Turning the Tables
Sang Ying's conjecture sent chills down everyone's spines. They knew that Sang Ying's statement was correct, but no matter how they listened to it, they felt a deep sense of fear.
If someone unknowingly consumes food from the Listening Tide Sect, wouldn't they also be controlled and brought to the Listening Tide Sect?
"I don't think they have that much guts. If these problematic ingredients fall outside, who knows what kind of trouble they might cause. They insist on inviting people to the sect before taking action, probably to prevent these problematic foods from leaking out." Sang Ying thought for a moment and didn't think the Listening Tide Sect would dare to do such a thing.
They might be able to deal with the people brought back to the sect, but if the problematic food actually leaked out, the risk of exposure would be too great.
"Furthermore," Sang Ying paused, "Given the current status of the Listening Tide Sect, if their actions didn't infringe upon the interests of the cultivators of the Cloud Mulberry Realm, there's no reason why the Cloud Mulberry Realm people, who are so hostile towards us, wouldn't help them. But the Listening Tide Sect is so careful in concealing their actions, even afraid to let others know they are targeting outsiders, is enough to prove that once things are exposed, even the people of the Cloud Mulberry Realm won't support what they're doing. That's why the Listening Tide Sect is being so cautious."
After listening to Sang Ying's words, the others all looked thoughtful.
Dong Fuzhu was quickly persuaded by her senior sister, but she also raised a new question, "Now that we know Red Lotus's whereabouts and that the Listening Tide Sect is capturing people for a so-called sacrifice, what should we do next? Should we directly contact the other outside cultivators to rescue Red Lotus and the others together?"
Before Sang Ying could answer, Lan Fusheng preemptively rejected the plan. "Although there are many outside cultivators, they are still far more numerous than the Listening Tide Sect. Moreover, the Teleportation Array is controlled by the Listening Tide Sect. What if they hear about it and take Red Lotus and the others away via the Teleportation Array before we even break in? To expose the Listening Tide Sect's conspiracy, we must wait until we rescue Red Lotus and the others."
"Why don't we turn the tables on them and pretend we ate the food, then let them capture us?" Bai Kejin suggested.
Sang Ying said, "This method is good, but it's still difficult for just the few of us to rescue them safely. We need more help."
Hearing this, Jiang Zhuoxue, who had been tapping the table, suddenly stopped. "Since the Listening Tide Sect is so powerful and difficult to deal with, why don't we try to get help from the other two major sects? With them around, even the Listening Tide Sect won't be able to cause any trouble, right?"
The other two major sects are the Beast Soul Sect and the Array Sect.
"However, these other sects aren't friendly to us outsiders, so they probably won't help us." Although Dong Fuzhu and the other two were very interested in the suggestion, they knew after a little thought that it definitely wouldn't work.
Jiang Zhuoxue smiled, took out a carp-shaped jade pendant from his Storage Bag, and handed it to the three of them. "Take this to the sect leaders of the two sects. With this, they should agree to help."
"Could it be that Senior Brother Jiang has some past connection with the sect leaders of these two sects?" Lan Fusheng took the jade pendant, felt the powerful Spiritual Power on it, and some doubts arose in his heart.
Jiang Zhuoxue smiled without saying a word, her face full of mystery.
Dong Fuzhu didn't think as much as Lan Fusheng did. She simply exclaimed in surprise, "I heard that the sect leaders of those two sects are tens of thousands of years old. If Senior Brother Jiang even knows the sect leaders, doesn't that mean he's also tens of thousands of years old! Our Senior Sister is only a little over three hundred years old. Could this be a case of an old bull eating a young girl... Waaah!"
The embarrassing word that followed disappeared as Lan Fusheng forcefully covered her mouth.
Even so, everyone could guess what the unfinished word was.
Despite being the one being teased, Jiang Zhuoxue seemed completely unconcerned, and even her expression towards Dong Fuzhu remained as kind as ever.
Only Sang Ying, who was sitting on the same side as him, could see that the paving stone under his feet had been cracked like a spider web.
Sang Ying sighed and rubbed her forehead in exasperation, lamenting that her junior sister had made some truly unfortunate mistakes.
The atmosphere in the room almost froze because of those words. Sang Ying had no choice but to step forward and steer the conversation back to the main topic. "In that case, Jiang Zhuoxue, Duan Hanyi, and I will stay here. You all find an opportunity to leave Listening Tide Sect and seek help from the other two major sects."
