Yuan Ruoyu arrived at an ancient secret chamber in Jade Pool Holy Land.
This was a forbidden place.
It held records of the ancestors of Jade Pool Holy Land throughout the ages, including the cultivation methods they practiced, the spells they excelled at, and the treasures they wielded.
Aside from memorial ceremonies, few people came here on ordinary days.
"How did our ancestor become an envoy of the Heavenly Court?"
"Was she forced into it, or did she volunteer?"
As Yuan Ruoyu searched through the records, she couldn't help pondering the matter. Unless she got to the bottom of it,
it would stick in her throat like a fishbone.
Moreover, the most important thing now was to find out who their enemy was and how much power they could bring to bear in the mortal realm.
This concerned not only her, but also Lin Feng's whereabouts...
One scroll after another passed through Yuan Ruoyu's hands.
At last, several hours later, she stared at the records in her hands and found a clue.
Xiang Qingwan!
She had once been a Holy Venerable of Jade Pool Holy Land, and had reached the late stage of Mahayana. Three hundred thousand years ago, she had disappeared while searching for the herbs needed to refine the Tribulation-Breaking Pill.
A note added that she had likely met with an accident and perished, or had reached the limit of her potential and died of old age.
But no one had expected Xiang Qingwan, who had been missing for three hundred thousand years, to return.
And she had even become an envoy of the Immortal Court!
After reading the information in the records, Yuan Ruoyu's face turned cold. She exclaimed, "That means the Immortal Realm had already interfered in mortal affairs at least three hundred thousand years ago!"
"And they must have been involved much, much earlier than that..."
"What exactly are they after?"
This discovery left her trembling with unease, and her suspicions about the Immortal Realm grew stronger.
At the same time, she began to worry about the ancestors of Jade Pool Holy Land.
Throughout history, more than sixty ancestors of Jade Pool Holy Land had ascended.
Were those ancestors still alive now?
Or had they already met with misfortune?
The more Yuan Ruoyu thought about it, the more alarmed she became, and a sense of helplessness welled up inside her.
Their enemy was stronger than ever!
Worst of all, they still didn't know who their enemy was or what they wanted.
"Whoever you are, I'll find you!"
Yuan Ruoyu spent half a day in the secret chamber before finally turning to leave.
Her expression was now utterly resolute.
Qing Province, Southern Region.
Blood Spirit Sect.
Yan Shan looked at the two old men before him, one tall and one short. His expression was solemn as he asked, "Are you two confident you can kill Yan Changkong?"
The Great Elder, Lei Lie, stood beside him, his face equally grave.
The two men before them were assassins Lei Lie had hired from Shadow Kill Pavilion at great expense.
They had been hired to eliminate Yan Changkong without a trace.
With Yan Changkong at its helm, Xuanqing Sect was now developing rapidly. Yan Shan could no longer afford to wait.
The taller old man nodded faintly and looked at Yan Shan. "If Sect Master Yan can find a way to lure Yan Changkong out of his sect, we're eighty percent certain we can kill him!"
Yan Shan narrowed his eyes as he sized up the pair, but made no decision right away.
Both men were at the late stage of Spirit Transformation.
By all accounts, the two of them together should have been more than a match for Yan Changkong.
But Yan Shan still didn't decide immediately. Instead, he said, "All right. Sorry for the trouble, gentlemen. I'll contact you again about how to proceed."
Truth be told, he still didn't trust them.
Yan Changkong was also at the late stage of Spirit Transformation. Though he rarely made a move, his fighting strength far exceeded that of others at the same cultivation level.
Yan Shan didn't dare be careless. If he acted, he had to strike once and kill!
Otherwise, the consequences would be endless.
After the two men had left, the Great Elder, Lei Lie, eagerly asked, "Sect Master, do you not trust those two?"
"Their cultivation is impressive, but killing Yan Changkong without a trace will be difficult."
Yan Shan paused, then looked at the Great Elder and said, "They're assassins. If they fail, they can simply run off. We can't."
"Let's wait a little longer. We'll find the right people eventually."
The Great Elder, Lei Lie, bowed slightly. "Sect Master, I understand."
Ten days passed in the blink of an eye.
The Heavenly Secret Pavilion's next release of the Great Emperor's Diary had arrived.
This time, Yan Changkong didn't summon his disciples to watch together. He wanted to avoid another awkward incident.
He thought, Ancestor Lin Feng clearly wasn't mature enough at this point. We'd better wait a little longer...
Yan Changkong thought of something and couldn't help smiling again.
The diary kept going on about lying low and playing the fool, and refusing to take part in the sect's competitions.
Now, the first thing people said when they met anywhere in the sect was, "Hey, you old fox!"
On top of that, every disciple in the sect had made their goal to become an old fox.
Their general motto was...
Lie low and grow!
Balance work and rest!
They refused to take part in any sect trials or competitions, to the point that no one had signed up for this year's sect tournament.
After thinking it over, Yan Changkong simply decided to cancel it for now.
With the Great Emperor's Diary being released today,
all the "old foxes" came out and converged on the Projection Arrays throughout Xuanqing Sect.
"Senior Brother Yuan, you old fox! You finally decided to show your face!"
"Likewise! You're an old fox too!"
"Ha ha ha! Let's all be old foxes together!"
