Chapter 36: A Game of Secrets
"Three pill recipes in one go…"
Wu Yuan sat cross-legged on his bed, eyes locked on the system's Store interface. His brows furrowed, thoughts churning.
"Does the system want me to become an alchemist or something?" he muttered.
He remembered the countless cultivation novels he had read in his past life. One common thread among most protagonists? Alchemy. Almost every main character, at some point, could refine pills, brew medicines, or concoct mysterious elixirs that baffled even grandmasters.
"Should I really take that path too? Become an alchemist on the side?"
He considered it seriously for a moment—but only for a moment. With a shake of his head, Wu Yuan dismissed the idea.
"No. I don't even have the basics, nor the time to learn. I've barely touched the surface of the Body Tempering Realm, and I need to focus everything on breaking through to Level 12 and reaching the Spirit Initiation Realm."
His gaze returned to the gleaming list of unlocked recipes:
Spark Essence Pill Recipe – 100 SP
Spirit Awakening Pill Recipe – 300 SP
Lightning Marrow Cleansing Pill Recipe – 200 SP
He could afford to buy one or two. But what would be the point if he couldn't refine them?
"I'll shelve that idea for now," he thought. "Maybe someday, but not yet."
After closing the system window and confirming that his SP reserves and cultivation condition were stable, Wu Yuan stretched and slowly rose to his feet. The slight soreness in his muscles was a pleasant surprise—not pain, but a sign that his body had recovered much faster than expected.
He opened the door and stepped out into the courtyard, where a familiar figure moved gracefully under the morning sun.
Wu Xiao.
She was mid-routine, performing a set of fluid body-tempering movements—her fists cutting through the air with sharp precision, legs moving in perfect rhythm. Morning light glinted off her sweat-dampened brow—her discipline etched into every movement.
But the moment her eyes registered his presence, her eyes flew open.
She froze.
"Y-Young Master?" she gasped, leaping upright.
Wu Yuan stood there, relaxed, composed—hands behind his back, as if he'd merely stepped out for a stroll.
Her eyes scanned him in disbelief. No limp, no bandages. No signs of weakness. Just calm, confident Wu Yuan… as though the fierce duels, shattered bones, and chaos from two days ago had never happened.
She had fully expected him to be bedridden for at least three more days. Wu Yuan not only being awake but walking with a composed aura was… unsettling.
Wu Yuan smiled faintly and waved her over.
"Xiao, go inform the Clan Head. Tell him I need to speak with him in the clan hall."
Still blinking in surprise, Wu Xiao quickly regained her composure. "Yes, Young Master. Right away."
She turned and hurried off with practiced grace.
Wu Yuan took a deep breath, then stepped into the open walkway toward the main compound. Servants, guards, and passing elders who spotted him froze mid-step. Murmurs began to ripple.
"Isn't that the Young Master…?"
"He's awake already?"
"Didn't he have several broken bones?"
"No way… I thought he'd be in bed till next week!"
The looks of disbelief followed him all the way through the corridor. Wu Yuan remained silent, his steps steady and deliberate. It was only now, walking under the rising sun, that he noticed something.
My body… it's healing faster.
He had sensed it earlier when he woke, but now it was undeniable. The soreness in his joints, the light bruises on his skin—they were healing at a rate far beyond what any normal peak level 9 body tempering cultivator should experience.
Could it be… due to the high-grade cultivation level? Or maybe the effects of the Lightning cleansing?
He couldn't be certain yet. But one thing was clear—his path was accelerating.
By the time Wu Yuan arrived at the clan hall, nearly all of the Wu Clan elders were already present. His mother, Su Qing—who rarely attended internal clan meetings—was also there, seated silently at the side. But her gaze spoke volumes.
She stared at her son with disbelief.
The main doors creaked as Wu Yuan stepped in, steady and composed. Not a limp, not a hint of strain—just calm, confident steps that echoed against the floor like drums announcing his return.
"Yuan'er," Clan Head Wu Lingtian was the first to speak, his voice heavy with concern. "You should be resting. We could've postponed this discussion. There was no need for you to push yourself."
Wu Yuan bowed slightly in respect, then straightened. "Thank you, Uncle, but I'm fine. The wounds were superficial—they've mostly healed."
A murmur rippled through the room.
Another shock.
But by now, the elders were almost numb to surprises from Wu Yuan. This boy—no, this young man—kept defying expectations again and again. It had reached a point where disbelief had given way to quiet awe.
