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Chapter 63: Exposed
The mayor furrowed his brow in thought and said, "Alright. Leave him to me. You go and rest; you've worked hard. This situation is more troublesome than we anticipated. There's significant activity at the Wind Wolf Ancestral House. Go and help Zheng Mengqi sort the trouble out."
"Yes," Zhang Tianxiao respectfully bowed to the mayor and then turned to leave the wooden house.
Once he left, only Tang San and the mayor remained in the wooden house.
The mayor looked calmly at him, and Tang San returned the gaze with equal calmness.
"Do you want to die or live?" the mayor asked suddenly.
Tang San was startled, and the next moment, he felt a chill run down his spine. A tangible, powerful aura brimming with killing intent suddenly burst forth from the mayor sitting on the chair. This terrifying aura made the air around them turn icy cold, and even the light within the wooden house seemed to dim momentarily, as if they had been transported into a realm of shadows.
Tang San instinctively took a half step back, rapidly circulating the energy of the Mysterious Heaven Technique within. Although he didn't know why the mayor was suddenly showing killing intent toward him, self-preservation was undoubtedly the most important thing right now.
In the next instant, the mayor moved. He grasped at the air with his right hand, and simultaneously, a deep roar suddenly resounded beside Tang San's ears.
The roar was so sudden that Tang San felt his brain reel into dizziness.
At that exact moment, Tang San's Discerning Eye reacted instinctively, a faint golden hue appearing in his eyes. It helped him regain some clarity. His energy circulation accelerated, and he suddenly unleashed the Ironhide Shield.
Facing a life-or-death situation, he dared not hold back. Relying on all his senses to guide him, he moved his hands before him, each drawing a semicircle.
The gentle force of the Mysterious Heaven Technique redirected the sharp aura to the side. Meanwhile, Tang San's body moved like lightning, employing the Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track, and he dashed straight for the window.
He chose the window over the door because it was closer.
"Ah!" the mayor exclaimed softly.
In the next instant, Tang San felt the air around him become scorching hot. Under his Discerning Eye, he was horrified to see that the air inside the wooden house was utterly filled with fire elemental energy, displacing all other elements. An overwhelmingly powerful aura engulfed him, the intense heat instantly causing his clothes to dry until they seemed like they would catch on fire at any moment.
His Mysterious Heaven Technique protected his body, overlapping with the Ironhide Shield, creating a layer of white light that acted like armor, resisting the scorching energy. At the same time, Tang San's figure flashed and he almost instantly reached the window.
"You can't escape," a deep voice sounded in his ears. In the next moment, the surrounding fire elements suddenly vanished, along with the intense heat. But in their place came an overwhelming force of attraction, pulling his body backward through the air.
At that moment, Tang San gave up resistance, his face showing a sense of resignation.
There was no way to resist; it was a complete, overpowering difference in level. Even with his myriad skills, he could do nothing in face of such a disparity.
The mayor had already stood up; in front of his chair, within the palm of his right hand, was a cluster of dark red light. The immense suction force emanating from this red glow pulled at Tang San, making it impossible for him to break free.
"Fourth order? No, indeed, this is the early stage of the fifth order, right? To think that your cultivation would be this high..." the mayor said in surprise, looking at the child before him. Tang San was shocked to see the mayor’s cultivation level, but the latter was even more astonished.
A nine-year-old human child being at the fourth order was already remarkable. As for being at the fifth order at that age, that was simply ridiculous.
The mayor retracted his right hand, and Tang San stood before him. He looked somewhat pale, with a hint of fear in his eyes.
Of course, this fear was feigned. Tang San had some guesses as to what was going on, and the only feeling in his heart right now was frustration.
He shouldn't have responded as he had just now. He had revealed too much.
At this moment, his mind raced, contemplating how to handle the situation.
"You are not simple," the mayor said. He stared intently at Tang San, but deep in his eyes, there was also a hint of shock.
Indeed, Tang San's guess was correct. The mayor's sudden attack was more of a probe. With his cultivation level, the mayor had sensed Tang San's power the moment he had laid eyes on him. Though Tang San had been trying to suppress it, the massive difference in their levels and fluctuations in his energy and blood were impossible to conceal. At the very least, he could not conceal them with his current abilities.
Thus, the mayor had released his killing intent and made a probing move. However, this test proved significant, as the potential and abilities Tang San displayed in the face of a life-and-death crisis truly surprised the mayor.
Tang San simply lowered his head and remained silent.
He inwardly sighed, acknowledging that since his rebirth, he had indeed been influenced by the inherent weaknesses of his body, impairing his judgment. If it were before, how could he have failed to realize that the other party was merely testing him?
His Ironhide Shield and Leopard Flash abilities had been exposed, and it was possible that his Discerning Eye had been revealed as well. These abilities, all appearing in one person, completely contradicted the principles of the Demonic God Transformation!
The mayor's initially calm eyes now held unmistakeable curiosity, clearly stemming from what he had witnessed.
"Speak up. What's going on?" the mayor asked. "How come you possess the abilities of several clans?"
Tang San remained silent, head still lowered.
The mayor sat back down and looked straight at Tang San’s face.
"I only tested you because I sensed that your cultivation had reached the fifth order; there was no other intention. Demons can’t pretend they’re humans even if they want to. Also, we've investigated your background, and it's clean. However, your abilities are completely beyond the scope of our investigation."
Tang San slowly raised his head, looking at the mayor, already formulating a plan.
The worst-case scenario would be the mayor coveting his Mysterious Heaven Technique and trying to interrogate him using torture. In this case, Tang San’s last resort would be to trigger his divine consciousness, unleashing all his power. It might not destroy everything around, but escaping wouldn't be an issue. He could even kill the mayor, even though the latter had a much higher level.
But doing so would make it exceedingly difficult for him to establish himself in Kali City; this was the absolute worst case scenario.
At any rate, his abilities had been revealed, so the first order of business was to produce a reasonable explanation.
"Mayor, I didn't mean to hide it. It's just that my abilities are different from the normal Demonic God Transformation. I was afraid..."
Tang San spoke hesitantly, knowing he had to act in this situation.
"Does Wang Yanfeng know about this?" the mayor asked gravely.
Tang San quickly said, "You're the first to know."
The mayor seemed to relax slightly. "Alright, tell me. How did you get these abilities?"
Tang San began, "When I was young, I was playing in the forest one day and came across a severely injured human. Demons of the Wind Wolf Clan were pursuing him. I saw them fighting and was so scared that I hid behind a tree. Then I saw him kill several Wind Wolves that were chasing him, but he was also gravely injured."
The mayor nodded, aware of Tang San's encounter with a master in his childhood. He had heard this from Zhang Tianxiao's report, which originated from Wang Yanfeng.