Chapter 191: Chapter 189: It’s Better to Rely on Oneself
When Bai Zichen recounted the results of the Soul Search, both Qi Yue and Longx Longx were deeply troubled, a heavy weight settling on their chests.
As Elders of the Qingfeng Sect, they could all sense the signs of an impending storm from these fragments of information.
The Sect would already struggle just to face the Ghost Spirit Sect alone.
If the Blood Demon Sect were to join them, it would be a truly devastating calamity.
The Blood God True Man’s fearsome reputation was immense. He had destroyed more than a handful of Core Formation Level powers with his own hands.
In the mere hundred years since its establishment, the Blood Demon Sect had already surpassed two major Demon Path sects with deep foundations—sects that had once produced Nascent Soul True Monarchs—to become the leading power of the Demon Path in Liang Country.
Even if the Blood God True Man was unlikely to act personally, the number of demonic titans and unorthodox masters who had pledged allegiance to him over the years was considerable.
If he sent just two or three Core Formation Level Honored Guest Elders to aid the Ghost Spirit Sect, it would make the Qingfeng Sect’s already unfavorable situation even worse.
It could very well be the final straw that breaks the Qingfeng Sect.
"Since we received this news in advance, there’s still room to maneuver... Master is on good terms with several True Men from the Holy Lotus Sect. If we ask the Upper Sect to intervene, the Blood Demon Sect probably won’t dare to interfere too aggressively."
Qi Yue’s emotions were in a tangle. He had originally thought this Sect mission would be a simple trial run after leaving the mountain, but he never imagined it would expose so many of his own shortcomings.
’The Primordial Yang Divine Thunder might be powerful and seemingly invincible, but it’s useless if it can’t hit its target.’
’Compared to Junior Brother Bai, my combat experience is severely lacking.’
In a short time, Qi Yue’s mindset had changed considerably from when he first left the Mountain Gate.
As the true masters of Liang Country, the Holy Lotus Sect’s actions were neither purely righteous nor demonic; they showed no clear alignment.
Furthermore, they didn’t suppress cultivators within their sphere of influence who showed promise of reaching the Nascent Soul Realm. On the contrary, they would even offer support and build relationships with them.
It seemed their focus had never been limited to Liang Country alone.
Take the great war between the Righteous and Demonic Daos, for example. At first, they completely ignored it.
Later, when too many sects got involved and several provinces were affected, many lands were turned into barren wastelands or covered in ice and snow. The very landscape was altered by the great war.
Demon Fire scorched the earth, and Evil Qi surged to the heavens.
Spirit Veins were tainted, Earth Veins were destroyed, and many regions were transformed into cursed and desolate lands.
It was only because of this that the Holy Lotus Sect finally intervened, mediating to put a stop to the seemingly endless war.
"That’s right. No matter how powerful the Blood Demon Sect becomes, the Holy Lotus Sect still calls the shots in Liang Country."
Longx Longx nodded slightly, and the worry on her face eased a little.
"I was stationed at the Market for several years and had dealings with the cultivators from the Five Elements Sect a few times... In the past century, the Five Elements Sect has been blessed by the Great Dao. Two of their Elders successfully achieved Core Formation, and now four of the Five Elements Peaks have masters."
"If it truly becomes a matter of life and death, given the relationship between our two sects, the Five Elements Sect will surely send one or two Core Formation True Men to our aid."
Several hundred years ago, the Five Elements Sect was weak. They didn’t have a single Five Elements Peak Master, and their line of succession was nearly broken.
It was the Qingfeng Sect’s Core Formation Ancestor at the time who traveled hundreds of thousands of li to help, first driving back the nearby cultivators who coveted the Five Elements Sect’s foundation.
He then risked his life to slay a Tier Three Demon King, taking its Inner Core so the Five Elements Sect could produce a Fake Pill Cultivator.
After all this, the Qingfeng Sect’s Ancestor departed quietly, seeking no reward.
The Five Elements Sect relied on the combat prowess of that Fake Pill Cultivator to survive its most difficult period.
Therefore, Longx Longx was confident that if she used a Secret Technique to send a distress call at a critical moment, cultivators from the Five Elements Sect would be sure to arrive.
"We’ll report this when we get back and let the other senior brothers discuss it before making a decision..."
Bai Zichen didn’t respond, his gaze returning to Mo Changzhi’s corpse.
