Chapter 49: The Twisting Turn of Fate

"What was that?" The cultivators who had just been knocked down from mid‑air were searching everywhere for their flying devices.

"Its size was too big, and it appeared too suddenly; I didn't see clearly."

"It fled so fast, as if someone had been seized; Uncle Xia and several others on swords couldn't catch up."

"I don't recognize it."

"Senior Brother Qian, what's this?"

"I'm helping Jiang Yu retrieve her flying boat."

"The one just taken was Jiang Yu?"

"And another was Junior Brother Gu, who lives on Dingqu Peak."

The crowd hurriedly packed up to leave the mountain; several Foundation‑establishment cultivators rode swords to fetch them.

Senior Brother Qian asked, "Uncle, do you know what kind of demon beast it was just now?"

"It's an Eclipse Moon Tiger; a Core Formation Elder is already in pursuit."

Indeed, the one that seized Jiang Yu was the Seventh‑rank Eclipse Moon Tiger she saw yesterday.

Jiang Tu, now startled awake, sent a voice, "It's that demon tiger again; I'll help you out of trouble."

"No, there's another senior brother beside me," Jiang Yu realized it intended to use Dragon Pearl Space to whisk her away, but it wasn't yet a life‑or‑death gamble.

Moreover, before it flew far, she heard the sect's Core Formation Elder chasing, "Eclipse Moon Tiger, release the person quickly; everything can be settled."

"Earlier I thought we could talk, but you kept chasing for some storage bags; now it's too late," the Eclipse Moon Tiger flapped its wings and instantly shook off the pursuers.

The protective aura Jiang Yu had just raised shattered again; her defensive bracelet was completely crushed by the tiger's claws.

She saw a senior brother on another claw release a defensive shield, only for the Eclipse Moon Tiger to smash it away in an instant.

Worried that the teleportation talisman might be destroyed, she could only repeatedly raise the protective aura, using her body to brace against the wind for now.

It seems she'll need to refine her body again when she gets the chance.

As Jiang Yu was thinking, a massive sword beam slashed across the path; while she hurriedly thickened her aura shield, her body was tossed like a sandbag to block the sword.

She summoned an emergency defensive shield, but the shield light shattered before it formed; as Jiang Tu tried to whisk her into space, a large hand of gathered light suddenly grabbed her and the senior brother beside her.

"Xia Bing, take over."

Jiang Yu hadn't even seen who it was when Uncle Xia swooped and grabbed her onto the sword.

Whoosh, the flying sword sped away in an instant; she hurriedly supported the bleeding senior brother beside her, "Where's the wound? Do you have a Minor Restoring Pill?"

"Uncle Xia, I'm out of Minor Restoring Pills; do you still have any?"

*Cough cough! * This senior brother kept coughing blood; Jiang Yu knew a Rejuvenation Pill wouldn't help.

Now no external injury is visible, and she doesn't know medicine.

Xia Bing tossed two pill vials, "One each."

Seeing they were Minor Restoring Pills, she first gave one to the senior brother, then swallowed hers while simultaneously pinching the Rejuvenation Technique to aid his refinement.

After a brief pause, the flying sword shot dozens of li away, landing on the sect's reception barge; the senior brother finally steadied his injury, opened his eyes and said, "Thank you, Uncle and junior sister; I'll return the pill later."

"No need, go back and see a medical cultivator; on the ship, avoid conflicts with others; I still have to go fetch more people." Xia Bing dropped them and flew away.

It was only then Jiang Yu noticed that many unaffiliated cultivators were on the bow, while there were few sectal Qi‑refining disciples, and several Foundation‑establishment uncles were guarding the rail.

"Jiang Yu, enter the storage," Lu Ruochan said from the second floor, sending a voice.

"Right away." As she and the senior brother entered the first‑floor hall and split up, several concerned fellow disciples thanked her.

Especially Senior Brother Qian, who helped retrieve her flying boat, said with lingering fear, "Fortunately, the Nascent Soul Elder arrived in time; otherwise we have no idea what would have happened today."

