Chapter 247: Chapter 189: Return to the Holy Sect

He even spent five hundred Merit Points to mark the post in red and pin it to the top!

[Invincible Eagle Hand: Demon Child candidate Liu Mobai is a man of ruthless ambition, possessing three Star Palaces and three Positions. I am making this information public, free of charge. Fellow disciples, be on your guard!]

The post caused an uproar.

It was like a single stone setting off a thousand waves.

Countless Demon Cultivators who had participated in the Star Ruins trial flooded the post with comments, demanding more details.

In less than the time it takes for half an incense stick to burn, almost every Demon Cultivator at or above the Purple Mansion Realm in the entire Holy Sect had learned of Liu Mobai’s massive haul in the Star Ruins!

Qin Xuan was so angry he ground his teeth, his fingers trembling uncontrollably.

’Son of a bitch. So that’s how you want to play, Ji Boying? You really want me dead that badly?’

Though a storm raged within him and he mentally stabbed Ji Boying to death ten thousand times, Qin Xuan’s expression remained unchanged as he looked at him. He was even smiling.

Ji Boying shivered involuntarily.

He felt that something wasn’t right, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it.

As one Holy Sect Demon Cultivator after another was teleported back, Qin Xuan noticed a pattern.

’The Cultivators who died in the Star Ruins are truly dead!’

They were fated to keep Jiang Chizhen company in the Star Ruins for all eternity.

However, the Demon Cultivators who died in the Vermilion Bird Star Domain merely suffered damage to their Divine Souls; their lives were not in any significant danger!

At this thought, Qin Xuan’s scalp went numb.

The power of a Returning Void Dao Venerable was terrifying. To think he could bring hundreds of Star Mansion Cultivators back to life... what an incredible display of might...

"Congratulations on successfully passing the Star Ruins trial. Those who succeeded in guiding a Life Star will be rewarded with one thousand Merit Points, one hundred acres of Spiritual Fields, and will soon be invited to the Holy Sect’s celebratory banquet!"

RUMBLE!

A magnificent, indifferent voice boomed in the ears of the Demon Cultivators.

The faces of the Demon Cultivators lit up with joy.

Immediately after, tarnished Cyan Copper Coins descended, hovering unerringly above the head of every Star Mansion Demon Cultivator.

"Junior Brother Qin, you mean you didn’t succeed in guiding a Life Star?" Wei Qingyi asked in surprise.

Only then did Ji Boying notice that the Pure Yang Ancient Bronze, a reward from the Pure Yang Soul Capturing Demon Monarch, was not hovering above Qin Xuan’s head.

’It must be Venerable Ming River’s Divinity Transformation Power providing concealment. Not even the Pure Yang Soul Capturing Demon Monarch can see through it!’

Qin Xuan understood perfectly, but he put on a look of just the right amount of embarrassment and gave a slight nod.

Ji Boying shook his head. "What a pity. I never thought that with Junior Brother Qin’s talent and aptitude, he would fail to connect with a Life Star."

Star Mansion Cultivators and True Mansion Cultivators were worlds apart.

From this day forward, Qin Xuan was no longer worthy of being his rival!

However, the eyes of some Holy Sect Demon Cultivators who had previously been weaker than Qin Xuan lit up, and they began to secretly plot against him.

...

Meanwhile, Liu Mobai, who had been accidentally teleported to Daqian, was completely dumbfounded when he saw the post on the Thousand-Mile Sound Transmission.

???

That bastard! That absolute bastard!

’Who the hell did I piss off?’ Slandering him was one thing, but now they were putting a target on his back for all to see. They had no shame at all.

"It must be an old rival, trying to snatch the Demon Child title from me in the Purple Mansion Realm!"

Liu Mobai took a deep breath, struggling to suppress his fury.

’Right, where am I, anyway?’

Glancing around, Liu Mobai realized he had somehow found himself under a vast, boundless, starry sky.

A massive Yin Yang Tai Chi Diagram was interwoven in the sky, shimmering with flowing lights of gold, red, purple, blue, and cyan. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

A sudden realization dawned on him.

Sun and Moon Xiyue Palm Shining Blessed Land!

"I’ve come to the place where a Golden Core True Monarch once fell!"

’Wait a minute, Xiyue... that name sounds so familiar.’

The next moment, Liu Mobai suddenly felt the world itself rejecting him, as if his bones were about to be ripped apart.

"May I ask which senior I am addressing? I mean no offense, it was truly a misunderta—" BAM!

Before Liu Mobai could finish, a tremendous force struck him. He coughed up a large mouthful of blood and was thrown from the Sun and Moon Blessed Land like a tattered sack.

A single blow had left him utterly powerless to resist!

"You are not Liu Mobai. The next time you dare to parade around using his name, I will drain every drop of your Demon Blood and set you alight like a human lantern!"

A cold, clear voice rang out.

Liu Mobai was dumbstruck. Overcome with grief and indignation, his qi and blood surged in reverse, and he violently coughed up another large mouthful of blood.

’Where is the justice in this world! Where is the justice!’

...

