Chapter 611: Stirring Heaven and Earth Upside Down, a Rain of Blood and a Reeking Wind

"Wait!"

Zi Xian didn't react for a moment.

It was clearly her own elder brother who had taken the prisoner—so why had the Liangdaohuang Sect suddenly redirected its fury onto Shen Yi?

That lord of Nanyang had only left Yu Nanhong such a short time ago—how on earth had he managed to offend so many top-tier powers all at once?

"..."

Faced with Zi Xian's attempt to block them, the two Sect Masters of the Liangdaohuang Sect acted as if they hadn't heard, still striding toward the outside of the hall.

"This King understands the two of you are eager for revenge."

Qi Shengtao finally rose to his feet and advised, "But since that cultivator was able to slay Yue Gonggui, he is by no means an ordinary man. Don't act rashly—let us discuss this carefully before deciding, to avoid any mishaps."

In truth, for the West Long Wang, dealing with Wan Yao Dian or with that black-robed cultivator was the same as helping his own West Dragon purge the rebels.

Now that Zi Yang had stepped so forcefully into West Dragon territory and seized Xue Yan right off the bat, hoping the two sides could live in harmony and work together was rather wishful thinking.

Still, the pleasantries had to be observed.

"Mishaps?"

Si Tu Fuhai slowly halted his steps and cast a mirthless sidelong glance at Qi Shengtao.

The reason this old dragon wanted to smooth things over was simply that he felt their strength was not as important as that Zi Yang Crown Prince.

A mere West Dragon Palace, and it dares to look down on the Liangdaohuang Sect.

"This Seat isn't quite sure, but once I summon the Ancestral Stele, what mishap could possibly occur in West Dragon?"

That single brief sentence left only two words echoing in everyone's mind.

Ancestral Stele.

As everyone knew, the Liangdaohuang Sect possessed a Celestial Fate Stone Tablet, upon which was inscribed every technique of the Liangdaohuang Palace practiced by its disciples. Beyond that, this Ancestral Stele also had an effect similar to a Dragon Lair.

The two Sect Masters certainly couldn't have carried this Ancestral Stele all the way to West Dragon with them, but from the sound of it, even across such a vast distance, they could still invoke a portion of its power.

Truly worthy of being a Celestial Fate.

So they had been hiding a trump card.

Qi Shengtao's heart churned, yet his expression squeezed out a look of helpless resignation—as if, with Zi Yang so powerful, he had no other choice: "I see. Then I wish the two of you a triumphant victory, and that justice be served for Sect Master Si Tu Junrui."

"Don't worry—it will be."

Shi Lianchang's voice turned cold. The Liangdaohuang Sect, as the only one among the three top powers controlled by human cultivators—unlike the East Dragon Palace and the North Dragon Palace—was a colossal force that had risen to prominence during the recent Killing Tribulation.

What it feared most was others thinking it inferior to those two Dragon Palaces.

"Shall I send men to search for that cultivator's whereabouts for the two of you?" Qi Shengtao's manner became considerably more polite.

"Heh, you'd better keep a close eye on your Wan Yao Dian."

Si Tu Fuhai sneered and said coolly, "My younger brother disappeared on his way to the Banshan Sect. If This Seat remembers correctly, that black-robed cultivator seemed to have come along with the Banshan Sect Master, didn't he?"

"Farewell."

The two men no longer hesitated, sweeping straight out of the great hall and heading upward toward the waters above.

In a place no one noticed, upon hearing the name Banshan Sect, Zi Xian's breathing instantly grew ragged. Had Qi Shengtao not been present, she likely could no longer have restrained herself and would have wanted to rush out the hall doors as well.

She didn't know whether Shen Yi was at the Banshan Sect.

But she knew clearly that the sect had gone to Yu Nanhong to offer aid. Now Ji Jingxi was in West Dragon, and knowing the temper of the Seven Sons of Nanhong, how could they possibly stand by and watch their benefactor come to harm?

Damn!

Thinking of this, Zi Xian instinctively glanced toward Lady Yushan's direction.

To resolve this trouble, surveying all of West Dragon, probably only her elder brother stepping forward would have any chance of success.

West Dragon, within the Banshan Sect.

