Chapter 28: Profound Whale Gang

Chen Yuan left Yellow Dragon Post. After riding his horse for a moment, he frowned slightly.

He could sense someone following him; the faint sound of hoofbeats came from behind.

There were many horses and pedestrians on the official road, but when Chen Yuan sped up, the people behind him sped up, and when he slowed down, they slowed down as well. They were definitely coming for him.

Moreover, judging by the sound, there seemed to be quite a few of them.

Chen Yuan was slightly puzzled. Which group was this now?

People from the Iron Clad Gate? Or someone with close ties to them?

Probably not.

This wasn’t the Iron Clad Gate’s sphere of influence. Besides, Chen Yuan had just slaughtered their people; if the followers were truly connected to the Iron Clad Gate, they wouldn’t have just watched.

After a moment of contemplation, Chen Yuan pretended not to notice. He galloped for about dozens of miles before finding a town to stay in.

Originally, he had planned to come here to find a blacksmith to forge a scabbard for his Azure Dragon Blood Drink blade.

After nightfall, Chen Yuan lay in bed with the lights out, resting. A faint sound came from outside and then vanished.

Estimating the time, Chen Yuan suddenly opened his eyes, leaped out of the window, and chased after the direction where the sound had disappeared.

The newcomer’s movements were very light; they must have specialized in cultivating Qinggong.

However, Chen Yuan’s five senses were exceptionally keen. Unless the person could truly achieve Stepping on Snow Without Leaving a Trace, they wouldn’t be able to hide from him.

These heightened senses weren’t innate but had appeared after he experienced the impact of the Blood Fiend Energy.

The core of the seven killing stele’s power was the killing intent origin. This power was an Origin force of heaven and earth, not something that could be Cultivated through Acquired means.

By fusing with the seven killing stele fragment and letting the Blood Fiend Energy enter his body, Chen Yuan had also been tainted with a trace of this power. This resulted in his senses becoming as sharp and agile as if he were born with them.

The benefits of fusing the seven killing stele fragment weren’t just the overt power of the Cultivation Technique, but also these subtle physical changes.

Chen Yuan felt more and more that his decision to take a gamble and snatch the seven killing stele fragment from the Murong family was an extremely correct one.

The person scouting Chen Yuan was dressed in black night-traveling clothes. His movements were as agile as an ape’s, and in a few bounds, he entered an inn not far away through a window.

Inside the inn, six people were gathered. Their attire was different from the locals of Youzhou and looked more like the style of Lanzhou.

“How is it? Did you find anything?”

Seeing him return, the Leader, a sturdy man with a small mustache, hurriedly asked.

“No useful news.”

The Martial Artist in night-traveling clothes shook his head and said, “That guy went to sleep as soon as he entered the inn. I didn’t dare enter the room and only observed from outside. However, he is truly young, looking only in his early twenties. Could he really be the Disciple Zuo Xinglie took in?”

“Even if he isn’t Zuo Xinglie’s Disciple, he definitely has a connection with him!

You all should have seen him fight at Yellow Dragon Post earlier; that blade technique was definitely the Autumn Water Swift Hong Blade!”

A flash of hatred appeared in the sturdy man’s eyes. “Years ago, my Master died under that swift blade.

A flash of the Swift Hong, and the head falls.

I will never forget that strike for the rest of my life!

Also, the way he circulates his Internal Energy is like surging waves; his explosive power is extremely strong. There’s a ninety percent chance it’s the Surging Waves and Flowing Clouds Technique.”

A short man said worriedly, “We thought Zuo Xinglie was already crippled and that it would be more than enough for us brothers to come and capture him.

But we didn’t expect him to have trained such a powerful Disciple.

You all saw him fight at Yellow Dragon Post just now. I’m afraid all of us combined wouldn’t be enough for him to kill.”

All six of them were in the Blood Moving Realm, but having worked together for years, they would even dare to fight an ordinary Foundation Establishment Realm Martial Artist.

But the problem was that Chen Yuan was anything but ordinary. He had already displayed astonishing combat power at Yellow Dragon Post, so they didn’t dare to face him head-on.

“It’s fine. Third Brother, go back and send a message for the Gang to send some experts. The rest of us will keep trailing him.

Maybe by following him, we can find Zuo Xinglie directly. Youzhou is so big; it’ll save us brothers the time and effort of searching.”

Chen Yuan listened for a while. It turned out these people were sent by the Profound Whale Gang to hunt down Zuo Xinglie. They had recognized his martial arts at Yellow Dragon Post and followed him.

One had to admit, that old fellow Zuo Xinglie was truly a shrewd fox.

Knowing the Profound Whale Gang was still looking for him, he immediately took the initiative to hand over the Cultivation Technique to draw fire. This move was indeed effective.

In the original plot, they found Lianshan City shortly after and discovered Zuo Xinglie.

Oh well, since I took Zuo Xinglie’s Cultivation Technique and did indeed benefit from it, I might as well help him clean up this group.

Of course, the more important reason was that they had the audacity to target him.

The Third Brother in the night-traveling clothes nodded and opened the window to leave.

Just as he poked his head out, a hand coiled around his neck like a spirit snake or a giant python.

With a crisp ‘crack,’ Third Brother’s head instantly went limp, and he didn’t even let out a scream.

“Why use the window when there’s a perfectly good door? What kind of habit is that?”