Aboard his Dark Cloud Spiritual Artifact, Qin Xuan returned to Heart Rot Valley.

’This Star Ruins trial actually lasted for three whole years... I wonder how Yu Qi and the others have been.’

’Whether Yu Qi lived or died wasn’t important. The crucial thing was my Earth Vein Spiritual Qi. It absolutely had to be safe.’

However, as Qin Xuan arrived in the skies above Yinluo Country, his expression darkened while he was still a great distance away.

Below, on the Spiritual Fields of Heart Rot Valley, black smoke billowed. The entire area lay in ruins, littered with rubble and collapsed walls. The once-lush Yin Luo Flowers and Blood Marrow Rice, which had been growing splendidly, were all flattened and utterly destroyed.

Furthermore, a large black flag had been planted provocatively right in the middle of the Spiritual Fields.

The black flag billowed in the wind, emblazoned with a large character: "Lv."

The once-lively Spiritual Farmers lay scattered in pools of blood. The cloying, coppery smell of a recent massacre hung heavy in the air.

"Valley Master Qin, you’re finally back..."

Yu Qi, dragging the mangled upper half of his body, was barely clinging to life. His two leg bones, crafted from Copper Bone Shadow Soldiers, had been stolen.

"What happened? Did a Golden Core True Monarch from the Righteous Dao invade Heart Rot Valley?" Qin Xuan asked, his voice cold.

"No, it was Black Death Zhenren! Lv Hexsong did this, disguised as a Daqian Cultivator!"

Yu Qi pointed at the black flag in the center of the Spiritual Field and cried out hoarsely, "That Lv Hexsong didn’t even bother to keep up the pretense! He said outright that you failed to establish your Star Mansion and didn’t guide a Life Star, that you’re no longer worthy..."

"If he hadn’t deliberately left me alive to deliver this message, I’m afraid I’d be just like them right now..."

Before he could finish, Yu Qi suddenly began to foam at the mouth. Black energy poured from his body, and he died on the spot.

"Heh, heh..." Qin Xuan let out a sinister laugh.

But his eyes burned with a towering inferno of rage, and a vicious killing intent erupted in his heart.

"That damn Lv Hexsong. You really think I’m a pushover, don’t you? Even if I failed to establish a Star Mansion, do you think an old dog like you has the right to humiliate me!"

Qin Xuan moved like a bolt of lightning.

He summoned the Soul-devouring Banner, captured Yu Qi’s Divine Soul within it, and shot directly toward Lv Hexsong’s lair.

...

「Mo Xuan Country, the Black Water Abyss.」

Lv Hong was still feeling uneasy.

"Father, we massacred everyone in Heart Rot Valley. Will the Holy Sect truly not punish us?"

Lv Hong continued, "Qin Xuan has returned. If he joins forces with the other Incense Masters to pressure us, our position in the Black Water Abyss will become untenable within the Sect."

Lv Hexsong calmly lifted his teacup and took a gentle sip of his tea.

"Hong’er, don’t be ridiculous. Daqian spies were responsible for that. What does it have to do with our Black Water Abyss?"

"So what if Qin Xuan comes knocking? He already failed to establish his Star Mansion. A phoenix that has shed its feathers is no better than a chicken. Besides, he also offended Altar Master Ruan and Master Jiaang."

"Both Altar Masters are at the Purple Mansion Peak. Even though they failed to form a Golden Core, an Altar Master is still an Altar Master. If Qin Xuan had succeeded in guiding a Life Star, he might have caught the eye of a few of the Demon Monarchs."

"But he failed."

"Losers are destined to become sacrifices. That is the rule of the Holy Sect. If we hadn’t made a move, some other Purple Mansion Daoist would have. We were simply..."

But before Lv Hexsong could finish, a furious roar echoed from outside the Black Water Abyss.

"Lv Hexsong, get your ass out here!"

Qin Xuan’s long roar shook the entire Black Water Abyss. In the next instant, a brilliant flash of sword light erupted before their eyes.

VMM!

The air vibrated as golden fragments flew in all directions.

"So fast!"

In his haste, Lv Hexsong barely had time to summon a Black Water Shield.

But in the next moment, the shield shattered, and Lv Hexsong was sent flying backward.

CRASH!

The stone pillar supporting the hall collapsed with a thunderous boom, kicking up clouds of dust.

Lv Hexsong was utterly dumbfounded, his expression one of deep shock. "How is this possible? You’ve only just entered the Purple Mansion Realm! How could you break my defenses?!"

Qin Xuan wasted no time on words. With a flick of his wrist, his sword tip shot up like a striking viper as he released another terrifying wave of Sword Intent.

Godslaying Swordsmanship: Bone-Piercing Nether Spring!

Lv Hexsong felt a deathly chill spread through his body as the Sword Qi pierced him to the bone.

His blood and Demonic Essence froze solid. It was as if he had been plunged into an icy abyss, his very Divine Soul seeming to crystallize in that instant.

"No..."

A look of terror spread across Lv Hexsong’s face.

He had a premonition that if his concentration wavered for even a split second, Qin Xuan would cut him down.