Thus, it continued.

Continued terror, continued agony.

Zheng Fei never cared about such things; he only cared about “fun” and “joy.”

But the old man had sent Yanzi to help, so he had no choice but to let Yanzi assist.

Because one couldn’t find joy in death.

He strode around the open space, casually grabbing corpse after corpse, tossing them into the cauldron with ease.

He was casual, natural, as if he were cooking, adding a few chunks of pork to the pot.

Simply throwing corpses was too dull.

So he began tossing them to the left, to the right, spinning them, high-arching them… varying the methods, though they all invariably ended up in the cauldron.

That cauldron… never seemed to fill.

Blood-colored flames blazed, filling the air with a suffocating odor. Perhaps burnt, rancid, or some other acrid scent, wickedly combined.

But upon closer sniff, the scent was nonexistent. It seemed to exist only in the imagination, in fear.

The cultivators of the Feng and Chi lineages gazed at the great cauldron with fear and supplication, hoping that the damned “Blood of Balance” would be concocted immediately, pulling them from this abyss of despair.

Even if it meant boiling their fellow disciples, blood relatives, friends… just let it be quick!

Let this nightmare end soon!

Li Shou remained silent, as did Fang Heling.

Such a night, suddenly too quiet.

Yanzi disliked this silence.

So she abruptly turned her head, looking at the cultivators outside the Feng and Chi lineages of Qingyun Pavilion.

“You are safe, you are blessed! But blessings are not something that falls from the sky; they require effort, they require maintenance.”

She said, “Now I give you a task: watch over the Feng and Chi lineage cultivators, do not let them escape. For every one of them that escapes, two of you will die. Very fair, isn’t it?”

She clapped her hands crisply: “It is decided then!”

The cultivators of other surnames present numbered about four times that of the Feng and Chi lineages. Originally scattered around, they had discarded their weapons, dispersed their Taoist arts, daring neither to resist nor to flee. They simply awaited the moment when these fiends would achieve their aims and allow them to leave.

They harbored pity, sorrow, and also relief. Pity for their fellow disciples who were to suffer this calamity, and relief that they themselves did not have to endure it.

But with Yanzi’s words, the atmosphere instantly changed.

From temporary “outsiders,” they were dragged back into the fray.

Without discussion, without communication, a silent understanding arose. They naturally spread out, silently encircling the Feng and Chi lineage cultivators in the open space.

Many beasts, driven by their instinct for survival… would devour their own kind.

There was no shortage of brave men among the Qingyun Pavilion cultivators, but the brave ones had already been slaughtered, unable to survive until now.

This female fiend named Yanzi seemed to possess a natural malice, reveling in the pain and ugliness of people in dire straits.

This “evil” was deeper.

Jiang Wang gripped his sword, feeling the intense killing intent rise within him.

These people were unworthy of being called human, completely devoid of human decency, more demonic than demons.

But reason firmly suppressed his impulse.

Even if his strength had reached a new peak, facing these four fiends would only result in his death.

Whether it was Wan’e, Xuerou, or this Yanzi, he had no confidence.

Within his Five Mansions Sea, the azure clouds beneath the Cloud Peak Immortal Palace were gradually gathering…

Fate was always cruel. Or rather, there were always those who created cruel fate.

The corpses of the Feng and Chi lineage cultivators had finally all fallen into the cauldron, silently dissolving. The so-called Blood of Balance still showed no sign of forming.

It meant… the hopes of the living Feng and Chi lineage cultivators were dashed.

They were going to boil the living now.

Yanzi coldly watched them; she had made a declaration in advance, everyone should have reached an agreement.

She emphasized to each individual with her icy gaze – do not defy the agreement.

Fear spread in the hearts of all the Feng and Chi lineage cultivators, but no one stood up to resist.

Resistance would certainly lead to death, but without resistance, perhaps there was a chance of survival.

There were no “fools,” the “clever people” made “clever” choices.

Thus, Zheng Fei reached out.

A female cultivator abruptly raised her arm, seemingly instinctively trying to counterattack, but before she could make a second move, she was grabbed by the arm and thrown directly into the great cauldron.

There were no screams, no wails.

Those thrown into the cauldron died silently.

Only the blood-colored flames beneath the cauldron seemed a little brighter.

Zheng Fei tilted his head: “The diviner said today is an auspicious occasion, the dark clouds hide the moon, the Immortal Palace loses its secrets. This seems to be true! There are really no strange things to stop us.”

“Hehehe,” Li Shou followed with a laugh: “He is the strangest of all, so after he calculated, there were no strange things!”

Zheng Fei laughed loudly, not knowing what he was laughing at.

Whether about Qingyun Pavilion or about that “diviner,” the words seemed not funny at all.

In the past many times of the Sect facing destruction, Qingyun Pavilion was able to survive for various reasons. Those with a mind for such matters discovered that its inheritance was protected by a mysterious power.

And the mysterious “diviner” cast a divination, foretelling that the power related to the Cloud Peak Immortal Palace had dissipated today. The result was accurate, indeed.

The two always had their own joy.

