249: Chapter 249: Purity and Tranquility

On the way back to the Imperial City from the void, Mu Chen was very silent.

The heavenly emperor sword was strapped to his back, and the scabbard tapped lightly against his shoulder blade as the space tunnel vibrated slightly, emitting a faint metallic tremor.

Luo Li walked by his side, also remaining silent—she knew what he was thinking.

From the moment they were besieged at the exit of the Heavenly Palace until now, Mu Chen's eyes had only reddened once when the phantom of the Heavenly Emperor dissipated, and he had shown no other expression since.

But having known him for so long, she knew all too well what was buried beneath this silence.

Hun Feng walked in the lead, never looking back from start to finish.

His perception covered the entire space tunnel, naturally taking in Mu Chen's sullen appearance, but he asked nothing.

Some things had to wait for him to speak for himself.

It was already night when they returned to the Imperial City.

The volcanic clusters of the Burning Heaven Mountain Range spewed dark red magma into the night, casting a dark red glow over half the city wall.

The disciples guarding the city saw Hun Feng's figure from afar and bowed in unison; Hun Feng waved his hand to signal them to stand, leading the two straight into the side hall of the main palace.

The side hall was brightly lit with candles. Hun Feng sat down behind the desk and took a sip from the teacup handed to him by Xue Wei.

Today, Xue Wei was uncharacteristically tactful; after setting down the teacup, she retreated outside the side hall and closed the door behind her.

As she closed the door, her deep purple eyes swept across Mu Chen's face, her brows twitching slightly, but she said nothing.

Mu Chen stood before the desk, head bowed, his fingers gripping the scabbard of the heavenly emperor sword until his knuckles turned white.

Luo Li stood quietly half a step behind him, not urging him.

The candlelight flickered in the hall a dozen times before Mu Chen finally raised his head.

"Master." He spoke, his voice slightly hoarse.

Hun Feng set down the teacup and leaned back in his chair, looking at him.

"Disciple has a request." Mu Chen took a deep breath. "My mother—my mother is named Qing Yanjing, and she was the former Goddess of the Ancient Floating Pagoda Clan."

Because she married my father back then, she was imprisoned by the Ancient Floating Pagoda Clan in the forbidden hall of their ancestral grounds, where she has remained for over a decade.

Disciple wishes to ask Master to step forward and help me rescue my mother."

After saying this, he knelt on one knee.

The sound of his knee hitting the stone tiles was dull and heavy. Luo Li also knelt behind him, her silver hair sliding from her shoulder to cover half her face; she said nothing, simply using this posture to show her stance.

Mu Chen kept his head down, not looking at Hun Feng's expression.

He was well aware of the magnitude of what he was asking—the Ancient Floating Pagoda Clan was one of the Five Ancient Clans, with a profound heritage, and their Budu Xuan was a Saint-Rank Heavenly Sovereign.

Asking his Master to clash head-on with an ancient clan for the sake of his mother was no small matter.

But he had no other choice.

The trip to the Heavenly Palace had made him realize one fact: he was still too weak, and an Earth Supreme was simply not enough in front of the Five Ancient Clans.

Hun Feng leaned back in his chair, watching the disciple kneeling before him, and remained silent for a long time.

Then he sighed softly.

"As for your mother's matter, I have actually known about it for a long time."

Mu Chen jerked his head up.

"The former Goddess of the Ancient Floating Pagoda Clan, Qing Yanjing, a Saint-Rank Heavenly Sovereign, was imprisoned by Putu Xuan in the ancestral forbidden hall for marrying an outsider without permission."

Hun Feng's tone was flat, as if reading from an intelligence dossier. "Your father was named Mu Feng, a man from the Bailing Continent, now deceased.

You are the son of Qing Yanjing, and the Ancient Floating Pagoda Clan views you as a disgrace to the clan. I knew all of this before you became my disciple."

Mu Chen was stunned.

