Chapter 475: Chapter 461: Aggrieved, Utterly Aggrieved...
Tong Fan wouldn’t doubt the words of Su Wenxuan, the dignified Sect Leader of the Profound Dao Sect.
But that didn’t mean he agreed with what Su Wenxuan said.
The Profound Dao Sect sending a disciple known as a "waste" to compete with them was the greatest insult.
What was there to be proud of if they beat someone like that?
But if they lost, it would be the ultimate humiliation. They probably wouldn’t dare show their faces in public ever again.
So, Tong Fan sneered and said, "To fight or not to fight—it’s a very simple choice. The Profound Dao Sect’s actions have disappointed me. A Sect so large can’t even find a few presentable Artifact Refiners to face our disciples. Instead, you find some nonsensical youth to spout gibberish and cause trouble... And in the end, you resort to having someone called a ’waste’ compete with us. How pathetic! How pitiful!"
"The Profound Dao Sect doesn’t dare to accept the challenge, hiding like a turtle in its shell, and tries to brush us off with a waste of a disciple. Once word of this gets out, it looks like your reputation is about to soar, eh?"
"But if you think this clumsy trick will provoke us into leaving, I’m afraid you won’t get your wish!"
"Since you’re so confident, very well. We’ll wait here for another two days! I hope that when the time comes, this ’Shen Lang’ you speak of won’t disappoint you. And that he won’t disappoint us either, hehehehe..."
Tong Fan was old and cunning, and his sharp tongue was more than an ordinary person could handle. His words were like knives, carving one cut after another into the hearts of the Profound Dao Sect members.
The few old men from the Artifact Origin Sect beside him clapped and laughed. "Hahaha, Senior Brother truly is as cunning as they come... uh, I mean, experienced and prudent. With just a few words, he’s left these Profound Dao Sect guys speechless!"
Up in the stands, Chu Qingcheng’s smile grew even wider. He fanned himself intermittently with his paper fan, seemingly not taking Tong Fan’s words seriously at all.
But Su Wenxuan and the Elders beside him were not in such a good mood.
People need their dignity, just as trees need their bark.
The dignified Profound Iron Level Sect, the Profound Dao Sect, had been challenged right on their own mountain. Enduring the constant mockery was one thing, but the key was that they had no way to fight back!
Even if Chu Qingcheng could win some small victories with his words, it wasn’t a long-term solution.
Whether it was a competition of Artifact Refining or Martial Arts, victory and defeat had to be decided through a real, tangible fight.
Words alone were of little use.
Even if they could save a little face with their words, a complete loss was still a complete loss.
Everyone was still waiting here, holding on, pinning all their hopes on Shen Lang’s return.
If Shen Lang couldn’t make it back, the Profound Dao Sect would suffer a great loss of face this time.
At this moment, the people from the surrounding sects who were there to watch the show became even more gleeful.
The more frustrated and uncomfortable the Profound Dao Sect became, the happier they were.
"To think that the once-glorious Profound Dao Sect has fallen so low, only able to engage in verbal sparring. How sad, how pathetic!"
"Yeah, yeah, if they can’t beat the Artifact Origin Sect, they should just admit defeat. But no, they’re being stubborn and trying to hold out... They’ll probably end up even more disgraced!"
"They actually told the Artifact Refining Grand Artifact Origin Sect to wait for a ’waste’ to return... What were they thinking! Oh, they were probably trying to use that trick to provoke the Artifact Origin Sect into leaving. Too bad for them, the Artifact Origin Sect played along and agreed to wait. Now they’re stuck, aren’t they?"
"They claim to be the number one sect below the Spirit Copper Level Influence, but I don’t see it. Not only have they fallen to this state now, but even back when they were a Spirit Copper Level Sect, they couldn’t have possibly competed with the Artifact Origin Sect in Artifact Refining!"
"Exactly! I’d like to see how the Profound Dao Sect is going to clean up this mess. The number one sect below Spirit Copper Level? That’s hilarious, haha!"
Hearing those discussions, the people from the Artifact Origin Sect held their heads even higher, each of them tilting their heads to look at the sky at a forty-five-degree angle... even though there was nothing interesting to see up there.
