Volume 11, Chapter 722 – The Yin-Yang Eyes, She Has Arrived

In the dead of night, Cao Hong hurried into the Immortal Alliance headquarters and knocked at the gate of a courtyard. The two guards at the entrance lowered their heads and did not dare to stop him.

Moments later, the gate opened from within, revealing Lu Lin. He looked puzzled and asked, “Ah, it’s Vice Alliance Leader Cao! What business brings you here at such a late hour?”

“Could we speak in private?”

Cao Hong’s expression was grave.

“Then come in.”

Lu Lin stepped aside.

The two entered the main hall. After moistening his throat with a sip of tea, Cao Hong said with a heavy tone: “Alliance Leader Lu, the Wenren clan of Changming Kingdom has been annihilated.”

“What? When did this happen?”

Lu Lin shot to his feet. He knew well that the Wenren family had been their only path to tracing that rebel.

“It happened last night. As soon as I received the news, I rushed there without pause. It took me quite some effort to come back and report to you.”

Cao Hong answered.

“Who did it? Was it that same murderer who killed three elders of the Immortal Alliance, returning to erase all traces out of fear of exposure?”

Lu Lin instinctively speculated.

“No. That rebel is a cultivator. The one who destroyed the Wenren clan was a group of powerful martial artists.”

Cao Hong shook his head.

“How do you know this?”

Lu Lin asked, perplexed.

“Was I not tasked with investigating the rebel’s identity? So I always had people watching the Wenren residence. This was witnessed with their own eyes.”

Cao Hong explained.

“Since you had watchers there, why didn’t they intervene? Do you not know the Wenren clan was our only way to track the rebel?”

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Lu Lin demanded.

“Alliance Leader jests. That group numbered several hundred, and every one of them was at the Grandmaster Realm. How could a handful of watchers have stopped them?”

Cao Hong replied with some displeasure.

“Several hundred martial artists at Grandmaster Realm and above?”

Shock flickered across Lu Lin’s face, but he quickly judged: “Within the cultivation world, only the Severed Immortal Sect could command such force. But why would they wipe out the Wenren clan? Could it truly be just because of opposing stances?”

“I do not know. I am still investigating.”

Cao Hong bowed.

“And the souls of the Wenren clan?”

Lu Lin asked, clinging to a faint hope.

“They were all destroyed by those martial artists’ killing intent.”

Cao Hong shook his head helplessly.

“They were thorough indeed, leaving our Immortal Alliance no way to pursue the matter further.”

Lu Lin ground his teeth in anger.

“Alliance Leader Lu, do you think these two matters might be linked?”

Cao Hong speculated.

“It cannot yet be concluded, but I feel this matter is far from simple.”

Lu Lin drew a deep breath.

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By the time Qi Huang reached Changming Kingdom, the Wenren clan had already been utterly erased. Not even a dog survived.

Qi Huang was dumbstruck. Although the Wenren clan had been her enemies, it was still hundreds of lives. Who could be so ruthless?

Unable to contain her curiosity, Qi Huang wandered the surroundings. Soon, she heard rumors that the Wenren clan had been exterminated by powerful martial artists, and thus people suspected the Severed Immortal Sect.

‘The Severed Immortal Sect?’

The very name was seared into Qi Huang’s bones. If it truly was them, it made sense. Just their stance alone was reason enough to eradicate a cultivation clan like the Wenrens, especially since they had repeatedly caused trouble for the Honghua Sect.

Qi Huang had no time to probe further. She soon left Changming Kingdom. Cruel though the killers’ methods were, they had indirectly done her a great favor. At least she no longer needed to fear the Wenrens exposing her true identity.

Qi Huang next sought out Jin Xue, Tang Yuning, and Ouyang Yi, warning them to guard their three ethereal souls and seven corporeal souls carefully, and never to mention her name again.

After tidying up the aftermath, Qi Huang returned to the Honghua Sect. She was thankful that when she had gone to the Kapok Valley Treasure Land, she had not revealed her true identity to the bait or their families. Otherwise, the loophole would have been impossible to patch.

Not long after Qi Huang returned to the Honghua Sect, her four Golden Fate Blossoms bore fruit. That they bloomed and bore fruit in the very first year was largely thanks to her blood and the Blood Bodhi Tree.

She counted: twenty-two seeds in total. These clearly could not be used for charity right away, for two reasons. First, the number was far too small, like a drop in the ocean for the entire Huangtian County. Better to keep them for further cultivation. Second, if exposed too soon, the Immortal Alliance would surely continue to pester her. Waiting until the number was sufficient and then releasing them all at once would leave no time for sabotage.

