Chapter 689 40: Site Selection

Over an hour later, an SUV pulled to a stop at the foot of Qingding Mountain.

Chen Chuan and Chang Dong stepped out.

Chen Chuan said, "This place might be suitable."

Chang Dong looked up, then surveyed the surroundings. "It's remote, and the elevation is high," he commented. "It doesn't look bad. Come on, let's go up and have a look."

The two followed a stone staircase to the summit of Qingding Mountain. "This is the Mo Temple I was talking about," Chen Chuan said.

Chang Dong examined it. "Judging by the style, this temple must have been receiving incense offerings for at least several hundred years. But the main structure was probably rebuilt in recent decades." He stomped on the ground. "The materials are really solid. It's sturdy enough to be a Martial Arts Arena."

Chen Chuan nodded. The Mo Temple had a legacy of Fighters to begin with. He had sparred here with Mishiro Ara before, and despite the duel between two Third Limit Fighters, the surrounding ground had remained perfectly intact, a testament to the special materials used in its construction.

Chang Dong didn't rush inside. He stood there and gazed into the distance, discovering he could see most of Central City. This had to be one of the highest points in the city.

He said, "It is indeed a good spot. Based on this alone, it's very suitable for a base. However..."

He glanced at the main hall and walked inside. Once there, he looked up at the Mo Divine Statue and suddenly said, "It's empty inside."

Chen Chuan followed his gaze. It was clear Chang Dong wasn't referring to the statue itself.

And 'empty' was the opposite of 'occupied.' He asked, "Mr. Chang, are you saying there used to be something inside?"

Chang Dong nodded. "Many deity-worshipping faiths still exist across the land. During the Cold Silence Period, such worship is merely a form of spiritual and emotional solace. But during the Period of Change, it's possible for certain entities to truly manifest."

"Some of them came from the Opposite World through Rifts in the past. Others are things that were born in our native world after the two worlds drew close. This statue must have housed such an entity before..."

Chen Chuan wasn't surprised by this. After all, he had frequently dealt with strange and abnormal phenomena and could be considered an expert in the field. Such things were often connected to religion and Priests.

Chang Dong took a few steps forward and examined the incense on the altar, rubbing some of it between his fingers. "Concentration Incense. Someone has been trying to gather Spiritual Power here in recent months. That might be why the entity inside was led away. An entity that has been worshipped for a long time will sometimes follow the incense offerings if it senses its dwelling is no longer reliable."

"Recent months..."

Chen Chuan looked at the incense and couldn't help but think of the period three months ago when the Celestial Gate opened. He turned his head and asked, "Mr. Chang, will this have any effect?"

Chang Dong said, "It's hard to say." He looked at the statue. "Perhaps only the Tributors from that time would know."

After a moment, he turned around. "This place is suitable, I suppose, but we're the Pure Sect, after all. Using an old religious site as our base is a bit inappropriate. Besides..." He rubbed his stomach. "I imagine securing and renovating this place would cost a fortune. Why don't we check out some other locations?"

Chen Chuan smiled and agreed.

After leaving, the SUV cut across the city to the edge of the Hongsheng District and stopped in front of a small hill.

This time, Chen Chuan brought Chang Dong to the place where Teacher Wu used to live.

"This used to be an open residential area, but it was later completely abandoned. A Wuyi teacher of mine once lived on this hill. Well, he still lives there now."

Chang Dong looked over. Only a field of burned-out ruins remained. "We won't be disturbing him, will we?" he asked.

"I don't think he'll mind."

The two of them reached the top of the hill. After years of being battered by strong winds, not much was left.

Chang Dong looked out and said with great certainty, "This place must have been contaminated by something."

Chen Chuan said, "I looked into the history of this land. The Molan Company was originally planning to develop it into a commercial district, but then the company itself ran into some trouble. On top of that, people who came here would inexplicably contract a strange illness, so the area was abandoned again."

Chang Dong looked at the ground beneath his feet. He bent down, grabbed a handful of soil, and seemed to be sensing something. After a moment, he stood up and dusted off his hands.

"Something was planted under here."

"Something?"

"That's right." Chang Dong made a large circle with his hands. "It was huge, likely a plant of some kind. Its root system spread throughout this whole area. If I'm not mistaken..." He stomped on the ground. "There should still be cavities formed by the roots underneath, along with some residue. That's why it continues to affect the surrounding region."

Chen Chuan asked, "What could it have been?"

Chang Dong shook his head. "It's hard to say without seeing it, but it could only have come from the Merging Land or a bio-lab." He looked at Chen Chuan again. "Logically, your Processing Bureau should have records of this."

Chen Chuan said, "I've checked before, but it was too long ago. Many of the files were sealed. My rank was too low at the time, so I couldn't access them. I'll go back and look again."

