Chapter 316: Chapter 314: Killing Those From the Land of the Far West All the Same
To be honest, the Thousand Mechanism Sect and the Cui Family were enemies, and their feud was by no means a small one. But it wasn’t so great as to compel a clan with a population of a million to throw its full weight into a fight to the death against the Cui Family.
No one could bear the consequences of such an action.
True, Shen Le and Qin Li’s relationship was good, but they weren’t blood brothers. They simply admired each other. So, even if Shen Le was righteous enough to lay down his life for Qin Li, the Thousand Mechanism Sect could not do the same.
By the same token, the families and sects that chose to oppose the Cui Family to the bitter end all had their own concerns and judgments. But no matter what, no one would ever gamble their entire clan.
Only a madman would do such a thing!
The situation had been set in motion two days earlier. At that time, Qin Li had just vanished, and the Cui Family had arrogantly declared their intent to become the supreme family of Profound Island.
That very evening, the various dignitaries staying at the Thousand Mechanism Sect’s Guest Reception Manor had, one after another, met with an exceptionally mysterious old man. Then, on the following day, the Qian Family became the first to step forward, declaring that they would never compromise with the Cui Family and that their alliance with the Qin Family would be permanent.
This was because after the old man met with Patriarch Qian Duoduo of the Qian Family, he had left behind a dark, nondescript plant root on the table. It looked utterly unremarkable, with no shimmering radiance or overflowing Spiritual Qi.
However, Patriarch Qian’s gaze was fixed on the object. From the moment the white-haired elder departed, his eyes had not moved from the inconspicuous plant root.
Seated opposite Qian Duoduo was an old man as thin as a rail, looking as if he had one foot in the grave. If you were to see him in a graveyard, you would mistake him for a skeleton.
His eye sockets were so deep they looked like two hollow pits. The skin all over his body clung tightly to his bones. The gray robe he wore looked bizarre on his frame.
He gave off the impression of a skeleton dressed in human clothes, completely devoid of any aesthetic appeal.
"Heh heh. To think that in my lifetime, I would be able to see such a pure Source of Spiritual Energy. Besides an incredibly powerful Spirit Beast, who else could possibly obtain something like this from the mountains?" The skeletal elder’s voice was ancient, but his tone was remarkably relaxed.
Qian Duoduo finally lifted his eyes from the plant root. He looked at the skeletal elder and smiled. "Elder, with your cultivation, if you consume this Source of Spiritual Energy, it might not be impossible for you to advance another step! And even if you can’t break through, living for another few thousand years would be no problem at all!"
"You little rascal, you’ve always known what to say." A faint smile, almost imperceptible, touched the wizened elder’s lips. Then, he asked softly, "Duoduo, what are your thoughts?"
The normally refined-looking Patriarch Qian now wore a shrewd expression. He furrowed his brow slightly and tossed the question back at the elder. "Elder, what are *your* thoughts?"
"You little trickster," the elder chuckled, half-scolding. He leaned back, sinking completely into the chair covered in soft animal pelts. "Many of the old fossils from my time surely thought I was long dead," he said faintly. "Who would have thought that I, a man who should have perished a millennium ago, would instead... have a breakthrough!"
As he spoke, the elder reached out and picked up the unremarkable object from the table. "It was all because of a Source of Spiritual Energy just like this," he marveled. "Spiritual Qi is born between heaven and earth. When it becomes so dense that it cannot disperse, it seeps into soil and stone to form Spirit Stones, whose purity is judged by the amount of Spiritual Qi they contain. But when that energy only seeps into the soil, enveloping the roots of Heavenly and Earthly Treasures, it accumulates over eons to form a Source of Spiritual Energy! It’s incredibly dense... yet none of it leaks out!"
"The fact that he could deliver such an item proves he is well aware of our Qian Family’s situation, including my own existence. Otherwise, why would he directly present us with this and tell us that as long as we continue to help Qin Li, not only will we face no danger, but we will receive even more benefits like this in the future?"
The elder chuckled and waved his hand, shaking his head. "Actually, the benefits aren’t the most important part. Duoduo, did you not perceive how terrifyingly powerful that white-haired elder was? Do you really think we have any right to refuse him?"
Qian Duoduo froze for a moment. "What? Elder, that man... is his strength greater than yours?" As he said this, realization seemed to dawn on him. The corners of his mouth twitched violently. He suddenly recalled that when the elder had entered, it seemed... even his own ancestor hadn’t detected his arrival. And his ancestor was already at the Shattering Void realm. ’In that case... the visitor’s power must be far greater than the Elder’s!’
"Elder, I know what must be done," Qian Duoduo said, his expression turning solemn as he let out a long breath.
That same night, the elder from Ice Edge was thrilled to meet a reclusive master, the very same one who had given her guidance when she was just a child.
