Volume 3 Chapter 28

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Volume 3 Chapter 28: The Next Night (Part 1) – Startling Heart

After perceiving the intense explosion in the center of Huandao Island, the faces of the fifteen cultivators from the three factions changed drastically.

It’s important to know that the center of Huandao Island not only has a dense forest but also a teleportation array to Zhantai. If that array is destroyed, how will everyone return to Zhantai? With the Lingji Stage cultivation level of the fifteen cultivators present, attempting to cross the wild Eastern Sea with its fierce winds and demon beasts by their own strength would be nearly impossible.

Moreover, judging by the Spirit Qi fluctuation and powerful explosion from the center of Huandao Island, only the combined efforts of dozens of Condensed Core Stage cultivators could cause such an effect. But when did Huandao Island have so many skilled masters?

Even Huang Xie, usually cool and mysterious, couldn’t help but show a slight change in expression. After hesitating briefly, he gave a cold glance at the ten people from Jiuhua Gate and Liuhe Gate, then waved his hand and quickly flew towards the center of Huandao Island with the other four disciples from Eight Wilderness Hall.

"The Seven-colored Deer in your hands, come back for it later."

As Huang Xie and his four junior brothers flew towards the center of Huandao Island, Huang Xie’s indifferent voice suddenly echoed around them.

After Huang Xie’s figure finally disappeared from everyone’s sight, the ten people on the scene all let out a slow breath, feeling overwhelmed by the powerful pressure exuding from Huang Xie just moments ago.

In their current state, facing Huang Xie’s terrifyingly powerful roar, even with ten people working together, there might be no chance of victory.

"Senior Brother Xu, what should we do now?" Jin Qinghan asked softly in Xu Qingfan’s ear after watching Huang Xie’s figure vanish on the horizon and then glanced at the five people from Liuhe Gate on the other side.

After pondering for a moment, Xu Qingfan’s eyes flashed with determination, and he said, "We should go to the teleportation array to check out the situation."

Hearing Xu Qingfan’s words, Jin Qinghan and the others were taken aback. Seeing the hesitation in their eyes, Xu Qingfan spoke seriously, "The Spirit Qi fluctuation and explosion coming from the center of Huandao Island were too intense just now. We don’t know what happened. Setting aside who caused those Spirit Qi disturbances, whether the teleportation array is intact will decide our actions in the coming days. If we don’t understand, our actions will be like blind men feeling an elephant, and we might fall into someone else’s trap without realizing it."

"But Huang Xie just headed there as well. If we encounter him there, we might be in trouble again," Lv Qingshang said hesitantly.

Xu Qingfan softly replied, "If I’m not mistaken, the disciples from various sects still capturing the Seven-colored Deer on Huandao Island should be heading to investigate the center of the island as well. They won’t want Eight Wilderness Hall to recklessly seize other sects’ Seven-colored Deer. With everyone’s combined effort, even Huang Xie would not be a match, so he wouldn’t act there."

Hearing Xu Qingfan’s words, the other four silently nodded in agreement, but Feng Qingtian asked, "Judging from the Spirit Qi fluctuation from the center of Huandao Island just now, there should be dozens of Condensed Core Stage experts fighting fiercely there. What if they’re hostile towards us?"

Xu Qingfan smirked bitterly, "If those powerful Condensed Core Stage masters truly intend to harm us, we won’t be able to escape their pursuit even if we don’t go there."

Hearing Xu Qingfan’s words, everyone had no more objections, so they all used their remaining strength to fly towards the center of Huandao Island, wielding their magical tools.

Before leaving, Xu Qingfan noticed Deng Tianao’s flickering gaze upon them and sneered, "Deng Tianao, in our current state, neither of us can do much to the other. Moreover, with unexpected changes on Huandao Island, it’s best to cease for now and resume our fight once we’ve recovered."

Hearing Xu Qingfan’s words, Deng Tianao understood that Xu Qingfan was already on guard, realizing that his plan to ambush the Jiuhua Gate team as they left was unlikely to succeed, so he responded coldly, "That’s for the best."

Upon Deng Tianao’s reply, Xu Qingfan snorted and led the other four from Jiuhua Gate swiftly towards the center of Huandao Island.

Not long after Xu Qingfan and his group flew off, Deng Tianao hesitated briefly but then also led Chou Xuan and their group towards the center of Huandao Island, clearly sharing the same thoughts as Xu Qingfan.

Unbeknownst to them, as they flew towards the center of Huandao Island, three cultivators from Penance Valley above them in the sky let out slight sighs of relief. These three were secretly guarding the members of Jiuhua Gate, Liuhe Gate, and Eight Wilderness Hall.

