up all traces, Chen Mu returned to the surface, brushed nonexistent dust off his clothes, then mimicked the drunken, slack-limbed gait of the original "Xu Dajin," walking out of the corner with natural ease and blending into the flow of bodies within the mountain cavern.

Inside the Demon Flame Sect's stronghold, the layout was even larger and more complex than Chen Mu had imagined.

One after another, vast caverns—some natural, some carved by hand—were linked by winding, uneven passageways, forming a labyrinth beneath the mountain.

The walls and ceilings were inlaid with special ore emitting a dim red glow, casting the entire space in a reddish haze, deepening the sinister aura of the demonic path.

The Demon Flame disciples he encountered mostly hurried past, faces tense or excited from the impending battle, speaking little among themselves, and none had the leisure to notice a seemingly ordinary, slightly drunk fellow disciple.

This suited Chen Mu perfectly, allowing him to move quietly and search in secret.

Chen Mu's primary goal was to locate the prisoner detention area.

According to memory, Long Tuti had last been taken away by Demon Flame disciples, and was very likely held in the sect's prison.

As Chen Mu walked along a relatively wide main corridor, preparing to turn down a side passage, a burly Demon Flame disciple with a face full of fat and a Qi of Late Innate Stage approached from the opposite direction.

The big man frowned at Chen Mu's disguised form and barked in a gruff, impatient tone.

"Xu Dajin! What the hell are you doing wandering here? The prison area's had trouble—some men are dead, we're short-handed, get over there and clean it up!"

Chen Mu's heart stirred with quiet delight.

"What luck? Just when I was struggling to find the prison, someone points the way."

His face revealed nothing; he mimicked the likely reaction of "Xu Dajin," nodding dumbly and mumbling an acknowledgment.

Then he turned as if to retrace his steps.

"Are you drunk enough to be stupid?!"

The burly man snarled, pointing to a darker corridor on Chen Mu's right.

"The prison's over there! Get moving! Don't dawdle!"

Chen Mu "realized," turned naturally again, and plunged into the right-hand corridor, quickening his pace.

After walking about a hundred zhang along this passage reeking of mildew, blood, and faint excrement, the corridor opened into a relatively isolated cavern space.

Along both walls of the cavern, cells were carved into the rock.

These cells varied in size, sealed by iron bars as thick as a child's arm, faint red patterns glimmering along the bars—clearly enchanted with restraining seals.

A rough count revealed over a hundred cells.

At this moment, two cells near the back appeared disturbed—their barred doors stood open, with slumped figures and splattered blood visible inside.

Several Demon Flame disciples stood outside the cells, shouting and cursing at the prisoners huddled in corners, even whipping the bars with leather whips, producing sharp, grating sounds—clearly a "kill one to warn a hundred" display.

【Corpse detected. Collect?】

"Yes."

Card acquired, checked quickly.

Internal Qi card, Skill card.

Chen Mu moved calmly, walking slowly as his eyes swept rapidly across each cell.

The prisoners, men and women of all ages, mostly wore tattered clothes, their faces gaunt, eyes dull or filled with terror.

Some were survivors of nearby clans wiped out; others might have been lone cultivators or traveling merchants.

Chen Mu's gaze passed over every face, especially those of the younger girls.

Yet after meticulously checking every cell from start to finish, Chen Mu's heart sank.

Not there.

No sign of Long Tuti.

"What's going on?"

Chen Mu frowned slightly, puzzled. "Long Tuti was clearly captured by the Demon Flame Sect—why isn't he here? Is he held elsewhere? Or has he already been killed?"

The thought tightened his chest, but he forcibly suppressed it.

Unlikely—the Demon Flame Sect, fearing the Long family's influence, wouldn't kill him outright.

Gathering himself, Chen Mu turned his gaze deeper into the prison area.

There, beyond, lay narrower passages leading to more secluded corners or stricter detention chambers.

Without hesitation, he stepped forward toward the darker recesses of the prison.

Just as he rounded a corner piled with torture tools and debris, two women appeared ahead in the corridor.

They also wore Demon Flame Sect attire, but their robes were more fitted and of better quality, with silver-threaded flame patterns along the cuffs.

Both appeared young; one was about twenty, strikingly beautiful but with a haughty glint in her eyes, her cultivation at Seventh Stage Innate.

The other was slightly younger, clearly a servant.

The beautiful woman had been whispering and laughing, but when her peripheral vision caught Chen Mu emerging from the corner, her expression instantly twisted with revulsion and fury.

She halted abruptly, pointing at Chen Mu, her voice shrill with reprimand.

"Xu Dajin! How dare you? I told you to stay away—how dare you follow us again? Do you want to die?!"

Chen Mu paused slightly, glancing at her.

He had no memory of her—clearly she had a grudge against the original "Xu Dajin," likely one-sided bullying.

He ignored this absurd trouble, unwilling to stir up more chaos; he lowered his gaze, said nothing, and turned to retrace his steps, planning to find another route.

Yet his "ignoring" attitude had utterly enraged the haughty woman.

In her eyes, Xu Dajin, a lowly outer disciple, not only failed to tremble and beg for mercy after being scolded, but actually dared to walk away so brazenly—utterly disrespectful, a direct challenge to her authority!

"Stop! Did I tell you to leave?"

The woman roared in fury, her eyes flashing with icy light; without hesitation, she lunged forward, her right hand curling into a claw, slicing through the air with a foul wind straight toward Chen Mu's back!

The claw's rush was razor-sharp, the fingertips faintly glowing with a deep blue hue—clearly coated in poison.

This woman was so vicious—merely over a petty quarrel and suspicion, she launched such a deadly strike against a fellow sect member!