Chapter 465: The Brave Gui Sect (5K4, Thanks to Big Shot Blue Fairy)

"Shen Zongzhu, this time..."

Liu Qianyun handed over the pile of registers, her expression somewhat complex.

Clearly, the Seven Sages of Yu Nanhong were playing for real this time.

This was a major matter concerning the position of Shen Zongzhu in the General General Nanyang sacred land.

It absolutely could not be brushed aside with a mere private friendship or some other excuse.

If she extended a helping hand again, even her father might draw fire upon himself; unauthorized interference in the succession of the Shen Zongzhu position, and even a cultivator of Bai Yujing would have to die!

"I understand."

Shen Yi nodded and said softly, "Thank you to everyone of the Qingyue Sect for your help."

He was simply not good at dealing with people, but he understood clearly in his heart.

Since leaving the General General Nanyang Sect, he had received many favors from the Qingyue Sect and Senior Xuan Qing.

"Thank you, Shen Zongzhu, for your understanding."

Liu Qianyun pressed her lips together, then smiled: "However, what was agreed upon before, sending someone over to teach the Dharma, still stands... and this, keep it safe. This is my father's wish."

"He said, if it becomes too tiring, do not force yourself."

"As long as life remains, everything else will come."

As she spoke, Liu Qianyun quietly slipped a decree into Shen Yi's sleeve, then clasped her hands with force and said, "Shen Zongzhu, we take our leave!"

She turned and led a group of Qingyue Sect executives away from the General General Nanyang sacred land.

"..."

Shen Yi fell silent for a moment, then walked slowly back to the Ancestral Master Hall: "Is the Qingyue Sect Master a woman?"

Li Xuanqing looked up in confusion: "How do you know? Do you know Junior Uncle Ji?"

"Then there is no problem."

Shen Yi shook his head and put the decree away.

He was just curious why there would be kindness without reason in this world; it turned out it relied on the connection with Senior Xuan Qing.

"Uh."

Li Xuanqing withdrew his gaze, feeling that Shen Zongzhu seemed to have misunderstood something.

That Junior Uncle Ji was famous for being indifferent; let alone lending a hand to help the General General Nanyang Sect, even if he, Xuan Qing, died before her, this Junior Uncle might not intervene.

The reason he was polite to her was not because their relationship was particularly good.

It was simply because he had been spanked by Junior Uncle Ji when he was young, leaving him with a psychological shadow.

Inside the Main Hall of the General General Nanyang Sect.

Li Qingfeng flipped through the register on the table with meticulous care, then took out the gilded and jade-inlaid roster, matching the two against each other one by one.

As time passed, sweat beads seeped onto his forehead: "This... these are all vassals of the General General Nanyang Sect? Could it be a mistake?"

Just these one hundred and eighty-two families, more than half of which, if you pulled out any single one, possessed a powerhouse of Return to Emptiness sixth layer or above stationed there, capable of wiping out the entire General General Nanyang clan with a wave of their hand.

"Do your job."

Shen Yi sat nearby, also flipping through a register.

Outside the hall, a group of Return to Emptiness experts from the Chen family, including Yu Zu, anyone above the third layer, had all received the General General Nanyang executive robes.

Unfortunately, there were still too few; all told, there were only twelve or thirteen.

"Hah."

Li Qingfeng exhaled, turned his head and said: "It looks like there are many matters, but actually over eighty percent are just asking to borrow things from us... However, I have hardly heard of most of these items."

"Put them aside, pretend you didn't see them."

Shen Yi casually tossed the register onto the table.

These supporters, after all, had just been transferred from the Meng Sect, and outside they were still using the name of the Seven Sages of General General Nanyang; by themselves, hardly anyone dared to provoke them.

As for borrowing things... it was simply turning heaven and earth upside down!

Shen Zongzhu's pockets were emptier than his face; when Nie Jun last came asking about the treasure materials for the Dao Pillar, he had bundled them all up to exchange for the pure blood of the Profound Phoenix, and still owed the Qingyue Sect a batch of treasure herbs for refining the Heavenly Phoenix Pill.

