No one knew who had quietly spoken, but their eyes were filled with shock.
The others were all stunned.
That was a Spiritual Treasure!
Even if it was merely a Houtian Spiritual Treasure, it was still a magical treasure that ordinary Golden Immortals coveted and some Grand Unity Golden Immortals used!
If they weren't disciples of the Three Sects, even a Mystic Immortal could never have possessed such a treasure!
And Lin Changqing had crushed it with such ease!
Though the golden sword had lost the support of the Elucidation Immortal's magic power when it was crushed, the sight was still enough to shake anyone.
"Hahaha! Elucidation Sect, did you see that? You killed our Senior Disciple Brother, but he crushed your Spiritual Treasure with one hand!"
"Big talk! You dared to provoke our Senior Disciple Brother, and now look at you—you've lost your only Spiritual Treasure!"
The disciples of the Interception Sect burst into laughter.
The pent-up anger they had carried for a hundred thousand years seemed to dissipate along with the golden sword as it shattered.
What a relief!
"...Lin Changqing!!!"
"How dare you! You actually dared to crush my Spiritual Treasure! That was bestowed upon me by my master!"
"You even dared to destroy a treasure bestowed by a Sage, yet you still claim to respect your elders and honor your master!"
The Elucidation Immortal could no longer contain himself. Rage surged through him, and he shouted at Lin Changqing.
Yet his words betrayed a hint of fear, and his voice trembled.
That was a Houtian Spiritual Treasure!
In the Primordial World, anything called a Spiritual Treasure was a rare treasure—something even Grand Unity Golden Immortals would fight over.
Now it had been crushed. Who wouldn't feel the loss?
But he was even more afraid.
The one who had crushed it was a good-for-nothing Houtian Being whose cultivation was on par with his own!
The Elucidation Immortal glanced at the Twelve Golden Immortals, then toward the Elucidation Sect Immortal Palace.
Behind him stood his Senior Brothers among the Twelve Golden Immortals!
And his master was a Sage!
What did he have to fear from a mere Houtian Being, someone who would never reach the Golden Immortal realm in his lifetime?
At once, the Elucidation Mystic Immortal regained his confidence.
Little did he know that the Twelve Golden Immortals, whom he regarded as his support, were no less shocked than he was.
Among the Twelve Golden Immortals, aside from their Senior Disciple Brother, Guang Chengzi, who had been bestowed an Innate Spiritual Treasure, didn't everyone else use Houtian Spiritual Treasures?
Houtian Spiritual Treasures were still powerful. Lin Changqing had crushed one so easily—how dare he? How was it even possible?
Even Yuanshi, within the Elucidation Sect Immortal Palace, was shaken to the core.
On Kunlun Mountain, only a handful of people had seen through the reason Lin Changqing could crush a Houtian Spiritual Treasure.
It was that reddish-brown aura!
Yuanshi was one of them, and his brow was already furrowed.
A doubt stirred in his heart. That Houtian Being must have found some unorthodox cultivation method through his Third Brother.
By cultivating it, he had not only gained such tremendous strength, but seemed on the verge of breaking through his limits!
Third Brother, where did you find such an opportunity?
Yuanshi looked toward the Interception Sect Immortal Palace.
He assumed it had to be Tongtian's doing. It never occurred to him that Lin Changqing, a disciple who hadn't even reached the Golden Immortal realm, had found this opportunity himself.
After all, Lin Changqing had gone down the mountain and entered the Primordial World only a handful of times in a million years. How could he have found it?
Tongtian was no less shocked than Yuanshi.
He knew only that Lin Changqing's opportunity had come from an unorthodox cultivation method.
He had never imagined that this method could let Lin Changqing, with merely Mystic Immortal cultivation, crush a Houtian Spiritual Treasure!
After all, being unafraid of a Houtian Spiritual Treasure and being able to destroy one were two different things.
In the Primordial World, even Grand Unity Golden Immortals could hardly damage a Houtian Spiritual Treasure, while an Innate Spiritual Treasure could only be destroyed by a Sage!
That was an unbreakable rule—and Lin Changqing had broken it!
Tongtian sighed softly, then broke into a broad smile.
"Hahahaha! Second Brother, the Changqing you looked down on has finally shown his promise!"
