Chapter 622

Chapter 622: Distant Escape

Gazing at the tall building ahead, Wang Chen’s eyes grew profound.

This seven-story structure, known as the "Quality Building," housed the children and families of slave cultivators.

The Shen Zhao Sect employed slave marks and restrictions to prevent slave cultivators from escaping or rebelling, and they used the slaves’ relatives to coerce them into working tirelessly, employing ruthless tactics.

Zhang Mushan’s twin daughters were confined within the Quality Building!

Taking a deep breath, Wang Chen approached the gatekeeper with a composed expression and said, “I am Chen Si. Please inform Manager Zhang; I have urgent matters to discuss.”

“Wait a moment.”

The gatekeeper, unsuspecting, entered the building to relay the message.

Wang Chen soon met Manager Zhang, who was in charge of the Quality Building.

Manager Zhang, also a Purple Palace cultivator, had a slender frame and hollow cheeks, with narrow, sinister eyes that resembled a venomous snake eyeing its prey, making anyone who saw him feel uneasy.

He clearly harbored no goodwill towards "Old Four," coldly asking, “What do you want?”

Wang Chen spoke in a deep voice, “Recently, the slave cultivator Zhang Mushan in the mine has been disobedient. I wish to show him the condition of his two daughters; I believe he will come to his senses.”

As he spoke, Wang Chen produced a memory stone.

Manager Zhang’s expression shifted as he sneered, “Old Four, you really are something!”

Though it sounded like praise, it was laced with sarcasm.

Wang Chen lowered his gaze, “I ask Manager Zhang to be accommodating.”

Manager Zhang, with a mocking smile, asked, “Why should I help you?”

He and Old Four had similar cultivation levels, but Manager Zhang held a higher status in the sect and didn’t need to show Old Four any deference.

After a moment of hesitation, Wang Chen said, “Consider it a favor I owe you.”

“Your favor?”

Manager Zhang sneered again.

He seemed on the verge of saying something cutting but held his tongue.

His attitude, however, spoke volumes.

Wang Chen’s eyes twitched; he gritted his teeth and said, “Tomorrow evening, I will host a banquet at Qingchun Tavern. Please honor me with your presence!”

Manager Zhang waved his hand dismissively: “Fine, consider it a favor owed.”

Though Old Four wasn’t well-regarded in the sect, he was still a Purple Palace cultivator, and Manager Zhang didn’t want to create an enmity over such a trivial matter, so he decided to grant the favor.

Manager Zhang summoned a miscellaneous cultivator from the building to escort Wang Chen to “film a video” with Zhang Mushan’s two daughters.

This minor task wasn’t worth his personal attention.

Wang Chen hadn’t anticipated things would go so smoothly; he calmly followed the miscellaneous cultivator and finally met Zhang Mushan’s twin daughters in a room on the third floor.

Though imprisoned, they hadn’t been mistreated; they had merely endured a calamity, and the two children appeared dispirited, having lost their former vivacity.

In truth, children like them, if they possessed good root bone talent, would be brainwashed and trained as Assassin-type battle cultivators, dedicating their lives to the sect.

For those without talent, the outlook was bleak; once they lost their usefulness, they would likely become test subjects.

Even offerings!

The darkness and cruelty at the bottom of the Haotian Realm are beyond the imagination of ordinary people.

The moment Wang Chen saw Zhang Mushan’s two daughters, he immediately unfolded the Supreme Mysterious Spirit Dragon True Form Image and, in an instant, captured them within the treasure map.

The nearby miscellaneous cultivator stood dumbfounded, hardly believing his eyes.

Before he could even cry out, Wang Chen struck him unconscious with a single slap.

Having succeeded, Wang Chen promptly descended the stairs.

He left with an air of grandeur!

He had come openly and departed with dignity, showing no trace of guilt or fear.

The guards below harbored no suspicions; they simply watched him exit the Quality Building and vanish into the main street.

The ease of his escape, aside from Wang Chen’s good fortune, was largely due to the lax management within the Shen Zhao Sect, which lacked sufficient vigilance.

After all, there were no external enemies near Feixu Valley, and the slave cultivators were incapable of causing any trouble; the area had been peaceful and uneventful for some time.

This provided Wang Chen with the perfect opportunity.

Wang Chen swaggered out of Feixu Valley and then swiftly darted away.

However, he did not go far; he soon slipped into a tunnel he had previously excavated.

Wang Chen ventured deeper underground, simultaneously destroying the path he had taken!

Finally, he concealed himself in a hidden chamber located a hundred feet below the surface, focusing his breath and gathering his power, reducing his heartbeat to one percent of its normal rate.

This was the Turtle Breathing technique, which, combined with the Spirit Concealment Technique, minimized his presence to the greatest extent.

Wang Chen’s caution proved to be wise.

Less than half a tea’s time after he entered his Turtle Breathing hidden state, a massive divine sense swept over from above the ground, extending rapidly into the distance.

Wang Chen’s disguise as Old Four, going to the Quality Building to take away Zhang Mushan’s daughters, had been exposed.

This also prompted the Golden Core true master to personally come and search!

It seemed this Golden Core true master felt deeply embarrassed, as someone had stolen right under his nose, and in his shame, he devoted all efforts to chase down the troublemaker.

But what did Old Four’s actions have to do with Wang Chen?

He hid deep underground, where even the Golden Core true master could not probe, and remained concealed for three days.

On the third day, Wang Chen "awoke."

He silently returned to the surface through another tunnel.

Due to his advancement, Wang Chen consistently maintained the Spirit Concealment Technique.

However, the Golden Core cultivator from the Shen Zhao Sect had given up, either believing the true culprit had already escaped or no longer expending effort in the search.

Thus, Wang Chen encountered no further troubles.

He arrived at a mountain peak a hundred miles away from Feixu Valley.

There, he found a deeply hidden cave and excavated a storage bag within it.

This storage bag had been left there by Zhang Mushan.

Some loose cultivators preferred to carry their entire wealth with them, while others, like a clever rabbit with three burrows, hid their important items and wealth separately, allowing them a chance to recover in times of calamity.

Zhang Mushan was clearly in the latter category.

Inside this storage bag were the items meant as payment to Wang Chen for rescuing his two daughters!

Wang Chen did not open the storage bag to inspect its contents but quickly left.

He traveled south by day and hid by night, avoiding encounters with magical beasts and cultivators, and after three days of trekking, he arrived at a loose cultivator town similar to Feixu Valley.

At this time, Wang Chen summoned the Supreme Mysterious Spirit Dragon True Form Image and released Zhang Mushan’s two daughters.

For them, being sealed within the treasure map felt like having a long sleep.

Upon awakening and seeing Wang Chen, who had already regained his true form, they immediately rushed into his arms, exclaiming, “Uncle Wang…”

The two girls wept bitterly.

Wang Chen sighed and comforted them, “Don’t cry. Your parents are fine, just temporarily unable to be with you. I am taking you to find your grandmother.”

Mrs. Zhang’s mother lived in the loose cultivator town ahead!