Chapter 86 Recruiting the Old Friends

Somewhere in the Northern Region, Qiu Wuyin hovered above a remote village and deliberately released a powerful surge of spiritual energy, announcing his presence to everyone below. The sudden pressure sent the mortal villagers into a panic as people rushed into their homes, while some even fell to their knees in fear.

Moments later, an old man flew out from a nearby residence and glared angrily at Qiu Wuyin. “Old Wuyin, can you stop showing off for once?” he shouted in irritation. “My people are always thrown into a panic whenever you come here!”

“Don't be angry, don't be angry,” Qiu Wuyin replied in a soft and cheerful voice, completely ignoring the furious expression on his old friend’s face. “I actually came here because I have some good news for you, Old Fu.”

The old man, Fu, narrowed his eyes suspiciously. “Good news? What is it?”

Qiu Wuyin suddenly smiled mischievously and leaned forward slightly. “Guess what?”

Fu stared at him blankly. “Guess what?”

“That's right. Guess.”

Fu's face twitched.

“Just tell me!”

Qiu Wuyin continued smiling without saying anything.

Old Fu's patience finally reached its limit as he glared at his old friend. “Just say it already! If you don't, I'll blast you out of here!”

Qiu Wuyin chuckled at his reaction, clearly enjoying himself. “Old Fu, you're still as impatient as ever.”

Qiu Wuyin continued grinning as he deliberately dragged out the suspense. “Just guess what the good news is,” he said, only to repeat himself when Old Fu stared at him impatiently. “Come on, just guess. What do you think it is?”

“Tell me already,” Old Fu growled.

“Just guess.”

“Old Wuyin...”

“Guess.”

A vein bulged on Old Fu's forehead as his patience finally snapped. 

“You—!” he roared, and without saying another word, he unleashed a furious attack toward Qiu Wuyin.

Qiu Wuyin's expression changed slightly as he effortlessly raised his hand and blocked the incoming attack. “Old Fu, what is your problem?” he asked innocently.

“What is my problem?” Old Fu's face twisted with anger as he immediately launched another attack. “Guess what!”

Qiu Wuyin's eyes widened as he quickly dodged to the side. The attack passed dangerously close to him, and he could tell that if it had landed directly, he would have suffered some injuries. “Old Fu, I was joking!” he hurriedly shouted while retreating.

Old Fu completely ignored him and continued attacking.

“Wait, wait!” Qiu Wuyin shouted as he dodged another strike. “If you keep attacking like this, your people might get caught in the aftermath!”

Old Fu's expression immediately changed when he heard that. He glanced toward the village below and finally stopped his attacks, knowing that the slightest mistake could injure the mortals he had spent years protecting.

He took a deep breath and glared at Qiu Wuyin. “Now... just tell me.”

“Right, right.” Qiu Wuyin smiled and straightened his robes. “I have a backer.”

Old Fu's expression immediately became unimpressed. “A backer? You dragged me out here and wasted my time just to tell me that you found a backer?”

He turned around, clearly intending to leave.

Qiu Wuyin hurriedly called after him, “Wait! My backer isn't an ordinary backer.”

Old Fu stopped and glanced over his shoulder. “Not an ordinary backer?”

“That's right,” Qiu Wuyin replied proudly.

Old Fu raised an eyebrow. “Then?”

Qiu Wuyin grinned.

“Guess what.”

Old Fu's forehead immediately bulged with another vein.

“You!”

Qiu Wuyin quickly waved his hands. “I'm joking! I'm joking!”

Old Fu took a deep breath, barely restraining himself from attacking again.

Qiu Wuyin finally stopped teasing him and said seriously, “My backer isn't ordinary. He's a powerful existence capable of suppressing me effortlessly.”

Old Fu's expression gradually became serious.

“Capable of suppressing you?”

His gaze toward Qiu Wuyin changed.

In his understanding, Qiu Wuyin was already much stronger than himself. If someone could suppress Qiu Wuyin effortlessly, then that person's strength was clearly beyond anything Old Fu could imagine.

Old Fu's curiosity finally overcame his irritation as he asked seriously, “Who exactly is this backer of yours?”

Qiu Wuyin smiled mischievously. “Guess what?”

Old Fu's expression immediately darkened. Seeing that expression, Qiu Wuyin quickly stopped teasing him and said, “The Unseen Emperor.”