"As for the remaining matters, setting aside those trivialities, the rest are quite troublesome."

Li Qingfeng stared at Shen Yi; he knew how stunning the other had been on this journey, but the time was still too short.

To shoulder the responsibilities of a sect with one's own strength, tsk.

"Shen Zongzhu, do you think we should simply shut down the Sect Array and continue as before..."

"Are you very idle?" Shen Yi slapped the back of his head.

If the array is shut down now, then killing that old dog back then was in vain; did Senior Xuan Qing go out for a stroll just to go out and lose face?

Li Qingfeng helplessly withdrew his gaze and picked out a register: "This should be the most urgent; the Gui Sect has been invaded by demons and monsters for a full half-month now."

"We are willing to follow Shen Zongzhu to subdue the demons!"

The few unharmed elders of the Chen family, all of Return to Emptiness fourth layer realm, suddenly stepped forward.

They had been at the General General Nanyang Sect for a short time, but had already clearly seen the current situation.

How could the merit of following the dragon be abandoned?

This was a good opportunity accumulated by the Chen family over generations of virtue and merit.

Leaving aside other things, just this executive robe, in the past, was something they wouldn't even dare to dream of.

Moreover, apart from the General General Nanyang Sect, where else would anyone be willing to take them in now?

"Send a few experienced ones."

Shen Yi put away the register, stood up, and walked towards the hall entrance.

As for the strength in magical combat, if even he himself could not solve it, no matter how many of these people went, it would all be in vain.

But after all, they are cultivators from the outside; their way of handling matters is surely far more skilled than his own.

"As for the rest, we can assign them some trivial tasks, trying our best not to let them suffer losses."

With so few people in the sect now, it cannot withstand any turmoil.

Shen Yi did not want to return from his outing to find everyone dead and gone.

Soon, three elders of the Chen family followed behind.

Li Qingfeng looked at the remaining ten who were staring at each other in confusion, shook his head, and said, "Do you not quite understand?"

Upon hearing this, everyone nodded in astonishment.

Where is the logic in a sect leader going out to face danger while his subordinates do the things that preserve their lives?

"Just get used to it."

Li Qingfeng slowly stood up and explained, "This is why, within this inner sect, at least ninety percent of people are willing to die for him."

"However."

Li Qingfeng shifted his tone and smiled, "Although our Shen Zongzhu is kind-hearted, he is also decisive when fighting; I hope you will never have the chance to witness that scene."

The Chen family members' expressions changed slightly.

In fact, they had already seen it.

That surging and scorching sea of fire still lingered before their eyes even now.

"Get to work."

Li Qingfeng had no intention of overstepping his bounds; he was merely a small follower of Shen Yi at present.

He simply did not want these people to misunderstand Shen Yi's kindness, leading to unnecessary incidents.

Shen Zongzhu is not only skilled in slaying demons; when killing humans, he is equally ruthless and shows no mercy.

Outside the General Nanyang Sect.

Shen Yi did not change into the General Nanyang white robe; he still wore a black shirt.

Part of the reason was that he did not want to attract too much attention; besides, if the sect leader personally handled every matter, it would make people look down on the General Nanyang Sect when the news spread.

Although he had always cared little about such empty fame.

But the current General Nanyang Sect needed it very much.

Being weak inside forces one to appear fierce outside; this was a helpless measure to recover these one hundred and eighty-two families.

Three Chen family elders at the fourth level of Killed Fanxu, wearing General Nanyang steward robes, followed behind, looking quite imposing.

"Shen Zongzhu, it seems they are avoiding us."

One of the elders looked forward with some astonishment.

He saw that whether it was any of the seven families of Yu Nanhong, or whether it was a steward or an outer sect elder, as soon as they saw Shen Yi, they turned and ran away from a distance like rats seeing a cat, without hesitation.

"..."

Shen Yi paid no attention and followed the route recorded in the register, soaring forward.

These people, proud of their status, how could they be willing to perform the great sect leader's salute to a junior; they simply avoided meeting him.

