Chapter 362 – The Approaching Malice

“Drip…”

Blood dripped onto the ground, creating a suffocating atmosphere in the deathly silent environment.

Within the cavern where the Purple Snow Essence pool was located, vast crimson stains now covered the earth, filling the air with an overwhelmingly thick metallic scent of blood.

Upon closer inspection, numerous Professionals lay in the blood pools scattered across the cavern floor, having completely lost all signs of breathing and vitality.

They were Professionals dispatched by various major teams to investigate the situation here.

Unfortunately, they had encountered others who were similarly drawn to this place but arrived with the darkest of intentions.

Numerous Underground Professionals clad in black robes stood beside the corpses, blood-stained weapons in hand, awaiting orders from the three figures standing at the center.

“It appears some treasure indeed existed here, which triggered a conflict.”

The Vice Captain of 『Sin』 stared fixedly at the deep pit before him, his gaze profound as if he could see what had once existed there.

Beside him, his black-clothed companion remained silent, emanating a terrifying Aura far more intense than when they had entered the Midnight Labyrinth.

Bathed in this oppressive Aura, the youthful young girl actually wore an expression of utter boredom.

“Alright, Uncle, stop staring at this cave. There’s nothing interesting here anymore.” The girl spoke with profound disinterest. “Let’s continue hunting instead. Hunting is much more fun.”

Hearing this, the ruthless Vice Captain remained silent for a moment before nodding.

“You’re right. Whatever treasure existed here before, since it’s already been taken, it’s no longer our concern.” The ruthless man stated. “Let’s move on. We need to reach the tenth floor.”

“Yay!” The girl’s bored expression instantly transformed. In a flash, she appeared at the cavern entrance as if teleporting.

Her speed was so astonishing that not only ordinary Underground Professionals, but even the ruthless man himself felt he could barely keep up.

“Hurry up, Uncle!”

The girl stood there waving, appearing completely innocent and carefree—a stark contrast to the incredible speed she had just demonstrated.

The ruthless man sighed inwardly.

“Her compatibility with 「Blade」 keeps increasing. Now even I can’t fully grasp her strength anymore.”

While thinking this, the ruthless man issued orders to the surrounding Underground Professionals.

“Move out. Follow the Young Miss.”

At his command, the group of Underground Professionals immediately obeyed, following the girl out of the cavern without hesitation.

Only the ruthless man and the black-clothed expert remained behind.

Silence lingered for a brief period.

After a moment, the ruthless man spoke up.

“What’s wrong with you?” The Vice Captain frowned at the person beside him, suddenly asking. “Ever since we arrived here, the atmosphere around you has completely changed. Even your Aura and Qi feel like they’re barely contained, ready to burst forth. What exactly is going on?”

The ruthless man had deliberately slowed his pace specifically to ask this question.

But the answer he received surprised him.

“…He was here.”From beneath the hood of the Black-Clothed Expert, a voice so suppressed and low it trembled faintly emerged.

“Who?”

The Ruthless Man was slightly taken aback.

“Him.”

The Black-Clothed Expert’s trembling voice grew slightly louder, unleashing the fury, joy, agitation, and hatred within.

The Ruthless Man had never seen him so uncomposed before.

No, perhaps he had never witnessed it in the past.

But ever since returning from Longyao City, whenever a certain existence was mentioned, this capable subordinate by his side would become like this.

“You mean the one who nearly killed you in the Ruins of Longyao City, who is not only a Dual Professional but also took the Demon Emperor Sword?”

The Ruthless Man stared intently at the Black-Clothed Expert and spoke abruptly.

“I recall he’s called ‘Ming Wang,’ right?”

In the battle at Longyao City, their ‘Sin’ had suffered a major defeat, a significant loss.

The Seal was not successfully lifted, the “blood” intended as a sacrifice had escaped and was sent to the Tianfeng City Wang Family for heavy protection. Even the “Sword,” the medium for unsealing, was lost in that remote little Base City. Coupled with the sacrifices of many Underground Professionals, the losses were undeniably substantial.

It was precisely because of that failure that their ‘Sin’ now faced an awkward situation. Attempting to execute their plan again and target the Seal would become exceedingly difficult.

