A few days later, after Marquis Yao and Master Seventh were gone, and the three palace lords and loyalist sects were working hard to deal with the uprisings, news started to come back.

For example, details were filtering in about the extent of the rebellion, the circumstances with the Forbidden Sea nonhumans, and the real reason the Sea-Sealing County survivors had fled the Nightshade front lines.

It was all related to the Lunisolar Dao Palace from the Eight Sect Coalition! The former president wasn’t the only one to have sought asylum with Seventh Prince. He took the Soaring Cloud Sword Sect and the Lunisolar Dao Palace with him.1

After joining Seventh Prince, the forces of the Lunisolar Dao Palace, which excelled in the use of spell formations, were sent to the front lines to handle formation maintenance. That, of course, was a very safe assignment. Ultimately, when they saw the other troops from Sea-Sealing County in such a bad position, with heavy casualties being suffered by the roughly 5,000,000 front line cultivators, they secretly gave Kong Xianglong and the survivors a way to get through the spell formations. That was how they made their escape.

Normally speaking, it wouldn’t have been easy to uncover the truth of what happened. However, sentiment was mixed in the Lunisolar Dao Palace. Some members couldn’t stand what was happening in Sea-Sealing County, but others were already loyal to Seventh Prince.

The result was a clash of personal ideals and a storm of power struggles. It was forces in the Lunisolar Dao Palace itself that were the first to reveal how the survivors escaped. Blame was immediately directed toward the sect leader. That infuriated both the Lunisolar Dao Palace’s patriarch and Seventh Prince. A cleanup operation commenced in which all guilty parties were executed. However, the sect leader, who was named the ringleader of the operation, went missing.

As rumors spread, the matter became the focus of a lot of attention.

Around that time, because of the fact that Marquis Yao and Master Seventh had left the county seemingly defenseless, a person arrived at the capital. He was an old man in a brown daoist robe. He looked exhausted, and he was heavily injured, travel-worn, and completely vigilant. The moment he stepped into the county capital, he contacted two people.

One was Plumdark. The other was Sir Bloodsmelter. They had stayed behind to defend the county, and as soon as they received their respective messages, their expressions flickered. They knew who this person was.

He was the same sect leader of the Lunisolar Dao Palace that Seventh Prince was searching for. He was in the great circle of Spirit Trove, and was known as Sir Lunisolar. Any other person who just showed up in the county capital and asked to see Sir Bloodsmelter or Plumdark, they would have a hard time doing so. But war loomed, and things were different.

Sir Lunisolar of the Lunisolar Dao Palace had made efforts to save the lives of many Sea-Sealing County cultivators on the Nightshade front lines. His allies in his sect had been executed by Seventh Prince. Over a thousand people were dead, and blood had flowed like a river. It was extremely brutal and tragic. As for Sir Lunisolar, he barely escaped with his life, and even then, was seriously injured.

He was seeking asylum, leaving no choice for them but to honor his request for a meeting. What was more, he claimed to be privy to a huge secret.

Before long, Sir Lunisolar appeared at the Governor’s Mansion, where Xu Qing, Sir Bloodsmelter, Plumdark, and other leaders from Sea-Sealing County were waiting for him.

His injuries were obviously serious. His internal organs were mostly shattered, and he was struggling just to stay in the Spirit Trove level. After catching sight of Xu Qing and the others, he looked somewhat dazed. Clearly, he was thinking back to the first time he laid eyes on Xu Qing.

“Greetings, Governor!” Sir Lunisolar suppressed his feelings of regret and respectfully bowed. Inside, he was trying hard to prevent his injuries from flaring up, causing his face to be extremely pale.

Xu Qing waved his hand, sending out a gentle force that lifted Sir Lunisolar from his bow. Then he courteously offered some medicinal pills.

“Many thanks for your assistance on the Nightshade front lines, Sect Leader. We heard what happened with the Lunisolar Dao Palace. These are healing medicines from the county capital, including a heaven pill. Take them first and focus on stabilizing your wounds.”

