Zhu Xuanji arrived with a thunderous roar, and left with a whistling wind, drawing everyone's attention.
His cultivation level was as high as the Golden Core stage, and as a member of the royal family and a nationally renowned Divine Hunter, all his actions attracted attention.
Now, his grand movements had already stirred up a storm in the entire city.
Countless people were curious and doubtful: What event could have caused Lord Zhu Xuanji to make such a grand appearance?
Soon, rumors spread wildly, and Ning Zhuo thus entered everyone's sight.
Although Ning Zhuo was just a low-level Qi Refinement cultivator, his identity was not insignificant upon closer inspection.
He possessed mysterious talent, and had recently been standing out and making a name for himself.
Not only had he unseated the Young Clan Leader of the Ning Family Main Line, but he also achieved remarkable results in exploring the Magma Immortal Palace, which was quite astonishing.
Even the Ning Family's Golden Pill Ancestor, Ning Jiufan, highly regarded Ning Zhuo and publicly stated that Ning Zhuo had made contributions to the Ning Family.
On one side was Zhu Xuanji, and on the other was Ning Zhuo.
What could have happened between these two to make Zhu Xuanji act this way?
For a time, everyone in the city was extremely curious about the inside story.
After returning to his residence, Zhu Xuanji gave an order to summon the three Golden Core Ancestors.
The three Golden Core Ancestors, curious about Zhu Xuanji's actions, happily responded to his summons.
Soon, they all gathered in front of Zhu Xuanji.
After the trip to the Magma Demon Ape Den, their relationship became even closer.
They were natural allies of Zhu Xuanji.
Because the stance of the three major Cultivator Families of Fire Persimmon Immortal City was to unite with the South Bean Royal Family to oppose the Meng Family!
If Zhu Xuanji from the royal family could become the Master of the Magma Immortal Palace, then Fire Persimmon Immortal City could maintain its status quo.
If the Meng Family took control of the Immortal Palace, their influence would greatly erode Fire Persimmon Immortal City.
In the end, this city would become the private territory of the Meng Family, leaving no room for the three families, who would be squeezed out.
In the parlor.
Zhu Xuanji, with a serious expression, scanned the room and said in a deep voice, "Everyone is here."
"I know everyone has doubts."
"Before we discuss things in detail, please sign this oath first."
As he spoke, Zhu Xuanji took out a scroll from his coat.
The scroll was of a high grade, like a magical treasure, similar in design to a decree from the South Bean Royal Family.
Unfolding the scroll revealed extremely fine array patterns on its surface. Occasionally, in certain light, densely packed patterns would flash briefly.
Even the three Golden Core Ancestors were seeing such a high-quality contractual item for the first time.
Zhu Xuanji continued, "Please, all of you, in front of everyone, use this scroll to swear that you have no connection to the Black Shadow Demon Cultivator."
Upon hearing this, the three Golden Core Ancestors were astonished.
Recently, Zhu Xuanji had stopped investigating the explosion at the Immortal Palace.
His focus had shifted entirely towards exploring the Immortal Palace to gain more merits and contributions.
Why suddenly involve the Black Shadow Demon Cultivator again?
Though they didn't understand Zhu Xuanji's intention, the three Golden Core Ancestors still followed his request and swore an oath holding the scroll in front of everyone.
Seeing the oath established, Zhu Xuanji's expression softened slightly.
"As expected."
He slowly put away the decree and addressed everyone, "Since none of you have any secret ties to the Black Shadow Demon Cultivator, I will speak plainly."
"The root of all this lies in this Blood Path Diagram."
Zhu Xuanji took out the Blood Path Diagram and handed it to everyone for inspection.
This Blood Path Diagram was of high quality, like a magical treasure, with a smooth surface.
Zheng Shuanggou from the Zheng Family, a Golden Core Cultivator, first noticed something unusual and showed a hint of shock.
"Such a high-grade Blood Path Diagram should originally contain a True Scripture."
"True Scripture?!" Everyone was surprised.
Zhu Xuanji nodded slightly acknowledging, "Yes."
"This Blood Path Diagram is a mechanical component that I retrieved from the Mechanical Demon General."
