Chapter 1194: Meeting
Recently, the Blood God Sect had ordered the sealing of its mountains to conduct a major internal purge. The Cross Heaven Palace, the Elder Pavilion, and the secret cultivation mansions of the Four Kings had all been searched, uncovering hidden agents of the Undying Blood Clan.
The entire Blood God Sect was thrown into chaos, with blood flowing like rivers. Many palaces, sacred mountains, and cave dwellings were shattered in the fighting.
However, this turmoil did not last long. It gradually stabilized and was now rapidly restoring order.
Even the powerful cultivations of Elder Zhou and Elder Xing had left them exhausted in recent days, feeling deeply fatigued. Their nerves were constantly on edge, fearing some uncontrollable accident might occur.
At this moment, the two Saint Elders finally breathed a slight sigh of relief, resting in a pavilion within the Elder Pavilion.
Elder Xing sighed, "Fortunately, the Divine Son purged a large number of high-ranking Undying Blood Clan members in advance. Otherwise, who knows how massive a upheaval the Blood God Sect would have faced this time. Its inheritance of hundreds of thousands of years might have been severed."
Elder Zhou had interacted with Gu Linfeng and had confidence in his abilities. He nodded, "Regardless, Earth Yuan Dharma King has been killed, and Yuan Gui and Yu Huacheng have been expelled from the Blood God Sect. With further purges to come, the Blood God Sect will surely regain its vitality and grow stronger."
"Whoosh—"
Just then, a Message Light Talisman flew in from beyond the sky, appearing above the pavilion.
Elder Zhou had been receiving a flood of such talismans daily, so he wasn't surprised. He reached up, grabbing the talisman from dozens of yards away.
After reading its contents, Elder Zhou's eyes widened, and a sharp aura surged from him involuntarily.
Sensing something amiss, Elder Xing asked, "What happened now?"
Elder Zhou handed the talisman to Elder Xing.
As Elder Xing read the text, he held his breath, his gaze growing increasingly solemn.
After a long moment, the two exhaled deeply, locking eyes.
Elder Xing spoke first, "What do you think?"
Elder Zhou stood up, pacing within the pavilion. "That Gu Linfeng kid—every time he delivers news, it's enough to scare someone to death. If the Blood God Sect hadn't actually uncovered so many Undying Blood Clan infiltrators, I wouldn't believe a single message he sent."
"But what if the Sect Leader's Wife really is working for the Undying Blood Clan?" Elder Xing said.
Elder Zhou gradually calmed down, his tone turning serious. "That Gu Linfeng kid is meticulous and rarely makes mistakes. Since he dared to send me this news, it's most likely true."
Elder Xing nodded as well. "Back then, among all our disciples, the Sect Leader's Wife had the highest talent and the fastest cultivation speed. For the past three hundred years, she's been living in seclusion in Moyou Valley. Who knows how terrifyingly powerful she's become?"
Only now did the two Saint Elders realize a grim reality: the Blood God Sect's crisis wasn't over. The true heavyweight was still hiding in the shadows.
With the Sect Leader's Wife's intellect and cultivation, if she made a move, who could stop her?
"Should we activate the Blood God Altar and destroy Moyou Valley?" Elder Zhou suggested.
Besides the sect's divine artifact, the Blood God Scepter, the Blood God Sect possessed another highly offensive treasure: the "Blood God Altar," built from billions of bones.
The Blood God Altar contained the bones and saint souls of past sect patriarchs, wielding immense power. Activating it would signal that the Blood God Sect was at a life-or-death moment.
Elder Xing shook his head. "Activating the Blood God Altar once comes at a tremendous cost, and it can only be used again after a year. What if an even greater disaster strikes the sect within that year? If we can avoid using it, we should."
After further discussion, Elder Zhou and Elder Xing decided that Elder Zhou would personally guard the sect's defensive grand formation. With caution, the formation's power should be enough to suppress the Sect Leader's Wife.
"If the Sect Leader's Wife appears, don't waste words with her—just use the formation to deal with her."
Having said that, Elder Xing immediately left the Elder Pavilion to investigate everything about the Sect Leader's Wife. Despite everything, he still doubted Gu Linfeng's message and needed to find evidence to confirm her identity.
...
Huang Yanchen received Zhang Ruochen's Message Light Talisman and immediately brought Qing Mo, leaving the Hidden Dragon Hall. They quickly rendezvoused with him.
Zhang Ruochen glanced at Qing Mo and nodded slightly, thinking to himself, "Since Elder Zhou was able to rescue Qing Mo, it means the old man is trustworthy."
Huang Yanchen already understood the situation. A smile appeared on her snow-white, delicate face. "I never expected you to be so ruthless with a beauty like Princess Mo Ran. Don't you feel any pity?"
Zhang Ruochen smiled faintly. "Don't be jealous. We need to get down to business now. Can you do me a favor?"
