Chapter 164: One Against Forty, Seal The Lair And Slaughter
Within the great hall.
Only two people.
It seemed somewhat empty.
Ning Qi was quietly sizing up the silver-haired elder before him. He had a tall figure, with a faint smile at the corners of his mouth, looking just like an ordinary neighborhood old man. His aura was unassuming, neither ostentatious nor hidden, but precisely because of this, it made Ning Qi even more wary and not dare to underestimate him.
“He should be an expert on the same level as the Blade Demon.” He guessed in his heart. Although he could steadily win, taking him down easily wouldn’t be that simple; it would require a certain opportunity.
The Great Elder smiled and pointed to the seat beside him:
“Tian Ming, sit. There are only the two of us here; no need to be so polite.”
Ning Qi was not surprised.
Qu Tianming was precisely Ghost Mask’s real name, but very few people in the Demonic Sect knew this. Most called him Ghost Mask because he habitually wore the bronze ghost mask.
“Was the trip smooth?” The Great Elder got straight to the point.
Ning Qi cupped his hands and said:
“Great Elder, there were some accidents.”
The Great Elder took a sip of tea, raised his brows, and said:
“Qin Yun took action to save Jiang Baishan?”
Ning Qi said:
“Great Elder, you are truly prescient. However, they have already been captured by me and are now held in another branch. Please instruct on how to handle them.”
This was the reason he had prepared in advance. Now that the Great Elder had brought it up himself, Ning Qi naturally went along with it.
The Great Elder stood up and sighed lightly:
“What a pity.”
With that, he walked toward the outside of the hall, with Ning Qi following behind. In just a few steps, the two had arrived at a garden in the rear hall, filled with blooming flowers and planted with many rare flowers and exotic grasses.
The Great Elder continued:
“Qin Yun ultimately cannot let go of the past. What a pity. He has excellent talent and a temperament that surpasses others. If he could be used by our Sacred Sect, he might achieve great things in the future.”
There was visible regret in his eyes.
He truly thought highly of Qin Yun. It could even be said that the reason Ghost Mask treated Qin Yun so favorably was because of the Great Elder.
A hint of perfectly timed doubt appeared in Ning Qi’s eyes.
The Great Elder glanced at him but said nothing.
The two walked slowly toward the back of the hall. Unexpectedly, what appeared before them was not some luxurious pavilion, but rather a dilapidated earthen house courtyard. Inside the courtyard were several plots of land planted with vegetables, with some farming tools placed nearby. It looked just like a farmer’s home.
Entering the small courtyard.
The Great Elder removed his outer robe and picked up the hoe in his hand to start tilling the soil.
His voice carried a sense of emotion:
“People should never forget their roots.”
Ning Qi voiced the doubt in his heart:
“Why do you favor Qin Yun so much?”
This was a question Ghost Mask had never figured out, and it fit the current scene perfectly. Ning Qi was also somewhat curious in his heart.
The Great Elder did not answer but instead asked:
“Don’t you feel that the current Sacred Sect has already changed? It has become full of scheming and infighting, vying for power and profit, decayed and unbearable. How many people still remember their original aspirations? While generational inheritance has its benefits, after a thousand years, the drawbacks are greater.”
“Qin Yun… his greatest advantage is that he did not grow up in the Sacred Sect. He has no attachments. If he can wield the blade, he can cut away some stubborn ailments.”
Ning Qi’s spirit shook, and he seemed thoughtful.
It seemed the Demonic Sect had also noticed its own problems and had been trying to find ways to solve them, but with various factions fighting internally, intertwined with each other, it was impossible to eradicate the root cause.
“Back then, I found you and helped you ascend to the position of Vice Sect Master. That had a very good effect. You’ve done very well balancing Xiang Tianxing and Lin Xueshuang these years. Now, Lin Xueshuang’s faction has been suppressed. In the future, when you ascend to the position of Great Elder, you can continue my cause.”
“And if Qin Yun can become the Holy Son and further succeed as Sect Master, with the two of you cooperating, our Sacred Sect will surely be able to restore its glory in the future!”
There was some expectation and fervor in his voice.
Ning Qi respectfully said at the right moment:
“Tian Ming will follow all of Great Elder’s arrangements.”
The Great Elder waved his hand:
“What a pity that a good seedling like Qin Yun doesn’t get it. However, if he had truly killed Jiang Baishan, I would have thought less of him.”