After greeting one another, the disciples gathered in groups of three or five, found a place, and waited quietly.
Before long, a screen of light appeared over the Projection Array.
"It's here!"
"Last time, the ancestor told us to balance work and rest. We learned a lot from it!"
"I wonder what fresh insights we'll get this time?"
"I can't wait!"
"I'm more and more impressed by the ancestor's insight. To have come up with the idea of balancing work and rest back then..."
One character after another appeared on the screen of light.
Diary of the Immortal Great Emperor, Page Thirteen:
[Hiss...]
[I can't keep this up. My body's fine, but my back can't take it!]
[Stay away from gambling and drugs... starting with me!]
[How can cultivators like us indulge in pleasure? Diligent cultivation is the true path!]
[I've made up my mind. Tonight will be my last visit to Drunken Spring Pavilion. I should give the place a proper farewell!]
[I need to learn alchemy. I have to be self-sufficient. I've been spending all my spirit stones on pills lately. The sect's pills are low quality, and the ones outside are too expensive!]
[Right, I'll pick up some herbs while I'm out this time.]
[That's enough talking. I'm off!]
This passage of the diary didn't contain much useful information.
Everyone murmured among themselves for a while, then continued waiting for the next entry.
Diary of the Immortal Great Emperor, Page Fourteen:
[I got a little hurt, but luckily it's nothing serious!]
[I was ambushed on my way back with the herbs. Luckily, I was alert enough, or I'd have been done for.]
[What a pity about the soft armor Ruoyu gave me. It was damaged in the fight. What a waste.]
[They were from Blood Spirit Sect!]
[That sect is vicious, always committing heinous crimes. I knew it! They often abduct people from the mortal realm to practice the Blood Spirit Great Method! Damn them! One day, I'll wipe them out!]
[The one called Yan Yu is the son of a Blood Spirit Sect hall master. I think his name is Yan Shan, and he's at the Nascent Soul stage!]
[I don't care who you are. If you fall into my hands, I'll kill you first and ask questions later!]
[I left no survivors. I dissolved the bodies with Corpse-Dissolving Liquid, then burned the place down. I inspected it carefully to make sure I hadn't left anything behind!]
[I took their storage rings, but I didn't open them right away. I'll deal with them later, so I don't get tracked.]
[To be safe, I'll hide out in the sect for now. I'll lie low for three to five years...]
The diary entry ended there.
But its contents stirred a great commotion this time.
Whether they were in Xuanqing Sect or Blood Spirit Sect, everyone who looked at the words on the screen was stunned.
The Immortal Great Emperor had once had a grudge against Blood Spirit Sect?
And there was one name in particular in the diary: Yan Shan. Wasn't that the current sect master of Blood Spirit Sect?
"Hiss—"
"This is going to get interesting!"
For a while, the people from the major sects across Qing Province couldn't help looking toward Blood Spirit Sect.
Many more were simply gloating!
Yan Shan had relied on his high cultivation, great strength, and Blood Spirit Sect's influence to throw his weight around in Qing Province, making countless enemies.
But most of the cultivators in Qing Province had been too afraid to speak up.
Now the Immortal Great Emperor's diary had revealed everything: he had killed Yan Shan's son. How would Yan Shan respond this time?
Xuanqing Sect.
Yan Changkong was also watching the diary on the screen of light. A moment later, excitement spread across his face, and he laughed.
"Ha ha ha ha!"
"Yan Shan, Yan Shan! I never thought I'd see the day!"
The Great Elder, Chen Xiu, spoke up beside him as well. "Sect Master, now that this diary's come to light, Blood Spirit Sect is probably finished!"
Yan Changkong took a deep breath and said, "Get ready. We'll divide up Blood Spirit Sect's territory!"
He knew Blood Spirit Sect was finished this time.
The Immortal Great Emperor had protected Xuanqing Sect through that upheaval, which meant a force stood on his side.
Would that force spare Blood Spirit Sect now?
Impossible!
Besides, the factions that had allied with Xuanqing Sect this time certainly wouldn't stand by and do nothing.
Blood Spirit Sect was doomed.
What did it mean to be powerful?
This was what it meant!
Even now, no one had seen Lin Feng in person, yet his influence remained immense. Countless people would act according to his will.
Yan Changkong's guess wasn't wrong. But he could never have imagined that the campaign against Blood Spirit Sect would come so quickly!
At that moment, atop a mountain several hundred miles from Xuanqing Sect,
the Black Bird Guard of Liyue Immortal Dynasty had temporarily set up camp there, making it one of their bases in Qing Province.
At that very moment!
Zhao Shanhe wore a grave expression as he took out a sound-transmitting jade slip. The cold voice of Empress Ye Qingge came from within:
"Destroy Blood Spirit Sect at once. Leave no one alive!"
At almost the same time, above a bank of colorful clouds, inside a celestial palace, Liu Piaopiao of Jade Pool Holy Land also received an order from the Holy Venerable:
"Wipe out Blood Spirit Sect!"
Aside from them, several other Ancient Clans had also received messages from their family elders.
Without exception, every message ordered them to destroy Blood Spirit Sect.
These factions were among the most powerful on the Eastern Profound Continent. Any one of them could easily crush Blood Spirit Sect.
And now they were all moving at once!
Before long, these factions had mobilized and were converging on Blood Spirit Sect.
Before you continue