Chapter 295: Hidden Facts
How could Zen not be angry?
There were two important parts of his life—martial arts was the path on which he wished to harvest his achievements, and Yan was his most cherished, beloved little sister.
To make it to where he was, Zen had sacrificed a great deal only to suddenly be told that all he had done was in vain. The dream that once seemed so close to him slipped right through his fingers just before he could reach it. How on earth could he possibly take it easy?
Meeting Zen's eyes, Kenneth was neither fazed nor afraid. With a plain smile, he simply said, “You don't have to be so angry. Yan was imprisoned in Hell Mountain for a reason. And as her brother, you deserve to know why.”
“Out with it, then,” said Zen with a dark scowl at Kenneth, darting a fierce glare of hate.
Even though Kenneth was way stronger and more powerful than him, who was able to kill him in a single strike, at that moment, Zen didn't care one bit. Hatred and determination drove him, bolstering him to man up, showing no sign of cowardice.
“Yan is supposed to be the disciple in Cloud Sect with the greatest potential. As you know, not many female disciples enroll in Cloud Sect, leading to Lady Peak's depopulation. Among those girls, only a few are truly good. You see, Jill is one of the most talented there, and yet, she didn't get a very good result in the competition,” said Kenneth slowly. Pausing for a moment, he caught Zen's attention. "But Yan is different.
Unlike those lesser girls, Yan possesses true talent. I have high expectations for her. I can see even greater potential in her than in you, Zen.
Do you know what our purpose is? Do you know why we bother to establish a Cloud Sect here in the Eastern Region?
We, Cloud Hall, aim to attract all the talents of the Eastern Region!
Once their true potential is identified, they would be sent to Cloud Hall for further learning. The world of warriors is a world where only the fittest survive. To make it here, one has to endure fierce competition and strong opponents. And as numerous geniuses as there may be, there is a hunger here for true super-geniuses, who will be cherished and nurtured by all sects.
According to my judgment, you are very gifted in martial arts, Zen. Normally, from higher to lower, we divide the potential for martial arts into three grades—Heaven, Earth, and Human. However, an even greater grade than Heaven is Saint. You've got tremendous potential, Zen, so much that your grade is somewhere between Heaven and Saint. Your talent may be remarkable, but still, no match for your sister's. She's a Saint-level talent! How can we afford to send a Saint-level talent to Perdition Mountain?
Yes, she hurt the Yun Clan's eldest son and disabled him. But that was nothing compared to her future achievements. Even if she slaughtered the whole Yun Clan, I, Kenneth, would still back her up!"
As Kenneth went on, he stood from his chair, overcome by his determination. His strong hands were clenched tightly behind his back to the point of his knuckles whitening. The expression on his face seemed more emotional than usual.
At that moment, Kenneth's passion was so compelling that when faced with him, one would barely be able to breathe easily.
Were Zen an average disciple, he might have yielded to Kenneth's strength and knelt down. But because Zen was just as resolute, he managed to stay calm and composed in front of Kenneth's overwhelming demeanor.
Beside them, seeing Zen handling himself easily, standing up straight, Elder Xu felt a sense of relief and remained where he was. Though he was ready to help Zen resist, lest he be hurt by Kenneth's strength, to his surprise, Zen looked neutral, as if he was barely affected by the former's power.
However, although Zen kept a calm facade, deep inside, he was rather shocked by Kenneth's words as he brooded over what he was just told.
In the beginning, he thought Yan was confined to Perdition Mountain because of her severe offense to the Yun Clan, and everything that followed was the clan's retaliation. It seemed, now, that his guess was wrong.
According to Kenneth, Yan was the most promising disciple of the Cloud Sect, and he would do anything or go against anyone to protect her. Though he might have been exaggerating to help emphasize his point, his words revealed a certain truth—in Kenneth's eyes, Yan was more important than the entire Yun Clan!
So why was she imprisoned in Hell Mountain, then? What did Kenneth say was the reason behind it?
Seeing that Zen was lost in thought, Kenneth paused for another moment. With a sigh, he looked up at the boundless sky and said, "You Luo Family have been mediocre for generations. But suddenly, a pair of geniuses were born. I would say that your births were God's design. God's will works in mysterious ways, after all, as is how we all ended up here. Whatever happens to you has been predetermined before your birth. It's fate that Yan was sent to Perdition Mountain, and fate doomed you to be unable to do anything about it. But one's fate can be changed. By working hard enough, one day, you will take a step beyond the Illuminating Soul Realm, and even refine yourself in the Internal Elixir Realm. With all that, you might be able to free your sister from confinement. I believe that one day you will. But not now.
Right now, you're too weak. You haven't yet reached your full potential. You're too weak to achieve your dreams and too weak to save your beloved ones.
You may have amazing talent, but the world is vast and full of people with talent. There are many talented people but very few truly accomplished ones. Not many talents can survive the hardships and come out strong."
Kenneth's shots of 'too weak' at him made Zen's heart sink.
He couldn't help but be apprehensive.
Yan seemed to be in greater trouble than he thought and Kenneth didn't have a say in her release either.
Moreover, Kenneth's requirements sounded completely impossible.
Enter the Illuminating Soul Realm, and then step beyond it?
Become one of the Internal Elixir Realm warriors?
Such stages were out of Zen's reach. But he knew that Kenneth wasn't trying to humiliate him—Kenneth was trying to tell him how powerful the opponents were and how radical the challenges he would face if he were to set his sister free. Compared to Internal Elixir warriors, Zen's strength was like that of an ant. If they met in battle, he would be blown away like a grain of dust as he turned into literal ashes.
