Chapter 157 - 156: That Person is Extremely Strong
By the time the dust settled, Xia Wuyang’s overall strength had surged dramatically.
His Basic Power had reached a staggering 150,000 kilograms. Amplified by Top Level Mortal Techniques and Arts and assisted by a Top Level Mortal Artifact, it could increase roughly tenfold. That meant a destructive force of over 1.5 million kilograms—a full 1,500 tons. One could only imagine the implications.
An ordinary mountain could be shattered with a single punch from Xia Wuyang.
Splitting mountains and toppling peaks was no longer an impossible feat for him.
The transformation of his Qi Blood grew more and more profound. Each drop of Qi Blood contained vast energy, as if it could shatter solid rock.
Stimulated by the breakthrough, his Spiritual Power had also advanced, improving considerably.
The most pleasant surprise, of course, was the improvement in his Talent and Qualification. He was drawing ever closer to the next major realm of talent: Extraordinary Talent. By the time he reached Blood Exchange Perfection, his Talent and Qualification would likely also break through to this new level.
Across the entire vast Dynasty, how many Martial Artists possessed talent and qualifications that reached the Extraordinary Talent level?
Guided by his solid Foundation, the boost from each breakthrough far surpassed that of an ordinary person. Although he was currently only at the Blood Exchange Late Stage, his true combat strength had already reached the Super Grade Level—and that was without even considering his Extraordinary Spiritual Power.
During his Cultivation, Xia Wuyang’s previous insights deepened.
Cultivation was like building a tower: the more solid the foundation, the greater the heights one could reach in the future. Although his breakthroughs now required more than three times the time, energy, and resources, the benefits were self-evident.
The Alchemy Dao and the Martial Dao also had a mutually reinforcing effect. Advances in the Alchemy Dao were a great help to his Cultivation.
After carefully assessing his current strength, Xia Wuyang was quite satisfied.
After a night of arduous cultivation, it was not until dawn that Xia Wuyang reverted to his decrepit, elderly appearance and walked out of the Practice Room.
The moment he came out, a broad, eager grin spread across his face. He lunged impatiently toward Hanik’s Heart and Su Ling’Er. "Hani, Ling’Er, you two will attend to me in bed this morning."
Faced with the impatient Xia Wuyang, Hanik’s Heart and Su Ling’Er exchanged a glance, a look of resignation on their faces. They could only force a smile and move to greet him.
"Your Highness, we’re coming."
’We must be extra careful in our service from now on,’ they thought to themselves. ’We can’t let the elder Crown Prince overexert himself. If anything were to happen, we couldn’t bear the consequences.’
Meanwhile, outside the Imperial Palace, a black-robed Elder of the True Yin Sect, Yin Xinping, was led inside by Palace Attendants.
This First Grade Late Stage Grandmaster had a sinister expression and exuded a faint, eerie fluctuation. Wherever he passed, the surrounding Palace Attendants all felt a strange, inexplicable palpitation in their hearts.
As one of the highest-ranking Elders in the True Yin Sect, Yin Xinping had been immersed in the Enchanting Heart Technique for many years and was one of the sect’s most accomplished masters of the art.
He had come this time on the Sect Leader’s orders. His purpose was twofold: to clear the True Yin Sect of suspicion and to find out who dared to use their Secret Technique to stir up trouble in the Imperial Palace. At the same time, they suspected it might not have been the Enchanting Heart Technique at all.
Although the True Yin Sect was powerful, it did not dare to easily challenge the might of one of the top three Dynasty Empires in the Fallen Dragon Land.
Facing questions and pressure from the Great Xia Dynasty, they had no choice but to send an Elder to investigate the truth.
When news reached Liu Yiqing, the Divine Female Constable immediately dropped the case she was working on and rushed over at top speed.
She had been living in the Imperial Palace for a long time without being able to find the culprit. Now that she finally had a lead—the Enchanting Heart Technique—she was growing impatient.
The moment she saw Yin Xinping, Liu Yiqing’s expression turned cold. "Elder Yin, many of the recent incidents in the palace bear traces of the Enchanting Heart Technique. I must ask you, Elder, to ascertain what is going on."
"Rest assured. Since I have come, I will naturally give you an explanation," Yin Xinping said indifferently. "Besides, nothing has been confirmed yet. Who can say for sure that the Enchanting Heart Technique is to blame? We should investigate first before drawing any conclusions."
Liu Yiqing nodded and led him to the palace of the Twenty-fourth Prince, Xia Baifeng. An incident had recently occurred there where a large number of treasures were stolen. Princess Jinping had confirmed that she could detect traces of the Enchanting Heart Technique using a special Secret Technique.
They arrived at Xia Baifeng’s Fengnian Hall, the scene of the theft. The Twenty-fourth Prince, Xia Baifeng, was nowhere to be seen, his whereabouts unknown.
Yin Xinping activated the Enchanting Heart Technique, carefully sensing the residual spiritual fluctuations in the air. He then activated his own special Secret Technique to examine the various traces.
After a short while, Yin Xinping’s expression turned grim. "What a refined and powerful Enchanting Heart Technique. The user must have cultivated it to the Great Success Realm."
"It took me two hundred years, and I have a special talent for the art, to cultivate it to Perfection. Yet this person has also managed to bring the Enchanting Heart Technique to Perfection! Even with Extraordinary Talent, I’m afraid that would take over a hundred years."
"Are you certain it’s the Enchanting Heart Technique?" Liu Yiqing asked, her delicate brows furrowing.
Yin Xinping pondered for a moment before saying with a hint of resignation, "This is indeed our sect’s Enchanting Heart Technique, and the method is extremely brilliant. Even within our True Yin Sect, few Elders can compare. However, I know all the Elders in the sect who are skilled in this technique, and this isn’t the style any of them habitually use."
Next, the two of them investigated several other locations: the palace of the Seventh Prince, Xia Wunian; the palace of the Third Prince, Xia Wuchen... In almost every location, they found traces of the Enchanting Heart Technique. The traces were exquisitely subtle, and the methods used were different each time.
"How strange. Who could it be?" The more Yin Xinping investigated, the more alarmed he became. "These uses of the Enchanting Heart Technique clearly originate from the same source, yet the application methods are all different. It’s as if multiple people are using this Secret Technique. But I’m certain that none of the Elders from our True Yin Sect who specialize in this technique have come to White Jade City recently."
"How could you possibly know for sure if they came to White Jade City or not, Elder Yin?" Liu Yiqing sneered. "If someone wants to do something nefarious, they will certainly hide their identity and whereabouts. If not for the special Secret Technique, we might never have even discovered these traces."
Yin Xinping’s face darkened. "If the True Yin Sect were responsible, I wouldn’t have come on this trip. The perpetrator has indeed mastered the Enchanting Heart Technique, but it’s not as if our sect’s technique hasn’t been leaked over the years."
"Even if it was leaked, a core sect-protecting Secret Technique like this should have some leads," Liu Yiqing said coldly. "Therefore, this is a matter the True Yin Sect must investigate thoroughly. Find out where it was leaked to. Otherwise, the blame for this will fall squarely on the True Yin Sect."
Yin Xinping said in a deep voice, "Rest assured. Since I am here, I will certainly cooperate with the investigation to uncover the truth. If it really is the work of one of our sect’s Elders, we will definitely give the Great Xia Royal Family a proper explanation."