But that was fine; it saved a lot of trouble.

Shen Yi lowered his gaze to look at what was in his hand.

According to the record in that gilded register, the Gui Sect was considered a medium-sized existence among these one hundred and eighty-two families.

Although their cultivation was not high.

Their skill in crafting puppets was such that they did not fear even demons at the sixth level of Killed Fanxu.

At the very beginning, they were not seeking aid; they only wanted to borrow some heavenly treasures and earthly gems to repair their spiritual puppets, but they had received no response for a long time.

Who knows what the situation is like now.

The journey was not far; without a means of transportation treasure, it took only three days.

Shen Yi saw the magnificent sect gate ahead.

"Huff."

Several elders almost simultaneously exhaled a breath.

Although they had put on the General Nanyang steward robes, when facing a power that was obviously superior to the Chen family, they could not help but feel somewhat timid.

After all, they were not from the Xian Sect and did not possess that naturally superior mindset.

Especially when they felt the powerful aura gathering inside the sect gate, this feeling inevitably deepened a bit more.

"Shen Zongzhu, this does not look like the scene of demons invading."

The Chen family elder looked at Shen Yi in confusion; if it were truly a demon invasion, how could it be so calm, and how could these powerful ones still have the mind to gather together?

"Let's go in and take a look."

Although Shen Yi was unwilling to make a wasted trip, forcing himself to see bodies strewn everywhere would be going too far.

At the same time.

On a high platform deep within the Gui Sect.

A dense crowd was clearly divided into three forces, occupying the entire platform; those on the far right wearing grey clothes, each accompanied by various puppets, were obviously the masters of this place.

Five people sat in front, leaving one chair empty.

That person stood up; compared to the other five old men, he was obviously much younger, appearing as a middle-aged man, yet his status was in no way inferior to theirs.

His expression was serious as he shouted to all sides, "Yang Lin represents the Gui Sect and first thanks the Zhao family and the Qinghai Prefecture for their assistance; however, since the demons have not retreated, I have boldly invited the two families, not to chat idly, but to discuss something more important."

Upon hearing this, the people of the Zhao family and the Qinghai Prefecture all turned their gaze toward him, yet showed no expression of confusion, as if they had expected it all along.

"I believe both allies have received the news regarding the seven great Xian Sects of Yu Nanhong abandoning us."

Yang Lin closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

He was interrupted by an old man from the Qinghai Prefecture: "The news we received was not like that; it cannot be called abandoning; they merely handed us over to the General Nanyang Xian Sect."

"General Nanyang Xian Sect?"

Yang Lin opened his eyes, raised an eyebrow, and suppressed his inner dissatisfaction: "What General Nanyang Xian Sect? That was a hundred thousand years ago. Neither you nor I were born then. Have you ever seen the General Nanyang Xian Sect with your own eyes?"

With just that one sentence, he silenced the old man from Qinghai Mansion.

The strongest among them was only at the sixth layer of Void Return; how could they have lived through such a vast span of time?

The rest fell silent simultaneously.

Yang Lin withdrew his gaze with satisfaction, his eyes growing sharper: "Relying on others is not as good as relying on oneself. Since the Seven Sages of Southern Hong no longer intend to protect us, we cannot simply sit and wait for death. It is better for the three families to join hands and secure a self-defense that is more than sufficient here in Southern Hong's land and water."

Before his words had finished falling.

The expressions of everyone present finally changed.

They had guessed that the Gui Sect intended to bring this up, and they knew that after their recent encounter with the demon calamity, the Seven Sages of Southern Hong had ignored them, so there must be resentment in their hearts.

But they never expected that the man surnamed Yang would dare to say this so openly and loudly.

They must remember that all these powers were originally supported by the General Nanyang Sect, handed down from generation to generation until today.

How many days has it been?

Is this not too hasty?

Looking again at the group from the Gui Sect, they saw that the five elders sitting there all kept their eyes lowered, staring at the ground, showing a hint of struggle, yet none stood up to refute anything.

The old man from Qinghai Mansion pondered slightly and roughly guessed the reason.

