Chapter 552: A New Direction

After a pause, Xu Xu Qingyin’s gaze swept over Shen Ge and the other disciples, and she said in a deep voice.

"More importantly, cultivating this secret technique means forging an irreconcilable enmity with the 'Sword Worship Gate'. Because this method involves the core mysteries of the 'Sun-Chasing Sword', the Sword Worship Gate treats it as their exclusive property and will never allow it to be spread."

"Once it is discovered that someone has stolen or practiced it, they will surely be hunted down by the entire Sword Worship Gate, with no end until death!"

Inside the cave, there was dead silence.

Only Xu Xu Qingyin’s voice echoed in everyone’s hearts.

Quick to master, powerful, but the price is a shortened lifespan and becoming the mortal enemy of the Sword Worship Gate—one of the six great sword sects, possessors of a sect-guarding divine weapon, and home to Heaven Palace and Myriad Phenomena experts!

Chen Mu understood.

This was indeed a path—a dead end that was slightly better than sacrificing oneself to the Moon Shadow Flowing Light Sword to become a "Sword Puppet," but one that equally cut off any future.

Cultivating this method could grant the power for revenge in the short term, but afterward, one would face the endless pursuit of the Sword Worship Gate and have only a few years left to live.

"Elder Xu, do you know the specific contents of this secret technique?"

Chen Mu asked the most critical question.

If the method was unknown, everything else was just empty talk.

Swish!

Everyone’s gaze focused on Xu Xu Qingyin once again, filled with tension and anticipation.

Shen Ge finally raised his head, his bloodshot eyes staring fixedly at Xu Xu Qingyin.

Under the gaze of dozens of eyes, Xu Xu Qingyin nodded slowly, her voice calm.

"I know it."

She knew it!

She actually knew the non-transferable secret of the Sword Worship Gate!

Inside the cave, a chorus of suppressed gasps arose. Even the Moon Shadow Flowing Light Sword seemed to vibrate slightly.

In Shen Ge’s eyes, a terrifying brilliance suddenly erupted—a light mixed with despair, madness, and a final shred of hope.

He sprang up from the ground, hissing in a low roar, his voice like a wounded lone wolf, "As long as I can kill that traitor Gu Gu Sansheng! To avenge my Inviting Moon Sect! I can pay with my life to the Sword Worship Gate!!"

Gu Gu Sansheng, the former Great Elder of the Inviting Moon Sect, at the late Heaven Palace realm, was the very culprit who betrayed the sect and invited the wolves inside, leading to the Inviting Moon Sect’s destruction!

He was also the object of the most bone-deep hatred in the hearts of Shen Ge and the others.

"No!!"

Just as Shen Ge’s voice fell, a female voice, choked with tears yet filled with determination, came from the entrance of the passage on the other side of the cave.

Two female disciples were seen supporting a young woman with a heavily protruding abdomen, pale-faced yet unable to hide her beauty, as they walked over quickly.

It was indeed Xue Xue Ranran.

With her large belly, the tear tracks on her face still wet, her eyes filled with pain and anxiety, she stared fixedly at Shen Ge and shouted excitedly.

"I won't allow you to go to your death! I won't allow it!!"

Shen Ge’s body stiffened. He turned abruptly, his back to Xue Xue Ranran, his shoulders trembling slightly, but he no longer looked at her or spoke.

Only his tightly clenched fists made the joints pop with a clicking sound.

"Junior Sister Xue Ranran, don't get excited, watch your health," the female disciple supporting her hurriedly consoled.

"Senior Brother Shen, the Elder and Senior Brother Chen are both here; let's discuss this at length, discuss it at length..."

Other disciples also spoke up one after another, and the cave fell into a moment of chaos.

Chen Mu watched this scene and sighed inwardly.

Hatred, responsibility, love, an unborn child, the hope of the sect, one’s own decadence and unwillingness...

All kinds of complex emotions and choices were intertwined in this small cave, pressing down so hard that one could barely breathe.

