Translator: CinderTL
Xu Sanyan pinched Fang Xiang's neck like he was holding a chick, then casually tossed him into the young man's arms.
He didn't intend to kill Fang Xiang. Killing him wouldn't benefit him, but planting a Demonic Seed might serve as a contingency plan.
The young man spoke sincerely, "Thank you, Senior Brother."
Xu Sanyan waved him away. "Get lost."
Then, he turned his gaze to You Jianfeng.
You Jianfeng repeatedly clasped his hands in a gesture of respect. "We won't disturb Senior Brother further. Farewell."
Moments later, the crowd dispersed, leaving only Xu Sanyan and his companions.
"Huu..."
Xu Sanyan suppressed the agitation in his heart, shed his Dao Body, and wiped the sweat from his brow.
"Senior Brother, are you... alright?"
Xiang Tan hurried forward, her eyes filled with deep reverence. Before, she had only known that Xu Sanyan had killed Luo Yu through a sneak attack, assuming his strength was only slightly superior to Luo Yu's. Now, she realized how utterly wrong she had been.
After this battle, Fang Xiang, ranked fifth among the Ten Great Talents, was utterly defeated by Xu Sanyan, unable to land a single blow. Even You Jianfeng, ranked eighth, was intimidated by a mere glance. In her eyes, even Qi Liang or Tu Wanshan couldn't have done any better.
Xu Sanyan ignored her and took out a Spirit Stone, sitting cross-legged to recover his Spiritual Power.
After this fight, over seventy percent of his Spiritual Power had been depleted. If You Jianfeng had joined the fray, the outcome would have been far from certain.
The Nether King Dao Body was undeniably powerful, but its consumption was excessive. Xu Sanyan would only use it as a last resort, and if he did, he had to end the battle quickly.
Two Spirit Stones rapidly turned to dust. Xu Sanyan rose and said, "Let's go. This place isn't safe."
The earlier battle had been too noisy, likely attracting other demonic beasts. They had to move quickly.
Xiang Tan and the others nodded. After a quick sweep of the battlefield, they swiftly departed.
Xu Sanyan glanced around. There had been nine of them, including himself, before the battle. Now, with one dead and one injured, only eight remained.
On the other side, You Jianfeng led his group toward the second rainbow light. In the crowd, a middle-aged man spoke, "With such strength, why has this person remained so obscure until now?"
You Jianfeng gritted his teeth inwardly. He couldn't understand it either. Logically, with this person's skill, they should have easily replaced Mengdie Cheng in the top three. Why had he never heard of them before?
"Perhaps they only recently joined the Holy Sect?" someone speculated.
You Jianfeng nodded slowly. That was quite possible. The Holy Sect welcomed talented individuals from all over the world, and disciples from other sects who had committed offenses were often forced to join.
"Never mind them. Let's see where that rainbow light is headed."
You Jianfeng pointed at a rapidly moving rainbow light.
Someone behind him opened a map to compare. "It should be near the Divine Tree."
You Jianfeng took the map and glanced at it. The Divine Tree was about a hundred miles away. At Foundation Establishment Stage speed, they could reach it in roughly a day, which gave them ample time to prepare.
Another person exclaimed in surprise, "Hey, judging by their direction, it looks like they're heading straight toward us!"
A smile spread across You Jianfeng's face. Another group had walked right into their trap. With a wave of his hand, he commanded, "Set up the Minor Eight Directions Formation! This time, we'll wait for them to come to us!"
"Brilliant, Senior Brother! Let's see which unlucky fool stumbles right into our trap! Hahahaha..."
Tu Wanshan's heart bled as he watched several Junior Brothers and Junior Sisters overtaken by the beast tide. They didn't even have time to scream before their bodies were torn to shreds.
The beast tide grew larger and larger. If left unchecked, it would eventually spill out of Ten Thousand Demons Mountain, and the Harmonious Heart Demonic Sect would inevitably suffer the consequences.
Everyone was running for their lives, heads bowed. Tu Wanshan shouted to the Bald Woman beside him, "Back to the sect!"
