The mass of storm clouds quickly caught up with them.
Countless lightning bolts zapped down from all directions, forming a lightning barrier around Chu Feng and Old Cat. They were both trapped.
If they were still holding onto a sliver of hope that this was nothing more than a coincidence, the current situation confirmed their suspicions that the storm clouds were indeed after them.
âThis person is stronger than me, but not by much. Brother Chu Feng, you might have to make a move here,â Old Cat told Chu Feng through voice transmission.
He could tell that the power harnessed within the storm clouds was comparable to that of a rank five Half-God level cultivator.
Tzzz!
Another lightning bolt zapped down not too far from where Chu Feng and Old Cat were, and a short and scrawny elder stepped out from within.
The elder had a skin tone so dark that it looked almost as if he was covered in ink, and it didnât help that he was wearing a black robe too. Surrounded by the dark clouds, it would have been impossible to tell that he was there if not for his open eyes.
âFellow cultivators, I am Tao Wu. Please do not be alarmed, I didnât approach you with hostile intentions. I noticed that the two of you were heading toward the demon coffin, so I was hoping to join you on your journey,â the elder said.
Those words revealed that the elder was able to see through Chu Fengâs concealment even though the strength he had displayed at the moment was at rank five Half-God level. Knowing that there was no point in maintaining the concealment, Chu Feng decided to reveal himself.
âElder, why do you wish to accompany us? Also, how did you see through our concealment?â Chu Feng asked.
âTo be frank, I couldnât see the two of you earlier. Iâm only seeing you now that you have revealed yourself,â the elder named Tao Wu replied.
âYou couldnât see us?â
Chu Feng expressed his skepticism at those words. He was certain that the elder was able to see him because the latterâs eyes were fixed on him earlier when they spoke.
âYoung brother, I have a special prophetic constitution that grants me uncannily sharp intuition when it comes to certain things. My body led me in this direction, telling me that I would meet someone important here. Youâre the one whom I ended up meeting,â Tao Wu said.
âThose words sound oddly familiarâ¦â Old Cat scratched his ears as it spoke.
âIt does,â Chu Feng replied with a chuckle.
He had heard those exact words from Old Cat earlier.
âYouâre saying that you found us through your intuition?â Chu Feng asked.
âThatâs right,â Tao Wu replied.
âWho do you think youâre trying to hoodwink here? I might still believe it if you told us that you used a treasure to track us down, but youâre saying that you found us through intuition? Hah, whose intuition could possibly be that accurate? At least show some sincerity if you wish to work together with us!â Old Cat harrumphed impatiently.
He wasnât afraid of Tao Wu despite being the weaker one here, for he knew that Chu Fengâs Asura King was someone who could stand against rank five Half-God level cultivators.
What Old Cat didnât know was that Chu Feng couldnât bring out any of his Asura World Spirits at the moment. He only had himself to rely on.
âThis young cat over here, I hope that you wonât misunderstand my intentions. I truly wish to work together with you. Young brother, if you think that Iâm being insincere, youâre free to leave right now,â Tao Wu said with a wave of his hand.
âElder, weâre indeed planning on heading to the demon coffin so as to join the commotion. Iâm not opposed to you joining us, but we know next to nothing about you. Itâs only right for you to show us some sincerity to win our trust,â Chu Feng said.
âChu Feng, why are you bothering to reason with him? He obviously harbors hostile intentions toward us! Letâs quickly get rid of him and continue on our way!â Old Cat sent a voice transmission to Chu Feng.
âNo rush. Even though that fellow has displayed the strength of a rank five Half-God level cultivator thus far, who knows if thatâs his real cultivation level? What if heâs stronger than that? We would be courting our own doom,â Chu Feng replied via voice transmission.
Old Cat fell silent.
âYoung brother, I know what you mean. I earnestly hope to work together with you, so Iâll express my sincerity here. I am from the Pilgrimage Galaxy. I donât have a sect or a clan, and Iâm here aloneâ¦â Tao Wu introduced himself to them.
However, Old Cat impatiently interjected halfway through his speech, âThatâs enough of you! What nonsense are you spouting now? Thereâs no Pilgrimage Galaxy in the current world of cultivation! At least come up with a more believable lie if you wish to deceive us!â
âMy apologies, it was a slip of the tongue. What I meant is the Seven Realms Galaxy. To me, the Seven Realms Galaxy is a holy land. Just being in the Seven Realms Galaxy feels like a divine pilgrimage to me, which is why I see it as the Pilgrimage Galaxy,â Tao Wu explained himself.