Shen Chong, the elder of the Thousand Mechanism Sect, Lin Taiping of the Lin Family, and Xie Xun of Sword Concealment Manor—three masters who had all reached the Shattering Void realm—also met that same person at different times that night.
And so, one after another, these clans all announced their decision to resist the Cui Family to the bitter end, vowing never to compromise.
Furthermore, when Shen Chong received a sound transmission from Qin Li in the early hours of that morning, he was shocked speechless. His confidence in Qin Li, and in their ability to suppress the Cui Family, soared.
Shen Chong was naturally paying close attention to the two outsiders who were cultivating and attempting breakthroughs in his clan’s private retreat. The silent, black-clad woman, in particular, gave him a sense of immense power. She was completely unfathomable.
Across all of Profound Island, there were very few people Shen Chong felt he couldn’t see through, aside from the other old monsters at his level.
The woman in black was one. Qin Li was the other.
However, he still couldn’t figure out how Qin Li had managed to accurately locate him and send a sound transmission from within a sealed chamber, a place from which no aura should have been able to escape.
Qin Li seemed unaware that someone had been visiting on his behalf, nor did he know about the current state of affairs outside. He simply asked Shen Chong a single question.
"Elder Shen, have you heard of Purple Eyes?"
Truthfully, Shen Chong had never heard of it. There were countless lost ages between the Primordial Era and the Ancient Era. Not every clan recorded the events of those times in writing. Even for those that did, most of those records likely weren’t located in the Mysterious Lands, and they certainly wouldn’t be on Profound Island.
When Shen Chong admitted he didn’t know, Qin Li explained in the simplest terms what had caused the downfall of the Primordial Era.
After hearing this, Shen Chong’s estimation of Qin Li rose even higher. ’How could Qin Li, a young man not even twenty years old, possibly know something that an old monster like me, who has lived for countless years, doesn’t? Something that almost no one on all of Profound Island knows?’
’How does he know all this?’ He thought back to the white-haired elder, to the combat techniques Qin Li cultivated, to the realm he had reached at such a young age, and to his other miraculous abilities. ’He could slay a Venerable with a single strike while only at the Celestial Integration Realm!’
Shen Chong refused to believe that Qin Li didn’t have a powerful sect backing him.
Especially after Qin Li mentioned the Purple-eyed People, he immediately realized the gravity of the situation. This was no longer just a problem for Profound Island. If the Cui Family were to succeed, he feared all the Mysterious Lands on the Celestial Essence Continent would suffer! For such an act, the Cui Family deserved to have their entire clan exterminated!
Therefore, Shen Chong solemnly promised Qin Li that the Thousand Mechanism Sect would support him to the very end. How could an old monster like him possibly pass up such a golden opportunity to earn a favor?
After all, he had already decided to resolutely oppose the Cui Family after the mysterious white-haired elder’s visit. And now, Qin Li had even told him that the black-clad woman in seclusion with him had also reached the Shattering Void realm!
’With so many Shattering Void Martial Artists on their side, what was there to fear about wiping out a single Cui Family?’
...
At that moment, Ma Wuchang’s heart was surging with hatred. He couldn’t believe someone would dare to defy the Land of the Far West. His eyes darted about, and then he bellowed, "Fine! Just fine! I never expected you clans of Profound Island to be so stubborn! Aren’t you afraid of facing the unbridled wrath of the Land of the Far West?"
Lin Taiping, the Shattering Void elder of the Lin Family, sneered. "The Land of the Far West? Don’t try to scare us with that, old fool! It’s practically on the other side of the continent. Do you really take us for ignorant children? If we kill all of you here today, it’s debatable whether they’ll ever even find out!"
Xie Xun, the elder of Sword Concealment Manor, had a mane of long, golden hair and a build as powerful as a lion’s. He let out a booming laugh. "That’s right! I, for one, would love to see how this pack of Cui Family bastards meets their end!"
"Fine! Just fine! To think you all have such nerve! Then I... will show you the power of the Shattering Void realm!" Ma Wuchang roared and lunged madly toward Shen Chong. But the space before him suddenly tore open. Before anyone could react, Ma Wuchang dove into the rift, his maniacal laughter echoing behind him. "You think you can trap a Shattering Void Martial Artist? You’re... too naive! HAHAHA, just you wait for the wrath of Lengqiu Palace—"
Ma Wuchang hadn’t even finished his threat when a deafening BOOM erupted from the very spatial rift he had torn open.
Ma Wuchang’s body was blasted out of the rift, a mangled mess of flesh and blood.
A woman in black slowly materialized near the ceiling of the banquet hall. Her eyes were fixed coldly on Ma Wuchang’s ruined body as she uttered a single word, "Idiot."
Across the hall, Xie Xun of Sword Concealment Manor and Shen Chong of the Thousand Mechanism Sect exchanged a look, then simultaneously unleashed their attacks, blasting the blood-soaked Ma Wuchang.
Comments