Chapter 65: Chapter 65: Send Him on His Way

Lingyu Palace.

Palace Master Hall.

BAM!

Qiu Gongyi shattered the Profound Spirit Jade Table with a single palm strike.

“Damn that Cyan Yuan Sect! To ambush and kill my Sect’s disciples on Lingyun Road in the Mausoleum Mountain Range… To do this right under the noses of our Three Major Sects is an outrageous insult!”

Still fuming, Qiu Gongyi stomped his foot, pulverizing the remains of the Profound Spirit Jade Table, which was harder than a Hundred-Refined Weapon.

This wasn’t the first Profound Spirit Jade Table to meet such a fate. Several had already been replaced. But things hadn’t been going well for the Three Major Sects lately, and every time Qiu Gongyi heard bad news, a Profound Spirit Jade Table paid the price.

Fortunately, Profound Spirit Jade could be mined within the Mausoleum Mountain Range; otherwise, the expense would be considerable.

Seeing this, Lingyu Palace’s Grand Elder, Du Xiaofeng, held his teacup and frowned slightly. This was another significant expense; a Profound Spirit Jade Table would fetch a good price if sold. However, seeing Qiu Gongyi’s current state, he pursed his lips and said nothing about it.

“What about Qian Tu, Zhao Qiyang, and the others?” Qiu Gongyi asked after venting for a moment.

“They were killed by men from the Cyan Yuan Sect. After Lü Zhenghai and his group appeared in the Mausoleum Mountain Range, they were all killed,” Du Xiaofeng replied, setting down his teacup.

“It was a trap set for us by the Cyan Yuan Sect. Someone saw their Sect Leader, Liu Xuan, appear as well. It’s a good thing you, Palace Master, and the others didn’t descend the mountain. Otherwise, the consequences would have been unthinkable,” Du Xiaofeng added.

He was merely stating an objective fact.

The Sect Leaders and Elders of the Three Major Sects—Lingyu Palace, Taiyu Valley, and the Nanhua Sword Sect—had joined forces to ambush the Cyan Yuan Sect’s Leader, Liu Xuan, but they were no match for him. Instead, they suffered heavy losses.

“Liu Xuan has already completed the Inner Refining of the Five Viscera. He’s only a step away from becoming a Bone Marrow Cleansing Grandmaster. The news from the Cyan Yuan Sect claimed he had just entered the Inner Refining Five Viscera Realm. Who would have thought it was a smokescreen? Otherwise, our losses wouldn’t have been so great.”

As Qiu Gongyi spoke of this, a look of vexation filled his eyes.

If Liu Xuan had truly just been a master who had newly reached the Inner Refining of the Five Viscera, their combined forces could have certainly killed him and left the Cyan Yuan Sect without a leader. But who could have known it was a trap deliberately set by the Cyan Yuan Sect? He nearly killed all of them from the Three Major Sects.

“Some more news just came in. It’s about the Celestial Sword Sect.”

Du Xiaofeng didn’t dwell on the matter, as it was a painful subject for all Three Major Sects.

Bringing it up just reopened the wound.

Naturally, he didn’t want to bring it up again.

“The Celestial Sword Sect is coming?”

Hearing the name Celestial Sword Sect, Qiu Gongyi’s eyes lit up. A major reason the Three Major Sects were still holding their ground was their faith in the Celestial Sword Sect.

The Three Major Sects had no way to deal with the Cyan Yuan Sect’s Liu Xuan, but the Celestial Sword Sect had people who could.

“No. The Celestial Sword Sect has been held up by forces in Yu State. It will take them at least a year to reach Qing State.”

“This is news our scouts stationed in the mountains overheard. The source is the Cyan Yuan Sect’s Lü Zhenghai, but we can’t yet confirm if it’s true or not.”

“While fighting Elder Song, Lü Zhenghai was deliberately lured near our scouts by Elder Song. The information came from Lü Zhenghai’s own mouth.”

Du Xiaofeng shook his head, delivering even worse news.

