Chapter 196 – Mu Lin's Value Skyrockets

Gazing at the black mist that obscured everything and listening to the piercing screams that occasionally reached their ears, the expressions of Chu Hongxuan, Yuan Ce, and Yan Zhanpeng all darkened.

For the first time, the calm confidence of having everything under control vanished from their faces.

Even Hua Meng’s smile faded slightly.

Until now, they had always held back their trump cards. Both Chu Hongxuan and Yan Zhanpeng were confident that, once unleashed, these trump cards could eliminate Mu Lin.

The reason they hadn’t used them earlier was that these trump cards were reserved for their “teammates.”

In fact, they had even hoped that during the pursuit of Mu Lin, some would perish, forcing their teammates to expend their own hidden resources.

It could be said that, until now, they had always regarded each other as their primary rivals. The solitary Mu Lin, in their eyes, was nothing more than a minor nuisance.

But now, they realized they were wrong—terribly wrong.

Feeling the malicious gaze fixed upon them from within the black mist, both Yan Zhanpeng and Chu Hongxuan shuddered with dread.

This sensation made them truly understand that the reflections and monsters lurking in the black mist genuinely possessed the ability to threaten—or even kill—them.

By unleashing this method, Mu Lin was no longer a nuisance they could look down upon but had transformed into a malevolent dragon capable of destroying everything.

At this thought, Yan Zhanpeng immediately spoke up:

“Everyone, hold nothing back. If we continue to hide our strengths, we might truly perish here!”

Yuan Ce: “No need to tell us.”

Chu Hongxuan: “You make the first move.”

Yuan Ce: “Huh??”

“…”

Staring intently at Chu Hongxuan, Yan Zhanpeng fell silent for a moment before declaring, “I will naturally take action.”

With that, he produced a circular mirror-like mystic treasure. “Boom!” As mana was channeled into it, the mirror erupted with a radiance akin to the sun.

Under the intense light, the surrounding black mist was partially purified.

Without the concealment of the mist, the reflection monsters within the fog rapidly faded and vanished. Clearly, the eerie black mist was not omnipotent—the fear-born reflections it created could only survive within the mist.

The presence of the Great Sun Mirror improved Yan Zhanpeng and his companions’ situation.

Some of their subordinates were also enveloped within the protective light of the Great Sun Mirror.

However, at this moment, they were all somewhat shaken. Fox Spirit Bai Zhi, a newly recruited subordinate of Yuan Ce, wore an expression of utter disbelief.

‘How? How can that Mu Lin be so powerful?’

She was utterly perplexed, but soon she realized there was no time left for contemplation.

“Whoosh…”

The moment the eerie black mist was cleared, a torrent of fog surged forth like a tide, pressing down upon them once more.

“Boom!”

“Sizzle…”

The collision between the mist and the light of the Great Sun Mirror produced a violent sound.

Visibly, in this clash, the light of the Great Sun Mirror was steadily retreating.

This mystic treasure was indeed powerful, but Yan Zhanpeng, who wielded it, was only at the Spirit Pool Stage. At his level, he was unable to fully unleash the treasure’s potential.

Fortunately, in the next moment, Chu Hongxuan also took action.

“Clap!”

As he brought his hands together, a rustling sound filled the air, and flowers—some pure white, others emerald green—blossomed across the surface of his massive treant.

“Rustle…”

Amidst the swaying flowers, a delicate fragrance wafted forth, carrying a special power.

The pure white blossoms emitted a cleansing aura, while the emerald-green flowers possessed a calming effect. Combined with Yan Zhanpeng’s Great Sun Mirror, they finally managed to withstand the erosion of the eerie black mist.

Even as the monsters within the black mist continuously unleashed various attacks and created all sorts of disturbances, relying on the Great Sun Mirror and those special flowers, the group from Jade Lake Dao Academy remained safe and sound.

Watching this scene from afar, Mu Lin shook his head, yet he wasn’t overly disappointed.

“Jade Lake Dao Academy gathers the most elite youths of the Southeast Region. It’s only natural that they’re difficult to deal with. If they were easy to handle, that would be the anomaly.”

Thinking this, Mu Lin felt no fear.

Indeed, the eerie black mist couldn’t overcome Yan Zhanpeng and the others, who had exhausted all their means. However, Yan Zhanpeng and his group couldn’t eliminate the eerie black mist either. Relying on the glimmer of spiritual light maintained by his City God Status, and the fact that Chu Hongxuan and the others had indeed triggered the black mist’s killing mechanism, Mu Lin could guide this mist to persistently target them, engaging in a relentless struggle.