“Sir, I don't quite understand yet. If my sister is so important to Cloud Hall, why was she sent to Perdition Mountain? Was it because of her great potential?” asked Zen.
Kenneth nodded but after a moment, also shook his head. With another defeated sigh, he continued,“Not just that. Apart from her aptitude in martial arts, she was gifted with a special peculiarity. Her body is suitable for energy storing. She has what is called the 'Purple Power Body'.”
“Purple Power Body?” asked Zen with an arched brow.
He had never heard of such a thing.
“You heard me right. It's a special natural talent passed on by blood, inherited only by women. And when a woman of Purple Power Body enters the Internal Elixir Realm, her Internal Elixir is called the Purple Power Elixir—very different from the usual ones, and more powerful than that of common people. A woman with Purple Power in the Internal Elixir stage is someone far beyond her peers of both genders,” explained Kenneth.
"I see…My sister is a remarkable woman, it seems. Do you mean someone is coveting her natural talent?
Can this Purple Power Body be taken by force?" asked Zen.
Now, he felt that he was finally close to the truth.
“Such a special talent is extremely rare—one in a trillion. And as only women can possess this particular skill...” Kenneth's countenance was severely serious as he continued,"There is one thing that can be taken from them—their virginity.
There's this overlord of the Central Region who wants to set out a Lustful Demon Array. To do so, he needs to find three women who have the Purple Power Body and they all have to be in the stage of the Internal Elixir Realm."
Virginity and lust…
As Zen heard the pair of words, his face turned darker and more furious.
Unlike normal cultivation methods, there were also evil techniques for one to refine the self and gain inner energy. These evil methods required the practitioners to practice evil deeds, and some had to be acquired through sex with virgins.
Apparently, this overlord of the Central Region was one of those who used such evil means. His goal wasn't a common one, for he required the virginity of three Purple Power Bodies of the Internal Elixir Realm. One could hardly imagine how powerful this overlord must have been.
“Didn't you say that the Purple Power Body was extremely rare, possessed by only one in a trillion? And he wants three? How is that possible?” questioned Zen. However powerful this overlord might have been, his pursuit seemed to be in vain. The Purple Power Body was so rare that only one woman out of hundreds of millions possessed it and yet the overlord wanted to find three of them. What was more, he needed all of them to be in the Internal Elixir stage. How could that be?
With a shake of his head, Kenneth slowly said,“I have no idea. These matters are far too high up for me to fathom. Three Purple Power Bodies of the Internal Elixir stage sound impossible to find but some masters in the Central Region have unimaginable means to get what they want. With their superhuman skills, they know everything that's happening between Heaven and Earth. There is a possibility that they might find three women that match the criteria eventually, and that's why we sent Yan to Perdition Mountain. Practice or punishment—it's merely an excuse. Yan's imprisonment is truly for protection. We are trying to protect her from this overlord and from all the others who would use her.”
Now, it all made sense. It was no wonder his sister had been confined—a mission of protection disguised in punishment.
Though he could finally sigh in relief, sadness built up inside Zen.
It was all his fault, he believed, being too weak to protect his own sister. Once her true nature was exposed to the public, Zen couldn't even imagine what would happen to her.
After everything, he knew that he owed Kenneth an apology. Cloud Hall had done all they could to protect his beloved Yan.
But there was another question that still hung over his head—was this overlord within the authority of Cloud Hall or from the other forces of the Central Region?
Irritated at the situation, Zen contemplated on the matter.
In spite of his anger, he was no fool. For the whole time he spoke, Kenneth sounded sincere in his authority. But he didn't owe Zen an explanation. After all, Kenneth was a senior member of Cloud Hall and would do things in Cloud Hall's interest. If the overlord was also a member of Cloud Hall, Kenneth would never stand against him for Yan's sake.
If that were the case, they could no longer rely on Kenneth's kindness.
'Time, ' Zen suddenly thought. 'I need time to improve and become stronger, ' he swore deep inside. 'For Yan's sake…and my own sake…I must become stronger. The sooner I do, the better.'
“Is it possible to arrange a meeting with my sister?”
After a thought, Zen suddenly inquired.
With a smile, Kenneth nodded his head and promised,“Of course you can visit her. You're also allowed to bring her out of torture Mountain for a while, but not too long. The overlord already knows about Yan's talents and has paid quite a few visits to Cloud Sect. To protect Yan, we lied to him and said she was still in her confinement. If he happens to spot her outside of torture Mountain, we'd be exposed. All of us, especially Yan, would be in severe trouble.”
“I understand. Thank you for your advice, Sir. I'll go meet her now,” he calmly said.
After the fierce struggle inside him, he restrained his anger and excitement. Too much caring and overthinking might lead to confusion when dealing with problems in the long term. Hearing about Yan's situation, Zen decided to keep his mind even. What he needed now wasn't to vent his anger but to find a solution to the problem.
“Elder Xu, take Zen to Perdition Mountain,” ordered Kenneth.
Following the command, Elder Xu summoned his transportation vehicle. An emerald green leaf of five square feet appeared beneath his boots. Urging Zen on, Elder Xu told him,“Stand on the leaf, Zen. I'll take you to Perdition Mountain.”
After bowing his head to Kenneth, Zen stepped on the leaf. Once he steadied himself, the leaf fluttered up and shot right up into the air.
The thought of seeing his sister made Zen's heart race in excitement—he could barely keep it in, now.