’They’re both hoping for an external power to intervene and resolve the crisis.’
’But the Holy Lotus Sect might just ignore it, or at most issue a light reprimand.’
’From the images in the Soul Search, the Blood God True Man isn’t a lone wolf; he has the backing of a major Demon Path Sect.’
’How strongly the Holy Lotus Sect would reprimand the Blood Demon Sect is highly questionable.’
’As for the Five Elements Sect, they’re far away in Dian Country.’
’It would take them time just to receive the message and rush over. Distant water can’t put out a nearby fire.’
’It’s better to rely on myself than on others!’
The only thing left on Mo Changzhi’s body was a rainbow-hued Feather Robe, which was clearly no ordinary item.
Everything else had been turned to ash.
Several balls of Primordial Yang Divine Thunder had converged, their thunderbolts roaring as they reduced everything within a hundred-zhang radius to dust.
The power of the Divine Thunder had long since riddled Mo Changzhi’s body with holes. It was only due to the special nature of the Hundred Demons Blood Sea Technique he cultivated that he could cling to life, so long as his blood did not run dry.
This was why he had remained confident in his ability to escape, even after witnessing Bai Zichen’s Sword Qi Thunder Sound Realm and his Mystical Sword Technique.
The worst-case scenario was being killed a few more times, causing his cultivation to drop back to the Early-Stage Foundation Establishment Realm.
As long as he had enough cultivator Essence Blood to devour, it wouldn’t take more than a few years to restore his Cultivation.
But he never expected to be momentarily immobilized by the Moonlight Spirit Light, which countered formless and intangible things, before being struck head-on by five or six orbs of Primordial Yang Divine Thunder.
Qi Yue, striking in anger and desperate to wash away the shame of his mistakes, had nearly drained all the Spiritual Power from his Thunder Bead.
Among the many types of Divine Thunder in the Cultivation Realm, the Primordial Yang Divine Thunder was the ultimate counter to evil and corruption—the bane of all negative powers.
Mo Changzhi’s demonic blood was instantly evaporated and exhausted within the Thunderbolt Ocean, preventing him from even using his Life-or-Death Technique of burning Essence Blood.
With not a single drop of Essence Blood left in his body, how could he possibly activate a technique that required burning it?
"What a pity. His storage bag was completely destroyed..."
Although the memories from the Soul Search revealed that Mo Changzhi had dedicated all his wealth to the Blood God True Man, he still had a few Spiritual Artifacts passed down from the Mo Family.
And most importantly, there was the deposit the Ghost Spirit Sect had given the Mo Family to pay Mo Qianyuan for stirring up trouble at Black Mountain: that single drop of Clear Spirit Jade Marrow.
Bai Zichen knew well that apart from Magical Treasure Level storage items, storage bags themselves didn’t possess much defensive capability.
Once destroyed, all the items stored inside would be released and scatter into the void, with no chance of recovery.
"Let’s take this corpse back to Senior Brother Liang as proof of our mission’s completion... It can also serve as evidence that the Blood Demon Sect is already making a move against Black Mountain."
Bai Zichen pulled a corpse bag out of the Top-Grade Storage Bag he’d gotten from Meng Shigui. That guy had taken advantage of the ample storage space to toss all sorts of junk inside it.
THUD!
A Blood-Colored Crystal Stone slid from Mo Changzhi’s chest and fell to the ground. After Bai Zichen picked it up, he found it looked familiar, as if he had seen something similar before.
"A Crystal Stone that could survive a blast from the Primordial Yang Divine Thunder must be a Tier Three Spiritual Object. And this Feather Robe is most likely the Fire Phoenix Mo Family’s heirloom Spiritual Artifact, the Rainbow Feather Robe... What do you two think? Should we convert them to Spirit Stones and split the value?"
Spoils of war obtained during a mission belong to the individual Sect Disciples.
Bai Zichen held the Blood-Colored Crystal Stone in one hand and the Dawn Light Feather Robe in the other, and looked at the two of them candidly.
"I contributed almost nothing to this mission. It was entirely thanks to Junior Brother Bai’s exceptional Swordsmanship that we took down the Demon Cultivator... These two items have nothing to do with me. You don’t need to ask my opinion."
Qi Yue turned away, clasping his hands behind his back. He refused to take credit for killing Mo Changzhi with the Primordial Yang Divine Thunder.