He had no intention of intervening too much in the internal affairs and grievances of the Inviting Moon Sect.

The Moon Shadow Flowing Light Sword had been returned; his promise was fulfilled.

"Elder Xu."

Chen Mu bowed slightly to Xu Xu Qingyin, breaking the somewhat noisy situation. "Since the 'Moon Shadow Flowing Light Sword' has been returned to its rightful owner, Chen will take his leave first. Everyone, take care."

Having said that.

Without waiting for Xu Xu Qingyin to urge him to stay, and without looking at the others with their varied expressions, his figure flickered, turning into a faint green shadow, as silent as when he arrived, passing through the vines at the cave entrance and disappearing beyond the mountain ravine.

The matter of the Moon Shadow Flowing Light Sword was concluded.

Chen Mu knew that the Nine Nether Sect must be in a thunderous rage at this moment, and the entire sect was likely frantically searching for the daring thief who had snuck into the secret realm and snatched away their sect-guarding divine weapon.

Inside and outside the "Nether Abyss Secret Realm," the atmosphere was surely one of extreme tension, with guards tightened to the limit.

To try to sneak in now would be no different from throwing himself into a net, with risks far exceeding before.

"Since the Sword Soul has already been hidden in the Nine Nether Sect for who knows how many years, waiting for a while longer is not impossible."

Chen Mu sped through the clouds, pondering in his heart, "By comparison, figuring out what this 'Sword Soul' actually is, is the top priority."

"Only by clarifying its essence, form, and characteristics can I formulate a more effective acquisition plan, and only then can I occupy the initiative in future struggles or refining."

And to figure out the essence of the "Sword Soul," tracing the roots, one inevitably could not bypass its original owner—

That legendary figure from over two hundred years ago, who could contend with Myriad Phenomena realm experts while at the Heaven Palace realm: the "Heaven River Sword Venerable."

Chen Mu previously lacked the cultivation, and while curious about such secrets involving the Heaven Palace realm, he dared not inquire too deeply, lest he attract unnecessary attention or even bring about a fatal disaster.

But today is different from the past.

He had already stepped into the Heaven Palace realm and condensed the "Four Seasons Martial Domain."

He now had the qualifications and the confidence to contact and explore such high-level secrets.

"Records related to the Heaven River Sword Venerable must surely be preserved by those ancient forces, noble families, and sects that have been passed down for hundreds or thousands of years, and even in the secret files of the imperial court."

"Perhaps, in some special places that specialize in selling intelligence, as long as one pays a sufficient price, one might be able to obtain relatively complete information."

Chen Mu had a clear goal. He identified the direction and headed toward the most prosperous and well-informed core place in Jiannan Circuit.

He flew toward the Jiannan Circuit City.

The circuit city was towering, with people flowing like a weave.

Chen Mu landed in an empty spot outside the city, once again performed the art of disguise, transforming into a middle-aged scholar with an ordinary face, a steady aura, and a cultivation level revealed to be around the "Five Qi Morning Origin" of the Earth Altar realm. He paid the entry fee and blended into the bustling crowd.

He did not head toward the Martial Suppression Office.

Instead, with a clear goal, he headed straight for the Hero Tower in the city.

The scale of the Hero Tower in Jiannan Circuit City far exceeded that of border towns like Nanyun Prefecture.

The tower was seven stories high, with carved beams and painted rafters, and was exceptionally grand.

The tower was permanently gathered with martial artists, merchants, rangers, and intelligence peddlers from all over the world. It was a place where all walks of life gathered and a center for the circulation of all kinds of overt and covert news.

Chen Mu went directly to the fifth floor of the Hero Tower.

This floor was not something ordinary martial artists could afford to consume. The environment was much more elegant, with independent private rooms providing more secretive and high-end services.

This included purchasing information that was difficult to obtain on the market, involving martial arts secrets, and even internal intelligence of certain forces.

Chen Mu spent a significant amount of gold and silver to book a quiet room and specifically requested to purchase the most detailed and all-verifiable information about the life of the "Heaven River Sword Venerable"!