Chapter 3001: Sima Ping Dong

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

At the center of Scaling Cloud Lake.

The expression of a grey-clad old man changed drastically when he saw Sima Chun’s name had disappeared from the scoreboard. His domineering aura caused the people with a weaker cultivation base to shudder in fear as he cried out, “H-how’s this possible?!”

“So powerful!”

“Who’s he? His aura is so domineering!”

“You don’t know him? He’s the Grand Elder of the Sima Clan, a grade-seven clan!”

“The Grand Elder of the Sima Clan? Why’s he here? Normally, people of such high status won’t come here, right?”

“I don’t think the grand elder can accept Sima Chun’s death…”

“That’s only natural. A person of such caliber as Sima Chun was definitely the rising star of the Sima Clan. How could the high-ranking members of Sima Clan not mourn the loss of such a talent?”

The old man, Sima Ping Dong, was the Grand Elder of the Sima Clan. His strength was not inferior to the leaders of the Three Sects and Two Clans present on the scene, except for Bihai Mingfeng, the Third Sect Leader of the Coupling Celestial Sect. This was his first time leading the members from the Sima Clan to the entrance of the lower realm in the Southern Heaven Ancient Realm, and there was a reason for that. Although many people recognized the old man, not many knew of his relationship with Sima Chun. He had personally led the members from the Sima Clan here because Sima Chun, one of the participating Overarching Heavenly Supreme Celestials, was his beloved grandson whom he was most proud of.

“Ch-Chun’er is dead?!” Sima Ping Dong lamented softly with a disbelieving expression on his face.

“I’m so sorry for your loss, grand elder,” a middle-aged man standing next to Sima Ping Dong said. He was only an ordinary elder in the Sima Clan, unlike Sima Ping Dong. He knew Sima Chun was very dear and irreplaceable to Sima Ping Dong. Now that Sima Chun had died, one could only imagine how Sima Ping Dong. He sighed inwardly. ‘Sima Chun is the grand elder’s most beloved grandson. Now that he has died, the grand elder must regret letting him enter the lower realm of the Southern Heaven Ancient Heaven.’

Most people who knew Sima Chun were surprised he had died in the lower realm of the Southern Heaven Ancient Realm. One must know he was the most outstanding genius to appear in the Sima Clan in the past 1,000 years. He was not even 200 years old, but he was already a peak Overarching Heavenly Supreme Celestial who had comprehended two profundities from the law of wind. Such a person was definitely at the top among those who had entered the lower realm of the Southern Heaven Ancient Realm. Even so, he had died just like that.

Boom!

Sima Ping Dong’s body flashed out of sight, leaving ripples in his wake. In just a blink of an eye, he appeared in front of the five leaders from the Three Sects and Two Clans. He looked at Bihai Mingfeng and cupped his hands together. “Sect Leader Bihai.”

“Elder Ping Dong.” The Sima Clan was a grade-seven clan so it was only natural that Bihai Ming Feng knew the Grand Elder of the Sima Clan. Before Sima Dong Ping could speak, he said, “I already know what brought you here. However, nobody is privy to what happens in the lower realm of the Southern Heaven Ancient Realm, not even the few of us here. There’s nothing we can do even if we agree to help you identify the person who killed your grandson.”

“I’m aware of the situation,” Sima Ping Dong nodded and said in a low voice, “I would like to ask for a favor from you, Sect Leader Bihai. If I’m able to identify who killed my grandson, I’d like Sect Leader Bihai to hand him over to me.” He completely ignored the other four leaders of the Three Sects and Two Clans since they were no match for him. Only Bihai Ming Feng was capable of stopping him from avenging his grandson.

“I’m afraid I can’t agree to that.” Bihai Ming Feng shook his head. “It’s not up to the Three Sects and Two Clans to decide on such matters. After all, we’re only given the authority by the Profound Nether Mansion to open the entrance to the lower realm of the Southern Heaven Ancient Realm.”

“Sect Leader Bihai, as one of the ten Inspectors of the Profound Nether Mansion, I believe the Profound Nether Mansion wouldn’t bother to find fault with you,” Sima Dong Ping said persistently.

Alas, Bihai Mingfeng remained firm with his decision.

Sima Dong Ping could only dejectedly return to his position.

