The First Venerable of All Paths

"Have you heard? The Fan family has been wiped out!"

"How could that be? The Fan family is..."

"You mean the Blood Fiend Gang? Ha, the Blood Fiend Gang is gone too."

"What?!"

The news of the annihilation of both the Fan family and the Blood Fiend Gang swept through the entire Flowing Sand County like a whirlwind.

Everyone was shocked.

The Fan family is fine, though.

It was just a small family that barely made it into the second tier, with shallow roots, so its downfall was not surprising.

But the Blood Fiend Gang is different.

That was an established power that had been based in Liusha County for decades.

He has hundreds of followers, all of whom are fearless and brave, and there are also six elders at the Qi Condensation Realm who are in charge.

The gang leader, Xue Wushang, is a true expert at the Divine Intent Realm.

How could such a force be wiped out so easily?

At first, some people were skeptical and thought it was just a rumor.

But when someone saw with their own eyes that the fire in the direction of the Blood Fiend Gang's lair had been burning for three days and three nights, with thick smoke obscuring the sky, all doubts vanished.

Amidst the shock, some were relieved to have finally escaped the Blood Fiend Gang's oppression.

Many others felt a chill run down their spines, a deep sense of fear rising within them.

The existence capable of annihilating the Blood Fiend Gang in one fell swoop must possess unfathomable strength.

They secretly worried that a force even more ruthless than the Blood Fiend Gang might emerge in Flowing Sand County.

But as it turns out, this worry was unnecessary.

After the Blood Fiend Gang was destroyed, no new overlord rose to power, which instead left Flowing Sand County without any checks and balances.

Many emerging forces were eager to make their move and began to fight each other, plunging Liusha County into three years of chaos.

However, all this commotion was irrelevant to Fang Xuan.

Of course, these things are no longer relevant to Fang Xuan.

At this moment, he and Li Tianjiao had already appeared in a small town.

Hongquan Town.

This small town is located at the junction of Qingyang, Liusha and Mingyang counties.

Due to its unique terrain, this town is also considered a no-man's-land.

There is only one inn in town, which has been established for many years and looks old and simple.

Inside the inn room, Fang Xuan peered through a crack in the window at the street outside, his brow furrowed with vigilance.

From the moment he entered Hongquan Town, Fang Xuan felt that something was very wrong.

As soon as night fell, the streets were deserted.

He turned to look at Li Tianjiao and said, "Now, can you tell me why you came to Hongquan Town?"

Li Tianjiao fiddled with a teacup, not touching a single bite of the food and wine on the table.

Hearing this, she smiled slightly and said, "Brother Fang Xuan, how much do you know about Red Spring Town?"

Fang Xuan was taken aback and shook his head: "All I know is that Hongquan Town is a no-man's-land, and its geographical location is extremely remote and barren. I don't know anything else."

Even when Fang Xuan went out to train, he had never been to Hongquan Town before.

I don't know much about this town.

In the past, when he went out to gain experience, his footprints covered many places in three counties, but he had never set foot in Hongquan Town.

I naturally didn't know much about this small town hidden in the cracks.

"Actually, the so-called 'three no-man's-land' in Hongquan Town is only true to outsiders."

Li Tianjiao put down his teacup and slowly explained, "In reality, there are three forces secretly controlling this town, checking and balancing each other."

"First."

Li Tianjiao held up one finger and said, "The Sun family of Hongquan, in terms of strength, can barely be considered a first-class family in Qingyang County."

"second."

Li Tianjiao extended his second finger and slowly said, "Hyena Mercenary Group, a low-profile mercenary force second only to the Blood Fiend Gang."

Upon hearing this, a hint of surprise flashed in Fang Xuan's eyes.

A mercenary force second only to the Blood Fiend Gang?

He had spent a long time training in Liusha County, yet he had never heard of this name, which shows just how low-key he was.

"What about the third party?"

Fang Xuan looked at Li Tianjiao, his face now showing a strong interest.

Li Tianjiao's red lips curled slightly, a hint of cunning hidden in her eyes. She smiled without saying a word, simply watching him quietly.

Fang Xuan was taken aback, then said in surprise, "Could it be... the Li family?"

"Why can't it be me?"

Li Tianjiao smiled brightly.

"what?"

This time, Fang Xuan was truly shocked.

"you?"

Seeing Fang Xuan's suspicious look, Li Tianjiao rolled her eyes and said irritably, "No way? Brother Fang Xuan, you're underestimating me too much."

"Hehe, um..."

Fang Xuan gave an awkward smile and said, "I was just too surprised."

"So, you brought me here..."

Upon hearing this, Li Tianjiao suddenly sighed.

"As you've probably seen, there's not a single ghost in Hongquan Town at night."

Li Tianjiao said, "Actually, Hongquan Town wasn't like this a little over a year ago."

"Back then, Hongquan Town was very lively and prosperous."

Fang Xuan pretended to listen attentively.

"Due to its unique geographical location, many martial artists use this place as a resting place."

Li Tianjiao continued, "But more than a year ago, or to be precise, two years ago, some strange things started happening in Hongquan Town."

"At first, it was just some martial artists who went missing."

Li Tianjiao said, "But this place is too chaotic. Let alone one or two martial artists, even if there are ten or a hundred, no one will pay attention."

"until......"

At this point, a rare look of seriousness appeared on Li Tianjiao's face.

"One night a year ago, the Sun family disappeared."

