His cultivation had even fallen to rank ninety-six.
During this time, he had barely kept his origin intact through the Holy Spirit Cult's sinister secret arts.
But he knew that breaking through to Limit Douluo was out of the question. Even returning to rank ninety-eight was a distant dream.
He... was utterly ruined.
"Then... Mother, what about the Evil Emperor? Will he help us?" Zhongli Wu asked in a low, hoarse voice.
Ye Xishui did not answer. She merely lifted a fingertip, and the Water Mirror floating before her rippled.
Light and shadow shifted across its surface, and the image instantly locked onto the eastern front of the Evil Demon Forest.
Across the entire area, there was scarcely a trace of a single soul beast.
Whether hundred-thousand-year soul beasts, ten-thousand-year soul beasts, or even thousand-year soul beasts, all had hidden deep within the sea of trees.
Clearly, the Evil Emperor had abandoned them.
Zhongli Wu gazed silently at the image in the Water Mirror. After a long while, he murmured, "He... really has abandoned us."
"Even husband and wife are birds of the same forest that fly their separate ways when disaster strikes. All the more so for the Evil Emperor, who was merely our partner.
His heavenly tribulation is approaching. He won't fight the Judgment Court's strongest experts to the death for our cult."
Ye Xishui's tone was flat, without the slightest ripple.
"Whether our cult survives or perishes has never mattered to him."
Zhongli Wu fell silent.
"Then... has the First Elder replied?" After a moment, he asked again.
Ye Xishui shook her head slightly.
There was no surprise in Zhongli Wu's eyes, only indifference.
The First Elder had held a nominal position in the Holy Spirit Cult for centuries, remaining hidden behind the scenes all year round.