380: It's like they've made up their minds!

He had seen plenty of such unpresentable underhanded tactics over the centuries; he was well-prepared, confident in his stable Dao Heart, and remained unmoved.

However, as time passed, the rumors did not subside but instead intensified, with the content becoming deeper and more specific!

What was initially exposed were merely some trivial, ambiguous pieces of information that had a negligible impact on him, far from being truly damaging.

But soon, these rumors began to dig up his past, leaking various core secrets and trump cards, even turning them into public gossip!

Now, it was no longer just a minor nuisance; it was a series of lethal blows aimed directly at his life!

After all, the reason a trump card is a trump card lies in its secrecy and suddenness.

Once exposed to the world, studied, countered, and guarded against by opponents, its threat would be greatly diminished, and it might even turn into a weakness!

This was equivalent to rendering useless the many important methods he had painstakingly prepared for his breakthrough to the Nascent Soul stage, completely disrupting his entire plan!

As for why Yun Chenzi was so certain that the mastermind was the Zhuge Family?

Did he even need to guess?

In the entire Profound Spirit Domain, which power had the capability, the motive, and the expertise to use such means to thoroughly strip away the secrets of a Great True Person of Golden Core Perfection like himself?

Aside from the Zhuge Family, who specialized in the arts of Heavenly Secret and Karma, who else could it be?

Moreover... Yun Chenzi’s eyes turned cold, narrowing slightly.

He recalled that not long ago, while he was in seclusion within the Dao Palace, he had felt a malicious sense of prying that had come across the Void Realm.

That aura was profound and obscure, carrying a distinct dao rhyme of Heavenly Secret deduction; its source, as expected, must be that old ghost Zhuge Xuanji!

Furthermore, this happened right after Zhuge Mingyi "went missing," which served as even better evidence!

In truth, Yun Chenzi felt some regret.

He had been careless!

He had originally thought the Zhuge Family would somewhat fear the might of the Qingming Immortal Sect and his own strength as a Golden Core Perfection, half-step Nascent Soul cultivator.

Even if something had truly happened to Zhuge Mingyi, the other party would at most negotiate privately and demand some compensation, rather than completely burning bridges.

But he never expected the Zhuge Family’s reaction this time to be so fierce and unconventional!

Without a single word or a chance to explain, they immediately flipped the table and used such extreme methods for retaliation, catching him completely off guard!

The key was... he was being wronged!

Although Zhuge Mingyi’s "disappearance" was related to him throwing the man into the Void Turbulence, he was definitely not the one who struck the killing blow.

By his estimation, with the protection of the dao rhyme he had left behind, Zhuge Mingyi would at most suffer a bit and certainly wouldn't perish.

His final whereabouts being unknown was likely due to other accidents encountered during his drift.

But if he said this, would anyone believe him? Would the Zhuge Family believe him?

Moreover, what was Yun Chenzi’s status?

His pride would never allow him to lower himself and take the initiative to humbly explain and clarify to the Zhuge Family!

Not only would that result in a total loss of face, but it might even be seen as a sign of a guilty conscience.

Thus, he chose silence and a cold treatment of the situation.

However, in the eyes of the Zhuge Family, his silence perhaps became an admission of guilt and contempt, which instead intensified the other party's rage, leading to even more severe retaliation and the exposure of even more core secrets.

"What useless trash! A grand Heavenly Secret family that claims to calculate all of heaven's secrets can't even figure out why their own disciple met with disaster! Instead, they splash dirty water on this seat's head!"

The more Yun Chenzi thought about it, the angrier he became, feeling a tightness in his chest and an immense sense of grievance.

In fact, it wasn't that he hadn't thought about storming into the Heavenly Secret Blessed Land to confront Zhuge Xuanji face-to-face and demand an explanation by force.

But with his remaining rationality, he ultimately did not take action.

After all, he truly did not dare to easily leave the mountain gates of the Qingming Immortal Sect right now!

For no other reason than that since being "doxxed," his many trump cards and methods were nearly transparent, and their threat had been greatly reduced.

Those opponents with old grudges against him, and even those with ill intentions, were likely stirring, just waiting for a chance to catch him alone after he left the Sect.

At that time, if someone carefully set a trap or if several cultivators of the same rank joined forces to ambush him, even if he were confident in his formidable strength, he would have no certainty of escaping unscathed and would highly likely suffer a disastrous defeat.

After all, the saying that two fists are no match for four hands has existed since ancient times!

As for that empty title of "Number One in Northern Border Dao Combat," it was nothing more than flattery from Lower Cultivators.

Who among those who have truly reached this level would actually believe in such things?

If he truly underestimated those old monsters who were hidden in the shadows and also stuck at Golden Core Perfection for hundreds or thousands of years, then he, Yun Chenzi, would be the true fool!

As for seeking help from the other four fellow brothers in the Qingming Immortal Sect who were also at Golden Core Perfection?

A hint of mockery appeared at the corner of Yun Chenzi's mouth.

Although they were from the same Sect, as fellow Golden Core Perfection cultivators, they were all competitors hoping for a glimpse of the great Nascent Soul Dao; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call them Dao Enemies.

Maintaining a surface-level harmony under the overall situation of the Sect was already the limit.

Now that he had met with this calamity and his path was blocked, if those four didn't secretly celebrate or even take the opportunity to kick him while he was down, it would already be considered showing some sentiment for their shared history.

To expect them to provide help in his time of need and stand up for him was nothing short of a pipe dream!

The struggle for the Dao path is just this cruel.

Under the temptation of the Nascent Soul Dao and the erosion of long years, the bond between fellow disciples is sometimes not even worth a weed by the roadside.

Yun Chenzi sat alone within the Five Elements Dao Palace, his aura rising and falling like the tides, the light in his eyes flickering as if thousands of thoughts were surging deep within his heart.

He knew his current situation better than anyone; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say he was facing internal troubles and external threats, besieged from all sides!

It couldn't be helped; sometimes standing too high means the tall tree catches the wind, and the stronger one is, the more one becomes a target for all!

Not a single person truly wished for his stability; they all wanted to pull him down from the clouds into the mud.

"It seems... I must take that step!"

Yun Chenzi whispered to himself, as if having made a certain decision.

Before his voice could fade, he suddenly closed his eyes, and a circle of five-colored rotating patterns abruptly appeared between his brows, which then evolved into black and white fish, circling and intertwining.

An invisible ripple also suddenly spread around him, and his robes fluttered without any wind.

Initially, it was just a slight swirl of air in the hall, like a spring breeze brushing against one's face.

But within just a few breaths, the sound of the wind grew sharper, turning into tens of thousands of faint grey airflows that were hard to discern with the naked eye, arising from the Void Realm and seeping into the hundred apertures of his body.

Wherever the wind passed, even the lamp flames in the hall froze, as if time itself was being blown into a sluggish state.

At this moment, while everything appeared normal from the outside, a tempest had already been stirred within Yun Chenzi’s Spiritual Terrace.

The various Karmas, Heart Demons, and obsessions he had experienced on his path to the Dao were all pulled out one by one by this wind, turning into layers of illusions that rushed toward him.

Yun Chenzi's figure remained motionless, but fine beads of sweat broke out on his forehead, and his knuckles turned slightly white, showing that he was enduring a massive weight on the level of his Divine Soul.

For what he was enduring was the Bi Wind Calamity from the "Three Tribulations and Five Calamities" that one must pass on the path of cultivation!