plumnovel Chapter 440 The Changes in Central China
Chapter 440 The Changes in Central China
In the study, the candlelight flickered, casting swaying shadows on the wall.
Yuan Tiangang stood before his desk, his hands tucked into his sleeves, his expression calm, but a hint of seriousness in his eyes.
Lin Chen had never seen that kind of solemnity in Yuan Tiangang before.
Lin Chen leaned back in his chair, his fingers tapping lightly on the armrest, unhurriedly.
"The sky over Zhongzhou has cracked?" Lin Chen raised an eyebrow.
Yuan Tiangang nodded: "This happened at 1-3 PM today."
"The bad guards reported that a crack has appeared in the sky above Zhongzhou."
The crack stretched for thousands of miles, from east to west, splitting the entire sky in two, as if it had been cleaved in two by a knife.
Lin Chen's fingers paused for a moment.
Stretching across thousands of miles, what does that mean?
The entire Dayan Dynasty, from east to west, was only a little over ten thousand miles long.
In other words, the length of this crack is almost as wide as the territory of Dayan.
"What's in the crack?" Lin Chen asked.
"No one saw it clearly." Yuan Tiangang shook his head: "But everyone who saw the crack felt a powerful pressure descend from the sky, overwhelming and inescapable."
Yuan Tiangang paused, then continued:
"The report from the Bad Guard states that mortals kneel and kowtow, cultivators' true energy stagnates, and even terrestrial immortals temporarily lose their ability to stay airborne."
Lin Chen fell silent.
Land immortals are already considered top-tier beings in this world.
What level of existence must there be to exert such pressure that it can make even a terrestrial deity lose its ability to stay airborne?
True Lord? Holy Venerable? Or something even higher?
Lin Chen cleared his mind of thoughts, then suddenly remembered something and asked:
"Is there any news about Dugu Qiubai?"
Yuan Tiangang took out a secret report from his sleeve and handed it over with both hands.
Lin Chen took it and opened it.
The handwriting on the secret report was neat and precise, each stroke a standard form of writing from a corrupt guard.
At noon, Dugu Qiubai broke through to the Celestial Immortal Realm in Luoyan Valley, Zhongzhou.
The extraordinary phenomenon spread to a radius of a thousand miles, with sword energy raining down from the sky for a quarter of an hour.
"The strange phenomenon of sword energy impacted the underground seal of Luoyan Valley, causing the seal to loosen. A huge black hand emerged from the ground, with an eye in its palm, surveying the Western Zhou."
"Instead of retreating, Dugu Qiubai advanced and launched an attack."
"The first sword left a deep, bone-revealing wound on the palm, and three fingers were severed."
The second sword pierced the palm, black blood gushed out, and the strange phenomenon was suppressed.
The third sword—
Lin Chen frowned and looked down.
"Before the third sword could be thrust out, it was slapped away by a palm."
Dugu Qiubai coughed up blood and flew backward, crashing through three mountain peaks before disappearing into the depths of the mountains, his fate and whereabouts unknown.
Lin Chen placed the secret report on the table and remained silent for a long while.
It was 3:45 AM and 1:30 PM, just 15 minutes apart.
"Was the Sky Rift caused by Dugu Qiubai's three sword strikes?" Lin Chen frowned and muttered to himself.
Yuan Tiangang shook his head slightly: "The analysis by the Bad Guard is—not entirely correct."
Dugu Qiubai's sword energy only caused the seal to loosen prematurely.
The crack must have existed for a long time; it was just waiting for a trigger.
Lin Chen leaned back in his chair, staring at the roof beams.
This statement is even more unsettling than the saying "Dugu Qiubai poked a hole in the sky".
If it was caused by Dugu Qiubai, then at least it's controllable.
But if it already existed, then that's rather intriguing.
"Is there any news about Dugu Qiubai?" Lin Chen asked.
Yuan Tiangang shook his head: "The Bad Guards are searching the area within a thousand miles of Luoyan Valley, but have not found anything so far."
However, he shouldn't be in mortal danger; someone like Dugu Qiubai isn't so easily killed.
Lin Chen's lips twitched.