Ning Qi said:
“By Great Elder’s meaning, we should not deal with Qin Yun for the time being?”
The Great Elder nodded slowly:
“Give him one more chance. Confine him softly. After that, destroy the True Martial Sect. When the Sect Master comes out of seclusion, perform a new baptism on him. At that time, with no attachments left, he will naturally settle his heart.”
He seemed to have anticipated this and was not surprised at all that Qin Yun would take action to help Jiang Baishan; he even appeared quite satisfied.
Ning Qi immediately understood.
This test for Qin Yun was not as simple as it seemed on the surface. If Qin Yun had really killed Jiang Baishan, it might have offended the Great Elder instead. However, the Great Elder before him did not know that Qin Yun had burned all his remaining lifespan to block Ghost Mask.
“Tian Ming understands.” Ning Qi bowed slowly.
He had listened for a long time and had already walked to the Great Elder’s side. He was searching for an opportunity to strike, but he knew that although the Great Elder before him seemed amiable, he could fully erupt in an instant. Now was not the best time to act.
The Great Elder chuckled and patted his old waist, naturally handing the hoe in his hand to Ning Qi.
“When people get old, they sometimes miss the past. A long time ago, I spent a wonderful period of time in a place like this. Sometimes when I come here, my heart becomes as calm as Ning Qi.”
Ning Qi swung the hoe, carefully sensing the state of mind, and seemed to gain some enlightenment.
The Great Elder lay on the rattan chair.
He slowly closed his eyes, and only a faint voice sounded:
“Tian Ming, go into the house and get me a raincoat.”
Ning Qi’s eyes flashed. He put down the hoe and walked slowly toward the earthen house. This might be a good opportunity. There was a slight ripple in his inner thoughts, but Ning Qi’s face remained calm and composed.
One step.
Two steps.
…
Ning Qi’s footsteps stopped at the door of the earthen house, but he hesitated to step inside. The low earthen house before him was like harboring some flood beast.
A somewhat cold voice from the Great Elder came from behind:
“Why not go in?”
Ning Qi turned around, his gaze no longer respectful as before:
“When did you discover it?”
He knew he had been exposed. Although he didn’t know where the flaw was, this earthen house was not ordinary. There was a faint sense of crisis emanating from inside. If he stepped in, it would likely cause trouble.
Under the Illusion Breaking Golden Eye, the disguise was completely seen through. This was no earthen house at all; it was clearly a killing formation!
The Great Elder had opened his eyes at some point, with divine light blooming in them, pressuring aggressively. He examined Ning Qi before him and finally sighed:
“You truly have impressive methods. Even this didn’t fool you. Where is the real Tian Ming?”
Everything just now had naturally been an act.
He had bared his heart, even using some secrets of the Demonic Sect to lure, yet failed to trick the person before him into the killing formation. The shock in his heart was evident.
He knew the person before him was definitely not simple. This was the first time in history that an outsider had silently set foot in the underground palace headquarters, even impersonating one of the Vice Sect Masters. This was no small matter. If he couldn’t figure out the reason and origin, he would be unable to rest or eat in peace.
Ning Qi said:
“You haven’t answered my question yet.”
The Great Elder slowly stood up, with heaven and earth power already swirling around him:
“Your secret technique is peerless and unmatched. Even if the real Tian Ming stood before me with you, I couldn’t tell who was real and who was fake. However, our Sacred Sect has a secret treasure connected to a strand of Tian Ming’s essence blood. From the moment you entered, I had already seen through it.”
He actually spoke frankly, leaving Ning Qi somewhat astonished.
“Are you from the Imperial Court? Since you are so familiar with Tian Ming, he must have fallen into your hands. In that case, Jiang Baishan and Lin Ruhua were just traps you set?” The Great Elder sighed lightly, chatting with Ning Qi like an old friend reminiscing.
Ning Qi once again sized up the Great Elder before him. He sensed an unusual aura, with a faint threatening presence.
He immediately realized that the seemingly good opportunities earlier were actually not at all. The Great Elder had always been on guard, and now chatting casually with him was just intentionally stalling.
Fortunately.
Ning Qi was no fool either.
The sword formation he had set up yesterday also needed some time to connect. He secretly rejoiced that he had been cautious enough yesterday.
The two each harbored their own thoughts, unexpectedly reaching some kind of tacit understanding.
Ning Qi said indifferently:
“Correct, Ghost Mask is in our hands.”
The Great Elder sighed:
“As expected. How about this: I let you leave, and you send Tian Ming back?”
