Styx looked at the people ahead.
There were eight of them in total.
They were all people he had seen at the Purple Cloud Palace.
They were the Three Pure Ones, Nüwa and Fuxi, the brothers Di Jun and Taiyi, and Hong Yun.
Styx did not hurry forward. Instead, he listened from the side.
The arguing crowd did not notice Styx at all.
Given Styx's current cultivation, as long as he did not want them to notice him, how could these Great Luo Golden Immortals possibly detect him?
Taiyi held a massive golden bell, his tone filled with menace.
"Who are you trying to fool? We saw you standing here alone the moment we arrived. If you didn't take the treasure, then who did?"
When Hong Yun saw Taiyi raise the Eastern Emperor Bell, he hurriedly retreated two steps in fright.
The Eastern Emperor Bell had originally been called the Chaos Bell. It was a Connate Supreme Treasure, and Taiyi had already made a formidable name for himself in the Primordial Wilderness through it.
Taiyi later renamed it the Eastern Emperor Bell.
Naturally, Hong Yun had heard of it as well.
Yet no matter how afraid he was, Hong Yun continued arguing.
"I didn't take the treasure because I didn't take it. How many times do I have to say it before you believe me?"
Taiyi snorted. "Hmph! Everyone in the Primordial Wilderness says you, Hong Yun, are an exceptionally great philanthropist. In my view, you're nothing more than a liar! Since you dared to take it, why don't you dare admit it?"
In Taiyi's view, all the Great Luo Golden Immortals of the Primordial Wilderness had gone to the Purple Cloud Palace to hear the Dao.
The remaining Taiyi Golden Immortals could never have taken the treasure that had originally been here.
The moment everyone left the Purple Cloud Palace, they sensed that there was a treasure on Buzhou Mountain.
Among them, Hong Yun had been the fastest, while everyone else had arrived a step later.
When they arrived, they found Hong Yun alone at the scene, acting suspiciously.
If Hong Yun had not taken the treasure, then who had?
Hong Yun grew even angrier from the scolding, but under the intimidation of the Eastern Emperor Bell, he did not dare argue with Taiyi further.
Instead, he turned his gaze toward the other great powers around them, hoping they would speak up for him.
Hong Yun believed that, given his reputation as the great philanthropist of the Primordial Wilderness, everyone should have been on his side.
But to his disappointment, no one expressed any stance at all.
Clearly, their attitude was the same as Taiyi's.
Hong Yun's heart sank.
Seeing Hong Yun act like this, Taiyi's anger surged, and he wished he could smash Hong Yun to death with the Eastern Emperor Bell.
However, Di Jun stopped him.
Di Jun took the initiative to speak.
"Fellow Daoist Hong Yun, if I'm not mistaken, there is probably more than one treasure here. You likely can't take them all away by yourself, so why not hand them over and let everyone share them? I, Di Jun, guarantee that you will not leave empty-handed!"
Although Di Jun's words sounded like a discussion, they carried an unmistakable tone that brooked no refusal.
After thinking for a moment, Fuxi also took the initiative to persuade Hong Yun.
"Fellow Daoist Hong Yun, Fellow Daoist Di Jun is right. You should hand over the treasure. How about this? You can divide the treasures among yourselves. I, Fuxi, will withdraw from the distribution."
The moment Nüwa heard this, she wanted to speak and dissuade Fuxi, but Fuxi stopped her.
Fuxi understood clearly that he and his sister were not as powerful as the three brothers of the Three Pure Ones, nor did they possess a supreme treasure like the Eastern Emperor Bell, as Di Jun and Taiyi did.
Even if he did not withdraw, he and Nüwa would not receive many treasures. It was better to withdraw voluntarily.
Perhaps then, in consideration of this, everyone might give Nüwa something good.
Hong Yun felt even more troubled upon hearing this.
He had clearly said that he had not taken the treasure. Why would they not believe him?
Sigh, if Zhen Yuanzi were here, he would definitely believe me.
