Lu You's Backup Plan

Meanwhile, at the Xuan Clan.

Ancestor Dali's battle with the Xuan Clan's white-robed Quasi-Emperor continued. The two fought at a furious pitch, and even the void had shattered completely.

"Hahahaha! What an exhilarating fight! I haven't felt this refreshed in ages!"

Ancestor Dali grew fiercer as the battle went on, steam rising from his entire body.

A short distance away, however, the white-robed Quasi-Emperor's expression darkened slightly. He looked down at the spear in his hand. Its shaft was now covered in cracks.

It was a Quasi-Emperor weapon.

Against opponents of the same level who lacked Emperor weapons, he could usually gain the upper hand.

But this time was an exception, because he was facing a body cultivator.

It was no exaggeration to say that Ancestor Dali was a humanoid weapon. In terms of toughness, even a Quasi-Emperor weapon could not match him.

What troubled him even more, however, was the defeat at the Lu Clan.

His main task this time was simply to hold Ancestor Dali back. As long as he prevented him from returning to support his clan, he would win.

He had never expected this ancestor of the Lu Clan to have no intention of returning to help his clan, choosing instead to fight him to the end.

"Phew..."

After a moment of silence, the Xuan Clan's white-robed Quasi-Emperor slowly let out a long breath. Then he put away his spear, turned, and withdrew.

"Hmm?"

Seeing his opponent retreat, Ancestor Dali frowned in displeasure.

"Stay right there!"

Boom!

A terrifying wave of punch force surged toward his opponent.

But in the next moment, a burst of power erupted from within the Xuan Clan. Immediately afterward, the Xuan Clan's protective grand formation activated.

How many years had it been?

The Xuan Clan had probably not activated its protective grand formation in over a million years.

At that moment, the faces of the Xuan clanspeople were grim. Some even covered their faces and wept.

The Xuan Clan's pride was gone.

They had not expected that even the ancestor revived by their clan would be no match for the other side.

In fact, almost no one in Central Province had foreseen this outcome.

"The Xuan Clan actually backed down."

Some experts could hardly believe it.

The Xuan Clan's might had long been etched deep into the hearts of everyone in Central Province.

After all, it was one of the three great ancient clans, with countless experts among its ancestors and a profound foundation.

A force like that was difficult for any other to shake.

But the Lu Clan had done it.

Ancestor Dali frowned deeply, at a loss before the tough nut in front of him. He simply swung his fists with all his might.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The Xuan Clan's protective grand formation rumbled, but did not budge an inch.

This was no ordinary protective grand formation laid down by Ancestor Xuanzhen. It had been continually improved and reinforced by generations of Xuan Clan experts. With Ancestor Dali alone, it was almost impossible to shake.

Just as Ancestor Dali hesitated over whether to continue attacking, word suddenly came from his clan.

After reading the message, Ancestor Dali was startled at first, but soon regained his composure. He glanced at the Xuan Clan, snorted coldly, then turned and left.

Ancestor Dali was gone.

Seeing this, the Xuan Clan breathed a sigh of relief.

After all, maintaining the protective grand formation required enormous resources.

Even with the Xuan Clan's profound foundation, if Ancestor Dali refused to leave, the cost would pain them.

And while Ancestor Dali was on his way back to his clan...

On the other side of the Cangxuan Continent, in Demon Province.

A streak of blood-red light flashed across the sky.

The presence it gave off instantly terrified countless experts in Demon Province out of their wits.

A seventh-tribulation Blood Dao Quasi-Emperor!

Where had such a terrifying existence come from?!

As the most chaotic region of the Cangxuan Continent, Demon Province's strength was plain for all to see.

Countless demonic cultivators gathered here. It was a paradise for the demonic path.

In a still more ancient age, there had even been a powerful race here: the Devil Race.

Demon Province had been named for the Devil Race, for at its peak, the race had controlled the entire province.

Later, however, the Devil Race sought more territory and prepared to advance into Central Province, only to be driven back by an even more terrifying force. From then on, the Devil Race never dared set its sights on Central Province again and fell into decline.

