Chapter 102

If we could really blast out a saint‑grade treasure, we could rise to the heavens in a single step! You must know, in Canglan Yu, dao‑grade treasures never exceed three pieces; once they appear, all major powers will fight over them to the point of bloodshed. Not to mention saint‑grade treasures—if one showed up, the entire Dong Shenzhou would likely fall into chaos! As long as we can lure the enemy into the thunder‑punishment zone, with Niepan Jie Ling manipulating from the shadows, this could actually succeed.

Beside him, Niepan Jie Ling straightened its body slightly, appearing ever more majestic, as if striving to look more important. It thought: Young master…… seems to have noticed my crucial role.

Yang Hao and the others saw this, the corners of their mouths twitching involuntarily, and they muttered in their hearts: 'Can this even be done like that?' Moreover, what exactly is the relationship between this tribulation spirit senior and the junior martial uncle? You should know that only an unparalleled monster can provoke a forbidden heavenly tribulation, yet Niepan Jie Ling not only condescends to help, but even assists in annihilating opposing forces—that's nearly ten venerables! That number is quite huge; even an ancient holy land would not dare to easily move to suppress so many venerables. Yang Tian Venerable is an exception, able to hold the sect strong against a besieging crowd and even slay two, simply heaven‑defying. Ten venerables joining forces could destroy any sect below holy‑land grade. Even with full preparation, the Xuanyang Sect might not be able to defeat them.

"This…… I think it's feasible!" Qi Tai said with a light cough. You must know, my fellow martial brothers have all broken through to the venerable realm, while I remain stuck here, inevitably feeling vexed. Moreover, Niepan Jie Ling is right here; if I don't seize the chance to break through, that would be foolish.

"Good! Then I, the old one, will first help you two charge to the ninth level, break through outside the ancient ruins, and completely exterminate the enemies of Xuanyang Sect!" Yang Tian Ancestor's eyes flashed with brilliance. Originally he thought he'd have to wait a while for the disciples to grow. But now, as long as we settle these ten venerables, Xuanyang Sect will be able to walk sideways thereafter. With the power they command, it's entirely doable. Still, we must guard against later retaliation from the Xuanming Holy Land. After all, the curse from back then is tied to them; the feud can be traced back over ten thousand years, and the Xuanming Holy Land even spared no expense to have Wu tribe powerhouses offer sacrifices for the curse—truly excessive.

"Alright, that's settled! We'll set out immediately for the ancient ruins! According to the timing, at most half a day remains before the ruins open; we absolutely cannot let them get ahead. Since we're taking action, let's eradicate the root, leave no future trouble. This is a perfect opportunity—I, Senior Brother Lin, Junior Brother Wu, Junior Brother Qi, Junior Brother Li, and the Ancestor will go together. After this tribulation, Xuanyang Sect will possess six venerables and return to its peak!" Yang Hao thought of this, his towering frame trembling slightly with excitement. Everything before him felt like a dream.

Immediately afterward, Yang Tian Ancestor took Qi Tai and Li Haoran into the courtyard. In just half an hour, their auras underwent a qualitative leap, reaching the ninth level of the Tianyuan realm, their aura extremely condensed.

To prevent any leak from an insider in Xuanyang Sect, Yang Hao didn't even inform the other sect members. He released a flying vessel in the courtyard; everyone then boarded it. The vessel emitted a faint rumble, and a faint divine radiance fell upon it, making it illusory as it merged into the void, silently heading toward Thus line: Qingshi Jun. No one noticed. This is a staggering scheme—if it succeeds, Xuanyang Sect will be reborn through Niepan; if it fails, it's merely an early demise. However… unless a Dao‑realm powerhouse personally descends, this lineup plus Niepan Jie Ling can utterly destroy any faction.

…………

Thus line: Qingshi Jun. Above the firmament, a faintly visible realm materialized, mountains linked and undulating, from time to time terrifying beast roars rose, turning into rolling sound waves. This ancient ruin grew ever clearer, gradually evolving into a small world of its own, drawing the covetous gazes of countless powers' strong ones. A ruin of this level surely contains earth‑shaking treasures—who could not be moved?

"There's still half a day before this ancient ruin opens; have you all finished the tasks I assigned earlier, fellow daoists?" Lan Xiao slightly narrowed his eyes, hands behind his back, speaking calmly. He couldn't help but want to howl to the heavens—this time, the five great sects have each sent six or seven masters, plus two venerables. This massive force is temporarily led by the Wanhai Sect, with him as commander. At this moment, Lan Xiao felt that even if he overturned the entire Canglan Yu, no one could stop them.

"Since the daoist entrusted us with this, we naturally won't slack. As long as Dong Fangyuan dares to step into the ancient ruin, he's surely doomed! I've already set up a heavenly‑grade killing formation to the west; if Yang Tian Ancestor dares to come, I'll be the first to slay him!" Qingcheng Pavilion Master stuck out his tongue, licked his lips, his expression somewhat ferocious. In that battle against Xuanyang Sect earlier, it left him a huge psychological scar, even becoming a heart‑demon that stalled his cultivation for years. He always felt that no matter how hard he tried, even after reaching late venerable stage, he wouldn't be a match for Yang Tian Venerable. Now, finally having a chance to settle this heart‑demon, this is for him an opportunity of Niepan rebirth.