Where that low mountain had once stood, after the mountain had been taken away, a massive ancestral hall had been newly erected in its place as a memorial.

Huang Wenfa had always felt that the name the founding patriarch had chosen was terribly inauspicious.

Banshan Sect, Banshan Sect—and in the end, someone really did come and carry the mountain away.

Fortunately, the one who took the low mountain was Shen Zongzhu. The sect lost its treasure mountain, but gained the secret cache within it.

"Phew."

Huang Wenfa slowly stroked the jade slip in his hand. Who could have imagined that beneath this utterly unremarkable exterior lay a true immortal art.

Divine Mountain Suppresses the Blue Sky!

Moreover, compared to other immortal arts, this Divine Mountain Suppresses the Blue Sky could be split into three forms, learned step by step—the difficulty of entry was reduced by who knew how much.

It was absolutely something that could let the sect leap upward and rank among the first-rate powers of the Flood Marshes.

But Shen Zongzhu had said not a single word, casually tossing the thing straight into his arms.

"So I say, worshipping that mountain is useless—better to worship Shen Zongzhu more when you have the time."

Huang Wenfa put away the jade slip, pressed his palms together, and actually solemnly bowed twice toward the ancestral hall.

Seeing this, Yan Chongzhang felt quite helpless, but then he too looked toward the ancestral hall with deep agreement. Just on account of this Divine Mountain Suppresses the Blue Sky, the Banshan Sect offending the Liangdaohuang Sect was not a losing proposition.

What's more, Shen Zongzhu had never truly let the pressure fall onto the Banshan Sect.

He just didn't know what state of mind the other party was in now—after slaying the Yue clan, there wasn't even a single person beside him to consult with.

At the same time, within that ancestral hall.

"Ahem."

Yu Lan crossed her arms, pretending not to see the pleading look the person beside her was casting her way.

At the same time, she felt a twinge of bitterness.

Having gained such a great benefit, being worked to the bone was only fitting.

"My Lord, Tianji truly isn't skilled in formations."

Yue Tianji was clad in treasure armor, his face showing a bitter expression. Though he looked like a coward, the aura emanating from his entire body had undergone a complete transformation compared to before.

It was as if his body had been washed by something, giving him a sense of soaring straight to the heavens.

That so-called "something" was the sea of blood formed from the corpses of Elder Yue Gonggui and over ten clansmen, which had helped Yue Tianji break through several bottlenecks in one go, reaching a level infinitely close to the perfection of the Heavenly realm.

If not for the fact that his own cultivation was barely at the early stage of the Earth realm, this wave of harvest alone would have been enough to help him catch up with Ke Shisan.

"I'm fine, I'm good at… ugh… I'm good at it."

Shen Yi sat cross-legged on a meditation cushion, his voice calm, slightly bending a finger to wipe the corner of his mouth.

His entire face had already gone deathly pale.

One should know that he also had some attainments in the Dao of formations.

But this Greedy Wolf Star Dou Immortal-Slaying Formation Diagram was indeed incomplete; each Xihong Sect master held only an individual portion, and there weren't enough people—several parts were still missing.

Furthermore, Shen Yi planned to use the Suppression Stone to form the formation, so he had to master this grand formation entirely on his own, without any master's guidance, making the difficulty skyrocket countless times over.

Besides that, there was indeed some gap between his and Xue Yan's innate talent and comprehension.

But any difficulty, even a grand formation comparable to immortal arts, appeared utterly insignificant before a demon lifespan of over ten million years.

Although the bulk had to be spent on condensing the Demon Emperor Seal, it really didn't hurt to spend a few hundred thousand years comprehending formations.

"Rested enough? Continue."

As the words fell, Yue Tianji was forcibly pulled into the panel by Shen Yi.

The entire ancestral hall once again returned to a deathly silence.

Perhaps it was an illusion, but as Shen Yi slowly closed his eyes, he found himself gradually growing accustomed to the negative feedback the panel provided.

This feeling of nausea so intense his five viscera and six bowels felt about to split apart, his divine soul nearly shattering, represented an increase in strength.

And right now, what he lacked most was strength.

Upon stepping into the mid-stage of the Heavenly realm, Shen Yi discovered a problem.