"This is my disciple! So what if he's a Houtian Being? Who says a Houtian Being cannot pursue the Great Dao?"
"With Changqing among us, the Interception Sect can seize that one glimmer of hope!"
Tongtian looked at Lin Changqing, his delight growing ever stronger. This was his disciple, and the finest embodiment of the Interception Sect's teachings!
On Kunlun Mountain, within the black-and-white Daoist palace, the Old Daoist's narrowed eyes had now opened completely.
His face remained placid, but a trace of astonishment shone in his eyes.
"Is this what brought about the change?"
"Good."
The Daoist praised him in a long, resonant voice, but the sound did not travel even a hundred paces. Before it could leave the black-and-white Daoist palace, it had already faded away. No one else heard it.
Yet there was another person on Kunlun Mountain who had seen through what was happening.
Inside the Elucidation Sect Immortal Palace, in a side hall, stood a Daoist holding a wooden staff, with a green lamp hanging from it, a sash around his waist, and a jade ruler slung at his side.
As he watched Lin Changqing, his eyes had already narrowed.
"What an extraordinary cultivation art. It can give a Mystic Immortal such power?"
"If only I could obtain it..."
His voice was so faint that it did not carry even half an inch.
Had any Elucidation Sect disciple been there, they would certainly have clasped their hands in salute and addressed him as Master.
He was the Elucidation Sect's Deputy Patriarch, Daoist Randeng.
Apart from these figures, the Elucidation Sect disciples had no idea what this meant. Relying on their numbers, they continued to berate Lin Changqing, now angrier than before.
"Lin Changqing! You destroyed the Spiritual Treasure my master bestowed upon me. That's an insult to my master and to the Sage!"
"You claim to uphold the laws of the Three Sects. How will you punish yourself?"
Seeing so many Senior Brothers speak up for him, the disciple whose Spiritual Treasure had been destroyed regained his confidence and scolded Lin Changqing again.
Lin Changqing merely snorted.
Just what I want—you refusing to yield, you going on and on!
Only then will I have an excuse to beat you into submission!
That was exactly why Lin Changqing had summoned the power of half the apertures in his body to crush a Houtian Spiritual Treasure.
At that moment, only the power of four hundred apertures wrapped around him, a little less than before.
He seemed somewhat weakened, as though crushing the Houtian Spiritual Treasure had consumed too much of his strength.
That was how he would lure them out.
"Hmph! His aura's weak. He must be running out of strength. Let's attack together, capture him, and take him before our master. Then we'll see what he has to say!"
The Elucidation Immortals secretly communicated among themselves, their faces fierce.
"But what if he still has strength? Our Spiritual Treasures..."
One of them asked worriedly through their secret communication.
The man who had spoken before grew even more ruthless.
"Hmph! We'll attack directly. No need for Spiritual Treasures."
"I refuse to believe that, with the Three Pure Ancestors watching, Lin Changqing would dare kill us!"
"Attack!!"
Angry shouts passed back and forth through their secret communication, and in an instant, the Elucidation Immortals sprang into action.
This time, none of them dared use a Houtian Spiritual Treasure. They all unleashed their various divine abilities instead.
In an instant, palm shadows swept across the sky, a finger pierced through heaven and earth, mountains spanning ten thousand acres crumbled, and a river stretching a thousand miles dissolved into the void.
The Elucidation Sect disciples attacked without the slightest restraint. On Kunlun Mountain, they were trying to hurt someone!
The difference was stark.
In the eyes of the Elucidation Immortals, destroying their Spiritual Treasure was a blood feud!
But in the eyes of the Three Pure Ones, a treasure was just a treasure. Lin Changqing had not crossed the line, nor had he harmed a single member of the Elucidation Sect.
Now, however, the Elucidation Sect had been the first to act with murderous intent, trying to gravely injure Lin Changqing. That changed everything!
"Hmph! You dare act so brazenly? I am the Senior Disciple Brother of the Three Sects. You broke the laws and were punished by me. That would have been bad enough, but now you even want to kill me!!"
"Today, I will uphold the laws of the Three Sects!!"
Elucidation Sect disciples, the humiliation of a hundred thousand years ends today!!
Before you continue