This time, the Gui Sect encountered a demon calamity; even their sect-guarding spirit puppet was damaged. It was only because Yang Lin found the heavenly treasures and earthly herbs needed for repair that they managed to hold on until their reinforcements arrived.

This was the moment when his voice carried the most weight.

Thinking of this, he spoke slowly: "We came on this journey only to relieve the Gui Sect's predicament; we have not considered matters beyond that. I advise Daoist Yang to first focus his gaze on the present."

"What use is there in repelling this demon calamity?!"

Yang Lin suddenly raised his voice: "Have you not seen clearly yet? You are fools! Without the protection of the Seven Sages of Southern Hong, such demon calamities will only increase in the future! Do you still place your hope in the so-called General Nanyang Xian Sect, to pay that exorbitantly high tribute?"

Speaking thus, he suddenly waved his sleeve, his face flushing red: "Let us speak plainly today. I have heard of the affairs of the Seven Sages of Southern Hong. That so-called General Nanyang Sect is merely a group of native inhabitants of the Dao-Aligning Sacred Land at the Qi Refining and Soul Transformation stages, plus a handful of cultivators at the early stage of Void Return, and they have even Renule Alliance."

"Are you willing to hand over tribute to such existences?"

Renule Alliance? These few simple words caused everyone present to fall into Tianyan Siji once more.

Seeing this, a trace of sinister malice flashed in Yang Lin's eyes. He raised his arm and shouted: "If you are willing to pay tribute, that is your business. As for my Gui Sect, we will not pay. We will not take the things we have worked so hard to collect to feed a group of cowards who only know how to hide within their sect's sacred lands."

"If you want them, let them come and collect it personally!"

Yang Lin stood in the middle of the field, his gaze slowly sweeping over everyone's faces, yet not a single person dared to meet his eyes.

He finally breathed a sigh of relief in his heart.

Until a indifferent voice came from the sky curtain.

"The General Nanyang Sect has arrived. Who is in charge here?"

Accompanying these words, the dense crowd instinctively looked up toward the sky.

They saw three white-haired elders standing with their hands by their sides.

Their black robes swayed slightly, and the General Nanyang silver-thread patterns upon them were extremely glaring.

Behind the three executives, there was also a tall figure in a dark robe, gazing down calmly at the area below, seemingly having heard none of the previous words spoken by the crowd.

"Heh."

Yang Lin's eyelids twitched. The atmosphere he had so painstakingly created collapsed rapidly the instant this group appeared.

Indeed, under the leadership of the Qinghai Mansion elder, including the people of the Gui Sect, they all involuntarily stood up, intending to bow to those figures.

"Stand up! No kneeling!"

Yang Lin turned back with a ferocious expression, scanning the crowd, and clenched his five fingers tightly: "Have you not understood yet? We waited half a month, only to wait for a few cultivators at the fourth layer of Void Return. What are they doing here now? To fill the bellies of demons, or to collect one last tribute while we are unaware?"

The bodies of the crowd paused slightly.

Several elders of the Chen family slowly furrowed their brows, forcing themselves to remain calm.

They were originally borrowing the tiger's might to intimidate others.

If a single sentence could not control this crowd, the effect of their executive robes would only grow weaker and weaker.

Noticing that the crowd still had not bowed.

The Chen family elder with the thinnest skin had already instinctively looked toward Shen Yi.

This matter was simply bizarre to the extreme.

Their Chen family was previously one of the powers protected by the Seven Sages of Southern Hong.

Putting themselves in another's shoes, even if they encountered the same situation, even if their mindset had changed, it would be impossible to happen so quickly, and even more impossible to be stated openly.

If the goal was merely self-preservation, there was absolutely no need to offend an Xian Sect possessing a Dao-Aligning Sacred Land; a lean camel is still bigger than a horse.

This... seemed more like deliberately shaming Shen Zongzhu.

"Uh."

The next moment, the Chen family elder saw Shen Yi descending leisurely toward the area below. Coming to his senses, he hurriedly followed.

No matter what, as long as the Sect Master had not spoken.

