Rumble…
As the iron gate slowly opened, a pitch-black passageway was revealed within.
“I dare any of you to move!”
Chen Xiuzhen’s expression changed drastically as he immediately stepped forward to block the entrance.
“Lord Chen, are you planning to defy the imperial edict?”
“To be honest, Lord Li, this treasury has long been abandoned. There are mechanisms inside. Whoever enters will die. I am doing this for your own good. There is nothing valuable left inside.”
Chen Xiuzhen spoke solemnly, but such words would only fool a fool.
Li Changsheng pondered briefly, then ordered his men to enter.
Two soldiers hesitated for a moment before stepping inside first.
“Lord, there are no mechanisms inside.”
“Lord, so many gold bricks, and even an alchemy furnace…”
Soon, the faint voices of the two soldiers echoed from within, then abruptly disappeared.
It seemed there was a soundproof formation array inside. Once one entered, sound was completely blocked.
“Lord Li, I advise you to know when to show mercy. Do not push your luck.”
“There are mechanisms everywhere inside. Even I would struggle to escape if I entered. If you go in and die, do not say I failed to warn you.”
Chen Xiuzhen spoke coldly.
“Thank you for the reminder, Lord Chen.”
Li Changsheng smiled and immediately led his men inside.
After he entered, a faint, sinister smile finally appeared on Chen Xiuzhen’s face.
When Li Changsheng stepped in, he discovered a treasury chamber. Inside were chests of gold bricks and several chests of silver bricks.
“Lord, so much gold!”
Li Changsheng smiled faintly and said, “Move it.”
That old fox had merely been trying to intimidate them. Inside were many long-sealed cultivation resources that had clearly not been touched for years.
The soldiers proceeded cautiously at first. Soon, however, they realized there was no danger. One chest after another was carried out.
Aside from gold and silver, there were talismans, medicinal pills, and within a cave that housed an alchemy furnace, numerous jars, herbs, and scattered pills.
“Lord, there is another hidden door here!”
At that moment, a soldier shouted excitedly.
Li Changsheng stepped forward and indeed found an ancient stone door.
He pressed his palm against it. The stone door was not particularly heavy. With his strength, he could force it open.
“Step aside.”
A dense, rotten aura surged outward.
Li Changsheng stared into the pitch-black cavern. The soldiers behind him also peered in with astonishment.
“Go in.”
Just as Li Changsheng was about to order soldiers to lead the way—
Splat! Splat!
In an instant, a terrifying spiritual pressure descended. Li Changsheng’s expression froze. In the blink of an eye, several soldiers ahead had their heads explode, blood spraying everywhere as they died on the spot.
Li Changsheng’s face turned pale in shock. He immediately turned to flee.
Yet in the next second, a horrifying force swept through the space. An invisible light barrier sealed off the passage ahead.
Li Changsheng had just begun to resist when his body was suddenly forced backward, as if dragged by an invisible, overwhelming power into the depths of the cavern.
Boom!
With a deafening crash, Li Changsheng felt his body slam heavily against a wall. The impact made his face go white.
When he forced himself up, spiritual light flickered all around him. At the center of a massive Spirit Gathering Formation stood an aged figure, staring at him like a ghost.
“Who are you?”
A hoarse voice, heavy as still water, echoed through the chamber. Terrifying killing intent spread from the old man.
“Senior, I am Li Wu, Prime Minister of the Great Shang Empire. I did not know this was your cultivation retreat. I ask for your forgiveness.”
Li Changsheng’s face changed drastically. He suddenly recalled that the Chen family had a reclusive ancestor who had not appeared for generations. It must be this man.
“A mere Prime Minister dares to act wildly within the Chen family? Greedy and insatiable. What use are you?”
The old man stared at Li Changsheng, killing intent surging in his eyes.
He had already heard what happened outside. This Li Wu had used his authority as Prime Minister to ransack the Chen family. Such audacity.
Now that Li Changsheng had fallen into his hands, how could he possibly spare him?
As a Saint-level Spiritual Practitioner of the Great Shang Empire, spiritual light rings revolved around his body. These were the Spirit Rings unique to Saint-level powerhouses, signifying that his physique had transformed into a Spiritual Body, making him overwhelmingly powerful.
For Li Changsheng to reach this place meant his life had reached its end.
“Die!”
The old man gave him no chance to repent. With a low utterance, countless strands of spiritual light transformed into blood-red threads and lashed toward him.
“Senior, spare me!”
Li Changsheng’s heart trembled. He attempted to resist, but in the next instant, his entire body was bound by countless blood-red threads.
The threads were like steel wires, tightly constricting him. Li Changsheng felt his heart shake.
As the threads tightened bit by bit, an ordinary King-level Spiritual Practitioner would already have been shredded into a bloody mess.
Yet Li Changsheng possessed an immortal physique. Coupled with the attribute enhancements he had gained year after year, his physical strength and resilience had long surpassed the King-level standard. This chapter was taken from novelping(.)com without permission.
“Spare you? Hehe, it has been a long time since I killed anyone.”
“Even if you are the Prime Minister of the Great Shang Empire, even if you were imperial kin, a Prince or grandson of the Emperor, anyone who dares intrude into my cave abode. If I kill you and eat you, it would be a righteous kill and a righteous meal.”
The old man sneered coldly, boundless killing intent filling his aged eyes.
As a Saint-level Spiritual Practitioner, his privileges were immense. Only the former Emperor Long Cang could command him.
Even the current Empress, Long Qianqian, lacked the authority to summon him.
Killing a mere Prime Minister would not bring punishment. Long Cang himself would not question him over the death of one official.
“Senior… spare me…”
Li Changsheng’s heart pounded. He had encountered a true powerhouse.
His lifespan burned within him as he stared intently at the old man.
If this old man truly showed mercy and let him go, he could pretend nothing had happened.
Otherwise…
“Hmph! Boy, consider yourself unlucky. Since you are here, you will remain here forever.”
The old man’s killing intent flared. Suddenly, terrifying spiritual power pressed down upon him.
Faintly, the Spirit Rings around him spread outward like a massive serpent.
Seeing this, Li Changsheng knew that if he did not resist now, he would surely die.
In the next instant, a red glint flashed in Li Changsheng’s eyes.
A terrifying energy burst forth from within him.
A dense, invisible crimson energy ignited around his body like blazing flames.
At the same time, the old man’s expression froze.
His ancient eyes widened in disbelief. He felt his life force draining rapidly.
1,000 years.
5,000 years…
10,000 years…
His hair began to fall out. His teeth decayed and dropped. His skin shriveled and withered at an astonishing rate.
The vitality that once filled him drained away in an instant, like a ten-thousand-year-old tree suddenly stripped of all life and left to wither.
“This… this is…”
20,000 years…
The old man stared at Li Changsheng in horror. In that fleeting moment, he seemed to understand something. The confusion in his eyes turned into boundless terror.
He finally realized what was happening.
“Y-you brat, stop…”