Suspicion from All Sides, Losses for Everyone

"Zhu Xinghe, Yan Qing!"

"Those Demonic sect scum—they actually dare to show up here!"

"You bastards, give me back my disciple's life!"

The moment they spotted the newcomers, Yuan Zhen and the others' eyes turned bloodshot. Spiritual energy surged wildly around them, their magical artifacts humming and trembling.

The ones who had appeared were none other than the elders from the four great Demonic Dao sects.

The righteous and demonic paths had clashed countless times before. As high-ranking members of their sects, these men naturally recognized one another.

Cao Feng's heart tightened. Amid his fury, he was also deeply shocked.

How could the Demonic Dao cultivators be here too? Have ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠they sensed something as well?

The Sword Demon Sect elder Zhu Xinghe let out a eerie cackle. "Just a few of your disciples dead, and you're already this pissed? We were planning to wipe them all out originally—they only survived out of sheer luck."

"Heh heh, you'd better keep a closer eye on your disciples from now on. Careful on your way out, or you might go in but never come back, hahahaha..."

The Demonic sect cultivators burst into hysterical laughter.

Yuan Zhen and the rest looked grim. The Bihai Sect elder Qu Mingyi couldn't hold back any longer. He unleashed his magical treasure with a roar. "Scum, die!"

The moment fighting broke out on one side, it triggered a chain reaction. Both factions whipped out their treasures and launched furious assaults. Spiritual energy exploded through the air mid-flight, beams of multicolored light flashing endlessly. The immense shockwaves crumbled surrounding buildings, while terrifying sword qi and blade qi crisscrossed, ripping deep gashes into the earth.

With the Demonic Dao attacking, Cao Feng—as a Taiqing Sect elder—couldn't stand idly by. He glanced at the Qin family members behind him, now trembling in terror, and sent a voice transmission. "Elder Wu, take them and go first!"

Elder Wu understood the gravity of the situation and nodded. He activated the white jade flying boat, darting through the gaps at top speed.

"Damn, they're escaping!"

Yuan Zhen spotted the white jade flying boat fleeing and panicked. They'd come specifically for the Qin family—how could he stomach letting the Taiqing Sect take them away?

"Chase them!"

All factions shared the same goal. Even the four Demonic sects set aside their mutual grudges for the moment, all wheeling around to pursue hotly.

"This is bad!!" Cao Feng's face twisted in alarm.

He hadn't expected them to abandon their hatred just to chase down the Qin family.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

A dozen magical treasures rocketed from behind, slamming viciously into the white jade flying boat.

Though the boat had defensive arrays, it couldn't withstand a simultaneous barrage from so many Nascent Soul True Lords. The barriers shattered instantly, and the vessel disintegrated mid-air.

"Damn it!"

Elder Wu spat a mouthful of blood, sustaining minor injuries. But in the next instant, he hurled a flying sword from his storage pouch. It expanded rapidly as he waved his hand, scattering spiritual energy to yank the nearby Qin family disciples onto it before turning tail and fleeing madly.

At this point, there was no time for more—he could only save who he could.

The other Qin family disciples, left behind after the flying boat's destruction, hastily activated their own artifacts to hover in ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the air. Some looked dazed; most were simply terrified.

"This one's mine!"

A Demonic cultivator shot forward like lightning, conjuring a massive demonic hand mid-air that snatched two Qin family disciples right out of the sky.

"Get lost!"

Before he could make off with them, another figure charged in—it was a Thunder Sword Sect elder, maneuvering his treasure to wrest them away.

"You think you can snatch from me? In your dreams!"

The first sneered coldly. The two erupted into fierce combat on the spot.

It wasn't just them. Disciples from both sides were frenziedly snatching ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠at Qin family members. The air rang with bone-chilling blasts and collisions.

Some were successfully seized; others were shredded into fragments by the clashing spiritual energies, dying gruesome deaths.

Taiqing Sect, Qingyun Residence.

Qin Changqing's expression shifted. He'd already heard from Guan Zilan that the Taiqing Sect had sent people to escort the disciples from the three families—how could they be under attack?

Did the other nine sects catch wind of something and move to intercept?

That has to be it.

"Good thing my kids and their mothers were moved to the sect long ago. As for the rest... good luck to them!"

Qin Changqing had no intention of helping.

For one, he felt no real attachment to the others in the three families. They only saw him as a tool to exploit—hardly worth risking his life for.

For two, if the other sects were getting involved, they'd surely send elites. Golden Core and Nascent Soul clashes? A mere Foundation Establishment like him would be suicide. Even the shockwaves could cripple him.

——

Boom!

Cao Feng and the Sword Demon Sect elder Zhu Xinghe both spewed blood from the massive spiritual clash, hurtling back thousands of meters before barely stabilizing.

The Qin family member caught in the middle had exploded into a mist of blood, leaving no trace behind.

"Cao Feng, that's it for today. Next time, I'll take your head for my wine!"

Zhu Xinghe's voice faded into the distance as he seized the chance to flee rapidly.

Cao Feng's face was ashen, but he didn't pursue.

Looking around, the Qin estate was now rubble. Each faction had made off with an unknown number of Qin family disciples.

"Report back to the sect master first!" Cao Feng shot toward the Taiqing Sect.

Soon, back at the Taiqing Sect, Elder Wu had arrived ahead and given a rough account.

"How did it go?" Liu Qinghui demanded urgently.

"Not good. A lot of Qin family members were taken..." Cao Feng recounted the battle, bitterness twisting his lips.

"How could this happen!" Liu Qinghui's white brows shot up.

"At least they only knew about the Qin family—they don't know about the Huang and Lin families. I've already sent people quietly to fetch them; they should return soon," one elder sighed.

Guan Zilan said coolly, "Sect Master Senior Brother, no need to worry too much. I planted restrictions on all three families long ago. Nothing about Qin Changqing will leak. If they try soul-searching, the restrictions will erase their divine souls outright."

"Junior Sister Guan is truly foresighted!"

"In that case, we don't need to be too tense."

The group breathed a slight sigh of relief.

But Liu Qinghui shook his head. "It's not that simple. Our actions have basically confirmed their suspicions. No hard proof, but they won't let it go. We'll have trouble soon enough..."

The others frowned slightly.

Indeed. The Taiqing Sect staying put might've been fine, but moving like this was as good as shouting, Yes, you're right—the Qin family is suspicious!

And Guan Zilan's restrictions? That was like hiding silver under a pagoda—no problem, why bother with soul restrictions on low-rank cultivators?

——

As the Taiqing Sect feared, the other major sects immediately subjected their captured Qin family disciples to brutal interrogation upon returning, desperate to uncover the origins of those premium spirit root seedlings.

But no matter how they pressed, the Qin captives knew ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠nothing—three questions, three blanks. Left with no choice, they resorted to soul-searching techniques, only to discover in shock that special divine soul restrictions had been planted in them. The moment soul-searching began, the souls disintegrated.

In the Taixuan Sect's secret chamber, Sect Master Chu Tianlu eyed the three corpses on the floor and sneered coldly. "If they had nothing to hide, why plant soul restrictions on these low-rank cultivators? Too much hassle, no?"

"Senior Brother, I've sent people to investigate. The Taiqing Sect hasn't held an Ascension Conference in years, yet they've suddenly got a bunch of genius disciples popping up—superior-grade, top-grade, even earth spirit roots! Too suspicious!"

"And one more odd thing: I noticed during the Grand Competition that a lot of the Taiqing Sect's genius female disciples were absent. In past years, they were the heavy hitters for rankings. I looked into it afterward—not just those girls, but a ton of high-aptitude female cultivators in the Taiqing Sect haven't been seen in ages..."

Put together, it was impossible not to suspect.

"Senior Brother, the other sects grabbed plenty of Qin family disciples too. Why not ask them?"

Someone suggested.

Chu Tianlu pondered, then said, "This is too fishy. The Taiqing Sect churning out so many genius seedlings at once threatens every other sect. Go summon the sect masters and leaders of the other eight major sects at once. Invite them to Taixuan Sect for a talk!"

"Yes!"