In the mansion’s lotus pond, within the courtyard’s well, in the underground river, and throughout the entire coastal city of Linhai, except for the Yun Clan which had already undergone purification, water sources from all directions seemed to churn and bubble under the influence of the lofty zither melody, emitting waves of deep blue. Particularly at the harbor, the ocean surged with colossal waves of deep blue, shining like precious gems.
The waves crashed back and forth, evoking an image of a dying struggle. After a while, they abruptly solidified, revealing numerous cracks before shattering into countless fragments, dissolving into the sea and transforming the azure blue into a profound depth.
The zither sound pierced the heavens, shaking the sky and earth!
With a cold and detached expression, Master Ruan’s fingers moved increasingly faster over the strings. The melody grew more urgent, interweaving into a cascade of sounds like pearls of various sizes falling onto jade plates, prompting many within the mourning hall to exchange bewildered glances.
What zither manual was this from the Ruan Clan? None had ever heard of it before!
He Jiu, He Xiu, and Huang Taichong, three Exemplars from the Donghai Sword Manor, were both astonished and delighted inwardly despite their outward expressions. Could it be that the world actually possessed a zither composition capable of confronting and suppressing the Bluebloods?
If they had known this earlier, they should have allied with the Ruan Clan back then!
The zither melody grew increasingly frantic, and Master Ruan’s frail body seemed on the verge of breaking apart at any moment. Yet his expression remained focused, his hands moving so fast they left afterimages, unaffected in the slightest.
At that moment, a scream erupted from within the mourning hall. Yan Bo, who had remained steadfast beside the coffin, staggered backward several steps, his face turning blue, a terrifying sight!
“Yan Bo!” cried Elder Yun Jiu in shock.
Huang Taichong and He Xiu positioned themselves on either side, quietly surrounding Yan Bo. He Jiu spoke steadily, “Yan Bo, was it you who caused the death of Elder Yun?”
Seeing the others stunned, He Jiu explained amidst the zither music, “Yan Bo must have received assistance from the High Priest of the Bluebloods and has undergone initial transformation into a Blueblood.”
He had originally planned to use the Donghai Sword Manor’s secret techniques, developed over generations, to test the Yuns today and expose any traitors showing signs of Blueblood transformation. However, Master Ruan had preempted him, and his method was even more effective and precise. If it had been him, there might have been one or two slip through, especially those with only minor signs of transformation!
Elder Yun Shisan, unable to suppress his shock and anger, cried out, “Yan Bo, how could Elder Yun trust and value you so much in vain!”
“You traitor!” others from the Yun Clan shouted in anger.
The zither music continued relentlessly, and the blue hue beneath Yan Bo’s skin writhed violently, causing his skin to alternately sink and bulge, making him appear extremely grotesque.
Gurgling sounds seemed to emanate from beneath his skin.
Huang Taichong and He Xiu struck simultaneously, their sword energies crisscrossing and effortlessly sealing Yan Bo, who was already on the brink of death from the zither’s effects.
“He trusted and valued me?” Yan Bo suddenly burst into laughter, his aged appearance fully revealed, “He knew my lifespan was nearly at an end, yet he secretly consumed the longevity pills he obtained, never considering my life or death!”
“He was so stingy and ungrateful, why should I sacrifice my life for him?”
Elder Yun Liu coldly replied, “So you sided with the Bluebloods?”
“Yes. Blueblood transformation grants vitality. If I successfully transform, I can live another hundred years!” Yan Bo suppressed his screams with a frenzied demeanor.
He scanned the crowd and chuckled, “The old immortal secretly consumed the pills to extend his life, hiding it from you all. He wanted to see how you would scramble and scheme before his ‘passing,’ to choose who could carry on the Yun legacy. But now, he’ll never see it!”
This revelation sent shockwaves through the Yun Clan.