They could only endure it.

"You..."

Yang Lin stared fixedly at the youth who had suddenly descended to the high platform, discovering that the other's expression was utterly calm, merely walking slowly toward him.

With Shen Yi's steps, the surrounding crowd gradually lowered their heads.

He could hardly imagine that if this youth were to speak, whether all his previous efforts would instantly lose their effect.

"Stop! Who allowed you to trespass in my Gui Sect!"

As the words were spoken, Yang Lin clapped his palms together. Suddenly, a tiger-shaped spirit puppet eight zhang tall emerged behind him, its body glowing with red light, its face fierce and evil, vivid and lifelike, showing no sign at all that it was a lifeless object.

This was the treasure guarding the Gui Sect.

A puppet with red whiskers and blood-red claws, comparable to the sixth layer of the Void Return realm.

The spirit puppet, which had just been repaired, now bore several fresh wounds; this was why the other Gui Sect cultivators watched him act with impunity, their eyes wide.

"If you do not stop, do not blame this seat for being impolite."

Yang Lin forced himself to remain calm and instinctively glanced toward a certain direction.

Having reached this point, there was no turning back.

At this thought, ferocity surged in his eyes; he formed a hand seal with his five fingers, and the red-whiskered, blood-clawed puppet behind him let out a deep, earth-shaking roar that echoed through the mountains and forests, while crimson light within its body shot straight up into the sky.

Its massive and muscular body stepped out across the air and crashed down before Shen Yi.

Its pair of blood-red eyes displayed the same expression as Yang Lin's.

It looked down from a height at the slender figure below.

This act nearly fainted everyone present; even the elders of the Gui Sect could not help but rush out: "Yang Lin, why must you drive things to the extreme! Stop immediately!"

"I do not intend to drive things to the extreme; I only want him to leave the Gui Sect obediently."

Yang Lin's hoarse voice came from the mouth of the red-whiskered, blood-clawed puppet.

Several elders of the Chen family, facing a spirit puppet of such terrifying realm, twitched slightly at the corners of their mouths, yet still stood firmly behind Shen Yi.

They had witnessed even more terrifying things before.

Indeed, Shen Yi never stopped his steps, as if he had not heard Yang Lin's words at all, and his eyes showed no sign of that ferocious red-whiskered, blood-clawed puppet.

At the instant he walked to the front of the red-whiskered, blood-clawed puppet.

He still maintained that calm and unhurried appearance, as if he had not even moved a finger.

Yet a deafening boom rang in everyone's ears!

Crack!

The massive red-whiskered, blood-clawed puppet was shattered and sent flying backward!

The crimson light shattered! Those extremely precious materials did not last even a single breath before turning to dust.

Under the torrential force, the remaining fragments of the spirit puppet engulfed Yang Lin's body; blood seeped from the gaps, staining the stone floor of the high platform red.

The fragments of the spirit puppet trembled slightly twice, and the person buried within them quickly lost all signs of life.

Only at this moment did that terrifying booming sound slowly dissipate.

"..."

Shen Yi walked past the stunned crowd of the Gui Sect without looking aside, casually pulled out a chair, moved to the very front, brushed off his robes, and leaned back upon it.

"Ah."

Everyone panted heavily, staring fixedly at that calm figure.

In an instant, they uncontrollably knelt to the ground: "We welcome the Immortal of the General Nanyang Sect to the Gui Sect with great honor! We failed to welcome you from afar; we beg the Immortal's forgiveness!"

Shen Yi glanced casually toward the front, his voice still devoid of any fluctuation: "No need to kneel. State your business."

Several elders of the Chen family stood behind the chair, watching the heads bobbing up and down ahead, and suddenly felt this scene was strangely familiar.

Actually, most people were still quite normal.

It was just that Yang Lin... had the other party always been this brave?

Shen Yi leaned quietly against the chair, his gaze inadvertently flickering toward a certain spot, and a few degrees of chill appeared at the corner of his lips.

The matter has been laid bare on the surface, yet this hidden arrow still refuses to be withdrawn.

(End of this chapter)