The earlier battle was truly fierce, and at times, the three nearly couldn’t resist intervening. But now, although the three sects’ cultivators had stopped fighting, their faces showed no relaxation. They solemnly gazed towards the center of Huandao Island, then followed behind their respective sect’s disciples with an indescribable urgency in their hearts.

Meanwhile, the cultivators of Mercy Cloud Temple, White Lady Palace, Five Elements Sect, and Qingxu Gate, along with those secretly guarding them, also hurriedly made their way towards the center of Huandao Island.

…

The weather at sea changes frequently. Just now, the sky over Huandao Island was clear, but in the blink of an eye, it became overcast with clouds. It is unclear if the recent intense surge of Spirit Qi and explosions have caused the sky’s change.

The intense explosion that occurred in the center of Huandao Island just now was caused by Xuan Xian and other cultivators when they broke the "Seven Scenic Illusionary Killing Formation," causing Spirit Qi to surge intensely.

Now, after the intense explosion, most of the dense forest that originally stood in the center of Huandao Island has been destroyed.

In the ruined forest, more than ten cultivators from Penance Valley stood quietly in a circle. Among them were Xuan Lian, Xuan Han, and others who had been trapped in the "Seven Scenic Illusionary Killing Formation." They stood with Xuan Xian and other cultivators, seemingly freed from the formation with their help.

However, the cultivators from Penance Valley did not speak to each other but instead looked down solemnly at a body lying in the center of their circle.

After a long silence, Xuan Ling’s eyes flickered as he softly asked, "Is it him?"

Xuan Xian sighed and said, "It should be him. I met him once a hundred years ago; I can’t be mistaken."

Xuan Lian objected, "Impossible, he couldn’t have appeared on Huandao Island without a trace. He was previously in Zhantai."

Xuan Han hesitantly said, "Maybe someone used disguise or illusion magic to change their appearance…"

But halfway through, Xuan Han couldn’t continue speaking. In this world, what kind of disguise or illusion magic could fool the numerous Condensed Core Stage cultivators present?

Xuan Ling frowned and said, "Could it be that our previous judgment was wrong?"

Xuan Han shook his head and said, "I still can’t believe it. Maybe someone is framing him."

Xuan Ling replied, "Then how do we explain his recent actions? And those people who just escaped, their techniques were obviously aligned with his."

Xuan Xian gazed thoughtfully at the corpse before him, then suddenly frowned and said, "The disciples from various sects on Huandao Island have sensed something unusual and are coming here. We shouldn’t discuss this for now. This matter must not be hastily judged by us. Let’s wait for the sect leaders to arrive at Huandao Island and report it to them so they can decide."

Hearing Xuan Xian’s words, the other cultivators from Penance Valley nodded silently. One of them bent down to pick up the corpse in the center of the group, and then either rode the wind, stepped on colorful clouds, or rose into the air, all swiftly flying in another direction of Huandao Island.

…

Xu Qingfan and the other four exhausted a lot of Spirit Qi in the previous battle, especially Xu Qingfan, who had weakened significantly after spitting out two mouthfuls of vital blood. He had merely kept up appearances to make Huang Xie and Deng Tianao cautious. As a result, when the five of them flew towards the center of Huandao Island, their speed was notably slow.

After Xu Qingfan gave everyone a pill from Medicine King Valley for healing internal injuries and restoring Spirit Qi, everyone’s condition improved somewhat.

It took more than ten times the regular amount of time, but the group from Jiuhua Gate finally reached near the forest in the middle of Huandao Island. The trees, once dense, were now mostly destroyed, the ground uneven and full of cracks, showing how fierce the battle had been.

After cautiously observing for a long time and ensuring there were no more conflicts in the forest, they finally proceeded carefully towards the location of the teleport formation.

Around the teleport formation, disciples from four of the six Holy Lands, excluding Penance Valley and Jiuhua Gate, along with Huang Xie’s group of five, stood silently with grim faces. When they saw Xu Qingfan and the others arrive, they merely gave a faint glance before turning back to look at the teleport formation.

When Xu Qingfan reached the edge of the teleport formation, his face also turned grim. The once mysterious formation was now completely destroyed, surrounded by ten bodies that Xu Qingfan recognized as the disciples from two sects who hadn’t dared step out of the forest before.

"They are disciples of ‘Xuantian Gate’ and ‘Yellow Spirit Mountain’," a monk from Mercy Cloud Temple said softly. "It seems they’ve been dead for quite a while."

As Deng Tianao and the others arrived around the teleport formation, their expressions became grim upon seeing the scene and hearing the monk’s words from Mercy Cloud Temple.

But after hearing the monk’s words, everyone remained silent, as if waiting for something.

After a long time, no movement could be noticed.

Suddenly, Xu Qingfan gave a bitter smile and said, "Since no one from other clans has arrived yet, does that mean only our few groups are left on Huandao Island now?"