At this moment, He Jiu’s figure became ethereal, as if enveloped in a shifting mass of sword energy, “Yan Bo, the Bluebloods wouldn’t target the Yun Clan without reason, and you wouldn’t have had contact with them. Who arranged this connection? Who gave you your orders?”
Indeed, why would the Bluebloods, dwelling deep in the ocean, covet a minor clan on land? Elder Yun Jiu instinctively glanced at Elder Yun Er, suspecting he might have taken a desperate gamble.
Yan Bo burst into wild laughter, his skin melting as blue blood seeped out:
“Haha, the one who ordered me was naturally…”
He glared around, a malicious grin spreading:
“Someone qualified to inherit the clan leadership!”
As his words faded, a ripple approached from afar. The deep blue seal on Yan Bo suddenly exploded, engulfing him and scattering his remains into mist.
A figure coalesced from the fine droplets high above, arms spread wide, forming a distant seal.
He had only nine fingers; the severed stumps did not heal due to the water’s properties, instead gleaming with eerie crystalline luster!
After killing Yan Bo, he transformed into a stream of water light and instantly fled toward the sea. Master Ruan altered his zither melody, and a phoenix-like image emerged behind him.
With his sleeves flaring, he summoned a surge of flowing fire, swiftly pursuing. Huang Taichong also transformed into a beam of sword light composed of countless sword energies, piercing through the mist and shooting toward the back of the nine-fingered Blueblood like lightning.
The two pursued the one, and within a breath, they vanished from the perception of the onlookers, diving deep into the sea.
This sudden turn of events left the Yuns momentarily stunned. They had expected a complex conspiracy requiring careful unraveling, but Master Ruan’s intervention had brought matters directly to their final stage—identifying the traitor and establishing the new clan leader!
However, due to Yan Bo’s deliberate provocation before his death, their gazes toward Elder Yun Jiu and others grew complicated. Any of them could be the mastermind, yet none could be entirely ruled out. After all, the Yun Clan was not among the top-tier families, possessing only about twenty Exemplars, with merely seven reaching the peak level. Excluding the deceased Yan Bo, a senior elder from a collateral branch, and the invited guest experts, only four remained.
If they were to lose any of them, the Yun Clan, already without a Grandmaster, might even lose its position as a second-tier family unless they received unconditional support from the Donghai Sword Manor, the only way to maintain control over Linhai!
…
Meanwhile, within the ship cabin sealed in dark light, Wu Hengjian watched as the Poisonous Hand Demon Lord, clad in a green robe, slowly stepped inside, his heart sinking.
If the Pursuing Soul Demon Lord had already left him helpless, how could he possibly contend with the Poisonous Hand Demon Lord, who could frighten the Pursuing Soul into fleeing with a mere hum?
From prior experience, he knew the Poisonous Hand Demon Lord was unfathomable. If it hadn’t been for his secret technique catching the opponent off guard last time, he wouldn’t even have managed to escape!
Still, he was no coward. Having grown into an Exemplar amidst the perilous Left Paths, he always possessed a fearless determination when facing death. While suppressing his despair, he began strategizing for a desperate fight.
Meng Qi stood with his hands behind his back, expression indifferent, not attacking immediately but instead stepping forward slowly, imposing immense psychological pressure on Wu Hengjian.
“I heard you defected from your sect?” Meng Qi spoke casually, almost like a familial conversation, yet not an ordinary one. It felt more like a father-in-law speaking to a daughter’s suitor for the first time, creating immense pressure on Wu Hengjian.
Wu Hengjian focused on steadying his mindset for a full-force attack. He didn’t bother hiding the truth as he replied straightforwardly, “Yes, which is why I was hunted by Pursuing Soul and others.”
“Do you mind telling me which sect you belonged to?” Meng Qi paused at just the right moment, causing Wu Hengjian’s rising momentum to abruptly stall.
Wu Hengjian hesitated briefly before replying, “The Luo Sect.”
“The Luo Sect?” Meng Qi’s mind flashed with the image of Gu Xiaosang’s beautiful face, always unreadable, “So you and Pursuing Soul are both wandering members of the Luo Sect?”
