Chapter 64: Everyone Stunned

Following Li Xun's cry for help, over twenty mysterious powerhouses descended from the sky. They were dressed in white robes and wore golden masks. The leader exuded an overpowering aura, their robes fluttering aggressively despite the absence of wind.

Lying on the ground and feigning death, Wan Yi cast a sidelong glance and saw that every single one of these figures possessed profound cultivation bases, any one of them casually radiating the strength of the late Emperor Realm.

One had to know that once a cultivator entered the Emperor Realm, each minor realm between them was like a vast dividing ridge.

In particular, the gap between the mid Emperor Realm and the late Emperor Realm was like the difference between the faint glow of a firefly and the brilliance of the full moon.

A powerhouse at the late Emperor Realm could effortlessly obliterate a mid Emperor Realm cultivator with just a single thought.

Therefore, although they were all part of the Emperor Realm, early and mid-stage Emperor Realm cultivators were mere ants in the eyes of a late Emperor Realm powerhouse, no different from one another.

And the figures falling from the sky at this moment were all existences at the late Emperor Realm, instantly making everyone present's hair stand on end.

Their hair bristled and cold sweat poured down in torrents. Those with weaker mental resilience rolled their eyes and passed out directly on the spot.

The high-ranking figures of the various sects, who had been nailed to the ground by the terrifying pressure, now felt a twinge of envy toward those disciples with lower cultivation levels. To be directly suppressed into unconsciousness was at least better than awaiting execution like this, completely devoid of any power to fight back.

The so-called unknown was always the most terrifying. Facing the powerhouses of the Heavenly Emperor Society, the hearts of the various sect leaders were filled with extreme trepidation, utterly unaware of what fate awaited them next.

With so many powerhouses standing before them, wiping out everyone present would be a matter of mere minutes!

Usually accustomed to looking down from above, they had long since lost their sense of superiority, trembling like lambs led to the slaughterhouse with no means of defense, their faces turned ashen gray.

Lying on the ground and feigning death among the crowd, Wan Yi was likewise extremely tense, driving the "Emperor-Slaying Art" to its absolute limit within his body.

With life and death hanging in the balance, he could no longer care about exposing his secrets. If the other party made a move, he would definitely explode into action at the very first moment, using the "Emperor-Slaying Art" to slaughter all the members of the Heavenly Emperor Society! As for what came after, he would deal with it when the time came!

All of this seemed lengthy to describe, but it happened in the blink of an eye. Just as everyone was so tense they felt on the verge of suffocation, the group of powerhouses from the Heavenly Emperor Society did not even spare them a single glance.

After dropping from the sky, the leader looked at Li Xun and uttered two words in an icy, bone-chilling voice: "Useless trash!"

With that, he raised his right arm and made a hand gesture behind him. Upon seeing this, a subordinate hurriedly waved a wide sleeve and swept Li Xun up. Then, the members of the Heavenly Emperor Society soared into the air, transforming into a stream of light and departing from Dan Peak with Li Xun in tow.

Everything came quickly and went just as fast. Once the people of the Heavenly Emperor Society left, the oppressive force weighing down on everyone vanished as well, causing every single person to collapse limply to the ground.

Having narrowly escaped death, they only now realized that their clothes were thoroughly drenched in their own sweat.

They swept shocked gazes across their companions, as if silently asking one another whether everything that had just happened was real!

It took a long time for the crowd to recover their senses. Ji Baichuan stood up from the ground and said, "This matter ends here. No one present is allowed to spread a word about what just transpired!"

Upon hearing this, the masters of the various sects instantly understood his meaning; this matter could no longer be investigated further.

The Heavenly Emperor Society was terrifying to the extreme. An organization this powerful could not be opposed even if all the sects present joined forces.

If they continued to dig deeper and happened to provoke the other party, their orthodox lineages could be completely eradicated at any moment.

