Chapter 63: Kill the Primordial!

Young Master Feihong?

Rank seventy-eight on the潛龍榜!?

Hum—

The crowd instantly buzzed with murmurs.

The stunned onlookers, still not recovered, widened their eyes and opened their mouths again, expressions varying—faces flushed, stunned, or exhilarated…

The clerk responsible for recording names turned beet red, stammering excitedly, "Young Master, please take your seat, help yourself to the food… no no no, what I mean is… I… I…"

Slap!

The clerk suddenly raised his hand and gave himself a hard slap; half his cheek swelled red, and only then did he calm slightly, stammering, "Y… Young Master, please wait a moment, I… I'll go inform the Lord right away!"

Saying this, he turned and sprinted toward the side archway, stumbling as he ran.

Upon entering the inner fortress, he bellowed at the top of his lungs, "Yaoyuewu Sect, 潛龍榜 prodigy, Young Master Feihong, Shen Ge, here~!"

The final "here" cracked his voice.

At this shout, the bustling inner fortress fell utterly silent.

The next instant, a thunderous "Boom!" erupted, chaos filling the air.

"Brother Shen is truly…"

At the gate, Chen Mu snapped back to himself and remarked, "True cultivators never show their true faces."

"I dare not claim that—it's merely empty fame," Shen Ge smiled.

Whoosh~ whoosh~ whoosh!

Whistling through the air, several figures sped across the wide street of the inner fortress.

Leading them was He Xianglong, the current Lord of the He family.

"Young Master Shen!"

In a breath, He Xianglong arrived at the gate, face glowing, clasping his fists in salute, "Young Master, please come in—my ancestor heard you were coming and is overjoyed, already hurrying to meet you."

"How could I let Elder He come to greet me? Lord He, please lead the way," Shen Ge returned the bow, then nodded to Chen Mu and strode into the inner fortress.

He Xianglong followed closely behind, respectfully explaining.

At the gate, a refined young man remained, bowing to Chen Mu, "I am He Bin. May I ask your honorable surname?"

"No need for formality—my surname is Nie, Nie Feng," Chen Mu returned the bow. "Brother He, no need to entertain me. I've only known Brother Shen for a few days—we're merely acquaintances."

"All guests are honored," He Bin smiled. "Your presence here to celebrate the birthday makes you a distinguished guest of the He family. As a distinguished guest, you must be properly hosted. Brother Nie, would you care to join me inside?"

"…Then I'll trouble you," Chen Mu bowed.

He Bin's sincere invitation—though leveraging Shen Ge's prestige—was still worth accepting; seeing the inner fortress couldn't hurt.

People from Iron Spear Sect, Eight Swords Sect, Three Absolutes Valley—all these factions—were inside.

Entering meant I could observe Sun Jindong up close!

Immediately, Chen Mu followed He Bin into the inner fortress.

As soon as the two left, the murmuring at the gate erupted into loud chatter.

"Good heavens~! This is my first time seeing a潛龍榜 prodigy!"

"Me too! Nanyun Prefecture hasn't had anyone on the Hidden Dragon Ranking in decades—today's rare to see one appear!"

"Incredible! Not only from a prestigious sect, but also ranked on the潛龍榜—this 'Young Master Feihong' is truly formidable!"

"I'm more curious—how did Elder He have ties with Young Master Shen?"

"Didn't you hear what Young Master Shen said? He's here on behalf of his master. From what I know, Elder He spent over twenty years traveling in his youth, journeying through Hannan, Shannan, Jiannan, and Tiannan. Clearly, he met Young Master Shen's master during that time!"

"…"

With Shen Ge's identity revealed, both the inner and outer fortresses of the He family were in uproar, voices of speculation echoing everywhere.

After entering the inner fortress, under He Bin's guidance, Chen Mu sat at a table less than fifty meters from the main table, alongside young scions of the Tang, Li, and Gao families.

After taking their seats, everyone exchanged bows and conversed politely yet warmly.

Even though Chen Mu repeatedly insisted he barely knew Shen Ge and had only met him days ago, the Tang, Li, and Gao scions still kept tossing him conversation topics.

Seeing this, Chen Mu simply ate and drank in silence—only then did the noble youths leave him alone.

Chen Mu took the opportunity to observe his surroundings, mainly studying Sun Jindong, watching whom he spoke with.

