Abdominal pain!
Dizziness!
Blurred vision!
Aching muscles!
Blocked Spiritual Qi!
All at once, Ye Tian discovered that his body had developed a host of symptoms.
"You actually used poison!"
Ye Tian roared at the opponent before him, then swiftly swallowed an antidote pill, but it had little effect.
Falsely accused, Ye Tian's opponent offered no explanation either. Taking his life while he was ill, the opponent defeated Ye Tian after he barely held on for a dozen or so exchanges.
Unfortunately, Ling Ziling was not here at the moment. Otherwise, she would have learned why Ye Tian had not taken first place in the selection tournament.
Azure Feather Peak.
After long deliberation, Ling Ziling, who had remained inactive for three months, finally began another simulation.
This time, she chose the grand elder as her simulation target.
Previously, Ling Ziling had not chosen the grand elder as her simulation target because he had died relatively early.
But after three months of careful consideration, Ling Ziling discovered that if she wanted to break out of this predicament, the Dao Sect's top experts were indispensable, and the grand elder's combat strength ranked among the sect's top five.
Her purpose in simulating the grand elder this time was to find a way for him to break out of the predicament. If the grand elder could survive a little longer, the Dao Sect's future might very well undergo drastic changes.
"Simulate Luo Yun!"
[Ding, beginning simulation!] [Simulation target: grand elder Luo Yun!] [Age 0: you were born in the Blood Demon Sect. Your father was the Blood Demon Sect's grand elder.]
Ling Ziling's eyes widened, her mind completely blank.
Ever since her father and her senior brothers and sisters had left, the grand elder could be considered the person she trusted most within the Dao Sect.
Moreover, before her father left, he had specifically promoted Luo Yun. Clearly, he had not discovered that Luo Yun was actually a member of the Demon Sect either.
"Heh, no wonder the Dao Sect's fortune was so low."
Ling Ziling gave a bitter laugh.
Luo Yun had stayed in the Dao Sect for several hundred years and held a high position for one or two hundred. After such a long period of gnawing away at it, who knew how many prodigious disciples and elders of the Dao Sect had perished in secret?
Thinking it over carefully, as many as twenty elders had disappeared while away from the Dao Sect just since Ling Ziling became sect master. Their life tablets had shattered, and they had not even sent back a message before dying.
Connecting this to the earlier attack on Wu Yuehua, Ling Ziling felt increasingly that nowhere in the entire Azure Feather Dao Sect was safe. There were probably Demon Sect spies everywhere.
"Luo Yun was the previous grand elder's son. If I remember correctly, the current Blood Demon Sect master is named Luo Li. Could the two be brothers?"
[Age 5: you were naturally intelligent, but your aptitude could not compare to your elder brother's. Left to fend for yourself, you learned to hide your emotions.] [Age 6: you killed someone for the first time. Unfortunately, you failed to hide it from your father. Your father was delighted and began training you as a spy.] [Age 10: your father quietly brought you to the vicinity of the Azure Feather Dao Sect, entrusted you to adoptive parents, and told you to join the Azure Feather Dao Sect.] [Age 11: you killed your adoptive parents and used your intelligence to successfully attract the attention of nearby cultivators. Pleasantly surprised to discover your exceptional aptitude, they recommended you to the Azure Feather Dao Sect. You successfully joined the Azure Feather Dao Sect and began cultivating diligently, waiting for your father's summons.] [Age 15: you successfully reached Foundation Establishment and continued cultivating diligently, befriending geniuses and becoming acquainted with Ling Yue.]
"Father!"
Calculating their ages, Ling Ziling discovered that her father and Luo Yun were roughly the same age. She had never expected that the two had known each other since their youth.
[Age 45: you broke through to Golden Core and began traveling for experience. Your father had long been waiting. He demanded that you secretly recruit some Demon Sect disciples and gave you a mid-grade Law Treasure, the Faceless Mask.]
"The mask!"
During the simulation of seventh elder Qi Yue, the masked man had appeared many times and had used Qi Yue to ambush Ling Ziling's mother.
Thus, at the sight of the Faceless Mask, Ling Ziling's presence abruptly fluctuated.
[Age 70: while bringing in disciples on one occasion, you were exposed. Unexpectedly, someone within the Dao Sect died in your place. Your father was furious; that was the mole he had planted the longest ago. From then on, you acted with increasing caution.] [Age 86: you broke through to Nascent Soul and invited a close friend from your sect to leave the sect for experience, secretly dispatching Blood Demon Sect elders to set an ambush. Unexpectedly, your fellow disciple detonated his Law Treasure before dying. You were severely injured, and your cultivation fell to Golden Core. Because your injuries were so severe, no one within the Dao Sect suspected you.] [Age 100: you broke through to Nascent Soul again. Years of recuperation made you realize that you had damaged your foundation last time, and your future path of cultivation might very well have been severed.] [Age 160: you became acquainted with Qi Yue. You discovered the flaw in his character and secretly took note of it.]
"They knew each other so early. It seems Luo Yun had planned to lure Qi Yue in for a long time."
Ling Ziling had once heard her father say that Qi Yue had been a proud man in his youth. Although his aptitude was somewhat lacking, he was brimming with pride and sometimes stopped at nothing to achieve his goals.
[Age 180: Ling Yue made a breakthrough and became the Dao Sect's sect master. As a disciple from the same cohort, you were merely an ordinary inner sect elder. This made you very envious.] [Age 245: you heard that Qi Yue had failed to break through to Nascent Soul and was sunk in gloom. You quietly sought him out and promised to help him break through to Nascent Soul, but first he needed to help you accomplish something. Unsurprisingly, he refused.]
Ling Ziling sighed softly. Back then, Qi Yue had only refused once. After his second failed breakthrough, he had agreed to Luo Yun's terms.
[Age 262: Qi Yue failed to break through to Nascent Soul again. You sought him out once more, and he agreed. You gave him many precious pills.] [Age 279: you failed to turn an inner sect elder to your side. Left with no choice, you could only kill him to silence him, but the sect master's wife found traces. She began investigating spies within the Dao Sect, and many disciples you had brought into the sect were rooted out. You could only find a way to get rid of her.]
Boom!
Ling Ziling's eyes turned blood-red. The cause of her mother's death had finally been confirmed, sending Ling Ziling's fury surging into the heavens. She wished she could tear Luo Yun into ten thousand pieces.
[Age 280: you secretly invited Qi Yue to explore an ancient Spirit Transformation tomb with you. He agreed. You sent a message to the sect, luring the sect master's wife out of the sect.] [Age 281: inside the ancient tomb, you suddenly attacked Qi Yue. Three months later, you coerced him into sending a sect distress signal to the surrounding area. Unwilling to die, he agreed. Sure enough, the sect master's wife came to the rescue, was ambushed by the Blood Demon Sect, and died! Ling Yue stormed the Demon Sect alone, slew several elders before the Blood Demon Sect master's eyes, and severely injured the sect master.]
"Ah!"
Ling Ziling screamed in anguish. In her heart, she had already sentenced Luo Yun to death. In the simulations that followed, she would definitely slay him, torturing him to death.
[Age 300: Ling Yue carried out a sweeping purge of spies within the sect. You slipped through, but the Demon Sect disciples you had brought in over the years suffered devastating losses. Left with no choice, you could only continue lying low.] [Age 390: the Immortal Alliance issued a summons. All Spirit Transformation Realm experts within the Dao Sect left, and your father left as well. At the Nascent Soul Peak Stage, you became the grand elder with Ling Yue's help, while Ling Ziling became sect master.]