As his words fell, Lin Xuan's figure dispersed. The pitch-black demonic shadow turned into black jade on the spot and fell into Chen Xiong's hand once more.
Now, with the black jade in hand, Chen Xiong felt utterly at ease, even with three King Realm cultivators still surrounding him!
It was all thanks to that piece of black jade Lin Xuan had bestowed upon him!
Who here, every last one of them included, could survive if he crushed the black jade?
With the strength of Senior Lin's clone, neither the two King Realm cultivators from the Feather Transformation Sect nor the one from the Spirit Firmament Sect could withstand a single sword strike from it.
He looked around without leaving a single word, then turned and departed unharmed like a messenger who had delivered an order. No one dared stop him.
The moment he was far from the Illusory Feather Sect, Chen Xiong nearly lost his composure with excitement.
He had stormed into the Illusory Feather Sect alone, faced five King Realm cultivators single-handedly, slain one, and left unharmed, with no one daring to stop him.
What was strength?
This was strength!
What was overwhelming dominance?
This was overwhelming dominance!
The Illusory Feather Sect elders and deputy sect master left behind, along with the elder from the Spirit Firmament Sect, remained silent for a long time, exchanging looks.
Finally, the deputy sect master, now the highest-ranking person in the Illusory Feather Sect, spoke to break the deadlock.
"Elder Zhou, well... this... what should we do next?"
"You ask me, but who am I supposed to ask?" Elder Zhou swept a cold glance over the Illusory Feather Sect's deputy sect master. Right now, he was worrying about how to account for this to his sect master upon his return.
A King Realm cultivator had died. Even for the Spirit Firmament Sect, that was a loss difficult to accept.
He could barely look after himself now. How could he have the leisure to care what happened to the Illusory Feather Sect?
With a flick of his sleeve, he turned and left the Illusory Feather Sect.
He had to return to the Spirit Firmament Sect immediately and inform the sect master. Whatever the Jade Balance Sword Palace had been before, from now on, it was absolutely an existence they could not afford to provoke!
"Ten million Spirit Stones..."
After Elder Zhou left, a bitter smile appeared at the corners of the Illusory Feather Sect's deputy sect master's mouth.
Their sect master had fallen, and they still had to pay ten million Spirit Stones...
Even for the Illusory Feather Sect, one of the seven great sects, ten million Spirit Stones was no small sum.
Who could have imagined things would turn out this way?
They had encountered something like this before even setting out against the Jade Balance Sword Palace.
At the Spirit Firmament Sect.
With the Seven Kingdoms Grand Competition approaching, all the Spirit Firmament Sect's higher-ups, apart from those in secluded cultivation who would not emerge, had gathered in the great hall to discuss arrangements for the coming competition.
The Seven Kingdoms Grand Competition was no small matter, and the Spirit Firmament Sect naturally attached immense importance to it.
By comparison, joining forces with the Illusory Feather Sect to deal with the Jade Balance Sword Palace...
Was hardly a matter at all.
Not a single higher-up in the Spirit Firmament Sect had ever taken it to heart.
The mere Jade Balance Sword Palace was weak and had barely squeezed into the ranks of the seven sects. To the outside world, the Jade Balance Sword Palace was one of the Heron Empire's seven great sects, sharing equal renown with the Spirit Firmament Sect. But in the eyes of the Spirit Firmament Sect's people, their sect could destroy the Jade Balance Sword Palace simply by sending out a few King Realm elders.
Just as their discussion was in full swing, a figure suddenly rushed into the great hall. It was Elder Zhou, who had gone to the Illusory Feather Sect.
His face was grave.
Seeing this, the Spirit Firmament Sect's sect master and higher-ups were all somewhat surprised.
Hadn't Elder Zhou returned a little too quickly?
Could the Illusory Feather Sect have been so amenable that they had settled the division of benefits this quickly?
Still, that made sense. The Illusory Feather Sect's master had approached the Spirit Firmament Sect first, and the Spirit Firmament Sect was far stronger than the Illusory Feather Sect. Even if they took a larger share of the benefits, what objection would the Illusory Feather Sect dare raise?