Chen Yuan stepped in through the window carrying Third Brother’s corpse and flashed a grim smile at the remaining five.

“No need to go through the trouble of finding Zuo Xinglie. I’ll send you on your way today.”

The Leader of the group was filled with terror. He was about to shout for them to flee.

In the next moment, the dazzling, brilliant blade light of the Swift Hong lit up before his eyes.

This strike was incredibly familiar; he couldn’t forget it even in his dreams.

Years ago, he was just an ordinary member of the Profound Whale Gang, following his Master to suppress the Thirty-Six Waterway Alliance.

His Master, who taught him martial arts, had exquisite spear techniques, and was his idol, couldn’t even thrust out a single spear before Zuo Xinglie. His head was severed by this Swift Hong strike, and blood sprayed all over the Leader’s face.

He didn’t die only because he was too weak—so weak that Zuo Xinglie didn’t even bother wasting energy on him.

Now, facing such a strike again, the fear in the Leader’s heart surged once more, and for a moment, he even forgot to fight back.

By the time he came to his senses, his four brothers from the Gang had been slain by Chen Yuan in an instant. Splattered blood drenched him once again, exactly like back then.

With a roar of grief and indignation, the Leader tried to pick up the long spear beside him, but for some reason, his hand shook violently, and he almost failed to grip his weapon.

But it was already too late.

In an instant, the Azure Dragon Blood Drink blade was already against his neck. The cold edge pressed against his windpipe, ready to slit his throat with ease.

With a ‘clang,’ the long spear dropped to the floor.

Chen Yuan looked at him, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

The man was afraid, cowardly, and so terrified he didn’t even have the courage to strike.

This was the level of the Profound Whale Gang members who dominated the Jiulong River? They felt even worse than the Iron Clad Gate.

At least those muscle-heads from the Iron Clad Gate, though not very bright, truly weren’t afraid of death and dared to clash with Chen Yuan using their Physical Bodies.

Of course, Chen Yuan didn’t know that the man’s courage had long been shattered by Zuo Xinglie years ago.

“Please, spare my life! I won’t go back to the Profound Whale Gang. I swear I’ll never reveal your or Zuo Xinglie’s whereabouts!”

The Leader was a mess of tears and snot, completely unlike his calm demeanor when giving orders earlier.

“It wouldn’t have mattered if you were just looking for Zuo Xinglie, but you just had to target me. That’s simply seeking death.”

Chen Yuan shook his head slightly and suddenly asked, “You already knew Zuo Xinglie was crippled?”

The Leader nodded hurriedly. “Over the years, we’ve found many clues while tracking Zuo Xinglie. It’s almost certain that he’s already a useless person.”

“In that case, why go to such lengths to hunt him down? You’ve even chased him all the way from Lanzhou to Youzhou. Even the hatred of a stolen wife or a murdered father wouldn’t go this far, right? Besides, your Profound Whale Gang already killed Zuo Xinglie’s entire family. Isn’t that enough to satisfy your grudge?”

This was a question that had always puzzled Chen Yuan.

If the Profound Whale Gang didn’t know Zuo Xinglie was crippled, it would make sense; it’s normal to want to pull up the roots for fear of a counterattack.

But they knew he was crippled and no longer a threat to the Profound Whale Gang. Was it really worth such a relentless pursuit?

That Gang Leader of the Profound Whale Gang seemed a bit too petty.

The Leader hesitated for a moment before saying, “Because Zuo Xinglie has a Heaven-Grade Cultivation Technique that the Gang Leader has always wanted.”

“A Heaven-Grade Cultivation Technique? Tell me exactly what happened.”

With all his brothers dead, the Leader was completely hopeless.

Returning to the Gang in this state would result in severe punishment anyway, so he decided to spill everything to Chen Yuan.

“The lower reaches of the Jiulong River flow directly into the East Sea. Back then, both the Gang Leader and Zuo Xinglie traveled to the East Sea.”

“They both discovered a Sect ruin on an island and found a Heaven-Grade Cultivation Technique called the ‘Emperors Qi Observation Technique’.”

“Zuo Xinglie plotted a sneak attack on the Gang Leader and seized the technique. Afterward, the Gang Leader mobilized the full power of the Profound Whale Gang to destroy the Thirty-Six Waterway Alliance.”

“That bloody battle wasn’t just for control of the Jiulong River, but also for that Heaven-Grade Cultivation Technique.”

Upon hearing this, Chen Yuan suddenly understood.

No wonder the Profound Whale Gang had been so persistent all these years.

A crippled Zuo Xinglie wasn’t worth such a massive effort from the Profound Whale Gang.

But a Zuo Xinglie who possessed a Heaven-Grade Cultivation Technique was well worth the trouble.

Chen Yuan had heard of the “Emperors Qi Observation Technique.”

This technique was a rare book of the Daoist Sect. It allowed one to observe Qi and the heavens, possessing infinite power. Even among many Heaven-Grade Cultivation Techniques, it ranked at the very top.

In the original plot, this technique only appeared as background lore.

Chen Yuan never expected it to be with Zuo Xinglie. He had essentially brushed past this top-tier Heaven-Grade Cultivation Technique.

Speaking of which, the Cultivation Technique Chen Yuan was looking for to solve the problem of his Blood Fiend Energy going out of control was also somewhat related to the “Emperors Qi Observation Technique.”