Ning Qi laughed:
“With someone like me in the shadows, wouldn’t you be unable to rest or eat in peace? Do you dare let me go?”
The Great Elder fell silent. After a few breaths, he smiled:
“Since that’s the case, I can only invite you to be a guest here properly.”
As his words fell.
Waves of fluctuations came from all around, heaven and earth power turning into vortices that swept across the four directions. In an instant, figures with powerful auras appeared within Chao Tian Hall. This Great Elder had used some method to notify all the Demonic Sect Heavenly Human Realm experts.
Ning Qi looked up.
All the dozens of Heavenly Human Realm experts he had sensed yesterday were there, and besides them, there were a few he hadn’t noticed last night.
Counting carefully, there were already more than forty.
The auras of forty Heavenly Human Realm experts gathered together—how terrifying.
The entire underground palace was trembling.
The congregation gathered, seeing Ning Qi confronting the Great Elder, all with changed expressions, not knowing what had happened. They had heard today that Ghost Face Vice Sect Master had been summoned by the Great Elder to this private place in Chao Tian Hall, but in the blink of an eye, seeing this stance, could it be that Ghost Face Vice Sect Master harbored ill intentions?
The next moment.
The Great Elder’s words made everyone gasp in shock.
“The person before you is not Ghost Mask. Follow me to take him down!” The Great Elder’s silver hair flew, like a lion. Divine light bloomed in his eyes, and his aura erupted without reservation. Clearly, he was also a peerless expert in the Martial Intent Supreme Realm.
Jiang Tianlong and Ye Qin exchanged a glance, both seeing the horror in each other’s eyes.
Yesterday, they had followed this impostor into the headquarters. If the other had evil intentions, they would have fallen for it. This was clearly walking a circle in front of the gates of hell.
The congregation was in an uproar.
Killing intent gazes turned toward Ning Qi. For an outsider to set foot in the headquarters was an unprecedented major event. If the root cause couldn’t be found, it would thoroughly shake the Sacred Sect’s foundation, perhaps even leading to its demise!
With this thought, no one could sit still.
“Thief, show your true face quickly!”
“Kneel and bow your head now, and perhaps you can keep your whole corpse!”
The Great Elder stared fixedly at Ning Qi. Only now did he slightly relax in his heart. From the moment he detected that the Ghost Mask before him was fake, his heart had been on edge. He couldn’t see through the person before him at all.
Even now, he still hadn’t fully relaxed.
The person before him was just too calm.
Ning Qi looked at the fierce faces around him and smiled.
“Perfect, you’re all here, saving me the trouble of finding you one by one.”
Since trickery wouldn’t work, he could only go for a hard fight.
After talking nonsense with the Great Elder for so long, the sword seeds planted last night had finally all established connections, no longer needing to waste time.
He slowly rose into the air, and a peerless and unmatched sword intent suddenly erupted. Endless sword intent arose in the void, chilling to the bone. In these days, Ning Qi’s sword intent had progressed further. Since he had decided not to leave anyone alive, he didn’t care about exposing his identity. He directly used his strongest sword intent.
Someone recognized Ning Qi’s identity:
“Heavenly Sword True Person! You’re Heavenly Sword True Person!”
Another Vice Sect Master, Xiang Tianxing, was horrified. He thought of something:
“The Qingzhou stronghold in the Southern Border was also destroyed by you!”
People from the Southern Border had said that the Qingzhou stronghold was very likely destroyed by someone skilled in disguise, which matched perfectly.
The congregation was both shocked and angry.
Heaven and earth power suppressed down, fist seals, palm seals, sword qi—almost all going all out, with no sign of holding back.
A man’s fame is like the shadow of his tree; Heavenly Sword True Person’s strength was obvious to all.
The Great Elder’s expression was unprecedentedly grave.
Ning Qi did not answer.
He pointed with one hand, and heavenly swords condensed one after another. Peerless sword intent erupted, surging waves of fluctuations exploding in the underground world. This was not the True Martial Sect; he didn’t need to worry about anything at all. Under full force, luxurious underground palaces shattered one after another, and distant servants all looked in horror toward this side.
“Boom！！”
The heavenly swords collided with the methods of the many Heavenly Human Realm experts.
A heaven-shaking giant rumble shook the underground, and then the entire world seemed to fall into silence. The ground shook and mountains trembled as ‘stars’ fell from the sky one by one, Heavenly Human Realm experts flying back, faces full of horror.
