One more catty, one more attribute point

The blood sprayed out a full ten meters, painting the ceiling overhead, the distant bookcases, and even the screen in the corner all a dark red. The air was thick with a rich, decayed, bloody scent, as if one had abruptly arrived on a battlefield.

Yuan Hong was shocked and pale.

He immediately dashed forward a step, reaching out to support Song Pingzhang's arching, convulsing back, "Brother Pingzhang, what has happened to you?"

Song Pingzhang's limbs were violently twitching, his face twisted in agony, and a blackened hand clung desperately to Yuan Hong's arm. His eyes bulged outwards, bloodshot and continuously swelling with blood. Opening his mouth, he seemed to want to say something, but gushes of blood mixed with chunks of viscera sprayed out.

This scene was incredibly horrifying, as if he was about to cough out every organ in his body alive.

Even Yuan Hong, the Great General who had often seen mountains of corpses and seas of blood, turned an iron shade upon witnessing such a scene. The two maids beside him grew weak at the knees and collapsed to the ground, but still pressed their hands firmly over their mouths, not daring to make a sound.

Yuan Hong took out a bottle of elixirs from his bosom, uncorked it, and poured it frantically into Song Pingzhang's mouth.

Unfortunately, by this time Song Pingzhang was already at the end of his rope. Find exclusive stories on empire

He simply couldn't swallow it.

"Bang!"

His eyes suddenly burst open, turning into two huge bloody sockets.

Thus bizarrely fixed on Yuan Hong, as if some monster was looking at him through those bloody holes. Song Pingzhang opened his mouth wide, clawing marks on Yuan Hong's hand, and said in a thread-like voice, "Monsters... they got me..."

Crack!

He couldn't finish his words.

Due to the backlash from a secret technique that caused his internal force to run wild, his head tilted, and he was gone. But in his final moment, the blood that spurted out of his mouth still sprayed all over Yuan Hong's face, leaving the formidable Great General looking quite disheveled.

"Huff!" Yuan Hong's face was uglier than one could conceive, and he wiped it with a swipe of his hand.

He crushed the elixir bottle in his hand, rose up furiously, his expression full of uncertainty and shadows.

"To use such heavy-handed methods on a court official, this is no ordinary demon!"

"A heavy strike must be delivered!" Yuan Hong paced back and forth in the room, his eyes flashing fiercely at the trembling maids collapsed on the ground, as he kicked out mercilessly.

The maid didn't even manage to scream before her upper body exploded, with blood and viscera splattering everywhere. The blurred pelvis spurted blood while the whitish intestines writhed like snakes in the pool of blood.

And within this hellish landscape, the ferocity in Yuan Hong's eyes grew even more intense.

He now needed to consider not only how to use Skull Plain to trim the strength of the Jiang E clans and Immortal sects, but also how to deal with the series of interrogations from the Yiluan Bureau.

The complex struggles involved were enough to give Yuan Hong a throbbing pain in his head just by thinking about them.

Especially now, with the Emperor's condition gradually worsening, and the princes and princesses no longer concealing their strife, escalating into open conflict. Any minor fluctuation could tip the scales, potentially upsetting the already tense situation and causing a massive uproar.

...

...

...

"Burp~"

Atop a desolate mountain in Bei E State.

Su Heng stopped in his tracks, a look of surprise flitting across his face.

He suddenly felt as if he was being spied on, seemingly by someone using a Spirit Secret Technique to intrude into his consciousness.

He had experienced a similar feeling once before from Xie Linyuan of the Demon Illusion Sect. The difference was that this person's strength was clearly much stronger than Xie Linyuan's, and the secret technique they wielded was more profound.

Although he subconsciously destroyed the intruder's spirit.

He regretted not being able to capture the complete memory, a pity not knowing who was secretly taking action.

"Brother Su! Brother Su?" Qin Shunying saw Su Heng come to a halt.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

She cocked her head and looked back, her delicate face showing confusion.

"Nothing much," Su Heng laughed, not taking the incident to heart, "I just felt as though someone was spying around us. I wonder if Miss Qin has felt anything similar."

"A feeling of being watched?" Qin Shunying frowned slightly, "Now that Brother Su mentions it, it does seem out of the ordinary."

"But I don't seem to have that feeling at the moment."

"That's good," Su Heng said, "It was a trivial matter, and it's already been resolved."

Seeing Su Heng speak like this, Qin Shunying did not ask further, "If we continue forward, we will arrive at the Fiery Sun Sect's location."

Su Heng followed the direction Qin Shunying pointed, seeing only a stretch of barren hillside covered in withered yellow vegetation. At first glance, it was barren, without any human presence or distinctive geographic features, indistinguishable from the other mountains seen along the way and unremarkable.

But as Su Heng extended his senses and carefully observed, he vaguely felt that the surroundings were somewhat different from the external world.

"A hidden realm?" Su Heng stroked his chin.

The mystic realm lies between the Immortal Heaven and the real world, greatly benefiting one's cultivation.