Meanwhile, Su Wenxuan and the other high-ranking members of the Profound Dao Sect, as well as the thousands of disciples present, were so angry hearing these words they felt like they could cough up blood, yet they were helpless.
...
Outside the Martial Arts Arena, Black Death was giving orders to several members of War Wolf. "Record all these people from these miscellaneous sects. Investigate their identities, their backgrounds... down to what their mistresses look like and where they live!"
Evil Song chuckled. "What are you planning to do to them?"
Ying Huo chimed in, "Nothing much. I’m firmly against sealing their Cultivation and tossing them in the river to feed the fish... But we must settle the score later. These people who are reveling in our misfortune must pay the price!"
"We need to let them know that the current Profound Dao Sect is not someone they can afford to provoke!"
As Ying Huo spoke, a flash of lightning flickered in his eyes, his killing intent immense.
...
Inside the main hall of Heaven-Reaching Peak, seven old men sat in a circle, fuming.
Ever since Shen Lang had burst onto the scene, these King Martial Realm Elder Ancestors from the Five Sects had practically made the Profound Dao Sect their headquarters, showing little desire to return to their own Sects.
Shen Lang had taken fifteen people to deal with the Holy Light Sect and the Beast Emperor Palace, leaving the remaining seven here to do nothing but sigh in the main hall.
Not only could these old men from the other sects not interfere, but even the two Elder Ancestors of the Profound Dao Sect could only watch helplessly.
The Artifact Origin Sect was truly arrogant. To make a greater impact, they had only sent a few Xuanwu Realm experts leading some Spirit Martial Realm disciples.
If these Elder Ancestors were to speak up, whatever they said would be seen as the strong bullying the weak.
But if they stayed silent, stewing in their anger here was also unbearable.
"I say, just waiting like this isn’t a solution, is it? Dongfang Jian, should you make a trip to the Dark Moon Abyss?" Lu Xuehan, another Elder Ancestor from the Xiu Hua Sect, couldn’t help but say.
Dongfang Jian shook his head. "Are you stupid? Do you really think dealing with the people from the Holy Light Sect and the Beast Emperor Palace is that easy? And don’t forget about Shui Tianji’s group! If Xiaolang had taken care of them, he would have definitely come back by now. If he hasn’t, there’s no point in going now."
Lu Xuehan was left speechless with anger and shot him a glare.
Dongfang Jian continued, "That kid, Shadow Charm, may look effeminate, but there’s no denying he’s the fastest among the Five War Wolf Commanders. At his speed, he should have reached the Dark Moon Abyss long ago. We can only keep waiting... Damn it all! I haven’t been this pissed off in years! These people from the Artifact Origin Sect are absolutely infuriating!"
"If I had my old temper, I would’ve gone out and beaten the crap out of them already!"
The other Elder Ancestors looked at each other and gave wry smiles. Only a guy like Dongfang Jian would talk like that.
The Artifact Origin Sect was a Spirit Copper Level Influence, and they maintained very good relationships with many Major Sects. They really weren’t afraid of him going out to beat them up.
Who could guarantee that if you went out to beat someone up, a group of King Martial Realm experts wouldn’t show up to beat you up in return?
"Ahem, about that..." Yuan Huayi, the Elder Ancestor of the Mahayana Sect, said, "Are you sure that Xiaolang can defeat the people from the Artifact Origin Sect when he gets back?"
The group of old men immediately glared at him, their gazes quite unfriendly.
Yuan Huayi laughed awkwardly. "I’m not questioning Xiaolang’s abilities in Artifact Refining. But you’ve all heard about it. The people from the Artifact Origin Sect are so shameless that they’ve even brought out the nine Spirit Pattern Pillars from their Sect. Isn’t the only reason the Artifact Refiners from our Sects are swallowing their anger right now because of those nine Spirit Pattern Pillars?"
Everyone fell silent. Even a guy like Dongfang Jian had nothing to say.
It was no wonder Yuan Huayi had this concern.