Everyone is saying it's a rapidly transforming Eclipse Moon Tiger; it previously injured and stole many storage bags from Foundation‑establishment uncles, and has been chased by a Core Formation Elder.

"You and that senior brother just now truly had great luck."

"So the explosion in the mountains this morning was related to it?" Jiang Yu couldn't help but speculate.

Senior Brother Qian pondered briefly, shook his head and said, "Probably not."

It may be rapidly transforming, but it's still seventh‑rank; it couldn't have caused an explosion that far away and then appear at the outermost perimeter.

However, today's events are unusual; Nascent Soul cultivators all manifested on the spot.

"I'm now more concerned about the martial contest ending midway; I don't know how long until the results are announced, and whether they'll count."

"We can only follow the sect's arrangement. I'll go upstairs to find the senior sisters, and later talk with the senior brother." Actually the first‑floor hall was spacious, and Jiang Yu didn't know how the female disciples ended up on the second floor.

As she went up, she saw several open storage doors, inside which stood female cultivators not wearing sect robes, even two pregnant women, likely all unaffiliated.

Probably the sect placed all the female disciples upstairs to look after them.

"Come in." Lu Ruochan pulled the people into a single room, where several senior sisters were.

Sister Wu also cast Cleansing Dust Technique, clearing the soil and blood from her, and asked, "Jiang Yu, is your injury serious?"

"It's fine, I've already taken the pill." She wore defensive inner armor, and the external wound healed under the Minor Restoring Pill's effect.

Jiang Yu had just taken the water handed to her by a senior sister, answered a few questions, when a voice shouted from outside the ship, "Who is Jiang Yu? Come out."

"Hurry, it's the Law Hall's Master Sang."

"And Master Hu, both in the later stage of Core Formation, proceed with caution." Lu Ruochan and the others stopped asking and quickly escorted her downstairs.

When Jiang Yu reached the bow, Master Sang, dressed in black robes, lifted her onto a flying sword and circled back to the sect. She was bewildered, "Elder, I didn't break any sect rules."

Master Sang was silent for a moment, then asked, "Did you give that Eclipse Moon Tiger any pill just now?"

Jiang Yu's heart tightened; she weighed her words, "I met it at Flowing Light Pool yesterday; it forced me to give it a pill."

"Hmm, Elder Fuju has already captured it; it said you offered the pill to save your life and told it you could go to a Foundation‑stage cultivator for medicine." Master Sang glanced at her sideways.

She instantly bristled, "I swear with my Dao heart that I never said that."

Unfortunately, Jiang Tu was in the space at that moment and didn't record with a Retaining‑Image Stone, so they couldn't hear the beast's false accusation.

Only Master Sang's slow voice was heard, "No need to worry; we won't be deceived by it."

"But now we need someone to stay at the Guest Hall of Xiang'er Peak to watch it; it strongly resists the law‑enforcement team's approach. Are you willing to take this mission?"

"Ah?" A divine twist! But Jiang Yu immediately realized, this was the sect giving her a preventive shot in advance: "Disciple is willing."

Seeing her agree, True Person Sang handed over a bracelet: "That sword earlier destroyed your shield; this is compensation."

Jiang Yu blinked, then waved her hand: "Elder, you came to save us; thanks, there's no time, what compensation do you need?"

True Person Sang said nothing more, but the jade bracelet had already landed on Jiang Yu's wrist; she silently sighed, performed a salute, and thanked.

Not long after, the flying sword reached the sect and flew straight to Xiang'er Peak.

This mountain peak, famed for its law enforcement discipline, she had once sat in a teleportation array at its base; today she reached the summit and found it lacked the cold solemnity rumored outside.

Amidst the swaying spiritual flowers and trees, only the dark robes of the law enforcement guards appeared monotonous.

She followed to a steward hall, received an entry/exit token and a specific task, and after True Person Sang gave her personal guidance, she pushed open the guest courtyard gate halfway up the mountain.

Upon looking, she saw a seventh-stage Moon-devouring Tiger chained to a pine-mist tree, and it greeted: "Human little cultivator, nice to see you again."

Your medicinal pills are good; bring two more bottles.