Qin Hao's voice, wrapped in spiritual energy, echoed throughout the entire Heavenly Sword Sect.
Inside the mountain gate, countless disciples and elders raised their heads simultaneously at this moment, their faces revealing expressions of shock.
Who is it? Who dares to directly call out the Sect Master's name?
And what is this about a branch, an Emperor Son? What branch?
However, before the crowd could react, deep within the Heavenly Sword Sect, in the secluded chamber where the Sect Master was in closed-door cultivation, a figure in a green robe suddenly opened his eyes.
Qin Yuanqing's pupils shrank, the depths of his eyes filled with boundless shock and fear.
Em—Emperor Son? Why would the Emperor Son of the main family personally visit his insignificant Heavenly Sword Sect? Is it because of the awakener of the Seven-Aperture Exquisite Heart who joined the sect some time ago? Does the Emperor Son already know everything? I am doomed!
Qin Yuanqing's face turned deathly pale in an instant. He sprang up from his futon, not even bothering to conceal his chaotic aura. His entire body transformed into a streak of green light, rushing madly toward the mountain gate.
Along the way, some elders wanted to step forward and ask what was going on, only to see their Sect Master's panic-stricken face.
Sect Master? You...?
Get out of the way! Do not block me!
Qin Yuanqing shoved aside the elders blocking his path. His loss of composure left everyone dumbfounded.
Was this still the deeply dignified Sect Master who never showed his emotions on his face?
At the mountain gate, the two guardian disciples were still kneeling on the ground. Hearing Qin Hao's shout, they instinctively looked up, only to witness a scene they would never forget for the rest of their lives.
They saw an extremely disheveled figure stumbling down from the sky. Because he was in such a panic upon landing, he even lost his footing and staggered.
The two fixed their gazes, their eyes nearly popping out of their sockets. The newcomer was none other than their Sect Master, the invincible champion of the Southern Region.
A stormy sea of shock surged in their hearts. They truly could not connect this man, with his messy hair, pale face, and cold sweat dripping from his forehead, to the normally majestic Sect Master who seemed to have everything under control.
But what happened next made the two of them doubt life itself.
After landing, Qin Yuanqing did not even spare them a glance. Instead, he quickly walked up to the dark-robed young man. Then, under the disciples' incredulous gazes, Qin Yuanqing swept up his robe and dropped to one knee!
Qin Yuanqing of the branch family was unaware of the Emperor Son's arrival and failed to welcome you! Please punish me, Your Highness!
Qin Yuanqing's voice was loud, yet it carried a noticeable tremble.
He knelt on the ground, his back stiff. Beads of sweat fell from his forehead one by one, but he dared not reach up to wipe them away. He was also a member of the Desolate Ancient Qin Family, albeit just from a branch lineage.
Because the competitive pressure within the Qin Family was too intense, he had simply left the family and come to the outside world to establish his own faction. Although he now held the title of the number one expert in the Southern Region, and his Heavenly Sword Sect was the number one sect in the region, he knew very well that in the eyes of the Qin Family's direct lineage, he and the Heavenly Sword Sect were not even considered an anthill.
Why had this little ancestor come to the Southern Region? What could possibly be happening in his insignificant Heavenly Sword Sect to warrant a personal visit from the Emperor Son? The only possibility was the awakener of the Seven-Aperture Exquisite Heart from before.
At this thought, Qin Yuanqing's heart skipped a beat. He could have come earlier or later, but he just had to come at this exact moment. How was he supposed to explain this?
Seeing their Sect Master, who was invincible in the Southern Region, acting so subserviently before Qin Hao, the minds of the two mountain-guarding disciples completely short-circuited.
Lord Imperial Son? Across the Three Realms and Nine Heavens, anyone holding such a title was, without exception, the son of an Immortal Emperor. The Sect Master's name was Qin Yuanqing, bearing the surname Qin. So, was this overly handsome young man before them the legendary Imperial Son of the Desolate Ancient Qin Family?
They suddenly recalled what they had just said to him: "Are you sure you want to cause trouble on the Heavenly Sword Sect's turf?"
For a moment, the two felt the world spin around them, wishing they could just faint on the spot. With a status like his, let alone causing trouble, even if he flipped the entire Heavenly Sword Sect upside down, the Sect Master would probably have to ask if he had enjoyed doing it.
Qin Hao looked down at Qin Yuanqing kneeling before him with a faint expression. He neither asked him to rise nor showed any anger; he simply watched him quietly.
Under Qin Hao's gaze, Qin Yuanqing felt a deep panic in his heart, but he did not dare make a single movement.
After a long while, Qin Hao finally spoke slowly:
"Stand up."
Qin Yuanqing felt as if he had received a grand pardon. He quickly stood up, but he did not dare to stand straight in front of Qin Hao. He maintained a bowed posture, forcing an apologetic smile:
"Lord Imperial Son has traveled a long way, and I failed to welcome you properly. I truly deserve death. May I ask what orders Lord Imperial Son has for coming here?"
Qin Hao glanced at Qin Yuanqing and frowned slightly. Why am I here? Could he really not guess?