Sir Lunisolar accepted the pills graciously. As he did, he noticed Sir Bloodsmelter and Plumdark looking at him. Though their gazes weren’t hostile, he knew full well that they were suspicious of him. Without the slightest hesitation, he consumed all of the pills, not bothering to check if they were safe.

Sir Bloodsmelter’s eyes narrowed. Plumdark looked at him expressionlessly.

Xu Qing’s face remained the same the entire time. After watching Sir Lunisolar consume the pills and then sit down cross-legged, he refrained from saying anything further.

After enough time had passed for an incense stick to burn, Sir Lunisolar opened his eyes. His injuries were less severe now, making them easier to suppress. Taking a deep breath, he once again bowed deeply to Xu Qing. His expression was one of sorrow and guilt.

“How time flies. It’s already been more than a year…. I remember when you first arrived in the Eight Sect Coalition, Governor….” Sir Lunisolar sighed and shook his head. “Unfortunately, my Lunisolar Dao Palace followed the wrong person. Step after incorrect step….

“Governor, I escaped with my life and came here for one reason. I have news. As for what you do with it, that will be your choice.

“First. I hated to see the miserable situation of the Sea-Sealing County cultivators on the Nightshade front lines. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to take disciples of my sect to rescue them, nor could I personally take action. The only reason I managed to save the final 10,000 was that the spell formation was malfunctioning. During the repair process, there was an opportunity for people to use it without being detected. And even were they to be detected, it shouldn’t have led back to me. That’s why I chose to help.

“There’s no way any outsider could have figured out what happened. In fact, not even people from the Lunisolar Dao Palace should have realized the truth so soon. Unfortunately, almost as soon as the 10,000 survivors left, word started spreading in the Lunisolar Dao Palace. In the resulting slaughter, I barely escaped with my life. That’s when I realized that it was all a big trap. Someone had used my soft-heartedness to set me up.

“Someone wanted those Sea-Sealing County survivors to escape, then use them as a bargaining chip. They wanted to force Sea-Sealing County to come to their rescue; pull them into a trap of their own making and lure the tiger down from the mountain.”

Not a word could be heard in the room.

Eyes bloodshot and teeth gritted, Sir Lunisolar said, “That ‘someone’ is the former president of the Eight Sect Coalition, Sir Dust-Sun!” Hanging his head bitterly, he continued, “That’s the second piece of news I have, and it relates to all of you here. The chaos in Sea-Sealing County, as well as in the Forbidden Sea, is all the work of Sir Dust-Sun. I know this because… I was previously tasked with facilitating communication with the Forbidden Sea nonhumans.

“The third piece of information is from the front lines. King Heaventide’s army will soon return victorious! The Bloodsport immortal skills he sought have been found and set up. By unleashing the might of immortal magic, he’s sent the Nightshades reeling with setback after setback.

“As of now, King Heaventide’s army has used the Bloodsport immortal skills to advance into the underbelly of the Nightspirit Region. The mission will be accomplished soon, and afterward, the army will return. Then, all it will take is a word from Seventh Prince to send Sea-Sealing County… into grave danger!”

Xu Qing and the others present were surprised. This was their first time hearing such information.

However, Sir Lunisolar wasn’t finished yet. “The fourth piece of news is related to Sir Dust-Sun. His primary mission is to uncover Sea-Sealing County’s true strength before the return of King Heaventide. And he has another goal, specifically, Arch-Immortal Plumdark. Sir Dust-Sun wants to capture her.”

As his words drifted through the hall, Plumdark’s expression turned grim, and Xu Qing narrowed his eyes.

Sir Bloodsmelter looked at Sir Lunisolar. “What does all of this have to do with Fellow Daoist Plumdark?”

