Chapter 145: Ulterior Motives, Another Reinforcement Arrives

The moment Yao Yongzhi appeared, the battle situation changed once again.

“Haha, truly heaven helps me. Everyone from the Heavenly Clothes Pavilion, listen up! Aside from Ye Qiuyue, Ye Tianyi, and Qin Xiao, anyone who wants to switch sides and join my Clear Wind Sect can have their past misdeeds forgiven by this old man. You all better think carefully-right now, you don’t have the slightest possibility of winning.”

The Clear Wind Ancestor had never dreamed Yao Tiansheng had another helper. Heaven was smiling on the Clear Wind Sect: they would crush their opponents.

With such an advantage, the Clear Wind Ancestor wanted to recruit the Heavenly Clothes Pavilion’s disciples and spare his own side needless casualties.

“Clear Wind old ghost, stop dreaming. Do you really take me for someone with no preparations at all?”

Seeing the Clear Wind Ancestor still trying to turn the pavilion’s disciples against it, Qin Xiao called out.

He was not sure himself. He had asked for help, but there had been no reply and no one had come. Perhaps they did not want to get involved. For now, he could only bluff.

“You have preparations? What preparations could you possibly have? Brat, no matter what preparations you think you have today, they won’t change the outcome. If you weren’t already a dead man walking, this old man might have even considered taking you as an adopted son. What a pity.”

The Clear Wind Ancestor dismissed Qin Xiao’s words. If he had more help coming, why had he let things reach this point? He was bluffing.

Although most of the Heavenly Clothes Pavilion disciples despised Clear Wind Ancestor’s words, a small portion began to waver.

The situation was already clear enough. The destruction of the Heavenly Clothes Pavilion was a foregone conclusion. Rather than fighting to the death, surrendering to stay alive seemed like a viable path, especially since the Clear Wind Sect was also a fourth-rank force.

Only the middle ranks wavered. The four Soul Formation elders had no such thoughts. They were among the earliest followers and had deep ties to the Ye Family.

When the Heavenly Clothes Pavilion was later established, they had all been invited to join. Starting from the Nascent Soul stage and cultivating all the way to the present, they had relied entirely on the pavilion’s resources. To betray it now was something they simply could not bring themselves to do.

“What are you panicking about? As long as I’m here, the Heavenly Clothes Pavilion won’t fall! Anyone whose loyalties lie elsewhere may leave. But if you dare join the Clear Wind Sect, don’t blame me for dealing with traitors.”

Ye Qiuyue noticed the hesitation among some of her subordinates, but she knew she couldn’t control everyone’s thoughts. Rather than forcing them to stay, it was better to let them scram. They could leave, but they could not betray her-that was her absolute bottom line.

If they feared death and wanted to survive, she would let them go. But if they joined the enemy and turned against her, she would rather kill them now. She would not keep such ungrateful wretches.

“The Great Elder is right! We will stand and die with the Heavenly Clothes Pavilion!”

“Everything I possess was bestowed by the pavilion. I will never betray it!”

“Me too! At worst, we fight them to the death. Taking one of them down is breaking even, and taking two is pure profit!”

Ye Qiuyue’s words greatly encouraged the loyal disciples, who voiced their determination one after another.

Yet, those who had already turned their hearts elsewhere were unmoved by a mere speech. Enjoying the story? Read on at novelping . com.

“Great Elder, Pavilion Master, I’m sorry. I cannot let my family take such risks with me. I’m leaving first.”

“Great Elder, Pavilion Master, forgive me. I have my own difficulties as well. I hope you understand.”

“I’m leaving too.”

Once someone took the lead, the wavering disciples followed. They would not die for nothing; as they saw it, the pavilion had no chance of winning.

In a short span of time, dozens of people walked away.

Ye Tianyi clenched her fists. She had never expected such a result after treating these people so well.

Even so, since her aunt had already spoken, she could not go back on her word. She was still disappointed. Many of those leaving were Nascent Soul managers in the pavilion’s middle ranks, whose usual treatment was no worse than that of Nascent Soul cultivators in third-rank forces.

