Chapter 180: Different Paths, No Common Cause

The central hub of the spatial turbulence was a vast continent floating in endless darkness.

This land was utterly shattered, its surface crisscrossed with countless fissures, like wounds torn open by some colossal beast.

There was no distinction between heaven and earth here, no rotation of sun or moon—only chunks of crystal of varying sizes, emitting faint glimmers of light. Like stars, they dotted the void, providing the only illumination to this desolate land.

An ancient, barren aura permeated the air, mixed with the lingering aftertaste of shattered laws, inspiring an instinctive sense of awe.

Feng Zhiruo was the first to arrive.

Guided by the Jianmu Leaf, she landed steadily on a relatively flat stretch of land.

No sooner had she found her footing than two disheveled figures tumbled out of a nearby spatial rift, crashing down in a heap.

It was Zhang Daniu and Zhao Wuji.

“Damn it! This ‘employee teleportation’ experience was straight-up negative points!”

“I suggest submitting an emergency optimization request to the Technical Department. At the very least, add a ‘safety airbag’ formation, right?!”

Zhao Wuji had face-planted hard. The moment he looked up and saw Feng Zhiruo, he reacted as if by reflex—scrambling to his feet, brushing the dust off his clothes, and forcibly putting on an elite posture to preserve his image as a “corporate executive.”

His face was still pale, but his eyes were filled with the relief of surviving a catastrophe.

Zhang Daniu, on the other hand, looked completely different.

His upper body was bare, bronze-colored muscles bulging, covered in bluish-purple bruises and scabs of dried blood. Yet his spirit was soaring, his eyes blazing with sharp light, his aura several times stronger than before—like a prehistoric beast that had just awakened from hibernation, brimming with explosive power.

“F-Feng… Miss Feng, are you alright?”

Zhang Daniu scratched his head and asked honestly, his voice carrying a trace of concern.

Feng Zhiruo’s gaze swept over him, a flicker of barely perceptible surprise flashing through her eyes. She could sense the mountain-like heaviness of the power within Zhang Daniu—something no ordinary body-tempering technique could produce.

“You… broke through?”

“And such a domineering body-refinement method. Looks like your luck was truly exceptional.”

“Hehe, I don’t really know either. I just followed those stone statues and copied their moves, then got beaten up once, crushed by some kind of heavy water once, and somehow… my whole body just hardened.”

Zhang Daniu grinned foolishly, scratching the back of his head and revealing a mouthful of white teeth.

Zhao Wuji cleared his throat and leaned in, speaking with a mysterious air:

“Advisor Feng, you don’t get it.”

“This wasn’t a simple breakthrough for Daniu. This was completing a ‘specialized deep-skill training program for core employees.’ Sure, the process was a bit painful, but his personal ‘asset valuation’ has at least doubled!”

“When we get back, his ‘performance review’ is guaranteed an A+!”

The corner of Feng Zhiruo’s mouth twitched. She decided it wasn’t worth wasting words on someone who had already been completely brainwashed by Chu Feng’s ideology.

She turned her gaze toward the distance, trying to find Chu Feng.

At that moment, another ripple of space flashed past, like ripples spreading across water.

Chu Feng’s figure slowly emerged from the distortion. In his arms, he carried the unconscious Murong Xue.

Although he looked somewhat exhausted, his eyes were still clear.

“President!”

“Brother Chu!”

The three of them rushed forward together, their faces filled with genuine joy.

“I’m fine.”

Chu Feng gently set Murong Xue down and checked her condition. Seeing that she had merely exhausted her mind and fallen unconscious, her breathing steady, he finally let out a breath of relief.

He took out a soul-nourishing pill from his storage ring and placed it into Murong Xue’s mouth.

Then he looked up at Zhang Daniu, a trace of approval flashing through his eyes.

“Not bad. Looks like this ‘business trip’ significantly improved your ‘professional competence’ as a ‘Level-One Security Supervisor.’ Your future is promising.”

“Hehe, it’s all thanks to the President’s excellent leadership!”

Zhang Daniu said excitedly, his face glowing with the joy of being acknowledged.

“Alright, enough flattery.”

Chu Feng waved his hand, his gaze sweeping across the bizarre land as his brows knit slightly.

“This should be the core of that secret realm. The laws here are chaotic, and the exit is unclear. We need to find a way out quickly, or it could lead to unnecessary ‘asset losses.’”

“President, I’ve just conducted some preliminary ‘market research’ on the local environment!”

Zhao Wuji immediately stepped forward to claim credit, handing over his little notebook filled with dense analyses.