At this moment, Sang Ying could only feel fortunate that the Cloud Mulberry Realm was mostly occupied by the Endless Sea, leaving only a small piece of land inhabited by Human Race. Therefore, the Listening Tide Sect and the Beast Soul Sect were not far from the Array Sect.
If Lan Fusheng and his group had acted faster, they might have been able to make a round trip in just two or three days.
Bai Kejin frowned. "But if the three of us leave suddenly, won't the Listening Tide Sect notice something? Perhaps we should just let the two of them leave, and my senior sister and I can stay here."
"That won't do. My senior sister and I will stay here, and you two can go!" Dong Fuzhu stepped forward to object.
She knew that this guy surnamed Bai hadn't forgotten to compete with her for her senior sister's affections, but unfortunately, her senior sister just favored cute junior sisters like her, and Bai would never have a chance in this lifetime!
Lan Fusheng didn't even need to ask; just by looking at their expressions, she knew what the two of them were arguing about.
He said helplessly, "The three of us staying here will only cause trouble for Senior Sister. Instead of arguing here, we should quickly come up with a suitable reason to leave and seek help without alerting the Listening Tide Sect. Senior Sister, don't you agree?"
Sang Ying returned his smile with approval.
Dong Fuzhu and Bai Kejin: Damn it, this guy has caught us again and given us another chance to curry favor with our senior sister!
No matter how unwilling Dong Fuzhu and Bai Kejin were to leave, Sang Ying had already made her decision, and the two had no choice but to obediently follow Lan Fusheng. They couldn't help it; they weren't strong enough yet.
Seeing how easily the Nascent Soul Cultivator in the opposite courtyard fell into the hands of the Listening Tide Sect and was even locked in a cage, Sang Ying couldn't bring herself to let her junior brothers and sisters suffer the same ordeal.
After some discussion, everyone decided to let Dong Fuzhu and the other two leave under the pretext of going out to find a boat.
However, before seeing Dong Fuzhu and the other two off, they needed to inform Zhao Ting about this matter first. Only in this way could their sudden departure not arouse too much suspicion.
Soon after, Zhao Ting bumped into Sang Ying and her group, who were on their way to say goodbye, by sheer fortuitous opportunity.
Upon hearing that Sang Ying and the others were planning to leave Listening Tide Sect together to find ships elsewhere, Zhao Ting's expression changed slightly, and he quickly advised, "It's just going out to sea. Training in the Cloud Mulberry Realm doesn't necessarily require going out to sea."
"It's like this, Steward Zhao. My junior sister has long heard of the existence of Jiaoren in the Endless Sea and has always wanted to come here to see them with her own eyes. Now that we've finally come to the Cloud Mulberry Realm, we certainly don't want to miss such a good opportunity. I wonder if Steward Zhao has any connections in this area who could help us?" Sang Ying's eyes still revealed a hint of pleading.
Although Zhao Ting was pleased with her pleading attitude, he really couldn't help her.
The boat dealerships outside are quite powerful; if they say they won't rent to outsiders, then they simply won't. It's not something he can change by talking to them.
Moreover, he himself was worried that even with the presence of the Gu worms, these people wouldn't be able to return for a while after going out to sea. Therefore, lending them a boat was definitely out of the question.
Zhao Ting said tactfully, "Actually, the existence of Jiaoren in the Endless Sea is just a legend. None of us have seen a single one in hundreds of years. Young friend, there's no need to listen to those lies. Why not go and see the unique features of our Cloud Mulberry Realm? It's quite interesting."
"I won't listen! I won't listen!" Dong Fuzhu screamed, covering her ears. "I want to see the Jiaoren! I said I want to see the Jiaoren!"
She glared fiercely at Sang Ying: "You promised my father you'd take good care of me. If you don't take me, see how I complain to him when we get back! Humph!"
In a fit of anger, Dong Fuzhu turned around and ran out of the Listening Tide Sect.
When Bai Kejin and Lan Fusheng saw their "most beloved junior sister" run away, they followed her anxiously, without even having time to say a word to Sang Ying.
Seeing the bitter smile on Sang Ying's face, and then watching the three young people walk away.
Zhao Ting secretly curled his lip; another spoiled young cultivator.
But that's fine too; it makes them less united, making it easier for me to take action!
Zhao Ting chuckled to himself, completely unaware that the departure of Dong Fuzhu and the other two marked the beginning of the decline of the Listening Tide Sect.