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The loud, boisterous laughter echoed throughout Heavenly Grain:
"Haha, I'm done playing with you all, I'm leaving!"
With a thunderous sound, the ground shook violently, causing everyone to lose their footing and fall to the ground. That wild laughter quickly faded into the distance, yet its echoes lingered in the air.
"How could he break my Misty Herbal Concealment Formation!" The Disciples of Duotian Valley struggled to get up and looked outside, each one of them shocked.
They saw a strange gap about a mile wide appear above Medicine Peak, the color of the sky distinctly different from the surroundings, dark clouds pressing down ominously. A cold wind carrying the chill of snow-capped mountains blew in through the gap, quickly freezing the Exotic Flowers and Rare Herbs planted on Medicine Peak. Some warm-loving rare herbs visibly wilted at an alarming rate.
"All Skyward Valley Disciples, hurry to Medicine Peak for rescue!" The sound of bells echoed across Heavenly Grain. Accompanying this were the sharp cries of a group of Immortal Assembly cranes. Chaos erupted in Heavenly Grain.
Figures on various Flying Swords sped towards Medicine Peak.
All the elders of Heavenly Grain mobilized, and shadows darted everywhere on Medicine Peak.
In the darkness, someone shouted: "Follow me! We must protect the Heavenly Grade Herb Garden!"
"Quickly head to Guardian Hall for reinforcements!"
"Prepare for enemy attack!"
Tens of thousands of disciples from Heavenly Grain were mobilized, trying their best to block every gap under the command of the elders left behind.
Amidst the chaos, someone shouted: "Where are the two Masters of the Grain?"
"What about the Sect Master? Why haven't the Sect Master and the Kunlun Elders come out yet?"
"What about the leaders and elders of various sects?"
"Uh-oh! They haven't come out yet! Follow me to the entrance of the Ancient Celestial Field!"
When Li Hong and the others flew to Medicine Peak, they were met with a chaotic scene. The peak was crowded with people, but they were mostly low-level Heavenly Grain alchemy disciples. Most could only guard the medicinal garden, while a few higher-level cultivators were dispatched to the Guardian Hall to reinforce the formation or stand at the gaps in preparation for an enemy attack.
The four exchanged glances, their youthful bravado shining through as they saw a shared determination in each other's eyes—head to the entrance of the Ancient Celestial Field!
Without hesitation, they swiftly made their way toward the entrance of the Ancient Celestial Field behind Medicine Peak.
The biting cold wind surged in from the gap in the sky's formation, and snowflakes began to fall from above—just then, the first snowstorm of the year arrived in the bitter cold lands of Middle-earth Northwest, truly an ill-timed occurrence.
Before reaching the entrance, they caught a whiff of Blood Scent. Corpses lay scattered on the ground, all belonging to Heavenly Grain and Immortal Sect disciples guarding the exit of the Ancient Celestial Field.
The surroundings were eerily quiet, with not a soul in sight. The small opening was shrouded in darkness, making it impossible to see anything; it seemed devoid of any movement.
Li Hong felt that immense primordial power that had existed since ancient times once again. His hair began to stand on end. But suddenly, he sensed something was off—the faint familiar feeling mixed within had vanished!
"Who's there!"
A sharp shout came from behind them, followed by a flurry of sword lights that surrounded the four. The sword-wielders had already seen the corpses on the ground and their expressions turned cold, ready to strike at any moment.
"Don't make a move! We are disciples of Nine Li Sect! We rushed over upon discovering something was wrong!" Li Hong declared their identity.
They looked at Li Hong and his companions with suspicion, whispering among themselves for a moment until someone recognized Li Hong.
"He's from Nine Li Sect; I've seen him before."
The leader among them clasped his fists and said, "I am Wuwei, seventh disciple under Elder Qiu Mingzi of Heavenly Pill Hall in Heavenly Grain. There's no time for chatter; we need to go in. I ask you four brothers from Nine Li Sect to wait here. If anyone comes out, do not act hastily; remember to conceal yourselves." With that, he gestured for his group to enter.
"Wait!" Li Hong shouted.
Wuwei turned around, looking quite impatient. "What else is there? Speak outside."
Li Hong became anxious, and Iridescence flashed in front of him, blocking his path. Ignoring everything, he shouted, "You can't go in! The passage has been sealed!"