"The Mechanical Demon General itself has no spiritual nature, but with this diagram and the True Scripture, it can operate the content of the True Scripture to perform cultivation techniques."
"The Mechanical Demon General is confirmed to have Golden Core level combat power, which means the demonic skill True Scripture on this diagram must be at least of Golden Core level."
Upon hearing this, everyone became excited.
Ning Jiufan stroked his beard and said, "The Three Ancestral Masters had a unique and extraordinary life, cultivating three paths which is rare in history. If they left behind a demonic skill, it would not be surprising."
Ancestor Zhou from the Zhou Family said, "I've long heard of the so-called Three Superior Sect Techniques. The Three Ancestral Masters left behind mechanical inheritances in the Magma Immortal Palace, the most valuable being the Three Superior Sect Techniques. Besides the Five Elements Qi Regulation Art, there are two other cultivation techniques that correspond to the three dantians in the human body."
"By cultivating all three techniques, one can establish the Foundation in the three dantians."
"Now that the Five Elements Qi Regulation Art has emerged, perhaps the demonic skill on this Blood Path Diagram is also one of the Three Superior Sect Techniques?"
Zhu Xuanji nodded, showing a faint smile.
"I think the same."
"I am also very curious about the content the True Scripture on this Blood Path Diagram once recorded."
"If I can obtain it, I might be able to glimpse the Three Superior Sect Techniques and verify if the rumors are true."
"Besides, if I recover the True Scripture, it will greatly aid me in gaining merit and contributions when I present the Mechanical Demon General."
"So, I used the Trace Origin Technique on this Blood Path Diagram."
"I obtained a crucial clue—in the early years, a small monkey accidentally came into contact with a damaged Mechanical Demon General."
"During the encounter, the demonic skill True Scripture voluntarily transferred to the monkey."
"I wanted to recover the True Scripture but didn't know the current appearance of the small monkey."
"Seven days ago, I secretly wrote to the South Bean Royal Family seeking help."
"The royal family's cultivators helped me deduce the appearance of the monkey in adulthood and old age."
"With this image as a clue, I could use the Magma Demon Ape clans in Huoshi Mountain to assist in the investigation and search."
At this point, Zhu Xuanji looked at Ning Jiufan.
Ning Jiufan's expression darkened slightly, realizing Zhu Xuanji's intention.
After the last exploration of Huoshi Mountain's bottom, he had become a guest of honor there.
In the largest Magma Demon Ape clan, he was very popular.
If he went personally with this clue to ask for help, the Magma Demon Ape clan would likely assist.
Relying solely on verbal communication, the intelligence of the Magma Demon Apes might not fully understand.
But with this image, they would have a clear and precise investigation target.
Zhu Xuanji continued, "Today, I received a reply from the royal family."
"Thus, I learned the appearance of the small monkey in adulthood and old age."
"To my surprise, the small monkey turned out to be Yuan Dasheng!"
"Yuan Dasheng?" The Golden Core Ancestors looked at each other, unfamiliar with this little name.
Ning Jiufan asked, "Since Lord Zhu knows, where is the monkey now?"
Ancestor Zhou from the Zhou Family frowned with a strange look, "It's already dead."
The other Golden Core Ancestors looked at him.
Then, Ancestor Zhou recounted the series of events that occurred during the Fire Persimmon Festival.
At that time, the Black Shadow Demon Cultivator was missing, and even though the City Lord's Mansion led the Golden Core Ancestors to dig three feet deep, they couldn't find the demon cultivator, bringing the upper echelons of the entire Fire Persimmon Immortal City to shame.
Ancestor Zhou suspected that the corpse of Yuan Dasheng might be hiding someone, so he, along with Fei Si and Zhu Xuanji, went to investigate the Monkey Head Gang.
They learned that Yuan Dasheng was dead and then went to the Mechanical Workshop to confirm Yuan Dasheng's corpse.
"So, the corpse of Yuan Dasheng ended up in the hands of Ning Zhuo?" Ning Jiufan was taken aback.
