The armless elder led Meng Chuan and the others onward, speaking as they walked.
"Back then, the kings vowed to guard this city forever and not retreat a single step. We followed our kings, so naturally we would never leave either."
"But we did send some of our people back to the Nine Heavens and Ten Lands, so they could live and raise families."
"I wonder how they've fared all these years. Are they safe?"
At the question, the Heavenly Desolate Halberd glanced at Meng Chuan, who answered honestly.
He told the elder about Sin Blood and all the persecution that came with it.
He included what Immortal Hall, the Demon Dragon Dao Gate, and Sword Valley had done.
Deep anger filled the armless elder's eyes as he listened.
A mark of glory had been smeared into evidence of a crime. How absurd was that?
"Those True Immortals knew the truth. The Stone King only cut off those immortals' heads because they had been corrupted by the Unknown and were about to fall into darkness."
"They asked the Stone King to kill them before they turned completely into monsters."
"To think it came to this..." The armless elder sounded stricken.
The Seven Kings and their descendants had fought to the death against the Foreign Realm in Emperor City, yet the people they had sent away had been slandered so cruelly.
Some had known the truth, but they had kept silent. Worse, they had signaled their Dao Lineages to take the lead in persecuting the Descendants of the Seven Kings.
"Ao Ling and the rest deserve to die!" the Heavenly Desolate Halberd said coldly.
The armless elder heaved a long sigh.
He wanted desperately to do something—to go out and clear the descendants' names, to take the heads of those villains.