Desolate Devouring Art - Chapter 1221 - Secret
Chapter 1221 – Secret
After he sat, Elder Ding did not rush to speak. He knew Liu Wuxie had many questions and would ask them in his own time.
Liu Wuxie organized his thoughts carefully. Besides his curiosity about Ling Qiong, he also had personal matters to discuss with Elder Ding.
“Elder Ding, do you remember the Ling Qiong Clan I asked you about previously?” Liu Wuxie asked. With the help of Jade Blossom Dew, his injuries had healed considerably, and his complexion was already regaining its color.
“This matter involves many secrets, and I can’t explain it in just a few words,” Elder Ding said gravely. “Before I tell you, can you tell me who you truly are and where you come from?”
He dared not speak recklessly, as this topic touched upon the sect’s deepest matters.
“I have my difficulties, and I can’t tell you,” Liu Wuxie answered with a wry smile. “It’s not that I don’t trust you, but if I reveal the truth, it will shake the heavens.”
Elder Ding had saved his life more than once, and concealing the truth from his benefactor weighed on his conscience. He clearly remembered how Elder Ding had risked offending Xiao Li by saving him during the wilderness training.
He would never forget that kindness.
“I won’t force you if it’s inconvenient,” Elder Ding replied. He pressed no further; everyone had secrets to guard.
Liu Wuxie’s silence came not from unwillingness but necessity. The True Martial Continent was a secret too dangerous to expose. If word spread before he had the Heavenly Dragon Sect’s protection, countless powers would descend upon it.
He had been in the Astral Domain for months and knew that an unclaimed planet invited bloodshed. Aside from the Heavenly Dragon Sect, the Indigo Bamboo Star itself housed many formidable forces.
For that reason, he would reveal nothing unless the situation demanded it.
He still had more than a year left. If he failed to secure an audience with the upper echelons by then, he would force his way into the lesser realm. For now, his priority was finding out who in the sect wanted him dead.
“Elder Ding, you once mentioned the Ling Qiong Clan. Why haven’t I found any information about them in the sect?” Liu Wuxie asked, steering the conversation away. Now was not the time to reveal the True Martial Continent; he would do so when the moment was right.
“You’re correct. Ling Qiong is indeed a clan, and a very ancient one at that,” Elder Ding said heavily. Just mentioning the name weighed on him. Though people called it a clan, it stood on a summit unreachable in his lifetime.
Liu Wuxie stayed silent, letting him continue.
“Over a million years ago, a man named Ling Qiong Tian appeared on Indigo Bamboo Star, alongside another named Long Xiao. They became sworn brothers. With extraordinary skill, they founded the Heavenly Dragon Sect on this planet,” Elder Ding explained. Even as an Outer Sect elder, he knew little of such distant history and could share only fragments of it.
So that is the Heavenly Dragon Sect’s origin, Liu Wuxie murmured inwardly. Then he asked, “Elder Ding, was Long Xiao from the dragon clan?”
Elder Long’s presence, the Dragon Expanse Mountain Range, and Mount Sumeru all hinted that countless divine dragons lay buried here.
“That’s right. Long Xiao belonged to the dragon clan,” Elder Ding confirmed. A human and a dragon created the Heavenly Dragon Sect.
“What happened after that?” Liu Wuxie pressed.
“The sect flourished,” Elder Ding said. “Ling Qiong Tian’s lineage grew rapidly, while Long Xiao’s lineage dwindled and eventually withered. Over time, governance passed entirely into the hands of the Ling Qiong Clan. The dragon clan’s lineage withdrew from public sight.”
The details were too ancient; even the inner sect elders knew little about them.
“That’s strange. Why haven’t I seen anyone from the Ling Qiong Clan in the sect?” Liu Wuxie asked, puzzled. If the clan controlled the sect, their presence should be prominent.
“Something happened later,” Elder Ding said, shaking his head. “The Ling Qiong Clan gradually faded from the sect. I don’t know exactly what occurred.”
History had buried the truth.
From those words, Liu Wuxie deduced that the clan had not disappeared; it was hiding even deeper than before. He suspected they still controlled the Heavenly Dragon Sect in secret. No one knew if the Spirit Jade Pavilion’s Pavilion Master from the True Martial Continent had any connection to them, but he would guard against it. If such a link existed, it would become a grave problem.
The courtyard fell silent as he mulled it over. Why had someone wanted him dead all of a sudden? Elder Ding also found it peculiar. After all, Liu Wuxie was only an outer disciple with no ties to the sect.
Elder Ding first suspected Li Chen, but upon investigation, he confirmed that, although Li Chen disliked Liu Wuxie, he would not stoop so low as to target an outer disciple.
