LGHTNOVELBOOK Chapter 69:
Chapter 69: What Are Your Intentions?:
In the Valley of Nine Dragons, a large group of people suddenly rushed out, leaving the powerful cultivators from various sects waiting outside the teleportation vortex utterly bewildered.
“Has the Ancient Battleground of Prodigies ended?” someone muttered.
A massive wave of individuals exited, representing numerous sects. But wait—hadn’t the final three levels of the Ancient Battleground only been open for less than a day? Could it really have concluded so quickly?
“What’s going on? Why are all of you coming out?” an elder from the Calamity Sect grabbed one of his disciples and asked.
“Greetings, Elder,” the disciple replied respectfully. “We left because Bai Qiulan of the Dao Sect warned us. She claimed a peerless demon had appeared in the Ancient Battleground and would kill us all. Her words were urgent and firm, so we followed her advice and chose to retreat.”
“A peerless demon? Did you even attempt the Eternal Prodigy Ranking?” the elder demanded.
“We didn’t get the chance to see any demon, nor did we have time to try the ranking…” the disciple stammered.
“Nonsense!” The elder’s face darkened as he roared, “Do you have any idea how rare and valuable the Ancient Battleground of Prodigies is for you? This is an unparalleled opportunity, and you squandered it based on mere words?”
His voice thundered like rolling storms, leaving everyone’s ears ringing. “On the path of cultivation, demons and dangers are a given! If you run every time you encounter a threat, what’s the point of cultivating? Why don’t you just go home and farm? You’ll never encounter demons in the fields!”
“This is disgraceful! Truly shameful! Do you even know why we are called the Calamity Sect? Tell me the origin of our name!”
“Our sect has never feared calamities or great tribulations. We’ve faced countless dangers and emerged stronger! And yet, you fled without even seeing this so-called demon?”
“Dao Sect, you owe our Calamity Sect an explanation!”
Similar outrage rippled through the other sects. The idea that so many people had exited the battleground merely because Bai Qiulan claimed a peerless demon had appeared was utterly absurd. Since when did cultivators become so timid?
“Is anyone still inside? Don’t let them come out!” one elder barked. “Do whatever it takes to keep them there!”
“This is infuriating! Absolutely infuriating!”
Since the Ancient Battleground existed in a separate dimension, communicating across the space was incredibly difficult. Standard transmission stones couldn’t reach that far. Thankfully, the Mountain River Pagoda Sect had a prodigy carrying a unique artifact: the Twin-Winged Tome.
“I’ll send a message!” one elder from the Mountain River Pagoda Sect said urgently.
He took out one half of the Twin-Winged Tome and began writing. The golden characters disappeared into light, appearing in the other half of the tome held by their disciples within the battleground.
“Why haven’t they responded yet?” the elder muttered anxiously.
Suddenly, golden light flickered, and a reply came through. The disciples inside had stopped leaving the battleground.
“Friend Cheng, let me use the Twin-Winged Tome. I need to send a message to our Calamity Sect disciples immediately! They must not leave the battleground. A demon? So what! Fight it head-on! This is an order, not a suggestion!”
“Friend Cheng, please assist our Supreme Sword Sect as well…” another elder interjected.
The Supreme Sword Sect was equally unwilling to let their disciples retreat. In the way of the sword, retreating was an unforgivable disgrace.
“Friend Langya, reconsider!” someone from the Dao Sect pleaded. “We know Bai Qiulan well. She would never make baseless claims. If she says a peerless demon has appeared, then it’s an unstoppable force. Please think carefully!”
Langya Jian hesitated, visibly conflicted. He wrestled with his decision before turning to Cheng Liang. “Friend Cheng, notify the Nine Li Empire’s disciples as well. They shouldn’t leave the battleground. Opportunities like this are too rare to abandon so easily!”
Cheng Liang didn’t hesitate. The more people left inside, the greater their chances of survival against the demon. He refused to believe the demon could truly be that powerful.
Time ticked by. Streams of people continued pouring out of the battleground. The disciples of the Supreme Sword Sect and Dao Sect had almost all withdrawn, followed by the cultivators of the Nine Provinces Empire. Others from various sects also trickled out, and large numbers of rogue cultivators chose to leave, trusting the Dao Sect’s judgment.
Still, about a third of the participants remained inside, mostly composed of the stronger individuals. The Yin-Yang Law Sect had almost entirely stayed behind, but Chu Ling had escaped alone.
When Bai Qiulan, Yue Hongling, and Sun Ruowei exited, Bai Qiulan immediately scanned the crowd. Her expression darkened.
“Why are so many people still inside?” she asked urgently.
“Bai Qiulan, what are your intentions?” a voice from the Yin-Yang Law Sect boomed. “You know how invaluable the Ancient Battleground is for everyone, yet you convinced them to give it up!”
“That’s right, Bai Qiulan! You owe us an explanation!” another voice added angrily.
“So many prodigies have missed their opportunities because of you! Dao Sect, you must give us an answer!”
Bai Qiulan took a deep breath. “Let me make this clear once more: a temporarily demonized entity has appeared in the Ancient Battleground. Its strength is horrifying, and it can kill Dao Integration Realm cultivators as easily as slaughtering chickens. It is currently in an endless killing frenzy, destroying any living being it encounters. I swear upon my Dao that my words are true. Get everyone out now!”
Swearing upon one’s Dao was no trivial matter. The faces of many turned pale at her declaration.
“Kill Dao Integration cultivators as if they were chickens?” someone murmured. Bai Qiulan’s grave oath silenced many doubters.
“Scaremongering! I ask you, who is this demon?” a Yin-Yang Law Sect elder demanded.
Bai Qiulan hesitated. “I… I don’t know.”
The elder laughed mockingly. “You don’t even know who it is, yet you make such claims—”
Before he could finish, a mournful cry erupted from the direction of the Supreme Imperial Court.
“Second Prince!”
All eyes turned toward the source of the wail. What they saw made their scalps tingle with fear.
Soul stones were shattering.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
The shattering was relentless. Each fragmenting soul stone represented a life extinguished…