Qiankun Sect, the Sect Master’s Great Hall.
The light inside the hall was dim, with only a few night pearls embedded in the pillars emitting a faint, cold glow.
Mo Chen, dressed in a dark green robe, stood with his hands behind his back in the rear of the Great Hall.
His figure was tall and straight, but his face was as still as water, his deep gaze fixed on the mountain range beyond the railings of the back hall.
A faint sound of footsteps approached.
An elder dressed in grey robes with white hair and a white beard moved quickly through the shadows of the hall.
He approached Mo Chen’s back and immediately bowed, offering a scroll in his hands.
“Sect Master.”
The elder’s voice was low and raspy as he said respectfully, “The origins of that boy have been thoroughly investigated.”
Mo Chen did not move, but his pupils constricted slightly.
“Oh? Exactly who is this boy that he could make that old man, Yan Dangmo, care so much?”
The elder lowered his head and moved a bit closer, speaking slowly.
“He is nothing more than an ordinary disciple under Tai Lingxuan of the Hehuan Sect. It is said he is an orphan who was taken in by Tai Lingxuan in his early years.”
“An orphan!”
Mo Chen’s pupils dilated, his eyes filled with a trace of disbelief.
“An orphan and merely a disciple of the Hehuan Sect? Then why would Yan Dangmo value him so highly? Why would he even go so far as to take such a hard line against our Qiankun Sect for his sake?”
“Because that boy made a great name for himself at the Alchemy Convention not long ago.”
The elder paused, his tone carrying a hint of admiration.
“At the age of 15, he fought his way through every round and entered the final stage, successfully refining a Grade 4 pill! Even more shocking is that he seems to possess the legendary Solar Fire of Hao Yang. It can be said that if no accidents occur, this boy will certainly hold a place in the North Domain’s alchemy world in the future.”
“Yan Dangmo values the boy quite highly and even intends to recruit him as a grandson-in-law for Yan Luo. After all, his eldest son died young, and Yan Luo is the only one left in his direct line. To ensure they remain at the core of the Yan family in the future, they must recruit an outstanding husband to take on the responsibility.”
“I see…”
Mo Chen took the scroll and nodded thoughtfully.
A sharp light flashed through his eyes.
“A 15-year-old Grade 4 Alchemist who also possesses the Solar Fire of Hao Yang… How could such a talent appear in a tiny place like the Hehuan Sect?”
He felt a private sense of praise and amazement.
Mo Chen then looked up at the elder, his gaze turning as sharp as a blade.
“And now, has he already established a marriage contract with that girl from the Yan family?”
“According to the reports from our spies planted in the Yan family, it hasn’t been finalized yet,” the elder immediately replied.
“Yan Dangmo’s intervention this time is likely an attempt to make the boy owe the Yan family a favor, making it easier to bring up the matter of him marrying into the family later.”
“As long as it hasn’t happened yet, that’s good…”
Hearing this, the tight corners of Mo Chen’s mouth finally curled up a few degrees.
He repeated the words in a low voice, and a murderous glint flashed in his eyes.
Over the past few days, the Qiankun Sect had spent a significant amount of manpower and resources to investigate Chen Yuyang’s background.
However, it now seemed he had been overthinking things.
As for the matter of Long Zhizheng, by following his previous train of thought and the clues discovered during the investigation, Mo Chen quickly deduced the truth.
The matter had indeed started because of Long Zhizheng.
Furthermore, it was indeed Long Zhizheng who had taken the initiative to attack the flying boat Tai Lingxuan was on, which led to a violent clash between the two sides.
What he hadn’t expected was that Tai Lingxuan had hidden herself so deeply.
He didn’t know what secret technique or trump card she had used, but she had actually managed to kill Long Zhizheng on the spot.
Not only that, Tai Lingxuan had used that battle as a springboard to step into the Mahayana Realm.
According to the messages sent back by the secret agents, the Hehuan Sect had now tightly closed its Shanmen, and all disciples were forbidden from leaving.
Based on this, Mo Chen was almost certain of one thing: Tai Lingxuan was definitely still alive.
But as for her current condition—whether she was in seclusion to stabilize the realm she had just broken through to, or if she was heavily injured and recovering within the sect, or perhaps in some other state…
These things were impossible to know.
However, regardless of Tai Lingxuan’s current state, he speculated that she would be unable to take action easily in the short term.
Should the matter of Uncle Long end like this?
Of course not!
Long Zhizheng was his closest relative.
Now that Uncle Long was dead, Mo Chen had no desire to distinguish between right and wrong.
No matter what, Mo Chen could not swallow this insult!
Furthermore, he couldn’t understand why!
Why would a Mahayana Realm cultivator like Uncle Long, who had been famous for so long, be killed by a mere Sect Master of the Hehuan Sect?
This grievance had to be vented!
If Uncle Long’s death was not avenged, this frustration and resentment would likely plant the seeds of a heart demon in his mind.
From then on, it would be difficult for his cultivation to progress even an inch, and his path to the Dao would be destroyed!
Mo Chen gritted his teeth and opened the scroll in his hand.
The scroll was densely packed with intelligence regarding the Hehuan Sect.
To Mo Chen, however, it wouldn’t have mattered if he didn’t look at it.
The Hehuan Sect was weak—so weak that its overall strength was at the very bottom of the third-rate sects in the North Domain’s Realm of Cultivation.