Resolute in this plan, Qi Huang began cultivating with those twenty-two seeds. With her blood and the Blood Bodhi Tree’s blessing, she feared not that they would fail to sprout.

Indeed, after only half a month, all twenty-two seeds had sprouted.

‘At this rate, within four or five years I’ll have enough Golden Fate Blossom seeds to meet all of Huangtian County’s needs.’

Qi Huang thought with delight.

Meanwhile, the Immortal Alliance had already located the Yin-Yang Eyes and sent Elder Yao to monitor the bait and their families, hoping to flush out the rebel. But their efforts were destined to be fruitless.

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“Sect Leader, I have investigated the situation regarding the Honghua Sect and Cheng Hongling.”

At the Severed Immortal Sect headquarters, a disciple was reporting to the Sect Leader.

“Oh? Speak then, Steward Yan.”

The Sect Leader grew interested.

“The Honghua Sect was originally a tiny sect of the Western Radiance Dynasty, a small and remote kingdom of Western Continent. At its weakest, it had only about a hundred disciples. But twenty years ago they recruited a genius, Cheng Hongling.”

Steward Yan narrated smoothly.

“Oh? How was she a genius?”

The Sect Leader asked.

“She reached the Unity Realm before the age of ten, and by fifteen she was already at the seventh level of Unity Realm.”

Steward Yan summarized.

“That barely qualifies as a genius. Compared to the descendants of the immortals in the Central Continent, she is far behind.”

The Sect Leader judged.

“Yes. She was only a genius by the standards of a remote kingdom like the Western Radiance Dynasty. But things changed. About six years ago, she cultivated her first Doppelgänger, that was Qi Huang.”

Steward Yan continued.

“Six years ago? How old was she then?”

“Fifteen.”

The Sect Leader’s brows furrowed. “Are you making sport of me? You just said she only reached Unity Realm seventh level at fifteen. How could she cultivate a Doppelgänger?”

“Please quell your anger, Sect Leader. This is indeed the information I found. Since Qi Huang truly is her Doppelgänger, some believe she broke through to the Incarnation Realm that year, leaping three levels at once. Whether it’s true is uncertain.”

Steward Yan hastened to explain.

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“To leap three levels in one year at late Unity Realm, even the descendants of immortals could not do that. If she had such ability, her earlier cultivation would not have been so slow.”

The Sect Leader smiled faintly, unconvinced. Then he pressed: “Tell me about Qi Huang.”

“Qi Huang is extraordinary. Somehow she acquired a mysterious method for cultivating Divine Sense. In just three years she reached the Divine Realm. Not only did she shine at the Evergreen Conference, but she also killed one of the avatars of that monster from the Lü family of Central Continent. She even foiled one of our Sect’s attacks midway. Thanks to her, the Honghua Sect has risen to one of the top five sects of the Western Radiance Dynasty. One could say she alone holds up the entire sect.”

Steward Yan spoke with awe.

“Three years? Then in another three she must have reached the Heavenly Tribulation Realm? That is far too defiant of the heavens.”

For the first time, the Sect Leader was shaken.

“Heavenly Tribulation Realm? She has already reached Heavenly Tribulation Realm?”

Steward Yan was stunned.

“That is none of your concern. You have worked hard on this journey. Go rest.”

The Sect Leader dismissed him.

“Yes!”

Steward Yan obeyed, muttering as he left.

The Sect Leader could no longer stay calm. He immediately summoned Ai Xing.

“That girl hides more secrets?”

Ai Xing was also greatly surprised. Her expression changed. “Sect Leader, then we cannot let her fall into the hands of the Immortal Alliance or other cultivators. If they obtain her mysterious method of cultivating Divine Sense, would that not endanger our Severed Immortal Sect?”

“Indeed. Therefore, you must set out for the Honghua Sect at once. Two objectives: first, confirm whether what you saw at the Immortal Alliance was true, and discover the cause; second, uncover how she cultivates Divine Sense and probe her current depths.”

The Sect Leader gave his order, then handed her two items: “Here, a bottle of Heaven-Deceiving Water. It will let you remain hidden at crucial moments. And tens of thousands of taels of silver, enough to purchase residence rights at the Honghua Sect and live there for a while.”

“Yes! Sect Leader, await my good news.”

Ai Xing accepted the mission, took the items, and left in haste.