They never imagined.
More than forty Heavenly Human Realm experts joining hands, yet still falling into a disadvantage!
Even if not for the Great Elder and Xiang Tianxing and a few others dispersing most of the pressure, under this heavenly sword’s eruption, it would have been enough to directly fell a portion of Heavenly Human Realm experts. Although all in the Heavenly Human Realm, the gap between Ning Qi and them was simply too vast.
That vast heaven and earth power left everyone dumbfounded.
“This Heavenly Sword True Person is truly so terrifying!”
The Great Elder was horrified in his heart. He had heard of the great battle between the Blade Demon and Heavenly Sword True Person before. He estimated he might not match Heavenly Sword True Person, but wouldn’t lose too badly. But from the looks of it now, this Heavenly Sword True Person was clearly on another level.
“Could it be that he is really about to step into the Martial Saint Realm?”
If not for not sensing Martial Saint power, the Great Elder would probably already be thinking about how to preserve the fire seed. But even so, Heavenly Sword True Person’s combat power far exceeded his imagination; more than forty Heavenly Human couldn’t suppress him.
Just as this thought arose.
Ning Qi had already condensed heavenly swords again. Even under the siege of many Heavenly Human experts, he was still condensing sword qi at an extremely fast speed—one after another, more and more, the sharpness increasingly terrifying.
Ning Qi laughed, feeling an unprecedented sense of exhilaration.
This could be considered the first time he had erupted so unrestrainedly.
“Thousand Star Sword Array!”
The many sword seeds planted last night were thoroughly activated, immediately transforming into heavenly swords after mixing with heaven and earth power, spanning the four directions of the underground palace. Sharp sword light hung down; anyone trying to approach would immediately be torn to powder.
The Thousand Star Sword Array was Ning Qi’s limit. Without last night’s sword seeds, condensing the Thousand Star Sword Array under the siege of more than forty Heavenly Human Realm experts wouldn’t be that easy.
But now.
It was different.
Caught off guard.
A thousand heavenly swords spanned the sky, like scattered stars, emanating an extremely terrifying aura, enveloping the many Heavenly Human experts. Each felt a sense of impending doom, panic in their hearts, as the change was simply too sudden.
Before, although at a disadvantage, they could still resist.
But who knew in just a few breaths, the situation drastically changed. Sword qi rose from the ground, converging with heaven and earth power, and the heavenly swords increased in geometric numbers.
The pressure on the congregation doubled.
Only a miserable scream was heard as a weaker Heavenly Human Realm expert finally couldn’t withstand the sword qi’s bombardment. He was forcibly pulled out from the crowd’s defense, then sliced into blood mist by waves of sword qi. The gruesome death made everyone’s heart chill.
Even more shocking was that those heavenly swords had sealed all exits. The meaning was obvious: to block the nest and catch them all in one net!
The Great Elder’s expression was grave.
He realized it had reached a critical moment.
“Activate the Blood Demon Great Formation!”
His eyes focused, and before the Thousand Star Sword Array could fully form, he shouted loudly.
Immediately, more than a dozen white-haired elders stepped forward. They were some Demonic Sect elders with insufficient lifespan, but at this moment, at the Great Elder’s command, they hesitated not at all and instantly detonated their bodies.
Bang bang bang bang！！
After a series of muffled explosions, more than a dozen Heavenly Human fell.
But the blood mist from their self-detonated bodies did not disperse. Instead, it condensed together in a strange way, with surging power roiling. The remaining twenty-plus Heavenly Human experts all had anger in their eyes. They wished they could dismember Ning Qi opposite them with a thousand cuts.
One person killing into their lair had forced them to this state, making more than a dozen seniors self-detonate.
Roars sounded one after another.
All the congregation’s power poured into those clumps of condensed blood mist, operating in a special way.
In an instant.
The blood mist stiffened, then suddenly writhed rapidly, as if coming alive!
“Roar！！”
Accompanied by a roar low like from hell, the blood mist began to expand and twist, ultimately transforming into a fierce monster!
The monster was entirely blood-colored, dozens of zhang tall after condensing from blood mist, with three heads and six arms, but all heads faceless. Its entire body exuded auras of slaughter and brutality.
Waves of sword qi hung down from the sky, like starlight.
But the blood mist monster reached out and swept, swallowing them all into its belly.
Ning Qi’s eyes narrowed.
This Demonic Sect had some tricks.