Not to mention the vastly enhanced defensive forces in Longyao City, even meeting the two conditions required to lift the Seal was no longer as easy as before.

The issue of the medium was somewhat manageable. After all, more than one Divine Artifact had been forged using materials from the Spirit Demon Abyss King. They had prepared for years, so even if they lost the “Sword,” they could use the “Blade” as a substitute.

But the problem of the sacrifice was troublesome.

Currently, the only one who could serve as the sacrifice was that Wang Family Eldest Miss.

However, she had now been sent into the Tianfeng City Wang Family, and harming her would not be a simple matter.

Fortunately, in this regard, their ‘Sin’ had also prepared contingency plans; otherwise, they would truly be at a standstill.

It was only because there were remedies to make up for the losses that they could barely accept that major defeat.

Since then, they had also gathered some intelligence.

For instance, information about “Ming Wang” had been collected by ‘Sin’s’ intelligence organization.

The existence of “Ming Wang” was never a secret. Not only did the Six Great Families of Longyao City know about it, but even some well-informed organizations were aware. Now, almost all Family factions across the continent knew of “Ming Wang’s” existence and that the Demon Emperor Sword was in his possession.

Because of this, the various major forces stationed in Longyao City had either probed or directly pressured the Yun Family Estate of Longyao City, which was related to “Ming Wang”—the leading family among the twelve families of the ‘Cloudflow Commerce.’

Unfortunately, “Ming Wang” himself was shrouded in mystery, and after the incident, he vanished without a trace, his whereabouts unknown.

Due to this, even now, many forces coveting the power of the Divine Artifact were searching everywhere for the elusive “Ming Wang.”

Including the people of ‘Sin,’ it was the same.

And through his capable subordinate, who had suffered a crushing defeat at his hands, the Ruthless Man, as the Vice Captain of ‘Sin,’ had learned another piece of intelligence.That is, the self-proclaimed “Ming Wang” is an extremely rare and uncommon Dual Professional.

His trusted subordinate here was deceived by the opponent’s outwardly displayed Hunter abilities, only to be defeated at the critical moment by the opponent’s Advanced Spirit Art, “Sixty-Second Form: Futian Falling Blossom,” nearly losing his life in the process.

Since then, this trusted subordinate has harbored an abnormal obsession with this “Ming Wang,” not only constantly searching for his traces but also undergoing hellish training so intense it made even the Ruthless Man gasp in astonishment, all for the sake of defeating him next time.

Now, it seems the traces of that “Ming Wang” can be found.

“I can sense that he was here,” the Black-Clothed Expert said in a low, trembling voice.

This prompted the Ruthless Man to ask, “Are you certain?”

The Ruthless Man’s confirmation was met with an unwavering response.

“I couldn’t possibly be mistaken.”

The other’s voice turned as cold as sub-zero temperatures.

“The residual energy from such a terrifying explosive burst of power, the destructive fluctuations akin to a nuclear bomb—among those I know, only the power dwelling in that guy’s right arm could leave such traces.”

With just these words, the Ruthless Man was almost one hundred percent convinced by his trusted subordinate’s claim.

He knew that this subordinate, who ranked no.3 even among the “Ten Demons,” not only possessed extraordinary strength but also a perception ability far beyond others’ reach.

It was his mutated trait, his mutated ability.

This perception was not only on par with the Spirit Sense of high-star Sorcerers but even surpassed it.

This made him not only an exceptionally skilled expert but also an unparalleled talent in investigation and tracking.

If someone were pursued by him, unless they used special means to conceal their aura and scent, he could still locate their general direction even from over a kilometer away and calmly give chase.

With such terrifying perception, if he confirmed that “Ming Wang” had been here, it was almost certainly true.

“So he came to Tianfeng City, did he?”

A sharp glint and Killing Intent flashed in the Ruthless Man’s eyes.

There was no helping it—this “Ming Wang” had defeated the strongest force he left in the ruins, seized the Demon Emperor Sword, and even escorted the Wang Family Bloodline back safely. He could be considered one of the chief culprits who single-handedly thwarted the grand plan of “Sin.”

Now that his whereabouts were confirmed, this grudge, this humiliation, could not go unavenged.

