Cultivation Online

Chapter 1745  The Location to Tian Qiyuan's Secret Vault

Long before he was recognized as the God of Creation, Tian Qiyuan maintained a secret vault to store all his most precious materials and completed creations. Within this vault lay countless Celestial-grade treasures that he had never revealed to the public, along with priceless materials so rare they could easily spark a bloody war.

During Tian Qiyuan's era, many speculated about the existence of such a treasure vault, though none could prove it. However, just before his mysterious disappearance, Tian Qiyuan shocked the world by announcing that he had hidden his vault somewhere in the Nine Heavens. He declared that whoever found it could claim every treasure within for themselves, sparking an uproar that rippled through the entire world, igniting a fevered hunt that continued to this very day.

Countless blacksmiths and cultivators scoured every corner of the world in search of Tian Qiyuan's treasure vault, yet none succeeded in uncovering its location.

Tian Qiyuan's treasure vault had become such a coveted legend that top organizations in the Nine Heavens, including the Celestial Emperor, offered generous rewards for any credible hints about its location. Unbeknownst to all who sought it, the location of Tian Qiyuan's treasure vault had finally been uncovered… by none other than Tian Qiyuan himself.

"I am still quite far away from reaching it, but I'll definitely reclaim my treasures as soon as possible," Yuan mumbled to himself as he proceeded to the second trial.

For the second trial, Yuan found himself standing beneath a clear night sky in the middle of what appeared to be a city. The streets were quiet, bathed in the soft glow of moonlight, with shadows stretching across the empty buildings.

<You have started your second trial in the Stairway to Heaven>

<Assassinate the Lord of this city within an hour>

<Assassinate the Lord of this city, as well as all guards, within an hour to receive a reward>

'Assassination? This is a new type of trial…' Yuan thought to himself as he used his divine sense to scout the entire city.

He immediately noticed many mortals living inside the buildings, but they were all trembling in a corner for some reason. Seeing this phenomenon happening throughout the entire city caused Yuan to raise an eyebrow.

Sometime later, Yuan turned his attention to the tall pagoda that stood out like a sore thumb. Even without needing to use divine sense, he could tell that his target was living inside the pagoda.

'This place feels very nostalgic, but whose memories does it belong to?' Yuan wondered as he approached the pagoda.

He had an hour to complete his trial, which was plenty of time. After all, his opponents were only at the peak of Divine Grandmaster, and none of them would be able to endure a single strike from him.

Instead of completing the trial as fast as possible, Yuan decided to investigate the situation instead.

He knocked on one of the doors, hoping to speak with the residents. However, there was no answer. Inside, the occupants began trembling even more at the sound of his knock, as if death itself were waiting outside their door. After trying a few more buildings without new results, Yuan decided to become more forceful.

'This may be an illusion, but it still feels bad to do this…' Yuan sighed inwardly as he kicked down the doors.

"Sorry to bother you, but I need—"

"Aaahhh! Please! Don't kill me! I have a sick mother who needs to be taken care of! She'd die without me!" A young boy shouted after realizing an intruder had entered their home.

Yuan looked at this young boy with raised eyebrows and said, "Relax, kid. I am not here to claim your life."

"Really…?" The boy slowly turned to look at him with a fearful expression.

"Yes. What would I gain from killing you?"

"Okay, I'll believe you."

"Then, can you tell me why everyone is hiding inside their home? I'm not from around here."

The boy trembled just thinking about it. After a moment of silence, he finally spoke with great difficulty, "T-the Phantom Assassin—Silent Reaper—has declared that he will take the life of our lord, and anyone who dares to stand in his way will be killed as well."

"Phantom Assassin? I have never heard of him." Yuan shook his head.

"What?! There's no way! The Phantom Assassin is renowned throughout the Nine Heavens! You should've heard of him no matter where you're from!" The boy exclaimed, his voice filled with disbelief.

"I've come from a really far away place, and I lived most of my life in seclusion, so I am not privy to such information." Yuan shrugged.