“The energy here is stable, the structure is solid—very suitable as a ‘temporary command center.’ It’s just that the ‘infrastructure’ is lacking. There isn’t even a meeting room, which isn’t conducive to ‘efficient decision-making’…”

Chu Feng couldn’t be bothered to listen to Zhao Wuji’s rambling. Just as he was about to speak, his expression suddenly changed.

A chilling, overwhelming aura—so cold it pierced to the bone and so powerful it suffocated—descended without warning!

Like a tangible tidal wave, it instantly swept across the entire land, making everyone feel as though a ten-thousand-year iceberg had slammed down on them. Breathing became labored, and the circulation of spiritual energy stalled.

A white-clad figure seemed to condense out of the void itself, slowly stepping out from the distant darkness. Each step landed upon the laws of space, devoid of any mortal presence.

He finally stopped a hundred zhang in front of them.

White robes like snow, spotless and immaculate. An ancient sword, simple and unadorned. Sword intent sharp and chilling. His face was expressionless.

It was Murong Tian!

But at this moment, his aura was more than ten times stronger than before!

The pressure of Nascent Soul Great Perfection surged outward like a physical tide in all directions, making the surrounding void hum under the strain, even tearing open fine cracks.

His eyes were colder than ever, as if they could see through all things and judge everything.

“Murong Tian!”

Feng Zhiruo cried out involuntarily, horror filling her eyes.

It hadn’t been that long—how could his cultivation have skyrocketed to such a terrifying level?!

She could clearly sense that Murong Tian’s power now far surpassed that of most late-stage Nascent Soul cultivators in the Mortal Realm, even faintly carrying the bearing of the Deification Realm.

Zhang Daniu and Zhao Wuji immediately tensed as if facing a mortal enemy. They instinctively positioned themselves in front of Chu Feng and Murong Xue, spiritual energy surging wildly, muscles coiled tight, ready to strike at any moment.

Chu Feng’s gaze had never been more solemn.

At a glance, he noticed the storage pouch hanging at Murong Tian’s waist. He recognized its style—it belonged to Lei Qianjue!

Combined with Murong Tian’s explosive increase in cultivation, he instantly understood the cause and effect.

“It seems your ‘partner’ has already completed his historical mission and was subjected to ‘asset liquidation’ by you.”

Chu Feng spoke slowly, his tone tinged with mockery and cold sharpness.

Murong Tian did not answer him, nor did he even spare him a glance.

From beginning to end, his gaze rested solely on the unconscious white-robed woman lying on the ground—Murong Xue.

For the first time, an extremely complex emotion appeared in those eternally icy eyes. It was as if he were examining a once-perfect work of art now tainted with flaws, or looking at a family member who had strayed onto the wrong path.

He slowly raised his hand, the long sword in his grip pointing remotely toward Chu Feng and the others.

“Junior Sister.”

His voice sounded like two blocks of black ice grinding together—cold, rigid, utterly devoid of human emotion, precise and merciless like a machine.

“Once I finish cleaning up this trash…”

“You will come back with me.”

At last, his gaze shifted from Murong Xue to Chu Feng’s face. In that look, there was no killing intent, no anger—only the detached coldness of judgment.

“Your Dao… has gone astray.”

That single sentence was like a final verdict, an unquestionable command.

He was not negotiating, nor persuading—he was stating a “fact” he had already “calculated” and deemed indisputable.

In Murong Tian’s “logic,” Murong Xue following Chu Feng and learning that absurd “business theory” was a fatal “BUG” in her once-flawless Dao Heart—an “error code” incompatible with his “Supreme Forgetting of Emotions.”

And his responsibility was to fix that “BUG.”

As for the method of fixing it…

It was to erase all “redundant data” and “error code” that had caused the “BUG” in the first place.

That meant Chu Feng—and everything around him.

The instant his words fell, the ancient sword in his hand let out a clear, ringing cry like a dragon’s roar.

An utterly merciless sword intent—more than a hundred times stronger than before in the factory—shot skyward, tearing through the void and instantly locking onto everyone present, including the unconscious Murong Xue.

“Trash belongs in a trash heap.”

“It should not pollute my sight.”

Looking at Chu Feng, he calmly pronounced the death sentence for all of them.

Murong Tian’s sword intent formed a net that covered heaven and earth—there was nowhere to evade.

At this critical moment, Chu Feng slowly smiled.

Within that smile was madness, provocation, and a complete, ultimate negation of Murong Tian’s Dao.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep