Chapter 468 : Dripping with Jealousy
468: Dripping with Jealousy
Harmony Sect's intelligence network was the most well-informed in the cultivation world. Although Jiang Mo and Yun Qingyue knew much as firsthand participants in many events, their information was fragmented, far less comprehensive than Harmony Sect's systematically collated intelligence. Moreover, they only knew what they had personally experienced; everything else relied on others' accounts.
At this point, Fei Yuan had no reason to conceal anything, and the story traced back to their previous meeting.
The last time Fei Yuan met the two, she had disclosed Nine Abyss Sect's affairs completely, though she was merely passing along information while planning to remain uninvolved. But unexpectedly, over the following months, the situation deteriorated rapidly.
First, somehow Fei Yuan's meeting with Jiang Mo was exposed. The righteous path prohibited connections with the demonic path, and likewise, the demonic path was wary of righteous spies and informants. Although Fei Yuan, as the former sect leader's daughter, was highly unlikely to be a righteous path spy, Harmony Sect wasn't unified. Some had long resented her, and by exploiting this incident, they had wrested most of her authority.
From that point, Harmony Sect's division became overt. If the Sect Leader could have stepped in to suppress it, things might have been different. Unfortunately, the Sect Leader had been injured and entered seclusion, neglecting sect matters for a long time, allowing the divide to expand rapidly.
As one of the Four Major Demonic Sects, Harmony Sect possessed extraordinary foundations; even internal division shouldn't have happened overnight. Yet in less than a year, Fei Yuan was reduced to fleeing with the Sect Leader. This wasn't solely due to internal issues but largely external factors—not long ago, Fei Yuan had discovered a secret, and it was this information that had led to her current predicament.
Now, facing Yun Qingyue's inquiry, Fei Yuan didn't intend to withhold information as leverage, and directly said: "Half a month ago, I received intelligence that the demon race had apparently appeared in the cultivation world, and they are most likely currently within Celestial Demon Sect."
She dropped this bombshell without warning, truly stunning everyone.
Jiang Mo, in particular, couldn't help blurting out: "But last time we met, didn't you say the Nine Abyss Sect Leader, seeing no hope for ascension, had plotted to open the seal and let the demon race invade? How has the story suddenly shifted to involve Celestial Demon Sect?!"
Celestial Demon Sect had indeed kept a low profile in recent years, especially in contrast to the suddenly rising Nine Abyss Sect—they had practically faded from people's awareness. Including this time when Nine Abyss Sect and Crimson Blood Sect went to war, although Celestial Demon Sect had been meddling, they never dared confront the two sects directly, inadvertently causing others to underestimate them.
Fei Yuan gave a bitter smile and shook her head: "Who knows? Anyway, Nine Abyss Sect and Celestial Demon Sect have already formed an alliance now."
Yun Qingyue pondered for a moment before suddenly asking: "How did Elder Fei Yuan learn of this?"
Fei Yuan lightly rubbed her fingertips, raising her hand to tuck a fallen strand of hair behind her ear: "Recently Buddha Sect had troubles, and their disciples encountered assassination attempts outside. Such a large force must have come from somewhere."
Yun Qingyue understood—most likely those who attacked Buddha Sect's disciples had revealed their identity. This wasn't surprising; after all, Buddha Sect had many disciples, and those attacking them were even more numerous. With such a large mobilization, it couldn't possibly remain undetected. Harmony Sect had its own intelligence channels; besides the honey trap method, they certainly had other means, so it was natural they couldn't be deceived.
However, the righteous and demonic paths had always been at odds; demonic paths attacking righteous paths was nothing new. That Fei Yuan could immediately detect anomalies and uncover the connection to the demon race demonstrated her capabilities.
Yun Qingyue sensed that although Fei Yuan had spoken clearly, many details remained unspoken. But she didn't intend to press further—some information Fei Yuan probably wanted to share directly with Sect Leader Qingxiao upon returning to Xuanqing Sect.
Regardless, it was a bargaining chip for negotiating with Xuanqing Sect.
Yun Qingyue didn't ask for more details, only questioning: "Is the information about the demon race reliable?"
Fei Yuan looked up, her tone carrying conviction: "There's at least an eighty percent certainty."
· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · · · · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·
Yun Qingyue and the others were inclined to believe Fei Yuan's words, as all the events pieced together seemed to point to the same conclusion—beyond Nine Abyss Sect's overt destruction of the seal, there seemed to be another force belonging to the demon race manipulating the situation from the shadows. And now, through Fei Yuan's identification, this force appeared to be directed toward Celestial Demon Sect.
Events were developing too rapidly for Jiang Mo and Yun Qingyue to make decisions on their own. After rescuing everyone, their immediate priority was to escort everyone back to Xuanqing Sect... Of course, given the injured state of these people, they urgently needed to soak in the Lightning Pool.
Cultivators were tough; though their injuries were severe, they recovered quickly. After a brief rest, everyone set off on the journey back.
Zhu Baiyi had many wounds and was completely frozen, unable to move even in human form. So she simply didn't transform, instead shrinking to the size of a normal fox to be carried.
Undoubtedly, the only one qualified to carry the fox was her own daughter, Yun Qingyue.
Yun Qingyue's hand stroked the fox's pure white, soft fur without a trace of discoloration, as a thin layer of ice re-sealed the wounds. With her cultivation level, she certainly couldn't seal Zhu Baiyi, but the latter was willing to cooperate and docilely lay in her arms.
Holding her mother, Yun Qingyue had no extraneous thoughts, nor did she dare pet the fox as she would pet the tiger. Looking at Zhu Baiyi's wounds, she thought for a moment, then finally took out a faintly glowing pearl from her storage space—it was the Nine-Tailed Fox Internal Dan she had obtained in the legacy space... Vaguely, she always felt this item was important, but it had remained unused by her side for a long time, and it seemed Sect Leader Zhu might have more use for it.
Seeing her take out the Internal Dan, Zhu Baiyi guessed her intentions and, before Yun Qingyue could speak, declined: "Keep it for now, there's no need to give it to me. The legacy space chose you to enter and placed this Internal Dan in your hands; there must be a purpose."
This explanation was persuasive, but Yun Qingyue had pondered for a long time without figuring out what use the Nine-Tailed Fox Internal Dan could have for her, a swan goose. Due to a vague feeling, she had kept this Internal Dan with her for a long time, but now, seeing Sect Leader Zhu covered in wounds, her resolve wavered. Finally, she placed the Internal Dan in Zhu Baiyi's hand: "It's of no use to me."
The fox held the faintly glowing Internal Dan, and almost from the moment of contact, she sensed an extremely powerful, surging force from within. Combined with their shared bloodline, Zhu Baiyi could even vaguely feel her bloodline being drawn to the Internal Dan, as if transformation was imminent.
For a moment, Zhu Baiyi even felt the blood in her body boiling, with the opportunity for growth right before her eyes.
In the end, Zhu Baiyi suppressed this impulse, turning her face away as she pushed the Internal Dan back: "I don't want it; you keep it. Even if it's temporarily useless now, there will certainly be a time when it's needed."
However, Yun Qingyue, though appearing cold, was filled with stubbornness to her core, and had no intention of changing her mind once it was made up.
Jiang Mo was right beside them, watching this mother and daughter pushing back and forth, finding it extremely dull. The whole tiger felt somewhat dejected, especially seeing her senior sister carrying the fox as they traveled—her heart was so sour it could almost drip vinegar. But that was her senior sister's own mother; what could she do to prevent it? There was nothing she could do, so even if she drowned in jealousy, she could only watch.
The result of this back-and-forth was ultimately Yun Qingyue's victory. Zhu Baiyi reluctantly accepted the precious Internal Dan, though she had also made up her mind not to use it unless necessary for future ascension.
Seeing the mother and daughter finish their dispute, Jiang Mo finally found an opportunity to interject: "Ah Yue, why don't I help you carry her instead?"
The fox's eyes turned, landing on Jiang Mo, then she pursed her lips, seeing through everything.
……
The return journey was encumbered with many burdens, naturally slower than when the two had traveled alone. However, due to their urgency, they didn't delay on the road, and the group didn't take much time to return to Xuanqing Sect.
Although they hadn't been gone long from Xuanqing Sect's territory, the atmosphere had changed dramatically upon their return.
Since there were many surviving disciples from Crimson Blood Sect, plus the unexpectedly rescued Harmony Sect members, the two sects together totaled nearly a thousand people. This number clearly exceeded Xuanqing Sect's capacity, so Jiang Mo and Yun Qingyue tactfully didn't bring everyone directly back to the sect. They settled the people in Xuanqing City, the closest location, only to discover that the previously quiet city had once again become bustling.
Jiang Mo was surprised: "Hasn't Xuanqing Sect closed its mountain? Have they reopened the gates?" After carefully observing the pedestrians, she quickly corrected herself: "No, that's not right. These don't seem to be Xuanqing Sect disciples."
Yun Qingyue immediately recognized that most of those moving about Xuanqing City now were independent cultivators, followed by disciples from smaller sects. She quickly connected this to their observations along the way and wasn't surprised by the current situation: "They've gathered here seeking Xuanqing Sect's protection. Besides these people, there are probably more inside the sect."
Her words proved prophetic. When the two returned to the sect after settling everyone, they indeed saw numerous unfamiliar figures on the previously quiet spirit peaks. Flying past, they caught snippets of conversation—all were from smaller sects subordinate to Xuanqing Sect.
Small sects taking refuge with larger sects, often serving them and seeking protection in times of danger, was entirely normal.
Jiang Mo and Yun Qingyue paid this no mind, proceeding directly to Mount Tianyang to report to Sect Leader Qingxiao. Crimson Blood Sect was fine, as their rescue had been pre-arranged, but adding Harmony Sect, which had appeared unexpectedly, made the total number too large.
Finally, Sect Leader Qingxiao pondered for a moment and said: "I'll clear out a small spirit peak near Purple Cloud Peak. The people from Crimson Blood Sect and Harmony Sect can temporarily settle there." After a pause, he added: "Try to keep them as low-profile as possible."
Such an arrangement provided both protection and surveillance.
However, this outcome was already better than Jiang Mo and Yun Qingyue had expected; they had thought both sects' disciples would have to remain in Xuanqing City. After all, with so many people seeking refuge at Xuanqing Sect, even its vast territory would eventually run out of space.
Having received their answer, the two hurriedly returned to Xuanqing City to bring everyone back.