Chapter 450: Chapter 422: The Successor of Heavenly Machine Sect

“How could this be?”

“It’s one thing to practice the same techniques as me, but his cultivation level is even higher than mine?”

He Zhenghao was suddenly speechless, plunging into deep doubt about his life.

“Now there’s trouble…”

In a flash, numerous thoughts emerged in He Zhenghao’s spirit consciousness.

However, he ultimately decided to take temporary refuge on the Ten Thousand Immortals Island.

Just as he was preparing to activate the Teleportation Array…

“I know you’re hiding in there, why don’t you dare to come out and see me?” The adversary’s furious shout sounded again, booming like thunder.

The entire Liuli Island seemed to tremble under this roar.

He Zhenghao’s face twitched. He didn’t dare to reply, hastily activating the Teleportation Array instead.

Who would have thought, it was as if the man had detected his movements.

“Trying to run away? Humph!”

A wave of energy suddenly enveloped the airspace above Liuli Island.

To his astonishment, He Zhenghao found that the Teleportation Array on Liuli Island had somehow lost its connection with the Ten Thousand Immortals Island.

“A space lock?!”

Cold sweat broke out on his forehead.

But He Zhenghao quickly came to his senses.

“No, through some unknown method, the connection to the array nodes has been temporarily disrupted…”

Just as he secretly sighed in relief…

He abruptly found that the cultivator who had suddenly appeared was transforming into a streak of light, rushing straight toward the Island Protection Array below.

A thrill ran through He Zhenghao’s heart: “So he’s a brute! My Mountain River Star Struggle Array is not so easily breached, even if your cultivation level is at the Golden Core stage…”

While he was thinking this, something that left him dumbfounded happened.

The stranger just breezed through the array as if it was nothing, swaggering right in.

The flight path looked random, but he always walked through the weakest nodes of the array’s defense.

Moreover, his speed was extremely fast. In the blink of an eye, before He Zhenghao could react…

He had landed in front of him.

The man stared at him coldly, his eyes full of killing intent: “Is it you, kid, who stole my sect’s techniques?”

He Zhenghao’s mind went blank.

He had no time to ponder how the adversary could break through his highly regarded Mountain River Star Struggle Array so easily.

Wrapped in a tangible killing intent, He Zhenghao’s heart began to pound uncontrollably.

“Misunderstanding! It’s definitely a misunderstanding!”

“Don’t take action, friend!” In the face of the threat of death, He Zhenghao called out repeatedly.

“Friend?” The ferocity in the man’s eyes intensified.

“A mere Foundation Establishment cultivator, how dare you address a true Golden Core individual as a friend?”

“Are today’s cultivators all so disrespectful?”

A pressure far greater than that of an average Golden Core cultivator suddenly emanated from him.

For a moment, He Zhenghao felt as if a mountain weighed on his shoulders. His knees buckled, and he barely managed to remain standing.

He Zhenghao felt wronged.

It’s not just Golden Core cultivators, even Nascent Soul Monks, I would call them friends!

However, with the villain before him and for fear of his life, He Zhenghao had no choice but to temporarily yield to the man’s martial power.

Forcing a smile onto his face, He Zhenghao hoarsely said: “Misunderstanding, it’s really a misunderstanding!”

“Let’s talk things over, senior!”

The stranger gave a cold look before momentarily withdrawing his pressure.

“I ask, you answer!”

“If you dare lie to me…”

“Death!”

He Zhenghao’s heart skipped a beat upon hearing the man’s words.

He nodded incessantly, like a pecking chicken, to indicate he understood.

“How did you come by your ‘The Mountain-Seating Secret’?” the man asked.

“It was something I accidentally found during an exploration of a Cave Mansion when I was young, it’s definitely not…”

He Zhenghao’s words were cut off by another question from the man.

“A Cave Mansion? Where is it located? And why does it contain the inheritance of my sect?”

He Zhenghao quickly relayed the location and internal structure of the Cave Mansion.

The man’s eyes narrowed and he fell silent for a moment.

Then, surprisingly, he began to recount some details of the interior of the Cave Mansion, asking He Zhenghao if his details were correct.

Overjoyed, He Zhenghao promptly nodded in agreement.

Noticing the man’s killing intent gradually receding, He Zhenghao breathed a sigh of relief.

Seeing the man seems to be immersed in his memories, he plucked up the courage to ask, “I’ve observed that you, senior, behave differently to ordinary people.”

“Did senior just awaken from a long slumber?”

It was not surprising that He Zhenghao would guess this.

Nowadays, which cultivator would care to mention his sect all the time?

Besides, there had been previous cases of ancient cultivators awakening after thousands of years of slumber.

He Zhenghao didn’t find this too peculiar.

He only felt that he was exceptionally unlucky.

The man didn’t admit to it directly but his expression became somewhat serious.

“I also wanted to ask you, what on earth has happened over these years?”

“How did practicing cultivation techniques suddenly start to resonate?”

“It seems that Heaven and Earth have changed…”

He Zhenghao was surer than ever about his suspicion.

He immediately gave a detailed account of the Heavenly Venerate’s Teachings, the events occurring in the Xuanhuang World after the Great Calamity, and the current state of the Alliance of Thousands of Immortals.

The man’s face changed constantly as he listened.

Through repeated probing, He Zhenghao gradually understood the man’s identity.

His name was Li Fan, a monk from the Ancient Sect of Heavenly Secrets.

An accident had caused him to enter a deep sleep.

Upon waking up, not only had his cultivation status regressed to the Golden Core Realm.

But an inexplicable sense of resonance had appeared in his mind.

The confused Li Fan followed this resonance to Liuli Island.

And it was only after discovering that He Zhenghao, a fellow practitioner of “The Mountain-Seating Secret”, was not a disciple of the Heavenly Machine Sect, that the earlier confrontation ensued.

“Senior, how did you discern that I’m not a disciple of the Heavenly Machine Sect?” Although He Zhenghao lamented his misfortune in his heart, he still had doubts.

Li Fan sneered: “Have cultivators become so ignorant after a thousand years?”

“Your question is like asking why cultivators can tell at a glance that demonic beasts are not human.”

“We, the cultivators of the Heavenly Machine Sect, value harmony between Heaven and man. Our sect’s techniques are all related to the energy flow. Of course I have secret techniques to discern this.”

He Zhenghao’s face reddened slightly at Li Fan’s contemptuous tone.

He was about to say something, but saw Li Fan suddenly focusing intently on him.

“Senior, you…” He Zhenghao couldn’t help feeling a bit nervous.

“How long have you been practicing ‘The Mountain-Seating Secret’?” Li Fan asked.

He Zhenghao was slightly startled: “Over a hundred years…”

“With such a divine technique as ‘The Mountain-Seating Secret’, after practicing for so long, how are you only at the Foundation Establishment Stage?”

Li Fan looked at He Zhenghao with doubt: “Could it be that you were injured and dropped down realms?”

Upon hearing this, He Zhenghao’s face turned red.

“Senior may not know, this Mountain-Seating Secret…”

He was about to defend himself, but suddenly remembered that the person before him was the originator of practicing “The Mountain-Seating Secret”.

For a moment, he was at a loss for words.

Stammering, he stood frozen on the spot.

However, Li Fan seemed to remember something and came to his rescue.

As if having an epiphany, he said: “Of course, you can’t sense the method of the Heavenly Machine. It’s no wonder your cultivation is so slow.”

“Relying solely on ‘Seating the Mountain’, without ‘Seating the Immortal’. Difficult, difficult, difficult!”