He soon noticed Sun Jindong could talk to anyone, his hearty laughter echoing intermittently.

Chen Mu observed silently for a while, then withdrew his gaze.

Sun Jindong's acting was simply too good.

After years of practice, he must have turned it into habit!

…

Night fell; all streets of the He family fortress glowed with lanterns, noise everywhere.

In the central plaza of the inner fortress, a stage had been erected, with performances alternating on stage.

After half the banquet, young scions from major factions took the stage to duel.

The entire banquet remained lively until dawn, gradually quieting.

Chen Mu returned to the guesthouse in the outer fortress, washed up, and was about to get into bed when Shen Ge knocked and entered.

"Brother Nie, I must leave," Shen Ge bowed to take his leave.

"Leave now?" Chen Mu was startled. "Is there an emergency? If not, why not leave tomorrow morning?"

"If I leave tomorrow morning, I fear I won't get away," Shen Ge chuckled bitterly.

"Uh…" Chen Mu froze, recalling how that night, elders and sect leaders from the He, Tang, Guo, Zheng families—even Three Absolutes Valley and Iron Spear Sect—had all recommended their eligible unmarried daughters; one bold He girl had even bluntly declared her affection for Shen Ge.

Even with Shen Ge's experience, he couldn't help but feel a headache.

Hearing this, Chen Mu couldn't help but laugh, "I understand, I understand. Then, Brother Shen, until we meet again!"

"Until we meet again!" Shen Ge cupped his fists in salute, turned, and left.

"Wait."

Chen Mu recalled something, removed his human-skin mask, and faced Shen Ge—who had turned back, first looking startled, then beaming—and cupped his fists in a bow. "Wulong Fucheng, Great Saber Gang, Chen Mu. I wish Brother Shen a smooth journey!"

"So it's Brother Chen."

Shen Ge smiled faintly. "Brother, take care. Until we meet again!"

"Until we meet again!"

Chen Mu cupped his fists, watching Shen Ge leave until he vanished into the night.

This trip to He Family Fort, although he hadn't picked up any cards, he had gotten to know Shen Ge and learned about matters related to the martial Dao's Innate Realm, as well as elixirs, spirit weapons, and exotic beasts. It wasn't a wasted journey.

……

The next day.

The various factions and their men who had come to offer birthday congratulations left He Family Fort one after another.

Chen Mu finished breakfast and likewise departed.

Unexpectedly, he had just walked out of He Family Fort's outer gate, less than two hundred meters—

"Boom!!"

An earth-shaking, mountain-quaking massive roar suddenly came from ahead.

On a road several dozen meters away, gravel and dust surged skyward like a fire dragon, and the ground truly trembled twice.

"What's happening?"

"It's an ambush!"

"Heaven Thunder Son! That's a Heaven Thunder Son exploding!"

"The Guo family's procession has been ambushed!!"

"……"

Shouts of alarm rang out one after another.

Chen Mu, who had been planning to retreat first, caught the words "Guo family," his heart stirred, and he immediately shifted his body, swiftly darting over.

Just as he neared the site of the explosion……

【Corpse discovered. Pick up?】

"Yes!"

……

As fifteen cards came into his hands in succession, Chen Mu saw the leader of the Guo family who had come to offer birthday congratulations this time—Guo Xianli. Guo Xianli was clutching the hole in his abdomen, his face deathly pale, fresh blood continuously spilling from the corner of his mouth, half-squatting on the ground. His bloodshot eyes stared fixedly at a middle-aged man not far off who lay on the ground with both legs completely severed, still clinging to his last breath, gasping like a bellows.

"Ha… ha…" The middle-aged man's mouth was full of fresh blood, his expression exhilarated. He wanted to laugh heartily, but could only manage a few words, speaking in broken fragments: "Destroy… my Red Willow… Manor, Guo family… people… will accompany me in death…"

This is… a survivor of Red Willow Manor?

Chen Mu froze.

The next instant, the longsword in his hand suddenly leapt from its sheath. Every last trace of inner force in his dantian was mobilized, and Spirit Serpent Step was pushed to its absolute limit.

Whoosh~!

His figure flickered, leaving only an afterimage.

In that split instant, Chen Mu exploded with all his power, locked onto Guo Xianli, and thrust out the tenth sword of Cloud-Sweeping Sword Art!