Chapter 378

378. Chapter 374: I Can Do That Too (Bonus Chapter 2 for Wanderer's All-In Bet)

Ding Huan?

Meng Zhongqi froze—he remembered that the aura-technique master who blocked the Dao-Stealing Worms was Lu Hai of the Baihe Immortal Dao.

Besides Lu Hai, numerous aura-technique masters of the Baihe Immortal Dao—including Bi Qingjian—worked together to devise an external containment and extermination method, which finally stopped the Dao-Stealing Worms' rampage.

What does this have to do with Ding Huan?

Who is Ding Huan? Before Meng Zhongqi could react, an official rushed over, panicked:

"Master, disaster! The Dao-Stealing Worms breached the protective array—they've spread inside the Immortal Gate!"

"What?"

Hearing this, Meng Zhongqi dared not ask anything else—he bolted forward at once, shouting:

"All disciples and elders of the sect, exterminate every Dao-Stealing Worm that has entered the Immortal Gate!"

"Master Yi, immediately seal all Immortal Spirit Springs in the sect! Elder Gu, pile Immortal Crystals outside the protective array and set up a Gathering Spirit Immortal Array to lure the Dao-Stealing Worms away from the Immortal Gate..."

Meng Zhongqi clearly wasn't encountering this for the first time—he handled it with swift precision.

Every time the sect's protective array was chewed through by Dao-Stealing Worms, this was always the response.

But this method had one major flaw: the Immortal Spirit Springs possessed sentience; each time they were sealed and reopened, the Immortal Spirit Qi they emitted would regress by one tier.

Some Immortal Spirit Spring sources, due to repeated sealing, eventually dried up.

Yet everyone knew this wasn't because the springs had dried—they had simply shifted elsewhere.

One issue was this; the second was that luring all Dao-Stealing Worms out of the Immortal Gate required far more Immortal Crystals than a few handfuls.

As for exterminating every single Dao-Stealing Worm that had entered the Immortal Gate—that was practically impossible.

First, once Dao-Stealing Worms reached a certain scale, they simply couldn't be wiped out entirely.

But that wasn't the most critical point. The most critical point was this: Dao-Stealing Worms were peculiar creatures.

When cultivators killed Dao-Stealing Worms, the worms could devour the cultivators' own Immortal Spirit Qi.

This wasn't merely excessive depletion of Immortal Energy that could be restored later—the Immortal Spirit Qi devoured by Dao-Stealing Worms vanished permanently; it had to be cultivated anew.

Thus, killing too many Dao-Stealing Worms often caused one's own cultivation to regress.

Precisely because of this, almost no one ventured beyond the protective array to hunt Dao-Stealing Worms. Entering the Immortal Gate to exterminate them was only done out of sheer desperation.

The sect masters and peak masters who had come to observe and inspect exchanged uneasy glances.

This was too absurd—they had come specifically to witness how the Baihe Immortal Dao repelled Dao-Stealing Worms, and this was the method they witnessed?

They could do this too.

"I can do that too," one sect master couldn't help muttering.

Fortunately, no one at that moment said, "I can do that too."

Some sect masters and peak masters turned and left—what nonsense, helping extinguish Dao-Stealing Worms at the cost of their own Immortal Spirit Qi? Better to return to their own sects and kill a few more.

Only those who couldn't bear to refuse out of face saved some of the Dao-Stealing Worms.

By the time all Dao-Stealing Worms had been lured into the containment array, the Baihe Immortal Dao was in ruins.

The sect masters who had helped quickly took their leave—everyone knew it was inappropriate to stay longer.

Meng Zhongqi sat grim-faced on the sect master's throne in the main hall—the recent expulsion of the Dao-Stealing Worms had cost the sect nearly ten million Immortal Crystals, and every Immortal Spirit Spring source had been sealed.

The loss from sealing the Immortal Spirit Spring sources was incalculable.

"Lu Hai, is this your so-called method of controlling all the Dao-Stealing Worms?" Meng Zhongqi slammed his hand on the table before him—if looks could kill, he'd have slain Lu Hai tens of thousands of times already.

He had just received word: the Baihe Immortal Dao had vanished from the Ascension Arena ranking screen, slipping back beyond rank one thousand.

This was an outright farce.

The Baihe Immortal Dao had first discovered Immortal Spirit Spring sources, then achieved outstanding results in repelling Dao-Stealing Worms, rising to rank four hundred and some.

Yet before that ranking had even warmed the seat, less than half a year later, the Baihe Immortal Dao had vanished again from the ranking screen.

Still dreaming of entering the Fifth Immortal Realm? Ha—this was pure mockery.

Lu Hai's face was ashen, and he couldn't utter a single word.

Not just Lu Hai—over a dozen aura-technique masters at the defense array cores trembled like leaves in a storm.

Aura-technique masters were the most respected—and highest-paid—group in the Immortal Gate. But when disaster struck, they were also the most severely punished.

High rewards meant equally high risks.

"Speak—what caused the entire protective array to collapse at once?" Meng Zhongqi's tone softened slightly, yet his fury grew even greater.

Bi Qingjian hesitated, then stepped forward: "Master, I know the cause."

He knew full well that even if he didn't speak now, the truth would eventually be uncovered.

No disaster meant harmony among all; once disaster struck, he alone would bear the blame. Since he was the one to blame, no one else would escape either.

Some aura-technique masters, seeing Bi Qingjian step forward, began to regret their silence.

If only they'd spoken first—the one who revealed the cause first would surely receive reduced punishment.

"Speak," Meng Zhongqi said coldly.

