Chapter 1263: Return

Many Qi warriors from the Remote Beginning Heavenly Sect exclaimed in astonishment.

However, Duan Hongwen, Monk Goldbone, and the other Saint domain experts frowned, looking disgruntled.

Duan Hongwen snorted disdainfully and asked Monk Goldbone, “Does the Profound Purity Palace have any rights to the Domain of the Falling Stars, the Domain of the Heaven’s Boundaries, or the Domain of Heaven Python according to our agreement? Or did you invite them to join us in this operation?”

Monk Goldbone hastily shook his head and explained, “I dare not do such a thing! I’ve never contacted the Profound Purity Palace in private! Our sect’s strength alone will allow us to seize these three domains. Why would I want to make deals with the Profound Purity Palace?”

Duan Hongwen thought about it, and also felt that Monk Goldbone shouldn’t be that foolish.

However, if they hadn’t invited the Profound Purity Palace, why did they suddenly show up here?

Duan Hongwen was confused.

Frowning, Dong Li turned to Jing Feiyang and Qu Mingde, and asked, “Is that another starship from the Remote Beginning Heavenly Sect? Don’t tell me that their sectmaster, You Qimiao, is here.” 

Jing Feiyang shook his head. “No, it doesn’t look like it.” 

Xie Qian, whose knees and back were bent under pressure, lifted his head with great difficulty to glance at the huge silver ship. With a desperate tone, he said, “It’s the Profound Purity Palace! That’s the Profound Silver Divine Purity Ship, the starship the sectmaster of the Profound Purity Palace uses when she takes inter-domain trips!”

“The Profound Silver Divine Purity Ship!” Several Qi warriors from the Water Moon Sect also exclaimed in astonishment.

“It’s said that a previous sectmaster of the Profound Purity Palace spent a thousand years building it,” One of them explained to the crowd with a gloomy tone. “It’s engraved with countless spell formations and forged from many different types of refined silver and bronze.

“The Profound Silver Divine Purity Ship is a perfect match for the Profound Purity Palace’s all sorts of exquisite spells and incantations. Not only can it launch unparalleled attacks, but its numerous spell formations have also vested it with extraordinary defenses. It’s said that it can even survive the strike of a middle God domain expert!”

Hearing this, the Qi warriors from the Domain of the Falling Stars, the Domain of the Heaven’s Boundaries, and the Domain of Heaven Python felt even more hopeless.

The Remote Beginning Heavenly Sect had already driven them to despair. Now, the Profound Purity Palace came along after them?

Wails of doom filled their hearts.

“Has the Ancient Fragmentary Star Palace become everyone’s target?”

“Now, there’s the Remote Beginning Heavenly Sect and the Profound Purity Palace. What other powerful sects also wants a piece of the Ancient Fragmentary Star Palace’s territory?”

“What should we do?”

Many Saint and Void domain experts from various sects looked deeply grim and anxious. They even started to consider their way out.

WHOOSH!

Yu Suying from the Profound Purity Palace flew out of the huge silver ship, incomparably elegant.

Duan Hongwen approached her. Looking confused, he asked, “Why are you here, Sectmaster Yu? Shouldn’t you be attacking other domains according to our agreement?”

Yu Suying didn’t answer right away. Instead, she glanced down.

Every Qi warrior she saw looked weighed down with anxiety and despair. Some were even gathered by dead bodies, weeping.

“Have you started killing people?” Yu Suying said.

Duan Hongwen’s dharma idol suddenly shrank into his true form.

As soon as he did, Master Blood Spirit and Xie Qian were relieved from the feeling of being suffocated.

The two of them instantly recovered their mobility.

“How could I put them in awe if I didn’t?” Duan Hongwen said indifferently. “Sectmaster Yu, we’ve long since agreed that the Domain of the Falling Stars, the Domain of Heaven’s Boundaries, and the Domain of Heaven Python will belong to my sect. For whatever reason you’re here, please leave as soon as you can.”

“Hmm?!” A crimson bolt of lightning flashed across the pupils of Master Blood Spirit, who had finally recovered.

Face filled with astonishment and anticipation, he jerked his face towards the huge silver ship.

“What is it?” Dong Li asked curiously.

As she did, she noticed that the black tortoise by her feet also raised its chin to look at the huge silver ship, looking unusually cheerful.

If Dong Li hadn’t sensed its unusual behavior and hastily held it down, it would have charged into the sky already.

“That beast of yours is extraordinary indeed,” Master Blood Spirit marveled in an extremely low voice. “I didn’t expect it to be able to so shrewdly perceive its master’s aura.”

Dong Li suddenly realized what was going on. “That guy is on that ship?” 

SHHH!

Master Blood Spirit beckoned for Dong Li to keep quiet, lest others be alarmed.

...

Inside the huge silver ship.

A sparkling ice ball was emanating dazzling silver light in the middle of a unique secret room that had been forged from Silicon Silver and a dozen more kinds of silver.

Standing by the ice ball, Han Qing was flickering her finger towards it.

Every corner of the Realm of Maelstrom was reflected in the ice ball, showing every detail of the palaces of the Divine Seal Sect, the Golden Vast Sect, and the Thousandsword Mountain Sect, as well as the faces of all those who had come from the Domain of the Falling Stars, the Domain of the Heaven’s Boundaries, and the Domain of Heaven Python.

Nie Tian, Mo Qianfan, Yin Xingtian, and Chu Rui were all gathered in front of the ice ball and observing in silence.

“This secret room can even isolate us from the perception of God domain experts,” Han Qing said with an arrogant expression. “Even if You Qimiao from the Remote Beginning Heavenly Sect were here, he wouldn’t be able to sense our existence, much less Duan Hongwen.”

As Nie Tian gazed into the ice ball, intense killing intent gradually built up inside of him.

