Chapter 1725
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Before long, within the range of the blood mist, faint sounds began to echo. Qi Zhen’s gaze fell upon the approaching figures, and with a hint of a smile in his eyes, he remarked, “They’re here!”
In short order, more than a dozen figures materialized. Leading the group was a man of imposing stature, appearing to be in his thirties, with an air of nobility and authority. He carried a long spear on his back, his expression stern.
“Uncle Qi!” the newcomer greeted Qi Zhen with a respectful nod, then inquired, “What brings you to seek me out at a time like this?”
“Do not forget the instructions from the Spirit Sword Pavilion. Our alliance with the Spirit Sword Pavilion and the Qi family is something we must keep secret for as long as possible,” Qi Zhen reminded him.
At this moment, Yu Dong and Zhao Lang were both taken aback upon recognizing the newcomer. “I never expected to see the esteemed Senior South Palace Hao from the South Palace family,” Yu Dong exclaimed in delight. “So… it turns out that the Wujie Alliance has also joined forces with the Spirit Sword Pavilion!”
South Palace Hao. A highly renowned late-stage Plucking Star realm warrior from the South Palace family, one of the four great families of the Wujie Alliance.
Zhao Lang also chuckled, “With the Spirit Sword Pavilion backed by the Qi family, Yun family, and now the Wujie Alliance, not to mention our own Zhao and Yu families, what is a mere Shengtian Sect to us?”
Qi Zhen and South Palace Hao clearly took pleasure in this statement. Yu Dong, however, couldn’t help but ask curiously, “If that’s the case, why did the Spirit Sword Pavilion halt its plan to annihilate Shengtian Sect last time when only the Tian Dao Palace came to their aid? With the Qi family, Yun family, and the Wujie Alliance, wouldn’t it be a simple matter to wipe out Shengtian Sect?”
Qi Zhen smiled and said, “You young whippersnapper, what do you know? The Spirit Sword Pavilion has grand plans.”
Grand plans?
Both Yu Dong and Zhao Lang were taken aback. After all, their families, while first-class forces, were far from being core partners of the Spirit Sword Pavilion like the Qi and Yun families. Moreover, neither Yu Dong nor Zhao Lang were among the top-tier individuals who held the core secrets of their respective families, and thus they were unaware of certain secrets.
“Alright, alright,” Qi Zhen waved his hand dismissively. “Let’s plan this out. This time, we must kill Ye Wushuang.”
With that, the group gathered together. Qi Zhen immediately outlined the plan: “They are ten miles away from us. I will take two early-stage Plucking Star warriors and ten Self-Delusion realm warriors from the Qi family to make contact with them first, pretending it’s a chance encounter, and then engage them in combat.”
“South Palace Hao, you will take the sixteen people with you and control the surroundings.”
“Leave two Plucking Star realm warriors on the outer perimeter to keep an eye out, in case Ye Wushuang tries to escape.”
South Palace Hao nodded in agreement.
Qi Zhen then turned to Yu Dong and Zhao Lang with a smile. “You two, being the successors of the Yu and Zhao families, will probe the strength of Ye Wushuang and his group first. How does that sound?”
“Killing Ye Wushuang would be a great feat, and the Spirit Sword Pavilion would surely reward us with resources,” he added.
Upon hearing this, Yu Dong immediately retorted, “Uncle Qi, you underestimate us. Both Zhao Lang and I are already at the Seventh Calamity realm. Probing their strength? I assure you, we can take out Ye Wushuang’s head and present it to you!”
“Hahaha, very well, very well!” Qi Zhen laughed heartily. “Ye Wushuang is yours. If anything unexpected happens, then the two Plucking Star realm warriors with South Palace Hao can step in.”
“No problem.”
“Good!”
With the plan settled, the three parties set off immediately.
Inside the Tianxue Pit, within a grove of stone pillars, Ye Wushuang and his companions were either sitting in meditation or lost in contemplation. Suddenly, Tian Linzi’s gaze shifted towards a particular direction.
“Who’s there! Show yourself!” Tian Linzi’s spiritual awareness had been significantly enhanced since he cultivated the Soul Tree Spirit Technique, making him more alert than the others.
Amidst the thin blood mist, rustling sounds could be heard as figures began to emerge.
“Hmm?” The leader of the approaching group was none other than Qi Zhen, who now wore an expression of genuine astonishment as he looked at Ye Wushuang and his group.
“It’s you!!” Qi Zhen’s face was filled with feigned shock, quickly followed by a cold sneer. “What a coincidence, Ye Wushuang. I didn’t expect to run into you here.”
The feigned astonishment was, of course, an act. By pretending to have encountered Ye Wushuang by chance, Qi Zhen hoped to lower their guard. When South Palace Hao and the others launched a surprise attack, Ye Wushuang’s group would be caught off guard and suffer heavy losses.
“Qi Zhen!” Ye Wushuang looked at the leading middle-aged man and raised an eyebrow.
“Quite a coincidence indeed,” Qi Zhen chuckled. “Out there, you had Yin Shenghao protecting you, but here, no one can shield you!”
As he spoke, Qi Zhen grasped a broad knife, its blade flickering with a cold, menacing glow.
“Here to die again?” Ye Wushuang calmly remarked. “Earlier outside the Tianxue Pit, I ran into the Qi Rongxuan and Qi Ronghe brothers. Those two old fellows thought they could take me down, but… they ended up dead!”
Upon hearing this, Qi Zhen’s eyes widened in surprise. After entering the Burial Sage Cave, not only had Ye Wushuang’s group been separated, but so had the Qi family’s members.
Qi Zhen had yet to contact Qi Rongxuan and Qi Ronghe and was unaware of their situation.
“Are you lying to me?”
“Lie to you? Why would I bother?” Ye Wushuang casually tossed two tokens into the air. Upon seeing the tokens, Qi Zhen’s face turned pale.
Every member of the Qi family had their own identity token, as their large and influential family required a way to verify identities.
“You really killed them!” Qi Zhen’s face now showed both astonishment and fury. This time, the astonishment was genuine.
The Qi family had only about forty Plucking Star realm warriors, each of whom was stationed in important cities within the Qi family’s territory, making them extremely valuable. Losing one was far more painful than losing ten Self-Delusion realm warriors. Cultivating a Plucking Star realm warrior required an immense amount of spiritual stones, pills, and other resources.
“You little brat!” This time, Qi Zhen was genuinely enraged. “I’ll kill you!”
With a step forward, Qi Zhen lunged at Ye Wushuang with a ferocious intent.
Yu Yourong stepped forward, but Tian Linzi, standing nearby, immediately charged into battle. Having reached the mid-stage of the Plucking Star realm, and being a puppet body, he might not be as aggressive as Yu Yourong in terms of attack, but his defense was far superior to hers.
In an instant, the two figures collided.
Boom…
A deep, thunderous sound erupted. As Tian Linzi clashed with Qi Zhen, he was forced to retreat dozens of steps, while Qi Zhen stood his ground, a look of disdain on his face.
He was Qi Zhen, the third master of the Qi family, at the late stage of the Plucking Star realm, and far stronger than an average late-stage warrior.
“Think you can withstand me?” Qi Zhen sneered. “Then I’ll hack you to death, one slice at a time.”
“Qi Peng, Qi Bang, you two, kill Ye Wushuang,” Qi Zhen commanded. Behind him, two Plucking Star realm warriors, armed with blades and swords, stepped forward menacingly.