"Yes." Bi Qingjian replied, carefully organizing his words before tremblingly continuing:

"Our sect hired a new aura-technique master—he was extremely skilled. At the time, Lu Hai saw his own protective array crumbling under the Dao-Stealing Worms' assault and wanted to escape responsibility."

He saw the new aura-technique master and tried to hand over the array core to him, so he himself could withdraw."

I saw Lu Hai recording a crystal image sphere—he must have planned to frame someone..."

At this moment, everyone thought only of saving themselves—Bi Qingjian had no reason to shield Lu Hai. Besides, Lu Hai had never given him any benefit.

And if Lu Hai hadn't expelled that Wang Ba, Ding Huan, how could they have ended up like this?

Hearing this, Lu Hai's face turned even paler than paper.

"And then?" Meng Zhongqi's voice had become utterly calm.

Everyone who knows Meng Zhongqi knows this means he's about to kill someone.

Bi Qingjian's heart trembled, and he dared not hide anything: "Lu Hai never expected the new arrival, the array master, to be so formidable—he merely laid a few array flags by hand and immediately controlled the Dao-Thief Worms."

? C〇

Moreover, he set up a strangulation array beyond the protective array using void array runes, a strangulation array specifically designed to annihilate Dao-Thief Worms.

When Lu Hai saw how powerful this array master was, he wanted to approach him and curry favor. But the array master had a terrible temper and told Lu Hai outright to get lost.

I saw that this array master was a talent, so I came to court him too, and had him set up a strangulation array at my array core as well.

Actually, I wanted to keep him, but he was assigned under Lu Hai's command, and I had no grounds to retain him.

After that, all the other array masters asked him to set up strangulation arrays to exterminate the Dao-Thief Worms outside the protective array; from that day on, our Immortal Sect's Dao-Thief Worms ceased to be a threat..."

"What's the name of that array master? Where is he? Bring him to me immediately." Meng Zhongqi said coldly.

Bi Qingjian hurriedly explained: "His name is Ding Huan. Lu Hai, fearing he would rise above him, simply expelled him from the Immortal Sect…"

"Crack!" Meng Zhongqi smashed the tea table before him into shards, then suddenly rose to his feet: "Excellent, Lu Hai—I'll tear you into a thousand pieces and it still won't quench my rage."

Meng Zhongqi was truly enraged beyond measure. Such a formidable array master—other Immortal Sects would beg to have him. And Lu Hai had the audacity to expel this talent? Killing him wouldn't soothe his fury.

At that moment, Meng Zhongqi suddenly remembered what Xin Chuang had said earlier, and quickly asked: "Is Xin Chuang in attendance?"

"Reporting, Sect Master—I am here." Xin Chuang stepped forward and bowed.

To be honest, Xin Chuang was also deeply disappointed—he had personally instructed Elder Kong to give Ding Huan proper use, yet these fools had driven away such a formidable array master.

"You told me you went to great lengths to recruit that Ding Huan into the Immortal Sect—was it him?" Meng Zhongqi asked.

Xin Chuang said: "Sect Master, it was him. I recruited him, and just as I returned to the Immortal Sect, I met Elder Kong. He told me to represent the Immortal Sect at the Immortal Sect Assembly."

"Yes, the preparatory meeting before the Immortal Sect Assembly—I've only just returned…"

"That should have been over half a year ago. Why did Ding Huan only appear at the Protective Array Hall three months ago?" Meng Zhongqi asked.

Xin Chuang shook his head: "I don't know. When I brought Ding Huan back to the Immortal Sect, I left immediately. I specifically instructed Elder Kong that Ding Huan was a talent and must be properly placed."

"Elder Kong." Meng Zhongqi turned to Kong Zhangji, seated at the side.

Kong Zhangji stood and bowed: "Indeed, this happened. When Xin Chuang went to the preparatory meeting of the Immortal Sect Assembly, I was the one who informed him."

"I ordered Gu Yuan to assign Ding Huan to a task—I don't know exactly where Gu Yuan took him."

Kong Zhangji felt a pang of helplessness—he had clearly ordered Gu Yuan to take Ding Huan to search for the Immortal Spirit Spring source.

But he couldn't admit it—he had to let Gu Yuan take the blame, or else he himself would be punished.

"Bring Gu Yuan here." Meng Zhongqi's hands trembled, pale with rage.

Right now, all Immortal Sects are desperately short of talent. Don't be fooled by how many talents the Immortal Sect appears to have.

The talents within the Immortal Sect are all meant for cultivation—they're rarely sent to repair arrays, mine ore, or search for Immortal Spirit Spring sources. Such tasks consume life. Who would let a genius go?

Gu Yuan was quickly brought in. He knew the Immortal Sect was facing a major crisis.

But this had nothing to do with him—why had they summoned him?

"Gu Yuan, when I ordered you to take Ding Huan to the Protective Array Hall, where did you actually take him? Why did Ding Huan only appear at the Protective Array Hall three months ago?"

Before the Sect Master could speak, Kong Zhangji barked the question.

Gu Yuan froze. This had happened over half a year ago—how could the current Dao-Thief Worms devouring the protective array be connected to Ding Huan from so long ago?

This makes no sense.

Besides, Elder Kong hadn't ordered him to take Ding Huan to the Protective Array Hall—he'd ordered him to take him to search for the Immortal Spirit Spring source.

But after so long in the Immortal Sect, Gu Yuan instantly understood: Kong Zhangji was going to make him take the blame.

Gu Yuan, however, had good awareness—he didn't mind. It wasn't a big deal anyway—just misdirected someone. Let him take the blame.

Worst case, he'd lose some Immortal Crystals—but Elder Kong would surely compensate him.