Chapter 5187: A Mysterious Collaborator

The mass of storm clouds quickly caught up with them.

Countless lightning bolts zapped down from all directions, forming a lightning barrier around Chu Feng and Old Cat. They were both trapped.

If they were still holding onto a sliver of hope that this was nothing more than a coincidence, the current situation confirmed their suspicions that the storm clouds were indeed after them.

“This person is stronger than me, but not by much. Brother Chu Feng, you might have to make a move here,” Old Cat told Chu Feng through voice transmission.

He could tell that the power harnessed within the storm clouds was comparable to that of a rank five Half-God level cultivator.

Tzzz!

Another lightning bolt zapped down not too far from where Chu Feng and Old Cat were, and a short and scrawny elder stepped out from within.

The elder had a skin tone so dark that it looked almost as if he was covered in ink, and it didn’t help that he was wearing a black robe too. Surrounded by the dark clouds, it would have been impossible to tell that he was there if not for his open eyes.

“Fellow cultivators, I am Tao Wu. Please do not be alarmed, I didn’t approach you with hostile intentions. I noticed that the two of you were heading toward the demon coffin, so I was hoping to join you on your journey,” the elder said.

Those words revealed that the elder was able to see through Chu Feng’s concealment even though the strength he had displayed at the moment was at rank five Half-God level. Knowing that there was no point in maintaining the concealment, Chu Feng decided to reveal himself.

“Elder, why do you wish to accompany us? Also, how did you see through our concealment?” Chu Feng asked.

“To be frank, I couldn’t see the two of you earlier. I’m only seeing you now that you have revealed yourself,” the elder named Tao Wu replied.

“You couldn’t see us?”

Chu Feng expressed his skepticism at those words. He was certain that the elder was able to see him because the latter’s eyes were fixed on him earlier when they spoke.

“Young brother, I have a special prophetic constitution that grants me uncannily sharp intuition when it comes to certain things. My body led me in this direction, telling me that I would meet someone important here. You’re the one whom I ended up meeting,” Tao Wu said.

“Those words sound oddly familiar…” Old Cat scratched his ears as it spoke.

“It does,” Chu Feng replied with a chuckle.

He had heard those exact words from Old Cat earlier.

“You’re saying that you found us through your intuition?” Chu Feng asked.

“That’s right,” Tao Wu replied.

“Who do you think you’re trying to hoodwink here? I might still believe it if you told us that you used a treasure to track us down, but you’re saying that you found us through intuition? Hah, whose intuition could possibly be that accurate? At least show some sincerity if you wish to work together with us!” Old Cat harrumphed impatiently.

He wasn’t afraid of Tao Wu despite being the weaker one here, for he knew that Chu Feng’s Asura King was someone who could stand against rank five Half-God level cultivators.

What Old Cat didn’t know was that Chu Feng couldn’t bring out any of his Asura World Spirits at the moment. He only had himself to rely on.

“This young cat over here, I hope that you won’t misunderstand my intentions. I truly wish to work together with you. Young brother, if you think that I’m being insincere, you’re free to leave right now,” Tao Wu said with a wave of his hand.

“Elder, we’re indeed planning on heading to the demon coffin so as to join the commotion. I’m not opposed to you joining us, but we know next to nothing about you. It’s only right for you to show us some sincerity to win our trust,” Chu Feng said.

“Chu Feng, why are you bothering to reason with him? He obviously harbors hostile intentions toward us! Let’s quickly get rid of him and continue on our way!” Old Cat sent a voice transmission to Chu Feng.

“No rush. Even though that fellow has displayed the strength of a rank five Half-God level cultivator thus far, who knows if that’s his real cultivation level? What if he’s stronger than that? We would be courting our own doom,” Chu Feng replied via voice transmission.

Old Cat fell silent.

“Young brother, I know what you mean. I earnestly hope to work together with you, so I’ll express my sincerity here. I am from the Pilgrimage Galaxy. I don’t have a sect or a clan, and I’m here alone…” Tao Wu introduced himself to them.

However, Old Cat impatiently interjected halfway through his speech, “That’s enough of you! What nonsense are you spouting now? There’s no Pilgrimage Galaxy in the current world of cultivation! At least come up with a more believable lie if you wish to deceive us!”

“My apologies, it was a slip of the tongue. What I meant is the Seven Realms Galaxy. To me, the Seven Realms Galaxy is a holy land. Just being in the Seven Realms Galaxy feels like a divine pilgrimage to me, which is why I see it as the Pilgrimage Galaxy,” Tao Wu explained himself.

