*Back To The Present*
Cough. Cough.
Li Shen coughed violently as he stared up at the sky.
‘Just what is this situation?’
He found himself asking that question because he really wanted to know.
What were the odds of him choosing a Demonic Cult hideout that a Nascent Realm cultivator was laying in wait to attack whoever entered?
Do you think Nascent Realm cultivators' presence in the outside world was common as there was weed in the earth? NO!
Nascent Realm cultivators were elder-level existences, which means either they were cooped up in a clan or academy in seclusion while having the position as an elder, or for the few rogue Nascent Realm cultivators, they would be in isolated seclusion completely ignoring the outside world.
Li Shen meeting one here was no short of a miracle.
But didn’t he have the Son of Heaven's title? Was he not blessed with good fortune?
If that’s so, then why was he getting put in these dangerous situations?!
And this got him thinking, it wasn’t the best time to think but he couldn’t help it.
What if his good fortune followed the saying, “only with great danger will there be great benefits to be reaped.”
Li Shen felt like crying.
He didn’t want to believe it but it makes sense if he looked back at those times, like in the Bai Clan, and especially when he had to face the Seven Sin Goddess.
In both of those situations he was put in immense danger, but after he overcome them he gained major benefits.
Those were the bigger incidents he could think of, but there were smaller ones he could pinpoint when he was younger. And that just meant these dangerous situations were getting more and more ridiculous.
Now he was in this predicament, where he lucked out and found that not only Time Qi, but even Unique Qis could feed his Time Seed. With that knowledge, he could speed up the process of whatever process it was trying to complete by absorbing his Time Qi. Even more, he felt that after absorbing all of that Dragon Qi it had reached some sort of threshold.
However, what immediately followed after this was a Nascent Realm cultivator hunting him down.
Li Shen wasn’t looking forward to life in the future after finding out this might be a normal occurrence.
Well, that’s if he even survived this.
He could feel the poison from that old man seeping into the deepest regions of his body. Everywhere hurt for him, and even breathing caused a burning sensation in his chest.
Add to that fact that he had just withstood a blow from a Nascent Realm cultivator, he was in no position to move.
But he had to, he wasn’t going to be killed here.
Li Shen slowly tried to raise up after steeling his resolve, but a figure suddenly appeared over him and he felt a pressure slammed on his injured chest forcing him back down.
He resisted the urge to cry out by biting his lip.
Looking up at the old man, Li Shen saw that he was staring down at him angrily.
“You malicious brat!”
The old man spat out in rage.
“In this one night, you went on a killing spree and attack numerous hideouts belonging to our Poison Sect like his one, so much so that my seclusion was interrupted so I could come to investigate it. And what do I find? Nothing but a mask fool running around calling himself a hero! Do you have a death wish!!”
'This old man thinks I raided this hideout? I mean I did raid a few but this one was done by that mysterious person, why am I taking fault for something he did?'
Li Shen cursed internally whoever that man was, but suddenly, the old man's eyes spout flames as he pressed his foot harder onto his chest until cracking noises echoed out.
Li Shen couldn’t hold in his cries anymore and they echoed in the night.
But the old man simply continued to speak despite his screams of pain.
“Don’t go overboard you brat. Don’t think I don’t know the type of person you are seeking fame y coming after us. Let this be a warning to know where you stand. Do you see other geniuses going around destroying our hideouts in mass? Our Demonic Cult may be small compared to you Righteous bigots, but even your seniors and elders of whatever clan you're from fear our retaliation.”
The old man raised his foot from Li Shen’s chest before he continue to say.
“I didn't deal a killing blow with that attack since that would cause more complications for my Demonic Cult, but that poison should put you out of commission for a year or two.”
A malicious grin appeared on the old man’s face.
“Let’s see if you won’t fade into obscurity during that time. One less problem for our Demonic Cult in the future.”
The old man saw Li Shen staring at him eyes filled with anger, but he only snorted before he went to turn around and leave.
However, he suddenly paused.
“Come to think of it, wouldn't it be better if our Demonic Cult knew who you were so we could keep you in check?”
It wasn't like there weren't other people who target them while wearing masks, but this Faceless Hero was the only one to garner so much attention and notoriety.