Given his pride, he already considered his strategic errors, his hesitation, and his failure to contribute during the first half of the battle a great stain on his honor.
The fact that his Primordial Yang Divine Thunder had delivered the final blow merely served to slightly redeem his earlier failures; how could he possibly feel he had made a significant contribution?
Besides, as Ancestor Ge Cang’s sole disciple, Qi Yue did not lack for Treasures, as evidenced by the Heaven-Reaching Divine Wood Spiritual Artifact he had summoned earlier.
"By the time I arrived, the Demon Cultivator was already fleeing in a panic. I only managed to stall him for a moment... If even Brother Qi says he didn’t contribute, then I have even less claim."
Longx Longx’s voice was as cold and flat as ever, betraying no emotional change.
"These two items are your spoils of war, Junior Brother Bai. You don’t need our permission. Besides, the Sect will award us Contribution Points for slaying the Demon Cultivator. If you feel I’ve been shorted, just do me a small favor in the future if I come to you for help."
"In that case, it would be rude of me to refuse."
Seeing that neither of their expressions seemed false, Bai Zichen stored away the Feather Robe and the Blood-Colored Crystal Stone.
The pitiable Fire Phoenix Mo Family. When Mo Qianyuan rebelled, more than half of the clan either died or were exiled to a life of hard labor in the Ore Veins.
Today, Mo Changzhi had returned and carried out another massacre on Double Ring Mountain. Two Foundation Establishment elders had met violent ends, and over a hundred clan members had been slain.
Only after seeing the Demon Cultivator defeated and the battle ended did a few cultivators from the Mo Family emerge to pay their respects.
The elderly cultivator in the lead, trembling, was supported by several younger members as he dropped to his knees in a deep kowtow.
"The Demon Cultivator has been slain. Collect the bodies of your clansmen and bury them as soon as possible."
Bai Zichen sighed to himself. If the invading Demon Cultivator hadn’t been Mo Changzhi, but another of the Blood God True Man’s disciples, the Mo Family would not have suffered such a great loss.
With two Foundation Establishment Cultivators and a Tier Two Top-Grade All Heaven Fiery Array, what did it matter how profound the Hundred Demons Blood Sea Technique was?
As long as the Guarding Array Cultivators were not careless, there was no way the array could have been breached.
But fate would have it that the invader was Mo Changzhi. As a descendant of the Fire Phoenix Mo Family’s Direct Lineage who had been groomed to be the next Clan Leader, he knew how to get in and out of his own clan’s Array like the back of his hand.
He even knew the characteristics of his two clan uncles’ Cultivation Techniques—their strengths and weaknesses—by heart.
Having lost their only two pillars of support in one fell swoop, the decline of the Fire Phoenix Mo Family was now inevitable.
As long as no new Foundation Establishment Cultivator appeared, it wouldn’t be long before the Fire Phoenix Mo Family became a thing of the past, just another ordinary Cultivation Family on Black Mountain.
And naturally, they would no longer be able to occupy a Tier Two Spirit Vein like Double Ring Mountain.
「Back at the Mountain Gate」
They turned over Mo Changzhi’s corpse and told Senior Brother Liang Yu the results of the Soul Search.
They could see that even Senior Brother Liang Yu, who was normally unflappable, seemed dazed and grew deeply worried.
Those three words—Blood God True Man—carried far too much weight.
Bai Zichen, however, was relatively calm. Perhaps it was because he had already provoked an even greater enemy and had developed a certain immunity.
’No matter how strong the Blood God True Man is, can he compare to the Transformed Great Demon Dragon Lord?’
’In any case, neither of them can storm Black Mountain any time soon. Having more and stronger enemies only gives me a greater sense of urgency; it’s not enough to make me lose my composure.’
But in the eyes of his fellow sect members, this was yet another piece of irrefutable proof of Bai Zichen’s dedication to his True Sincerity Flying Sword, a testament to his focus that was unswayed by external matters.
Even someone as proud as Qi Yue admitted in a private conversation with a friend, "To hear of a great enemy like the Blood God True Man and not have his expression change, to remain so calm and composed... When it comes to mental fortitude, I am far inferior to Junior Brother Bai."
Bai Zichen neither knew nor cared about these appraisals from his peers. All he knew was that this Sect mission had earned him a substantial number of Contribution Points.
