I Am Loaded with Passive Skills

This was just intelligence after all!

During his time at the Flower Pavilion, Li Fugui had been deceived by false intelligence countless times. Several times, he narrowly escaped disastrous outcomes.

He was not entirely convinced of the reliability of intelligence.

Nevertheless, it was often said…

Fortune favored the bold!

Taking a deep breath, Li Fugui adjusted his breathing to its lowest frequency, straightened his mask, and with a wave of his black cloak…

He pulled out a black square box and tucked it into his chest, instantly transforming his aura.

He appeared as a lofty, indifferent ruler of darkness.

“For dealing with different people, one must employ different means!”

Box of Empty Force bestowed its carrier with an unparalleled presence, effective only against Spiritual Cultivators below the Higher Void level.

There was absolutely no power whatsoever.

Exposure meant immediate death.

“Father!!!”

At the ruins of the blacksmith shop, Cao Erzhu clutched a wine barrel and wept.

He never imagined that a trip to Qingyuan Mountain would return with his father’s head severed and stuffed into a wine barrel.

Who could have done such a thing?

If he found out, he swore to personally tear them apart!

“Tap, tap, tap…”

Faint footsteps approached from behind until they settled beside him.

Lost in grief, Cao Erzhu couldn’t contain himself, his sorrow engulfing him, oblivious to his surroundings.

“Kui Leihan is dead?”

Only when this slightly puzzled voice emerged did Cao Erzhu seem to snap back to reality, abruptly turning around:

“Who are you?!”

Before him stood a figure clad in a black mask and cloak, whose presence surpassed any Spiritual Cultivator he had ever encountered.

Was this the man who killed his father?

Cao Erzhu’s eyes narrowed warily, his gaze like that of a waking lion, fiercely alert.

“I regret to hear such news.”

“Not long ago, I had intended to come and visit your father…”

The man in black sighed, squatting down, closing the distance.

He dared not lie, speaking only the truth, fearing to provoke the boy’s defiance:

“I know what you’re thinking, but with my power, I couldn’t have killed your father.”

“At best, I could fight him to a draw, or, in case of an unexpected event…”

Cao Erzhu’s expression faltered, collapsing to the ground, clutching the wine barrel, his sorrow overflowing:

“Then who killed my father, sob…?”

He could sense the man’s deep respect, perhaps reverence, for his father.

Cao Erzhu possessed a natural affinity for such insights, enabling him to discern the truth from natural responses.

For instance, on Qingyuan Mountain, he easily sensed that Yu Zhiwen harbored no ill will towards him, whereas the ancient swordsman did.

Thus, he could tailor his responses accordingly, choosing not to fight one and punching the other twice.

Similarly, Cao Erzhu could intuitively sense that the person before him was not his father’s killer.

Otherwise, his presence would have repelled rather than attracted him.

As for whether he was his father’s friend, that remained unknown, and he had no energy to contemplate.

“Only the Ten High Nobles can contend with the Ten High Nobles,” the man in black said cryptically, raising his cloak.

Cao Erzhu ceased his weeping.

Did he know the truth?

“I do not know who killed your father, but in this world, few could have…”

The black-clad figure pointed to the “handshake” pattern on the wine barrel. “This is the only thing I can discern.”

“What is this?” Cao Erzhu looked over, recognizing it.

“Divine Secret.”

“I know this is Divine Secret…”

“From a Divine Sorcerer.”

“Divine Sorcerer…”

Cao Erzhu instantly recalled Yu Zhiwen calling herself a Divine Sorceress.

“All the Divine Sorcerers in the world hail from the Holy Divine Palace’s Path Division; among them, the foremost is Hallmaster Dao!” the man in black concluded.

“Path Division, Hallmaster Dao…” Cao Erzhu murmured in confusion, feeling unfamiliar with these terms.

The black-clad man produced a portrait. “This man is so powerful that speaking his name aloud can provoke a response.”

Cao Erzhu fixed his gaze on the image.

Wasn’t this the strange uncle he had seen before?

The one who left the “handshake” mark on his hand, only washable with Penetrating Divine Sense.

And now, he had killed his father, leaving the same “handshake” mark on the barrel?

“Hallmaster Dao…”

Cao Erzhu clenched his fists.

He felt that two identical “handshake” patterns were no coincidence; there must be a deeper meaning.

The black-clad man shook his head, gradually relaxing. He had dealt with similar situations many times and began to advise:

“I’m not certain if this person killed your father.”

“Even if you seek revenge, I advise against it.”

“Because as you are now, your chances of defeating Hallmaster Dao are close to zero.”

Cao Erzhu paid no attention to these words.

He only needed to stand before that person and see for himself.

Just a glance, without a word, and he would know who the real culprit was!

“Do you know where he is?” Cao Erzhu grabbed the portrait, tears welling up, looking at the man in black.

“Do not misjudge,” the black-clad man stood up, speaking slowly.

“Come with me. I can make you stronger!”

“When the time is right, you can seek out your enemy and avenge your father’s death!”

Little did he expect that upon hearing these words, Cao Erzhu became deeply suspicious, as if he had been inoculated against countless similar suggestions, and his gaze became markedly skeptical.

“Are you a bad person?”

The black-clad man was momentarily taken aback, then let out a mellow chuckle.

“Never mind.”

He waved his hand and turned to leave.

“Please tell me where I can find this person!” Cao Erzhu couldn’t help but feel anxious.

He wouldn’t be foolish enough to be abducted, but he wanted to know any clue about his father’s killer, even if it was uncertain.

The black-clad man paused, his gaze shifting to the only brightly lit spot under the night sky, enigmatically stating:

“Far in the sky, yet right before your eyes.”

This…

Cao Erzhu felt like he couldn’t comprehend, but as his gaze followed, he saw Qingyuan Mountain. “He’s at Qingyuan Mountain?”

“I never said anything.”

“I understand!”

“Ah, you face a perilous journey. Our meeting is fate, so I’ll give you something.” The man in black flipped his hand.

A spiritual source carried by the wind delivered a bead to Cao Erzhu, presenting it before him.

Cao Erzhu hesitated, choosing not to take it.

His father had taught him not to accept things from strangers or listen to their words.

“Take it. It’s just a sound recording bead. It poses no harm to you. If you don’t trust me, you can crush it yourself.” The black-clad man chuckled.

Cao Erzhu deliberated, his spiritual senses confirming repeatedly that the item posed no threat before he finally accepted it.

“In times of peril, infuse spiritual essence into it.”

“This sound recording bead may save your life, or perhaps, do nothing at all…”

“Sigh, you should know, that fate is like the wind, capricious and fickle.”

As the black-clad man walked away, seeming to lament the fragility of life, his departing figure loomed larger with each step.

“Fate is like the wind, capricious and fickle…” Cao Erzhu whispered to himself, feeling encouraged by these words.

Wasn’t this implying that he too had a chance for revenge?

Standing up with the wine barrel in his arms, Cao Erzhu watched the black-clad man’s retreating figure, suddenly realizing that this might be the “opportunity” spoken of in the Spiritual Cultivation world.

Having lost his father, he didn’t want to miss this chance.

After all, left alone and destitute, his only tie in this world was his younger sister.

And she was in the world of spiritual cultivation.

Cao Erzhu chased after the black-clad man, hollering:

“Who are you?!”

“How can I meet you?!”

The wind shattered the black figure.

Above the dilapidated town, only intermittent and ethereal echoes remained:

“Perhaps we’ll meet again…”

“Call me Lord Li!”