Immortal arts that reached perfection could indeed rival divine abilities, even surpassing ordinary divine abilities in power.

But a cultivator's divine abilities were not unchanging.

For instance, Senior Ye Jiu's third divine ability, that Sword of All Things—if thrust out in earnest, a single strike nearly took the South Long Wang's life. It was hard to imagine what astonishing power it would possess if he stepped into the perfection of the Heavenly realm and comprehended a fourth divine ability.

In other words, the higher the realm, the divine abilities comprehended gradually became something immortal arts could no longer match.

Otherwise, by the crudest calculation, he now mastered two immortal arts plus two divine abilities, which should amount to the strength of Heavenly realm perfection.

However, in reality, after Shen Yi compared himself with Ke Shisan… even factoring in the Demon Emperor Weapon and all that, he estimated he had only barely touched that level, and might not even be enough.

With such strength, wanting to achieve the goal of controlling the Three Hongs while also withstanding the pressure of the North Hong sounded like a joke just hearing it.

Therefore, no improvement whatsoever could be let slip now.

……

Xihong, between the azure sky and emerald sea.

Ji Jingxi appeared calm as she hovered in the sky waiting, yet the five fingers tightly gripping the conch betrayed her inner agitation and unease.

"Jingxi, don't act rashly. I'm coming right away."

From the conch came Zi Xian's soothing voice, interspersed with a few spitting curses: "If you won't go, I'll go myself. After all, you're my only sister—if you die, so be it!"

Ji Jingxi stared silently at the conch, but her thoughts grew even more chaotic.

The one who could make Zi Xian call "brother"—throughout all of Hongze there was only that one person. From the meaning of those words, it seemed there was now a troublesome matter that required the Ziyang Crown Prince himself to resolve, and it was related to them.

"Don't panic."

Two figures slowly emerged behind Ji Jingxi. Ye Jiu frowned as she gazed into the distance and softly reminded, "Actually, I sensed experts fighting earlier, but the grand formation obscured the heavenly secrets, so I couldn't see clearly. Thinking it over, it should be because of the Wuliang Dao Huang Sect and the Yue Clan—both have grudges with us, so encountering such a calamity is normal."

"Let's hear what Zi Xian has to say first." Ye Jiu gently patted Ji Jingxi's shoulder.

"Quite right. Since Shen Zongzhu brought us here, he surely has his arrangements. Now Shen Zongzhu sits firmly at Banshan Sect; as long as he hasn't given the order, we need only hold our position."

After Qi Yansheng finished speaking, a hint of emotion showed on his face.

The worse off one is, the more one fears meeting old acquaintances—and the Ziyang Crown Prince was one of considerable weight among those acquaintances.

Friends who once sat at the same table, meeting again after a hundred thousand years, were no longer existences of the same level.

Just then, the gazes of the three subtly sharpened.

The next moment, purple-white radiance burst from the water, arriving in great haste.

"Hiss."

Zi Xian's originally anxious expression, upon seeing Ye Jiu and Qi Yansheng, suddenly turned to bewilderment: "Wait, why are you all here too?"

Ji Jingxi coming to Xihong could still be understood—after all, the Nanhongqi Sect couldn't really be trapped alive on that one-third of land. To break the Prince Nanlong Palace's deadlock, they had to come out and think of a way.

But now the three strongest Heavenly realm cultivators of the Nanhongqi Sect were gathered in Xihong… then who would guard the sect? Leave it for the South Long Wang to trample at will?!

"Tell us the matter first."

Ji Jingxi gripped Zi Xian's wrist and swept a glance around: "The Ziyang Crown Prince didn't come?"

"He can come or not for all I care!"

Zi Xian rolled her eyes, then lowered her voice: "Don't worry, he'll definitely come. He wouldn't just sit by and watch something happen to me."

As if knowing the others were anxious, she didn't dawdle any longer and went straight to the point: "Actually, the matter isn't that big. Just rein in your tempers. I know you value loyalty, but this time the Wuliang Dao Huang Sect is full of fury and wants to go to Banshan Sect to find Shen Yi. Their words and actions might be a bit intense…"

"Wait, what do they want Shen Yi for?" Ye Jiu interrupted.