“Elder, I don’t think that you’re showing enough sincerity here,” Chu Feng said.

“Young brother, what do you know of the Demoncoffin Realm?”

Tao Wu’s expression suddenly became serious.

“Not much. What I know of this realm are the rumors that others know about, such as this realm being shaped like a coffin. That’s why I was curious why such gaseous flames would appear out of nowhere,” Chu Feng said.

“That’s normal. There are very few people in the world who know the truth about the Demoncoffin Realm, and I happen to be one of them. Since I am the one approaching you for a partnership, I’ll first show my sincerity by telling you what I know.

“Sealed within the Demoncoffin Realm is a world spirit from the Ancient Era. This world spirit wielded formidable strength back when it was still alive. It committed many atrocities, which eventually led to it being sealed here.

“But as much as the world spirit is being sealed here, it might be more precise to say that it is being slowly broken down here. You see, the world spirit is too powerful to be killed directly, so the person who sealed it here could only slowly break it down using a refinement formation. In fact, the origin of the Demoncoffin Realm is a gigantic refinement formation that only developed into a realm due to the overwhelming energy it harnessed.

“The rising of the gaseous flames meant that the refinement formation had finally accomplished its task, meaning to say, the powerful world spirit had been completely broken down. It goes without saying that the refinement of a powerful world spirit is bound to leave behind many fortuitous encounters. The only issue is that the refinement formation is so complicated that the slightest misstep could spell death.

“It just so happens that I know quite a bit about this refinement formation, so I believe that you’ll benefit from a partnership with me too. Young brother, what do you think about the sincerity I have displayed here?” Tao Wu said.

“Talk is cheap. Who knows whether you’re spinning up lies?” Old Cat scoffed.

“Your opinion doesn’t matter. What’s important is that this young brother over here trusts me,” Tao Wu replied.

“I have one last question. Why are you so bent on working together with me?” Chu Feng asked.

Considering that they were going to venture into a dangerous location, it was only right for him to exercise the maximum level of caution, especially against a stranger that had appeared out of nowhere and was suddenly proposing a partnership.

“I can only tell you that it’s my intuition. Young brother, I understand that it’s difficult for you to trust me in the spur of the moment. After all, you can only tell a person’s true colors during a difficult time. I’ll prove to you that I’m someone worthy of your trust,” Tao Wu said.

“Alright, let’s set off then,” Chu Feng said.

“I’ll lead the way.”

Tao Wu wrapped Chu Feng and Old Cat in his martial power and rushed toward the direction of the gaseous flames. Surprisingly, he didn’t bring his storm clouds with him this time around.

“I’m surprised that you’re suddenly maintaining a low profile here,” Chu Feng remarked.

“Eyy, I wanted to make a dramatic entrance for our first meeting so that you would take me seriously. There are probably many experts gathered around the gaseous flames by now, so we’ll have to stay low if we wish to get anything good out of this,” Tao Wu explained.

“Are you… really going to let him join us?” Old Cat asked Chu Feng in bewilderment via voice transmission.

“What else can we do? Are you going to come to blows with him? I’m not going to do that unless I’m absolutely confident of victory,” Chu Feng said.

Weng!

Tao Wu released his spirit power and constructed a high-level concealment formation around them, concealing not just himself but also Chu Feng and Old Cat.

It was only then that Chu Feng and Old Cat realized that Tao Wu was a Gold Dragon God-cloak World Spiritist, making him a stronger world spiritist than Old Cat.

“Look. Didn’t I tell you that there’s more to that person than what you see?” Chu Feng told Old Cat via voice transmission.

It was one thing for Tao Wu to be a rank five Half-God level cultivator, but who could have thought that he was also a Gold Dragon God-cloak World Spiritist on top of that? That was a force not to be made light of.

“We can only hope that he’s sincere about working together with us then,” Old Cat remarked with a sigh.

Having a strong companion was definitely a good thing, but Old Cat was worried that Tao Wu might have other intentions in mind.

It was then that another voice transmission reached Chu Feng’s ears.

“Young brother, how is your relationship with that cat?”

It was from Tao Wu.

“It’s not too bad. What’s wrong?” Chu Feng replied via voice transmission.

“Not too bad? In other words, you aren’t on good terms with it?” Tao Wu asked.

“What do you mean by that?” Chu Feng asked.

“I’m thinking that it would be best not to bring it along if the two of you aren’t on close terms. If you don’t want to be the bad guy here, I can make a move in your stead and slaughter him,” Tao Wu replied.