The Longevity Family: Starting from the Foundation Establishment Ancestor

"Found a few... suspicious little rats." The leader of the men in black grinned, revealing his gleaming white teeth, his gaze sweeping over Luo Feng and the others like a venomous snake. The compass in his hand pointed steadily at Luo Feng, trembling slightly, emitting a faint fluctuation of the "Disorder" Dao principle similar to that of the "Reversal Alliance" token.

The tavern fell silent instantly. The other patrons were terrified, lowering their heads or averting their gazes, afraid of being implicated. Everyone knew that in the Myriad City, the black-clad man with the hourglass pattern on his chest represented the "Reverse Time Alliance," an entity that should not be easily provoked.

Luo Feng's heart skipped a beat. He cursed his bad luck inwardly, but forced a simple, somewhat fearful smile onto his face. He stood up, cupped his hands, and said, "Gentlemen, is there some misunderstanding? We are just ordinary mercenaries who have just entered the city. We've taken on some small escort jobs to make a living..."

"Misunderstanding?" The leader of the men in black sneered, brandishing the compass in his hand. "This 'Cause Tracing Compass' is specially made for the alliance. It can sense entities that have had close contact with specific targets or have been tainted by specific auras. The pointer is pointing at you, which means either you've been in contact with the person we're looking for, or... there's something wrong with you!"

His gaze swept over Li Qingzhu, Lin Fan, and Lin Xue, finally settling on Luo Feng: "You came from the 'Eternal Star Tomb'? You still carry the deathly aura and chaotic temporal energy of the Star Tomb. Tell me! Have you encountered a group of mysterious, powerful individuals who might be carrying special artifacts? Or, do you yourselves possess anything... that you shouldn't have?"

Luo Feng's mind raced. Were they after Senior Han and his group? Or the fragments? Or perhaps the karma left behind from their killing of the "Reverse Time Alliance" members at Star Tomb? Whatever the reason, he absolutely couldn't admit it!

"Your Honor is wise!" Luo Feng cried out, utterly grieved. "We were just wandering around the outskirts of the Star Tomb, picking up some junk, and almost lost our lives there. We've never seen any important figures or ancient artifacts! Do you think our meager cultivation level makes us look like we can get involved in anything significant?"

The leader of the men in black had a sinister look in his eyes, clearly disbelieving. He waved his hand: "Search them! Take them back to the branch for thorough interrogation! If they resist, kill them without mercy!"

Several men in black immediately stepped forward, their auras locking onto Luo Feng and his companions, and reached out to grab them.

Li Qingzhu, Lin Fan, and Lin Xue turned pale and looked at Luo Feng. Luo Feng gritted his teeth, about to risk revealing the life-saving trump card Han Mu had given him—but just then, a sudden change occurred!

The tavern's tightly closed door suddenly and silently turned to dust! It wasn't blasted open, but rather seemed to have weathered away over millions of years, instantly turning to ash! A tall figure appeared at the doorway like a ghost, blocking the light from outside.

It was Han Mu! Zhou Meng and Bai Ling followed behind him.

"My brothers, are you even allowed to touch them?" Han Mu's voice was calm, yet it carried a chilling aura as he stared at the leader of the men in black.

The leader of the men in black's pupils contracted, alarm bells ringing in his mind. The other party had appeared without warning, and his "Time Corruption" technique, which had effortlessly reduced the gate to dust, clearly demonstrated an extremely high level of mastery over the laws of time! The pointer of the "Retrospection Disc" spun wildly, finally trembling as it pointed towards Han Mu, who had just appeared!

"Target! It's him! Send the signal! Attack!" The leader of the men in black reacted quickly, shouting sharply. At the same time, a dark gray short blade appeared in his hand, carrying a wave of time distortion, and he thrust it at Han Mu first! The men behind him immediately took out communication talismans, activated them, and formed an array to attack Zhou Meng and Bai Ling, trying to delay them.

However, in Han Mu's eyes, their movements were too slow.

"Time...slowed down."

Buzz! An invisible temporal domain spread out from Han Mu, enveloping the entire tavern. The movements of all the men in black instantly slowed tenfold, as if they were stuck in a sticky swamp, and even the light of the communication talismans they activated floated slowly in the air.

Han Mu took a step forward and stood in front of the leader of the men in black. Ignoring the short blade that was slowly thrusting towards him, he raised his hand and pointed a finger at the leader's brow.