Wu Hengjian was momentarily stunned, “Demon Lord, indeed a great Left Path figure! You even know of the Luo Sect’s wandering disciples. However, he differs from me—he is known as the Future Divine Messenger, with the potential to become a Divine Messenger in the future.”
Unknowingly, he had become a “great Left Path figure”… A strange sense of satisfaction welled up in Meng Qi.
Maintaining an air of profound mystery, Meng Qi slowly asked, “Which cultivation manual did you take with you from the Luo Sect?”
“The Illuminating Spirit, Devouring Heaven and Earth Divine Art.” Wu Hengjian secretly considered that if handing over the manual could spare his life, he would give it to the Poisonous Hand Demon Lord without hesitation—he had already memorized it thoroughly.
A strange demonic art… Just from the name, Meng Qi felt an inexplicable sensation, “Did you choose it yourself, or was it bestowed upon you?”
“After reaching Exemplar status, it was granted by the Holy Maiden.” Wu Hengjian didn’t understand why Meng Qi was asking these questions.
Gu Xiaosang? Meng Qi frowned inwardly. That fellow always had ulterior motives, but the transmission of techniques within the Luo Sect was routine and shouldn’t be problematic… However, Wu Hengjian was connected to the Demon Lord, and Gu Xiaosang had entered the Demon’s Grave—it shouldn’t be such a strange coincidence!
Maintaining his enigmatic demeanor, Meng Qi, with a slightly aged tone, asked, “Then why did you defect? Was it because you feared the Luo Sect would seize your treasures and eliminate you, or did you suddenly awaken and realize you were actually a good person?”
Wu Hengjian suddenly laughed, his expression showing a touch of fervor, “Neither. I simply realized what my inner demon was, and since it conflicted with the Luo Sect’s philosophy, our paths diverged!”
“Your inner demon?” As a “great Left Path figure” and a generation master, Meng Qi remained composed and profound.
“Some demons are obsessed with desires, deceiving the world; some love slaughter and destruction; others rebel against heaven, seeking to shatter shackles through their own strength. There are many such types. I wonder, Demon Lord, what is your inner demon?” Wu Hengjian’s expression strangely turned sacred.
“Mercy, to destroy the sea of suffering, freeing all beings from endless cycles of illusion and torment!” Meng Qi smiled slightly, his cold expression softening into a calm and serene solemnity.
Seeing the Poisonous Hand Demon Lord momentarily resemble a great monk, Wu Hengjian was momentarily at a loss for words. After a long pause, he finally said, “Demon Lord’s philosophy shares some similarities with the Luo Sect’s.”
A sudden thought struck Meng Qi, and he abruptly asked, “Was your realization of your inner demon related to the demoness Luo?”
Wu Hengjian suddenly froze, his eyes shifting as if recalling deeply. After a long while, he replied uncertainly, “I don’t think so. Although the Holy Maiden did assign me a mission that triggered subsequent events, everything that happened was coincidental, unrelated.”
Meng Qi nodded slightly, then suddenly asked:
“Was the incident you encountered related to the demonic mark on your forehead?”
Wu Hengjian’s face paled, his heart filled with shock. The Poisonous Hand Demon Lord indeed surpassed Pursuing Soul. He had used the demonic mark on both of them before, but Pursuing Soul merely found it powerful and sought to steal it, failing to grasp its true mystery and symbolism. Yet the Poisonous Hand Demon Lord, through indirect questioning, had suddenly brought it up, clearly having some understanding of the mark’s secrets!
Instantly, his expression turned fierce, the black demonic mark on his forehead flaring, and a dark purple and cyan phantom image appeared behind him as he chanted incantations:
“The Demon returns to the world, and the Holy One follows once more!”
The demonic mark detached, and the world abruptly changed. A distant, ancient, and malevolent consciousness seemed to slowly awaken, descending into the hideous dark purple demonic image!
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