Even though Yuan Huayi was currently wearing the Top Grade Armor personally refined by Shen Lang and knew that Shen Lang was nearly unparalleled in the Artifact Refining Dao...
...the problem was that the Artifact Origin Sect was simply too shameless.
The nine colossal Spirit Pattern Pillars were treasures of the Artifact Origin Sect. They were supposed to be placed on the peak of the Artifact Origin Sect’s mountain for the disciples of the Sect to study and comprehend.
Legend had it that they were incredibly powerful treasures. If all nine Spirit Pattern Pillars could be activated simultaneously, one could easily set up a powerful Array that would trap enemies, making it difficult for them to escape.
It was said that although they didn’t have a rank like a Magical Treasure Secret Artifact, not even an Imperial Artifact could easily damage these nine Spirit Pattern Pillars.
Now, these nine Spirit Pattern Pillars were set up in the Heaven-Reaching Peak’s Martial Arts Arena, controlled by nine elite disciples of the Artifact Origin Sect, faintly forming a wondrous Array.
Any Artifact Refiner who went up wouldn’t be competing against a single disciple or a single Spirit Pattern Pillar, but against all nine disciples and all nine Spirit Pattern Pillars!
The Array itself wasn’t the main issue. How powerful could an Array controlled by a mere nine Spirit Martial Realm Martial Artists be?
The key was that the Spirit Pattern Pillars themselves were formidable!
These nine Spirit Pattern Pillars were the Treasure of the Sect for the Artifact Origin Sect and had been passed down for nearly ten thousand years.
According to legend, they were passed down to the founder of the Artifact Origin Sect by a mysterious Master Level Artifact Refining Master.
The Spirit Array Maps carved upon them contained the secrets of nature and the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth. Ordinary people could only see the surface patterns, but those with extraordinary talent could communicate with the Spirit Pattern Pillars, enter the space within them, and comprehend their true, exquisite Profound Mysteries.
And within these Spirit Pattern Pillars were not only the profound Spirit Array Maps imprinted by generations of Artifact Origin Sect’s Artifact Refining Masters and the universal principles they had comprehended throughout their lives, but also several Ancient Array Maps.
Any single Array Map from within was an exceptionally rare treasure.
These Spirit Pattern Pillars were practically the treasury of the Artifact Origin Sect, placed on their mountain peak for their disciples to comprehend and study.
It was truly something that made people green with envy.
The people of the Artifact Origin Sect ran around "competing" here and "competing" there, and to this day, they had never known defeat!
And after every victory, they would force the losing side to offer up nine Spirit Array Maps to be carved onto these nine Spirit Pattern Pillars.
The Spirit Pattern Pillars were like containers specifically designed to hold Spirit Array Maps. As more Array Maps were added, their power grew ever more terrifying and unfathomable.
And this was the source of Yuan Huayi’s worry.
Although Shen Lang’s achievements in the Artifact Refining Dao were frightening, for him to face these colossal, unfathomably profound Spirit Pattern Pillars...
At this moment, Lu Xuehan, the Elder Ancestor of the Xiu Hua Sect, also spoke with a grave expression, "We’ve only heard rumors about how powerful these nine Spirit Pattern Pillars truly are. But there is one thing we know for sure..."
"These nine Spirit Pattern Pillars require nine Artifact Refining Masters to activate simultaneously. Once activated, they form a self-sustaining, endless cycle of infinite creation. It’s just like what Xiaolang is doing now—setting up an Array and having fifteen King Martial Realm experts preside over it, then relying on the Array’s power to annihilate those old fogeys from the Holy Light Sect and the Beast Emperor Palace."
"The nine Spirit Pattern Pillars are like nine powerful experts with a subtle connection between them. All it takes is a push from those nine Artifact Origin Sect disciples to get them running."
"It would be one thing if Xiaolang could just use the Immortal Celestial Saber to chop down these Spirit Pattern Pillars, but this is a competition of Artifact Refining, not Martial Arts. An Imperial Artifact like the Immortal Celestial Saber is useless here. How can he possibly face such a terrifying Magical Artifact and Grand Array all by himself?"
The Elder Ancestors looked at one another, and each saw the worry in the others’ eyes.
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