Chapter 864: Misfortunes Never Come Singly

Chapter 864: When It Rains, It Pours

The morning sunlight was gentle, illuminating the lands of the mortal world.

Ye Chen and his group had slowed their pace considerably, as they had finally set foot in Xiyuan Guo after enduring countless hardships.

Sheng Zhu!

Soon, experts from Yan Huang arrived. Though their numbers were few, they were all top-tier powerhouses.

“Has the teleportation array been constructed?” Ye Chen asked immediately.

“As per Sheng Zhu’s orders, the path to Xiling is clear and ready.”

“Send them in batches and make it quick.”

“Understood.” The Yan Huang expert turned to Haotian Xuan Zhen and the others, his tone warm. “Fellow Daoists, please follow this old one.”

“We appreciate your trouble, Daoist friend.”

“Notify Ren Huang to investigate this person for me.” Here, Ye Chen handed a jade slip to the Yan Huang expert.

The person he wanted to investigate was naturally Zhao Xiong’s child. Since the Zhao family had submitted, they were now part of the Heavenly Court. Ye Chen couldn’t guarantee he could rescue Zhao Xiong’s child, but he would certainly give it his all.

What followed was straightforward. Members of the Haotian family continued entering the teleportation array, signaling the end of their days on the run.

...

Bastard! Bastard! Bastard!

In the grand hall of Shi Xue Dian, thunderous roars echoed.

Shi Xue Yan Luo was like a madman, bellowing in fury.

However, his anger wasn't directed at the Haotian family’s escape, but at another matter: the recent assassinations of young masters from various major families in Beichu. After Shen Ying investigated, they shockingly discovered that the culprits were people from Shi Xue Dian.

“Who gave you the authority? Who gave you the authority?” Shi Xue Yan Luo’s killing intent soared, his blood-red eyes like those of a demon, glaring fiercely at those below.

Below him, a dense crowd knelt, including Cang Mu from a Shi Xue Dian branch hall. The others were mostly those who had been deceived by Ye Chen under the guise of Yan Zun.

They had been thorough in their duties, slaughtering like beasts for three days and nights. They were just about to return for rewards when they were all captured. Even now, they were still in a state of confusion.

“It… it was Yan Zun,” Cang Mu stammered, his body trembling.

“Nonsense! Yan Zun is in seclusion at Yan Shan,” a Shi Xue Dian Supreme Elder immediately rebuked.

“Elder, there has been an incident at Yan Shan,” Feng Ying, who had been silent, spoke up. “I went to check. Yan Shan has been destroyed, and both Yan Zun and Si Tu Ming are missing. It’s certain they are still alive.”

“So, someone impersonated Yan Zun?” Shi Xue Yan Luo looked at Feng Ying.

“It appears so.”

As soon as these words were spoken, Cang Mu and the others collapsed to the ground one by one.

They understood now—they had been tricked! They thought their actions were helping Shi Xue Dian eliminate opponents, but in the end, they had killed allies, and not just a few.

Silence fell over the Shi Xue grand hall, an oppressive quiet where even heartbeats could be heard.

“Report!” The silence in the hall was broken by a black-clad figure rushing in. “My lord, the master of Xue Qiong Hall is requesting aid.”

“Let him go to hell!” Shi Xue Yan Luo roared in rage. With headquarters in such chaos, how dare you add to the trouble? An entire hall’s army couldn’t even handle one Haotian family—why don’t you just die?

“Report! The person who kidnapped Sun Hao demands we go… go ransom him.”

“Wasn’t Sun Hao ransomed back yesterday?” Shi Xue Yan Luo thundered.

“He’s been kidnapped again.”

“Again?” Shi Xue Yan Luo nearly fainted from anger.

“Report!” Another person dashed in. “My lord, Tian Xue branch hall has been… been attacked.”

“Report! The mines in Xi Zhen Gu Di have been robbed.”

“Report! Elder Cang Shuo has been assassinated.”