The old man turned back around, his eyes flickering with a cold light.
Approaching Li Shen’s side, he reached down towards his mask.
Bang!
A loud sound suddenly echoed out as the old man casually blocked Li Shen’s metal Sword Qi with his palm, that was aiming for his neck.
Li Shen’s used that opportunity to manipulate the soil below him and create an opening to fall through.
The old man watch as the hole he disappeared into closed, however, his face was expressionless as he turned his gaze in a certain direction. His figure then teleported nearly half a mile away.
His palm slammed onto the ground sending shattered rocks everywhere.
Li Shen’s figure could then be seen being blasted out of the ground. He landed and rolled a few times.
Coming to a stop, he raised himself up, but the old man teleported next to him and stomp down on his back.
Li Shen was slammed into the ground which caused him to cough up a mouth full of blood in the process.
‘F-Fuck, this bastard.’
Li Shen cursed.
“That’s a good escape technique you have to cover such a large distance in an instant. If I wasn’t in front of you, you might have been able to avoid my senses.”
The old man's eyes gained a mysterious light.
“Your body is also strangely strong for a Sea Expansion Realm Cultivator to only take so much damage from my palm strike. Even your weird ability to conjure Sword Qi with all six elements as well. Just what other things are you hiding? You can't possible be just a Sea Expansion Realm cultivator, you're power even rivals someone in the early or mid-stage of the Core Formation Realm.”
Li Shen cursed even more when he heard the greed leaking from his words. He wasn't far of from estimating his current strength, but if Li Shen used his Time Qi and Heavenly Laws he could become even stronger.
But was it enough to kill a Nascent Realm cultivator? Not a clone, but a real, in the flesh Nascent Soul realm cultivator?
It was already frightening that he could cross a major realm to battle someone in the Core Formation realm, but the gap between the Nascent Soul realm and Core Formation realm was hundreds of times bigger than the gap between the Foundation Realm and Core Formation realm.
Just they're ability to manipulate laws could kill dozens of Core formation realm experts in the blink of an eye.
Li Shen wasn't of the same comprehension to manipulate laws like that, he could only do circus tricks at best. And this left him in a dilemma, should he use his Time Qi and overclock his Heavenly Laws like he did to save Yang Su to battle this old man, or use the jade slip his father gave him?
‘Do I have to use it? Father only gave me one, and to use it now to kill a Nascent Realm cultivator would be a complete waste. And it’s still not a guarantee I could fight him with my Time Qi and Heavenly Law Comprehension even if I overclocked it. If I reveal anything and he ends up surviving that would cause more problems.’
Li Shen’s mind raced with thoughts as the old man’s hand reached for his mask.
‘His guard is up, so I can't try any surprise attacks.’
In a split-second, Li Shen realized his situation was extremely unfavorable. As the old man restricted him from moving, he watch as he grabbed and ripped off his mask.
The old man looked at the face behind the mask of this person they called the Faceless Hero, and his brows furrow while his expression depicted confusion for a brief moment. However, he quickly realize who he was looking at and his face completely fell.
“You-You’re the Second Prince!”
The old man was so shocked he instinctively took a step back. He thought about this person’s identity and who his father was, then a cold chill went down his spine.
However, his eyes suddenly flashed with a grim look.
“You can actually cultivate.”
The old man couldn’t fully express the emotions he felt upon learning Li Shen’s identity as the Faceless Hero, but those four words said it all.
A murderous light appeared in his eyes as he looked at Li Shen, without even a second thought he moved towards him fast.
However, during the time he took a step back, an ordinary-looking jade slip appeared in Li Shen's hand. He made a decision.
As the old man moved he went to crush it, but all of sudden his heart shook and he stopped.
Suddenly, a droning sound echoed out that started off low, but soon grew louder and more high pitch until it was at a deafening volume.
The old man despite hearing the ominous sound didn’t pause, all of his focus was on Li Shen.
His figure quickly appeared in front of him, his palm striking out towards his head aiming to obliterate him in body and soul.
***
//Tseth: Hey guys, remember to show some love by voting with golden tickets and power stones!//