Heaven’s Shadow

Chapter 131: The Pale Tooth

Lu Chen walked a few steps forward and sat down on the stone steps in the small courtyard, a little distance away from True Lord Tianlan, but they could still see each other clearly.

True Lord Tianlan looked at him, not showing any anger. His eyes were gentle, and there was a slight smile at the corner of his mouth, as if he were looking at a stubborn and mischievous child of his own.

“How have you been recently?” he asked Lu Chen with a smile.

Lu Chen replied, “I’m okay.”

“Any progress on that matter?”

Lu Chen glanced at him and said indifferently, “Old Ma knows all about it and must have explained everything to you. Why ask me again?”

True Lord Tianlan chuckled and said, “He’s not you. There might be differences when relaying messages. Besides, I still want to hear it from you.”

Lu Chen frowned, remained silent for a moment, and then said, “There’s still no clue. I haven’t found any traces of the demonic sect’s activities on Kunlun Mountain. For now, I can only investigate slowly. I picked a few targets at random and had Old Ma check them out first. We’ll see what he finds.”

True Lord Tianlan nodded, his expression calm, revealing no emotion. “I understand. But I’m curious about the two people you’re investigating. Why did you pick these two girls out of everyone else?”

Lu Chen’s face remained expressionless as he said, “No particular reason, just that I’ve seen them a few times and it’s convenient.”

“Convenient, huh…” Even someone as knowledgeable as True Lord Tianlan couldn’t help but smile wryly at that. “It seems those two girls are rather unlucky to have caught your attention.”

Lu Chen’s eyes lifted slightly. “If they are the demonic sect’s spies, then they’re indeed unlucky.”

“Alright.” True Lord Tianlan waved his hand with a smile. “Just handle it as you see fit. I trust you.”

Lu Chen smiled slightly, then glanced at him again. “Why did you have time to come see me today? I remember you were staying with the True Immortals’ Alliance recently, right?”

True Lord Tianlan said, “I’ve been back for a while. I’ve wanted to see you, but it’s not convenient on Kunlun Mountain. Now that I’m down here, it’s hard to catch you, so it dragged on until today.” He smiled and added, “Actually, if you hadn’t come today, I would have left tomorrow.”

Lu Chen was taken aback, then said, “No wonder Old Ma was so anxious.”

True Lord Tianlan smiled without speaking.

Lu Chen frowned, then suddenly said, “You’ve been back for a while, and you returned secretly without anyone in the sect knowing?” His gaze became sharper as he looked at True Lord Tianlan. “Is there something going on in the sect?”

“A bit.”

“What kind of matter?”

“Not convenient to say.”

A sharp light flashed in Lu Chen’s eyes as he looked at True Lord Tianlan. “Oh, even I can’t know?”

True Lord Tianlan thought for a moment, then shook his head. “It’s still not convenient. But maybe when you finish this task and I take you as my disciple, then I can tell you.”

Lu Chen looked at True Lord Tianlan, his eyes shining brighter and brighter. He suddenly stood up. “It must be something major?”

“Yes, major.”

“A big secret of the Kunlun Sect?”

“I suppose so.” True Lord Tianlan smiled. “Why, are you curious and eager to know?”

“Yes.” Lu Chen answered straightforwardly. “What secret in the Kunlun Sect could attract the demonic sect’s greed, making them gamble everything? There must be some connection. Knowing it might help find the demonic spy. I want to know.”

True Lord Tianlan was silent for a moment, seeming to weigh things in his mind. He then smiled apologetically. “Sorry, I still can’t tell you. But I can say that only Senior Brother Bai Chen and I are involved, so it shouldn’t be related to the demonic spy you mentioned.”

Lu Chen’s expression changed slightly. After a while, he shook his head slowly. “You two True Lords, with such high morals, naturally wouldn’t do anything to collude with the demonic sect.”

True Lord Tianlan smiled without speaking, looking at Lu Chen with a deep light in his eyes, like ripples rising on a vast ocean.

※※※

A little bird chirped, and even after a long time, it still hadn’t flown away. It seemed to be fond of True Lord Tianlan’s large, shiny bald head, pecking at it occasionally. However, True Lord Tianlan remained calm, as if he didn’t notice the bird or feel any pain.

“Is there anything you need help with?” True Lord Tianlan asked Lu Chen.