To this day, not a single member of the Devil Race could be found in all of Demon Province.

Whoosh!

Blood-red light swept forth and finally descended into a forbidden zone.

There was a lake here, but its waters were a vivid, dripping crimson, like blood.

A pavilion stood in the middle of the blood lake.

The Blood Pavilion.

It was a superpower in Demon Province.

Its name struck terror into all who heard it, for it was the most terrifying organization of assassins on the entire Cangxuan Continent.

Every expert in the Blood Pavilion was skilled in the art of assassination.

In the two million years since the Blood Pavilion's founding, it had assassinated countless experts. Even the master of a superpower would find death difficult to escape once targeted by the Blood Pavilion.

The Blood Pavilion, eighth floor.

A figure with disheveled hair sat cross-legged on the floor.

Just then, a flash of blood-red light appeared and vanished. Immediately afterward, a figure appeared before him.

"Who goes there?!"

Seeing the person who had suddenly appeared, he reacted at once.

A blood saber shot from his hand, as though to pierce his opponent's brow.

But in the next moment, his eyes widened.

His blood saber, the source of his pride, had stopped before the other man's brow as though frozen in place, unable to move another inch.

"You!"

"Who exactly are you?"

He slowly rose to his feet, his expression graver than ever before.

As the current master of the Blood Pavilion, this was the first time he had ever been so flustered.

The man before him had not only found the Blood Pavilion, but had also entered it undetected and appeared before him. No matter how hard he racked his brains, he could not understand how the man had done it.

Faced with the Blood Pavilion master's questions, the newcomer merely raised his palm slowly, revealing a mark in the darkness.

"You cultivate the technique I created, yet you ask who I am?"

By then, the Blood Pavilion master was standing rooted to the spot in complete shock.

A mark abruptly appeared on his forehead, identical to the one on the other man's palm.

His life was already in the other man's hands.

"You... you're the ancestor!"

In the dim pavilion, the current master of the Blood Pavilion stared at the face before him. It overlapped with his memory of the portrait on the Blood Pavilion's ninth floor.

That was right. The founder of the Blood Pavilion was none other than the Lu Clan's Blood Dao ancestor, Lu You.

More than two million years ago, he had cultivated the Blood Dao and been hunted by countless experts of the righteous path.

He had yet to fully come into his own then and had been forced to flee back to his clan. The Lineage had not abandoned him for cultivating the Blood Dao, but had protected him instead.

Unfortunately, his Blood Dao had not yet been perfected. Before long, he suffered Qi deviation within the clan and killed several of his clanspeople.

Had the clan's experts not joined forces and risked a regression in their cultivation to stabilize him, his foundation would have been utterly destroyed long ago.

From that moment on, the Lineage began to harbor prejudice against him.

Some of his clanspeople also kept him at a respectful distance. Gradually, Lu You came to understand that there was no longer room for him at home.

He then left for distant lands and went to Demon Province.

Many years later, Lu You achieved success in his cultivation, fought his way to fame, and founded the now-renowned Blood Pavilion.

A short while later.

The Blood Pavilion, eighth floor.

More than a dozen senior members of the Blood Pavilion had gathered there.

"We pay our respects to the ancestor!"

Facing the founder of the Blood Pavilion, every one of these assassins felt reverence from the bottom of their hearts.

A seventh-tribulation Blood Dao Quasi-Emperor.

Even across the entire Cangxuan Continent, he was a top-tier expert.

More importantly, he did not fear detection by the Heavenly Dao. Clearly, he had passed his heavenly tribulation not long ago, making him a formidable deterrent.

Looking at these descendants of the Blood Pavilion, Lu You asked calmly, "Are you all there are?"

"Ancestor, there are also two seniors at the Quasi-Emperor level who cannot conveniently show themselves," the Blood Pavilion master promptly replied.

Lu You nodded slightly, then asked another question.

"Over the years, have any members of the Lu Clan of Central Province come here?"

The Lu Clan of Central Province?

The Blood Pavilion members looked at one another, then all shook their heads.

No.

In two million years, no one surnamed Lu had ever come here.