Nine Tollings of the Heavenly Dao Bell

"Pfft!"

Elsewhere, Ji Wucang and the three elders were pale as they looked back at the flattened White Fox Ridge, still trembling with fear.

"A Nascent Soul self-detonation... truly terrifying... cough, cough."

Ji Wucang wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth as he coughed.

The three elders were also gasping for breath, their souls still shaken. Just now, it had felt as though they had walked right up to the gates of death.

Although they had survived, all of them had suffered fairly serious injuries.

Never in their wildest imaginings had they expected Jiang Bailu to suddenly detonate himself to help Nangong Yao and Liu Xuan Yin escape.

Who was Jiang Bailu? He was the Heavenly Dao Sect's third elder, a nascent soul middle stage expert. Not only was he highly respected within the Heavenly Dao Sect, he also had a considerable reputation throughout Northern Mystic.

And he had simply blown himself up.

"That Jiang Bailu certainly had loyalty and heart."

Ji Wucang looked up at the sky with a sigh, his feelings tangled. Suddenly, he asked:

"If we had been the ones trapped today, cornered with no way out, would you three elders have been willing to die to help your sect master escape?"

Uh.

The three elders froze, their gazes flickering for a moment before they hurried to answer.

"Sect Master, of course we would."

"Indeed. The Great Evolution Demonic Sect could still function without us, but it could never do without you, Sect Master."

"..."

How could Ji Wucang fail to notice? He could not help laughing. "Ha ha! That was a needless question. I can clearly feel your 'loyalty.'"

At the same time, Ji Wucang sighed deeply inwardly. In this respect, he did envy Nangong Yao.

Unfortunately, a demonic sect was still a demonic sect. Every last person within it was selfish and self-serving.

As the master of a demonic sect, Ji Wucang naturally understood this.

"Sect Master, Nangong Yao and Liu Xuan Yin must also have been badly injured in that explosion. What should we do next?"

One elder clutched his chest as he asked with difficulty.

Without hesitation, Ji Wucang said, "Return to the sect immediately and mobilize the disciples. Send word to the other demonic sects as well. We will march on the Heavenly Dao Sect and crush it!"

As the saying went, strike him dead while sickness has him in its grip. This was an opportunity that came once in a thousand years!

"But Sect Master, we've also suffered considerable injuries. Is this really wise?" one elder asked hesitantly.

Joining forces with the other demonic sects would make taking down the Heavenly Dao Sect more certain. The concern was that once they had taken it down and began dividing the spoils, the four of them would be unable to gain the upper hand because of their injuries.

Moreover, demonic sects were treacherous by nature. If the other sects saw that the Great Evolution Demonic Sect's leadership was badly wounded, they might get other crooked ideas. They had to guard against that.

Hearing this, Ji Wucang smiled faintly. "That is no concern. I have a spirit herb that can temporarily conceal our injuries. Besides, the Great Evolution Demonic Sect is a first-rate demonic sect in Northern Mystic. They wouldn't dare entertain other ideas. With Nangong Yao and Liu Xuan Yin severely injured and Jiang Bailu dead, the Heavenly Dao Sect's upper-level fighting strength has plummeted. This is an opportunity that comes once in a thousand years!"

The three elders felt considerably reassured by his words, though the pain of their injuries still made them bare their teeth and grimace.

"By the way, Sect Master, could you tell us why we suddenly began capturing disciples of righteous sects as blood slaves? We've been quite puzzled all this time," another elder asked curiously.

To be honest, they had previously only captured mortals in secret. Now they were brazenly capturing cultivators, but they did not know exactly why. They only knew to follow orders.

Otherwise, they would never have targeted righteous sects. Those were hard bones to gnaw, after all.

Nangong Yao frowned and said quietly, "There's no harm in telling you. The order came from the Heaven-Swallowing Demonic Sect. As for what they actually want these blood slaves for, I have no idea. Perhaps their sect master is cultivating some peerless demonic art. Or perhaps they intend to unify Northern Mystic."