“Report!”

From then on, Shi Xue Dian was far from peaceful, with black-clad figures continuously rushing in, each bringing bad news. It was truly a case of when it rains, it pours—already burdened with enough troubles, now even more disasters piled on.

“Shi Xue Yan Luo, if you don’t give us an explanation today, we won’t rest until you’re dead!” Soon, roars from outside echoed into the hall, and there were many voices.

Looking out, the skies around Shi Xue Dian were filled with dark masses of people—the ancestors of various forces in Beichu, each leading armies of cultivators, seemingly poised to launch a joint assault.

“Who leaked the information?” Shi Xue Yan Luo erupted in fury, his face twisted into a terrifying grimace.

“Would I tell you it’s me?” In the hall, an elder standing in the corner sneered to himself. He was an insider planted by Ren Huang in Shi Xue Dian, having lain low for over three hundred years—who would suspect him?

“Who was it? Who?” Shi Xue Yan Luo’s roars shook the hall with a boom, likely the greatest setback he had faced since becoming master of Shi Xue Dian.

...

On this side, Ye Chen and his group had arrived in an underground palace through successive teleports.

They had returned to the cultivation world via the teleportation array, but not to Bei Zhen Cang Yuan—it was Xiling You Gu.

“Go back to Nanchu and rest well,” Ye Chen said indifferently to Haotian Xuan Zhen and the others at the teleportation array.

“You’re not coming with us?” Haotian Xuan Zhen and the others looked at Ye Chen.

“I still need to find Xuan Er.” Ye Chen replied lightly.

Haotian Xuan Zhen and the others wanted to say more, but in the end, they remained silent. They knew that nothing they said would change this young man’s mind.

“Prioritize your safety above all.” Finally, after a moment of silence, Haotian Xuan Zhen took a deep breath and stepped into the teleportation array.

Following him, Haotian Xuan Hai and the others entered as well. Even Haotian Shi Yue, before stepping in, couldn’t help but glance back at Ye Chen—that was her younger brother, and also the one in her heart.

“I wish you were just Qin Yu.” Haotian Shi Yue murmured, her figure tinged with loneliness.

After they left, Ye Chen turned to a Yan Huang elder. “Where has Xue Qiong reached?”

“Not more than thirty thousand li from here.”

“What about Shi Xue Dian?” Ye Chen asked again.

“The ancestors of various forces in Beichu have already led their troops to Shi Xue Dian. They’re probably there by now.” The elder couldn’t help but smile. “This battle might not happen, but they won’t be uniting anytime soon.”

“Excellent, keep stirring up trouble.”

“Sheng Zhu, there’s a strange figure appearing in Beichu lately.”

“Oh?” Ye Chen raised an eyebrow and looked at the elder. “How strange?”

“Or rather, eerie.” The elder stroked his beard. “He acts like an assassin, more like a ghost. He only kills male cultivators, and the sword he wields is truly a peerless divine weapon!”

“I’ve heard Hong Chen Xue mention this.” Ye Chen pondered. “If possible, investigate her background, but be careful.”

“Already on it.”

“In that case, issue the order: Destroy the teleportation array and have everyone retreat to Yan Huang headquarters.”

“Understood.” The elder hurried out.

After the elder left, Ye Chen sat down cross-legged on the ground.

Soon, he focused his mind and activated the secret technique of One Qi Transforms into Three Purities.

However, he couldn't produce the Three Purities avatars—or rather, some heaven-defying power in the void had sealed his secret technique, preventing him from dividing his avatars.

“How could this be?” Ye Chen furrowed his brow deeply, the situation too bizarre for him to comprehend.

He tried repeatedly, but failed each time.

Not only that, his forceful attempts triggered backlash from the secret technique, causing him to spit out blood before he finally stopped.

“What exactly is going on?” His brow furrowed even more. The only key to unraveling this mystery was his avatar, but now that he couldn’t create one, he was plunged into a greater enigma.