Chapter 62: Arrival of the Temple
Hesitation flickered across Bai Zhanying’s face.
But it didn’t last long. She raised her hand, shielding Luo Xue behind her.
“Grand Elder, I believe… this matter should end here.”
She looked at Zou Junxin. “What are your thoughts, Sect Master?”
Zou Junxin was silent for a few seconds, then said in a low voice,
“This matter… is for the Law Enforcement Hall to decide.”
He could see that Bai Zhanying didn’t have faith in Luo Xue’s innocence, but he didn’t want the Law Enforcement Hall to take Luo Xue away just like that.
“A thorough interrogation will reveal the truth.”
The Grand Elder of the Law Enforcement Hall stepped forward. His Nascent Soul cultivation pressed down without restraint, the aura alone making Bai Zhanying struggle to breathe.
Bai Zhanying, a mere Core Formation cultivator, was far from a Nascent Soul expert. If the Grand Elder hadn’t held back, she wouldn’t be able to withstand a single thought from him.
But even so, Bai Zhanying didn’t yield.
She used all her strength to protect Luo Xue, standing firm.
“Please… Grand Elder, reconsider…”
Bai Zhanying bit her lip, enduring the pressure, and looked directly into the Grand Elder’s eyes.
The other Peak Masters simply stood by. In their position, there was no need, nor any desire, to get involved.
Eliminating all potential demonic cultivators had always been the duty of the Peerless Summit Sect.
Either by crippling their cultivation, killing them, or even… execution.
No immortal cultivator wanted to see a powerful demonic cultivator rise, for every such rise brought unimaginable disaster.
“You!” Anger finally appeared on the Grand Elder’s face. “How obstinate!”
He had held back because Bai Zhanying was a prodigy of the sect, the hope of the next generation.
If she continued…
He would have to use more forceful methods.
“Even a prodigy, a mere Core Formation cultivator, wants to stop me? You’re too inexperienced…”
The Grand Elder steeled his resolve and slowly drew his sword.
The Peerless Summit Sect was a sword cultivation sect; the sword was their life’s cultivation.
Seeing the Grand Elder’s sword about to be unsheathed—at that point, not just Luo Xue, but even Bai Zhanying might be injured.
Zou Junxin, unable to bear it, was about to intervene.
At this tense moment, an urgent message came from outside.
“Reporting to Sect Master, the Temple of the Nether Spirit has arrived!”
“What!” Zou Junxin’s pupils constricted, and his face darkened. “So… soon?”
The matter that had been worrying the sect’s higher-ups had finally arrived.
Although conflicts continued in secret after the truce between the Immortal Domain and the Demon Abyss a thousand years ago, they hadn’t openly turned against each other.
Such “official” visits weren’t uncommon between the two sides.
But the Immortal Ascension Gate hadn’t even officially ended, and the most important initiation ceremony hadn’t been held yet.
For the Temple of the Nether Spirit to come at this time… this couldn’t be a coincidence.
It was a deliberate attempt to humiliate the Peerless Summit Sect before the nine provinces of the Immortal Domain.
However, the Peerless Summit Sect had to receive them.
“…Imprison her in the Underworld Water Dungeon for now.”
Zou Junxin’s eyes flickered. There was no time to deal with Luo Xue’s matter now.
The arrival of the Temple of the Nether Spirit was more important.
The Underworld Water Dungeon was a place of confinement for disciples who had committed mistakes. The environment was much better than the Law Enforcement Hall’s prison, and there wouldn’t be any interrogation or torture.
Zou Junxin was deliberately protecting Luo Xue.
The black-robed Peak Master of Underworld Water Ravine nodded slightly, raised his hand, and restrained Luo Xue.
Bai Zhanying, understanding the Sect Master’s intention, didn’t interfere.
Then, the black-robed figure escorted Luo Xue towards the depths of Underworld Water Ravine.
Luo Xue didn’t resist, but just as she was about to leave, after much hesitation, she said in a low voice,
“Senior Sister, I… have nothing to do with the Demon Abyss. I have never lied to you.”
“Let’s go.”
The black-robed figure said in a deep voice.
Luo Xue sighed softly and said no more.
Bai Zhanying looked up slightly, watching the small figure gradually disappear, her eyelids drooping.
“…Is it true?”
She didn’t know, she couldn’t judge.
The twelve years they had spent together were still fresh in her mind, yet it felt like a bubble, about to burst with a single touch.
The Grand Elder of the Law Enforcement Hall watched Luo Xue’s receding figure, his pupils constricting, his expression darkening.
“There’s definitely something wrong with her…”
He looked down at Kong Lianbin’s corpse again, a hint of disdain flashing through his eyes.
“But… this spy died too easily.”
…
At the same time, the “A World in Each Flower” formation slowly dissipated, and all the aspiring cultivators and second-generation immortals were transported out.
The square buzzed with discussion, some joyful, some worried. Most had anticipated the results.
However, no one knew what had happened during the trial.
Ye Ningshuang was still searching for Little Junior Sister, and Li Guixing frowned, pondering how to approach Luo Xue.
The once-every-twelve-years Immortal Ascension Gate came to a close.
But the Peerless Summit Sect’s troubles were just beginning.
Just as everyone was recovering from the anxiety or excitement, dark clouds suddenly gathered in the sky above.
In an instant, thunder rumbled, and a baleful aura filled the air.
The crowd didn’t know what was happening, and many aspiring cultivators panicked.
But then, remembering that this was an immortal sect, and ordinary demons couldn’t possibly withstand it, they regained their composure.
Zou Junxin looked up, his eyes narrowing.
“What a show of force… Disperse!”
With this thunderous shout, the terrifying scene was dispelled, and the sky returned to its clear blue color.
But a single bone ship, emanating a baleful aura, hovered menacingly above Falling Flower Peak.
“Old Brother Zou, long time no see. How have you been?”
An aged voice rang out, and a hunched old man walked out from the bone ship.
Half of the old man’s body was withered, while the other half was full of flesh and blood, a bizarre sight.
“This junior, Zou Junxin, Sect Master of the Peerless Summit Sect, greets Blood Lord of the Temple of the Nether Spirit.” Zou Junxin forced a smile and performed the junior’s greeting. “It seems your Withering Prosperity Law has improved over the past thousand years. You will soon reach Soul Transformation.”
“Haha, Old Brother Zou, you flatter me. This thousand-year bottleneck isn’t so easily broken.”
Blood Lord laughed and walked down from the bone ship, stepping onto the Dao Platform of Falling Flower Peak.
Xi Xiaofeng had already led the other sect higher-ups and Bai Zhanying away from the platform.
This was no longer a situation they could participate in.
Although Blood Lord and Zou Junxin seemed amicable now, in the immortal-demon war a thousand years ago, they were mortal enemies.
Blood Lord had already been at the peak of the Nascent Soul Realm a thousand years ago, but he still hadn’t broken through to Soul Transformation. Even his current half-withered, half-flesh-and-blood state was thanks to Zou Junxin.
And Zou Junxin wasn’t much better off. He had been severely injured by Blood Lord a thousand years ago, and his foundation had suffered irreversible damage, making him afraid to advance further.
Because even a slight misstep, a sudden eruption of his hidden injuries, could mean death.
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