"Our Floating Light Sect has no problem either—we've arranged two peak‑of‑Hualing assassins, both current true‑transmission disciples. Moreover, word from Xuanyang Sect says Yang Hao and Wu Changkong have broken through to the venerable realm. Our sect's Grand Elder will very likely emerge from seclusion this time!" The Second Elder of Floating Light Sect bore a hint of resentment on his face. Their sect leader, wearing heavenly‑grade spirit armor and a heavenly‑grade defensive formation, went to Xuanyang Sect intending to trap Yang Hao, but ended up getting himself killed, which infuriated the entire Floating Light Sect. The ancestor even issued an order to personally emerge, insisting on killing Yang Tian Venerable to quell his hatred! Our disciples could have broken through to venerable at any time, yet they waited three thousand years, making all preparations just to suppress Yang Hao at the same realm, and still died—who can we blame? That disciple was one whose lifeblood we poured into raising; a white‑haired person sending off a black‑haired one—how could we not be furious.

"The rise of Xuanyang Sect is no good for any of us, and with Yang Tian Ancestor they now have four venerables—their momentum is too strong; this time we must find a way to suppress them!" A senior elder of a major sect spoke. Years ago they jointly besieged Xuanyang Sect, and they've kept pressing down ever since; barely managing to reduce Xuanyang Sect to a dying state, they still continually devour its resources and territory. Thinking of this, everyone's mood grew heavier.

Just then, a dull boom came from the horizon, and over ten somewhat damaged flying vessels sped this way, blotting out the sky, their momentum grand. On the vessel, the senior elder's face was dark enough to drip water, killing intent surging in his eyes. He was nearly furious with rage—aside from the Xuanyang Guard, most of those he brought were his own confidants, yet now nearly half have fallen! The enemy's ambushes were too many; even some earth‑xuan cultivators, reckless as if they didn't care for their lives, were lurking in the dark to assassinate. All along the way losses have been heavy; besides the initial three attacks, there were seven or eight more. If not for the many trump cards we brought, we'd likely have lost more than half by now.

"I thought I'd brought enough people, but I didn't expect this to be just an appetizer—by the time we reached Thus line: Qingshi Jun the losses were this heavy…" The senior elder shook his head, then turned his gaze to Dong Fangyuan and said softly: "Yuan'er, it's up to you now—if you can obtain the inheritance of the supreme being within the ancient ruin, then in the future, not only in Canglan Yu but even in Dong Shenzhou you'll have a place. You must solidify this identity; later, even if that monster who survived the Great Sun Niepan Tribulation jumps out, no one will believe it. The finest in our sect right now is Lin Xue; you're only one minor realm behind her. If you can secure your position and marry her, that's not impossible—I'll back you." The senior elder brimmed with confidence, feeling that even if Dong Fangyuan's strength were targeted by the leaders of the other sects after his improvement, he needn't fear. Hualing fourth level—at this age few can reach it, and even Lin Xue is only at Hualing fifth level.

"Master, rest assured—I'm confident I can suppress those Wanhai Sect disciples!" Dong Fangyuan's confidence now soared. Among the younger generation, his reputation is extremely high; Lin Xue doesn't even compete, and Li Xuan simply can't compare. From now on, as long as I solidify my identity, feigning the real thing will suffice.

"Hummm!" The flying vessel began to descend, figures appearing in the four quarters of the void, warily eyeing Xuanyang Sect's vessel. In the distance, several venerables were also somewhat surprised, not expecting Xuanyang Sect to still retain half its strength. You must know, the forces and cultivators dispatched this time are not weak at all.

"This Dong Fangyuan truly has great fortune—he actually managed to bring Xuanyang Sect's people through several ambushes in a row. If we don't just strike now and take them down, this kid's threat level is no less than Yang Tian Ancestor's!" Qingcheng Pavilion Master and the others couldn't hold back, feeling Dong Fangyuan's luck was absurdly good; a dozen or so masters attacked, yet the other side only lost six or seven people.

Lan Xiao waved his hand, stroked his beard, and said calmly: "Our five sects' dao lineages combined have nearly ten disciples piled up to Hualing peak via resources, plus the youthful leaders—basically all are Hualing third or fourth level. If we preemptively surround and kill them, Yang Tian Venerable might not intervene. So I think we should stay hidden, not let that old geezer notice anything odd. Even if Dong Fangyuan encounters danger inside, Yang Tian Venerable will surely try every means to break the ruin's barrier; once he acts, it's his death sentence!" You must know, this is a heavenly net and earthly trap—whether the ancient ruin or Thus line: Qingshi Jun, it's a dead end no one can break.

"Hummm!" The flying vessel descended slowly. The senior elder gazed at the surrounding powerhouses, his heart growing heavier, feeling as if he'd entered a tiger's den—there are far too many masters, at least a dozen or more, surely not just those visible on the surface. Meanwhile, on the vessel, Dong Fangyuan looked down at the young heavenly talents one by one and fell into deep thought. How can we possibly compete?! There are a few familiar faces—true‑transmission disciples of the younger generation from the five great dao lineages—but how could they all be Hualing peak? Could it be they're the ones who underwent the forbidden heavenly tribulation? After a rough sweep, I saw that Hualing peak numbered nine! What's there to fight over? Are we supposed to risk our lives for this?