The sect was protected by the Sect Leader and three Hall Masters. While this beast tide consisted mostly of Fourth-Tier Demonic Beasts, which were deadly to them, the Hall Masters could crush them with a wave of their hand.
Fourth-Tier Demon beasts were comparable to Foundation Establishment cultivators, while the three Hall Masters were in the Void Harmony Realm. The gap between them was like a chasm, impossible to bridge with numbers.
The Bald Woman nodded solemnly. The small beast in her arms kicked its legs against her massive chest muscles, peering over her shoulder at the approaching beast tide. A hint of helplessness filled its round eyes.
It's one of them. You don't need to carry it while you run.
In truth, the beast tide wasn't relentlessly pursuing them. They had simply happened to be in its path. Now that the tide had reached its full scale, it was too late to avoid it.
"Aaaah!"
A scream pierced the air, quickly swallowed by the thunderous pounding of countless feet. Tu Wanshan didn't need to turn around to know another Junior Brother had fallen.
The earth trembled slightly. Tu Wanshan turned his head and scanned the scene. What had started as nearly thirty people had dwindled to fewer than twenty, with almost half their number lost.
"Ma Changjie!"
Hatred boiled in Tu Wanshan's heart. If Ma Changjie hadn't trapped them there, none of this would have happened. He wanted nothing more than to tear him apart alive.
Meanwhile,
Qi Liang looked at the two streaks of rainbow light in the distance. Turning to Sima Xin, he said, "Two Holy Son Tokens haven't appeared yet. Take a few people and check Hundred Beast Peak."
"Mm." Sima Xin nodded slightly and selected ten people to leave.
Jiang Qinqin, her face pale, clutched her abdominal wound and leaned against a tree trunk to rest.
After Sima Xin had gone some distance, Qi Liang finally approached Jiang Qinqin. With a wave of his sleeve, a transparent barrier enveloped them, silencing all sound from the outside world.
Qi Liang reached out and pinched her delicate cheek. His palm, revealed in the gesture, was as smooth and white as jade, the strands of blue hair that had covered his hand now completely vanished.
Jiang Qinqin naturally saw this, and her heart was filled with horror. The poison hadn't worked at all?
Then why had he...
Qi Liang was very satisfied with her expression. His voice was calm as he said, "In truth, your poison had no effect on me. Yet I was still willing to help you obtain a Holy Son Token. Do you know why?"
With her cheek pinched, Jiang Qinqin's mouth naturally puckered. "I don't know."
"Because I want you."
"Me?" Jiang Qinqin was even more confused. Was he after her beauty?
"I want you to submit to me. I'll help you surpass Mengdie. From then on, you'll be the Holy Son of Joyous Harmony Mountain."
"What... what do you mean?" Jiang Qinqin's eyes flickered, a sliver of speculation forming in her mind.
"The Harmonious Heart Holy Sect. Four Factions, one heart. But why four factions? Why not just one?"
Without waiting for her reply, Qi Liang continued, explaining the reason himself. "Because... it was originally formed from the merger of four sects."
Qi Liang spoke slowly. "Two thousand years ago, the four Great Sects of the demonic path—the Blood Refinement Sect, the One Heart Sect, the Joyous Union Sect, and the Holy Sect—each held sway over their own territories. But later, the Source Worship Sect allied with the Prayer Path Sect and the Heaven's Will Demon Subduing Temple, systematically dismantling the four sects one by one. This forced us to unite and jointly establish the Harmonious Heart Holy Sect."
"If it weren't for the internal strife that shattered the alliance between the three sects back then, we would have long since vanished into the annals of history."
Jiang Qinqin was stunned. Even she had never heard this before.
As if sensing her thoughts, Qi Liang asked, "Do you know why you've never heard this before?"
Jiang Qinqin shook her head.
"Because... you're just a whetstone. Mengdie is the blade. Aunt Hua is using you and Gong Niang to hone her."
"What exactly do you mean?" Jiang Qinqin's expression grew increasingly serious.
(End of the Chapter)
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