Cloudy Heavens, An Shelie's tomb, and Demon Country are all types of mystic realms, which to this day are not unheard of to Su Heng. Fiery Sun Sect, even among the three great immortal sects and four great families, is a superpower faction ranking near the top, so having an entire mystic realm as a base within the sect is not surprising.

"Please follow me." Qin Shunying said with a carefree smile, giving Su Heng a respectful fist salute from afar.

Then she turned around, transforming into a red light that vanished into the mountains.

Su Heng followed closely behind.

The two of them arrived at a stone-paved path on the mountain, and looking up the stairs, there were several thatched cottages and earthen houses on a plateau halfway up the mountain. In one of the cottages sat a young Martial Artist around twenty years old, with fair skin and bright eyes.

Upon seeing Qin Shunying's arrival, the young Martial Artist quickly flipped off the bed and leaped to the ground.

"Senior Sister!" the young Martial Artist greeted with respect.

"Yu Fang, is it your turn to be on duty today?" Qin Shunying asked, her face smiling as she nodded slightly, "You've worked hard."

"It's not hard work." After a brief exchange, the young Martial Artist lost his initial restraint. Scratching his head and smiling, he said, "Instead, it's Senior Sister who came back so soon. We were worried about you, but now, fortunately, we can relax."

"It was all thanks to Mr. Su Heng." Qin Shunying said, "He helped me unlock the inner scenery of the Secret Technique."

"Great!" the young Martial Artist blinked.

His gaze briefly touched Su Heng, tinged with curiosity, but he didn't ask further. Instead, he turned and chanted while forming hand seals. Moments later, he brought his fingers together as if holding a sword and thrust his hand forward sharply.

"Whoosh!"

A red flame burst forth, falling onto an empty space.

Like a pebble thrown into a still pond, it set off ripples.

The desolate mountain before them suddenly transformed as three majestic mountain ranges rose to the heavens, penetrating the clouds. On the widest and tallest peak, there was a waterfall cascading down, surprisingly made not of water but of molten lava and fire. Even from miles away, the rolling heat came surging forward.

Various pavilions and terraces were situated on the peaks, with intricately carved beams and painted rafters, imposing in stature. Amidst the circling flames in the sky, many red birds could be seen darting through, their cries clear and piercing, like the mythical phoenix's song echoing through the mountains.

And deep within the mountains, powerful auras soared skyward like dragons and demons, signifying the presence of the cream of the crop among Heavenly Deceit's cultivators.

It was also the essence of an immortal sect's heritage.

"This is the true location of Fiery Sun Sect, Fiery Sun Mountain." Qin Shunying made a welcoming gesture and spoke with a hearty smile, "I must have made Su Heng laugh."

Su Heng slowly shifted his gaze from the three rising peaks, his face also filled with admiration.

"It's indeed a rare and magnificent sight," Su Heng commented, "An eye-opener."

"You flatter me," Qin Shunying said modestly as she led the way, with Su Heng closely following. The two walked shoulder to shoulder into Fiery Sun Mountain. Qin Shunying's status within the Fiery Sun Sect was extraordinary, and her mere appearance attracted the attention of many, accompanied by jubilant cheers, almost like a celebrity parade from a previous life.

"Senior Sister is back!"

"Congratulations to Senior Sister for returning in triumph!"

"Who is the man with Senior Sister? I wonder how strong his cultivation is!"

Qin Shunying seemed not too accustomed to such lively scenes, merely smiling and greeting a few familiar junior brothers and sisters before quickly flying forward with Su Heng.

They soon arrived at the top of a central peak, where there was a vast plaza paved with dark stones, serene and dim, devoid of the earlier noise. On both sides of the plaza grew some dark trees, only about three meters tall with thick branches and no leaves, bearing lantern-like fruits that glowed red.

Qin Shunying straightened the armor on her body somewhat and her expression became more serious.

"Shunying, you're back," a voice as gentle as bone marrow came along with the warm breeze, stirring her hair, "You didn't get hurt, did you?"

"I'm fine," Qin Shunying replied softly.

"And this is..." The voice continued, but Su Heng could see no one.

He looked around, then down.

On the slightly dim black stone plaza, the girl's pale skin seemed to be emitting a faint light.

She stood no taller than one and a half meters, dressed in a fire-red long dress with water sleeves, her features delicate. Her eyes were clear and lustrous, exuding a gentle maternal glow, a surprising contrast to her outward appearance. Her black hair was tied back into a ring, naturally hanging down.

Su Heng recognized the hairstyle as the Chuihuan Fenxiao Ji, typically worn by unmarried girls.

She appeared indeed very young.

Yet, judging from the tone of their conversation, she seemed to be Qin Shunying's master or an elder.

Additionally, the woman exuded a faint demonic aura. Although skillfully concealed, Su Heng, naturally sensitive to such auras, still detected it.

Su Heng found it peculiar but refrained from inquiring further. "I am Su Heng," he greeted the girl with a slight nod, acknowledging her presence.

"The forces from Skull Plain were driven away by none other than Brother Su Heng," Qin Shunying stated earnestly, her face showing admiration.

"This is my master," Qin Shunying introduced to Su Heng, "she goes by the name Spiritual Vervain."