As for whether the Heavenly Emperor Society had planted hidden informants within their own sects, it no longer mattered. In front of such a formidable enemy, what did it matter even if you knew who the traitor was? Did you really dare to go toe-to-toe with them?

For these old monsters who had lived through countless ages, playing the ostrich was not shameful, and feigning ignorance or backing down was not disgraceful either—staying alive was the most important thing! Besides, they were not the only ones losing face; since everyone was playing the ostrich together, nobody had any right to mock anyone else!

Under Ji Baichuan's guidance, the sect masters instantly reached a consensus and issued a gag order to all the disciples present today.

Wan Yi, watching everything unfold from within the crowd, felt emotions of extreme complexity: "Ah, this is human nature!

After this ordeal, the Haohan Sect is probably no longer a safe place to stay.

Who knows if there are other sleeper agents of the Heavenly Emperor Society within the sect besides Li Huan? If there are, did the things I've done recently arouse their suspicion?!

If the Heavenly Emperor Society develops an interest in me, I'm a dead man!"

It seems I need to find an excuse to leave the sect as soon as possible. The outside world is vast and wide; I'll stay low key, farm mobs in the wild to quietly build up my strength, and once my cultivation soars, whatever damned Heavenly Emperor Society there is—I'll wipe you out first!"

On the other side, disrupted by the commotion caused by the Heavenly Emperor Society, the guests who had come to offer birthday congratulations lost all appetite to stay for the banquet and successively bid farewell, leaving the Haohan Sect.

After sending off the guests, Lin Qiaosheng forced a smile as he found Zhou Suo, offered a few words of comfort, and then returned to his own main peak.

It was not difficult to see that today's events had dealt him a heavy blow. An enemy's mystery was not terrifying; what was terrifying was when the other party was so powerful that you didn't even have the qualification to look up at them.

Seeing that only his own people remained, Zhou Suo worried that his disciples might harbor lingering psychological knots from today's events that would hinder their future cultivation, so he gently consoled them before giving the order to begin the banquet.

Hearing that the banquet was starting, Zhou Zihao, whose expression had still been somewhat unsightly, instantly perayed up. He responded loudly and hurriedly turned around to scurry off and make arrangements.

Watching the ripples of fat jiggling all over his body as he ran, the others could not help but chuckle, and the gloom that had previously hung over them dissipated quite a bit.

At that moment, Leng Yanbing approached Zhou Suo and asked in a low voice, "Master, why did the people of the Heavenly Emperor Society suddenly show up today? Could there be another traitor in the sect leaking information to them?"

Zhou Suo frowned deeply, looked at his eldest disciple, and wore a profound expression as he said, "They planted a restriction within Li Huan's spiritual consciousness. When Li Huan's soul was searched, he exploded and died, which naturally alerted them.

As for the possibility you mentioned, whether it's true or false no longer matters. From now on, do not bring it up again; the Sect Master has his own arrangements."

Everyone ate the birthday banquet with their own private thoughts. As it neared its end, Wan Yi suddenly spoke up: "Master, I have entered the Foundation Establishment stage for some time now and wish to go down the mountain to gain some practical experience through trials."

Hearing this, Zhou Suo frowned, pondered for a moment, and said, "Very well. It is indeed time for you to go out, broaden your horizons, and temper yourself.

The current world of cultivation is treacherous and fraught with undercurrents; possessing personal strength is the absolute truth, but you must remember to be cautious in all things and not act rashly."

As he spoke, his gaze swept over his other disciples, and he continued, "The rest of you as well. Starting tomorrow, you must not slack off any longer. The Grand Tournament of a Hundred Sects is fast approaching, and you need to elevate your cultivation levels as quickly as possible."

The others hurriedly acknowledged the command upon hearing this.

Zhou Tong cast a lingering, fluid gaze toward Wan Yi, then said to Zhou Suo, "Dad, I also want to go down the mountain for trials. Let me go along with Wan Yi."

To her surprise, just as her voice fell, two resolute voices rang out in her ears simultaneously.

"No!"

"No!"

To be continued...