The Gate Master of Yin Yang Gate had long felt that there was something odd about the so-called destruction of the "blood sac," though he had not looked deeper into it. But today, under the furious orders of Yang Rou Zhēnzūn, the matter he once dismissed now rose back to the surface.
Given Yang Rou Zhēnzūn's rare display of anger, the Yin Xuan Gate Master dared not delay. He immediately gathered a team and led them into the Yin Yang Mountain Range that very day. The mountain range itself was named after the sect that had founded its base there.
The Yin Xuan Gate Master was no fool. Before departing, he had investigated the events of the previous blood sac eradication and marked out a rough region of interest.
Since the enemy had deceived them with a false blood sac once, there was a strong chance they had grown complacent and remained near their original lair. After all, cultivators would now believe that area had already been cleansed, lowering their guard and making them easy prey.
And indeed, the Yin Xuan Gate Master's speculation was close to the truth. The real blood sac was hidden a hundred meters underground, precisely at the site of the last battle. Meanwhile, Fu Song nursed his wounds in a temporary cave residence only thirty li away.
Fu Song was cautious. He knew the blood sac was a vile creation, meant only to serve evil cultivators. He dared not recklessly rely on it for healing.
Their prior cooperation had only been a desperate act to evade Yin Yang Gate's investigation. That female cultivator Du Yanran, greedy and fame-seeking, had agreed to stage the deception with him.
When it was over, Fu Song quietly left and opened a new cave dwelling to cultivate in seclusion.
What he did not know was that Jian Dan had already sent word to "Tianya Haijiao," reporting their pursuit targets. Du Yanran had returned to Yin Yang Gate and even advanced to the Divine Transformation stage, basking in her newfound prestige.
But "Tianya Haijiao" had never been humiliated like this before. Du Yanran had twice now made them lose face. When they traced her movements further, they discovered that Fu Song, the last surviving cultivator of the Fu Clan, was entangled with her.
Zhuo Zūnshàng still coveted the remaining half of the map. There was no need for hesitation. He immediately dispatched "Tianya Haijiao" strongest squad straight into Yin Yang Gate territory.
Meanwhile, Yin Xuan Gate Master disguised his party, suppressing their cultivation to appear as a group of disciples on training, and deliberately camped at the very place where the blood sac had once appeared.
The group remained vigilant through the night. When the first rays of the rising sun spilled across the mountain peaks, the blood sac finally could not restrain itself. Scarlet tendrils lashed out, dragging all ten cultivators into its writhing maw.
At the very instant of attack, Yin Xuan Gate Master knew he had gambled right. Even as he sent an urgent signal back to the sect, he exchanged a covert glance with his subordinates and willingly let himself be pulled inside.
Within the blood sac, Yin Yang Gate cultivators beheld the roiling tides of blood at its center and the heaps of fresh white bones piled along the edges. Fury surged through them.
"Attack!"
At Yin Xuan Gate Master's command, nine Divine Soul cultivators formed the Yin Yang Ghost-Slaying Array. With the Gate Master at the core, they unleashed destruction unrestrained inside the blood sac.
At the same time, the spies who had been tailing Du Yanran also received the order to seize her.
Du Yanran had sensed something wrong these past few days. A constant feeling of being watched weighed upon her. As a reborn cultivator, her divine sense far exceeded her peers. Though she probed her surroundings repeatedly, she never managed to expose her stalkers.
That only made her more cautious. She stopped roaming the sect grounds and secluded herself within her own cave residence.
On this day, her eyelids twitched incessantly. Certain that misfortune was coming, she quickly retreated into the spatial dimension of her magnolia pendant the moment Yin Yang Gate guards knocked on her door.
The squad stormed her cave residence only to find it empty.
"Was she not under your constant watch? Where is Du Yanran?" the stern-faced leader demanded.
A female cultivator in a pink robe stepped forward and bowed. "She must have sensed something. For seven or eight days she has not been seen walking the sect grounds. I personally saw her enter seclusion here two days ago, and she never left."
"Hmph. Then someone must have helped her!"
The man's expression did not flicker. His voice was cold as he ordered, "Surround her cave. No one goes in or out. Investigate every cultivator who has lingered nearby these days. I want to know who aided her."
"Yes."
The man swept his gaze through the residence one last time, probing for hidden arrays. Once certain Du Yanran was not inside, he resealed the cave and withdrew.
Inside the pendant space, Du Yanran did not dare move. What if they doubled back for a surprise check? She sat cross-legged by her spirit field, staring at the rows of spirit herbs in silence. What did the sect mean by this?
She thought hard, suspicion gnawing at her. Could she have been framed? Yet aside from Bao Chunlai, she had made no enemies within Yin Yang Gate. Bao Chunlai had long since vanished. Could it be one of his followers seeking revenge?
Never once did she consider the blood sac. In her mind, with a Void Refinement Zūnzhǔ behind it, the plan had to be flawless. Surely no one could have discovered it. Her confidence was not unfounded. The problem, however, lay in a high-ranked cultivator who had been secretly digging pits for her all along.
Meanwhile, under the Yin Yang Ghost-Slaying Array's relentless assault, the blood sac's defenses collapsed from within. Reinforcements surged in, sealing every possible escape.
As the blood sac ruptured, a pair of Yin Yang Gate Dao Companions cast their dual technique, Yin Yang Twin Flames. Black and white fire roared forth, engulfing the sac like oil poured onto a blazing inferno.
Deep within the great hidden estate, Hai Yan sensed danger. He hastily diverted part of his strength into the Yin Yang Gate blood sac, attempting to recall it.
Yet the hidden Yang Rou Zhēnzūn only sneered, raising a delicate hand. With a gesture, she unleashed Spatial Severance, instantly slicing the burning blood sac into countless fragments, rendering it useless.
Hai Yan's face turned ashen. It was in this very moment that Xiao Ye of the Heavenly Sword Sect broke through his defenses and escaped.
Hai Yan gnashed his teeth, staring at the severed vein of his network. Alarm flooded his heart. He immediately withdrew into the largest blood sac. He dared not expose his true body directly under Heaven's gaze, for that would mean certain death.
The blood sac abandoned its lair within the hidden estate and began to move.
But before it had gone a hundred li, Yun Yun's "Yunhai Dance" pulled it from the seabed. Immediately after, Tian Zhuo of the Heavenly Sword Sect unleashed a single slash, "Heaven-Shaking Earth-Turning," cutting off its escape path.
With two Mahayana Zhēnzūn joining forces, Hai Yan knew he could not hope to win. Worse, if dragged into a protracted fight, he would be ground to death. He immediately tried to vanish back into the sea.
But the Nine-Tailed Beast King, forewarned by Jian Dan, appeared at the surface ahead of him, blocking the way. Her five fingers curled into claws, striking like lightning. Purple claw marks seared into the blood sac where Hai Yan hid.
"Hai Yan, unless you abandon the blood sac, there is nowhere in this world you can hide from me!"
The three Zhēnzūn moved almost in unison, and Hai Yan's desperate attempt to flee without counterattacking only drove him deeper into a corner.
Tian Zhuo Zhēnzūn seized the instant of interception to spread his barrier wide, trapping Hai Yan within.