“What?” Old Fu's eyes widened, and his expression became serious. “Don't joke around with something like that.”

“I'm not joking,” Qiu Wuyin immediately interrupted, his tone becoming serious. “The Unseen Emperor is my backer.”

Old Fu stared at him suspiciously, clearly unconvinced. “The Unseen Emperor? You mean the legendary existence from the ancient records?”

“Yes,” Qiu Wuyin replied firmly. “Do you remember the records we saw when we traveled to the Central Continent hundreds of years ago? His appearance was described as strange. His face was always distorted or blurry, and those who truly saw his face couldn't remember his appearance afterward. The person I met has exactly the same appearance described in those records.”

Old Fu frowned. “Even if his face is distorted, that doesn't prove he's the real Unseen Emperor. He could simply be imitating him.”

“His sword,” Qiu Wuyin suddenly interrupted.

Old Fu paused. “His sword?”

Qiu Wuyin's expression became even more serious. “His sword looks exactly like the one illustrated in the ancient records—the Heaven Moonveil Sword.”

He clearly remembered seeing the black-robed figure's sword hanging from his waist. The weapon had matched the ancient illustration almost perfectly.

Old Fu's expression changed. “The Heaven Moonveil Sword...”

“If that's true...” Old Fu muttered, his eyes narrowing. “Then he really might be the Unseen Emperor.”

He suddenly remembered another legendary weapon. “What about his other sword? The Dark Star Heavenly Sword? Did you see it?”

Qiu Wuyin thought back to the moment he had met Zan Yunxiao and shook his head. “I didn't see it. Perhaps he didn't bring it with him.”

He paused for a moment before adding thoughtfully, “Or perhaps it's been lost?”

Old Fu frowned. “Lost?”

Qiu Wuyin nodded. “It's been 100,000 years since the Unseen Emperor disappeared. Of course, his sword could have been lost during that time. For all we know, someone might have even stolen it while he was asleep.”

Old Fu fell silent for a moment before slowly nodding. “That does make sense.”

As Qiu Wuyin and Old Fu continued their conversation, Qiu Wuyin finally brought up the real reason for his visit. “Old Fu, enough with the reminiscing. I actually came here to invite you to join my side and serve the Unseen Emperor,” he said seriously.

Old Fu fell silent and thoughtfully considered his words. After a moment, he nodded. “Very well. If your backer truly is the Unseen Emperor, then I am willing to follow him.”

Qiu Wuyin smiled with satisfaction. “Good. Then let's go. Before we return, we'll visit the other old fellows as well. I intend to invite every one of them to join the Unseen Emperor.”

. . .

Meanwhile, somewhere within a dense forest in the Northern Region, Zan Yunxiao encountered an unexpected group of cultivators. A middle-aged man stood in front of him with several cultivators behind him, his expression filled with arrogance as he looked at Zan Yunxiao. “Hey, you! Join my side, and together we can dominate the entire Western Continent!”

Zan Yunxiao stared at him through his blurred face and calmly shook his head. “I'm not interested.”

The middle-aged man's expression immediately darkened, while Zan Yunxiao silently assessed their strength.

The man in front of him was only at the 2nd Soul Transformation Realm, while the strongest person among his followers was merely at the Nascent Soul Realm. Clearly, this fellow believed that possessing a Nascent Soul cultivator under his command made him powerful enough to dominate the Western Continent.

"What are these people doing here?"

Zan Yunxiao frowned inwardly.

Didn't they participate in the Great War against the Northern Alliance?

After thinking about it, he quickly understood.

These people were probably not natives of the Northern Region. During the war, many powerful cultivators had gone into seclusion because of rumors that a mysterious powerhouse was protecting the Crimson Empire from the shadows. Because of this, some were afraid of becoming involved, while others simply did not want to interfere in the war between the Crimson Empire and the Northern Alliance. 

The natives of the Northern Region were especially cautious, even the Nascent Soul cultivators, because of a terrifying incident in which every Nascent Soul cultivator hired by the Northern Alliance was wiped out. Even the Demon King had mysteriously disappeared after planning to destroy an entire city, leaving the cultivators of the Northern Region terrified of provoking whatever terrifying existence was protecting the Crimson Empire. 

Now that the Northern Region had become part of the Crimson Empire, this fear had only deepened, as many of its cultivators still remembered the terrifying events that had occurred during the war.