Qin Hao did not play along with Qin Yuanqing's words and instead asked:
"Where is Xia Lingxi, the girl I recommended to cultivate in your sect previously? Take me to see her."
Qin Yuanqing's heart tightened, but he did not dare let any abnormality show on his face:
"Reporting to the Imperial Son, I am afraid you will not be able to see her for the time being. Xia Lingxi... is currently in secluded cultivation."
"Secluded cultivation?"
Hearing this, Qin Hao's frown deepened. If she was in secluded cultivation, why had he not received any divine ability feedback? Although the little fool was a bit silly, possessing the Seven-Aperture Exquisite Heart meant she should not be stupid when it came to cultivation.
Thinking of this, Qin Hao rested his hand on Qin Yuanqing's shoulder, a chilling smile forming at the corner of his mouth:
"Qin Yuanqing, I think I do not need to tell you the consequences of lying to me. You should know it very well yourself."
Qin Hao's voice was very soft, but falling into Qin Yuanqing's ears, it was like a thunderclap from the Nine Heavens exploding in his mind.
His body stiffened. He felt as if the hand resting on his shoulder weighed tens of millions of pounds, pressing down so hard that his spine was creaking.
What was even more terrifying was Qin Hao's eyes, calm and indifferent. Yet, the more they were like this, the greater the pressure Qin Yuanqing felt.
At this moment, he no longer harbored any illusions. Lord Imperial Son definitely knew something, which was why he had specifically come to the Heavenly Sword Sect.
Qin Yuanqing gritted his teeth, finally made a ruthless decision in his heart, and let his knees give way, kneeling down once again. However, this time, he was not kneeling on one knee, but both.
"Lord Imperial Son, please forgive me! I dare not hide anything! It is all due to my incompetence. That Xia Lingxi you recommended... she, she has gone missing."
"Missing?" Qin Hao's eyes instantly turned freezing cold.
"Explain it to me. What do you mean by missing?"
Qin Yuanqing did not dare to look up and could only bite the bullet and explain:
"Reporting to Lord Imperial Son, a month ago, Xia Lingxi mistakenly entered the Soul-Severing Cliff in the back mountain, and then all traces of her vanished. I have already ordered people to search for her with all our might. We must see her alive, or see her dead..."
Qin Hao stared deeply at Qin Yuanqing. "So, she has been missing for a month, and you still haven't found her, is that right?"
Qin Yuanqing was left speechless, only able to bury his head even lower.
"I implore the Imperial Son for forgiveness."
ut it can buy an entire year of absolutely perfect training results! Su Yu stared at his empty wallet and decisively opened up various online loan platforms. “Borrow a thousand bucks! Recharge my vitality!” Boom! His vitality broke a hundred points, shattering the limits of the human body! “Borrow ten thousand bucks! Recharge my combat skills!” Boom! A basic punching technique so common it was everywhere instantly maxed out, revealing the ultimate assassination technique of Five Elements Unity—Inner Force! When a rich kid hired assassins for a midnight ambush, aiming to break both of his legs, they instead ran headfirst into a monster—a human-shaped tyrannosaur, brimming with dragon-like vitality. With just two fingers, Su Yu snapped a steel staff reinforced with alloy. Staring at the killer’s stash of stolen cash—a staggering quarter-million dollars—he showed a corporate-sincere smile: “Thanks for the pre-exam gift pack, Mr. Zhao! I’m gonna go re-invest this!” Three days later, at the National Martial Arts College Entrance Exam, while everyone else struggled just to reach the passing line, Su Yu threw a single punch—and more than a thousand vitality points literally detonated the entire arena!
with countless casualties. As a top-tier gamer, Liu Xuan volunteered to join the fight, intending to dominate with his skills, but instead he obtained the hidden class: [Pacifist]. Unable to attack. Unable to use active skills. Fortunately, with each level gained, he acquired a new passive skill. And so, armed with a body full of passives, Liu Xuan slaughtered his way through the battlefield of ten thousand races! [You attacked Liu Xuan] [You gained the debuffs: 'Poison', 'Fear', 'Burning', 'Bleeding', 'Freeze', 'Silence', etc.] [Your attack speed has been reduced by 99%] [Your armor and magic resistance have been reduced by 99%] Warriors of the Ten Thousand Races: How the hell am I supposed to fight this?!
lanned to earn money steadily and take life at a slower pace. But he never expected... his father's remarriage, and the stepmother bringing along a dependent, would completely disrupt his life's plans...
lity and could only live as an ordinary mortal. He only wished to live a peaceful life. Yet he didn't know— The dog he adopted, because it ate his food, became a legendary demon king. The kitchen knife he casually forged became a peerless divine weapon, causing numerous experts to fight desperately for it. The young disciple he took in became an immortal lord that led an era, due to cultivating the techniques Ye Feng taught him. Even the skeletons he looked down on the most were ominous demon kings that suppressed countless worlds. Many years later, looking at the void shattered with a punch, Ye Feng murmured to himself: It turns out the peerless kings were myself all along...
