"Wait, you're Bai Lan from the Law Enforcement Hall! You were the champion of the previous Five Sects Grand Competition! I recognize you!" A green-robed woman suddenly recognized Bai Lan from the crowd and exclaimed in surprise.
"Huh? Wait a minute, wasn't our Uncle Ling Xiao the champion of the last Five Sects Joint Tournament in the Core Formation stage?"
The green-robed woman slowly spoke, "No... no, she was the champion of the previous Qi Refining stage, and she participated in the Five Sects Grand Competition with me."
The entire room fell silent.
"When was the last Five Sects Joint Tournament?" someone asked uncertainly.
"It seems like... six years ago."
Six years, from Qi Refining to Core Formation... Impossible, absolutely impossible! It must be an illusion; they must be inside it right now!
Demonic Cultivator are terrifying enough to actually infiltrate a sect and set up an illusion right under the sect leader's nose to confuse them!!! This is too unbelievable, it's obviously fake!
Seeing the terrified expressions on the faces of her disciples, Bai Lan frowned slightly.
That's strange. She didn't try to hide herself when she returned to the sect. Quite a few sect disciples saw her on the way.
Such earth-shattering news, how come it didn't spread? Why are these people still so surprised to see her? If it were the chosen Child of Destiny, she would have been fawned over by now. She also wants to experience what it's like to be a Long Aotian!
"Ahem, the sect discovered a secret realm in the Qiyun Mountain Range and summoned several dozen Foundation Establishment stage disciples to explore it. They only returned to the sect yesterday," Nan Xianshi explained in a low voice.
It was fortunate that this group of disciples arrived at the right time; the situation at the front was tense, otherwise True Person Qing He would not have been able to spare a team of men.
Just as the disciples were stunned, True Person Qing He walked out of the main hall upon hearing the news. Behind True Person Qing He stood a female cultivator in the early Core Formation stage.
Bai Lan recognized the newcomer at a glance—it was True Person Yin Ning, an old acquaintance. However, while Bai Lan was familiar with Yin Ning, Yin Ning did not recognize her.
When she recruited Gongsun Lian as her general at the Meditation Cliff, he was the elder Meditation Cliff. Gongsun Lian even used his looks to seduce her in order to escape.
Unfortunately, Gongsun Lian's honey trap failed; True Person Yin Ning was a ruthless woman who remained unmoved by temptation.
Later, when Wu Yin discovered that Gongsun Lian had been captured by the Void Stone and escaped from the Meditation Cliff of Contemplation, True Person Yin Ning was resented by Wu Yin for her poor performance. After that, she disappeared for a while, which almost made Bai Lan think that she had been silenced by Wu Yin.
This time, he reappeared alive, but his cultivation level had decreased instead of increased, falling from the mid Core Formation stage to the early Core Formation stage... Could it be the work of Wu Yin?
"Junior Sister Bai, the Corpse Refining Sect is a tough nut to crack. Sending only two Core Formation cultivators is tantamount to suicide. I know you've suffered a calamity this time, and if you don't avenge this, your Dao heart will surely be unstable in the future." Qing He sighed and transmitted his voice, "I won't stop you, but you must promise that if more than half of the disciples who went with you are lost, you must not linger in battle and must return to the sect immediately."
"Don't worry, senior brother. I promise that if any of the disciples who came with me on this trip die, I will immediately return to the sect." Bai Lan nodded.
"Okay, okay... Hmm? Wait, what did you say?" True Person Qing He suddenly looked at Bai Lan.
"Don't worry, Senior Brother, we will ensure that not a single disciple of our sect is killed or wounded in this battle." After saying this, Bai Lan smiled and looked at True Person Yin Ning: " Senior Sister Yin Ning, could it be that the Sect Leader sent you to accompany me?"
True Person Qing He was more understanding than she had imagined. Although Bai Lan knew that his understanding wasn't for her sake, but rather because he was afraid that she would ruin all these low-level disciples, he had brought Yin Ning along to protect her.
True Person Qing He frowned, sighing inwardly, "Once a war breaks out between cultivators, it's a chaotic and devastating battle. In every past war, countless people died or were injured. How could anyone escape unscathed..."
That's enough, that's enough.
Although they had a hundred concerns about Bai Lan, with True Person Yin Ning present, even if they were defeated on this trip, not all the lower-level disciples would perish.
To be precise, True Person Qing He never believed that Bai Lan could win this time.
Putting aside the difference in combat strength between the two sides, the Eighth-Rank Guardian Sect Formation outside the Corpse Refining Sect alone is something that even a Core Formation cultivator cannot handle.
However, Bai Lan's talent was too extraordinary, and True Person Qing He was afraid that if she didn't avenge this humiliation and vent her anger, she would develop inner demons during her future cultivation. In that case, their Azure Origin Sect would lose another genius.
"Junior Sister Yin Ning, Junior Sister Bai is indeed a genius, but I always feel uneasy when I hear her speak. It seems that this heavy responsibility will fall on your shoulders. You must protect these lower-level disciples and prevent them from being wiped out." True Person Qing He looked at True Person Yin Ning and secretly transmitted his voice.
Bai Lan's ears perked up. Was this some kind of telepathic communication? Was there something she, a Core Formation cultivator, couldn't hear?
" Elder Fu, let's eavesdrop and see what they're saying."
"Tsk."
While eavesdropping, Elder Fu repeated the words the two had exchanged.
"Don't worry, Yin Ning Leader. I will repay your life-saving grace. I will risk my life to protect these low-level disciples from Junior Sister Bai!" Yin Ning's face was full of determination.
"... There's no need for that. A Core Formation cultivator is no less valuable than these low-level disciples. You must also protect yourself. Protect as many low-level disciples as you can." True Person Qing He sighed, feeling utterly exhausted. "Forget it, even listening to you makes me uneasy. Go, go."
To prevent the situation from becoming too chaotic when lower-level disciples are eliminated during the war, he began preparations several years ago, and now every lower-level disciple has at least one defensive Spirit Artifact.
It's better than nothing, but something is better than nothing.
"Junior Sister Bai, wait... you look somewhat familiar." True Person Yin Ning nodded slightly, then turned to look at Bai Lan, feeling as if she had seen her somewhere before.
Indeed, Bai Lan was familiar with her too. Bai Lan still remembered the scene of Yin Ning shouting "Lian'er, Lian'er" outside the Meditation Cliff that day.
We met once at the Meditation Cliff.
Upon hearing the words "Meditation Cliff," True Person Yin Ning suddenly seemed to recall something unpleasant, her face paled, and she said no more.
True Person Qing He slowly exhaled and looked at everyone. "Everyone, your goal this time is to take advantage of the time when the patriarch of the Demonic Path Corpse Refining Sect is heading to Starfall Plain to wipe out the remnants of the Corpse Refining Sect in one fell swoop. The elders leading this expedition are True Person Bai and True Person Yin Ning."
The Foundation Establishment stage disciples behind him, who remained silent, felt a chill in their hearts.