Yanzi gently stroked Liang Jiu’s face, her movements tender, her voice sorrowful: “Qingyun Pavilion is destined to perish today, my poor Jiu bears a sea of blood feud, perhaps he will not be able to love me properly.”

“No.” Liang Jiu swallowed nervously, quickly denying.

“I have never received fair treatment in Qingyun Pavilion, as a disciple of a different surname, I have suffered much discrimination, I hate this place very much!” he said.

“Ai!” Yanzi suddenly thought of something, cheerfully saying: “Who usually discriminated against you, you can find them now, and sister will help you vent your anger, okay? We’ll boil him first!”

“This, I…” Liang Jiu was stunned.

“Silly child.” Yanzi rubbed his head, then laughed again.

Li Shou glanced at Zheng Fei, and then at Yanzi and Liang Jiu, seemingly wondering which side was more exciting.

And Zheng Fei strode forward, grabbing the next person, still very easily.

Grabbing people, throwing them into the cauldron.

The cauldron fire blazed, but there was no scent of meat.
The secrets of the Immortal Palace are lost… Qingyun Pavilion is destined to perish today…

Combining these statements, Jiang Wang couldn’t help but wonder if his taking away the lost architecture had caused the mystical power that sustained Qingyun Pavilion to fail. Otherwise, everything wouldn’t be such a coincidence. What was that power?

Did that “diviner” predict that he would take away Qingyun Pavilion today?

The subtle clues and the unpredictable destiny were completely foreign territories to him, beyond his perception and untouchable.

He could only watch silently, suffer silently, and wait.

Qingyun Pavilion’s return to the Immortal Palace brought him an immortal art.

The people of the Immortal Palace might pride themselves on the fact that immortal arts transcend the era and surpass all other techniques, and they indeed proclaim it as such.

For example, this immortal art begins by saying, “Overwhelming all ages, a secret transmission of the Immortal Palace.”

But in Jiang Wang’s view, the immortal art system is still within the grand framework of the Daoist art system. Of course, since the Nine Immortal Palaces once relied on it to dominate an era, the power of immortal arts is generally stronger than most Daoist arts.

Unlike most Daoist arts, which are activated with seals and draw upon spiritual energy, the execution of immortal arts requires an important prerequisite: a “medium.”

“Medium” implies something in between two things. The “art medium” is the bridge between the art and the person.

At this moment, the azure cloud energy swirling beneath the Cloud Peak Immortal Palace is the “art medium” for the immortal art that Jiang Wang has learned, brought to him by the returned Qingyun Pavilion.

Or rather, the original significance of the Qingyun Pavilion building was to provide the “art medium” for this immortal art.

Just as the Spirit Void Palace absorbs spiritual energy from an unknown location, the place connected by Qingyun Pavilion is also unknown to Jiang Wang at present, and even impossible to perceive.

He could only wait, wait for the “art medium” to take shape, wait for the “art medium” to be sufficient to support the immortal art.

That might create an opportunity, or it might not.

Everything is unknown.

He saw the many cultivators of Qingyun Pavilion divided into two groups, one group lining up like livestock waiting to be slaughtered, while the other “supervised” their own brethren, overseeing their deaths as livestock.

In the past, they might have loved each other, but in this desperate situation, only mutual killing and harm were seen.

Ugly, sinister, and miserable.

He saw Feng Ming, his hands and feet restrained, trembling on the ground.

This wealthy young master, who used to be so eloquent, lost his father and ruined his sect overnight. From having everything, he now has nothing. He himself has become a lamb to the slaughter.

Jiang Wang didn’t want to think about it.

But that voice still seemed to ring in his ears:

“Song Hai, take me with you!”

Beneath the Cloud Peak Immortal Palace, more and more azure cloud energy gathered.

Jiang Wang remembered living here for more than half a month. Although it was for ulterior motives, most of the people here accepted him without knowing his true purpose.

Qingyun Pavilion may never have been completely open to him, but it did briefly accommodate him.

Here, some people confronted him sharply, some had pleasant conversations with him. Some flattered him, some tripped him up, some bribed him, some discussed swordsmanship with him, and some even wanted to adopt him as a son…

The cultivators of Qingyun Pavilion, like most people in this world, had few who were rotten to the core, and few who were purely good.

They had good and bad sides, moments of kindness, and moments when they were dominated by evil thoughts. They also fought for power and profit, and they also truly loved each other.

They… shouldn’t all die.

Qingyun Pavilion had not done anything wrong enough to deserve annihilation.

If good and evil are not rewarded, then heaven and earth must be biased.

Jiang Wang, cloaked in invisibility, remained motionless in the shadows, feeling the formation of the “art medium.”

He could remain silent, he could continue to remain silent.

These demon-men haven’t discovered him now, and it will be difficult for them to discover him later.

As long as he remains silent.

He could wait for these demon-men to leave, and then leave safely.

He also had many reasons why he needed to be “safe.”

He still had great revenge to exact, still had brothers and friends waiting for him, and still had the lovely Jiang An’an to take care of…

He could find a thousand reasons.

But no.