By then.
Both sects had been thrown into chaos.
At the Rock Sect.
The former Sect Master had died a gruesome death in the demon calamity, and the former deputy Sect Master, Yan Zongping, had taken his place.
But.
Before he could even settle into his new position, he received word that the Origin Sect was launching a full-scale attack.
It took only a little thought.
Yan Zongping could basically figure out why the Origin Sect was launching a full-scale attack.
He had never expected Qin Shujian to hold such a grudge.
He had only made a move during the struggle for the Green Lotus. He had been scared off before he even had a chance to hurt the man.
From beginning to end.
Yan Zongping realized he had done little more than stand on the sidelines.
Yet even so—
Qin Shujian still held it against him.
Recalling Qin Shujian's smiling face and gentle expression.
Yan Zongping finally understood what it meant to hide a knife behind a smile.
"We're in trouble!"
He drew a deep breath, feeling his legs start to fail him.
Never mind those thousand-plus inner astral realm cultivators.
Qin Shujian alone was probably more than the Rock Sect could withstand.
Dozens of Outer Astral Realm cultivators had joined forces back then, only to be slaughtered and scattered by him. The edge of Thousand Mountain Blood and the terrifying power of the Great Wilderness Demon-Suppressing Seal remained vivid in Yan Zongping's memory.
Just then.
An overwhelming pressure bore down on them as though the sky itself were collapsing.
The entire Rock Sect trembled faintly.
"Sect Master, terrible news! The Origin Sect's people are almost here!"
"Come outside with me and take a look!"
Even without the arriving Elder's warning, Yan Zongping had received a Heavenly Dao Warning.