Li Tianjiao looked at Fang Xuan and said, word by word, "More than a hundred people, vanished without a trace!"

Upon hearing this, Fang Xuan's expression changed slightly.

"They've all disappeared?"

Li Tianjiao nodded.

"The Sun family's strength is even greater than that of the Fan family. The family has three martial artists at the Condensation Realm, and the patriarch is also a powerful expert at the seventh level of the Condensation Realm."

Li Tianjiao said in a low voice, "This is the whole family that disappeared overnight."

"Do you know why?"

Fang Xuan's expression also turned serious.

But more than anything, it was curiosity.

"At first, no one knew why, which caused widespread panic."

Li Tianjiao said, "Later, after one of the vice-leaders of the Hyena Mercenary Group went missing, the Hyena Mercenary Group began to send people to investigate."

At this point, Li Tianjiao took a sip of tea and spoke softly.

"Then we discovered that the root of all this was that Red Spring Lake."

Fang Xuan frowned: "Isn't Red Spring Lake an ordinary lake?"

Although Fang Xuan was unfamiliar with Hongquan Town, he did know about Hongquan Lake.

The spring water flowing from the spring is red, like fresh blood.

Over the years, a small red lake has formed near the spring.

It is known as Red Spring Lake.

Hongquan Town got its name from this.

In reality, Hongquan Lake is nothing special; it's just an ordinary lake.

"That's what everyone thinks."

Li Tianjiao said with a wry smile, "But during our investigation, we found that anyone who was still outside at night would head towards Hongquan Lake and then disappear."

Fang Xuan analyzed, "Could it be that Red Spring Lake is the entrance to some secret realm?"

"impossible!"

Li Tianjiao said, "If it were the entrance to a secret realm, one could enter and then exit. But everyone who entered Red Spring Lake did so not voluntarily; it was as if... they were being controlled by something."

"hiss!"

Fang Xuan couldn't help but gasp.

Controlled by an unknown entity, they entered Red Spring Lake and then disappeared.

This is really too bizarre.

Fang Xuan slowly said, "Even if it's not the entrance to a secret realm, there are still some special things in this Red Spring Lake."

"yes."

Li Tianjiao said, "But now no one dares to go near that place."

Treasures are wonderful, but one must be alive to enjoy them.

Even experts at the Nascent Soul Realm have never returned from this Red Spring Lake, let alone ordinary people.

"Of course, our investigation was not without results."

Li Tianjiao smiled and said, "On the night of the full moon, Red Spring Lake will have a short period of dormancy, so you can try to get closer."

"Have you tried it?"

"Um."

Li Tianjiao said, "For this, Nie Song and I sacrificed several subordinates."

"Nie Song is the leader of the Hyena Mercenary Group."

Li Tianjiao said, "This guy is a ruthless character."

Who in a mercenary group isn't ruthless?

Fang Xuan smiled slightly and said, "So you plan to go and see for yourself next full moon night?"

"That guy Nie Song has already colluded with a force in Mingyang County and plans to investigate Red Spring Lake on the next full moon night."

Li Tianjiao said, "All my hard work over the years has been destroyed by this Red Spring Lake. I won't be able to accept it without taking a look."

Fang Xuan understood.

The Sun family was not the only one swallowed up by "Red Spring Lake".

There's also the faction that Li Tianjiao created himself.

Fang Xuan asked, "When is the next full moon?"

Three days later.

"Okay, I'll go with you to take a look then."

After listening to Li Tianjiao's story, Fang Xuan also developed a strong interest in Red Spring Lake.

"Otherwise, why would I have called you here?"

Li Tianjiao rolled his eyes and said, "It's getting late, Brother Fang Xuan, you should get some rest."

Before leaving, Li Tianjiao repeatedly told Fang Xuan not to leave the room no matter what happened.

Fang Xuan readily agreed.

That night.

Fang Xuan sat cross-legged on the bed, silently cultivating.

Although he had only recently advanced to the Qi Gathering Realm, after several battles, Fang Xuan's realm had become completely stable and was even steadily rising.

"Now that I have forged my natal flying sword, I should focus on the Myriad Swords Return to Nothingness Technique."

Sword cultivators are known as the best at killing.

Fang Xuan naturally attached great importance to it.

"I have mastered the first move of the 'Breaking Ten Thousand Laws' technique, but I have been unable to grasp the second move, 'Severing the River', for a long time."

Thinking of this, Fang Xuan felt somewhat helpless.

Although Breaking the Myriad Laws is only a basic sword technique, it is only relative to the Myriad Swords Return to Nothingness Technique.

This sword technique is considered top-tier, no matter where it is placed.

Just as Fang Xuan was about to continue comprehending the One Sword Severing the River, he suddenly opened his eyes as if sensing something and looked out the window.

The windows were tightly closed.

But Fang Xuan clearly sensed that a cold and eerie aura was gradually approaching from outside.

I could still faintly hear some indistinct calls in my ears.

This call inexplicably irritated Fang Xuan, making him want to get up and check.

Just then, a scorching aura burst forth from his dantian and then circulated throughout his body.

"Whoosh whoosh whoosh!"

Fang Xuan suddenly came to his senses, gasping for breath, his heart filled with shock.

"What was that just now?"

Fang Xuan, of course, was unaware of this.

At this moment, wisps of thin red mist drifted through the streets of Hongquan Town.

These red mists, as if they were alive, were constantly searching for something.