At the same time, Cloudwater Supreme Sect, Longwind Circuit.
Rain poured down in torrents.
Raindrops the size of beans hammered against the ground, eaves, and leaves, cracking loudly as they merged into a deafening expanse of white noise.
The sky was blanketed by heavy leaden clouds. From time to time, pallid lightning tore through the heavens, illuminating the muddy mountain road and the rows of houses below.
Most of the walls around the manor's outer perimeter had long since collapsed. Weeds choked the courtyard, and several tiled houses stood on the verge of falling apart, making it look like an abandoned residence left vacant for years.
Crack—!
Another bolt of lightning split the sky.
By that fleeting flash, a figure could be seen hovering silently above the manor.
When the rain fell within three zhang of him, it automatically slid aside, as though an invisible barrier enveloped him.
The man was around forty, with three long strands of beard hanging to his chest. He wore the water-blue, cloud-patterned Daoist robe unique to the Cloudwater Supreme Sect, and a sheathed longsword hung at his waist.
His eyes were lowered, his gaze sharp as lightning as he swept it across the manor below.
Behind him, more than a dozen figures descended one after another. Every one of them had a deep, steady aura; even the weakest was at the True Origin Realm.
The leader was none other than Hai Mingcheng, one of the four great disciples of the Cloudwater Supreme Sect's "Hai" generation.
"Martial Uncle Mao."
Hai Mingcheng stepped forward half a pace and lowered his voice. "The Demonic Sect stronghold is ahead. According to our intelligence, at least five True Origin Realm demonic fiends are hidden here, along with several dozen outer perimeter disciples. They are suspected to be connected to