"Time... stripped away."

The leader of the men in black froze in terror. His body visibly lost its luster, withered, and aged at an alarming rate. In the blink of an eye, he transformed into a lifeless corpse, as if dried up for a thousand years, and collapsed to the ground with a thud. The short blade also clattered to the ground, devoid of any spirit.

At the same time, Zhou Meng and Bai Ling also moved. The Time-Slowing Domain had no effect on their teammates. Zhou Meng's warhammer, imbued with the sealing power of "Time Guardian," smashed several men in black, one blow at a time, breaking their bones and knocking them unconscious. Bai Ling's sword flashed like lightning, precisely deflecting and shattering the activated communication runes, ensuring none escaped.

The entire process happened in the blink of an eye. Before the other patrons in the tavern could even see what had happened, the battle was over. A team of elite "Reverse Time Alliance" soldiers, consisting of at least three Golden Immortal cultivators, was completely wiped out.

"Senior Han!" Luo Feng was overjoyed.

"My lord!" Li Qingzhu and the others breathed a sigh of relief.

Han Mu waved away the Time Domain, ignoring the corpses on the ground, his gaze falling on the fallen "Cause Tracing Compass." He grabbed it in mid-air, and after a brief examination, he understood its principle—this compass could track the aura that had a deep causal entanglement with the power of the "Time Lord" (reversing the laws of the Dao) or specific items (such as fragments or keys). Luo Feng and his companions, because of their battle with the "Ancient Star Tomb" against the "Reverse Time Alliance," were tainted with the power aura and karmic resentment of their opponents before their deaths, and thus were locked onto.

"We can't stay here any longer, leave immediately." Han Mu crushed the compass and said to Zhou Meng, "Clean up the traces, take the survivor with you, and find a secluded place to interrogate him."

"yes!"

The group acted swiftly, taking the unconscious man in black as a prisoner, and quickly left the chaotic tavern.

A moment later, deep in an abandoned alley, Han Mu conducted a soul search on the only survivor—a black-clad early-stage Golden Immortal whose cultivation had been sealed by Zhou Meng. The information obtained was limited; this man was merely an outer agent of the "Reverse Time Alliance" within the "Time Pavilion" of the Myriad Manifestations Heavenly City, ordered to patrol various entrances and densely populated areas of the city with the "Tracing Cause Disc." However, they had indeed received strict orders from higher-ups to search for a group of "dangerous individuals from the direction of the Star Tomb," at all costs. Their portraits were blurry, but it was emphasized that they might be related to concepts such as "origin" and "time," and the bounty was extremely high. Furthermore, Han Mu learned that the person in charge of the "Time Pavilion," codenamed "Eclipse," seemed to be planning a covert operation against the "Shadow Guild," the details of which were unknown.

Han Mu brought up the system panel and quickly scanned it.

Name: Han Mu

[True Realm: Mid-stage Taiyi Jade Immortal (Peak State)]

[Time Rule: 87%]

[Status: Good. "Reverse Time Alliance" patrol squad eliminated.]

[Celestial Aura: -6000 points]

[System Notification: Side Quest "The Threat of the Time-Reversing Alliance" Triggered: Investigate the "Eclipse" alliance's plans against the "Shadow Guild" and take countermeasures. Quest Rewards: Depends on completion rate.]

"Eclipse..." Han Mu's eyes turned slightly cold. This name is similar to "Shadow Time," indicating that he is a close guard under "Time Lord," and his strength is probably at least at the late stage of Taiyi Jade Immortal. "Reverse Time Alliance" is indeed eyeing "Shadow Guild" and the secret realm map, and may have already taken action.

"The plan has changed," Han Mu said to everyone. "We must contact the 'Shadow Guild' immediately, and in a way that will get their attention and make them willing to cooperate. Luo Feng, you said you found out anything about the 'Shadow Guild's' recent activities at the tavern?"

Luo Feng scratched his head: "I think I overheard those brokers mention that the 'Shadow Guild' is holding a quarterly auction at their 'Shadow Auction House' in three days. The grand finale is very mysterious, but it's said to be related to some ancient secret realm... Could it be the 'Forging Heaven Secret Realm Map'?"

A glint flashed in Han Mu's eyes: "Three days later...the auction...could 'Eclipse's' covert operation be scheduled for that time?"