Wu Lingtian narrowed his eyes. "Very well, since you're here… tell us—did you learn anything? About those so-called Jiang Clan youths?"
Wu Yuan nodded. "I did. And if I'm not wrong… I know exactly who they are."
A heavy silence fell over the room.
It was Elder Wu Mingze who finally asked, voice cautious, "So they weren't from the Jiang Clan?"
Wu Yuan's gaze sharpened.
"No. They were from the Lei Clan."
The air cracked like a thunderclap.
All the elders froze, stunned.
Wu Mingze's mouth opened slightly, but no words came out. It was Wu Lingtian who found his voice first. "The Lei Clan? From Stormrise Mountain?"
A storm of questions erupted.
"That can't be!"
"Why would the Lei Clan pose as members of a weaker clan?"
"They're one of the top forces in Stormrise Mountain. They've never needed to hide behind another clan's name."
"If they wanted to crush the Wu Clan, they could've done it in the open. One Core Formation expert, and we'd be reduced to ashes—why all this subterfuge?"
Some elders still looked doubtful.
Elder Wu Mingze frowned slightly, his voice slower, more cautious.
"It… doesn't make sense. Why would a powerful clan like the Lei take an interest in a remote city like ours? Even if you rejected their offer the last time, Wu Yuan…"
Wu Yuan didn't reply immediately. His expression was calm, but inwardly he was struggling to make sense of it himself. The Lei Clan's actions were layered and deliberate—but their ultimate motive still eluded him.
Before he could answer, his father Wu Lin finally spoke.
"I don't believe this is just about the previous rejection," Wu Lin said firmly, arms crossed. "That might be the excuse they'll give if confronted, but not the truth. The Lei Clan wouldn't go this far for wounded pride. There's something deeper—something they don't want others to see."
Wu Lingtian nodded gravely.
"Yes, Big Brother. I received a report from Wu Cheng this morning. He confirmed that ten young cultivators, along with five elders, entered Wu City exactly six days ago. They weren't here earlier. After they left the Wu Clan last time, they must've gone back—this might not be the same group."
A heavy silence followed.
Wu Lingtian continued, voice lower now.
"And more importantly, there weren't this many people in their group before. Their numbers increased. That means reinforcements were brought from Stormrise Mountain."
He paused.
"And there's another detail… Between Stormrise Mountain and our Verdant Mountain lies another entire mountain range. Even with Core Formation–realm Cloudfeather Beasts, a round trip in twenty days is nearly impossible."
Wu Mingze's expression shifted. "You're saying—?"
"Yes," Wu Lingtian said grimly. "According to Wu Cheng, they used two Core Formation Cloudfeather Beasts. But even if they flew at top speed—say, 100 kilometers an hour—just leaving Verdant Mountain's territory's wild zone would take more than ten days. Add the next mountain range, then reaching Stormrise… it's at least a month and a half one way. Three months if you count the return."
Wu Yuan's brows furrowed.
"But…" Wu Yuan's eyes narrowed, "they left the Wu Clan less than thirty days ago."
Wu Lingtian nodded slowly.
"Exactly. When they first arrived that quickly, I assumed they had been travelling to train there younger generation. But now? With this second appearance? It can't be a coincidence."
The air in the clan hall grew tense.
Wu Lin muttered, "There are only two possibilities now. Neither of them good."
Elder Wu Mingze glanced at him sharply. "Which are…?"
Wu Lin met his gaze squarely.
"Either they have a secret base somewhere within the Verdant Mountain's wild zones…"
He paused, letting the weight of that implication sink in.
"Or," Wu Lingtian continued grimly, "they've established a transmission array—somewhere near Verdant Mountain. Close enough to bypass the time and distance that should've limited them."
The words struck like thunder.
The room fell into stunned silence. Even the usually composed Wu Mingze visibly paled.
A secret base within the untamed regions of Verdant Mountain—long considered too dangerous for any long-term establishment.
Or worse… a teleportation array, one capable of sending Core Formation cultivators and even beasts through vast distances unnoticed?
That wasn't just a threat.
It was a declaration.
"They could launch a full-scale ambush at any time…" murmured an elder.
Wu Lin's face darkened. "And we wouldn't even know where it came from until it was too late."
Su Qing, silent until now, finally spoke. Her voice was quiet, but laced with a piercing edge.