He opened his mouth, his Adam's apple bobbing several times, but finally, he only squeezed out two words: "Master..."

"If I were to step forward and demand your mother from the Ancient Floating Pagoda Clan, it is not something I cannot do."

Hun Feng stood up, walked around the desk to stand before Mu Chen, and looked down at him. "I am the Sixth Elder of the Great Thousand Palace and the Hall Master of the Soul Hall.

I even dared to kill Saint Son Mohe You; Putu Xuan would not go to war with me over a former Goddess who has been imprisoned for over a decade.

A calling card, a letter, or at most, compensating the Ancient Floating Pagoda Clan with a few spiritual veins—they would likely release her. Do you believe me?"

Mu Chen knelt on the ground, not answering.

He believed him.

He had seen with his own eyes his Master kill Saint Son Mohe You with a wave of his hand outside the Heavenly Palace, burning him until not even ashes remained.

No matter how powerful the Ancient Floating Pagoda Clan was, they would not clash head-on with such a ruthless person for a former Goddess who had been imprisoned for over a decade.

But he heard another layer of meaning in Hun Feng's words—"likely."

Not "certainly," but "likely."

This meant there were variables involved, variables that his current Earth Supreme cultivation level could not influence at all.

"But I would rather," Hun Feng bent down and pulled Mu Chen up from the ground with one hand, patting his shoulder and gripping it firmly, "that one day you can rely on your own strength to storm the Ancient Floating Pagoda Clan and personally bring your mother out of the forbidden hall.

The heavenly emperor sword is in your hands, the Primordial Celestial Body is in your body, and you have obtained the technique of One Qi Transforming into Three Purities—you have the techniques and the resources.

All that is lacking is time."

Mu Chen's shoulder trembled slightly under Hun Feng's palm.

"Do you have confidence?"

Mu Chen gritted his teeth, his eyes slightly red, but he forced himself not to let the tears fall.

He looked into Hun Feng's eyes; there was no pity, no sympathy, only a heavy sense of trust.

A moment later, he nodded heavily, his voice hoarse yet unusually firm: "Yes."

"Then go and train." Hun Feng withdrew his hand, his tone returning to its usual calmness. "When you feel you are qualified, come and tell me.

I will accompany you to smash the gates of the Ancient Floating Pagoda Clan. If you cannot smash them—" He paused, a faint smile appearing at the corner of his mouth, "I am still here."

Mu Chen cupped his fists forcefully, bowed deeply, and turned to stride out of the side hall.

His pace was much faster than when he arrived, his back held straight.

Luo Li followed behind him, and as she reached the door, she looked back at Hun Feng; there was gratitude in her blue eyes, along with a complex emotion that was hard to describe.

Then she also followed quickly.

The side hall became quiet again.

Xue Wei poked half her body in from outside the door, looked in the direction where Mu Chen and Luo Li had left, then at Hun Feng standing before the desk, and the corner of her mouth curled up slightly.

"You could have clearly helped him save the person directly; why go through such a roundabout way?"

Hun Feng ignored her, walked back behind the desk, sat down again, and took a sip from the teacup.

The tea had already gone cold.

"Because he needs pressure." Hun Feng set down the teacup and looked at the hand that had just patted Mu Chen's shoulder, his tone dropping a few degrees lower than usual. "He needs a goal that he is willing to risk his life to break through.

Although the inheritance of the heavenly emperor sword belongs to him, without sufficient tempering, that sword will sooner or later become a mere decoration.

Have you ever seen a peerless sword that was unsheathed by being worshipped on a shelf?"

Xue Wei leaned against the doorframe with her arms crossed, saying nothing.

She suddenly felt that this man, who had scammed her with chocolate beans and killed Saint Son Mohe You without hesitation, put much more thought into treating his disciple than she had imagined.

Hun Feng did not continue this topic.

His gaze fell on the cold tea leaves at the bottom of the cup, his fingers gently rubbing the rim of the cup.

