Chapter 43: Shadows on the Path of Ascension
The conversation in the elders' hall continued to haunt Han Feng.
The collision of the realms.
The words repeated themselves in his mind.
He still did not know what they meant.
But one thing had become clear.
The Black Moon Sect was connected to something far larger than he had imagined.
And the Sect of the Shadow River seemed to be involved as well.
Han Feng did not know whether the two sects were allies, enemies, or merely pieces of the same ancient conflict.
He needed answers.
But he also understood something even more important.
His current strength was still insufficient.
Rank 3 had given him a stronger foundation.
It had not made him invincible.
If the elders were hiding information of this magnitude, there were undoubtedly cultivators within the sect who could kill him with a single attack.
Han Feng needed to investigate without becoming a target.
For several days, he remained in his quarters.
He cultivated quietly.
He refined his Qi.
And most importantly, he continued strengthening the Art of the Celestial Veil.
The Perfection of the Celestial Veil
The breakthrough to Rank 3 had changed the way Han Feng understood concealment.
Before, he had mainly suppressed his aura.
Now, he could manipulate the flow of his Qi so precisely that his presence itself became difficult to distinguish from the surrounding environment.
But there was a limit.
The Celestial Veil could conceal his cultivation.
It could distort spiritual traces.
It could even reduce the sense of presence surrounding his body.
But it could not make him truly invisible.
A sufficiently powerful cultivator examining the area carefully could still discover something unusual.
Han Feng knew that.
Therefore, he did not rely on the technique alone.
He combined it with movement.
Terrain.
Timing.
And distractions.
At night, he began quietly moving through the outer areas of the Black Moon Sect.
He never entered the same place twice in the same manner.
Sometimes he crossed rooftops.
Sometimes he moved through abandoned courtyards.
Sometimes he simply sat in the darkness and observed.
He studied the patrols.
The guards.
The formations.
And the locations where spiritual surveillance was weakest.
After several nights, Han Feng noticed something.
There was an old building in the deeper region of the sect that almost no ordinary disciple approached.
The Forbidden Hall.
Even from a distance, he could feel the spiritual pressure surrounding it.
Multiple formations overlapped around the structure.
Ancient seals covered the walls.
And several elders occasionally entered the area.
Han Feng did not approach immediately.
He observed.
For three nights.
On the fourth night, something changed.
One of the outer seals flickered.
Only for a moment.
Most cultivators would never have noticed.
Han Feng did.
That seal is damaged.
He did not immediately assume it was an opportunity.
A damaged formation could be a trap.
So he waited.
Nothing happened.
No elder arrived.
No alarm sounded.
Finally, Han Feng decided to investigate.
The Forbidden Hall
The damaged seal was not large enough for a normal person to pass through.
But Han Feng did not need to force his way inside.
He circulated the Celestial Veil.
Then carefully guided his Qi through the weakest point of the formation.
The damaged seal trembled.
Han Feng stopped.
Waited.
Nothing.
He continued.
His body slipped through the gap.
The moment he entered, he felt the difference.
The air was heavy.
Ancient spiritual fluctuations lingered everywhere.
Some belonged to formations.
Others seemed to come from old objects stored inside the hall.
Han Feng moved slowly.
He did not touch anything.
He did not even allow his spiritual sense to spread too far.
Then he saw it.
At the center of the hall stood a black jade altar.
Above it floated an ancient scroll.
Unlike the surrounding objects, the scroll did not appear covered in dust.
A faint golden light moved across its surface.
Han Feng's eyes narrowed.
The Celestial Fragment inside his spatial ring became warm.
The reaction was immediate.
Han Feng's expression became serious.
It recognizes something.
He did not approach immediately.
Instead, he studied the altar.
Three defensive formations.
Two spiritual seals.
One containment formation.
And beneath all of them...
a pattern resembling part of the six-pointed celestial formation he had seen before.
His heartbeat quickened.
This is connected to the Celestial Pattern.
That alone was enough to explain why the Black Moon Sect had hidden the scroll.
But another thought occurred to him.
If I leave now, I may never get another chance.
Han Feng stepped forward.
The Celestial Diagram Scroll
The moment his hand approached the scroll, the golden light intensified.
Han Feng stopped.
The scroll trembled.
A thin spiritual thread extended from it.
It touched his fingertip.
Pain exploded through his consciousness.
Han Feng's vision went black.
Then—
images appeared.
Ancient formations.
Six enormous points surrounding a dark center.
Two opposing currents merging into one.
Black-robed figures standing before a colossal celestial structure.
A young figure kneeling before an ancient altar.
And above them all...
the six-pointed pattern.
But the images were incomplete.
Some portions had been deliberately erased.
Others were distorted beyond recognition.
Han Feng tried to examine them.
The scroll resisted.
A pressure descended upon his consciousness.
An ancient voice echoed faintly.
"Those who seek the Celestial Diagram must first bear its weight."
Han Feng's expression changed.
The voice was not speaking directly to him.
It was more like a remnant embedded within the scroll.
A memory.
A warning.
The pressure increased.
Han Feng immediately activated the Dual Chaos Larva.
The chaotic force inside his dantian surged.
Instead of resisting the foreign energy directly, he allowed the Larva to harmonize part of it.
The pain weakened.
A final fragment of information entered his consciousness.
One phrase.
"...when the six paths answer..."
Then the connection broke.
Han Feng staggered backward.
Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
He had not absorbed the entire scroll.
He had not obtained its complete knowledge.
But he had gained something.