The Heaven-Swallowing Demonic Sect!

The three elders were dumbfounded.

Among Northern Mystic's demonic sects, it stood alone, towering high above all the rest.

If the Great Evolution Demonic Sect was a first-rate sect, then calling the Heaven-Swallowing Demonic Sect a super demonic sect would be no exaggeration.

Among Northern Mystic's righteous sects, there was also a super immortal sect, the Heavenly Sword Sect.

However, the demonic path and the righteous path were different.

One principal reason the demonic path was united was that almost every demonic sect in Northern Mystic bowed in submission to the Heaven-Swallowing Demonic Sect.

The righteous path was not united because each sect was independent, and the Heavenly Sword Sect did not interfere much. Once it displayed any intention of unifying the righteous path, it would meet resistance and condemnation. After all, how would such conduct differ from the demonic path?

Seeing the three elders' expressions, Ji Wucang shook his head and said gravely:

"In truth, there may be more to this matter. I suspect that forces from Southern Heaven or Eastern Qian may be involved in this blood slave affair... Don't look at me with such shock. This is only my conjecture."

The three elders were already stunned.

They had never imagined that this blood slave affair involved such complicated entanglements.

"Cough, cough, cough."

Ji Wucang coughed up more blood and said, "Hurry back to the sect."

"Yes."

The three elders were also badly injured. Their bodies swayed on the verge of collapse, and the world spun around them.

If they delayed any longer, they might pass out halfway back.

At the edge of the Heavenly Dao Sect's territory.

Two streaks of light flashed past.

They were Nangong Yao and Liu Xuan Yin, who had fled back from White Fox Ridge while supporting each other.

"Sect Master!!"

Just then, a shout rang out.

The weakened Nangong Yao and Liu Xuan Yin looked over and saw Liu Yunjian and a group of core elders rushing toward them.

Earlier, the disciples guarding the Soul Lamp Hall had urgently reported that the sect master's and second elder's soul lamps were flickering, even showing faint signs of going out. Worse still, the third elder's soul lamp... had gone out!

This was a disaster!

Terrified, Liu Yunjian and the others had immediately left the sect to hurry to White Fox Ridge. Yet they had barely left the sect's territory when they encountered Nangong Yao and Liu Xuan Yin returning.

Although everyone had mentally prepared themselves, the sight of Nangong Yao's and Liu Xuan Yin's injuries still made their hearts tremble. They hurried forward to support them.

"Sect Master, let's return to the sect first!"

Liu Yunjian and the others asked no questions. With grim faces, they supported Nangong Yao and Liu Xuan Yin and hurried back toward the sect.

With others holding them up, Nangong Yao and Liu Xuan Yin let their heads fall to one side and lost consciousness.

After returning to the sect.

Unable to contain himself any longer, Liu Yunjian immediately roared, his face twisted with fury:

"Ring the Heavenly Dao Bell! Ring! The! Heavenly! Dao! Bell!!"

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!...

Nine consecutive tolls, as though from the primordial wilderness, resounded across the sky. The Heavenly Dao Sect instantly erupted into turmoil!

For a moment, everyone from the servant disciples doing chores on Servant Disciple Peak to the disciples cultivating on the various peaks grunted, forced abruptly out of their cultivation. Some even suffered a backlash, but they paid it no heed. They hurried out of their dwellings or cave abodes and looked up in horror.

Nine tollings of the Heavenly Dao Bell!

What had happened?

At the thatched cottage on the western side of Servant Disciple Peak.

Zhao Ting abruptly rose from the grass, his pupils contracting as he murmured:

"Nine tollings of the Heavenly Dao Bell. All disciples must stop what they're doing and await orders... Brother Chen, I heard Master say that when the Heavenly Dao Bell tolls nine times, something major has happened-something that threatens the sect's very survival..."

Chen Xun nodded, tilted his head back to take a deep drink of wine, and wiped the corner of his mouth. "Mm. Go on, then."

"All right!"

Zhao Ting took a deep breath, rose on his flying sword, and left Servant Disciple Peak.