Mu Cangming's words plunged heaven and earth into dead silence.
Lie Jiuyou, Jian Buxu, Red Crane, and the others were left roasting over the fire. Fighting was not an option, yet neither was refusing to fight.
The situation had changed.
If the Tianli Sect cast aside the responsibility it bore, it might no longer hold back. Moreover, Mu Cangming, this formidable Sect Master, had personally arrived, along with five Heavenly Venerates. If they truly fought, a Heavenly Venerate might very well fall today.
Bei Lin, Demon Wind Heavenly Venerate of the Winged Dragon Clan, and Radiant Light Heavenly Venerate of the Divine Radiance Clan had initially wanted to seize the chance to join the many Heavenly Venerates in attacking and kill Star River Heavenly Venerate and the others.
Now, seeing the other Heavenly Venerates hesitate, they knew they could not press ahead rashly.
Once those factions backed down, they would become the nail that stood out.
The Tianli Sect would likely target them, perhaps even seize the opportunity to exterminate them. If a true battle broke out, how could their strength withstand the Tianli Sect's crushing force?
They had been able to trade blows in the past because the Tianli Sword Domain had rules that forbade Heavenly Venerates from taking part in conflicts.
Furthermore, the Guo Luo Star Domain's terrain was complicated, its forces interwoven, and they had enjoyed the advantage of fighting on their own territory. That was how they had contended with the Tianli Sect for so many years. Of course, the support of the various factions behind them had also played no small part.
Those factions did not want them to lose too quickly; they wanted them to contain the Tianli Sect's growth.
But things were different now. This was the Ancient Realm. Once those factions sold