Asura Emperor Venerable
Chapter 558: Infiltrating the Abyssal Cave

Chapter 558: Chapter 558: Infiltrating the Abyssal Cave

Such intense killing intent.

Even with Shi Ming’s abilities, he felt a stabbing pain on his skin, which horrified him. What level had this young man reached? He was merely in Self-Observation, yet he almost felt like he was approaching the Founding King Court.

However, the Stone Clan was also his family. When the time came for conflict within the same household, he would be in quite a dilemma.

"Do you not know how my mother died, Uncle Ming?" Shi Hao asked.

Shi Ming shook his head: "I’m afraid only your father knows about that. But, at the time, you were also at death’s door; your father was in a hurry to take you away from Stone Country. He only mentioned he would probably go to the Eastern Fire Continent, but I didn’t have the chance to ask about other matters."

Moreover, at that time, Shi Feng went on a killing spree, which shocked him so thoroughly that he forgot to ask anything else.

Shi Hao was surprised—had he been injured at that time too?

Love’s death and his son’s injuries would have definitely enraged Shi Feng. If all of this was caused by someone within the Stone Clan, no wonder Shi Feng went on a killing spree.

But what was the root cause?

There is no such thing as unfounded love or unfounded hatred in this world.

Shi Hao’s mind raced, and he slowly asked, "Uncle Ming, was my father designated as the Stone Clan’s successor at that time, receiving the support of the whole country for his upbringing?"

"Indeed," Shi Ming proudly said, "Your father’s martial arts talent was so extraordinary that at the age of thirty-one, he could compare to Gu Shiyun, and even our ancestors favored Shi Feng incredibly."

"You know, our ancestor never carried any clan member on his back, but Shi Feng as a child would often ride on our ancestor’s shoulders."

Shi Hao nodded and said, "So, if everything had been normal, my father would have been the next Emperor of Stone Country without any accidents."

"Of course, that was a certainty, an absolute certainty," Shi Ming nodded with an air of inevitability.

Shi Hao revealed a cold smile: "My father was imprisoned, and then Shi Zhong became the Stone Clan’s successor. All resources were then skewed towards him, weren’t they?"

Currently, Shi Zhong was only about twenty-four or twenty-five years old but was said to have reached the Supplementing Divine Temple. It was entirely possible for him to reach the Great Sacrificial Heaven at thirty-one or even earlier.

This was partly because Shi Zhong’s martial arts talent was high, not weaker than Shi Feng’s, and partly because the Stone Clan devoted the nation’s resources to raise him.

Not to mention, Shi Zhong, at just twenty-four or twenty-five, had already entered the Primordial Cave three times. Who could compare to that?

Shi Ming first paused, then his facial expression changed as he said, "Are you suspecting that Shi Zhong’s line killed your mother, drove your father to a killing spree, thereby stripping him of his heir status and let Shi Zhong take his place?"

This idea was wildly imaginative and extremely bold, but upon careful consideration, it was indeed very likely.

Even for a powerful nation like Stone Country, to propel a genius onto the Sky Ladder within a very limited time would inevitably require an astonishing amount of cultivation resources.

This level of consumption is something even Stone Country could not sustain; only the resources of the entire nation could support one person.

So, with Shi Feng in place, there could not possibly be another, no matter how high Shi Zhong’s talent.

Now Shi Feng was imprisoned, and his identity as the heir was also stripped, opening the position perfectly for Shi Zhong, didn’t it?

If it was too coincidental, then it must be a conspiracy.

Shi Hao had not yet considered himself a part of the Shi Family, so he could step out and see things objectively without any bias, and he could suspect anyone.

It should be noted that Shi Long, the head of Shi Zhong’s branch, was one of the three Regent Kings, so it wouldn’t be difficult for him to manipulate events, cause Yu Lan’s death, and injure Shi Hao severely.

In this way, Shi Feng would trust no one, and his only option would be to send his son away before returning alone to seek revenge.

All this was logically consistent.

"Uncle Ming, where is the Abyssal Cave?" Shi Hao asked.

Shi Ming was startled, "You’re not thinking of staging a prison break, are you?"

Shi Hao smiled, "Let’s set aside whether I’m breaking into the prison or not, I need to see my father."

Shi Ming shook his head, "Without the ancestors’ approval, even if you enter the Abyssal Cave, it’s impossible to see Shi Feng."

He had already asked many times, but not to mention seeing Shi Feng, he couldn’t even step foot in the Abyssal Cave.

"Uncle Ming, you just need to tell me where the Abyssal Cave is, the rest... I’ll handle it," Shi Hao said, full of confidence.

Shi Ming of course didn’t believe Shi Hao had the ability to enter the Abyssal Cave, but Shi Hao didn’t seem like a rash person, so after some consideration, he still told Shi Hao the location of the Abyssal Cave.

It was still within the Imperial City, but the guard was even tighter, and without a writ signed by all three Regent Kings, no one was allowed to enter, and without the ancestors’ approval, entering the Abyssal Cave wouldn’t allow one to see Shi Feng either.

What was the Abyssal Cave?

It was a place used by the Stone Clan to detain prisoners, and not just any prisoners, but those with formidable strength and substantial backgrounds.

Why not kill them?

First, if the other party had an equally strong background, killing them would cause major trouble, but imprisoning them might make the other party’s forces restrain themselves, second, to extract secrets from the prisoners, some of whom were extremely resolute, thus they had to be detained first and interrogated gradually.

Thus, the Abyssal Cave was also a very dangerous place; should anything erupt within it... the resulting harm would be terrifying.

Most crucially, though Stone Country had an Almighty from the Heaven Building Ladder to oversee, Shi Geng was really too old, having reached the limit lifespan of five thousand years, he could return to the divine path at any moment.

In fact, some suspected Shi Geng had already passed away, but the Stone Clan deliberately concealed it, otherwise, some forces previously deterred by the Heaven Building Ladder’s might would start causing trouble once Shi Geng was gone.

So, if any eruption occurred in the Abyssal Cave, it would surely alarm Shi Geng.

—If Shi Geng emerged, given his current dessicated lifespan, any action he took would diminish his remaining time. And if he did not emerge, that would confirm the news of his transcendance.

Therefore, under no circumstances should any incident occur in the Abyssal Cave.

Therefore, Shi Hao entering the Abyssal Cave was nothing short of a pipe dream.

The next day, Shi Hao returned to the Imperial Capital.

He wanted to meet Shi Feng, even rescue him.

And his reliance was naturally Immortal Abode.

After several days of scouting, he decided to put his plan into action.

That night, he silently set off.

Soon, he reached the vicinity of the Abyssal Cave.

The defense here was indeed tight, practically impregnable.

Yet Shi Hao smiled. He climbed to a high place, calculated the distance, and with a fierce leap, his body entered the Immortal Abode, leaving the rest to gravity.

The Immortal Abode descended, like a speck of dust, eluding all the guards, and fell into the passage of the Abyssal Cave.

Shi Hao immediately emerged from the Immortal Abode and unfolded the Infinite Seed Technique, instantly transforming into a man the size of a fist.