It wasn’t worth this much effort.
But Mo Chen had done it anyway, attending to every detail to ensure that nothing could go wrong.
….
After looking it over carefully, Mo Chen’s voice became cold and devoid of emotion.
“Select a group of trustworthy core disciples with cultivation at least at the Nascent Soul Realm. Simultaneously, inform Elder Long Yu that I will personally lead the team.”
Mo Chen took a deep breath, his eyes surging with intense, undisguised killing intent.
“I want revenge for Uncle Long!”
“With thunderous methods, we will launch a surprise attack on the Hehuan Sect and wipe them out completely—remember, leave no one alive!”
He paused for a moment before adding, “We must make it so that even if Yan Dangmo guesses it was us afterward, he won’t be able to find any evidence pointing toward our Qiankun Sect.”
“And once Chen Yuyang is dead…”
“Even Yan Dangmo won’t completely fall out and go to war with my Qiankun Sect over a dead man.”
Hearing the Sect Master’s words, the elder’s expression instantly became solemn.
He knew the Sect Master was taking things to an extreme.
Attacking and massacring a weak sect was something that the Qiankun Sect, as one of the leaders of the righteous path, technically should not do.
But… even knowing the Sect Master was going to extremes, the elder had no intention of dissuading him.
After all, the Hehuan Sect was a mere trifle.
To the Qiankun Sect, if they wanted to destroy them, they would destroy them.
No one would stand up for them, and no one would speak on their behalf.
Tai Lingxuan had waited a long time for this day.
For this day, she had restrained her disciples, carried out drastic reforms, and even went as far as damaging her own foundation and exchanging respectful titles with her former enemies…
She had sacrificed too much, far too much!
It wasn’t for anything else but to live up to the dying wishes of her Master and the elders, for the sake of recognition, and for a true place to belong!
On the plaza in front of the sect, colorful spiritual energy glowed like silk, enveloping the entire sect.
At this moment, beyond the plaza and high in the sky, flying boats of various designs broke through the clouds.
They arrived through the air, lining up in a way that blotted out the sun.
On the plaza, the disciples of the Hehuan Sect were dressed in uniform attire, lined up on both sides from the Shanmen all the way to the Great Hall doors.
Inside the hall, melodious music rang out as the sounds of zithers and flutes echoed continuously.
The entire Hehuan Sect was a scene of grand harmony and peace.
Tai Lingxuan was dressed in the carefully prepared purple robe, wearing a phoenix hairpin.
She walked out of the Great Hall step by step and ascended the high platform above the plaza, her gaze calm as she watched the increasing number of flying boats in the sky.
Taking a slight breath, Tai Lingxuan waited for the Sect Masters and elders of the righteous sects to appear.
She had already prepared herself to welcome them.
However, 30 minutes passed, and the flying boats in the sky remained motionless, showing no reaction for a long time.
“Fellow Daoists, since you have arrived, why have you not appeared to speak?”
Finally, Tai Lingxuan could wait no longer and spoke loudly.
Her clear voice spread across the entire plaza and the sky.
But the only thing that responded to her was a deathly silence.
Then, in the next moment within that silence, the flying boats suddenly erupted with brilliant light.
The restrictive formations on the boats were all activated at once, bursting forth with a chilling aura of slaughter.
Countless spiritual energy cannons and formation runes began to turn, aiming at the Hehuan Sect’s Shanmen below.
Tai Lingxuan’s expression changed slightly, and a strong sense of unease suddenly surged in her heart.
“Fellow Daoists! What is the meaning of this?!”
Tai Lingxuan’s voice rose, and simultaneously, the aura of the Tribulation Transcendence Realm erupted, shaking the world.
However, at that moment, a voice like a great bell resounded from the leading flying boat.
The words carried undisguised contempt.
“Tai Lingxuan, do we really need to state our intentions to your Hehuan Sect?”
“Did you think that by restraining your disciples a bit and changing a few sect rules, we would recognize the growth of your Hehuan Sect? It is nothing more than wishful thinking!”
“In the very roots of your Hehuan Sect flows filthy and disgusting blood!”
“Your Hehuan Sect was originally founded by a house of courtesans, and your sect disciples are nothing more than a bunch of whores!”
“Repenting and turning over a new leaf? Do you think we can’t see that this is merely an excuse you intended to use to lull us into a false sense of security?”
Another slightly sharp female voice followed immediately.
“Tai Lingxuan, don’t think that by putting on an act of being aloof and pure, you can deceive us. Since the Hehuan Sect is a demonic cult, it will always be a demonic cult!”
Yet another elderly voice joined in, sounding righteous and stern.
“Every day your Hehuan Sect exists is another day the reputation of the North Domain’s righteous path is defiled!”
“Today, we represent the righteous path of the North Domain to carry out justice for heaven and exterminate your entire Hehuan Sect to eliminate future troubles!”
The loud leading voice spoke again, his words low and brook no argument.
“As for you, enchantress, and your group of shameless disciples and grand-disciples, the only conclusion for today is for every last one of you to die!”
As the words fell, almost all the flying boats in the sky erupted with blinding light at the same time.
The formations and restrictions upon them were pushed to their full capacity, and the fluctuations of spiritual energy swept toward the Hehuan Sect like a tsunami.
Countless attacks rained down like a torrential storm, slamming heavily against the Hehuan Sect’s defensive array!