Gou can devour and become a saint in the cultivation world.

Chapter 440 Devastation

Chen Yi frowned, a chill rising from the bottom of his heart.

The mountain gate is gone.

He paused for a moment, suppressing the surging thoughts in his mind. The first thing he thought of was not the mountain, but people.

"Where are the disciples of Miaoyin Peak now?" His voice was devoid of emotion.

"It's located in the Miaoyin Pavilion in the Imperial City."

The Emperor replied, but his eyes flickered as he spoke, and he didn't seem very confident.

With his keen eyesight, Chen Yi immediately saw that there must be something hidden.

It seems that Miaoyin Pavilion is not in a very good situation now.

"Fine."

Chen Yi didn't press the matter further. Some things can't be learned by asking; you have to see them for yourself.

"Then I'll go take a look first."

Before he finished speaking, Chen Yi said no more. With a thought, light flowed beneath his feet, and he instantly transformed into a dazzling golden streak, speeding towards the center of the imperial city.

Upon entering the imperial city, Chen Yi's vast divine sense spread out like an invisible tide, instantly enveloping the entire expansive capital.

The next moment, his heart sank little by little.

Wherever his divine sense reached, all he saw was ruin.

The bustling scene of over a hundred years ago, with its constant flow of carriages and people, a constant stream of cultivators, and a dazzling display of spiritual light, has vanished completely.

Instead, there was a lingering sense of oppression and desolation.

As far as the eye could see, the cultivators walking in the city were no longer dressed in bright and shiny clothes. Most of them wore tattered robes that were washed out and even patched. The spiritual light on them was dim and they were covered with a foul smell that was hard to wash off, as if they had just rolled out of a swamp.

Even the magical artifacts and treasures they carried in their hands and at their waists, which should have been shining brightly, were now covered in a layer of dust and had lost their former charm.

The pedestrians hurried by, their faces bearing deep sorrow and a profound sense of vigilance. Almost everyone carried a faint aura of malevolence and demonic energy, filling the entire city with a sense of oppression and decay.

The bustling chambers of commerce, the spiritually rich cave dwellings, and the auction houses where people spent fortunes in my memory are now mostly deserted, and some have even boarded up their doors, completely losing their former liveliness.

On the contrary, the clinics throughout the city have become the most popular places now.

Long queues formed in front of every clinic.

Without exception, everyone in the queue was a cultivator whose body emitted black demonic energy to varying degrees.

Some looked pained, others numb, and they waited quietly. The line was deathly still, with only the occasional suppressed cough.

The air was filled with the bitterness of the elixirs and the pungent stench of demonic energy, making one want to vomit.

The cultivators who came out of the clinic had most of their demonic energy forcibly dispelled, and their pale complexions looked much better, but the weariness, weakness, and deep-seated despair between their brows still lingered.

This is no longer a prosperous capital of cultivation; it is clearly a huge prison struggling to survive under the corrosive influence of demonic energy.

If even the capital of Qi is in such a state, one can only imagine the situation in other places outside the city.

When his divine sense swept over the location of the Myriad Sounds Pavilion in his memory, Chen Yi's expression darkened completely, becoming as cold as frost.

In my mind, the Miaoyin Pavilion still stood in the same place, with its pavilions and towers looking quite elegant.

But the sight inside made Chen Yi clench his fists involuntarily.

This place is no longer the serene and secluded sanctuary where disciples would play the zither and flute under the bamboo groves and by the streams, communicating with heaven and earth, comprehending the Great Dao, and refining their cultivation through pure music.

Instead, there were luxurious private rooms separated by array formations.

Inside the private room, the sounds that once resonated with profound insights into the universe were no longer those of awe, but rather a soothing and purifying melody.

His divine sense "saw" a young female disciple of the Wonderful Sound Sect, pale-faced and with vacant eyes, mechanically plucking the strings of her zither.

Opposite her sat a large, richly dressed monk with his eyes closed and his facial muscles contorted. As the music purified him, wisps of black demonic energy were being painstakingly drawn from between his brows, causing him to groan in pain.

The music, though technically skillful, had lost all its vibrancy and joy, leaving only numbness and exhaustion.

The disciples no longer practiced for their own sake, nor did they pursue a higher realm of music.

They were reduced to tools.

Each piece of music was clearly priced, and day after day he played for those customers who were tainted by demonic thoughts but could afford the price. He used his hard-earned musical skills to cleanse the demonic thoughts in their minds, just like washing a dirty piece of clothing.

Perhaps, they were also trying to survive, hoping to obtain some meager cultivation resources in this lifeless imperial city.

However, this also goes far beyond the original intention of the Miaoyin Sect, which is to achieve tranquility and non-action and to enter the Dao through sound.

Just then, Chen Yi's tense expression finally relaxed slightly.

His divine sense swept across the entire Miaoyin Pavilion, and fortunately, the only thing that made him feel relieved was...

Qin Chengcheng did not entertain guests in these private rooms.

If such a thing were to happen, if he also saw Qin Chengcheng inside, numbly "cleansing" others of their demonic thoughts—

Then Chen Yi might directly overthrow the Qi royal family.

Chen Yi continued to search with his divine sense.

Apart from the spiritual vein caves of the third rank and above, which were shielded by arrays, Chen Yi had scanned all other places but had not found Qin Chengcheng's location.

Emperor Qi followed Chen Yi, observing Chen Yi's expression, and roughly guessed what Chen Yi was looking for.

Qin Chengcheng's secluded cave was located in the heart of the royal family.

There was a fourth-order grand formation concealing the area, making it difficult for outsiders to penetrate with their divine sense. Even if Chen Yi's cultivation was not low, he might not be able to find it from the outside.

Emperor Qi was about to offer a suggestion.

The next moment, a golden glint flashed in Chen Yi's eyes.

Chen Yi stopped in mid-air and raised his hand to pinch his fingers.

He didn't look at Emperor Qi, nor did he ask about Qin Chengcheng's location; he simply flew towards the core area where the royal family was located.

Emperor Qi paused in his steps.

How did he find where Qin Chengcheng was in seclusion?

This was hidden within his royal family's fourth-tier grand formation.

Could it be a fluke?

Emperor Qi stared in the direction Chen Yi had flown off to, his expression shifting.

The place Chen Yi went to was the fourth-order spiritual vein cave where Qin Chengcheng was in seclusion.

The fourth-order spiritual vein was enveloped by a large array, and from the outside, it appeared to be just an ordinary landscape of rocks and vegetation.

The formation blocked the entrance and also blocked the spiritual energy inside the cave.

Emperor Qi paid a considerable price to set up this formation. Royal cultivators guarded the formation, and the formation plates were held by only a few people.

How long has Chen Yicai been back in Qi?

He didn't even know where Qin Chengcheng lived, yet he found his way here.

As the Emperor Qi thought to himself, he followed after him.

He has to keep an eye on it.

If Chen Yiruo was just looking for someone, that would be fine.

But if they were to force their way through the royal palace's defenses, that would be troublesome.

The next moment, Chen Yi transformed into a streak of light and crashed straight into the great formation.