Seeing that Hong Yun still would not speak, Taiyi finally raised the Eastern Emperor Bell and smashed it toward Hong Yun.
Terrified, Hong Yun hurriedly took out his accompanying spiritual treasure, the Three Thousand Whisks, and tried to block the Eastern Emperor Bell.
But the Eastern Emperor Bell was a Connate Supreme Treasure, while the Three Thousand Whisks were merely a High-Grade Connate Spiritual Treasure.
With little difference in their cultivation, how could a High-Grade Connate Spiritual Treasure compare to a Connate Supreme Treasure like the Eastern Emperor Bell, which combined both offense and defense?
The Three Thousand Whisks transformed into three thousand long strands, tightly binding the Eastern Emperor Bell.
But the Eastern Emperor Bell erupted with golden light, broke free of the Three Thousand Whisks, and crashed toward Hong Yun.
Hong Yun hurriedly defended himself, but the Eastern Emperor Bell struck him until he was utterly disoriented, blood spilling from his mouth.
"Taiyi, you..."
Hong Yun was so furious that he could not even speak. He hurriedly tried to flee.
But the Eastern Emperor Bell was faster, directly enveloping Hong Yun.
Unable to escape, Hong Yun felt despair rise in his heart.
I should have known better than to come here.
He had merely arrived and found that the treasure was missing, so he had looked around. Who had he provoked?
"Hong Yun, are you still unwilling to hand over the treasure even at death's door?"
Taiyi shouted sternly.
"If you still refuse to hand it over, then I can only kill you and seize the treasure!"
Hong Yun was a great power on the same level as Taiyi, and Taiyi did not want to push him to the point of completely turning hostile.
Otherwise, Hong Yun would have been dead long ago.
Upon hearing Taiyi's words, Hong Yun revealed a helpless expression.
"Kill me if you want. Even if you kill me, I still don't have the treasure."
He truly had no choice.
He could not beat them, and they would not listen to what he said.
What else could he do?
Seeing this, the others all began to feel doubtful.
Could Hong Yun really have not taken the treasure?
Then who had taken it?
At this moment, Laozi of the Three Pure Ones finally spoke in a calm, unhurried manner.
"It seems another great power also sensed this opportunity and took the treasure first."
Taiyi unwillingly released Hong Yun.
The treasure had already been taken. Killing Hong Yun would accomplish nothing.
Di Jun suddenly thought of something. "Could it have been Styx? He left the Purple Cloud Palace as soon as the lecture ended. Could he have come here to take the treasure?"
As for the Twelve Ancestral Witches, who had also left as soon as the lecture ended, it was completely impossible that they had done it.
After all, the Witch Clan had no primordial spirits and could not use spiritual treasures. Taking the treasure would have been useless to them.
The more everyone thought about it, the more likely it seemed.
Styx, who had been listening from the side, was speechless.
So this was a case of sitting at home while blame fell from the sky?
Oh, wait. Maybe it wasn't entirely blame.
After all, Wu Mo really might have taken it.
By that logic, it did count as something I did.
But he definitely could not admit it at a time like this.
So Styx took the initiative to dispel his concealment and stepped out.
"Fellow Daoists, you seem to be in high spirits. Just now, I believe I heard someone mention me. What are you all discussing?"
Styx's sudden appearance startled everyone.
Taiyi was the first to step forward, roaring at Styx.
"Did you take the treasure here?"
The others also looked at Styx with unfriendly gazes.
Except for Hong Yun.
After all, Hong Yun had just been targeted by everyone and injured. Now that he saw Styx being targeted, he cast him a sympathetic look.
Styx chuckled.
Hong Yun really was an interesting person. Even when his own situation was so bad, he was still worried about Styx.
Seeing that Styx did not answer, Taiyi was about to fly into a rage.
But then Laozi spoke from the side in shock.
"You broke through to become a Quasi-Sage?!"
Taiyi was so startled that even the hand holding the Eastern Emperor Bell trembled.
The others were no better. For a moment, they all stared at Styx and Laozi with shocked expressions.
Before you continue