Imperial Cultivation Chapter 1242 - 1238: Pursuing the Culprit

Dong Muyu shook her head.

Li Hongzhao remarked, "Even Brother Chonglou doesn’t know who they are?"

"They wore masks, and multiple assailants struck as one!" Dong Muyu snorted before adding, "Without the Protective Treasure Sword from the Sect Leader, Brother Chonglou would have perished this time."

"Since they hid their faces, they fear identification and retaliation, suggesting Brother Chonglou recognizes them... How severe is the grudge? With several attackers uniting, this surpasses a simple personal feud... Could it be over a treasure?" Li Hongzhao commented.

Dong Muyu shook her head again. "Brother Chonglou possessed no such treasure."

Li Hongzhao appeared pensive and cast a glance toward Chu Zhiyuan.

"Were their martial arts styles unrecognizable?" Chu Zhiyuan inquired.

Dong Muyu shook her head. "No."

Chu Zhiyuan furrowed his brows.

"If their identities remained hidden, they aren’t Evil Demons," Li Hongzhao declared. "What’s Brother Chonglou’s cultivation realm?"

"Sixth Transition," Dong Muyu answered.

"Sixth Transition... Our Heavenly Sword Sect’s techniques should suffice against a Seventh Transition powerhouse, shouldn’t they? Did Seventh Transition experts assault him?"

"Indeed, Seventh Transition," Dong Muyu confirmed. "Brother Chonglou couldn’t recall the exact number—perhaps six or seven. They ambushed him with a sudden, ferocious onslaught. Caught unprepared, he suffered grave wounds in mere exchanges, unable to discern their styles as he desperately fled."

"Seventh Transition masters are no unknowns in any Martial Arts Sect, hence the masks to evade recognition by Brother Chonglou... If not driven by gain, then it must stem from enmity? Surely Brother Chonglou knows his foes?"

Dong Muyu shook her head. "Brother Chonglou conducts matters adeptly and avoids offending others."

"This grows complicated..." Li Hongzhao knitted his brows.

"Does the sect possess a secret method to trace them?" Chu Zhiyuan asked.

"By harnessing the lingering True Yuan in Brother Chonglou’s body, a secret technique could pursue these culprits... Yet they likely foresaw this," Li Hongzhao explained.

The intricate and esoteric Tracking Technique might accomplish such a feat to a degree.

The killers surely hadn’t ignored it.

Dong Muyu shook her head. "We still haven’t located the murderers."

Li Hongzhao turned his gaze to Chu Zhiyuan.

"No trace of these individuals detectable?" Chu Zhiyuan questioned.

Dong Muyu nodded. "None at all."

Li Hongzhao creased his brow faintly. "Have they fled far beyond reach? Or... employed a secret art to mask their auras?"

"That’s plausible," Dong Muyu responded.

"If Evil Demons are ruled out, only two options remain. One involves the Martial Arts Sect, the other..." Li Hongzhao murmured softly.

She dropped her voice even lower.

"What else could it be? Junior Sister, stop teasing us!" Dong Muyu burst out.

"Could it be the Court?" Li Hongzhao suggested, eyeing Chu Zhiyuan.

Chu Zhiyuan stayed quiet.

"Junior Brother Chu, you suspected this as well?" Dong Muyu snorted.

"Senior Sister, it crossed all our minds, and the Sect Leader certainly considered it too," Chu Zhiyuan replied.

"The Sect Leader never brought up this chance!" Dong Muyu shook her head.

"Had it not been you, none of us other senior sisters or brothers would voice it," Li Hongzhao noted.

Dong Muyu let out a sigh. "Should it prove to be the Court, the complications are enormous, and vengeance becomes impossible!"

"Senior Sister, if it’s truly the Court, what course do we take?" Li Hongzhao pressed.

"We’d have to let it slide, I suppose," Dong Muyu replied in resignation. "Clashing with the Court is beyond us; victory is unattainable."

Li Hongzhao’s frown deepened slightly.

"I’ll consult the Sect Leader first to learn what’s been uncovered," Chu Zhiyuan stated.

Li Hongzhao fixed him with a profound stare.

Such a gaze often signals impending difficulties.

It could amount to fruitless toil, yielding no acclaim and only irritation.

Yet Chu Zhiyuan accepted the duty of his own accord, demonstrating his devotion and allegiance to the sect.

"Junior Brother, don’t rush into this!... Should Court experts be involved, heed the Sect Leader’s orders strictly—avoid independent action!" Dong Muyu urged hastily.

Chu Zhiyuan smiled. "I understand."

"Your talent and cultivation shine brightly, but issues like this demand more than superior martial prowess," Dong Muyu cautioned.

Chu Zhiyuan clasped his fist. "Got it. I’m off now."

...

Sect Leader’s Hall.

Clad in a Mystic Robe, Lu Wanshan sat steadily behind the desk like an unyielding peak, immersed in scrutinizing scrolls.

Upon Chu Zhiyuan’s entrance, he motioned for him to take a seat first.

Upon wrapping up the paperwork in front of him, he stood from his desk, stepped down the stairs, and settled into a seat facing Chu Zhiyuan.

"Returned already?" Lu Wanshan grinned, "Tell me, how did things go in the Phoenix Secret Land?"