"You didn't know?" Zi Xian showed a stunned expression, then raised her palm: "Your Shen Zongzhu, right in front of all of Xihong, slaughtered Yue Gonggui and a group of Yue Clan members, seized the Wuliang Dao Huang Sect's formation diagram, and along the way let someone uncover a lead, lumping Situ Junrui's account onto him as well."

"……"

Zi Xian's concise description left all three standing rooted to the spot as if struck by lightning.

Especially Qi Yansheng, who had just been saying that Shen Zongzhu sat firmly at Banshan Sect, calmly watching the storms of Xihong rise and fall, observing the great trend before acting, and had already faintly taken on some of Senior Qin's manner—at this moment he wished he could give himself a slap.

"Continue." Ye Jiu struggled to steady her breathing.

No matter how it was viewed, in terms of strength or style of action, it was something outrageously beyond words. Yet as long as it involved one's own Shen Zongzhu, it somehow became much easier to accept.

"Anyway, the point is that the Liangdaohuang Sect is now looking for trouble with the Banshan Sect. I know Huang Wenfa risked his life back then to rush to Nanhong to help. You wouldn't just stand by and watch someone die, but the moment you step forward, things will only get worse."

Senior Zi Xian waved her hand: "Trust me… trust my brother once, let him handle this. That Shen Zongzhu of yours is so ruthless and decisive in killing — most likely he won't wade into this muddy water."

Before she could finish, she saw Ji Jingxi's whole body tremble slightly, and Ye Jiu and Qi Yansheng fell completely silent.

"What do you mean?"

Senior Zi Xian froze on the spot.

Ji Jingxi looked toward the distance with a complicated expression, and after a moment's deliberation forced out a helpless smile: "If Shen Yi learns of this, if the Liangdaohuang Sect truly dares to make a move against the Banshan Sect—"

"Based on our understanding of him—"

Ye Jiu's eyes gradually narrowed, a killing intent surfacing within: "Shen Yi won't just wade in, he'll stir this muddy water until it's dyed a deep crimson — the kind where neither side rests until one is dead."

One must remember that back then, the Banshan Sect had only been willing to board the sinking ship of the Nanhongqi Sect entirely out of respect for Shen Zongzhu's face.

Later, the Baohua Sect joined in, helping the Qi Sect shoulder something as grave as the slaying of the Long Wang — truly entrusting their very lives and fortunes to Shen Yi.

Given that young man's temperament, how could he possibly sit by and do nothing?

But although the Liangdaohuang Sect had only sent three Sect Masters, among them a young whelp who was merely padding the numbers—

The moment they and the others made a move, the matter of the South Long Wang's death could no longer be kept hidden.

"Hiss—"

Senior Zi Xian slapped her forehead hard, feeling that every single one of these people was sick in the head.

Saying the Purple-Bearded White Dragon clan was easy to bully — weren't the Nanhongqi Sect cut from the same cloth? No wonder they could mingle together a hundred thousand years ago; truly, birds of a feather flock together.

Just then, a calm voice finally rang out.

"Two conditions."

"You are not to step forward; do everything as I arrange."

"Second, after this is done, make that cultivator surnamed Shen behave himself. Until I've finished dealing with the Wan Yao Dian, don't go stirring up trouble everywhere."

Accompanying the words, that noble figure finally emerged from the water.

Crown Prince Ziyang silently glanced at his sister, saw her arm linked with Ji Jingxi's, couldn't help grinding his teeth, adjusted his mood slightly, and only then turned his gaze toward the three Nanhong Sect Masters.

The group exchanged complicated glances.

Old friends who had once raised cups in celebration now carried an added sense of estrangement, as if everything had changed.

"Ji Jingxi of Nanhong, greets Crown Prince Ziyang."

"Qi Yansheng of Nanhong, greets Crown Prince Ziyang."

After a long pause, Ji Jingxi slightly curled her lip, cupped her hands, and offered a salute.

Qi Yansheng followed suit.

The instant he saw Ye Jiu also cup his hands, preparing to salute, Crown Prince Ziyang seemed to snap, furiously flung his sleeves, turned around, and cursed:

"Get lost, the lot of you!"

(End of chapter)