Naked Sword Art

Chapter 386 386: Soul Devouring Meeting

Entering the Clan's Main Hall, Luo Yue immediately noticed several elders already gathered, their robes lined with solemnity and authority. At the head of the hall sat her mother—Lady Luo Yin—occupying the Clan Leader's seat in her grandfather's absence. The air was heavy with the weight of discussion, but the murmurs quickly faded the moment they saw her step in.

Luo Yue instinctively straightened her posture, her eyes locking with her mother's.

"Mother," she greeted with a respectful bow.

Lady Luo Yin's gaze narrowed slightly. "You've walked into a private council, Yue'r. What brings you here?"

"I came to ask about the man Grandmother brought into our clan," Luo Yue said without hesitation. "Who is he—and why are we helping him?"

Her words rang clearly through the hall, bold and without apology.

A long pause followed as the elders exchanged glances. Then, at last, Luo Yin leaned forward slightly before she spoke.

"What we know is limited, but enough to draw serious attention. The man your grandmother brought to our clan is a dual cultivator."

Luo Yin tried her best to briefly explain to her the history of the Dual Cultivation sect, and why every other clan disliked them.

"... although they are an Inner Court clan, they have no alliances, no standing among the major factions, and their reputation is tarnished beyond repair. Aligning with them might get us into the Inner Court, but we will suffer just as they suffer."

"Then why would we even consider aligning ourselves with them?" Luo Yue asked, her voice sharp with disbelief. "Is making it into the Inner Court such a big deal that you'd want to destroy our image in the process?"

"That is the dilemma," another elder spoke up. "Aligning with them would indeed damage our reputation. We would be seen as desperate… even pathetic."

"But," Luo Yin continued, her gaze locking onto her daughter's, "this man… he received our Soul Devouring method just a few days ago. In that time, he has already cultivated it to the Core Realm."

Luo Yue blinked. "What? That's… that's just not possible."

"It shouldn't be," an elder muttered. "It took most of decades to reach the Core Realm. You yourself took seven years, and you're one of the most gifted cultivators in our clan's short history."

"Has anyone confirmed it?" Luo Yue asked.

"Several of us have seen it with our own eyes," another Elder said.

"Do you understand? If what I'm being told is true," Luo Yin said slowly, "then this man possesses a secret we must have—it could revolutionize our cultivation path. That's why we're considering this alliance."

Luo Yue stood silent for a long moment, trying to process it all. "So… you don't want his clan. You just want his secret."

"Exactly," said another elder. "We came here to discuss how we should proceed. But since you say that Luo Biya wants you to train with him, that'll put you in a unique position to find out what he knows, and learn his secret. You must do whatever it takes, we need to know how he cultivated our method so quickly."

Luo Yue nodded slowly.

"I understand. For the sake of our clan, I'll do my best."

She knew now why the Elders had dismissed the idea that Xiao Fang might simply be a once-in-a-generation genius. Because even for a cultivator of extraordinary talent, reaching the Core Realm with the [ Soul Devouring ] method in just a few days defied logic. It shouldn't have been possible—unless he had some external aid.

Meanwhile, back in his residence, Xiao Fang slowly opened his eyes.

He had heard everything he needed to from that meeting—without ever being there.

'So… they want to know how I cultivated their method so quickly,' he thought

Inside his spatial ring, Xiao Fang still carried the inscription formation that Lady Xu had once used to imprison him in the Divine Sword Sect. Though its original purpose had been to suppress the curse threatening to overtake his body, it had also created the perfect environment for cultivating the [ Soul Devouring ] method. As a precaution, he had forced Lady Xu to recreate the formation for him—offering to spare her daughter, Xiao Jing, in return. At the time, he needed it to ensure he could contain the curse should it resurface.

But now, under different circumstances, he realized that if he could reproduce that formation, the Soul Devouring Clan could benefit from it tremendously.

He glanced down at the ring on his finger, his thumb brushing lightly over it.

'I've got quite the bargaining chip,' he mused.

The golden aura that had been emanating from him—residual energy from the [ Soul Suppression ] technique—began to fade as he slipped deeper into thought.

From across the room, Xiao Hei blinked, tilting his head curiously at the shift in Xiao Fang's energy.

Xiao Fang gave a faint smile and said quietly,

"I understand what I need to do."

Xiao Fang eventually got up.

"Fang, where are you going?" Xiao Hei asked.

"I'm going for a walk. Would you like to come?"

"Un!" Xiao Hei jumped off the bed and caught up to him.

"Don't go dozing off again, I'm not carrying you if you do."

"I won't~" Xiao Hei smiled sheepishly.

Xiao Fang stepped out of his residence with Xiao Hei trailing silently at his side. The air was cool and crisp, and the quiet hum of nocturnal spirit energy shimmered faintly across the clan grounds. Most of the disciples had already turned in for the night, but the Soul Devouring Clan never fully slept—there were always those who trained beneath the stars.

As they walked along a winding path leading out of the clan, Xiao Fang caught a flicker of movement up ahead. Across a small clearing stood an middle-aged woman, robed in midnight black robes, her sleeves billowing slightly as she moved through a complex martial form. Her arms weaved in tight arcs, drawing out ribbons of soul energy that cracked and lashed through the air like whips. But more importantly, her soul flared with the [ Soul Suppression ] technique in use.

The aura surrounding the technique was aggressive—sharpened and violent—completely unlike the internal, meditative styles described in the [ Soul Devouring ] method book he was given.

Xiao Fang slowed to a halt, narrowing his eyes.

'That doesn't look like anything I've learned from the [ Soul Devouring ] book. Did she develop her own [ Soul Devouring ] technique?' Xiao Fang thought.