Wuwei could hardly believe his ears, and the Skyward Valley Disciple behind him exclaimed fiercely, "How do you know? Are you a spy for the Demon Sect?!"
Li Hong thought quickly; he knew that if that familiar feeling disappeared, it meant the passage had been cut off from the Ancient Celestial Field. The fluctuations of Multicolored Spiritual Energy were what made him feel this way. If they entered now, these people might get lost inside—who knows what would happen to them! But how could he explain this to them?
He quickly came up with another argument: "Haven't you noticed something strange? Look, aside from that Old Demon, no one else has come out—not even the sect leader. How could they not catch up to the Old Demon? There's only one explanation—the passage must be malfunctioning!"
Upon hearing this, Wuwei indeed hesitated. Li Hong seized the opportunity and continued, "The only plan we have now is to remain unchanged amidst all changes. Perhaps the passage is only temporarily inactive. If we wait here, they will come out on their own when it opens again. If you insist on going in, that's fine too, but the outcome might be that you never come out!"
Everyone was stunned. Someone whispered, "I remember a similar situation happening a long time ago. I think this young brother makes a good point. Otherwise, how could the sect leader not have chased after them?"
After a long while, with an intense inner struggle almost visible on his face, Wuwei finally made a decision: "Alright, we'll listen to you. Let's hold our position for now and wait."
Time passed slowly as everyone stared intently at the dark little opening, their eyelids growing heavy and sore from not blinking. During this time, many Heavenly Grain reinforcements arrived and were all taken aback upon hearing the situation.
This passage was more like a connection point similar to a Teleportation Array; if someone recklessly entered while it was closed, who knows where they would end up?
The more Wuwei thought about it, the more he felt that Li Hong had acted wisely. Grateful, he flew closer and quietly said, "Thank you, young brother." He understood that with his own cultivation level, he wouldn't be of much help if he went in.
Li Hong had been pondering a strange question and suddenly took the chance to Ask the Way: "Wuwei brother, you're too polite. By the way, where have your masters gone?"
He had already noticed that all the Skyward Valley Disciples who had come were clearly of low cultivation; the highest among them was Wuwei at only Mid Stage of Cautionary Practice. Was this really all the strength Heavenly Grain had? It left him filled with doubts.
Wuwei immediately understood the meaning behind Li Hong's words and sighed, saying, "With such a major incident occurring in the Ancient Celestial Field, all our elders have been dispatched, almost all of them sent to encircle those Black-Clad Assassins! Alas, it's our fault for prioritizing alchemy and medicine over cultivation and combat. We've embarrassed you, little brother."
Li Hong felt a storm brewing within him. On the surface, it seemed perfectly normal for Heavenly Grain to send all the elders into the Ancient Celestial Field, but upon further reflection—could they really forget the lessons learned from the Disguise Pill incident so easily? If those Black-Clad Assassins disguised themselves as Heavenly Grain elders, wouldn't they be able to blend in with the group of elders and escape effortlessly?
Or perhaps? Did those Black-Clad Assassins originally have identities as Heavenly Grain elders?! Li Hong was horrified internally but maintained a calm exterior.
Wuwei thought that Li Hong was scared and reassured him, "Don't worry, we still have some skilled fighters. Those black-clad masked assassins must have been mostly dealt with." Despite his words, his voice trembled slightly.
Li Hong sighed inwardly, realizing that lower-level individuals would never know what higher-ups were truly thinking or scheming. They only saw the bright surface while the filth hidden beneath was like mud concealed under snow, forever lurking in dark corners away from light.
At this point, he was certain that there were definitely issues among the higher-ups of Heavenly Grain.
Just then, a buzzing sound came from the sky. Wuwei looked up and was instantly delighted, smiling with relief, "Alright! The formation has been restored! Hmph, even if those Black-Clad Assassins wanted to escape, they absolutely couldn't!" His expression suddenly turned awkward.
Except for that Old Demon, Li Hong silently added in his mind. He then thought about how the Old Demon had already fled; did this mean that Yun Jiuzi was safe and would emerge soon?
An hour later, a shadow darted out from the cave entrance and collapsed on the ground just a short distance away, not moving at all. Judging by the attire, it was indeed a black-clad masked figure.
The crowd erupted in commotion. Li Hong rushed forward, already holding several Little Celestial Pole Needles, shouting, "Step back! Be careful of traps!"
