Chapter 242: Am I a Traitor?

Elder Li assigned Xiao Zhangqing a task that is said to be simple yet not simple, difficult yet not difficult.

Blood Crystal Island has her stationed, and with the Fourth-Grade Array protecting the island, its safety is not an issue; even if the Lady of the Dark River is formidable, with a formation‑breaking treasure in hand, she still cannot break in.

In the Qingxu Realm, there are many treasures that can be used to break formations.

Unlike the Da Yu Cultivation World, when they first faced the mountain‑protecting array of the Liyang Mountains, even with a Nascent Soul sect covertly stirring trouble, they could not break it; they had to bribe traitors to sabotage from within and breach it internally.

Within the Fuhai Sect, there are no shortage of treasures that can briefly break the Fourth‑Grade Array.

However, these treasures are not only extremely rare, but also require high conditions; only top cultivators at the late Foundation Establishment stage can break the Fourth‑Grade Array, and they can only create a brief opening.

Over time, the opening will be repaired by the array.

This is the current situation on Blood Crystal Island.

The formation‑breaking treasure the Lady of the Dark River carries, under her control, can briefly breach the Fourth‑Grade island‑protecting array of Blood Crystal Island. Yet even if she personally charges in, with Elder Li stationed on the island, she would return empty‑handed and might even be unable to come back safely.

Therefore she does not dare to act rashly.

The turning point of the situation appears at the abyssal seabed in the western corner of Blood Crystal Island, where an unknown calamity occurred recently, like a natural disaster, causing the western corner's formation to become unstable.

Normally there is no major issue; it can still protect.

But once the Lady of the Dark River begins to wield the formation‑breaking treasure and launch a massive attack, the flaw in the southwest corner will be amplified.

If a real cultivator at the mid‑Foundation stage intervenes, wielding a formation‑breaking treasure to fiercely assault the western corner of Blood Crystal Island, the protective array could be truly and completely broken! Elder Liyuan assigned Xiao Zhangqing the task of guarding the western corner of the island.

When the Lady of the Dark River returns and begins breaking formations again, she will be responsible for the direct confrontation.

But Xiao Zhangqing must hold back the mid‑Foundation Elder of the Fuhai Sect who is fiercely attacking the western corner! "The mid‑Foundation Elder of the Fuhai Sect will certainly be stronger than you, Elder Fang, perhaps much stronger. However, Elder Fang, you only need to guard the array and prevent the enemy from breaking in; that will be much easier."

"As long as you endure for a moment, the array's power will quickly recover, and the Fuhai Sect will have to retreat. Otherwise, staying will cost them their lives!"

"Remember, never be greedy for merit; do not launch a proactive strike just because you see a flaw in the opponent!"

"Regardless of whether the opponent's flaw is real or fake, we need not concern ourselves! Our goal is not to kill many members of the Fuhai Sect, but to hold Blood Crystal Island!"

Liyuan warned.

Xiao Zhangqing nodded, "Elder Li, rest assured, I am not reckless, nor greedy for merit. Everything I do must be a hundred percent certain; I will not gamble with Blood Crystal Island."

Hearing that, Liyuan felt much more at ease.

An elder who has only just broken through to the mid‑Foundation stage, if greedy and reckless, falls into the Fuhai Sect's mid‑Foundation elder's trap, that would be disastrous.

The opposing mid‑Foundation elder, whom Liyuan sensed during the last attack, is among the top cultivators at that stage, not far from the late Foundation level.

Afterwards, Liyuan personally led Xiao Zhangqing to the western corner of Blood Crystal Island, granting him permission to manipulate the corner's array and teaching him some guarding techniques.

Half an hour later.

Seeing that Xiao Zhangqing had become proficient in operating the array, handling it with ease, she felt at ease to prepare to leave.

Before departing, she did not forget to warn again: "Elder Fang, be sure to remember your mission is to guard the array, not to kill the enemy. You have just broken through to mid‑Foundation; those deeply seasoned mid‑Foundation cultivators, even if wounded, are beyond your capability."

Xiao Zhangqing naturally would not argue at this moment.

Facts speak louder than eloquence.

Once he subdues the Fuhai Sect's mid‑Foundation elder and even avenges the Lady of the Dark River, this elder will naturally understand his strength.

………

In the time that followed, Xiao Zhangqing settled on Blood Crystal Island.

The island's myriad wonders and the unfathomable sea became a rather marvelous journey for him.

Moreover, since most of his days were spent cultivating, time was not particularly hard to endure.

In the blink of an eye, more than two months passed.

During these two months, the Fuhai Sect often harassed Blood Crystal Island, but never launched a truly fierce assault; they were merely probing attacks, and Xiao Zhangqing never needed to act.

Yet other cultivators of the Sanyang Sect on Blood Crystal Island, including mid‑Foundation elder Han Ce, grew increasingly worried.

The Fuhai Sect's abnormal behavior could be brewing some conspiracy, preparing for an even fiercer next attack.

As the saying goes, the storm is about to arrive.

Xiao Zhangqing, though, was also somewhat anxious.

But his anxiety was not that the next Fuhai Sect attack would be too fierce, but that the Fuhai Sect was coming too slowly!

The earlier they come, the better for him.

He could earn enough contribution points sooner, gain fame sooner, and obtain sufficient treasures.

Once he obtains the treasures, he can consider returning to the Da Yu Cultivation World.

Having arrived in the Qingxu Realm, more than half a year has passed, and he still does not know his own condition.

Thus another two months passed.

Finally, during a howling gale and towering waves, the Fuhai Sect's cultivators appeared in great numbers over Blood Crystal Island.

Leading them was the famed Lady of the Dark River.

Without any pre‑battle proclamation, the moment the Lady of the Dark River appeared, a domineering aura surged to its peak, her mighty mana spread, and for an instant it seemed that the raging wind and rain within a ten‑mile radius halted, and the surging sea briefly solidified.

She then activated a roughly ten‑chi tall conical treasure, seemingly forged entirely of dark ice crystal.

The treasure's destructive power was not overt, yet it emitted a strange vibration, greedily absorbing the Lady of the Dark River's potent mana as well as the surrounding rain and seawater.

In no time, the conical treasure seemed to "come alive," transforming into a semi‑transparent crystal drake that lunged fiercely toward Blood Crystal Island.

Boom—crack! Cold air and mist spread, making the already bleak Blood Crystal Island even more chilling.

The Fourth‑Grade island‑protecting array was instantly ripped open in the center with a huge breach!

Though the array's foundation was not damaged, it seemed "frozen" by the crystal drake's pervasive cold; besides the massive opening, the array's other operations became stiff and less smooth than before.

Especially at the western corner of Blood Crystal Island, where Xiao Zhangqing was stationed, he clearly felt the array's power severely weakened, becoming the whole array's weak point and flaw! "Kill!"

"Today, the Fuhai Sect seizes Blood Crystal Island!"

The Lady of the Dark River's black, waterfall‑like hair fluttered as she saw Elder Liyuan stationed at the island's center and charged in herself, preventing her from repairing the array.

Behind her, the Fuhai Sect's mid‑Foundation elder and numerous Foundation‑building disciples, following a pre‑arranged order, rushed to slaughter at various locations.

……

"We've waited so long, finally it's here!"

Xiao Zhangqing, who was stationed at the island's western corner, smiled, watching the sky beyond the formation ahead, where a Core Formation cultivator was replicating the method, then produced a formation‑breaking treasure and fully activated it to blast a hole in the already weak western‑corner formation. Xiao Zhangqing's control over the formation and the defensive power he could muster were less than one‑third of before, becoming extremely weak.

However, because his Soul Transformation is a Primordial Spirit, he can merge with heaven and earth and command higher‑level power.

Thus, even if the formation lags, he can, by virtue of his powerful Primordial Spirit, mobilize more power, making the operation more efficient.

The Core Formation Elder of the Fuhai Sect saw this and also smiled, seizing the moment to destroy.

The formation here was flawed from the start, and the crucial point is that the person stationed here is not a Core Formation top master like Li Yuan, but a newly‑promoted Core Formation Mid‑stage practitioner of less than a year, whose strength is ten‑thousand‑plus levels below his.

Having such a Core Formation practitioner in his grasp gave him a huge advantage.

If the plan proceeds smoothly, he can take control of this corner and, using the special treasure "Point‑to‑Pierce‑Surface," completely destroy Blood Crystal Island's Island‑Protection Array.

Then, all the Sanyang Sect disciples on the island, including Li Yuan, will have to die.

Oh, there are also two people who must not die.

One is a Foundation Establishment Realm young female cultivator named Hu Li, and the other is the Fang Yuan before us who has repeatedly enjoyed "good luck."

These two must absolutely not die now.

I must say, this Fang Yuan before us truly has destiny‑bound luck.

First, his Core Formation Early Stage cultivation was severely wounded by the Minghe Elder's Soul Transformation technique, yet he survived and, paradoxically, his cultivation improved; later, discovering a disciple like Hu Li, his life became completely secure.

Otherwise, if he had merely escaped the Minghe Elder once by luck, he would certainly not escape today.

"Although we can't kill him, capturing him first is no problem."

The Fuhai Sect Elder was fully confident, having a detailed plan.

Kakakaka!

As the Fuhai Sect Elder breached the formation, his raging mana wielded a Giant Umbrella Magic Treasure that towered to block the sky, continuously rotating and emitting highly destructive attacks, aiming to damage the Island‑Protection Array.

Xiao Zhangqing clenched the incantation, gathering the scant remaining formation power to resist the Giant Umbrella's destruction.

