Hannibal Not Barca
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🕑 Added 2025-02-01 18:00:05 +0000 UTCChapter 126: Profound Sun Sect's Kill Order
"Did something happen in the sect, or is there a new mission to be issued?" Li Xun was puzzled.
As a core disciple of the Profound Sun Sect, things were different for him compared to the inner disciples. Inner disciples needed to go to the Azure Cloud Hall to take on tasks, whereas core disciples typically only needed to focus on cultivation.
However, whenever a major event occurred, the sect would directly notify them via their identity token—just like now.
Li Xun picked up his identity token and infused his spiritual sense into it, quickly finding a new message inside.
The content of the message was simple.
It instructed all sect members at the Divine Power Realm and above to hunt down a monk named Fa Zhao. The sect did not specify Fa Zhao's current strength, only mentioning that five years ago, he was at the peak of the Divine Power Realm.
As for his current condition, it was uncertain.
Of course, the sect did not issue a mandatory order. Whether or not to participate was up to the individual. Even if someone chose to go but failed to kill him, it wouldn't be a problem.
In other words, this mission had a high degree of freedom—it was one of those tasks where there would be rewards for completion, but no consequences for failure.
"Three days ago, Fa Zhao fled from the Great Chu Dynasty into the Yunzhou territory..."
At the end of the message, the sect noted Fa Zhao's whereabouts.
"Yunzhou..."
Li Xun pondered for a moment. This place seemed to be at the northernmost part of the Great Zhou Dynasty, situated at the border between the Great Zhou and Great Chu Dynasties. Both dynasties had ambitions to annex Yunzhou, but in the end, neither succeeded.
Over time, Yunzhou, spanning millions of miles, became a chaotic region that both dynasties claimed but neither truly controlled.
Both claimed authority over it because the various forces within Yunzhou had to pay tribute to both sides, yet neither dynasty took real responsibility because they considered it an insignificant burden.
Due to this ambiguous attitude from both dynasties, Yunzhou had become a place teeming with all kinds of strange beings—demons, monsters, and ghosts alike.
In fact, there were even mortal kingdoms established within Yunzhou.
The existence of these "kingdoms within a kingdom" might sound ridiculous, but it was a reality in Yunzhou.
More importantly, some mortal kingdoms in Yunzhou even had demon clans serving as national advisors.
This alone was enough to illustrate how chaotic Yunzhou had become.
"A monk who escaped from the Great Chu Dynasty hasn't even fully entered Great Zhou territory yet, and Profound Sun Sect has already issued a kill order. This Fa Zhao must be something special," Li Xun muttered to himself.
As soon as he finished speaking...
Elder Chen suddenly appeared in his room. The moment he arrived, he solemnly asked, "Nephew Li, have you received the sect's message?"
"Are you referring to the order to hunt down Fa Zhao?" Li Xun asked in surprise.
"Yes."
Elder Chen held a jade token in his hand as well. A crimson glow flashed across it before fading away. He sighed and said, "That Fa Zhao is no ordinary person."
"The sect has concealed many details from you all for your own good, fearing that you might act recklessly and pursue him without a second thought."
"Oh?"
Li Xun raised an eyebrow and asked curiously, "Elder, is there something more to this?"
"There are too many hidden truths. To explain it all, we have to go back to the Great Bright Monastery a hundred years ago—"
Elder Chen's face took on a nostalgic expression as he slowly began to recount the past.
As Elder Chen spoke, Li Xun gradually came to understand everything.
It turned out that the Great Bright Monastery was once a powerful sect within the Great Chu Dynasty's territory. Just how powerful it was remained uncertain, but at its peak...
The sect had a Saint overseeing it, making it a force capable of standing on equal footing with the Great Chu Dynasty.
If that were all, the Great Chu Dynasty might have tolerated them. However, the monastery sought to establish a Buddhist nation within Great Chu territory.
This ambition touched a nerve within the Great Chu Dynasty.
A hundred years ago, war broke out between the Great Chu Dynasty and the Great Bright Monastery. In the end, the monastery's Saint fell, and the once-mighty sect crumbled to dust.
Notably, during that battle, Duke Yang of Great Chu, with his peak Divine Palace Realm cultivation, managed to slay a Half-Saint from the Great Bright Monastery.
This achievement shocked all the surrounding powerful factions.
Later, after the destruction of the Great Bright Monastery, the Great Chu Dynasty, under the leadership of Duke Yang, purged all sects within its territory. As a result, the Great Chu Dynasty became the only dynasty without any sects within its borders.
In the Great Chu Dynasty, there were only three paths for those who wished to cultivate: joining the military, becoming a eunuch and entering the palace, or working as a constable. Apart from these three paths, no other avenues for cultivation existed.
The monk mentioned earlier, Fa Zhao, was none other than the contemporary Buddha's Son of the Great Bright Monastery.
The title of Buddha's Son was equivalent to that of a Holy Son in the major Holy Lands. Although the Great Bright Monastery had been destroyed, many monks managed to escape with the monastery's legacy. Fa Zhao was suspected of carrying one of its most treasured treasures—the Dingguang Glazed Lamp.
This lamp was the only sacred weapon possessed by the Great Bright Monastery in its prime. After the monastery's destruction, it vanished without a trace, and many suspected that it had ended up in Fa Zhao's possession.
Even the Great Chu Dynasty issued a bounty: whoever could kill Fa Zhao would be rewarded with a middle-grade Dao Weapon from the Great Zhou Dynasty.
"No wonder the sect only mentioned Fa Zhao’s strength and omitted the rest of the details. A Sacred Weapon, a Dao Weapon, and the inheritance of the Great Bright Monastery—who wouldn’t be tempted?" Li Xun finally understood.
Profound Sun Sect had deliberately emphasized the dangers without mentioning the rewards to protect their disciples. The sect’s leadership understood all too well that human greed knows no bounds.
There were too many cases of people risking their lives for wealth. If everyone knew that Fa Zhao was carrying such treasures, even cultivators at the Profound Elixir Realm, let alone those at the Divine Power Realm, would be tempted to take their chances.
The key issue was that Fa Zhao's wealth was simply too enticing. If someone managed to obtain everything he possessed, they could soar to new heights overnight.
As for whether seizing Fa Zhao's treasures would bring trouble—who would care?
As the saying goes, fortune favors the bold.
What if they were the one destined by fate to succeed?
At that point...
The vast world would be theirs to explore freely.
“If Fa Zhao truly possesses such treasures, then he must have many people hunting him down, right? Also... since he carries the Great Bright Monastery’s legacy, wouldn't there be experts protecting him?” Li Xun mused.
The Great Chu Dynasty was still very powerful, especially after consuming the resources of the Great Bright Monastery. It would have been impossible for Fa Zhao to escape unharmed without some formidable skills or backing.
As for the Great Bright Monastery itself, Li Xun thought to himself that a centipede doesn’t collapse even when dead. There were likely still a few remaining powerhouses.
On another note...
Tracking Fa Zhao in Yunzhou was like searching for a needle in a haystack. Even if they managed to find him, it might not necessarily be a blessing.
“Exactly.”
Elder Chen nodded gravely and said, “Profound Sun Sect is not the only sect after Fa Zhao. Other sects have also caught wind of this, and even within Great Chu, many titled marquises are taking action.”
“As for whether Fa Zhao has high-level protectors by his side, I’m not too sure. Perhaps the people from the Great Chu Dynasty would have better insight on that.”