A fragment.
Enough to confirm that the Celestial Diagram was connected to the six-node system.
And something else.
The scroll had left a faint spiritual mark inside his consciousness.
Han Feng immediately sensed it.
Damn.
That was unexpected.
The mark was not an attack.
It was more like a residue.
A trace created by contact.
Han Feng did not know whether it could be used to track him.
But he would not take the risk.
He quickly withdrew his hand.
Then the Forbidden Hall came alive.
The Alarm
A low vibration passed through the walls.
The formations activated.
Golden lines appeared across the floor.
Han Feng's expression hardened.
He had triggered a protective mechanism.
A bell rang outside.
Once.
Twice.
Then the entire hall shook.
A powerful voice thundered from beyond the doors.
"Who entered the Forbidden Hall?"
Han Feng did not hesitate.
He turned toward the damaged seal.
But another pressure descended upon the hall.
Heavy.
Oppressive.
Far beyond Rank 3.
Han Feng's body became tense.
Someone had arrived.
An old man in golden robes stepped through the outer formation.
His spiritual pressure filled the hall.
Han Feng immediately recognized the difference between them.
Grand Elder.
The old man's eyes fell upon Han Feng.
Then upon the floating scroll.
His expression became cold.
"You."
The Grand Elder raised one hand.
Space around Han Feng compressed.
Han Feng's lungs tightened.
His bones creaked under the pressure.
Even after reaching Rank 3, he was nowhere near this man's level.
I cannot fight him.
The realization came instantly.
Han Feng released several shadow images.
Dance of the Eternal Shadows.
Five figures appeared simultaneously.
The Grand Elder's palm swept through the hall.
Boom!
Three illusions shattered immediately.
The fourth disappeared beneath another strike.
The fifth—
was already moving toward the damaged formation.
Han Feng had never intended to fight.
He only needed one opening.
The Grand Elder realized it too late.
"Stop!"
Han Feng threw a small spirit stone toward the opposite side of the hall.
It struck the ground.
A burst of unstable Qi erupted.
The formation reacted.
For less than a breath, the spiritual pressure surrounding the exit weakened.
That was enough.
Han Feng used Ghostly Shift.
His body crossed the remaining distance.
The Grand Elder reached toward him.
His fingers nearly caught Han Feng's shoulder.
But the Celestial Veil activated at the same moment.
Han Feng's presence vanished from the elder's perception.
Not completely.
Just enough.
He slipped through the damaged seal.
Escape
The Forbidden Hall erupted with spiritual fluctuations.
Elders and disciples rushed toward the area.
Han Feng did not run toward his quarters.
That would be suicide.
Instead, he moved through a route he had prepared during his previous nights of observation.
A narrow passage.
Then an abandoned courtyard.
Then a drainage tunnel beneath the outer wall.
He changed direction repeatedly.
He did not use his full speed.
That would leave a stronger Qi trail.
Instead, he relied on terrain and concealment.
Behind him, powerful spiritual sense swept across the sect.
Han Feng's heart tightened.
The Grand Elder was searching for him.
He activated the Celestial Veil again.
His aura disappeared.
But then the mark inside his consciousness reacted.
A faint warmth spread through his mind.
Han Feng stopped.
The scroll.
The spiritual residue was responding to the Forbidden Hall.
For a moment, he could sense a faint direction.
Not a location.
Not an image.
Just a vague spiritual pull.
Han Feng immediately suppressed it with his Qi.
The sensation disappeared.
His expression became grim.
So the mark can resonate with the scroll.
That meant returning to the Forbidden Hall would be dangerous.
But there was another possibility.
The mark might also allow the Black Moon Sect to determine that someone had touched the scroll.
They might not know who.
But they would know the seal had been disturbed.
Han Feng increased his speed.
The Hidden Cave
Nearly an hour later, Han Feng reached an abandoned cave several kilometers from the sect.
He entered.
Placed several concealment formations around the entrance.
Then finally allowed himself to stop.
His breathing was heavy.
Sweat covered his forehead.
The pressure from the Grand Elder had left his body aching.
But he was alive.
Han Feng sat down.
He closed his eyes.
The images from the scroll continued replaying in his mind.
Six paths.
A dark center.
Opposing forces.
And the phrase:
When the six paths answer...
He still did not know what came next.
But now he had confirmation.
The Black Moon Sect possessed knowledge directly connected to the ancient system he had been investigating.
And someone inside the sect had protected that knowledge for a very long time.
Han Feng slowly opened his eyes.
He touched his forehead.
The faint spiritual mark remained.
He did not know whether it was a blessing, a curse, or simply a trace left by the scroll.
But he knew one thing.
His infiltration had consequences.
The Black Moon Sect would now know that someone had entered the Forbidden Hall.
And if the Grand Elder investigated carefully enough...
they might eventually realize that the intruder had not simply stolen information.
He had awakened something.
Far away, inside the Forbidden Hall, the ancient scroll slowly stopped glowing.
Then one tiny golden line appeared across its surface.
A line that had not been there before.
The Grand Elder stared at it in silence.
His expression became solemn.
"The Celestial Diagram..."
He looked toward the broken seal.
"Has chosen to respond again."
Outside the sect, Han Feng suddenly opened his eyes.
He felt the Celestial Fragment inside his spatial ring tremble.
Once.
Twice.
Then stop.
Han Feng's gaze darkened.
Whatever connection existed between the scroll, the Celestial Fragment, and the six ancient paths...
was no longer dormant.
And now, both sides had begun to move.