Chapter 296: Chapter 129: To Go or to Stay? The Moon Worship Sect’s Greatest Conspiracy is Revealed, Cyan Yang Ancient City in Grave Danger

"The elders of the Cao and Li Families are fighting!" Zhao Tianxing said urgently.

Before Chu Fan could open his mouth, he added, "It’s not the Cao and Li elders fighting each other. They’ve split into two factions over whether to leave or stay, and they’ve actually come to blows."

Leave, or stay?

Chu Fan let out a soft sigh.

He’d anticipated this very situation when Master Cao disbanded the Seven Stars Gang.

Disbanding the gang had been a last resort.

Though they had won a great victory, it was meaningless. As long as the Moon Worship Sect remained in Cyan Yang Ancient City searching for that "key," staying here was a death sentence.

Leave or stay?

Knowing the Moon Worship Sect’s power, the most straightforward option was to leave.

And "leaving," to put it bluntly, meant fleeing.

It was just a euphemism.

The only compromise Chu Fan could think of was to hide—to go deep into the mountains and wait for the Demon Suppression Bureau to arrive.

The Paperman had previously delivered a message, saying someone would arrive in about half a month.

But more than twenty days had passed, and there was still no sign of the Demon Suppression Bureau.

Chu Fan suddenly recalled Yue Mankong’s warning: never trust anyone from the imperial court.

’From the looks of it, both the imperial court and the Demon Suppression Bureau must be a chaotic mess of infighting.’

’Perhaps the Demon Suppression Bureau has already been infiltrated by the Moon Worship Sect.’

Chu Fan looked up at the setting sun in the west. A wild idea began to form in his mind, growing stronger by the moment.

He walked shoulder to shoulder with Zhao Tianxing toward the council hall.

Inside the council hall, the atmosphere was even heavier than expected.

Cao Feng sat in the main seat, his brow deeply furrowed. His usual bold demeanor had been replaced by a profound exhaustion and anxiety.

Li Qingxue and Cao Yan sat to his side, observing with cold detachment.

A few core elders from the Cao and Li Mansions were seated on either side, arguing heatedly.

Some of them had bruised and swollen faces, looking rather disheveled.

A few others even had bloodstains on their clothes.

They couldn’t stop themselves from fighting even with Cao Feng present, a testament to the chaos in the room.

The moment Chu Fan arrived, all eyes in the hall focused on him, and the arguing ceased.

These elders hadn’t witnessed the vicious battle at the North City Wall the previous night, but they had already guessed that the Ghost-faced Man was Chu Fan.

Now, looking at this plainly dressed youth with his still somewhat boyish face, everyone wore complicated expressions.

It was this boy who had single-handedly turned the tide when the Cao and Li Mansions were at their most desperate, rescuing them all from certain death.

’If not for the great threat of the Moon Worship Sect, with a genius disciple like him, Master Cao could have made the Seven Stars Gang the top power in Cyan Yang Ancient City. The Cao and Li Families would surely have surpassed the Four Great Clans!’

But the world wasn’t full of "what ifs."

Gratitude, awe, and a tangle of other complex emotions swirled in their gazes.

"Fan, sit." Cao Feng’s voice was a little hoarse as he pointed to an empty seat beside him.

Chu Fan sat down in silence, waiting for what would come next.

Cao Feng swept his gaze over the crowd and said in a heavy voice, "A moment ago, you were all arguing about whether to leave or stay..."

"I spent all last night thinking about this very question."

"We won this battle. We repelled the invaders from Seven Stars Castle and the Moon Worship Sect..."

"But we all know the Moon Worship Sect won’t let this go!"

"They sent two Divine Power Realm experts to deal with us this time. What about next time? Will it be three? Or... someone even stronger?"

"The Government Office can’t protect us. In the eyes of the Moon Worship Sect, we’re no different from ants."

His words struck everyone’s heart like a heavy hammer.

The disciples of the Seven Stars Gang had all been disbanded, just to preserve the seeds of their future.

Only a few of them at the Spirit Awakening Realm and a small number of loyal, mid-level members remained in the main hall.

Before a behemoth like the Moon Worship Sect, they truly were no different than ants.

"Then what is your opinion, Gang Leader?" a Li Clan Elder couldn’t help but ask. "Must we truly abandon everything and flee to Qing Province with our tails between our legs?"

This Li Clan Elder was clearly from the faction that advocated for staying.

"Staying" meant fighting.

But what could they possibly fight with?

Even if the three major gangs and Four Great Clans of Cyan Yang City joined forces, how could they possibly stand against the Moon Worship Sect?

The strongest experts among the three major gangs and the Four Great Clans were only at the Fifth Heaven of the Spirit Awakening Realm.

Yet the Moon Worship Sect had casually dispatched two Divine Power Realm experts!

True, Chu Fan had killed them both...

But was it not too cruel to place such a heavy burden, such immense pressure, on this young genius?

He could have just stayed out of it...

At that, the arguments in the hall flared up once more.

The faction advocating to stay argued...

The Moon Worship Sect had suffered a major loss. That, combined with the power the Ghost-faced Man had displayed, was enough to make them hesitate.

Their main objective was to find the "key." They probably wouldn’t waste more energy dealing with the ragtag remnants of the Seven Stars Gang.

With things having escalated this far, even if the Cyan Yang Ancient City Government Office didn’t intervene, the Demon Suppression Bureau must have already been alerted.

They just had to hold their ground and wait for reinforcements. When the Demon Suppression Bureau arrived, the Moon Worship Sect would be wiped out.

The faction advocating to leave immediately retorted...

The Moon Worship Sect was treacherous and cruel; they never played by the rules.

In their eyes, the members of the Seven Stars Gang were nothing more than bothersome ants that they could crush at any time!

They’d suffered a setback this time. The next time they came, it would be with overwhelming, thunderous force!

Staying here was just waiting to be slaughtered.

Where there’s life, there’s hope!

While the Moon Worship Sect’s attention was still on the "key," Master Cao could take Qingxue, Cao Yan, and the others and flee to Qing Province. That was the only way to survive this disaster!

Experts from the Six Gates and the Demon Suppression Bureau were stationed in Qing Province year-round. The Moon Worship Sect would never dare cause trouble there, much less raise an army just to chase after a few small fry like them!

"Flee? How can we just abandon the legacy of our ancestors?!"