C.3498: The Battles in the Ring (1)

The immortal vessel from the Sword Sect of Startling Thunder arrived outside the Sword Sect of Violet Heavens. The immortal vessel stopped and hovered near the protective formation.

Several figures stood with their hands behind their back on the immortal vessel, gazing down at the Sword Sect of Violet Heavens from above.

Their leader was a scholarly, middle-aged man. He gave off the presence of an Immortal Monarch. Behind him were several Nine-heavenly Xuan Immortal disciples.

“The Sword Sect of Violet Heavens’ only protective formation is only demonstrating ten or twenty percent of its full power. Looks like the Sword Sect of Violet Heavens really doesn’t have the spare resources to support this formation. They can only let the formation slowly absorb the thin spiritual Qi by itself from the surroundings to replenish its energy. The formation’s power has obviously weakened severely as a result.” The Immortal Monarch from the Sword Sect of Startling Thunder, Lang Qi, laughed gently on the immortal vessel. There was a smear of arrogance in his eyes, completely looking down on the Sword Sect of Violet Heavens.

“Great elder, the Sword Sect of Violet Heavens probably won’t be able to hand over a Seven-coloured Sword Lotus this time, right?” a Nine-heavenly Xuan Immortal asked carefully from behind Lang Qi. He was very polite.

Lang Qi sneered. “They can’t hand it over? Then according to the agreement, the Sword Sect of Violet Heavens doesn’t belong here anymore.”

Lang Qi paused and glanced past the Nine-heavenly Xuan Immortal disciples behind him. “You are all the most outstanding prodigies of the sect. Do you all understand the sect’s objective for sending you here this time?”

“Please don’t worry, great elder. We know what to do. Our primary objective for visiting the Sword Sect of Violet Heavens this time is to openly kill a few core disciples of the Sword Sect of Violet Heavens in the ring,” a Nine-heavenly Xuan Immortal from the Sword Sect of Startling Thunder cupped his fist and said.

“You don’t have to kill their core disciples. Just heavily injuring them or crippling them is enough. After all, a Grand Exalt spoke up for the Sword Sect of Violet Heavens in the past. Even though the Grand Exalt can only ensure the continued existence of the Sword Sect of Violet Heavens and isn’t particularly concerned with the fate of their disciples, it’s best if we don’t go too far with this.”

“Of course, if you really can’t hold back and end up killing one or two, it’s not a problem either.”

“But you must remember that we will only be targeting the Sword Sect of Violet Heavens and not the auxiliaries. Most of them are independent cultivators without any background. These independent cultivators have only come for the Sword Sect of Violet Heavens’ sacred grounds and letters of Immortal Emperors, but a handful of the auxiliaries truly come from impressive backgrounds. Even our Sword Sect of Startling Thunder can’t afford to offend the organisations behind them.”

“However, none of these auxiliaries or organisations behind them will become involved in the grievances of the Sword Sect of Violet Heavens, so all we have to do is not provoke them,” Lang Qi said steadily.

By now, the formation of the Sword Sect of Violet Heavens had already opened up. The immortal vessel from the Sword Sect of Startling Thunder flew in without hesitation.

Inside the Sword Sect of Violet Heavens, all of the core disciples had already gathered on the main peak. They were all stern.

Even a good number of auxiliaries were there, except most of them were ready for a show.

Suddenly, a tremendous pressure descended from above. It was enough to make the expressions of all the Nine-heavenly Xuan Immortals change. The immortal vessel from the Sword Sect of Startling Thunder stopped above the main peak slowly and their great elder, Lang Qi, stood there with his arms crossed and his eyes cold.

“If you look at the time, it’s exactly a century. Your Sword Sect of Startling Thunder sure is timely,” the sect master of the Sword Sect of Violet Heavens, Chen Shuzhi, hovered above the main peak at the same level as the immortal vessel and said coldly.

“A century is up. Chen Shuzhi, hand over the Seven-coloured Sword Lotus,” Lang Qi stood on the stern and said indifferently.

“The ancestor of the Immortal Sect of Azure Foxes is amidst a breakthrough, so they’ve prevented us from using the Energy-gathering Divine Mountain. As a result, we can’t produce a Seven-coloured Sword Lotus this time,” Chen Shuzhi said without any particular emotion.

When he heard that, Lang Qi’s face gradually sank. He said coldly, “You can’t produce a Seven-coloured Sword Lotus? If that’s the case, then according to our original agreement, the Sword Sect of Violet Heavens must move immediately.”

When they heard that, all the core disciples on the main peak became furious.

“Your Sword Sect of Startling Thunder has gone too far. Think about all the Seven-coloured Sword Lotuses we’ve offered to you over the years. With their value, they’re more than enough to make up for the grievances back then. Does your Sword Sect of Startling Thunder really plan on driving us to destruction?” Nong Fugui stood up. His elderly face had darkened.

Lang Qi sneered. “Both parties reached the original agreement back then. Naturally, you have to follow through with it. Don’t tell me the Sword Sect of Violet Heavens plans on going back on their word?”

Chen Shuzhi sighed gently and said, “These are the ancestral grounds of our sect. We can’t give up on this place. Can your Sword Sect of Startling Thunder provide us with some more time? We’ll owe you the Seven-coloured Sword Lotus for now, and we’ll definitely pay it back by twofold in the future.”

“Pay it back by twofold?” Lang Qi smiled slightly. “If it’s twofold compensation, I think the ancestor of our Sword Sect of Startling Thunder might agree. Of course, there’s also a chance that he won’t.”

“How about this? I’ve brought six disciples of the Sword Sect of Startling Thunder with me. We’ll each send out six disciples for sparring in the ring. If your Sword Sect of Violet Heavens can defeat us or achieve a tie, then I’ll agree to your request and put in a good word in front of the ancestor. I’m sure the ancestor will still respect my request.”

“In other words, we only need to win three of the six battles?” Chen Shuzhi hesitated. He glanced past the twenty-or-so core disciples beneath him before nodding slowly. “Alright, we accept. We’ll have our disciples fight a few rounds.”

When they heard that, all the core disciples of the Sword Sect of Violet Heavens began rubbing their palms, eager to have a go. They had been oppressed for far too long. Many of them had already been filled with repressed anger. Now that they had a justified opportunity to fight with the Sword Sect of Startling Thunder, all of them became eager to fight.

“I want to be the first one up. Disciples of the Sword Sect of Startling Thunder? I found them to be an eyesore a long time ago.”

“We’ll definitely make the Sword Sect of Startling Thunder pay this time. We’ll let them know that the Sword Sect of Violet Heavens isn’t such an easy target to abuse.”

......

…

Jian Chen only shook his head in the crowd. With his insight, he could tell with a single glance that the difference between the two sides was anything but ordinary. The six disciples of the Sword Sect of Startling Thunder were all peak Nine-heavenly Xuan Immortals, brimming with energy and hefty presences.

Meanwhile, the Sword Sect of Violet Heavens had around twenty Nine-heavenly Xuan Immortals, but only three of them were late Nine-heavenly Xuan Immortals. These three people were also nowhere close to their peak condition due to the lack of spiritual Qi and cultivation resources.

That alone put the three disciples of the Sword Sect of Violet Heavens at a disadvantage.