…

Most people could guess Sima Dong Ping’s intention when he approached Bihai Mingfeng.

“The Grand Elder of the Sima Clan, Sima Ping Dong, is Sima Chun’s grandfather. Now that Sima Chun’s dead, there’s no doubt he wants to rip his grandson’s murderer apart to avenge his grandson!”

“He must have asked Sect Leader Bihai to not interfere when he seeks revenge.”

“But, how does he intend to find out who killed his grandson? Do you think he knows?”

“I don’t think so. He probably just wanted to be prepared. What if he really manages to identify the murderer? In any case, he won’t be able to avenge his grandson if Sect Leader Bihai decides to interfere.”

“He must have gone to Sect Leader Bihai to ask him not to interfere with his revenge! Based on his unsightly expression, Sect Leader Bihai must have rejected his request.”

“Well, if Sect Leader Bihai agrees to his request, who would dare to kill in the Southern Heaven Ancient Realm in the future?”

At the same time, some people who were unaware of the rules of the scoreboard finally discovered how it worked.

“It seems like nobody has gained 8 points after Sima Chun’s death,” a middle-aged man muttered to himself as he looked at the scoreboard.

“Of course not! If the scoreboard instantly reveals who has gained 8 points, won’t it be akin to revealing the identity of Sima Chun’s murderer to everyone? The points will slowly increase for the person who killed Sima Chun. This is to protect the anonymity of the murderer,” an old man retorted.

“So, this means unless the murderer confesses to killing Sima Chun or if there’s a witness, no one, bar the murderer, will know who killed Sima Chun?”

“That’s right. If the participants are afraid to kill, in fear of the repercussions of their actions, what’s the point of entering the lower realm of the Southern Heaven Ancient Realm then?”

Meanwhile, the eyes of Hu Lin Yi, the Emperor of the Supporting Fall Nation, lit up as he looked at the scoreboard. ‘Duan Ling Tian’s points have just increased by two! He has five points now! He really doesn’t disappoint…’ However, the smile on his face was replaced by a frown when he saw the name at the top of the scoreboard. ‘However, the top scorer has already accumulated 11 points. Even the person in 10th place has accumulated seven points. I hope Duan Ling Tian quickly makes it into the top ten.’

Although Sima Chun’s death had caught Hu Lin Yi’s attention earlier, he did not connect it to Duan Ling Tian. After all, Sima Chun was a peak Overarching Heavenly Supreme Celestial who had comprehended two profundities from the law of wind, the Wind Elemental Profundity and the Gale Profundity. He did not think Duan Ling Tian was capable of defeating Sima Chun, let alone killing Sima Chun.

…

After Sima Dong Ping returned, another elder from the Sima Clan smiled bitterly as he said, “Grand elder, even if the Third Sect Leader of the Coupling Celestial Sect agrees to your request, it’s still difficult to find out the identity of your grandson’s murderer.”

“I’ll just kill the most suspicious one!” Sima Dong Ping said as his eyes flashed coldly. Although he had many sons and grandsons, Sima Chun was his favorite. He was so enraged by Sima Chun’s death that he wished he could enter the lower realm of the Southern Heaven Ancient Realm now to avenge his grandson!

Upon hearing Sima Ping Dong’s words, the elder could only smile helplessly.

Among all the Overarching Heavenly Supreme Celestials, only a few from grade-seven forces were a match for Sima Chun. However, it would still be difficult for them to kill Sima Chun unless they joined forces. If that was truly the case, it would be even more difficult to identify Sima Chun’s murderer or murderers.

Duan Ling Tian was, naturally, unaware of what was going on outside the Southern Heaven Ancient Realm. Although his points were slowly increasing as time passed by, nobody suspected him to have killed Sima Chun.

Sima Ping Dong was quick to rule out Duan Ling Tian as a suspect after he investigated Duan Ling Tian’s strength from people who were in the know. His eyes were glued to the scoreboard, memorizing the names of those who had suddenly gained a lot of points as suspects.

…

In the lower realm of the Southern Heaven Ancient Realm.

In a blink of an eye, another month had passed. It took Duan Ling Tian one month and traveling at top speed to exit the seemingly boundless forest under the guiding force. Based on this, one could see how vast the forest was.

“I’m finally out!”