People could be seen gathered weeping by corpses in every region of the Realm of Maelstrom. He didn’t have to take close looks to know that it was the Remote Beginning Heavenly Sect’s doing.

Not to mention that Duan Hongwen was speaking so loudly that even in the secret room, they heard everything he and Yu Suying said.

With his hands behind his back, Chu Rui let out a cold snort and said, “Duan Hongwen is the vice sectmaster of the Remote Beginning Heavenly Sect. Over the years, he’s been responsible for expanding their territory. He’s known for his ruthlessness. Since You Qimiao spends most his time in secluded cultivation, he’s represented the Remote Beginning Heavenly Sect for a long time. Before, he’d keep his distance whenever he saw me or starships from our sect. but now...”

WHOOSH!

A pillar of light suddenly shot into the heavens from the Divine Seal Sect’s quarters.

It was a pillar of dazzling golden light, as if it were forged from pure gold. Even Monk Goldbone marveled at its aura. “Such pure and intense aura!”

All of a sudden, a golden lotus came to form in the pillar of golden light.

Sitting on it was Huang Jinnan from the metal element sect. Clad in a suit of golden armor, he looked awe-inspiring.

Upon arriving, he yelled fearlessly at Duan Hongwen and Yu Suying, “I’m Huang Jinnan from the metal element sect of the Five Elements Sect! The seventh Son of the Stars of the Ancient Fragmentary Star Palace, Nie Tian, is my sworn friend! You’re not giving my sect face by stirring up trouble in his domain!”

Many who recognized him exclaimed in high spirits, as if they had finally seen hope, “Huang Jinnan, the Divine Son of the metal element sect!”

“He’s Nie Tian’s good friend!”

WHOOSH!

A cluster of flames rose from the Divine Seal Sect’s quarters. It was Lou Hongyan from the fire element sect. “Nie Tian helped him tremendously,” she said. “Please give our sect face and withdraw from this domain.”

Hou Chulan from the wood element sect also charged into the sky and shouted towards Duan Hongwen and Yu Suying, “Nie Tian also helped me break through into the Saint domain.” 

Huang Jinnan, Lou Hongyan, and Hou Chulan were the Divine Sons and Daughters of the metal element sect, fire element sect, and wood element sect. All of them were of great importance in the Five Elements Sect.

The Qi warriors from the Domain of the Falling Stars, the Domain of the Heaven’s Boundaries, and the Domain of Heaven Python had originally wallowed in despair. However, their appearance lifted their spirits.

Even Nie Tian, who had almost failed to refrain from bursting out, calmed down again and felt a bit of warmth in his heart upon seeing the three of them.

He was gratified by the timely arrival of these three friends of his generation.

Han Qing from the Profound Purity Palace shook her head slightly and said, “They won’t be able to change anything if it’s just the three of them. Their cultivation bases are far too low. I doubt that Duan Hongwen from the Remote Beginning Heavenly Sect will give them face. I suspect he’ll continue to do what they’ve come here to do.”

Mo Qianfan then said, “Even though none of them have reached the God domain, all of their masters are human luminaries!” 

“Back when our sect decided to join this operation, we learned that all of the experts that represent the humans’ peak strength, including the five heads of the Five Elements Sect, Qu Yi from the Void Spirit Society, and Chu Yuan from the Heaven Span Pavilion, had been simultaneously invited to a mysterious place,” Han Qing explained.

Nie Tian was taken aback. “What do you mean?” 

Chu Rui and Yin Xingtian also found this baffling. Clearly, this was brand new information to them as well.

“None of the late God domain human experts seem to be in the human world for the time being,” Han Qing elaborated.

Chu Rui gasped with astonishment. “Why didn’t our sect get such information?”

Han Qing took a look at him and said, “How should I know? All I know is that when we were persuaded to join this operation against your sect, we knew that the Five Elements Sect, the Heaven Span Pavilion, and the Void Spirit Society wouldn’t interfere. Even if they would, they’d have to consider their actions seriously, as none of their peak experts would be around to help.”

Even Yin Xingtian grew anxious. “Who or what could possibly get all of those peak experts to leave the human world at the same time?” 

Han Qing shook her head. “Beats me.” 

...

High in the sky, Duan Hongwen laughed wildly and said in an overbearing manner, “Give face to you three?

“If any of your masters were here to say those words, we’d turn around and leave immediately.

“It’s too bad that they’re not here.”

After a short pause, Duan Hongwen’s face dropped as he said with an unpleasant tone, “However, my sect will not lay hands on if you stay out of this. Consider this giving face to your masters and the Five Elements Sect.”

Huang Jinnan was bewildered. “Since when did the Remote Beginning Heavenly Sect become so arrogant and domineering?”

“Since the moment we decided to replace the Ancient Fragmentary Star Palace as a great sect,” Duan Hongwen said with a serious face.

Lou Hongyan was infuriated. “You surely think a lot of yourselves. Do you think you can rely on You Qimiao to do such a thing? I know he’s advanced to the middle God domain. But do you think he’ll be able to contend against any of our masters? Do you think he can challenge Qu Yi or Chu Yuan?”

Hou Chulan chimed in, “Are you so sure that Ji Cang and Mo Heng from the Ancient Fragmentary Star Palace won’t ever return? Have you considered the consequences of either of them returning to the human world and finding out what you’ve done?”

Duan Hongwen snorted disdainfully. “Don’t you worry about us. Since we dare to do this, we’ve considered every possibility.” 

“But have you considered that you may not be able to take the Realm of Maelstrom even if You Qimiao comes here himself, much less the Ancient Fragmentary Star Palace?” Nie Tian’s voice finally echoed out from within the huge silver ship.

In a flash of starlight, he and Chu Rui appeared in the sky.