Chapter 134: Chapter 5: Using Oneself as Bait (Part 2)

While Lu Xuan sat cross-legged in the sky, waiting quietly, a discussion was taking place down below in Gouxian Town.

“He… what is he doing?” the fat old man asked, puzzled. “And what the heck is Sakata Heavy Industries?”

Beside them, Yang Erlang chuckled.

“It must be a major power from the Current World. One of their youngsters died here, so the one up in the sky is probably worried that power will take its anger out on Gouxian Town or something.”

After a pause, he added,

“At least his heart is in the right place… But is this young man truly him?”

The few people, along with the dog and the ox, all looked at one another, but no one could give a definite answer.

After a long moment, Li Changgeng stroked his long beard and said uncertainly,

“I suppose not? The boy in the sky clearly doesn’t recognize us. If he were a reincarnation, if this were his return, he would surely know who we are… Could he be merely a similar flower?”

“I don’t think it’s him, either.”

Li Nezha sat on a large, green boulder nearby, legs crossed, and said quietly,

“His actions are decisive enough, but he lacks that person’s imposing aura—he’s not as domineering or as grand.”

“WOOF! WOOF!” the Old Black Dog suddenly barked.

Yang Erlang smiled and patted the dog’s head.

“Be patient. After the next worldly revival, you’ll be able to speak again… The Immortals and Buddhas are about to return. I just wonder if the tribulation will continue to unfold.”

“Who cares!”

The fat old man said lazily,

“The worst that can happen is we just continue to stay in town… What I’m worried about now is that fellow in the sky who looks exactly like Supreme Emperor Profound Yellow. Will he stir up some trouble that leads to us being exposed?”

“It’s no matter. As the saying goes, we’ve endured the Dharma-Ending Age and are constrained by the world’s laws. But the one buried beneath the ground transcends this world entirely.”

……

「Wutong City.」

“Why haven’t we heard anything yet?”

In the massive conference room on the top floor of the skyscraper, a director from Sakata Heavy Industries sat at the head of the table. Frowning at the others, he asked,

“Any report from the Celestial Human we sent out?”

The dozen or so executives exchanged glances and shook their heads.

In a Super Conglomerate, a typical Celestial Human would already be a high-level executive. Those at the Earth Immortal Level, however, were almost always members of the board of directors—the real people in power.

An executive raised his hand and said cautiously,

“I just tried contacting him again several times. There’s no response, no feedback at all. Something feels wrong.”

“Hm?”

The old director’s expression turned serious. He stood up and began to pace back and forth.

“The group is on the verge of all-out war with Longque Technology. We’ve joined forces with Aotao Organism to corner and cut them off, and we’re already seeing results. We absolutely cannot afford any mistakes at this critical juncture!”

As he spoke, a worried look appeared on his face. ’Those three hand-signed orders, if they were to get out…’

’Under normal circumstances, it wouldn’t be a big deal. Even if they did leak, we could easily suppress the news. But now…’

The old director took a deep breath and said gravely,

“If those three hand-signed orders leak, at a time like this, Longque Technology will be like sharks that smell blood. They’ll hunt us down relentlessly and won’t let go. This could escalate into a major disaster.”

He paused to think for a moment, then announced decisively,

“Alright. Have the mayor of Wutong City come see me. Activate the emergency management ordinance and put Wutong City on a temporary, complete lockdown. Also, send three Celestial Humans to the Kongtong Mountain Range. They are to maintain constant contact and report back immediately. Find out what happened there!”

Wutong City was the financial hub between two Provinces, and even an hour-long lockdown would bring incalculable losses, but that couldn’t be helped now.

The assembled executives exchanged a look, rose to their feet, and respectfully acknowledged the order.

Before long, jarring alarm sirens blared across the skies of Wutong City. Airports, train stations, and other hubs were all shut down, and long barricades were pulled across all roads leading out of the city!

Amid the chaos, three Great Suns burst from the city and sped toward the Kongtong Mountain Range.

Over two hours later, an elderly man in simple clothing was escorted into the building. Despite carrying himself with a considerable aura of authority, he remained utterly respectful before the old director.

“We at Sakata Heavy Industries have lost…” Before the old director could finish, an executive burst into the room, stumbling and out of breath.

“Director!” he gasped, trembling. “There’s been an incident!”

A bad feeling rose in the old director’s heart. After waving away the mayor of Wutong City, he finally asked in a grave tone,

“What is it? What happened?”

The middle-aged executive let out a ragged breath and hurriedly explained,

“The three… the three Celestial Humans sent to the Kongtong Mountain Range… they’re dead!”

“What did you say?!” The old director’s expression changed abruptly, a vicious glint in his eyes. “Is the report accurate? How long has it even been?!”

“It seems to be. Communications were cut off suddenly, and immediately after, someone witnessed three Great Suns falling from the sky!”

The executive wiped the sweat from his brow.

“I’ve already had our people redirect a satellite. We should have something soon…”

Before he could finish, his phone vibrated slightly. He picked it up, glanced at it, and quickly handed it over.

“The satellite images and data are in!”

The old director snatched the phone, opened the image with a frown, and his expression changed again.

The image showed the edge of the Kongtong Mountain Range. A single Great Sun hung in the sky, while on the ground not far from it lay three corpses.

Zooming in, they could barely make out a young man enveloped in the Great Sun’s radiance. He didn’t look very old. Beside him stood two others; though their faces were blurry, data enhancement identified them as the fugitives, Mukai Rindo and Xu Qingqiu!

“So we’ve found them?” Yet the old director’s expression held no joy. Instead, it grew even graver.

’Who is that young man??’

’Counting the one we sent before, that makes four Celestial Humans who have perished there!’

’Why didn’t they run?’

With a grim expression, the old director turned his head and asked,

“Have the image results been uploaded to the system?”

“It has. Data comparison is in progress. We should have an ID very soon…”

Before he could finish, the phone vibrated again, and a file was sent over.

The old director tapped it open, and his expression shifted dramatically.

“Lu Xuan… East Sea City… slew the Demon-Slaying Race prodigy, Hou Qingshan…”

He couldn’t sit still. The terrible premonition in his heart intensified. He wanted to go to the Kongtong Mountain Range at once, but he hesitated.

’According to the file, this young man, Lu Xuan, is too strange. He grew up in the slums and has extremely close ties to Longque Technology. Not only did he display astonishing cultivation at a young age, but he just killed four Celestial Humans!’

’And after doing all that, he didn’t even run. He didn’t leave. He’s so confident… Where does that confidence come from?’

Connecting this to the file’s mention of his close ties with Longque Technology, the old director shuddered. He immediately discarded the thought of going to the Kongtong Mountain Range himself.

He waved his hand and ordered,

“Contact headquarters immediately! Report an emergency incident. Threat level… maximum!”

“The three hand-signed orders are on this Lu Xuan. We cannot afford to be negligent. Move, now!”

“Also, send one more high-ranking Celestial Human to scout out the situation… and tell them to proceed with caution!”

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