System Possession, One Sword Shocks the Gods

50: sneaking into the villaLiuyun City, as the largest city surrounding Tianfeng Academy, was bustling and crowded with heavy traffic.

Ye Chen restrained all his cultivation aura, changed into an unremarkable set of grey cloth robes, and entered the city with the crowd like an ordinary low-level Cultivator. He didn’t head straight for the west of the city, but instead circled a few main market streets. After confirming no one was following him, he turned into a secluded alley and stealthily moved toward the villa in the west of the city provided by Uncle Fu.

Compared to the city center, the west side of the city was much quieter, mostly consisting of wealthy residences and some relatively remote shops. According to Uncle Fu’s information, Lin Batian’s villa was located on the edge of the western city, a secluded place near the city wall called ”Listening Bamboo Court.”

Ye Chen moved through the shadows like a ghost, avoiding several squads of patrolling city guards, and soon arrived near Listening Bamboo Court.

This was a large courtyard with white walls and black tiles, looking quite elegant. The courtyard walls were high, and two guards with significant auras stood at the gate, both at the Kaiyuan Realm Third Level. There were faint spiritual fluctuations on the walls, clearly protected by a defensive Formation.

Ye Chen did not approach the main gate but circled to a relatively secluded corner at the side and back of the courtyard. His Divine Sense, like invisible tentacles, carefully probed into the courtyard.

The layout inside was exquisite, with pavilions, terraces, Small Bridges, and Flowing Water, appearing peaceful. However, Ye Chen’s Luminous Sword Heart keenly captured several obscure and cold auras hidden beneath this tranquility, scattered at key positions in the courtyard. Their cultivation was at least at the Kaiyuan Realm Fifth Level or above! One of the auras had even reached the Kaiyuan Realm Seventh Level, carrying a bloody Evil Qi, somewhat similar to the ”Shadow Snake” that had ambushed him that day, but stronger!

”As expected, there’s an ambush,” Ye Chen sneered inwardly. Lin Batian was indeed cautious, setting up such a force even in his own lair.

His Divine Sense continued to extend inward, avoiding the sentries and hidden posts, focusing on rooms that might hide secrets. Most rooms were empty or only had ordinary servants. But in the deepest part of the courtyard, beneath what looked like a study, his Divine Sense felt a powerful Restriction blocking it, preventing further penetration!

”A secret room?” Ye Chen’s eyes narrowed. The strength of that Restriction was by no means something an ordinary Kaiyuan Realm Cultivator could set up; it was at least the work of someone in the Linghai Realm! It seemed there truly were secrets hidden in this villa!

He carefully observed the patrol patterns and Formation nodes within the courtyard. The defensive Formation was quite sophisticated, but not without flaws. In the southeast corner of the courtyard, near a dense patch of Purple Bamboo, the spiritual energy flow of the Formation seemed to have an extremely faint, periodic gap in its fluctuations. This gap was extremely brief; if not for his powerful Divine Sense and Luminous Sword Heart, it would have been nearly impossible to discover.

”This is the spot.” Ye Chen made his plan. He needed to wait for the right moment.

He lay in wait in the shadows like the most patient hunter, his aura blending into the surroundings. Even if a Cultivator at the Peak of the Kaiyuan Realm passed by, they would find it difficult to detect him without careful investigation.

Time passed bit by bit. The sun set, and night fell.

Lights flickered within Listening Bamboo Court, and the patrolling guards changed shifts, appearing even more vigilant.

At midnight, everything was silent.

The moment that fluctuation gap in the southeast corner’s Formation reappeared, Ye Chen moved!

His figure was like a wisp of green smoke, making no sound and not even causing the air to flow. He passed through that fleeting gap in the Formation with absolute precision, silently scaled the high wall, and landed in the Purple Bamboo grove within the courtyard.

The entire process was as fast as lightning, the timing perfect!

After landing in the courtyard, he immediately hid his figure under the bamboo shadows, pulling his Divine Sense back to the extreme, relying only on his five senses and instinct for danger to perceive his surroundings. Those few cold auras were still in their respective positions, unaware of his infiltration.

Like a ghost in the dark night, he moved along the shadows of the walls, avoiding the patrolling guards, and crept toward the study in the deepest part.

Along the way, he saw several figures in black moving in a hurry, their auras completely different from the guards in the courtyard. They rarely communicated with each other, their eyes cold, and their movements carried a professional Killing Intent.

”Are they from ’Blood Blade’?” Ye Chen judged. It seemed Lin Batian’s cooperation with Blood Blade was quite close, and he might even be using this place as a temporary stronghold.

This made him even more certain that there must be a major plot here!

Soon, he arrived outside the study. There were no lights inside, and it was pitch black. But Ye Chen could feel that powerful Restriction shrouding the entire room.

He walked around the study, looking for a weak point or entrance in the Restriction. Finally, beneath the back window of the study, he found a spiritual energy pattern slightly different from the others. It seemed... to be a reserved, extremely hidden passage? Perhaps for emergency entry or for passing items.

Ye Chen pondered for a moment and did not rashly try to break it. This Restriction was strong; breaking it by force would surely alert the people inside. He needed to confirm if anyone was inside and if Lin Batian was there.

Holding his breath, he pressed his ear gently against the wall and operated his Divine Sense to its full potential, attempting to penetrate the Restriction and catch any movement inside.

The Restriction blocked most sound and Divine Sense probing, but Ye Chen’s Luminous Sword Heart gave him perception beyond that of ordinary people. He vaguely heard intermittent conversation from inside, the voices sounding somewhat muffled and distorted as if processed.

”...must... as soon as possible... find... the other fragments...”

”...the other side... is pressing hard... the Demonic Lord... is about to awaken...”

”...Tianfeng Academy... that little beast... must die... obstacle...”

”...don’t worry... ’Spirit Erosion’ has been administered... even with heaven-defying abilities... he cannot escape this calamity...”

”...the ’Dark Hall’ messenger... will arrive in a few days... by then... humph...”

The fragmented words reached Ye Chen’s ears, causing a massive shock in his heart!

Fragments? The Demonic Lord’s awakening? A Dark Hall Emissary?

They truly were plotting a major conspiracy! And it seemed related to the sealed Shadow Demon Lord! Lin Batian had actually colluded with the Dark Hall, attempting to awaken the Demonic Lord? Could the ”fragments” they mentioned refer to other Heaven Slaying Sword fragments?

What made his Killing Intent boil even more was that they confirmed the poisoning against him, and their tone was full of murderous intent!

Just then, the sound of footsteps seemed to come from inside the study, moving toward the door!

Ye Chen’s heart tightened. He immediately retreated, leaping into the shadow of a nearby rockery like a civet cat, pulling his aura back to the absolute limit.

”Squeak—”

The study door was pushed open, and two figures walked out. The leader was tall with a sinister face—it was indeed Lin Batian! His face was dark now, and a ruthless light flickered in his eyes. The other person was completely shrouded in a wide black robe, wearing a malevolent ghost mask, with a cold and obscure aura. It was clearly that Kaiyuan Realm Seventh Level Blood Blade Leader!

”Remember, at all costs, before the Inner Court Assessment, get rid of Ye Chen! We cannot let him grow any further!” Lin Batian coldly instructed the Black-Robed Figure, his tone carrying a hint of subtle urgency.

”Rest assured, Instructor Lin. ’Spirit Erosion Powder’ is just an appetizer. Since he has left Liu Qingfeng’s protection, he is seeking his own death. Once my ’Blood Blade’ takes a mission, we never fail.” The Black-Robed Figure’s voice was raspy, like metal scraping, full of confidence.

”It better be! If you fail, you know the consequences!” Lin Batian snorted coldly, flicked his sleeves, and turned to walk toward the other side of the courtyard.

The Black-Robed Figure stood in place, his gaze beneath the mask scanning the courtyard as if to confirm safety, then he also turned into a black shadow and vanished into the night.

In the shadow of the rockery, Ye Chen held his breath until the auras of the two had completely faded away. Only then did he slowly breathe a sigh of relief, a cold sweat breaking out on his back.

If he had been a moment slower just now, he would probably have been discovered! Facing Lin Batian and that Blood Blade Leader, even if he used all his trump cards, his chances of winning would be extremely slim.

”Before the Inner Court Assessment... at all costs...” Ye Chen reflected on Lin Batian’s words, his gaze turning icy to the extreme. The other party wanted to completely stifle him before he entered the Inner Court and gained higher-level protection!

”Want to kill me? Then let’s see who dies first!”

Killing Intent filled Ye Chen’s chest, but he knew now was not the time to act. He suppressed the urge to strike immediately and turned his gaze back to the study.

Both Lin Batian and the Blood Blade Leader had left. Now might be the best time to investigate the secret room!

He returned once more to that hidden passage beneath the study’s back window. This time, he tried to inject a tiny bit of spiritual energy, mimicking Lin Batian’s aura fluctuations, into that special spiritual energy pattern.

This was a risky attempt based on his sensing of the parent-child communication jade and his observations of Lin Batian’s aura.

”Buzz...”

The spiritual energy pattern lit up slightly. Then, beneath the back window, a stone slab that seemed seamlessly integrated with the wall silently slid to the side, revealing a stair entrance extending downward that could only fit one person!

It worked!

Ye Chen’s heart stirred. Without any hesitation, his figure flashed, and he disappeared into the deep entrance. After he entered, the stone slab silently closed again, returning to its original state.

The stairs extended downward for about ten zhang, and then the space suddenly opened up, revealing a spacious underground secret room.

The secret room was brightly lit and simply furnished, with only a stone table, a few stone stools, and several bookshelves against the wall. The bookshelves didn’t hold books, but scattered Ores, scrolls, and... several black tokens emitting a cold deathly Qi, identical to the ”demon summoning token” Ye Chen had obtained in the ancient Cultivator’s Immortal Cave!

And on the stone table, a large map drawn on some unknown beast skin was laid flat! In the center of the map, Tianfeng Academy and Liuyun City were marked. In several specific positions around them, strange red runes were drawn and connected by thin lines, forming a pattern that looked like a Formation yet also like an altar!

Ye Chen’s gaze was instantly drawn to that map! He stepped forward quickly to examine it closely.

When he clearly saw the specific locations marked by those red runes on the map, as well as some small annotations next to them, his pupils suddenly constricted, and a chill rushed from the soles of his feet straight to his crown!

”This is... using Liuyun City and Tianfeng Academy as the foundation, extracting the earth vein Dragon Qi and the blood Qi of all living beings to construct the ’Demon Summoning Grand Array’ diagram?! They... they actually want to sacrifice an entire city and the academy to accelerate the awakening of the sealed Shadow Demon Lord?!”

Even with Ye Chen’s firm will, he was shocked by this appalling conspiracy!

The Lin family and the Dark Hall have actually gone this mad?!