Fortunately, the majority remained loyal, which brought her a measure of comfort.

Those who left harbored their own petty calculations. Even if they couldn’t join the Clear Wind Sect immediately, once the Heavenly Clothes Pavilion fell and the Clear Wind Sect took over, would cultivators of their cultivation level be turned away?

“Senior Sister, that’s enough. Out of five or six hundred people, only a few dozen left. Aren’t you satisfied yet?”

Noticing Ye Tianyi’s expression, Qin Xiao hurried over to offer some comfort.

“Haha! Is this the famous Heavenly Clothes Pavilion? So many people fleeing for their lives-how utterly laughable! Now you only have a little over five hundred people left, while I have over a thousand, and our overall strength far surpasses yours. Concede now, and save this old man the trouble of a massacre.”

The Clear Wind Ancestor was delighted to see so many leave, including Nascent Soul cultivators. His side would suffer fewer losses even if they fought.

“Master, why aren’t we attacking yet? What’s the point of this Clear Wind Ancestor just standing there spouting threats? I can’t hold back much longer!”

Fang Xiuxian was itching to kill Qin Xiao, but the battle still hadn’t commenced. He couldn’t fathom what they were waiting for.

“Xian’er, be patient. Victory may seem certain, but no one dares take Ye Qiuyue’s first attack. If she decides to kill someone at any cost, even I can’t stop her. Don’t worry. I’ll let that Clear Wind old ghost make the first move.”

Chen Shunyi was no fool. He could sense the improvement in Ye Qiuyue’s cultivation and was not confident he could defeat her.

At this moment, not a single faction dared to make the first move, precisely for the reasons Chen Shunyi had noted. The source of this chapter is novelping dot com.

Clear Wind Ancestor wanted Chen Shunyi to step up and block Ye Qiuyue first so he could safely follow up; otherwise, he would have to bear the brunt of Ye Qiuyue’s desperate retaliation and risk perishing on the spot.

Chen Shunyi wanted the Clear Wind Ancestor to attack first. Once enough pavilion disciples were killed or injured, Ye Qiuyue was bound to act. He could then find an opening and wound her with a single strike. He might even finish her off today.

Yao Tiansheng harbored identical thoughts. No matter how much he wanted Qin Xiao dead, he refused to take the brunt of Ye Qiuyue’s wrath. She cared nothing for whether he was the Great Elder of the Tianyuan Sect; crossing her might cost him his life today.

Four factions faced each other, three against one. Yet because of Ye Qiuyue, no one dared strike first. They all wanted to profit while someone else did the fighting, so they were still trading threats.

“Haha, what a lively gathering.”

Just as the deadlock stretched on, another expert strode onto the scene.

The newcomer was none other than the Second Elder of the Pure Yang Sect, Han Mingyuan.

“You’re finally here.”

Upon seeing Han Mingyuan, Qin Xiao let out a long breath of relief.

This was the reinforcement he had requested. He had briefly worried that the other party might stand him up, but thankfully, they had arrived at the critical moment.

“Brat Qin, this old man isn’t late, am I?”

Han Mingyuan swept his gaze across the battlefield before turning his attention to Qin Xiao.

“It’s an honor to have you here, Senior. You’re not late at all. You’ve come just in time.”

Qin Xiao hurried forward and replied respectfully.

“Good. I was delayed by a few matters along the way and worried I wouldn’t make it in time, but it seems I’ve arrived right on cue. Tell me, brat-was the message you had someone deliver to me true?”

Han Mingyuan had indeed been held up, but his primary concern right now was whether the contents of Qin Xiao’s secret message held any weight.

“Of course it’s true. How would I dare deceive you, Senior?”

Qin Xiao answered without a moment’s hesitation.

“Very well. In that case, this old man will help you out this once.”

With Qin Xiao’s confirmation, Han Mingyuan agreed to help.