"With only this lingering formation power, you still think you can resist me? Fang Yuan, I advise you to surrender!"

The Fuhai Sect Elder sneered.

In truth, he felt a bit surprised, because his current speed of destroying the formation was far slower than he had imagined.

It seemed that the destruction by the Minghe Elder earlier and his own had not achieved the expected effect.

What is going on?

Has Blood Crystal Island's Island‑Protection Array evolved and strengthened? That's impossible.

It is a Fourth‑Tier Array; with the Sanyang Sect's strength, it cannot be further enhanced.

He clearly could not have imagined that it wasn't the formation that grew stronger, but that Xiao Zhangqing's Soul Transformation is at the Nascent Soul level, forcibly making the formation operate more efficiently.

Nevertheless, though internally surprised, he showed no outward sign and had already prepared to activate the contingency plan.

"Since you still intend to stubbornly resist, then die!"

The Fuhai Sect Elder showed a very urgent demeanor, unleashing a forbidden technique, simultaneously destroying the formation and fighting desperately with Xiao Zhangqing inside the formation.

His plan was to feign an all‑out attack for a moment, appearing to exhaust his strength, while actually keeping a trump card.

When Xiao Zhangqing let his guard down, he would then unleash the real killing move, catching Xiao Zhangqing off guard.

As for Li Yuan's warning to Xiao Zhangqing not to be greedy and rashly charge out, the Fuhai Sect had not intended to exploit this.

Because in their view, as long as Xiao Zhangqing is not a fool, he would not, having just advanced to Core Formation Mid‑stage, dare to abandon defensive crouching and instead take the initiative.

But in the next instant, Xiao Zhangqing's action stunned him.

It seemed that Xiao Zhangqing originally only needed to sit steadily within the formation, borrowing the remaining formation power, to barely hold out for a while, awaiting the conclusion of the main battlefield battle between Li Yuan and Minghe Madam.

Suddenly, however, he activated a fully‑formed Magic Treasure; the Twelve‑Faced Array Banner unfurled in the wind under the drive of mana, drawing endless water‑walking power from the sea, instantly enveloping several miles around, as if forming a Barrier.

This array banner extended beyond the range of Blood Crystal Island's formation coverage, also encircling the Fuhai Sect Elder.

In fact, the Magic Treasure Xiao Zhangqing exchanged for over ten thousand Contribution Points at the Hall of Merit was the Mountain River Banner.

It was once a Fourth‑Tier, mid‑grade Magic Treasure, the famed artifact of a Nascent Soul Mid‑stage True Lord, now fallen to Third‑Tier.

"What does that mean?"

The Fuhai Sect Elder stared at the suddenly appearing Barrier, which cut off external sight.

Then he saw Xiao Zhangqing actually fly out of the formation straight toward him! He hadn't even had time to execute his follow‑up plan; the feigned attack wasn't finished, the real technique hadn't been deployed, and there was no pretense of injury.

"Fang Yuan, how did you run out on your own?"

"Or did you slip out using this Barrier to hide your exit?"

The Fuhai Sect Elder's mind flickered, as if recalling something, and he instantly understood, sneering, "Fang Yuan, did Jin Mu preemptively communicate with you? Are you planning to follow Jin Mu and betray the Sanyang Sect?"

Xiao Zhangqing was contemplating how to slay this unknown Fuhai Sect Elder, pretending it would take how much time…

Today he intends to reveal part of his true strength, but the target is not to slay an unknown elder, but Minghe Madam.

Therefore he cannot appear overly powerful, lest he frighten Minghe Madam in advance and cause her to flee.

As a result, Xiao Zhangqing was also a bit bewildered.

This unknown Fuhai Sect Elder, seeing him abandon the formation to strike proactively, did not feel the anticipated thrill, hurried to act, but instead halted and uttered a baffling remark.

However, Xiao Zhangqing reacted quickly, instantly regaining his composure, and asked with a strange expression, "Jin Mu? The Sanyang Sect Law‑Enforcing Elder Jin Mu? Did he collude with your Fuhai Sect and betray the sect?"

With the current battle so tense, at this critical moment, this unknown Fuhai Sect Elder is unlikely to be deceiving himself now.

What he says is probably true, nine times out of ten.

Moreover, considering Jin Mu's disciple Zhou Tong, who came to persuade his disciple Hu Li to join him in defecting, it seems a case of a crooked beam leading to a crooked beam...

Only…

Why would this unknown Fuhai Sect Elder say Jin Mu communicated with me? Does that make me a traitor?

That's not right; if my predecessor truly intended to defect from the Sanyang Sect, he wouldn't have been mortally wounded by Minghe Madam.

What on earth is going on? It's a bit strange…

"Never mind, first capture this person and then speak; if we can't torture them, we'll soul‑search."

Xiao Zhangqing temporarily set aside his many thoughts and brazenly acted. (End of chapter)