Chen Chuan glanced at the Snow Monarch Blade, then took two more steps closer. Although the corrosive influence emanating from the red stone below had weakened, its surface seemed unchanged.

He ignored it, bent down, and picked up the stone. At the same time, he glanced at the ground, walked over to a key node of the ritual, and scuffed it a few times with his foot, destroying the pattern on it.

Just as he finished, several deep breaths sounded out around him, followed by a few coughs from the side. The three people who had been wrapped in cloths for the Esoteric Ritual were now slowly waking up.

But when they saw Chen Chuan standing in the middle and holding the Sun Wheel Stone he had taken, they were first stunned, then became exceptionally furious, and a string of words erupted from their mouths.

Chen Chuan couldn’t understand them; it was likely some foreign language. At that moment, two of the men ripped off the cloths draped over them and stood up.

Both men were over two meters tall. Judging by their movements, they were clearly Fighters. After getting up, they each pulled an axe from their waist and said something else to him. Although he still couldn’t understand a single word, he could clearly feel the fury contained within their speech.

Chen Chuan stood his ground calmly. He looked at the two axes with some regret. ’They aren’t weapons carried by a Third Limit Fighter, so they have almost no collection value.’

Just as the two men roared and charged at him, he took some prepared pebbles from his pocket and flicked them out with his fingers. Before they were even halfway to him, it was as if they’d been shot. Their heads snapped back, and they collapsed to the ground, one after the other.

The entire process was over in an instant.

Only one man was left. He had just come to his senses and seemed to realize the situation was not good. He quickly said in halting Dashun, "Sir, please don’t attack. I have no hostile intentions."

Chen Chuan looked at him and asked, "Did you set up this Sun-Origin Ceremony?"

Hearing him state the name of the ritual so directly, the man was startled. He abandoned any wishful thinking, hesitated, and said, "Yes, we set it up... Excuse me, sir..." He looked up and asked cautiously, "What year is it now?"

Chen Chuan said, "The ninety-fourth year of the Dashun Republic."

The man stared blankly for a moment, mentally calculating the time, then fell silent. He clearly understood that not long after he had entered the ritual’s dormant period, this person had come in and destroyed it. Moreover, for someone to find this place so accurately, they must not have an ordinary identity. He asked with some difficulty:

"Sir, are you from the Dashun Government?"

Chen Chuan said, "You could say that."

The man actually felt a sense of relief. He had been afraid of competitors from within his own sect or rivals from other Esoteric Buddhist groups. In contrast, people from the Dashun Government were easier to communicate with. At worst, he would just have to pay a fine.

He said cautiously, "Your Excellency, all the offerings I used were brought from abroad. I did not use any of your country’s citizens. Even the Sun Wheel Stone will not leak during the ritual..."

Chen Chuan looked at the Crystal Stone in his hand and said, "If it did leak, what would be the consequences?"

"You don’t know, Your Excellency?"

The man was a bit surprised, but after a moment’s hesitation, he explained, "If handled improperly, it would cause the deaths of people and animals and the withering of plants within a certain radius..."

At this point, he hurriedly added, "For our sect, the Sun Crystal is the key to activating the ritual and a necessity for maintaining it. We don’t want that kind of situation to occur either, which would lead to our discovery by your government. So please believe me, that outcome will not happen."

Chen Chuan said, "Setting aside the fact that this is Dashun land, not a place where you can set up rituals as you please, it seems you also haven’t considered the consequences of the ritual failing."

"Failure? Impossible!"

The man immediately denied it.

But Chen Chuan just watched him calmly.

The man realized something was wrong. ’Since Chen Chuan is here to handle this, if he didn’t follow us, it must be because he discovered some kind of anomaly, right?’

’Did something happen to the person who went back?’

Just as this thought crossed his mind, his breathing suddenly became ragged. He grabbed his throat with both hands, seemingly unable to breathe.

Chen Chuan raised an eyebrow. He could clearly perceive the man’s physical condition rapidly deteriorating. His Life Force was diminishing with unstoppable momentum.

The man suddenly pointed at the Sun Crystal. "Quick... quick... save..."

Chen Chuan understood his meaning. He wanted the Sun Crystal returned to its original position to prolong his life. But Chen Chuan had already destroyed the ritual; even putting it back would be useless. So, he just stood there quietly.

Seeing him remain motionless, a look of despair appeared on the man’s face. As his breath faded, the flesh on his body quickly shriveled, and within a mere dozen seconds, he turned into a desiccated corpse.

Chen Chuan walked over to examine the body. He found a package on the man containing some essential medicines and a notebook. As for the two guards, he only found some basic wilderness survival supplies on them.