What Xue Wei did not know was that the name Qing Yanjing was far more than just "Mu Chen's mother" in Hun Feng's heart.

A Saint-Rank Heavenly Sovereign. The former Goddess of the Ancient Floating Pagoda Clan. In the original work, she was imprisoned for many years, yet her combat power remained formidable after escaping.

If such a woman could join the Spirit Hall—no, even if she just owed him a favor—the top-tier combat power of the Spirit Hall would add another expert capable of going head-to-head with the clan leaders of the Five Ancient Clans.

But he was also clear that to control the karma of such a woman, gratitude alone was not enough.

He also needed strength. Strength sufficient to make a Saint-Rank Heavenly Sovereign take him seriously.

Strength sufficient to make her willing to sit down and negotiate terms properly after owing him a favor.

Therefore, he was not in a hurry. Mu Chen needed time to grow, and he also needed time to become stronger.

By the day Mu Chen stormed the Ancient Floating Pagoda Clan, if he were still only at the peak of the Immortal Grade Heavenly Supreme, it would not be enough for Qing Yanjing to truly value this favor.

What he wanted was never just a "Thank you, Hall Master Hun, for your righteous intervention."

What he wanted was a Saint-Rank Heavenly Sovereign ally who could fight side by side with him.

And to achieve that goal, his own fists must first be hard enough to make Putu Xuan wary, make Maha Tian afraid to act rashly, and make the entire Five Ancient Clans know—that the name Hun Feng is not to be trifled with, more so than any other ancient clan leader.

His thoughts were interrupted by a burst of hurried footsteps outside the door.

Hun Qian pushed the door open and entered, his pace three points faster than usual, holding a dark gold calling card in his hand.

The Spiritual Seal at the seal of the calling card had been forcibly shattered, and the clan emblem of the Mohe Ancient Clan was engraved on the surface—a golden mountain peak entwined with black lightning.

The entire calling card exuded unmasked Saint-Rank pressure, causing the teacup on the desk to tremble slightly from that aura.

"Hall Master, the leader of the Mohe Ancient Clan, Maha Tian, has personally brought people to the foot of the mountain. He says—he wants you to give him an explanation."

Hun Qian's voice was kept very steady, but his speed of speech could not deceive anyone.

Xue Wei straightened up from the doorframe, the leisure on her face vanishing instantly.

A late-stage Saint-Rank Heavenly Sovereign, the current leader of the Mohe Ancient Clan, one of the Five Ancient Clans, and the elder brother of Saint Son Mohe You—he had arrived faster than she had expected.

Hun Feng took the calling card, opened it, and glanced at it. There were only two lines of text on the surface, the handwriting like knife cuts and axe chops, every stroke carrying the pressure of a Saint-Rank Heavenly Sovereign:

"Hall Master of the Soul Hall killed my younger brother, Saint Son Mohe You; today I have come specifically to seek an explanation."

He closed the calling card, a faint arc appearing at the corner of his mouth, but there was no hint of a smile in his eyes.

"It saves me the trouble of going to find him." Hun Feng stood up and walked out from behind the desk. "Hun Qian, open the main gate to welcome the guest.

Invite the Mohe Clan leader to the main hall for tea. Xue Wei, go call Hun Tiandi and Void Swallowing Flame to the main hall, and by the way, have Cai Lin and the others come over as well."

Xue Wei and Hun Qian responded in unison, turned, and walked away quickly.

Hun Feng stood alone at the entrance of the side hall, straightened his cuffs, and looked toward the direction of the main gate of the Imperial City.

In the night sky, the volcanic craters of the Burning Heaven Mountain Range were spewing a new round of magma, the dark red light reflecting on his face, flickering on and off.

His thumb gently brushed against his storage ring—the aura of the Heaven-Slaying Flame flickered on his fingertip and vanished.

He had killed the man's brother. Maha Tian had come to seek an explanation.

Then today, he would give him an explanation.