Volume 1: The True Dragon of Purple Void – Chapter 13: The Dragon Emerges from the Depths

Chu Fangshan heard talk of falling into obsession and the path of demons, which worried him. Not knowing how to speak up, he used his gaze to signal his wife.
Han Yixue was already worried and, upon seeing her father-in-law’s signal, immediately understood. She quickly asked, “Elder, is this dangerous for Tianyu?”
“Yes, it’s easy to fall into obsession but hard to escape. How many in the world can truly understand this?” Xianyun also spoke with concern.
TheThe mad scholar, seemingly prepared, continued, “That’s why I hope Master Buzhan will join us in helping them. To be honest, our Xuanji Sect has techniques for transforming through obsession. If one’s mind is not pure and their foundation is weak, forcing themselves into obsession for cultivation can lead, at best, to permanent entrapment in the path of demons, and at worst, separation of mind and spirit, with no chance of reincarnation! But Tianyu has all the conditions for cultivation—Master Buzhan’s Buddhist teachings, the seasoned wisdom of Old Taoist Xianyun, and the power of the Dragon Realm. When Tianyu reaches the final stage of cultivation, the three of us can protect them—there’s no way it won’t succeed!”
Buzhan clasped his hands and slowly said, “Kind sir, is it really necessary for Tianyu to cultivate through obsession?”
Instead of answering, theThe mad scholar asked, “Master, Old Taoist Xianyun—what have we been cultivating all these years? What’s the point of competing for the heir to the Dragon Realm? Isn’t it to achieve our goals and uncover the mysteries of the Way of Heaven? Our Xuanji Sect’s first patriarch successfully transformed through obsession, glimpsed the Way of Heaven, and shattered the void. Now that Tianyu has this opportunity, why not help them?”
Hearing this, Chu Fangshan grew anxious. Ignoring propriety, he quickly asked, “Elder, if Tianyu succeeds in transforming through obsession and attains the Way of Heaven, does that mean they’ll ascend or something?”
TheThe mad scholar smiled and said, “Hehe, Fangshan, you’re overthinking it. This is just to lay a foundation for Tianyu to explore the Way of Heaven in the future, or to plant a seed for enlightenment a hundred years from now. With his current level of skill, he’s still far from there…”
Hearing this, Chu Fangshan felt relieved for the time being.

The mad scholar continued, “Moreover, without going through the path of darkness, as taught by the master and the old Taoist, the higher one’s cultivation in the Heavenly Realm, the greater the dangers faced. Unless you make the Heavenly Realm return to being an ordinary place, trouble will follow once one begins cultivation! As the saying goes, those who are good swimmers drown in water; the more powerful one is, the more despicable and vicious the tactics others use against them. If the master hadn’t come from Shaolin with such a prominent background, to speak disrespectfully, it’s uncertain whether he could still be sitting here today. Take the old Taoist Xianyun for example—had it not been for their philosophy of cultivating virtue and staying away from worldly conflicts, it’s unknown whether we could even meet here. Having been in the business world for many years, you should know the story of survival of the fittest, right? There are countless such examples—throughout history, how many heroes and valiant men have managed to last long? They all end up suffering tragic fates, with their families destroyed…”
His words were so sincere and logical that everyone was speechless.
With the mad scholar’s final decisive statement, “Our Xuanji Sect has always focused only on the outcome, not the process. A successor of Xuanji Sect must embrace the path of darkness. If you’re ruthless, I’ll be even more ruthless; if you’re vicious, I’ll be even more vicious. To use a modern saying, the best victory is survival, and the best way to survive is to eliminate the enemy first…”
The gathering finally came to an end, and Tianyu’s six-year journey of cultivation officially began…
…
Hong Kong, named after the Fragrant River, is located off the Pearl River Estuary and is known as the “Pearl of the Orient.”
Inside HSBC on Queen’s Road in Hong Kong, the original free sightseeing elevator entrance was surrounded by three layers of armed police, who were confronting three gunmen holding hostages. Outside, a large number of journalists who had rushed to the scene had their cameras and other photographic equipment pointed at the area. Already, two hostages lay in pools of blood, their fates unknown. The gunmen used the passengers inside the elevator as cover, locking the doors on the first floor to prevent it from moving. One gunman held a girl in front of him, while the other two hid on either side of the elevator, holding all the hostages at gunpoint.
The gunmen were very clever, with a well-thought-out and meticulous plan. By using the public space of HSBC and the confined environment of the elevator, they could prevent sniper attacks and surprise assaults, while also keeping an eye on the situation to respond promptly.
“Inspector Li, what’s the situation now?” asked a high-ranking official who had just arrived at the scene.

“Report to the commissioner: The three robbers have taken 11 hostages. Two of the victims were shot dead on the spot by protesters. The robbers demanded 90 million Hong Kong dollars in ransom, asking for it to be paid in three installments of 30 million each at designated locations—Queen’s Plaza, Ocean Park, and Tai Ping Shan. For each payment received, they would release three hostages. But if they didn’t receive any payment within an hour, they would kill one hostage every 30 minutes…”
“Isn’t this almost identical to the robbery at Wang Fuguo’s house three days ago?”
“Yes, commissioner. Fortunately, the Special Operations Unit’s snipers managed to shoot down the criminals. We conducted a thorough analysis afterward. Those robbers were quite strange—they held hostages themselves but demanded ransom from elsewhere, never asking for their own safety guarantees. I had the forensics team examine the bodies, and the report just came in…”
“Oh, what did it show?”
“The two robbers in Wang Fuguo’s robbery case were both unemployed, came from poor families, and suffered from terminal illnesses—one had leukemia and the other AIDS!”
“What!?” The commissioner almost shouted. Noticing the surrounding eyes, he cleared his throat twice to calm himself down before saying softly, “It can’t be that these three robbers are in the same situation, can it?”
Inspector Li replied helplessly, “I hope not. But given the circumstances and the continuity of these crimes, there’s an 80% chance. And once this kind of extortion becomes organized, it’s a life-or-death struggle. If they succeed in getting the ransom, these people can surrender and even receive medical treatment while in prison. If not, they’ll just die earlier. Commissioner, what’s even worse is the social uproar caused by their repeated crimes, which will put us at a disadvantage!”
Hearing this analysis, the commissioner was also deeply troubled. Frowning, he said, “Forget about the future for now. Focus on resolving this urgent situation. Afterward, you need to submit a detailed report to me. If things get out of control, neither of us will be able to handle it.”
“Yes, commissioner.”
“By the way, is there any good solution right now?”
“Commissioner, this is how I’ve arranged it…”
……
“How about it, Tianyu? Can you hear clearly now?”
“Mm, Second Master. By directing energy to both ears and controlling different directions, I can listen to the conversations of specific people or areas without interference from other sounds. Earlier, Tianyu was only using a single stream of energy, which is why he couldn’t hear clearly.”

The old man and the young man talking were Xianyun and Chu Tianyu, master and disciple on a journey for cultivation. Chu Tianyu no longer stuttered when speaking. Both were dressed in ordinary casual clothing; Xianyun even wore a Huaqiao hat. Standing among the crowd, they looked completely ordinary, making it hard to tell that one was a reclusive expert while the other was the third young master of Chu Ye Group…
According to Xianyun, there was no need for the Chu family’s business networks and partners to provide accommodations—only the two of them needed to cultivate alone. First, they wanted to experience the hustle and bustle of the world and observe all living beings, so Hong Kong, known as the world’s capital, was chosen as their first stop. It was their first day there, and Xianyun was leading Chu Tianyu to visit Hong Kong Island when they encountered a hostage-taking incident at HSBC.