Chapter 103: Crushing Defeat

After descending from Wuming Peak, Lin Fan aimlessly wandered around the Holy Sect. He had absolutely no idea about the herbs needed to concoct the pill, but at least he had a rough idea of the general method.

The hidden ailments of people like Ye Shaotian likely required kidney-strengthening and yang-enhancing treatments, but Lin Fan had no expertise in this area and didn’t know which herbs to use or how to combine them.

Nowadays, Lin Fan had become somewhat of a minor celebrity among the outer sect disciples. Those outer disciples either avoided him when they saw him or respectfully addressed him as “Senior Apprentice Master.”

Everyone had heard through various channels about how Ye Shaotian had been utterly crushed.

And the story kept getting exaggerated.

It was rumored that Lin Fan, the Senior Apprentice Master from Wuming Peak, was ruthless and specialized in attacking the lower body. Because of his arrogance and disrespect, Ye Shaotian had his testicles kicked to pieces…

These stories grew more and more exaggerated, yet strangely, many outer sect disciples actually believed them.

…

Lin Fan was wandering aimlessly now. Though he had a vague idea, he still didn’t know where to find suitable herbs.

“Hey, damn it, why am I so stupid? I should go to Danding Peak! Danding Peak isn’t just a holy land for alchemy—it’s also where medicinal herbs are cultivated. I can just try them one by one to see if any have similar effects,” Lin Fan thought helplessly, frustrated with his own slowness in realizing such a simple solution.

Once he sorted out his thoughts, Lin Fan immediately rushed toward Danding Peak.

First, he needed to check the layout of Danding Peak and locate where the herbs were planted. Then, at night, he could get to work properly.

Upon arriving at Danding Peak, Lin Fan looked at the bustling scene with a mix of envy and admiration.

It was packed with people—outer sect and inner sect disciples moving about in a grand procession. He wondered when Wuming Peak would ever see such a magnificent gathering.

As he admired the scene, Lin Fan snapped back to reality and gave himself a pep talk. What did this matter? As long as he worked hard, Wuming Peak could also become as bustling as Danding Peak.

Since there were so many outer sect disciples on Danding Peak, Lin Fan blended into the crowd without drawing attention.

Gradually, Lin Fan lost track of his exact location, but for safety and to avoid detection, he activated his invisibility technique and entered a hidden state.

At this moment, the area was sparsely populated. Occasionally, someone would pass by, but they were all Danding Peak disciples. It seemed this was the back section of Danding Peak.

This was the residential area for Danding Peak disciples, and outsiders had no right to enter.

Crossing a wooden bridge, Lin Fan continued forward. Disciples below the Xiao Tian level couldn’t detect his movement at all. Even if he encountered someone at the Xiao Tian or Da Tian level, as long as he remained still, he could still escape detection.

Suddenly, a fragrant aroma filled the air. The entire space was permeated with a strong medicinal scent. One whiff of it and one’s spirit would be greatly invigorated.

Lin Fan’s heart leapt with joy. It seemed he had finally arrived at the herb cultivation area of Danding Peak.

As a major sect, the Holy Sect regarded Danding Peak as its foundation. A large quantity of pills were distributed from Danding Peak to support disciples’ cultivation. However, the herbs cultivated here were only suitable for ordinary pills. High-grade or miraculous pills required herbs that Danding Peak couldn’t cultivate due to their extremely demanding growth conditions.

At this moment, Danding Peak disciples were tilling the soil and nurturing the herbs in the garden. Lin Fan knew it was impossible to act now.

It seemed he would have to wait until late at night, when all was quiet, to come back and harvest properly.

Then, Lin Fan quietly retraced his steps back along the path he came.

Now that he had a clear understanding of Danding Peak’s terrain, there would be no problem even in the pitch-black night.

Just as Lin Fan was descending from Danding Peak, he noticed many disciples excitedly heading in another direction while chatting enthusiastically.

“Brother Zong and the others have returned from the forbidden zone.”

“This time, Brother Zong and his team must have crushed the other sects. Thinking of challenging Brother Zong’s team for treasures in the forbidden zone is simply wishful thinking.”

“Let’s go see. I wonder what good things Brother Zong brought back.”

…

Lin Fan listened carefully from the side, feeling rather confused about what they were talking about. Since he had nothing better to do, he decided to go check it out.

When he arrived at the mountain gate, the densely packed crowd astonished him.

Who was this Brother Zong exactly? How could he command such an impressive presence? Just returning had drawn such a massive welcome party—it was so ostentatious.

However, from what the surrounding outer sect disciples were saying, it seemed a group had gone to the forbidden zone, probably something like a joint trial among sects in the forbidden area.

Just then, a black speck appeared in the distant sky. It grew steadily closer and larger.

When Lin Fan finally saw the true form of the black speck, his heart suddenly jolted. It was actually a giant vessel flying through the sky.

Focusing his gaze, Lin Fan saw that the blue-colored vessel was engraved with densely packed talismanic characters that shimmered with radiant light, as if some special method had been used to keep it floating in the air.

Back in the Holy Demon Sect, Lin Fan had never heard of such a thing. It seemed that in the Dongling Continent, there were still many things he didn’t know.

At the moment the giant blue vessel appeared, the disciples waiting at the mountain gate excitedly began shouting.

“Holy Sect shall prevail! Triumphant return!”

“Holy Sect shall prevail! Triumphant return!”

…

The disciples’ loud cheers seemed to tear through the sky.

At this moment, the giant vessel soared over the Holy Sect and slowly descended. The disciples waiting at the mountain gate stared intently at the figures on the vessel, eagerly anticipating the triumphant return of their senior brothers.

At this time, a middle-aged man with a serious and solemn expression stepped off the vessel.

“Welcome back, Elder Han!” the disciples at the mountain gate cried out in unison.

But Lin Fan’s brow slightly furrowed. Elder Han’s expression was extremely grim. Facing the enthusiastic welcome from the disciples, he showed no sign of happiness, as if something terrible had happened.

Shortly after Elder Han disembarked, more figures began to descend from the vessel one after another.

The originally cheering disciples from the sect, upon seeing this scene, all froze in place.

What was going on?

The disciples who followed were all extremely pale, their clothes stained with blood. Some were even severely injured and had to be carried off.

At this moment, Lin Fan fixed his gaze on the last disciple stepping off the vessel.

Among all those on the vessel, aside from Elder Han, this disciple had the highest cultivation level.

This must be that so-called Brother Zong everyone was talking about.

The disciples waiting at the mountain gate sensed that things weren’t going as they had imagined and all wore expressions of disbelief.

Could it be that the Holy Sect had suffered a crushing defeat during this forbidden zone trial?

At this moment, Senior Elder Wuya suddenly appeared in front of Elder Han. Seeing the scene before him, his usually calm expression revealed a flicker of shock.

“What happened?” Senior Elder Wuya asked in a low voice.

“In this forbidden zone trial, we suffered heavy losses. Eight disciples perished…” Elder Han’s body trembled slightly, unable to believe it himself.

“Report to the Sect Leader first,” Senior Elder Wuya said, his sleeve sweeping outward as he and the others vanished into the void.

The blue-colored vessel hovering in place suddenly emitted a brilliant glow, gradually shrinking to the size of a thumb before vanishing into the void.