"Elder Zhou, why are you back so soon? Have you already concluded the negotiations with the Illusory Feather Sect?"
Hearing this, Elder Zhou shook his head, his expression cold and stern. He cupped his hands toward the sect master seated at the head of the hall and spoke bluntly.
"Sect Master, something unexpected happened. Elder Han unfortunately perished, and furthermore..."
He briefly recounted the matter of the demonic shadow, his expression grave when he finished.
"That person declared that you must personally bring ten million Spirit Stones to the Jade Balance Sword Palace to apologize. Otherwise..."
"He would destroy our Divine Firmament!"
"Insolence!"
"Such gall!"
"What does he take our Spirit Firmament Sect for?! How dare he threaten us like this? Who does he think he is?"
Elder Zhou's words immediately stirred up a thousand waves.
At that moment, not only the Spirit Firmament Sect's sect master but all the other high-ranking elders shouted furiously as well. Rage at being belittled and scorned filled every face.
This was more than a provocation.
A monstrous humiliation!
It was nothing short of a monstrous humiliation!
What sort of existence was their Spirit Firmament Sect? Throughout the Heron Empire, even the two highest-ranked sects would not dare issue such a declaration to them, unless they wanted to plunge the Heron Empire into turmoil.
The Spirit Firmament Sect was no minor sect, but a mighty sect ranked among the top three of the seven sects, with King Realm cultivators numbering in the double digits!
Since when could any stray cat or dog casually threaten them?
Listening to the fury of his longtime colleagues, Elder Zhou remained silent throughout, inwardly scoffing at their words. You simply don't know how formidable that black-robed young man is. Otherwise, even if someone lent you several times the courage, you wouldn't dare say such things.
The furious condemnations continued without end. Elder Zhou could not be bothered to respond. Instead, he took a recording stone from his Storage Bag and handed it to the sect master, unwilling to say anything more.
Once the sect master watched the recording stone, he would understand.
His anger still unabated, the Spirit Firmament Sect's sect master accepted the recording stone and instinctively extended his Divine Sense into it to take a look.
That look... rendered him silent.
In an instant, the sect master holding the recording stone became like a deflated ball. All his anger dissipated completely. He stared blankly at the recording stone in his hand, his pupils trembling as though he had seen something inconceivable.
Silence.
A long silence.
He was now as silent as he had been furious before.
"Prepare ten million Spirit Stones. I will personally visit the Jade Balance Sword Palace to pay my respects and apologize."
All the furious elders froze at that moment.
What?
Had they misheard?
This was completely different from what they had expected. They had thought the sect master would personally issue orders to send people to the Jade Balance Sword Palace and demand an accounting.
Yet, to their surprise...
The sect master actually intended to bring Spirit Stones and apologize!
What did this mean?
All the elders were bewildered. But as they watched the sect master's shifting expression, some began to catch on and instinctively looked at the recording stone in his hand.
The sect master's attitude had been off for a little while now, and that change had begun precisely after he watched the recording stone.
Before that, the sect master had clearly been just as furious as they were, wishing he could tear apart the person who dared scorn their Spirit Firmament Sect with his bare hands. But now...
There was something about that recording stone!
Several elders' gazes burned like fire.
The Spirit Firmament Sect's sect master did not deliberately keep them in suspense. Without a word, he tossed out the recording stone.
The recording stone was struck by spiritual power in midair and shattered, immediately projecting the images within.
In the image was a lone black-robed young man, surrounded by people charging toward him. Several Spirit Firmament Sect elders recognized them at a glance.
"That's the Illusory Feather Sect's master, along with its elders. Three King Realm cultivators. This young man..."
Before they could offer any appraisal, the black-robed young man unhurriedly drew his sword and struck. With a single strike, he slew the vicious-faced Illusory Feather Sect master outright, so quickly that not even a breath had passed.
In an instant, the entire great hall of the Spirit Firmament Sect fell deathly silent.