Sir Lunisolar hesitated briefly, then gritted his teeth and explained everything he knew. “When Sir Dust-Sun defected to Seventh Prince, he mentioned that Arch-Immortal Plumdark has a unique background and unusual cultivation methods. Practicing dual cultivation with her as the cauldron can cause both cultivators to break through the shackles of the next cultivation level. After that, Seventh Prince told Sir Dust-Sun to bring Arch-Immortal Plumdark to him. And that’s what led to all of this.”

Plumdark’s eyes glittered with killing intent. Xu Qing didn’t say anything, but his aura turned extremely cold.

Everyone from Sea-Sealing County present in the hall pulsed with baleful auras. Sir Bloodsmelter even laughed coldly.

Sir Lunisolar’s injuries suddenly twitched, causing him to gasp for breath as he tried to suppress the effects.

“The fifth piece of news is that this time—” Before he could finish speaking, his eyes went wide and his belly expanded dramatically. In the blink of an eye, his clothing ripped as he became a huge ball of flesh. It was extremely ghastly! A bloodcurdling scream filled the hall, causing everyone to react with shocked surprise. And then Sir Lunisolar completely exploded!

Sir Bloodsmelter quickly threw out some defenses, as did everyone else.

The rumbling boom sent an invisible shockwave in all directions, carrying with it the shredded flesh and blood of Sir Lunisolar. The shockwave rapidly spread out, leaving the palace and sweeping through the entire county capital. It didn’t contain deadly power, but instead, seemed to be searching for something.

After the search was complete, the flesh and blood in the hall rose into the air and turned into a blood-red vortex. All of this takes a bit of time to describe, but in reality, from the time Sir Lunisolar exploded until the vortex formed, hardly enough time passed for a spark to fly off a piece of flint.

***

Far away in the imperial capital, in a very secure residence, Sir Dust-Sun looked at the game board and smiled.

As it turns out, there really aren’t four Void Returning experts in Sea-Sealing County.

A blood-colored vortex hovered above the game board, projecting an image of what had just happened in the hall in Sea-Sealing County. Sir Dust-Sun’s smile widened. Everything was happening according to plan, from beginning to end. He had controlled everything, and it was all pointing to an impending victory for him.

Now I just have to pluck the fruit.

Looking very calm, he reached into the blood-colored vortex above his game board.

***

To everyone’s shock, a pitch-black hand stretched out of the vortex in the hall in Sea-Sealing County. It hardly looked human. It was more like the clawed hand of a bird. It was, in fact, a golden crow claw. 2

Whether in terms of energy or might, it surpassed Xu Qing. The moment it appeared, it unleashed incredible pressure and terrifying fluctuations as it singled out Plumdark in the crowd and headed right toward her!

The pressure of the third stage of Void Returning swept out from the claw. Heaven-destroying, earth-extinguishing force surrounded it.

Blood sprayed out of Sir Bloodsmelter’s mouth, and similar things happened to everyone else. There was no way they could fight back against third-stage Void Returning. It was the same with Plumdark.

Sea-Sealing County’s taboo treasure net flickered, and Qingqin let loose a cry of rage from the dome of heaven. But the expanding shockwave ensured that none of that was fast enough to help.

The huge hand was just about to grab Plumdark.

But then the destiny aura of Sea-Sealing County erupted from Xu Qing, dispelling the pressure. He stood from his chair. Face calm, he produced a small ball that he threw toward the vortex from which stretched the hand.

That ball had a name. It was called Medium Roundy. Some people even called it a mini Dawning Sun.

1. The Lunisolar Dao Palace was first mentioned in chapter 227. It came up on a few other occasions, most notably an important development in chapter 294. Considering what happened in 294, it’s not very surprising to hear they defected along with the Soaring Cloud Sword Sect…. ☜

2. We learned way back in chapter 110 that the president, who we now know as Sir Dust-Sun, was one of the few other people other than Xu Qing who has the golden crow imperial-class technique. Don’t forget that, from almost the moment Xu Qing got the technique, we knew that his version was superior to the president’s. ☜