“Truly, after searching tirelessly, success comes effortlessly. This time, we might even recover the lost Demon Emperor Sword. That would be a good thing,” the Ruthless Man sneered.

However…

“He is mine.”

The Black-Clothed Expert beside the Ruthless Man declared this with an uncompromising tone.

“You?”

The Ruthless Man looked at him.

“This time, I will defeat him.”

The Black-Clothed Expert met the Ruthless Man’s gaze without flinching, the Aura and presence emanating from him growing even more terrifying.

“Can you do it?”

The Ruthless Man simply confirmed.”Of course,” the Black-Clothed Expert said coldly. “This time, I absolutely won’t give him another chance to defeat me.”

After leaving these words, the Black-Clothed Expert departed right in front of the Ruthless Man.

The Ruthless Man watched this scene unfold, remaining silent for a long time.

“Fine then.”

After a while, the Ruthless Man finally spoke.

“With Crow’s current strength, dealing with a ‘Ming Wang’ shouldn’t be a problem.”

Even if there were issues, he was nearby and could intervene at any time.

And if worse came to worst, wasn’t there his niece?

“With Qing Qing here, unless that old geezer hiding in Tianfeng City personally shows up, no one can stop us.”

The Ruthless Man sneered as his figure flashed and disappeared from the spot.

In the restored silence of the cave, the scent of blood still permeated the air, attracting Phantom Demons from the surrounding area who slowly gathered there.

……

Midnight Labyrinth, Sixth Floor, Riverside Camp.

The group who had returned here appeared even more exhausted than before, their spirits already worn thin.

“We could have been drinking hot soup and sleeping in tents by now,” Feng Qing’er complained as they walked. “Who knew we’d have to work overtime suddenly? I’m completely exhausted.”

It wasn’t until they returned to camp and saw the pot still hanging over the campfire—now blackened and burnt—that she let out a horrified cry.

“My soup!”

Feng Qing’er rushed over frantically.

“Sister Qing’er!”

Tong Xinyao also exclaimed in surprise, quickly following after her.

Chi Qian and Mu Yan merely stood in place with bitter smiles, not joining the two girls in their commotion, instead turning their gazes toward Su Ming.

Seeing this, Su Ming shrugged.

“Let’s not cook today. We’ll just eat the stored provisions.”

Naturally, Su Ming’s backpack contained prepared food.

Since they were entering an unfathomable Hidden Realm for nearly half a month, he had stockpiled supplies for emergencies.

Of course, being emergency rations, they were meant to be preserved unless absolutely necessary.

But given tonight’s circumstances, even if they wanted to cook another meal, no one was in the mood.

Considering their substantial gains, Su Ming didn’t mind. With a wave of his hand, various cans, packaged foods, dried and cured meats, and even drinks appeared on the ground.

“Hooray!”

Feng Qing’er, who had been weeping beside the campfire over her painstakingly prepared soup that had been reduced to a burnt pot, cheered and ran back.

Tong Xinyao approached somewhat sheepishly and shyly.

Chi Qian and Mu Yan breathed slight sighs of relief.

Clearly, none of them were in the mood to cook either.

Thus, the group gathered around the campfire with their food, bathing in the warm glow of the flames as they ate and engaged in sporadic, casual conversation.

Beside Su Ming, a slender figure shrouded in mist flickered briefly, lingering behind him like a guardian spirit.

Meanwhile, some distance from the camp, a figure swiftly approached, landing on the ground with one hand pressed against the earth. The eyes beneath the hood slowly closed, as if sensing something.

Before long, the hooded figure’s eyes opened, and they turned to look in a specific direction.

“Is it over there?”After murmuring softly, the other party’s voice suddenly became filled with killing intent.

“Finally found you.”

The aura and presence swirling around grew increasingly turbulent and dangerous, to the point where even the air began to distort slightly.

“This time, I will definitely kill you.”

The one who made this declaration was none other than Crow—the most elite expert among 『Sin』, ranked third among the 『Ten Demons』.

Immediately after, the figure known as 『Lord Crow』 by the underground professionals of 『Sin』 shot forward, swiftly heading in the direction of the 『Azure Mercury』 camp.

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(End of Chapter)