Longevity Martial Arts: Grinding Experience in the Chaotic World Chapter 1230 639: Turning a Deaf Ear

A terrified shout erupted from the throng.

Instinctively, Gu Sheng sought to evade the commotion.

Yet, the man clad in black seemed to fixate his attention solely on Gu Sheng, abruptly wheeling his steed and hurtling directly towards him!

"Hahaha, what a delicate little flower with his tender skin!"

The man in black cackled with unrestrained glee, his presence radiating a formidable aura.

Gu Sheng remained rooted to his spot, a chilling coldness entering his eyes.

He instantly discerned the cultivation level of the man in black.

Nascent Soul Realm, true, but his foundation appeared unsteady, and his spiritual power was chaotic, a stark contrast to the disciples of the Holy Land.

"Big brother, hurry and run!" The young boy from the inn’s entrance peeked out once more, his voice laced with urgent anxiety.

"If Nie Shan catches you, you're finished!"

"Silence!" The boy’s father clapped a hand over his mouth, yanking him back into the inn with a look of sheer terror.

Nie Shan? Gu Sheng committed the name to memory. It appeared this was the City Lord's own son.

"Boy, how dare you refuse to kneel when you see this Young Master?"

Nie Shan brought his horse to a halt directly before Gu Sheng, gazing down upon him with evident disdain.

Gu Sheng calmly lifted his head.

"I am a stranger to you; why should I offer you a kowtow?"

"Hahaha!"

Nie Shan's laughter boomed, as though he had just heard the most absurd jest.

"In this Linyuan City, I, Nie Shan, am the very embodiment of the heavens! If I decree you to kneel, then you shall kneel!"

With that declaration, he abruptly dismounted and thrust a palm strike towards Gu Sheng.

The wind generated by the palm was ferocious and carried a putrid stench, undeniably the mark of a cultivation technique steeped in malevolent practices.

Gu Sheng possessed the capability to evade effortlessly, yet he deliberately feigned being overwhelmed, stumbling backward several paces with an expression of stark panic etched onto his face.

"What is it that you intend to do?"

"What do I intend to do?"

Nie Shan sneered as his feet touched the ground.

"Naturally, I intend to use you for practice!"

He then turned his head and bellowed to those behind him.

"Come, surround this brat for me!"

It was only then that Gu Sheng registered his encirclement by a contingent of over a dozen guards.

This number included the very two who had escorted him into the city earlier.

"What is the meaning of this outrage?"

Gu Sheng directed his question towards the two guards, his voice laced with feigned terror.

"I showed you kindness with Spirit Stones, and this is your ungrateful repayment?"

"Hahaha!"

Nie Shan erupted in uproarious laughter.

"Within Linyuan City, the pronouncements of the Nie Family constitute the supreme law! Lad, if you are to assign blame, let it be for your misfortune in choosing to enter the city at this precise juncture."

A frigid light ignited within Gu Sheng's eyes.

"Do you frequently ensnare traveling cultivators in such a manner?"

"It does no harm to impart this knowledge to you."

Nie Shan stated with an air of smug self-satisfaction.

"My esteemed father requires one more cultivator to bring the 'Nine Yin Soul Devouring Technique' to its full completion. Your arrival is most opportune; it is truly a blessing from the heavens!"

The Nine Yin Soul Devouring Technique?

This was unmistakably a cultivation method belonging to the Demon Path, a vile artifice that necessitated the souls of ninety-nine cultivators to achieve consummate mastery.

It was no wonder that Linyuan City, despite its veneer of prosperity, was suffused with such an unsettling miasma.

"Seize him for me!"

Upon Nie Shan's command, the guards surged forward as one.

Gu Sheng had initially intended to retaliate without delay, but upon hearing Nie Shan's revelation, he experienced a shift in his resolve.

He maintained his pretense of helplessness, allowing the guards to overwhelm him with their numbers.

"Hmph, is that all you've got?"

Nie Shan delivered a contemptuous kick to Gu Sheng's person.

"Escort him to the dungeon. I shall attend to him once I have conferred with my father."

Gu Sheng, bound securely, was subsequently escorted by four guards in the direction of the City Lord's Mansion.

The closer they drew to their destination, the more potent the cloying scent of blood became.

The grand main gate of the City Lord's Mansion slowly swung open, revealing the expansive courtyard that lay beyond.

Gu Sheng was propelled through a series of corridors, eventually arriving at a strangely shaped rockery.

One of the guards pressed a specific point upon the rockery's surface, causing the ground to fissure abruptly, exposing a flight of stairs leading downwards.

"Proceed!" A guard shoved Gu Sheng forcefully forward.

The stairway was both narrow and precipitous. The further their descent, the more pronounced the amalgamation of blood, mildew, and an indescribably foul odor became.

At the terminus of the stairs, an imposing iron door came into view.

"In you go!" A guard delivered a sharp kick, propelling Gu Sheng into the chamber.

Gu Sheng stumbled into the dungeon, and before he could regain his footing, a chorus of heart-wrenching sobs assailed his ears.

Lifting his gaze, the scene that unfolded before him sent an immediate chill of horror through his very being.

The dungeon was replete with young girls!

Ranging from tender toddlers of four or five years to adolescents of fifteen or sixteen, they were crammed into a dozen or so iron cages.

The majority were clad in tattered rags, visibly malnourished, their eyes reflecting an abject state of terror.

Upon witnessing Gu Sheng's forceful entry, some of the younger girls emitted cries of fear, while the older ones huddled together, their bodies trembling uncontrollably.

"Please... release us..."

A girl, perhaps twelve or thirteen years of age, pleaded, her voice quivering.

"I... I am willing to do anything..."

This explained the conspicuous absence of young girls within the city – they were all confined within these grim confines!

"What are you gawking at!?"

A guard shoved Gu Sheng with considerable force, subsequently locking him within an unoccupied iron cage.

"Stay put until Young Master Nie decides your fate!"

The guards slammed the cell door shut and departed, muttering curses.

Gu Sheng fought to quell the rage that surged within him.

He inquired in a low voice.

"Were you all... apprehended by the Nie Family?"

The young women within the cage eyed him with terror, none daring to utter a word.

"Do not be alarmed, I am not affiliated with the Nie Family."

Gu Sheng attempted to soften his tone.

"I too was captured by them, just like yourselves."

After a prolonged silence, a slightly older girl from the adjacent cage hesitantly responded.

"You are... truly not here to make a selection?"

"Selection?"

"What is the meaning of that?"

Tears began to well up in the girl's eyes.

"Every seven days... Young Master Nie arrives to choose a girl to take away, and those who are taken are never seen again..."

Gu Sheng's fists clenched involuntarily, his fingernails piercing his own palm.

Recalling Nie Shan's mention of the "Nine Yin Soul Devouring Technique," a sudden realization dawned upon him.

These girls were likely being used as "materials" for the cultivation of sinister arts!

"Do all of you hail from Linyuan City?"