Chang Dong waved his hand dismissively. "It doesn't matter if you can't find them. The thing is long gone. This place was likely just a cultivation and incubation site for it. This contamination has almost no effect on us Fighters. A single night in the Merging Land exposes you to more of it than a year spent here."

He grunted, seemingly calculating something. After a good while, he rubbed his stomach and said, "I think this is the spot. It's remote, spacious, and the contamination will deter ordinary people, serving as a convenient barrier."

"Besides, this place has been untouched for at least twenty or thirty years. I bet we can get this land for cheap, right? The budget allocated from above is limited, after all. I have to be frugal."

Chen Chuan said, "If there's anything you need help with, Mr. Chang, just say the word. I'm also a member of the Pure Sect."

"I can handle these miscellaneous tasks. You don't need to worry about it, Manager Chen," Chang Dong said with a smile. "Our other comrade should be arriving in a few days. She'll be enough help."

Chen Chuan didn't insist. He truly did have many other things to attend to. Besides, the success of this base was never a matter of funding or location, but of martial strength.

Therefore, the greatest help he could offer the sect was to cultivate diligently and increase his own power.

"So, the base location is settled. There's one more thing." Chang Dong's expression turned serious. "I also came here with another mission, one I need to explain clearly to you, Manager Chen."

Chen Chuan said, "Please, go on."

Chang Dong said, "Manager Chen, do you remember me telling you that our Pure Sect branch here was nearly wiped out because of a single target?"

Chen Chuan nodded.

Chang Dong sighed. "That target... was actually one of our own, a talented individual whom we held in high regard and invested heavily in cultivating."

"At the time, he did some... unsavory things. But because of his innate talent and abilities, some of the higher-ups in the sect believed that with proper guidance, he could become a future pillar of the organization. So, his actions were tolerated, and he was given only a symbolic punishment."

"But he later grew more and more outrageous, going from bad to worse. Many of his actions crossed a line we could not tolerate, so we finally organized a team to apprehend him."

He shook his head. "And you know the result. The sect already considered him a serious threat, but we still underestimated him. In that battle, the branch and the personnel sent from the main sect were almost completely annihilated."

"Later, some members of the sect reviewed the incident. They concluded that if he had wanted to leave, no one could have stopped him. He deliberately revealed his location."

A glint flashed in Chen Chuan's eyes. He understood immediately. 'If that's the case, it wasn't a counterattack after being cornered, but a premeditated slaughter.'

He asked, "What level was this person?"

Chang Dong said in a low voice, "Fifteen years ago, before he was even twenty, his spirit and body had already reached the level of perfection. With his talent, he might have already crossed that threshold by now."

Chen Chuan said, "If he managed to cross it, he must have had someone backing him."

He thought of Chen Bitong. Despite his talent, he had failed to break through that barrier due to a lack of sufficient resources.

Chang Dong said, "Let's put him aside for now. Due to the danger this target poses, there are people within the sect currently responsible for hunting him down."

"What I need to tell you is that because the branch was almost completely wiped out, the true circumstances of what happened are unclear."

"The bodies of most of our comrades were found at the scene, but one person was missing. He was never found. Most people believe he died somewhere else."

"Recently, however, someone spotted him. Through certain intelligence channels, we've gathered that he might still be in Central City. So, we need to find him and get a clear account of what happened."

As he spoke, he took out a photograph. "This is the man."

Chen Chuan took the photo and looked at it. It showed a young man in his twenties with a long face. He was winking and making a face, grinning widely to reveal a mouthful of white teeth. He wore a spotted, open-collared, orange-yellow shirt and looked like a very confident and playful person.

'But if this photo was taken over a decade ago, the man must be around forty now.'

On the back of the photo was a name: "Tian Rui."

He said, "I'll keep an eye out."

Chang Dong said, "Good. The Processing Bureau should have an easier time finding people. There's no deadline for this. Fifteen years have already passed, so there's no rush. It's just..."

He sighed. "We owe an explanation to our comrades from back then."

Chen Chuan nodded.

Chang Dong glanced around. "Let's head back for now."

Chen Chuan got into the car and drove back to his residence in the Wuding District. After getting out at the entrance, he said goodbye to Chang Dong and went inside.

Upon entering the living room, he picked up the case of Pure Essence from the corner and carried it upstairs.

'This Pure Essence should be enough,' he thought. 'But even though that's settled, I still need to figure out my spiritual cultivation.'

'It would be best if I could find a Rift. I remember Senior Brother Cao mentioning that there are hidden caches in the wilderness. It's possible Rifts exist in those places too. If necessary, I might have to go look for one there.'

'But besides that, there is one other possibility.'

He put the case down and looked toward a corner of the room.

There lay the still-slumbering Snow Monarch Blade.

...

...