âElder, I donât think that youâre showing enough sincerity here,â Chu Feng said.
âYoung brother, what do you know of the Demoncoffin Realm?â
Tao Wuâs expression suddenly became serious.
âNot much. What I know of this realm are the rumors that others know about, such as this realm being shaped like a coffin. Thatâs why I was curious why such gaseous flames would appear out of nowhere,â Chu Feng said.
âThatâs normal. There are very few people in the world who know the truth about the Demoncoffin Realm, and I happen to be one of them. Since I am the one approaching you for a partnership, Iâll first show my sincerity by telling you what I know.
âSealed within the Demoncoffin Realm is a world spirit from the Ancient Era. This world spirit wielded formidable strength back when it was still alive. It committed many atrocities, which eventually led to it being sealed here.
âBut as much as the world spirit is being sealed here, it might be more precise to say that it is being slowly broken down here. You see, the world spirit is too powerful to be killed directly, so the person who sealed it here could only slowly break it down using a refinement formation. In fact, the origin of the Demoncoffin Realm is a gigantic refinement formation that only developed into a realm due to the overwhelming energy it harnessed.
âThe rising of the gaseous flames meant that the refinement formation had finally accomplished its task, meaning to say, the powerful world spirit had been completely broken down. It goes without saying that the refinement of a powerful world spirit is bound to leave behind many fortuitous encounters. The only issue is that the refinement formation is so complicated that the slightest misstep could spell death.
âIt just so happens that I know quite a bit about this refinement formation, so I believe that youâll benefit from a partnership with me too. Young brother, what do you think about the sincerity I have displayed here?â Tao Wu said.
âTalk is cheap. Who knows whether youâre spinning up lies?â Old Cat scoffed.
âYour opinion doesnât matter. Whatâs important is that this young brother over here trusts me,â Tao Wu replied.
âI have one last question. Why are you so bent on working together with me?â Chu Feng asked.
Considering that they were going to venture into a dangerous location, it was only right for him to exercise the maximum level of caution, especially against a stranger that had appeared out of nowhere and was suddenly proposing a partnership.
âI can only tell you that itâs my intuition. Young brother, I understand that itâs difficult for you to trust me in the spur of the moment. After all, you can only tell a personâs true colors during a difficult time. Iâll prove to you that Iâm someone worthy of your trust,â Tao Wu said.
âAlright, letâs set off then,â Chu Feng said.
âIâll lead the way.â
Tao Wu wrapped Chu Feng and Old Cat in his martial power and rushed toward the direction of the gaseous flames. Surprisingly, he didnât bring his storm clouds with him this time around.
âIâm surprised that youâre suddenly maintaining a low profile here,â Chu Feng remarked.
âEyy, I wanted to make a dramatic entrance for our first meeting so that you would take me seriously. There are probably many experts gathered around the gaseous flames by now, so weâll have to stay low if we wish to get anything good out of this,â Tao Wu explained.
âAre you⦠really going to let him join us?â Old Cat asked Chu Feng in bewilderment via voice transmission.
âWhat else can we do? Are you going to come to blows with him? Iâm not going to do that unless Iâm absolutely confident of victory,â Chu Feng said.
Weng!
Tao Wu released his spirit power and constructed a high-level concealment formation around them, concealing not just himself but also Chu Feng and Old Cat.
It was only then that Chu Feng and Old Cat realized that Tao Wu was a Gold Dragon God-cloak World Spiritist, making him a stronger world spiritist than Old Cat.
âLook. Didnât I tell you that thereâs more to that person than what you see?â Chu Feng told Old Cat via voice transmission.
It was one thing for Tao Wu to be a rank five Half-God level cultivator, but who could have thought that he was also a Gold Dragon God-cloak World Spiritist on top of that? That was a force not to be made light of.
âWe can only hope that heâs sincere about working together with us then,â Old Cat remarked with a sigh.
Having a strong companion was definitely a good thing, but Old Cat was worried that Tao Wu might have other intentions in mind.
It was then that another voice transmission reached Chu Fengâs ears.
âYoung brother, how is your relationship with that cat?â
It was from Tao Wu.
âItâs not too bad. Whatâs wrong?â Chu Feng replied via voice transmission.
âNot too bad? In other words, you arenât on good terms with it?â Tao Wu asked.
âWhat do you mean by that?â Chu Feng asked.
âIâm thinking that it would be best not to bring it along if the two of you arenât on close terms. If you donât want to be the bad guy here, I can make a move in your stead and slaughter him,â Tao Wu replied.