Chapter 463 - 228: Strange Person

When he finished, Zhao Rui’s profound gaze drifted toward the distant Central Asian Trading Territory.

The Great Zhou had begun their infiltration, and the Great Shang were not idle either.

They both saw the Central Plains as a juicy prize.

"Go back!"

"G-go back? Go back where?"

The bandit leader didn’t quite understand and asked, trembling in fear.

Zhao Rui said nothing more. He instantly activated the Heavenly Demon Illusionary Sound Technique, clouding the man’s mind and planting a Heavenly Demon Mark within his sea of consciousness.

Then, hoisting the man with one hand, Zhao Rui transformed into a long, arcing streak of sword light and flew toward the ground.

By the time they reached the ground, the bandit leader was already bowing and declaring, "I will obey the Venerable Lord’s command."

"Go."

With that, the bandit leader turned and departed.

Zhao Rui watched him go, lost in thought. ’The Heavenly Demon Technique may be one of the Demonic Martial Arts, but desperate times call for desperate measures.’

After scanning the desert, Zhao Rui leaped high into the sky once more. He unleashed the Spring Breeze and Rain Technique to its fullest extent, his entire Domain expanding as vast reserves of True Qi gathered within him.

Zhao Rui’s Spiritual Sense drifted out on the gentle breeze, allowing him to perceive the slightest disturbance within a radius of several hundred kilometers.

Zhao Rui shot forward at incredible speed, crossing the entire gobi in an instant.

He discovered dozens of gangs operating along the border.

This time, he wasted no words. He immediately used the Heavenly Demon Illusionary Sound Technique on everyone he found. All those identified as Great Shang spies were branded with a Heavenly Demon Mark.

This would subconsciously force them to revere him as their lord.

Killing them all would only cause the Great Shang to recruit more, and it would needlessly alert the enemy.

This was a far better approach. Planting these sleeper agents in secret would prove much more valuable.

After two days of constant work, Zhao Rui had finally swept through the entire border region.

He found over thirty scattered gangs, both large and small. The strongest among them was an Initial Tier Dharma Realm expert who, on the surface, was an Elder of a border clan, but had in reality long since pledged allegiance to the Great Shang.

’Right and wrong, good and evil... in the end, it all comes down to personal gain.’

Just as he was clearing out the last of the border bandits, a piece of unsettling news reached him.

The news was dire, not just for Blue Star, but for Zhao Rui personally—the old world order had completely collapsed.

In a single week, the Extraordinary power of the Returning Ruins had destroyed most of the Blue Star World. Only a handful of nations were left with any semblance of control.

Most of the smaller nations had either been annexed by the Great Shang or enslaved by the Manghuang Race. The most unfortunate had become hunting grounds for the Returning Ruins Beasts.

The world’s modern civilization was on the brink of collapse.

Only the Central Plains, along with military superpowers like Europe and America, had managed to maintain their national integrity by relying on their overwhelming military might and advanced weaponry.

But America, across the ocean, likely wouldn’t last much longer. The sudden descent of an Exotic Beast tide had plunged the entire nation into a cataclysmic struggle.

The clash between human weaponry and the terrifying power of the Exotic Beasts was gradually destroying everything in its path.

These Exotic Beasts from the Pangu Continent were incredibly powerful and numerous.

If the emergence of the Returning Ruins hadn’t expanded the oceans severalfold, the Central Plains would have likely had to face a wave of Exotic Beasts long before the Great Shang and Great Zhou ever arrived.

All of this had been officially reported in stages over the past week.

And it had all happened suddenly, just within this past week.

The speed, scale, and scope of these events had taken everyone by surprise.

The truth could no longer be concealed.

And the time left for Zhao Rui to grow stronger was rapidly running out.

Zhao Rui’s power had already increased substantially.

He had acquired more than thirty Advancement Points, which he used to open over thirty new Acupoints, bringing his total to ninety-seven.

He was only a few away from opening all one hundred and eight Acupoints.

His ability to absorb True Qi and his affinity for it had reached a frighteningly high level.

Even so, he maintained a healthy respect for the Martial Dao powers of the Great Shang and Great Zhou—a respect for the unknown.

High above, Zhao Rui flew against the whistling Gang Wind, changing direction and heading for the heartland of the Central Plains.

’The plan has changed. I’ll have to resort to special measures.’

Since ancient times, Kunlun Mountain has been regarded by the common folk as the location of an Immortal Palace Dao Court.

The Kunlun Sect, built upon its slopes, was naturally shrouded in an aura of mystery.

However, this Kunlun Sect had no connection to the Immortal Kunlun Sect. It was said to have been founded during the Tang Dynasty by the swordswoman Pei Qiong, who became famous throughout the Jianghu for her Ice Soul Cold Light Sword technique.

"Senior Brother, your Yin Yang Swordsmanship already has much of Master’s flair. Among the younger generation of all the sects, there must be very few who could defeat you."

Beside a deep pool at the foot of Kunlun Mountain, a young woman watched with eyes full of admiration as her handsome senior brother sheathed his sword.

"Junior Sister, you must also work hard. Once you advance to the Grandmaster Realm, we can leave the mountain and travel together. Then we can make a name for ourselves as the Kunlun Divine Sword Mandarin Duck. Wouldn’t that be wonderful?"

The handsome senior brother’s eyes burned with intensity as he spoke in a clear voice, his gaze filled with a longing to descend the mountain and travel the world.

"Senior Brother!"

The woman’s face flushed crimson. She lowered her head slightly, her slender fingers fidgeting with the corner of her robes as she called out his name in a shy, chiding tone.

Her voice was utterly bewitching, a born enchantress’s charm..

"Junior Sister!"

Hearing her voice, the man’s heart skipped a beat, and he couldn’t stop himself from reaching out and taking her soft hand.

"Sen—"

The woman was about to respond gently when her eyes suddenly flew wide open, her gaze fixed in astonishment on something behind her senior brother.

"What’s wrong, Junior Sister!"

"S-Someone’s there!"

The man, alarmed, spun around just in time to see a finger stabbing toward him, getting closer and closer.