Chu Zhiyuan shared a couple of brief comments before asking directly about Ding Chonglou’s wounds.

"Chonglou’s alright, no threat to his life," Lu Wanshan assured.

"Any leads on the attacker?"

Lu Wanshan responded, "Search is ongoing; we’ll settle this grudge for sure, but luckily, Chonglou’s safe."

"Can Brother Chonglou rebuild his martial arts?"

Lu Wanshan shook his head, "The damage runs deep—foundation shattered, meridians ruined, recovery to full strength seems nearly impossible."

Chu Zhiyuan’s brow creased.

He’d learned from Dong Muyu that Ding Chonglou was a prodigy.

That made him a key future pillar for the Heavenly Sword Sect.

With his cultivation now crippled beyond repair, the sect faced a massive blow.

Lu Wanshan remarked, "Risks like this come with roaming the martial arts world. Keeping one’s life intact is already fortunate."

"If they haven’t been caught or tracked down..." Chu Zhiyuan noted, "Those culprits likely escaped far off, maybe beyond reach?"

"Tough..." Lu Wanshan sighed deeply, "We’ll give it our all, though plans often fall short."

As Sect Leader, he’d dealt with plenty of such tragedies.

Heaven envies the talented, they say—brilliant disciples draw more disasters and fall more readily.

Across centuries in the Heavenly Sword Sect, he’d witnessed countless prodigies meet their end.

Ding Chonglou was merely the latest.

Chu Zhiyuan declared, "Sect Leader, let me hunt down those bastards!"

Lu Wanshan mulled it over, "Junior Brother Xu’s already handling the investigation."

Chu Zhiyuan pressed, "The Heavenly Sword Sect can’t swallow this humiliation lying down. My tracking skills are solid—how can I sit this out?"

"...Fine," Lu Wanshan agreed, "Junior Brother Xu’s team isn’t updated yet; go join them."

"Sect Leader," Chu Zhiyuan requested, "I’d prefer to go solo."

"You... very well." Lu Wanshan shook his head, adding, "Visit Chonglou first, then proceed as you deem best, but don’t overexert yourself."

Chu Zhiyuan probed, "Sect Leader, what if it’s Court experts behind this?"

Lu Wanshan’s bushy brows knit tightly as he warned gravely, "Watch your words!"

Chu Zhiyuan replied, "Got it, I’ll head out now."

Lu Wanshan snorted, "No rash moves!"

"Yes." Chu Zhiyuan clasped his hands, rose, and exited the hall.

He sought out Dong Muyu next, requesting she guide him to Ding Chonglou.

...

Ding Chonglou’s courtyard lay roughly a hundred meters from Chu Zhiyuan’s.

Dong Muyu rapped on the door before shoving it open, calling out boisterously, "Brother Chonglou, it’s me!"

A recliner sat in the courtyard’s midst, where a young man lounged with eyes shut, rocking gently.

His striking features bore a contemplative look, cheeks rosy, air thick with booze.

Stirred by the noise, he blinked open hazy eyes, furrowing his brow, "Junior Sister Dong, what brings you here this time!"

"Drinking again?!" Dong Muyu snapped in frustration, "Cut back already!"

"A drunken haze drowns a thousand woes!" he chuckled bitterly, "I never dared indulge before, always grinding in cultivation. Now I can guzzle freely! Haha, what a twist!"

"Enough," Dong Muyu sighed, shaking her head, "Brother Chonglou, meet Junior Brother Chu. He’s volunteering to track your attackers!"

"Chu Zhiyuan, Junior Brother Chu?" Ding Chonglou squinted through his drunken haze to size up Chu Zhiyuan.

Chu Zhiyuan spoke kindly, "Pleased to meet you, Brother Ding. No need for despair. I know a hidden art that lets you rise from ruin—even ruined meridians can mend completely."

Ding Chonglou jolted, his foggy gaze sharpening with hope.

Chu Zhiyuan grinned, "With your talent, Brother Ding, picking up this art and fixing your meridians will be effortless... unless you’d rather wallow in this drunken fog forever."

Dong Muyu pressed eagerly, "Junior Brother, does such a technique truly exist?"

Chu Zhiyuan beamed, "Brother, got any brush and ink? I’ll jot it down right away."

Dong Muyu dashed into the main chamber, hurrying back moments later with pen, ink, paper, and inkstone neatly arranged on a stone table nearby, before grinding the ink herself.

Chu Zhiyuan seized the pen and started inscribing, copying out the Blood Purification Technique.

This Blood Purification Technique suited his plight perfectly.

Super Sense had already scanned his body's condition; his vital organs suffered heavy damage and remained utterly feeble.

The worst problem involved the meridians' severe blockages and twists.

In that state, cultivation became virtually unattainable.

It resembled the Yellow River shifting its path, True Yuan wandering astray inside, blocking all forward movement.

This hidden wound proved the most vexing sort.

Despite the Heavenly Sword Sect's vast resources, even they stood powerless before such damage.

Yet, since the Blood Purification Technique stood as a closely guarded secret of the Yujing Royal Family and a cornerstone legacy of the Ancient Sect Yu Xu Sword Sect, the Heavenly Sword Sect's lack of it came as no shock.