Xu Yan looked at the three black-robed men, their faces swollen and bruised, and asked, "Were they the ones spreading the Black Blood Pills?"
The three unlucky bastards had been beaten until they were barely recognizable, but they weren't good people to begin with, so they'd gotten what they deserved.
Murong Hai said, "That's right, Senior Xu. The three of them are Evil Cultivators. They deliberately spread Black Blood Pills this time to throw Tianren City into chaos and draw our attention, so they could secretly obtain the Chess Saint's inheritance."
They had just given the three Evil Cultivators a thorough beating and forced them to explain why they were there and why they had spread the Black Blood Pills.
Hall Master Mu looked at Xu Yan, his heart filled with terror.
He had nearly succeeded, but then this man released a streak of golden light that knocked all three of them to the ground and grievously wounded them. What was more, he hadn't seen the man make a single move.
It was simply terrifying. There were probably only a handful of people in the Evil God Palace who could match him.
The Thin Helmsman felt terribly aggrieved. He had always believed that reclusive experts truly existed, but Hall Master Mu hadn't listened. Now that he believed it, it was too late.
Xu Yan gave them a little torment before saying, "You spread Black Blood Pills and harmed so many people. Back in my hometown, you'd have your heads chopped off for that."
He paused, then said to Qin Tian and the others, "You handle it. It wouldn't be appropriate for me to decide what to do with them."
He didn't know how Evil Cultivators were dealt with in the cultivation world. He was only a mortal and didn't know the ins and outs, so it was better to leave things to the cultivators.
"Don't worry. Qin Tian will handle this properly and make sure they never bother Senior Xu again," Qin Tian promised.
Then he called over the leaders of several other major Southern Domain powers, and they dragged Hall Master Mu and the Fat and Thin Helmsmen away.
A moment later, shrill screams rang out.
Clearly, the three Evil Cultivators had been killed.
Evil Cultivators harmed the world and had always been like rats crossing the street, despised by all. Once caught, they were almost always executed on the spot.
Hall Master Mu died with a deep sense of grievance. If not for the golden light released by that so-called reclusive expert, which had gravely wounded him and left him unable to fight, how could a few Sea of Consciousness First Heaven cultivators and one Sea of Consciousness Second Heaven cultivator have killed him?
As his consciousness faded, he suddenly regretted not listening to the Thin Helmsman.
Qin Tian, Ji Bai Bian, Murong Hai, Medicine King's Eldest Disciple, and Jiang Taiyuan returned and said to Xu Yan in unison, "Senior Xu, the Evil Cultivators have been brought to justice!"
They were all excited, hardly able to believe it. Three Evil Cultivators from the Sea of Consciousness Realm, including a powerhouse at Sea of Consciousness Third Heaven who was likely the Southern Domain's leader among the Evil Cultivators, had all been killed by them in one fell swoop.
For quite some time to come, the Southern Domain would probably enjoy much greater peace.
"You dealt with them fairly. Well done." Xu Yan praised them, then said, "The excitement's over, so I'll be off. You all take your time."
The formation here had been broken, the Evil Cultivators had been killed, and the treasure—the chessboard—had apparently already been given to Qin Yudie. There was nothing left for him to do, so it was time to leave.
"Let me see Senior Xu off," Qin Yudie said, holding the chessboard in her arms.
She hadn't opened her Sea of Consciousness yet. Otherwise, she could have stored a quasi-divine artifact like the Heaven and Earth Chessboard inside it.
"Sure!"
Xu Yan didn't refuse. There were so many cultivators here that if someone took a dislike to him and beat him up, he'd be in trouble. With a cultivator accompanying him, that was unlikely to happen.
Seeing Qin Yudie leave with Xu Yan, Qin Tian smiled. In his view, Xu Yan wanted to protect Qin Yudie and deter anyone with designs on the Heaven and Earth Chessboard.
By doing this, Senior Xu was effectively telling everyone that he and Qin Yudie were on very good terms. Who among those small-time troublemakers would still dare covet the Heaven and Earth Chessboard?
Qin Tian glanced at the others, thinking that he had to stop them from spreading the news just because they couldn't get their hands on the Heaven and Earth Chessboard and wanted to send others to their deaths. He said leisurely, "Everyone, please keep the matter of the Heaven and Earth Chessboard secret. If word gets out, Senior Xu might be displeased."
He was borrowing the tiger's might, and it felt absolutely wonderful.
"Qiang Di assures Sect Master Qin that I won't breathe a word of what happened today!"
Qiang Di was the first to make the promise. Since he came from outside the Southern Domain, he was the most likely to let the secret slip, so he needed to be the quickest to make his position clear.
Yun Yao and the other disciples from the Dao Palace also declared that they would never reveal anything about the Chess Saint's inheritance. They wouldn't dare, either. Senior Xu's cultivation was unfathomable; if he decided to pursue the matter, anyone who spread the news could imagine what would happen.
Ji Bai Bian looked at the Hundred Transformations Sect disciples around him and warned them, "I'll keep my disciples in line. If anyone dares to tell others what happened here today, I'll kill their entire family!"
He hadn't come alone; some of his disciples had come along too. He had to keep them in check. Otherwise, if some brainless disciple went around bragging about what happened today, the Hundred Transformations Sect could be plunged into eternal ruin.
"Old Qin, you can rest assured. I definitely won't tell anyone," Jiang Taiyuan said with a smile.
He hadn't brought any disciples, so he didn't have to worry about them blabbing. He felt completely at ease.
The people from the other powers also scrambled to promise they would keep quiet, afraid of offending Qin Tian and Senior Xu behind him.
Qin Tian nodded in satisfaction. "I trust all of you, fellow Daoists. I'm sure Senior Xu does too. Please don't disappoint him."
Even at the end, he didn't forget to invoke Xu Yan's name.
He wasn't being overly cautious. The Heaven and Earth Chessboard was a quasi-divine artifact, and its significance was immense. If the news really got out, all of Muzhou—and perhaps even places farther afield—would go mad for it. The Tianren Sect alone couldn't withstand them.
The people from the various powers promised once again. They were immensely envious of Qin Tian, and Jiang Taiyuan was especially wistful as he said, "Old Qin, you've really risen to great heights. You'll have to look after me from now on."
He wasn't jealous of Qin Tian, since they'd been good friends for many years, but he couldn't help feeling envious.
At first, Qin Tian's cultivation and status had both been inferior to his. Now, less than a month later, Qin Tian had surpassed him in every way. Jiang Taiyuan couldn't help sighing at the benefits of having someone powerful backing you.
If only he could find a reclusive expert like Senior Xu to be his patron. But he understood that it probably wasn't possible.
A genuine reclusive expert like Senior Xu was incredibly hard to find. There might not be another one in the entire Southern Domain—or even Muzhou.
"Sect Master Qin, from now on, the Southern Domain will look to you," Ji Bai Bian, the Hundred Transformations Sect's sect master, said, deeply reluctant yet resigned.
The Hundred Transformations Sect and the Tianren Sect had once been rivals, and the Hundred Transformations Sect had even held the upper hand. Now, the Tianren Sect was beyond its reach.
Qin Tian felt absolutely delighted. He laughed and replied with false modesty, "Not at all, not at all. I, Qin Tian, am hardly worthy. The peace of the Southern Domain will still depend on all of us working together."
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