Zheng Shuanggou realized, "I see! So upon learning it was Yuan Dasheng, Lord Zhu immediately set off to find Ning Zhuo to retrieve the True Scripture."
Zhu Xuanji nodded, "But I didn't get it back. Ning Zhuo told me he knew nothing about it."
The three Golden Core Ancestors looked at each other.
Ancestor Zhou pondered, "Lord Zhu has Golden Eyes and many spell techniques to detect lies. We can't deceive him."
"Ning Zhuo, only a small Qi Refinement stage, speaking the truth about his ignorance must be true."
"So, where did the True Scripture go?"
Zheng Shuanggou was full of doubts, "Yes, if the True Scripture is not with Ning Zhuo, where is it?"
At this point, Zhu Xuanji said, "This is the main reason I gathered you to swear an oath."
Then, Zhu Xuanji held the contractual decree and swore in public, "What I say next may not be the complete truth, but it is mostly what I personally experienced without any lies."
After finishing these words, Zhu Xuanji took a deep breath and spoke slowly.
"We all know that Ning Zhuo is the inventor of the Mechanical Explosive Flame Monkey. He showed the incomplete version to Chen Cha of the Flying Disk Workshop, who was recruited by Fei Si. After that consultation, Chen Cha and Ning Zhuo agreed that his workshop would produce and sell the Mechanical Monkeys."
"Soon after, the Black Shadow Demon Cultivator tried to approach the Magma Immortal Palace and was discovered by Friend Zheng Shuanggou. A fierce battle ensued. During the battle, a Mechanical Explosive Flame Monkey carrying a large amount of Fire Essence bombed the Immortal Palace, causing it to appear early, with the Dharma Transmission Bell ringing throughout the city."
"Friend Zheng Shuanggou personally saved Ning Zhuo and other Ning family cultivators. Shortly after, the Black Shadow Demon Cultivator appeared near the dungeon, Chi Dun pursued but the demon fled into the Fire Persimmon Forest. Fei Si intervened to protect the forest, stopping Chi Dun's pursuit."
"I began investigating the Mechanical Monkeys but found these mechanical artifacts everywhere in Fire Persimmon Immortal City, with booming sales. My investigation into the sale of Fire Essence revealed no large-scale purchases."
"While I was at a loss for clues, Chi Dun persuaded me, and Fei Si invited me to act against the Black Shadow Demon Cultivator during the Fire Persimmon Festival, to which I agreed."
"During the Fire Persimmon Festival, those present saw the siege of Yuan Dasheng by a dozen Mechanical Explosive Flame Monkeys, which failed."
"Soon after, Yuan Dasheng made an error while picking a fire persimmon, causing a terrifying explosion. During the explosion, I observed with Golden Eyes that Yuan Dasheng tried to use demonic skills for protection but forcefully suppressed them, seemingly unwilling to implicate his former master's son."
"Out of respect for his loyalty, I intervened, ordering Fei Si to open the array. Fei Si hesitated but complied under my insistence. I then performed treatment, giving Yuan Dasheng a chance to live, after which he was carried back by the Monkey Head Gang members."
"Fei Si gave his waist token to Ning Zhuo. Ning Zhuo, with the token, persuaded Yuan Er to not save Yuan Dasheng. Yuan Dasheng ultimately died of his injuries, and Ning Zhuo took his corpse away."
"While searching for the Black Shadow Demon Cultivator in the Fire Persimmon Forest, we found no trace. Friend Zhou suspected someone hiding in Yuan Dasheng's corpse, so we investigated together."
"First, we went to the Monkey Head Gang, learned that Yuan Dasheng was dead, and his corpse taken by Ning Zhuo. We then went to Chen Cha's workshop where we found Yuan Dasheng's essence blood was already extracted."
Sss...
The three Golden Core Ancestors all gasped.
They understood!
"The City Lord's Mansion?!" Zheng Shuanggou appeared incredulous, "So the Black Shadow Demon Cultivator is someone from the City Lord's Mansion; they bombed the Immortal Palace, but why?"
Zheng Shuanggou looked puzzled, "Previously, the Meng Family had secretly united with my Zheng Family and the Zhou Family, forming a pact. We had already agreed on it."