"Watch me!" Without hesitation, Chuxiong summoned the Mysterious Bell, swiftly striking at the person’s chest. In one move, he trapped the Black-Clad Masked Man beneath the bell. He then leaped forward and firmly grasped the bell's ear, shouting, "I've got him!"
"Grab what? Move aside!" A white figure slowly emerged from the cave entrance. The gaunt face looked particularly familiar under the starlight—it was none other than Spirit Stone.
"Master!" "Shibo!" Three figures rushed forward.
Chuxiong still held onto the bell's ear tightly and shouted, "Master, come quickly!"
Spirit Stone looked exhausted, but there was a faint glimmer of moisture in his eyes. He chuckled, "I've returned. Old Seven, let it go; that's just a corpse."
He continued calmly, "The passage suddenly closed, and we couldn't teleport out. Later, it seemed to work. I volunteered to lead the way and even took a corpse to scout. And here I am, right after coming out, seeing you four disobedient little ones."
Li Hong sighed; this master was indeed audacious to take the lead at such a time. However, the worry that had been hanging over him quietly dissipated.
One by one, figures leaped out of the cave entrance. The sect leader and the heads of various factions finally emerged from the Ancient Celestial Field. Many were injured, indicating that the past three days in the Ancient Celestial Field must have been quite tumultuous.
Li Hong searched for a long time but still did not see that person among the crowd. He quietly pulled Spirit Stone aside and asked, "Is there no one left inside? Have all our people come out?"
Spirit Stone's gaze flickered as he slowly shook his head and said, "No one is left."
Li Hong felt anxious; Yun Jiuzi, what are you still doing in there? Do you really intend to wait for ascension inside?
********
Three days later, Nine Li Sect began their journey home.
This year's new disciple competition ended abruptly, and no one was thinking about rankings or vying for Elixir quotas anymore. Emei Sect had been clamoring for an explanation from Heavenly Grain. In the end, under the mediation of sect leader Xuan Xuzi and various factions, they barely reached an agreement: for the next ten years, Emei would receive their full Elixir quota. At this point, Yiyang's expression finally improved slightly.
As for Nine Li Sect, they had completely offended Heavenly Grain. At that time, Ling Xuzi, due to momentary weakness, did not insist on standing with Emei, which ultimately led to irreparable consequences. Due to public opinion, Heavenly Grain did not take action against Ling Xuzi, but judging by the attitudes of Qing Yizi and Qingqinzi towards him, it was clear that Nine Li Sect would face a long period without receiving their Elixir allocation—at most getting a small amount as a mere formality.
Ling Xuzi felt deeply guilty about this. But upon reflection, could he have acted like Yiyang, shouting and openly provoking internal strife within the Immortal Sect? He simply could not do that.
In today's situation, only those who are strong have reason on their side, and unfortunately, Ling Xuzi was not a strong-willed person.
All female disciples of the New Luo Sect had tragically perished. Qing Yizi shed some "bitter tears" and promised that for the next ten years, they would provide sufficient Elixir to the New Luo Sect. Finally, Yuan Zhenzi managed to calm down some of his anger.
As for Kongtong, Penglai, Zhao Zhen Sect, Azure Sky Palace, and Xuanwei, they seemed to have reached some sort of private agreement with Heavenly Grain. The details are unknown, but at least the sect leaders did not cause any disturbances, and everything passed peacefully.
On the way back, the disciples of Nine Li Sect were all feeling quite downcast.
Li Hong's eyes flickered as he leaned close to Spirit Stone and whispered something in his ear. Spirit Stone's face immediately lit up with joy, and he clapped his hands and laughed, "Good! I knew you wouldn't let your master down."
Indeed, Li Hong was very satisfied. His Cosmic Bag was filled with ancient celestial herbs obtained from the Ancient Celestial Field. What else could he possibly want? He feared that even those from Heavenly Grain would come knocking on their door to trade!
Spirit Stone whispered to Ling Xuzi, and the two burst into laughter as they stepped onto their Flying Sword, the sound echoing through the skies.
From a distance, Emei Sect heard them. Yiyang turned around in surprise.
Ling Xuzi laughed heartily, "Brother Yiyang, we will meet again!"
With a flash of firelight, the people from Nine Li Sect quickly vanished into the horizon.
********
This volume ends here. The next volume, Ten Elixirs, will be even more exciting. Please support us, readers! Send in your flowers and collections!
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