“Wuxie, Jade Blossom Dew can heal your wounds, but you cultivate the True Dragon Physique,” Elder Ding said. “If you cannot advance further in it, it will trouble you later.”
He saw through the problem. The True Dragon Physique had stalled for too long and was now hindering Liu Wuxie. The Panwu Divine Art wouldn’t refine the body; instead, it would unearth one’s potential by activating star nodes and expanding one’s capacity.
The body’s capacity was finite, and the Panwu Divine Art addressed that.
Lighting each node expanded one’s capacity, but Liu Wuxie’s capacity had grown beyond what the True Dragon Physique could contain, and even his Divine Thunder Physique had reached its limit.
“I know,” Liu Wuxie admitted with a nod. He had long noticed the problem. The solution was simple in theory—absorb more dragon-clan laws or find a method that suited the True Dragon Physique.
However, what seemed simple was more challenging than climbing the heavens.
“I can point you in a direction,” Elder Ding said with a faint smile.
“Please tell me,” Liu Wuxie urged.
“Do you remember Elder Long?” Elder Ding asked pleasantly.
Liu Wuxie nodded. Of course, he remembered. Without Elder Long, he could have perished with Xiao Li on Avatar Star.
“He is a descendant of the dragon clan,” Elder Ding said. “He possesses many of their techniques, including a method to cultivate the True Dragon Physique.”
Liu Wuxie had seen Elder Long’s physique firsthand; it surpassed his own completely.
“But I have no connection to him. It won’t be easy for me to obtain such a cultivation method,” Liu Wuxie said with a wry smile. The dragon clan keeps its secrets from outsiders, especially humans.
“That’s true. Elder Long is notoriously unyielding,” Elder Ding admitted. “But it is not impossible. Since you hold the Heavenly Dragon Seal, you can use it to your advantage.”
People ought to create opportunities for themselves, not wait for them to happen.
Liu Wuxie smiled bitterly. For now, he could only take one step at a time. He shifted the conversation to blacksmithing and other matters before rising to leave at dusk.
“Wuxie, according to sect rules, the sect will punish you for killing an inner disciple,” Elder Ding said, patting his shoulder. “But someone stopped us from interfering earlier. I suspect the upper echelons have noticed you, and perhaps the commotion you caused is not a bad thing.”
If the sect intended punishment, no one would have restrained the elders. This suggested the sect had tacitly acknowledged Liu Wuxie’s actions.
“I know. Thank you, Elder Ding,” Liu Wuxie replied, bowing deeply. He dared to kill Deng Huaiguang only after realizing someone had blocked the elders. The sect would surely punish him, but not severely. What mattered was that he had drawn the upper echelons’ attention.
Still, as a new disciple, the sect was evaluating him. Even if the upper echelons were interested, it would still take time. So long as he displayed sufficient talent, he believed he could secure an audience with them.
After bidding farewell, Liu Wuxie returned to his courtyard late at night. A faint smirk curled at his lips before he entered.
The Ghost Eye pierced the darkness, capturing everything within several thousand meters. He counted more than fifty people lurking around the courtyard.
They dared not approach, but they waited for an opening. As he suspected, they would strike the moment he showed weakness. Several inner disciples lurked among them and still reeled from his killing of Deng Huaiguang.
Liu Wuxie would not be surprised even if true disciples had come to seize the Wisdom Stones. The only thing holding them back was the Heaven-Severing Strike, which still lingered in their hearts.
Feigning ignorance, he placed array flags around the courtyard, sealing it off from the outside world.
When He Yingwu saw him return, he exhaled in relief. He had been tense all afternoon, his divine sense constantly sweeping the courtyard.
“Go and rest,” Liu Wuxie said. He knew He Yingwu’s worries and reassured him. They would collect their rewards the next day. Ranking first and second, they would receive generous prizes.
Inside his chamber, Liu Wuxie circulated the Desolate Devouring Art, healing his body. Jade Blossom Dew’s nourishment made recovery swift; his injuries were no longer a concern.
Outside, the watchers never acted, even as dawn came. The immense spiritual energy Liu Wuxie consumed while cultivating likely unnerved them. It made no sense that an injured man could absorb so much, draining the aura of heaven and earth across thousands of meters.
At dawn, Liu Wuxie and He Yingwu rose early and set off for the Contribution Hall to claim their wilderness-training rewards. Those who ranked in the top hundred also gathered to receive prizes.
Even before the hall was open, a crowd had already formed outside.
Their arrival drew every gaze. The waiting disciples parted quickly, giving way, unwilling to get too close to the two who had shocked the entire sect.
