Chapter 1178: Each Has Their Own Methods
Under the night sky, the mountain where the Elder Pavilion was located was dotted with lantern lights, growing denser and brighter toward the summit.
Elder Yuan Gui stood beneath a purple pavilion at the foot of a bamboo grove, his hands clasped behind his back. As he listened to the report from a black-robed cultivator, his aged face grew increasingly twisted with rage.
In just two short days, over twenty Half-Saints of the Undying Blood Clan had been eliminated. How could Elder Yuan Gui not be furious?
"Who is it? How did they see through the Undying Blood Clan's disguise? Could it be Gu Linfeng?"
A chilling aura emanated from Elder Yuan Gui, surging outward and hissing in the night air.
A layer of white frost covered the bamboo leaves around him.
Not long ago, Gu Linfeng had seen through the disguise of Saint Hong Yuan, clearly mastering some special secret technique. Thus, Elder Yuan Gui's first thought turned to him.
The black-robed cultivator's voice was rather hoarse. "According to the message from Elder Yuan Zhou, Gu Linfeng's injuries won't heal for at least a month or two. This Saint believes this series of incidents is likely a retaliatory action by Dharma King Haiming."
In their view, since even Gu Linfeng had mastered a technique to identify Undying Blood Clan disguises, his grandmaster, Dharma King Haiming, must have an even deeper mastery.
Most importantly, Gu Linfeng had only just crossed his first quasi-saint tribulation. Deep down, they somewhat dismissed him, not regarding him as a worthy opponent.
"Dharma King Haiming?"
Elder Yuan Gui wore a contemplative expression. "Since Dharma King Haiming already knows a large number of Undying Blood Clan are lurking in the Blood God Sect, why not expose them directly? Why act alone?"
The black-robed cultivator said, "Dharma King Haiming is determined to become the new Sect Leader. Perhaps this is related."
"I see now," Elder Yuan Gui said, his gaze growing darker. "Dharma King Haiming wants to stay in the shadows, eliminate all the Undying Blood Clan, and when the time is right, reveal this matter. That way, his prestige in the Blood God Sect will reach its peak, making him the natural choice for Sect Leader."
Eliminating the Undying Blood Clan—what a monumental achievement!
If Dharma King Haiming truly accomplished this, all cultivators in the Blood God Sect would see him as a savior, and supporting him as Sect Leader would be a logical step.
Elder Yuan Gui's ten fingers grew ten sharp blood claws. "Dharma King Haiming wants to wipe out our Undying Blood Clan, but I also want to tear him limb from limb. I will now set up a killing trap to lure him in."
...
...
In the Hidden Dragon Hall, Zhang Ruochen was also planning and arranging.
Zhang Ruochen said, "After killing twenty or thirty Undying Blood Clan Half-Saints in a row, we've surely alarmed some big figures among them. Next, they'll suspect Dharma King Haiming and try to lure him out to eliminate him. Of course, this is also an opportunity for us."
Elder Yuan Zhou grew impatient. "Why not just follow me to the Elder Pavilion and kill Earth Dharma King directly? Why make it so complicated?"
Zhang Ruochen shook his head. "That big figure from the Undying Blood Clan is definitely a member of the Elder Pavilion, likely a Holy Elder. If we don't lure that person away, we can't kill Earth Dharma King."
A Holy Elder-level figure was an Undying Blood Clan infiltrator?
Elder Yuan Zhou fell into thought, making some guesses but unable to confirm.
Finally, he asked, "How do we lure that person away?"
Zhang Ruochen smiled. "Didn't I just say? Their plan to eliminate Dharma King Haiming is our opportunity."
"Explain."
Zhang Ruochen continued, "We can create a fake Dharma King Haiming to lure that Undying Blood Clan big shot out of the Elder Pavilion. That gives us the chance to kill Earth Dharma King."
Shang Xianyan was curious, a hint of confusion in her beautiful eyes. "Create a fake Dharma King Haiming?"
Zhang Ruochen's gaze fixed on Elder Yuan Zhou. "Elder Yuan Zhou is the best candidate. If he disguises himself as Dharma King Haiming, he can draw the snake out of its hole."
Elder Yuan Zhou chuckled darkly. "It's not that I look down on you, but with your cultivation, even if Earth Dharma King is restrained, you can't kill him. Killing Earth Dharma King requires my personal intervention. How about you disguise yourself as Dharma King Haiming?"
Zhang Ruochen asked, "Don't you want to know who the Undying Blood Clan infiltrator in the Elder Pavilion really is?"
Hearing this, Elder Yuan Zhou was slightly moved, his expression turning serious.
The six Holy Elders of the Blood God Sect had known each other for centuries. In truth, Elder Yuan Zhou didn't want to believe that among the other five Holy Elders, one was an Undying Blood Clan infiltrator.
But the facts were undeniable.
After a long pause, Elder Yuan Zhou said solemnly, "Fine, I'll disguise myself as Dharma King Haiming and see who that person really is. But with your strength, you can't kill Earth Dharma King. Did the Supreme Elder give you some powerful battle artifact?"
