Chapter 131

Chapter 131: The Scheme of Hehuan Sect

In a certain house within an alley on the South Street of Maple Leaf City.

An emaciated, haggard-faced old man sat upright on a stone platform, his entire body emitting a faint glow as he meditated with his eyes closed.

On a bed beside him, a beautiful-faced woman lay.

Knock, knock—

At that moment, a soft knocking sound came from outside the door.

"Enter!"

The old man spoke indifferently, opening his somewhat cloudy eyes.

A middle-aged man wearing black robes respectfully entered the room from outside and bowed, saying, "Master, everything is proceeding as planned."

"Mhm."

The old man responded with a grunt and asked expressionlessly, "Have you finished the investigation?"

"Master, we have investigated and confirmed the route they took to the Immortal Sect," said the middle-aged man with his head lowered in a humble posture.

"Good." A flash of killing intent appeared on the old man’s aged face, and he sneered darkly, "It’s time to let the Lin Family witness the consequences of provoking Hehuan Sect."

The old man came from Hehuan Sect; his name was Liu Fu Chen, with cultivation at the ninth level of Qi Refinement. He was one of the elders of the sect, and also the master of Zhao Yuan.

It was under his leadership that some disciples of Hehuan Sect had attempted to invade Maple Leaf City and eradicate the Lin Family in the past.

Sadly, hundreds of years later, the accumulated power of these long-life families had far surpassed its former level.

While Hehuan Sect had once been called an Immortal Sect, it declined and lost much of its strength, eventually being expelled from the city by the Lin Family.

Besides targeting the Lin Family, Liu Fu Chen had previously tried to attack Qingtian City, where the Lu Family resided, but was defeated again.

This explained why at that Spiritual Pill Conference, the Lu Family not only withdrew but also abandoned the fight for the new spiritual mine.

This time, when attacking the Lin Family, Liu Fu Chen had planned to pick a soft target to handle, but unfortunately, things did not go as expected, and they faced setbacks once more.

However, among the Five Great Long-Life Families, only the Lin Family was the weakest. If they couldn’t even overcome such an opponent, then Hehuan Sect’s hope of restoring its past glory would be impossible.

After a year of quietness, the persistent Liu Fu Chen intended to strike again.

Sensing the killing intent, the middle-aged man looked down at the ground, his face bitter.

He completely understood his master’s desire to revive the sect, but if they acted so boldly and provoked an Immortal Sect’s suppression, what could be done?

They were no longer the Hehuan Sect of old; after all, even his own master, at the ninth level of Qi Refinement, could become an elder. It was clear how weak the sect was now.

"Master, what if this attracts the Qinyuan Sect?" the middle-aged man couldn’t help asking.

"Hmph, what can a mere Qinyuan Sect do?" Liu Fu Chen said scornfully.

Arrogant though he was, he still recognized the gap between them and Qinyuan Sect, so he added, "Our goal is the women of the Lin Family. Only with enough women possessing spiritual roots can our sect grow continuously stronger."

"Even if Qinyuan Sect discovers us by then, we will have fled, and they can do nothing about it."

"Moreover, once the Lin Family loses a great number of its members, it will surely be unable to maintain the city a hundred years from now, and it will inevitably fall into our Hehuan Sect’s grasp."

The more he spoke, the more excited Liu Fu Chen became, as if he already saw Hehuan Sect flourishing again under his leadership.

Hearing these words, the middle-aged man finally felt a measure of relief.

"En, hurry and prepare. When you’re in the city then, you must be extremely careful not to be noticed by that Lin Xuanfeng." Liu Fu Chen waved his hand.

The middle-aged man bowed and withdrew.

Only then did Liu Fu Chen turn his gaze toward the woman lying unconscious on the bed, his face etched with disgust.

She was an ordinary person. For someone like him, cultivating through a Yin-absorbing technique, she offered little power boost.

If only he could capture all the women of the Lin Family who possessed spiritual roots, then he might have hope for Foundation Establishment.

…

Zhou Luo, returning from Shouchun Hall, told his wives and concubines about the Hehuan Sect and warned them not to go out during this period.

Simultaneously, he remained concerned that an incident like Bai Zhi Yan’s earlier kidnapping might happen again.

Therefore, afterwards, he took Xu Changsheng with him to set up several mid-grade defensive formations.

When Xu Changsheng saw the formations—ones only described in ancient texts—his look towards Zhou Luo became strange.

He never expected that this man was not only extraordinarily talented but also possessed such broad learning.

He even knew the methods for arranging such obscure formations.

Instantly, utterly stunned once again, Xu Changsheng was gripped by the intense desire to become his disciple.

He was burning to ask where Zhou Luo had learned such things.

Of course, if the other man didn’t volunteer the information, he certainly wouldn’t ask directly.

Because this matter was too significant. If discovered, it would likely bring disaster, not good fortune.

So Xu Changsheng kept quiet, using this time to humbly learn from him instead.

Seeing that things were sufficiently prepared, Zhou Luo finally felt reassured enough to head for the core area of the spiritual vein paradise.

On the tenth day after he entered the core area, Lin Zhi Shou led the family’s selected young disciples and piloted the immense flying boat toward the Immortal Sect.

To prevent an ambush by the Hehuan Sect en route, the family specially reinforced the flying boat with extra personnel, even assigning an elder for security.

After all, the young disciples aboard represented the family’s hopes; they could not afford any mishap.

Aboard the flying boat, Lin Zhi Shou and the Eighth Elder, Lin Guang Ming, were conversing.

"The Hehuan Sect really is like a centipede that wouldn’t die even when decapitated," Lin Guang Ming said, staring at the scenery ahead with obvious disgust.

"What can you do? Though those evil sects’ cultivation techniques defy the natural order, they advance one’s power incredibly quickly. Naturally, people flock to them," Lin Zhi Shou shook his head slightly.

"Master, please have some tea."

At that moment, Song Qing Shu brought over two cups of spiritual tea.

Seeing this newly accepted disciple, a smile touched Lin Zhi Shou’s lips as he accepted the tea. "They’re just rats scurrying in the gutters. In a hundred years, once our Lin Family has grown strong, they won’t be able to do anything."

Lin Guang Ming also smiled. "Quite right. Whether it’s the Third Young Lady, Zhou Luo, or Qing Shu here, they are all the hope for our family’s rise."

With that, he took the spirit tea and sipped gently. "En, not bad."

"Eighth Elder, I believe you are mistaken."

Suddenly came the voice of Song Qing Shu, who had been standing respectfully.

"Oh? How so?" Lin Guang Ming smiled faintly as he looked at him.

"No one can say for sure what will happen a hundred years from now. Therefore, I feel caution is still necessary."

Song Qing Shu raised his head, his eyes gleaming, his expression earnest as he spoke.

Hearing this, Lin Guang Ming froze for a moment, then laughed heartily. "Hahaha! Well said! One shouldn’t take things for granted too easily, or they might fall hard."

"Qing Shu! Mind your manners before the Eighth Elder!" chided Lin Zhi Shou from the side.

Song Qing Shu quickly lowered his head. "My apologies, Eighth Elder."

"No matter, no matter. It’s exactly this kind of thinking that will keep our Lin Family prosperous and enduring," Lin Guang Ming replied, unbothered.

Whoosh whoosh—

However, right then, a sharp whistling sound abruptly pierced the air.

Dozens of gleaming, crystalline, razor-sharp blades materialized mid-air, lethally sharp and radiating a fierce energy. They shot towards the people on the flying boat.

"ENEMY ATTACK!"

Someone screamed a desperate warning.