Seeing nothing else of value, he prepared to return to the surface. But as he looked up, his light illuminated the ceiling of the cave, revealing numerous bumps.

At first, he thought they were just natural formations on the cave ceiling. But after a second look, he noticed something seemed to be inside them. Gazing more intently, he was startled to find what looked like curled-up human figures within.

He averted his gaze, paid it no mind, and turned to walk out. Behind him, the uneven cave walls were perfectly normal. Where were any human figures?

Chen Chuan walked back the way he came. Ever since he had completely retracted his outwardly projected Domain, he had rarely seen such strange phenomena.

He guessed that the recent incident was likely triggered by the Sun Crystal in his hand. But as long as he firmly trusted his own judgment and ignored it, it wouldn’t be a problem.

He had recently discovered that he could effectively avoid such phenomena by using his Second Self to suppress his body’s expression, but this wasn’t a good solution. Evading a problem didn’t mean it didn’t exist.

And Cao Guiqi had once told him that these kinds of phenomena were also resources to help him advance. Seeing and overcoming them each time was beneficial for tempering his Divine Constant, so he didn’t need to avoid them. He just had to face them normally.

Because he had memorized the route on his way in, his exit was even faster than his entrance. He returned to the surface in less than ten minutes. Apart from being damp from the cave’s moisture, he hadn’t even broken a sweat.

As he walked out of the cave and into the daylight, he simply closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened them again, he had completely adjusted to the outside light.

Director Lei had been waiting outside. When he saw him emerge, he walked over and looked him up and down. "Chen, are you all right?"

Chen Chuan said, "Director Lei, I’m fine." He patted the package. "I brought some things up."

"Let’s talk in the car."

Director Lei led him to his armored vehicle and handed him a bottle of water. Chen Chuan said thanks, then took the items from his package and gave them to Director Lei, also recounting what he had just encountered.

Director Lei first took the Sun Wheel Stone. After one look, his expression turned grave. He solemnly placed it in a heavy metal box and sealed it. Only then did he take out the documents and the notebook Chen Chuan had brought up and carefully flip through them.

Chen Chuan noticed that he read extremely fast, his gaze sweeping over a page before turning it.

Just ten-odd minutes later, Director Lei closed the notebook. "I’ve basically sorted things out," he said. "The leader of this expedition was the wealthy merchant mentioned in the documents. It should be Eliko."

Chen Chuan asked, "Is this person famous?"

Director Lei said, "Eliko is one of the Noelanders. He has a criminal record for performing Cult rituals in countries all over the world. The Great Shun Esoteric Review Bureau has a file on him."

Chen Chuan said, "This person claimed that the man from the expedition twelve years ago was his father. Is that true?"

"They are indeed father and son, but it’s not that simple."

Director Lei held up the notebook. "I thought they were performing a simple Sun-Origin Ceremony, but they actually went further. On top of that, they also performed a ’Theft of Fire’."

"Theft of Fire?"

Director Lei said, "It’s a term from the Sun-Origin Ceremony. To put it simply, the Sun-Origin Ceremony can transfer the Life Force of one party to another.

However, to achieve the maximum effect, the Sun-Origin Ceremony requires the sacrificer to be willing and aware of every detail and the truth. If ignorant offerings are used as substitutes, the amount of Life Force obtained will be very small. After all, few people are willing to sacrifice themselves for others for no reason.

So, in this case, Eliko and his father played a trick.

First, Eliko’s father had his son transfer twelve years of his life to him.

Then, for the next twelve years, the father could ensure he wouldn’t age thanks to the ritual’s effects, while his son would use the Life Force from other offerings to enter a ritual slumber.

In the doctrine of the Baixiang Sect, twelve years is a cycle where everything begins anew. A gap appears during this process, and that’s where the disciples steal power from.

So when the next ritual is held, at the moment just before its completion, the father wakes his son and has him take twelve years of life from him. In reality, the father suffers no loss. Afterward, the father himself uses the Life Force from other offerings to enter the ritual slumber.

This way, his son can enjoy this cycle of twelve years in the outside world. When the next ritual is held, they repeat the process. This is the ’Theft of Fire’.

You could say they ’borrowed’ twelve years of reusable life from the ritual. Their plan was quite clever, but it seems something went wrong this time, causing the ritual to fail."

Chen Chuan asked, "Can they keep exchanging like this forever?"

Director Lei said, "The disciples of the Baixiang Sect place great importance on the number twelve. So, according to their understanding, the ’Theft of Fire’ can be performed twelve consecutive times. But even just twelve times would be a considerable extension of their lifespan."

After hearing Director Lei’s explanation, Chen Chuan thought for a moment and couldn’t help but ask, "I wonder how many times they’ve performed this ritual?"

...

...