Chapter 282: The Lake Surface

Chapter 282: The Lake Surface

“They say the Governor of the C Province Exorcist Division went north to attend the Monster Hunting Tournament!”

“Is that info reliable?”

“Totally reliable, Lord Daliang!”

Tokugawa Daliang narrowed his eyes, the corners of his lips curling up beneath his mustache. “Yoshi! What a golden opportunity!”

They had already been planning to unleash a large number of monsters across Tianfu District and the surrounding areas.

Originally, they were a little concerned that the monsters they released wouldn’t be strong enough and would quickly be cleared out by the Exorcist Division—or worse, that they’d fail to lure C Province’s strongest Exorcist, the Governor, away from the containment center.

But now? The guy left on his own. This really felt like a blessing from Amaterasu herself.

What had already been a sixty to seventy percent chance of success just jumped up by another thirty percent.

Tokugawa Daliang could practically see the moment his people subdued the Bone Porcelain Woman, turning her into a Shikigami and reaping a huge reward.

“Notify everyone—start moving!” he ordered. “The Monster Hunting Tournament lasts three days. That Governor might return on the fourth. We must infiltrate the Exorcist Division and secure the Bone Porcelain Woman before he gets back!”

“Yes, sir!”

C Province Exorcist Division

“Wonder how the Governor and Lin Lingling are doing now…”

Zhao Ying sat in front of her computer desk, the glow of the screen reflecting in her eyes behind her glasses.

She’d been poring over reports all night and was starting to feel sleepy.

Back in the day, the Exorcist Division was constantly overwhelmed.

One moment they’d be logging new monster or cursed spirit sightings, the next they’d be shorthanded and scrambling for backup. It was pure chaos.

But now, under the Governor’s leadership, C Province’s Exorcist Division had all the resources and personnel they needed.

With such a big team, even newly posted missions got resolved in less than half a day. There weren’t even enough missions to go around—Exorcists were doing group runs, and there were no longer any “short-handed” calls.

Zhao Ying and Xiang Xiaoyuan’s workload was slashed in half overnight.

Life had gotten so chill that it almost felt weird. She even brought her penguin plushie to work…

Just as Zhao Ying was about to open QVideo to unwind with a drama…

Suddenly, the Exorcist Division’s mission system flooded with over a dozen new mission alerts.

【Suspicious Marshal-level cursed presence detected at Tongsen Jinyue Residential Neighborhood. Situation pending confirmation.】

【Confirmed Teacher-level cursed spirit appearance at Wandan Mall. Quantity pending confirmation.】

…

Besides their core members, C Province’s Exorcist Division had also recruited a group of observers—part-time employees who were paid just to report sightings.

These observers were usually Awakened, capable of sensing or seeing monsters and cursed beings, but too weak to fight them. So they stayed off the front lines and strictly relayed info.

Back then, processing these reports was a nightmare.

But now?

“Ying-jie, we got missions incoming?!”

Xiang Xiaoyuan pushed the door open, face lit with excitement.

“Yup, tons of them. Like ten new ones per minute.” Zhao Ying adjusted her glasses, lips curling into a smirk. “This kind of sudden outbreak of cursed beings isn’t normal. But no matter who's behind it—or what’s behind it—our C Province Exorcist Division has nothing to fear now!”

There was a time Zhao Ying wouldn’t have dared say something that bold.

But now? With all the resources from the Governor backing them up?

She could say it without batting an eye.

“Notify everyone. Get ready for combat.”

Zhao Ying stood up, grabbed the Tang Sword resting on her desk, and a cold glint flashed through her eyes.

“Our Exorcist Division… is back in business!”

Taishan —

Chen Huaian followed Zhu Yu’s guidance deeper into the mountainous area.

The monsters they encountered along the way were growing in number—and in strength.

Fewer Ascenders were around, but the ones they did meet were much more powerful.

So far, the strongest one he’d seen was at Peak Foundation Establishment.

Ascenders were pretty easy to recognize.

They had a unique vibe—hard to explain, but kinda like a newly rich upstart.

No matter what they did, it came with a ton of flash and noise. Killing a monster? The explosion could be heard miles away and the visuals lit up the entire sky.

“Master, the cultivators in this world use spiritual energy in such flashy, wasteful ways…” Li Qingran muttered as they passed by an Ascender mid-battle. Then she turned curiously, “Master, why did you come to this world? Why not return to the Cangyun Realm? The spiritual energy here is so thin—it doesn’t seem suitable for cultivation.”

Another killer question.

Chen Huaian looked calm on the outside, but he was panicking inside.

His brain went into overdrive, and half a second later, he had an answer.

“You don’t know this, but the Cangyun Realm’s resources are drying up fast. One day, they’ll run out completely. I couldn’t just sit and watch that happen—I had to think about the future,” he said, shaking his head with a sigh.

“Don’t be fooled by how thin the spiritual energy is here. Ten years ago, this world didn’t have any spiritual energy at all.”

“You mean… this world is undergoing spiritual revival?” Li Qingran’s eyes widened.

Every cultivator in the Cangyun Realm could see the resource problem coming.

But since spiritual energy hadn’t totally dried up yet, most folks just figured the real top dogs—Grand Ascension and Void Fusion-level cultivators—would handle it.

Why stress about it themselves, right?

“That’s right.” Chen Huaian clasped his hands behind his back and looked up at the night sky. “The reason I left the Sword Pavilion to wander the Three Thousand Worlds was to find a new path—for myself and for the Pavilion.

“If the Cangyun Realm really does fall apart, if the resources collapse… then I, this Venerable One, will lead the Sword Pavilion here, to thrive in this world.

“So even though this world repels us, even though I risk being hunted by its cultivators, I must establish a foothold here—no matter what.”

“I see…” Li Qingran’s eyes reddened slightly. Her heart trembled, and a sour warmth rose in her chest. She said softly, “So Master has been thinking so far ahead… always looking out for the Pavilion and for me… And I kept asking you to return to the Cangyun Realm. I’ve been so selfish.”

Hearing that, Chen Huaian let out a quiet breath of relief.

Thank goodness Li Qingran was kind of gullible. Whatever he said, she believed it.

Not like that little brat Lin Lingling…

What he said wasn’t entirely made-up, though.

The Cangyun Realm really was running dry.

And this world was going through a spiritual revival.

As for moving the entire Sword Pavilion here?

That was just hot air.

Let’s be real—no Grand Ascension cultivator could just travel freely across the Three Thousand Worlds.

There were only a handful of them in the Cangyun Realm—could count them on one hand. That’s why he could get away with this BS.

If they could world-hop, Real Person Yuyao and Reverend Karma would’ve bounced ages ago.

The call of the Dragon Soul was getting closer.

Suddenly, the dense mountain peaks opened up into a clearing.

The two of them dashed through the woods and arrived in an area ringed by cliffs.

Under the night sky, a lake stretched out before them.

A fierce wind whipped past Chen Huaian and Li Qingran’s faces.

Yet the lake itself remained perfectly still—eerily so. Like a black eye staring up at the stars, cold and silent. The dark water seemed to conceal some terrifying presence.

Chen Huaian didn’t recall any lake this size near Taishan.

Which could only mean one thing—this lake formed recently.

But what kind of existence could create a lake this vast out of nowhere?

He already had the answer in his heart.

—A dragon.