Chapter 328: Curse Seal Bodyguard

The death of the Fire Gate Sect Master took everyone by surprise.

After assigning the mission, Wang Situ left in a hurry—this incident had finally triggered a true sense of crisis within Heaven’s Apex Sacred Land. For the first time, the mighty sect was treating the threat seriously.

Chen Fei glanced at his command token.

The mission had been updated.

The reward: an incredibly generous 100,000 merit points.

And the more generous the reward, the more dangerous the mission.

“The outside world is getting more chaotic. Be careful out there. When you come back, let’s have a drink.”

The Brute slapped Chen Fei’s shoulder.

Even though everyone had received the same mission—to eliminate the Eastern Pavilion royal family,

each disciple had been assigned different targets.

The royal family had spread its roots all across the kingdom, and countless sects within Eastern Pavilion had ties to them—

these sects were naturally also on the kill list.

Chen Fei’s assigned target was Dongfeng Sect, one of the top ten sects in Eastern Pavilion.

According to the intel, only its sect master, Yan Wulin, was a Mystic Realm expert.

The rest were merely Dao Realm.

And since they were ordered to eliminate every last trace, that meant everyone had to die.

Even the ants in the palace had to go, much less these sects with deep royal connections.

Eastern Pavilion had already been fully occupied by evil cultivators,

so most of the people they would face now were no longer ordinary sects, but those who had already submitted to darkness.

As for the common people…

Evil cultivators only cared about them when they needed blood sacrifices.

Cruel as it sounded, that was simply the reality.

Chen Fei didn’t set out immediately. He first went to look for Miao Yue.

Unfortunately, she had already left on a mission.

As the Holy Maiden of the Sacred Sect, she was far busier than Chen Fei.

As for Leng Yue…

Chen Fei hesitated but ultimately decided not to visit her either.

After unlocking her third seal, Leng Yue had become colder and more distant—a far cry from the version of her that still lived in Chen Fei’s memory.

After some thought, Chen Fei headed straight for the Treasure Pavilion.

After all, he needed to stock up for his mission—herbs, pill ingredients, internal energy supplements…

Since he still owed the sect a mountain of merit, he had to save wherever he could.

This wasn’t Chen Fei’s first time leaving the sect.

But this time, his experience felt different.

During his last trip outside, the area around Heaven’s Apex had still been a peaceful haven.

But now?

Refugee camps had popped up everywhere, tents spread out like fields.

These were all people who had fled from the evil cultivators.

To the average person, Heaven’s Apex was home to immortals—mighty beings capable of shielding them from disaster.

Life might be hard, but survival came first.

The sect couldn’t turn a blind eye.

In fact, most of Heaven’s Apex’s forces had been redirected to manage these camps.

Seeing this, Chen Fei couldn’t help but sigh.

Maybe this was also part of the evil cultivators’ plan?

Shaking his head, he didn’t dwell on it further and headed toward Eastern Pavilion.

The Fire Gate Sect Master’s death had utterly enraged Heaven’s Apex.

This mission wasn’t just revenge—it was meant to send a message:

Anger Heaven’s Apex, and prepare to be annihilated.

Three days later, a travel-worn Chen Fei finally stepped into Eastern Pavilion territory.

Located in the northwest region of the Xuanhuang Continent, the area was mostly loess plateau—

but in its center were vast grazing lands, home to the nomadic culture that defined the kingdom.

His first stop was Mutuo, a city known as the “Pearl of Eastern Pavilion.”

Dark Gate operations were typically highly autonomous.

The disciples sent on such missions were all proud and powerful—forcing them into teams would only hurt efficiency.

That said, working alone didn’t mean Chen Fei had no support.

On the contrary—he had access to Dark Gate’s covert intelligence network, which would help him lock onto his targets.

The Dark Gate wasn’t just a group of assassins. It had a complete organizational system.

Following the mission briefing, Chen Fei headed to the commercial district of Mutuo.

Even amid chaos and bloodshed, business never stopped.

People still needed to eat and survive.

He pushed aside a curtain and entered a spice shop.

The air was thick with aromatic scents, making him instinctively wrinkle his nose.

“Welcome, honored customer! What can I get you today?”

The clerk greeted him warmly.

Eastern Pavilion was full of cattle and sheep, and spice was essential for masking the gamy stench of meat.

Spices were a hot commodity.

Chen Fei glanced around.

“I need some Huixiang Grass.”

“Huixiang Grass? Never heard of it!”

The clerk waved his hands. In all his years at the spice shop, he’d never heard of such a thing.

But the shopkeeper, who had been reading in the corner, immediately stood up when he heard the name.

His sunken eyes and high nose bridge were typical features of Eastern Pavilion locals.

“You’re looking for Huixiang Grass? That’s a rare one,” he said seriously.

“Price isn’t an issue. I need 3.3 liang—urgently.”

Chen Fei pulled out a supreme-grade spirit stone.

The clerk’s eyes lit up instantly.

The shopkeeper smiled.

“Huixiang Grass is quite special. Please, come with me to the back room.”

“Alright.”

Chen Fei nodded.

This coded interaction felt fresh and amusing.

Once inside, the shopkeeper dropped to his knees.

“Ground Code Type C — Agent Amu reports to the lord!”

Chen Fei raised his hand, using qi force to lift the man up.

“I need detailed information on Dongfeng Sect. The more, the better.”

“Yes, sir! I’ll have the intelligence officers deliver it immediately.”

Chen Fei nodded.

“I’m staying at the inn, third floor. How’s the situation in Mutuo?”

“The city is currently under the control of the Matriarch Cult. If you’re staying at the inn, be extra careful—they’ve been conducting inspections,” Amu warned softly.

“Got it. Send the intel ASAP.”

With that, Chen Fei left the spice shop.

But instead of heading to the inn, he slipped into a nearby alley.

Before long, a suspicious figure trailed in after him.

But the moment the man entered, he found Chen Fei already waiting for him with a smile—

index finger raised to his lips.

“Freeze.”

Chen Fei chuckled.

His spiritual sense was sharp. He had sensed this stalker the moment he entered the shop.

But the guy was just a Qi Condensation Realm lackey—easy pickings.

“Who are you? Why are you following me?”

The man’s expression twisted.

A glowing symbol appeared slowly on his forehead.

Chen Fei’s brow furrowed.

Just as he was about to act, the symbol erupted, forming a bloody maw that lunged at his divine sense.

“A Curse Seal Bodyguard?”

Chen Fei frowned.

He hadn’t expected a low-level grunt like this to have a protective curse mark.

Looks like the Matriarch Cult really had some tricks up their sleeve.