“In a normal confrontation, it would now come down to who could endure longer—the black mist or them.”

This point wasn’t only clear to Mu Lin; the cultivators observing from outside also saw it.

Seeing that Chu Hongxuan and the others had withstood the erosion of the black mist, many breathed a sigh of relief.

“Whew, that’s a relief… I was scared to death…”

“One person taking on an entire Dao Palace, and the top-tier one at that, yet he nearly turned the tables. That Mu Lin is quite formidable.”

Some praised him, while others shook their heads, not fully acknowledging Mu Lin.

For instance, the Demon Suppression Division and some generals from the Azure Dragon Legion and Kunpeng Legion wore serious expressions:

Azure Dragon Legion: “That isn’t Mu Lin’s own ability. He’s harnessing the power of the anomaly evil.”

Kunpeng Legion: “He can’t fully control that anomaly. It’s a move that harms both the enemy and oneself, only usable within the Tower of Illusory Heavens.”

Demon Suppression Division: “Daring to meddle with anomaly power—Mu Lin’s actions are dangerous and uncontrollable. He himself could turn into a monster at any moment!”

They didn’t conceal these words, and as a result, some wealthy and influential figures overheard them, their expressions growing hesitant.

Just as some were about to give up on recruiting the overly dangerous Mu Lin, the head of the Demon Suppression Division, while speaking of the dangers and uncontrollability of anomaly power, secretly contacted his subordinates and some wealthy and influential figures, urging them… to intensify their efforts in gathering resources.

“Raise the price a bit more. No matter what, we must keep Mu Lin in the Demon Suppression Division.”

“Huh?”

This order left some wealthy and influential figures stunned.

Exchanging glances, one person asked in confusion, “Cold Envoy, didn’t you say Mu Lin is dangerous and uncontrollable? Why increase efforts to recruit him?”

This question earned an eye-roll from the Cold Envoy.

“That was just nonsense I fed to those two brutes.”

“Being able to guide anomaly power—that’s a kind of ability in itself, not merely external power. After all, we Qi Refiners also harness the power of heaven and earth. Can you call that external power?”

“As for the risk of losing control… haven’t you seen that he uses paper figures to control anomalies? With these paper figures, even if he loses control, he only sacrifices some clones without losing his own sanity. The danger is minimal.”

“More importantly, while Mu Lin indeed cannot control overly powerful anomalies, he can manage weaker ones. This is a divine skill that can save us countless troubles. Moreover, as Mu Lin’s strength grows, he may very well be able to harness powerful anomalies. By then, the areas he patrols will be free from anomaly disasters, leaving only demonic fiends to cause trouble. Suppressing the latter would be far easier.”

“…”

“Understood, Cold Envoy. We will take action immediately.”

The Cold Envoy of the Demon Suppression Division was taking action, and so were the Azure Dragon Legion and the Kunpeng Legion…

They were not fools.

Although Mu Lin had taken shortcuts, and everyone had seen that he could not fully control the power of anomalies—only using them as bombs—and ultimately, he still failed to annihilate Chu Hongxuan and the others, his recent maneuvers had still greatly increased his value.

No one forgot that the disciples trapped by Mu Lin in the black mist were the most talented group in the Southeast Region.

Regardless of how Mu Lin managed it, he had ultimately trapped them and held his ground against them. This meant that Mu Lin alone was equivalent to Chu Hongxuan and his entire group. Unless one was foolish, no one would pass up the chance to recruit him.

At the same time, Mu Lin’s recent actions had also made everyone realize one thing: they must not provoke him.

“Using clones to guide anomalies and then suddenly unleashing them—this Mu Lin is too dangerous and too bizarre. He is a major problem. If we can avoid provoking him, we absolutely must not!”

…

Mu Lin was unaware of others’ thoughts.

He was even less aware that merely being able to stand toe-to-toe with the prodigies of the Jade Lake Dao Palace had already left the nobles and generals watching from outside immensely satisfied.

For now, Mu Lin only wanted to eliminate Chu Hongxuan and the others who had attacked him—and he truly had the ability to do so.

“Relying solely on the black mist indeed makes it difficult to defeat them quickly, but what I can wield is not limited to the black mist anomaly.”

Thinking this, Mu Lin smiled—a sinister, chilling smile.

“Let me give you another grand gift!”

(End of Chapter)