Although the Three Major Sects each had their own tricks, if the Cyan Yuan Sect decided to wear them down through attrition, their defenses wouldn’t last long. In a year, the Three Major Sects would be completely wiped out.

By the time the Celestial Sword Sect arrived in Qing State, it would be too late to help.

“Has the information been confirmed?”

Qiu Gongyi asked hurriedly. If this was true, they could just flee. If they continued to stay in the Mausoleum Mountain Range, the Cyan Yuan Sect would surely wipe them out completely.

Fleeing would allow Lingyu Palace to rebuild elsewhere, but all the years of accumulation would be for naught.

“Not yet. We are in contact with the Celestial Sword Sect and have also arranged for people to investigate.”

“But under normal circumstances, even a flood in Yu State shouldn’t affect the people from the Celestial Sword Sect. It’s very likely they were blocked by forces in Yu State. The question is for how long.”

Du Xiaofeng was stating the most likely outcome, as it was the first thought that had come to his mind when he heard the news.

In fact, he wasn’t the only one. The upper echelons of the Three Major Sects all suspected that the story about the Celestial Sword Sect being delayed by floods was hiding a worse reason.

It was entirely possible that the Cyan Yuan Sect had made a move.

The Cyan Yuan Sect didn’t become the hegemon of Qing State through strength alone; they also had influence. They had quite a few allied powers with shared interests.

It was highly probable that they had called upon a power capable of contending with the Celestial Sword Sect.

’I knew it. There was something wrong with the message the Celestial Sword Sect sent before. They’re playing us for fools! We should have held back and waited for their people to arrive before acting.’

’Damn that Cyan Yuan Sect. They pressed us so hard back then, leaving us no other choice.’

As Qiu Gongyi thought this, his expression grew uglier. He instinctively slammed his hand on the table, only to hit empty air.

Seeing this, Du Xiaofeng’s mouth twitched.

’Good thing they can’t replace it right away, or he’d just destroy another Profound Spirit Jade Table. The losses would double.’

“Palace Master, there is one more piece of news. The trap Lü Zhenghai and the others used this time was the work of a Cyan Yuan Sect Pharmacist named Yang Chan.”

“It seems he was the one who discovered there was something wrong with Qian Tu, Zhao Qiyang, and the others, and he specifically proposed the plan to Lü Zhenghai.”

“Lü Zhenghai said this to Elder Song’s corpse after killing him, so the credibility is extremely high.”

Du Xiaofeng continued relaying the information he had received. This news was less critical than the last, so he had naturally saved it for later.

“Yang Chan? Why does that name sound familiar?”

After listening, Qiu Gongyi repeated Yang Chan’s name. A flicker of confusion crossed his eyes; he felt like he’d seen the name before, but the impression was faint.

“Zhao Ziqing and the other spies within the Cyan Yuan Sect were all discovered and rooted out because of him. He was only a Pharmacist’s Assistant back then. He used that achievement to become a Pharmacist in the Cyan Yuan Sect.”

Du Xiaofeng, however, was very clear on Yang Chan’s identity, as he had specifically investigated him before.

Lingyu Palace had been thwarted by the same person twice; it was hard not to remember him.

“So it was him. I didn’t expect him to come to Taiyu City. He got promoted by using our people as stepping stones. He really deserves to die.”

Qiu Gongyi quickly recalled who Yang Chan was. He hadn’t paid attention at first because his status had changed, and also because he had never considered the man to be of any importance.

’A nobody, an insignificant ant he could crush with a single step.’

“Since he’s come to Taiyu City, arrange for someone to send him on his way.”

“Anyone who uses Lingyu Palace as a stepping stone to get promoted deserves to die.”

Lingyu Palace still had people in Taiyu City. The previous intelligence from within Qinghan Mansion had been sent from Taiyu City.

However, Qinghan Mansion had indeed been mostly purged, which was also a heavy loss for the Three Major Sects.

They naturally had to retaliate for these losses. The first person they wanted to deal with was Lü Zhenghai, but he was a difficult target. That left only Yang Chan.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep