Chapter 750: Who Exactly Are You?

The content written in the book was shocking; even Zhang Xuan, with his vast experience, found it unbelievable.

"Forget it..."

Knowing that dwelling on it further was useless, he closed the book, letting the contents flow through his mind once to ensure no mistakes, then circulated his true energy and hovered in midair.

Flicking his sleeve, he clasped his hands behind his back without turning his head, standing against the wind like an immortal about to ascend into the sky.

"Friend behind me, you've followed long enough, haven't you?"

His voice was calm and indifferent.

"Oh, I sensed the aura of an old acquaintance and came specifically to look. Seeing you step into the void, I couldn't help but watch. But... this friend seems quite unfamiliar, as if I've never seen you before!"

Seeing the man ahead stop, Mu Shi smiled.

Although he suspected that this man was connected to the disappearance of the Purple Sun Beast, he had no solid evidence and couldn't casually frame him, so he struck up a conversation to see if he could find any clues.

"You come from the Title Empire. How many experts in Hongyuan City do you know?"

Without turning around, Zhang Xuan snorted.

"You know I'm from the Title Empire?"

Mu Shi was startled.

He had only been flying, not displaying his strength, and the other party hadn't even turned his face. How could he know he was from the Title Empire?

"Your true energy gathers at the Ye Sea, flows through the three acupoints of Qimen: Nie Kong, Wu Wei, Du Rang. It absorbs the wood-element spiritual energy of heaven and earth to nourish your whole body, yet you deliberately neglect Huai Hai, Long Zhen, Er, Xue... This peculiar cultivation method is not found in Hongyuan City, nor even in the Qingyuan Title Empire. If I'm not mistaken, you should be from the Mu family of the Sage Clan!"

The voice ahead carried a hint of indifference.

"Who are you?" Mu Shi was taken aback, then narrowed his eyes.

He was from the Sage Mu family—a fact unknown to anyone, not even his many friends at the Master Teacher Academy of the Qingyuan Title Empire. Yet the other party had spoken it out in one breath, as if reciting his own family history. Was it true or false?

Especially since the way of circulating true energy he had just mentioned was the secret technique of the Mu family's forbidden arts. How could this man know it?

Could it be... that he was also from the Mu family?

His heart skipped a beat, and he extended his spiritual sense to probe the other party, but found the man's aura as deep as an abyss, impossible to fathom even for him.

Seeing through his identity and cultivation at a glance, while he couldn't see through the other party... Could it be that this man's strength was even greater than his?

When had such a powerful expert emerged in a place like Hongyuan City?

"Who am I?"

Hearing this, the figure ahead seemed to sink into endless memories, shaking his head: "It seems that after so many years out of the world, many people no longer recognize me!"

Pausing here, he asked calmly: "Who is the current head of the Mu family?"

Hearing this question, Mu Shi initially didn't want to answer, but after a moment's hesitation, he spoke: "The current head is my uncle, Mu Yan. Fellow Daoist, do you know my uncle?"

The Sage Clan—as long as one reached the Title Empire, it was easy to inquire. The current head of the Mu family, Mu Yan, was renowned far and wide, so there was nothing to hide.

Saying it would also clarify his identity and let the other party know his status.

"I don't know such a junior!" The figure ahead shook his head: "However, I did have a brief acquaintance with his father."

"Father? You mean Patriarch Mutian?" Mu Shi was startled, taken aback.

Mu Yan's father, his grandfather, Patriarch Mutian, was an old antique over 1,300 years old.

Even if one reached the Saint Domain and underwent another transformation in life, a lifespan of a thousand years was the limit. He had never heard of any saint living beyond two thousand years.

Thus, those who lived over a thousand years were all at the patriarch level and rarely emerged from seclusion.

This man had met Patriarch Mutian once. Could he be... an old monster from that era?

Impossible!

Even if people from that era were still alive, they wouldn't dare to come out. They used every means to preserve their life force; otherwise, even without making a move, they would be killed by heaven.

Although this man's strength was unfathomable, his body was full of vitality, completely different from those old monsters.

"That's right, that boy Mutian..."

Just as he was puzzled, he heard the figure ahead sigh, his tone revealing the vicissitudes of history.

"That boy..."

Mu Shi's eyebrows twitched.

An old antique like Patriarch Mutian, who had lived for 1,300 years, was merely called a 'boy' by the other party?

Just as he was wondering about the man's words, the indifferent voice sounded again.

"Your Mu family's true energy emphasizes harmony and balance, with qi hidden in the heart. But you have unstable qi and stiff meridians. If I'm not mistaken, you haven't returned to the family for many years!"

"This..." Mu Shi paused.

The other party was right; he indeed hadn't returned for many years, and had even forgotten many of the Mu family members.

"Your qi is stagnant, lacking the lightness of the wood element but bearing the heaviness of the metal element. If I'm not mistaken, you were expelled from the family, not unwilling to return."

The voice continued.

"You, you... how do you know?"

Startled, Mu Shi nearly fell from the air.

The other party's words were not wrong in the slightest; they were completely accurate.

He hadn't returned to the family for so many years not because he didn't want to, but because he had been driven out and had no face to return.

But... this was his secret, never shared with anyone, and the Mu family regarded it as a great shame and humiliation, impossible to leak. How did this person in front of him know?

Could he have guessed it just by observing the circulation of his true qi?

If so, that would be too heaven-defying!

How could anyone have such sharp eyesight?

"Cultivating wood-element power, according to normal principles, your Yingtai and Tianmen acupoints should appear green, but now they are slightly dark red. This clearly shows it's caused by conflicting forces. Among the five elements, wood overcomes earth, earth overcomes water, water overcomes fire, fire overcomes metal, metal overcomes wood. Only a collision with metal-element power would cause this calamity. If I'm not mistaken, someone planted metal-element power inside you, thereby suppressing your cultivation and talent!"

The figure ahead continued.

"This..."

Master Mu's body stiffened.

Every word the other spoke struck at his hidden secrets, filling him with terror.

What the person before him said was correct; he had indeed been expelled by his family, but the fault was not with the family—it was because he had done something wrong!

That was five hundred years ago.

He had been exceptionally talented and young and ambitious, becoming a Six-Star Master Teacher before the age of forty, a renowned prodigy of his clan.

Originally, with such cultivation, he would surely have advanced boldly, at least becoming an elder of the clan and leaving a name in history. But who would have thought... during a trial, he met a woman, and they became inseparable, quickly falling in love.

It was his first love, and he believed it would last forever, eternal and unchanging. He devoted himself wholeheartedly, attending to her every need, even revealing his family's secret techniques.

Later, he discovered that she was using him to take revenge on his family.

This matter was discovered by his clansmen. Because he had leaked family secrets and brought a wolf into the fold, he was condemned by the council of elders and expelled from the clan!

After leaving the clan, he realized that at some point, the woman had planted metal-element power inside him, suppressing his cultivation.

In five hundred years, he had only advanced from Six-Star Master Teacher to the middle stage of Seven-Star, and further breakthroughs were nearly impossible.

This matter had always been the deepest pain in his heart. The other person had discerned it just by observing his acupoints and true qi... Such eyesight... even a Seven-Star Master Teacher couldn't achieve it!

Could it be... Eight-Star?

How is that possible!

For Master Teachers above Six-Star, each advancement is as difficult as climbing a mountain. For example, he had been stuck at the middle stage of Seven-Star for a full three hundred years, and barring any accident, he would never advance again in this lifetime.

If the other person were truly an Eight-Star Master Teacher... he would surely have heard of him. Why would he appear here?

"Metal overcomes wood. Your power is suppressed, so you are confined to this level. Knowing that advancement is hopeless, you no longer wish to cultivate in seclusion, instead indulging in the mountains and rivers... After all these years, don't you want to return to your family, to that sage's threshold?"

The figure before him continued.

"I... even if I want to return, what face do I have to go back?"

Master Mu's face flushed red.

As a descendant of a sage clan, being driven out was a great humiliation. Over the years, there has not been a single day when he did not think of returning.

But... how to return?

Not to mention that his strength was waning and his true qi was beginning to dissipate, but that matter alone—he had let down his family and had no face to go back.

"I had a brief encounter with Mu Tian, and now I meet you—fate as well. Let me give you some guidance, so you won't remain so stagnant!"

The figure ahead waved a hand.

"Guidance?"

Master Mu was startled.

"Indeed. You have a metal-element power suppressing your cultivation technique. Though hard to remove, it is not impossible to break. I will now teach you a formula. If you practice diligently, eliminating the hidden danger will not be difficult!"

The figure said.

"Teach me a formula? You... who are you?"

Master Mu narrowed his eyes.

A high-level master teacher observes the rules of heaven and earth and generally does not casually instruct others unless there is some karmic entanglement.

Just like the Heavenly Man Master Kong back then, though he claimed three thousand disciples, only seventy-two truly received his teachings!

The two had only met for the first time—why would the other offer guidance?

He had been a genius in his youth, but now his body was weak, his power declining, and he had lost his potential. What was the other's purpose?

He had been deceived once in his youth and was unwilling to be fooled again.

"Who am I?"

The figure sneered: "You doubt my identity?"

Boom!

As the words ended, a powerful aura emanated from within his body.

Feeling this momentum, Master Mu's whole body tensed, his blood running cold.

Before this power, his proud strength was as weak as an ant's, as if it could be crushed into pieces at any moment, life and death beyond his control.

Rumble!

Just as he sensed this overwhelming, unassailable power, the aura within the other's body shifted again, giving a feeling of merging with heaven and earth, impossible to refuse.

This feeling was as if the other had become heaven and earth itself, gaining the recognition of heaven and earth, undeniable.

"Heavenly Recognized Master Teacher? You are... a Heavenly Recognized Master Teacher?"

His pupils contracted, Master Mu recalled something, his whole body trembling, frozen in place.