"We've been watching the Jiang Clan… but the Lei Clan was watching us."
Wu Yuan thoughts churned—but outwardly, he remained calm.
This was no longer just a test of strength.
It was a game of secrets.
And someone had been planning their moves long before he ever stepped into the duel ring.
Su Qing's gaze lingered on her son. She could sense the confusion behind his calm facade.
"Yuan'er," she said gently, "you may not have seen one yet, but a transmission array isn't like the flying beasts you've seen. It's an ancient formation—a spatial construct. Once activated, it can transport people and even beasts across hundreds, sometimes thousands of kilometers… instantly."
Wu Yuan's eyes widened ever so slightly.
He had read of such things—in the cultivation novels of his past life.
But those were things of the great realms. Of heavenly sects, immortal dynasties, or powerful empires.
Not… here.
Not in a place like this.
'Transmission arrays… in Verdant Mountain?'
His thoughts stirred restlessly.
'That's not right. This world was supposed to be low-level. The cultivation here barely touches the core formation Realm. Even the strongest clans only have nascent soul realm experts. How could something like this exist here?'
The realization hit him harder than any opponent had.
Either someone had brought high-level resources into this world—
—or this world wasn't what he thought it was.
His heart thudded quietly in his chest.
"Mother…" he said slowly, voice quiet but heavy, "are you sure about this? That they really used a transmission array?"
Su Qing met his gaze. "If they didn't use one, then they've done something even more unbelievable."
And just like that, Wu Yuan felt the quiet certainty of his assumptions begin to crumble.
Wu Yuan asked, "So, Mother… do we have any transmission arrays in Wu City?"
Su Qing shook her head. Before she could answer, Wu Lingtian spoke.
"No, nephew. Officially, there's only one transmission array known to exist in the entire Verdant Mountain region—and that's located at the junction of the two upper-level plateaus."
He paused, then added grimly, "To build such a formation requires more than just wealth. The cultivator overseeing it must be at least at the Nascent Soul Realm. Its construction and maintenance are so resource-intensive that no city in the middle levels of Verdant Mountain could possibly afford it."
He glanced at the gathered elders. "This transmission array was likely built over ten thousand years ago… perhaps even longer."
Wu Yuan digested the information slowly.
So not only was the Lei Clan acting suspiciously, but if they were indeed using a new transmission array in secret, it would mean someone at Nascent Soul or beyond had helped them build it—or that they had inherited one long-hidden.
"But," Wu Lingtian added, his tone softening, "you don't need to worry too much. Their first step has already been thwarted by you. The Lei Clan's attempt to infiltrate Wu City using the Jiang name was crushed."
Wu Lin nodded in agreement. "The Jiang Clan still cares about its reputation. They won't allow their name to be used so brazenly again. As for the Lei Clan's elders, they can't act openly—after all, they didn't dispatch any Core Formation realm expert. In Wu City, their hands are tied. All they can do now is move in the shadows."
He added with a confident smirk, "But that's exactly where the Lei Clan is weakest. They're brash warriors, not the sort to lurk in the dark like some assassination sect."
Despite the words, Wu Tianhai's face remained grave.
"Still," he said slowly, his voice low and heavy, "the Lei Clan won't swallow this humiliation. At the very least, they'll try to kill Yuan'er—the one who humiliated their juniors and crushed their scheme. They won't strike openly... but in the dark?" He shook his head. "Anything is possible."
A tense silence fell over the room.
Wu Lingtian broke it. "Which is why, for the time being, you must not leave the Wu Clan estate, Yuan'er. Inside, you're safe. Outside… we can't guarantee it."
"And if they truly have a hidden base or a second transmission array," Wu Lin added, "then this isn't just a threat to the Wu Clan. It's a threat to the entire Verdant Mountain region."
Wu Lingtian nodded. "Exactly. I'll see to it that this news spreads—quietly but quickly. Let the other clans and sects worry about what it means. For now, we secure our own house."
He turned toward Wu Yuan. "You've done more than enough already. Go and rest."
Wu Yuan bowed deeply to the elders.
"Yes, Uncle. I was planning to enter seclusion anyway… and I won't come out until I reach the fifth level of the Body Tempering Realm."
Wu Lingtian raised a brow, impressed. "Good. That's the ambition I want to see."
Wu Yuan turned toward Su Qing, who gave him a faint, proud smile, though concern still lingered in her eyes.
With one final bow, Wu Yuan took his leave.