Chapter 330: Purification

Holy Mother A-Yue glanced proudly at Chen Fei,

especially when she saw a trace of purplish-black aura creeping across his face—

a clear sign that her curse had taken effect.

But what she didn’t expect was that just as the dark aura reached Chen Fei’s forehead,

a golden rune suddenly emerged!

Her eyes widened in disbelief.

“A… a Holy Mark?! Who the hell are you?!”

Chen Fei was surprised too.

To be honest, while A-Yue’s curse techniques were a bit unique,

they were only that—unique.

Even if they had certain effects, they weren’t anything that could truly threaten him.

After all, he had both the Void Heaven Cauldron and cultivation at the Mystic Realm.

Removing a curse like this wasn’t difficult.

But what intrigued him was A-Yue’s reaction and what she meant by “Holy Mark.”

“Quick, capture him!”

Holy Mother A-Yue shrieked, retreating as she spoke.

Chen Fei sneered coldly.

Facing the charging cultists, he didn’t hold back in the slightest.

His Edge-less Greatsword swept out in a wide arc,

blasting the attackers into the air and slamming them hard into the ground!

Realizing Chen Fei couldn’t be restrained,

A-Yue tried to vanish into the crowd, hoping to escape in the chaos.

But she had completely underestimated Chen Fei.

“Trying to run?”

He chuckled coldly.

Using his spiritual vision, Chen Fei had already locked onto her exact position.

No matter where she moved, he could track her movements with perfect clarity.

Meanwhile, A-Yue thought she had escaped and fled through the alleys of Mutuo City,

eventually arriving at the Matriarch Cult’s stronghold.

The base was eerie—especially the disturbing paintings hung all around,

depicting strange religious scenes: preachers with fanged faces, elongated arms, and drooping tongues.

“A-Yue, what happened to you?”

A serene voice called out from a figure seated on a prayer mat.

This was Amu, another high-ranking member of the cult.

Her face was peaceful and her expression kind.

“Amu! It was someone from Heaven’s Apex!

He… he has a Holy Mark!”

A-Yue still couldn’t hide the panic in her voice.

But Amu simply nodded with a warm smile.

“No need to panic.

Heaven’s Apex is the strongest sect on the Xuanhuang Continent—

some of their disciples having special bloodlines isn’t surprising.”

“In fact, it works in our favor.

If we can claim this bloodline for ourselves, it might be quite… beneficial.”

As she spoke, Amu rose gracefully, still clutching her prayer beads.

“Since you’ve already arrived, why hide in the shadows?

It’s unbecoming.”

She turned and looked at the entrance, her face still full of apparent kindness.

Chen Fei stepped in slowly, his gaze landing on Amu.

Though her smile seemed gentle,

there was something deeply unsettling about it the longer you looked.

“Y-You! How did you follow me here?!”

A-Yue exclaimed.

Then, realizing what she had said, she snapped angrily,

“What did you do to the others?! Damn it!”

Chen Fei ignored her.

“Matriarch Cult…

Looks like you were already waiting for me here.”

“Indeed,” Amu admitted without hesitation, calmly rotating her prayer beads.

“Not just you—anyone who enters Eastern Pavilion will be purified by the Matriarch

and made into her loyal disciple.

Are you ready?”

Chen Fei let out a snort.

“You’re awfully confident.”

But deep down, his expression grew more serious.

He wasn’t sure whether Amu’s words were true,

but he now knew for certain that this mission was riddled with problems.

Still, verifying his suspicions wouldn’t be difficult—

he just needed to find the other disciples.

But given how composed the cult seemed, escaping Mutuo might be extremely difficult.

Amu’s gaze met his again, filled with admiration.

“As expected from a Heaven’s Apex disciple—

you carry yourself with a pride unlike others.

But here in Eastern Pavilion, even you must submit to the Matriarch’s divine will.”

As she finished speaking,

Chen Fei felt multiple powerful auras lock onto him.

He smirked.

“Then we’ll see whether your Matriarch has what it takes.”

“How dare you! Blasphemer!”

“Outsider, you’re courting death!”

Several furious voices rang out, and waves of destructive energy crashed toward where Chen Fei had stood.

But by the time they landed—

Chen Fei was gone.

Clearly, what was supposed to be a covert meeting point in Mutuo had long been turned into a trap.

And Chen Fei now found himself in serious danger.

Yet despite this, the cultists still didn’t seem to take him seriously.

Aside from Amu, who was at the peak of the Mystic Realm, the others were only entry-level Mystic experts.

The Matriarch Cult’s techniques were bizarre, yes,

but in the face of true power, such tricks were little more than child’s play.

“A test?”

Chen Fei wasn’t focused on the battle right now.

How did the Matriarch Cult know exactly when to prepare an ambush?

They shouldn’t have had any way to know when Chen Fei would arrive.

Dark Gate missions were one-way communication.

Yet the cult had already laid a trap.

That could only mean one thing—

there was a traitor within Heaven’s Apex.

And not just any traitor—someone from the Dark Gate itself.

That was a terrifying possibility.

Especially considering the death of the Fire Gate Master.

A Heaven-Path expert wasn’t someone who could just be killed by surprise.

Even if gravely injured, such a powerhouse could usually escape from three enemies—let alone be easily slain.

But the Fire Gate Master had died.

Now, with the Matriarch Cult’s ambush and coordination,

all the clues pointed toward a leak.

A traitor…

Inside Heaven’s Apex.

Just thinking about it made Chen Fei’s scalp tingle.

Still, it wasn’t all bad.

This mission had been issued by Wang Situ, a senior figure in the sect.

If there was a leak, it likely came from a low-level operative within the Dark Gate—

not someone with high-level access.

The fact that the cult had prepared an ambush but still lacked enough true experts

meant they were struggling to keep up—

not yet in control of the entire situation.

Chen Fei quickly sorted out his thoughts.

He looked up at the Mystic experts charging at him and smiled.

“Get down here!”

A whip lashed around his ankle, yanking him off balance.

A cultist’s eyes lit up with glee as he tightened the whip.

“Now!”

He shouted with excitement—

only to be met by Chen Fei’s grinning face.

Amu’s expression darkened sharply.

She flung her prayer beads into the air.

The beads scattered mid-flight, hurtling toward Chen Fei’s back with whistling force.

But Chen Fei didn’t even look.

He simply controlled his Edge-less Greatsword to block behind him—

and with his other hand, seized the cultist by the throat.

“You people really have guts.”

Clang! Clang! Clang!

A series of explosive impacts rang out as the sword deflected the attack.

Chen Fei flung the cultist aside like a rag doll,

caught his sword mid-air, and charged directly toward the next enemy.