Lu Chen responded, “You want to help me?”

“Shouldn’t I? This matter is something I asked you to do. If I can help in any way, I should do a bit.”

“There are a few people you could kill for me,” Lu Chen said.

True Lord Tianlan: “…That’s not quite right. Do you suspect those people of being demonic spies?”

“No, just don’t like them. Like you.”

True Lord Tianlan smiled wryly and sighed, “I should never have told you the truth back then.”

Lu Chen sneered.

True Lord Tianlan looked at him with a gentle gaze, still with a bit of indulgence. After a moment, he suddenly said, “Xiao Lu, I notice you’re different from before.”

Lu Chen asked, “What?”

“You don’t seem to fear me anymore.”

Lu Chen sneered mockingly, “What are you saying? I never feared you. Didn’t I always speak to you like this in the past?”

True Lord Tianlan shook his head, his eyes filled with a playful look. “No, in the past, even though you joked and argued with me, you still had some respect deep down.”

“Nonsense, why would I be afraid of you…”

“It’s not me you’re afraid of. Deep down, you feared the title of ‘True Lord.’ Back then, I could tell that like almost every cultivator under the sky, you had a reverence and awe for the supreme position of True Lord. That title and the power it represents command a natural respect and fear.” True Lord Tianlan smiled, but his gaze was bright and seemed to pierce through Lu Chen’s body, seeing his innermost thoughts.

“That is a supreme realm unattainable for millions of cultivators in their lifetimes. For thousands of years, everyone has held it in awe. I could see that.”

“Ha!” Lu Chen laughed, though his expression subtly changed.

True Lord Tianlan looked at him and then slowly said, “But last time, when we met in the wasteland, I felt something was off, but I couldn’t figure it out.”

His eyes flickered, and he gently said, “Just now, watching you, I suddenly understood what’s different.”

The smile on Lu Chen’s face vanished, and he coldly stared at the big man.

True Lord Tianlan pointed at Lu Chen, calmly saying, “You no longer fear me. To be precise, a low-level cultivator like you no longer has that instinctive reverence for a Nascent Soul True Lord’s power.”

Lu Chen said coldly, “I don’t understand your babbling.”

True Lord Tianlan squinted slightly, staring at Lu Chen as if reassessing him. After a moment, he suddenly spoke, “The Descent Incantation, right?”

Lu Chen’s face turned deathly pale.

※※※

When Ah Tu came out of the mountains, it glanced at the sky. Although it was still bright, the sun was already sinking westward, and it would soon be dusk.

Today on Doghead Mountain, Ah Tu was very happy and excited. It had finally integrated into the group of lofty celestial birds and exotic beasts, giving it a sense of pride. Even its steps seemed lighter than usual as it ran back.

It’s a pity dogs can’t hum; otherwise, Ah Tu would surely be whistling as it ran back.

From a distance, it saw Lu Chen’s house and trotted towards it. But when it was still more than ten zhang away, Ah Tu suddenly stopped.

It saw a figure pacing back and forth outside the house.

It was a man with a strange expression on his face, slightly flushed, and his eyes darting around. His chest was heaving as if he was out of breath, and one of his hands was tucked inside his coat, seemingly gripping something.

The man was looking around constantly but mostly focused on Lu Chen’s house, muttering something under his breath that Ah Tu couldn’t make out. He just kept pacing around the house.

Ah Tu was puzzled and watched the man for a while. Other than his suspicious behavior, the man didn’t seem to be doing anything else. Ah Tu waited for a bit, noticing the sky darkening further, and decided to go home first.

So, it ran towards the house. As it passed by the man, he glanced at it but seemed not to pay it much mind and didn’t do anything else.

Feeling relieved, Ah Tu ran to the door and barked twice. The house was silent, with no response.

Behind it, the man suddenly paused and turned to look in its direction.

Ah Tu didn’t pay attention to the movement behind it. Disappointed to find no one home, it trotted to the back of the house, where the little dog hole had become its personal entrance.

But just then, a voice called out from behind.

“Little dog…”

Ah Tu halted in its tracks, standing in front of the dog hole. It turned to see that strange man, who had unknowingly walked over and was now standing a short distance behind it, wearing a sinister smile.

His teeth were very white.

Deathly white! (To be contcontinu

Doghead Mountain – GouTou Mountain

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