"What is it?" Huang Yanchen asked.
Zhang Ruochen took out Shengshu Cainü's Blood Seal Sacred Edict and handed it to Huang Yanchen. "Take this edict and go see the governor of Tiantai Prefecture. Tell him where Prince Xia of the Huangtian Tribe is hiding. Even if you don't give orders, I believe he'll know what to do."
Sensing the sacred aura emanating from the Blood Seal Sacred Edict, a flicker of surprise crossed Huang Yanchen's eyes. "Shengshu Cainü's sacred edict? And written with her sacred blood. It seems you have quite a close relationship with that renowned talented woman. I've heard that seeing a Blood Seal Sacred Edict is like seeing her in person."
In truth, Zhang Ruochen didn't want Huang Yanchen to know about his connection with Shengshu Cainü, but he had no choice now. Since it was exposed, he'd let it be.
Zhang Ruochen said, "I'll tell you how I met her another time, alright?"
"Of course." Huang Yanchen remained remarkably calm.
Zhang Ruochen then gave Huang Yanchen further instructions before they split into two groups, heading in different directions.
Huang Yanchen and Qing Mo headed for the prefectural capital of Tiantai Prefecture, Cloud Center City.
Zhang Ruochen and Xiao Hei, meanwhile, went to the Black Market headquarters in Tiantai Prefecture. Prince Xia and the Huangtian Tribe's experts were hiding there.
The Black Market headquarters in Tiantai Prefecture gathered heretical cultivators from all over, a chaotic mix known as the "City of Evil."
The Huangtian Tribe's cultivators had chosen this place precisely for its chaos, hiding within the Black Market headquarters.
Zhang Ruochen and Xiao Hei went ahead to scout out how many experts the Huangtian Tribe had sent, ideally to wipe them all out.
"Elder Yuan Gui and the Chaos Heaven Palace Master Yu Huacheng should have also fled to the Black Market headquarters. They've probably already joined forces with the Huangtian Tribe," Xiao Hei said.
The Huangtian Tribe was teeming with experts, and both Elder Yuan Gui and Yu Huacheng were top-tier ruthless figures. With Zhang Ruochen's current cultivation, he was far from being able to contend with them. Heading to the Black Market headquarters now was extremely dangerous.
But Zhang Ruochen had no other choice.
"The Black Market is also hostile to the Undying Blood Clan. We can pass the information to their higher-ups and use their power to deal with them," Zhang Ruochen said.
"Is that really a good idea? What if it alerts the enemy?" Xiao Hei worried.
"In the Black Market headquarters, the Black Market's power is still the greatest. If they're willing to act against the Huangtian Tribe's cultivators, it'll be much easier for us. We have to try. But first, we need to find the right person to relay the message to the heretical saints of the Black Market," Zhang Ruochen said.
Back in the Azure Dragon Ruins Realm, for the sake of human dignity, the Black Market's cultivators and the imperial court's cultivators had united against the Undying Blood Clan and the barbarian beast tribes.
So Zhang Ruochen had reason to believe that most of the Black Market's heretical saints would support dealing with the Undying Blood Clan.
Zhang Ruochen and Xiao Hei traveled at top speed, and after just half a day, they could see the outline of a massive black city on the horizon.
Zhang Ruochen didn't change his appearance but used his spiritual power to shroud his entire body. This way, any cultivator weaker than him in spiritual power couldn't see his face or form.
Strolling openly, Zhang Ruochen entered the Black Market headquarters.
"Seventh Avenue, Star Cloud Mansion."
Before leaving Moyou Valley, the Sect Leader's Wife had given Zhang Ruochen this location.
Now, Zhang Ruochen had arrived at Seventh Avenue, planning to meet this Prince Xia under the identity of Gu Linfeng. Just how formidable was he?
Since Huangtian Blood Emperor had sent him to take over the Blood God Sect, he couldn't be a minor figure.
Zhang Ruochen arrived at the gates of Star Cloud Mansion. Before he could announce himself, the doors swung open automatically, and three figures emerged.
They were Elder Yuan Gui and Chaos Heaven Palace Master Yu Huacheng, with a strikingly beautiful young woman standing between them. She exuded an air of nobility and walked with elegant grace—it was the Huangtian Imperial Daughter, who had once crossed swords with Zhang Ruochen in the Azure Dragon Ruins Realm.
The Huangtian Imperial Daughter clearly knew that Gu Linfeng represented the Sect Leader's Wife. She smiled charmingly, "Divine Son, we've been waiting for you. Please, come in."
Gu Linfeng had killed the Huangtian Tribe's infiltrator, Saint Hongyuan, creating some enmity. But since he had now allied with the Sect Leader's Wife and was working for the Undying Blood Clan, the Huangtian Imperial Daughter chose not to bring it up.
Taking over the Blood God Sect—that was the real priority in her eyes.