Indeed, someone like Dugu Qiubai has a life tougher than a cockroach.
Last time, he was almost smashed into mincemeat by the Celestial Ancestor of the Corpse Refining Sect. After recuperating for several months, not only was he not crippled, but his cultivation level even broke through.
He was sent flying again this time. Who knows, when he reappears, his cultivation level might have improved again.
"What about those old monsters in Zhongzhou? What's their reaction?" Lin Chen stood up, walked to the window, and opened it.
The night was deep outside, and the moon hung in the sky, round and bright, illuminating the courtyard in a silvery white light.
The distant mountain shadows overlap, resembling a splashed-ink landscape painting.
A night breeze blew in, carrying the fragrance of osmanthus blossoms. Everything was so quiet, so peaceful, that it made one want to sleep.
But back in Zhongzhou, things are probably in an uproar.
Yuan Tiangang said, "Celestial Immortal Ancestors have emerged one after another, major sects have closed their gates and recalled their disciples, and some reclusive old monsters have also shown their faces."
"Anything else?"
"Also—the rogue cultivators from Zhongzhou have started heading to the Eastern Region. It's not just a few here and there, but groups of them are leaving."
They said that the Central Plains were about to descend into chaos, while the Eastern Regions, with Lin Chen, were relatively safe.
Lin Chen turned around, looked at Yuan Tiangang, and his lips twitched: "Who did they say was from the Eastern Region?"
"With you here, my lord!"
Lin Chen remained silent for a moment, then sighed.
Well, they've actually set their sights on him.
When the Central Plains fell into chaos, everyone fled to the Eastern Region. Was the Eastern Region some kind of refuge or something?
A scene suddenly popped into Lin Chen's mind—the cultivators of Zhongzhou, with their families and bundles on their backs, lined up and walked towards the teleportation channel, like they were rushing to catch the Spring Festival travel rush.
Lin Chen shook his head, trying to banish the image from his mind.
"Keep an eye on it," Lin Chen said. "Don't miss a single piece of news from Zhongzhou, especially about that rift."
Yuan Tiangang clasped his hands in a fist and said, "Yes."
He didn't leave immediately, but hesitated for a moment before speaking again: "My lord, there is one more thing."
He didn't leave immediately, but hesitated for a moment before speaking again: "My lord, there is one more thing."
Lin Chen's heart skipped a beat when he saw his expression.
Yuan Tiangang was a man who never hesitated.
The thing he's hesitating about must be something serious.
"explain."
Yuan Tiangang took out another secret report from his sleeve and handed it over.
"This information was intercepted by the Bad Guards on the outskirts of Falling Goose Valley. It was found on a cultivator from Central Continent who had been knocked unconscious."
Lin Chen took it and opened it.
The handwriting on the secret report was messy and crooked, as if it had been written in extreme fear; it contained only one line:
"Something is looking out from within the crack."
Lin Chen stared at that line of text for several seconds.
"What the hell?" Lin Chen slammed the secret report on the table. His voice wasn't loud, but it was filled with annoyance.
Yuan Tiangang shook his head: "The Bad Guards are also investigating, but the cultivator who was stunned went crazy after he woke up. He can't say a word and just keeps pointing to the sky."
The two remained silent for a long time.
The study was so quiet that you could hear the faint sound of the candle wick burning and the rustling of bamboo leaves in the wind outside the window.
Lin Chen walked back behind his desk and sat down. He reached for his teacup and found that the tea had gone cold.
He didn't change it, took a sip of the herbal tea, and found it bitter and icy.
"Alright, I understand." Lin Chen put down his teacup. "Keep an eye on Dugu Qiubai's situation and find him as soon as possible."
"Yes!" Yuan Tiangang clasped his hands in farewell and turned to leave.
As he reached the door, Lin Chen suddenly called out to him.
"Old Yuan."
Yuan Tiangang turned around.
Lin Chen sat behind his desk, the candlelight illuminating his face, his expression neither serious nor anything else.
Lin Chen paused for two seconds, then said:
"Call Mr. Zhuge back first thing tomorrow morning. The rift in the Central Plains is no small matter. There are some things that need to be arranged in advance."
"yes!"