"He did give me a valuable treasure," Zhang Ruochen said.
"Alright. If you really can kill Earth Dharma King, it will be a heavy blow to the Undying Blood Clan. Moreover, with this achievement, your fame and prestige might surpass the Nine Realm Sons, making you one of the leading young figures of Kunlun Realm in the last century."
Elder Yuan Zhou seemed preoccupied. After leaving behind an Elder Token, he walked out of the Hidden Dragon Hall.
"You'd better be careful. The Undying Blood Clan has surely set up a killing trap," Zhang Ruochen warned.
Elder Yuan Zhou had already left the hall, only a cold voice echoing back, "I've weathered countless storms in my life. Do I need a brat like you to remind me?"
Zhang Ruochen smiled faintly, sending out a stream of Saint Qi to roll up Elder Yuan Zhou's token. He held it in his hand, examining it, then gradually withdrew his smile, his face growing increasingly serious.
Killing Earth Dharma King was no small matter. Whether it succeeded or failed, it would shake the entire Blood God Sect.
If it succeeded, the entire Central Domain's Nine Prefectures would tremble.
Of course, Earth Dharma King's cultivation was extremely profound. Even if he summoned the Blood Moon Ghost King, Zhang Ruochen wasn't completely certain of success.
The same went for Elder Yuan Zhou.
In the Elder Pavilion, a black-robed cultivator stood before Elder Yuan Gui, wearing a golden ghost mask. "News just arrived. Saint Ling Ku found traces left by Dharma King Haiming near our killing trap."
"It seems Dharma King Haiming has taken the bait. This time, I'll strike personally. I won't let that old bastard escape again."
Elder Yuan Gui was filled with hatred for Dharma King Haiming, eager to take his life. Before leaving, he instructed, "Stay in the Elder Pavilion. If anything changes, send me a message immediately."
"Understood."
The cultivator with the golden ghost mask responded, then vanished into the darkness without a trace.
At the foot of the mountain where the Elder Pavilion stood, Zhang Ruochen stood in the swaying bamboo grove, peering through the gaps in the leaves at the star-filled sky above. "I sensed a powerful aura rushing out of the Elder Pavilion, moving away rapidly. The venomous snake lurking in the Elder Pavilion has left its den."
Qing Mo stood behind Zhang Ruochen, tilting her head. "Really? I didn't sense anything at all."
"That's because your spiritual power isn't strong enough," Zhang Ruochen said.
Qing Mo pouted and snorted lightly, clearly unconvinced.
She said, "There are two Holy Elders in the Elder Pavilion. Even if you lure one away, the other remains guarding it. You still can't kill Earth Dharma King."
"The dangerous one has left. The one remaining is easy to deal with."
Zhang Ruochen stared at Qing Mo's delicate, refined face and smiled. "To avoid unnecessary trouble, I think you should lure that one away."
Qing Mo was startled. "Are you crazy? You want me to lure away a Holy Elder? I... I'm not that strong. What if I get killed?"
Qing Mo's face turned pale with fear as she kept backing away.
"Didn't I say? The dangerous Holy Elder has already left. The one remaining isn't dangerous," Zhang Ruochen said.
"No way! How could it not be dangerous? What if he takes a liking to me... no, no, I mean, what if he sees through my true form and captures me to refine into a Sacred Pill? Wouldn't tens of thousands of years of my cultivation be wasted?" Qing Mo looked like she was about to cry.
Zhang Ruochen took out Elder Yuan Zhou's token and pressed it into Qing Mo's hand. "If you're captured, take out this token and tell that Holy Elder you're a Sacred Medicine that escaped from Elder Yuan Zhou's medicine garden. That should save your life."
Qing Mo took the token but still felt weak in the knees, unable to move. She asked Zhang Ruochen several times if she could skip it.
In the end, Zhang Ruochen mentioned Huang Yanchen's name, forcing her to act.
Qing Mo reached a thousand miles from the Elder Pavilion and stirred up a fluctuation of Saint Qi.
As expected, the other Holy Elder in the Elder Pavilion sensed the Saint Qi fluctuation, flew out of the mountain, and rushed toward Qing Mo's location.
"Now."
Zhang Ruochen activated his movement technique, charging toward the mountain where the Elder Pavilion was located.
Even without Elder Yuan Zhou's token, with his current spiritual power, Zhang Ruochen could evade the perception of all experts in the Elder Pavilion, moving as if through an empty space.
"Earth Dharma King is imprisoned in the Zijun Hall, trapped by the Nine Dragons Locking Heaven Formation. I must strike without him noticing. Even if I can't kill him, I need to severely wound him first."
Zhang Ruochen didn't release the Blood Moon Ghost King, planning to strike personally.
The Blood Moon Ghost King's aura was too powerful; it couldn't assassinate Earth Dharma King silently. If Earth Dharma King was alerted in advance, it would be counterproductive.
Zhang Ruochen wrapped himself in powerful spiritual power, suppressing his aura, and like a ghost, charged into the Zijun Hall.