Chapter 706 - 186: Zhang Tianhao’s Golden Cicada Sheds Its Shell, the Ten Thousand Souls Banner Refines Souls and Devours Demons

Chapter 706: Chapter 186: Zhang Tianhao’s Golden Cicada Sheds Its Shell, the Ten Thousand Souls Banner Refines Souls and Devours Demons

And so, Chu Fan and Leng Qingqiu only knew the general outline of the "Burial Immortal Valley Plan."

But they had no idea that the old monster behind it all planned to venture into danger himself!

One had to understand that the Profound Origin Secret Realm was merely the antechamber to the Burial Immortal Valley, protected by its own Ancient Restriction—any expert at the Ruyi Realm or above who tried to force their way in would be obliterated by it!

That old monster’s Cultivation was sky-high, already at the peak of the Sixth Realm, the Immortal Realm. How could he possibly get inside?

But Chu Fan, standing to the side, was not nearly as shocked as Leng Qingqiu.

His expression shifted slightly as his long, slender fingers gently stroked the hilt of his saber. He said faintly, "Using the Trait of the Heavenly Demon Disintegration Technique to put a tiny portion of a divided soul into deep hibernation and have it reside in a suitable Zhang Family bloodline, thereby deceiving the heavens to cross the sea and bypass the Secret Realm’s entrance restriction?"

"Lord Chu... you even know about this?!"

This time, it was Zhang Tianhao’s turn to be shocked.

He widened his bloodshot eyes, his face a mask of disbelief. "That’s right! When the time comes, he will place his most hidden divided soul into my cousin, Zhang Tianyu—the one with the Pure Yang Demon Body—to sneak into the Profound Origin Secret Realm!"

After hearing this, Chu Fan just shook his head slightly, a trace of disappointment in his tone. "If this is all the intelligence you have, I’m afraid it won’t be enough to save your life. This information is of limited value."

"A divided soul that can deceive the Secret Realm’s Laws to enter will have its power ceiling strictly suppressed below the Ruyi Realm."

"As long as it doesn’t exceed that limit, even if that old monster’s divided soul joins forces with Zhang Tianyu, I can still crush them both."

"..." Zhang Tianhao’s mouth fell open as he stared incredulously at the young Demon Suppression Guard before him.

’Arrogant! How unbelievably arrogant!’

’If those words had come from the unfathomable Leng Qingqiu, he would have thought it only natural.’

’But the one who said it was Chu Fan!’

’Just how terrifyingly powerful was Chu Fan’s true strength?’

’To think he held the combined forces of the Zhang Family’s peerless genius, Zhang Tianyu, and the ancestor’s divided soul in such complete contempt?’

"No... it’s not that simple..."

Zhang Tianhao took a deep breath and shook his head desperately, as if trying to dispel his inner terror. "Lord Chu, you don’t understand! That old monster... he doesn’t see us as people at all!"

"Whether it’s me or the highly favored Zhang Tianyu, in his eyes, we are all just ’food’!"

"When the time comes, once he swallows this ’food’ that he has so carefully raised, it will be an apocalyptic disaster for everyone who enters the Profound Origin Secret Realm! No one will be able to escape!"

"Raising them like Gu worms to be devoured..." Chu Fan seemed to have anticipated this. His expression remained placid as he said, "He imparts a fast-track Demon Technique like the Condensing Evil and Burning Heart Technique to the talented descendants of the family. He calls it nurturing, but in reality, it’s a method of catalysis..."

"Then he subtly guides the Heart Demons that arise from the Cultivation Technique’s flaws. When the time is ripe, just as the ’fruit’ rots and they become Fallen Demons, he devours their power and their very essence in one gulp... That’s his method, isn’t it?"

"That’s... that’s right..." Zhang Tianhao was stunned yet again to hear Chu Fan voice his thoughts so perfectly.

’How could Chu Fan know all of this in such detail?’

Just then, Chu Fan’s tone shifted, his gaze sharpening. "However, I’m quite curious. How did a descendant from a branch family like you discover all this?"

Zhang Tianhao froze completely, feeling as if something was caught in his throat.

’Shouldn’t I be the one asking you that?!’

’The secret of the Condensing Evil and Burning Heart Technique, the truth behind becoming a Fallen Demon, the nature of the devouring... how can you, an outsider, speak of these secrets so knowledgeably?’

’If the Demon Suppression Bureau knew everything already, why would they tolerate that old monster living to this day?’

’Just who in the world is this Chu Fan?!’

After a moment of silence, Zhang Tianhao had no choice but to suppress the raging storm in his heart and speak bitterly. "Over the past century, the Zhang Family has produced many astonishingly brilliant geniuses."

"Some of them rose like comets, only to fall just as quickly, their ends always attributed to ’Qigong Deviation’."

"I always found it strange. We are all one of the three great families of Qing Province, so why was the Zhang Family’s rate of members becoming Fallen Demons so absurdly high?"

"Furthermore, these clan members who underwent Demonic Transformation were never sent to the Demon Suppression Bureau for judgment. Instead, they would vanish without a trace from the depths of the family compound."

"At first, I assumed it was a matter of not airing our dirty laundry in public, that the family was simply enforcing its own internal laws."

"Until... my exceptionally gifted cousin, Zhang Tianlin, died..."

A flash of grief crossed Zhang Tianhao’s eyes. "His natural talent was extremely high, and he discovered early on that something was wrong with the Condensing Evil and Burning Heart Technique."

"He secretly cultivated a fragmented Demon Technique similar to the Heavenly Demon Disintegration Technique. Before he sensed that disaster was imminent, he split off a wisp of his soul and hid it inside a piece of Soul Nourishing Jade."

"But even with such caution, he still couldn’t escape a fatal end..."

"On the night he underwent a complete Demonic Transformation, I had an incredibly vivid ’dream’..."

"It was my cousin’s hidden divided soul, using a Secret Technique to send me a dream and tell me the bloody truth!"

As he spoke, Zhang Tianhao’s voice trembled. "Unfortunately, after the old monster devoured his main body, he used a Soul Search and read the memory of him performing the Soul Division."

"In less than three days, that old monster found the Soul Nourishing Jade."

"At the last moment, to avoid implicating me, my cousin shattered his own divided soul, scattering into dust and smoke..."

Leng Qingqiu and Chu Fan listened quietly.

Only Zhang Tianhao’s heavy breathing echoed throughout the cell.

The story was truly bone-chilling.

A clan’s ancestor, entrenched over his own bloodline like a spider in its web, actually devoured his descendants to extend his life and increase his power!

Who would have ever thought that the Zhang Family would produce an anomaly like Zhang Tianhao, one who would endure humiliation to carry such a heavy burden...

He had used the opportunity in the arena to execute a "Golden Cicada Sheds Its Shell" gambit, actively "hiding" himself in the Demon Suppression Bureau—the most dangerous, yet also the safest, of places.

Those few Zhang Family disciples, currently ecstatic about Entering the Profound Origin Secret Realm, would likely never imagine, even in their wildest dreams, that they were cheerfully walking into a slaughterhouse!