Those Who Follow Me Prosper, Those Who Defy Me Perish

Only when the colossal Starship that blotted out the sky had completely vanished at the end of their vision, amid the ripples of its jump, did the surviving upper echelons of the Soaring Heaven Sect seem to have all their strength drained away. Many of their backs were already soaked with cold sweat.

On the platform atop the mountain.

The atmosphere was so oppressive it was hard to breathe.

The former sight of Sword Qi soaring into the heavens and spirits flying high was gone, replaced by a scene of utter gloom.

Lingjue, the current sect master of the Soaring Heaven Sect—a middle-aged sword cultivator with resolute features and a sword intent that normally cut through the air—now looked as though he had aged several decades.

"Sect Master!"

A Blazing Sun elder from the sect was filled with grief and indignation, his beard and hair standing on end. His voice was like that of a wounded lion. "Our Soaring Heaven Sect has stood tall in Azure Province for three thousand seven hundred years! Wherever our sword points, all demons flee! When have we ever suffered such monstrous humiliation?! Our mountain gate has been destroyed, our sword peaks razed, our treasure vault plundered—this is trampling the face of our Soaring Heaven Sect beneath their feet and grinding it over and over! Are we truly to swallow this humiliation in silence?!"

His words resonated with quite a few hot-blooded elders and core disciples present.

Expressions of humiliation and unwillingness surfaced on everyone's faces.

Sword cultivators would rather break than bend. To suffer such treatment was worse than killing them.

"Not swallow it? Then what can we do?"

Elder Frostshade, an older and more level-headed elder, sighed and spoke in a hoarse voice. Looking at Elder Blazing Sun, his eyes were filled with