"..."

After a moment of silence, the boy explained, "The Phantom Assassin is both a judge and an executioner. Once he sentences someone to death, nobody could stop him—not even the Celestial Emperor."

"I see. Then why did this Phantom Assassin sentence the lord of this city to death?"

"I am not too sure. They say the Phantom Assassin only executes those who deserve it, but who really knows." The boy sighed.

"Anyway, big brother, you should leave this place as soon as possible. It'd be disastrous if you encounter the Phantom Assassin and he mistakes you as an enemy."

Yuan scrambled his hair and teased, "Are you sure you have the luxury to worry about me? You were just shivering in a corner not too long ago."

"T-that's…!" The boy began blushing.

"Alright, I'll stop bothering you now. And don't worry. The Phantom Assassin won't target you if you don't block his path."

After saying goodbye to the boy, Yuan left the house and turned to look at the pagoda in the distance.

"Phantom Assassin, huh? What a nickname." Yuan chuckled as he stomped the ground, shooting himself off the ground and soaring toward the pagoda.

Bang!

Yuan flew directly to the top floor, smashing through the wall as he entered the pagoda. Inside, a fat, middle-aged man stood surrounded by a dozen guards, their expressions filled with shock and terror.

"Y-you must be the Phantom Assassin! Why are you trying to kill me?! What did I do wrong?!" the middle-aged man began shouting at him.

Yuan looked at him and responded, "Good question. Why don't you tell me what you're thinking? How did you get into this situation?"

"I really don't know! You're the one who sentenced me to death! How could I possibly know what you're thinking?!" The man exclaimed.

"Is that so?"

Yuan's arm suddenly began gushing with Chaotic Enhanced Sword Aura, and before the guards could even act, his arm flickered, disappearing for a split second.

In the very next instance, half of the guards in the room fell to the ground after being decapitated, their heads spinning in the air.

"Heavens!" The middle-aged man fell to his buttocks and soiled his pants in the process.

"One last chance. Tell me what you know, and I just might spare you."

The middle-aged man hastily got to his knees and began begging, "I took advantage of my position as the lord of this city and abused the citizens! I was wrong! Please spare my life! I swear I will change!"

Sha!

Yuan's arm suddenly flickered again, and the rest of the guards were killed before they even realized what had happened.

"Do you take me for a fool?" Yuan narrowed his gaze at the man as he revealed his immense killing intent.

"Ahhh!" The man cried out loud. "O-okay! I am a demon worshipper!"

'A demon worshipper, huh? Is this life related to the Divine Paragon, or…?' Yuan wondered inwardly.

"Tell me more," Yuan said to him.

"Thanks to the Demon Cult's teachings, I have acquired a technique that greatly boosts my cultivation speed and overall prowess, allowing me to fight those above my own cultivation! However, this technique requires a tremendous number of sacrifices!"

"What a vile being. While worshipping demons itself isn't a crime, the moment you lay a finger on innocent people…"

"Please! I was tricked and brainwashed by the Demon Cult! You have to believe—"

Before the man could even finish his sentence, Yuan swung his arm.

<You have killed the lord within an hour and successfully cleared the second trial>

<You have killed the lord and all of his guards within an hour>

A golden orb of light appeared from the fat man's corpse, entering Yuan's body.

As Yuan absorbed the orb of light, memories began flowing into him. Nôv(el)B\\jnn

'These memories belong to… Tian Kai, the God of Music?!' Yuan was surprised after seeing who these memories belonged to.

He couldn't fathom how Tian Kai, initially thought to be the God of Music and the mentor to the Zither Goddess, could also be the infamous Phantom Assassin—a figure whose very name sent shockwaves of terror throughout the Nine Heavens.

Unfortunately, he'd only regained a small portion of Tian Kai's memories as the Phantom Assassin, so he still lacked the information to finish the puzzle.

'Tian Kai… just what kind of life did he live?'