The old Daoist with the ox nose walked through the sky at tremendous speed, but his target was not the Ninth Star River—it was a world at the edge of the Nine Souls Star River.
His goal was clear as he headed straight for a mountain peak in that world.
He arrived from the void, and before he could land on the mountain peak, the space at the summit trembled.
Soon, a massive figure revealed its true form.
It was a fox demon a thousand meters in length—the Thousand-Transformation Fox.
"Greetings, my lord."
The Thousand-Transformation Fox, who had been coiled at the mountain's summit, hurriedly rose and bowed upon seeing the old Daoist.
"How long have you been back?" the old Daoist asked.
"Some time now. Per your orders, this subordinate has been waiting here for you," the Thousand-Transformation Fox said.
"How did that matter go?"
"Did that boy succeed?" the old Daoist asked.
"My lord, everything went smoothly," the Thousand-Transformation Fox replied.
"Are you certain?"
"I hope he will be a help to my disciple, not an obstacle."
"If your observation is mistaken, do not blame me for punishing you." The old Daoist's gaze turned icy.
"Rest assured, my lord. This subordinate only returned after observing carefully."
"Although that creature is indeed formidable, the fusion went well, and no abnormalities were detected," the Thousand-Transformation Fox said.
"Good." As the old Daoist spoke, he landed on the Thousand-Transformation Fox's back. "Let's go—to the Ninth Star River."
After an unknown period of time, the Sect Master of the Sleeping Dragon Martial Sect finally opened her eyes.
Her injuries were too severe—even though she had clearly recovered a great deal, she was still extraordinarily weak after regaining consciousness.
However, the first thing she did upon waking was nervously survey her surroundings.
When she saw that the woman in white was unharmed, standing not far away gazing at the distant starry sky, and that the great defensive formation was not only still intact but had returned to normal, she finally felt at ease.
"You're awake."
The woman in white turned to look at the Sect Master of the Sleeping Dragon Martial Sect.
"Senior, was it you who drove back the Ancient Clan?"
The Sect Master of the Sleeping Dragon Martial Sect immediately scrambled to her feet.
"I don't have that kind of power." The woman in white shook her head with a bitter smile.
She then told the Sect Master of the Sleeping Dragon Martial Sect what had happened after she fell unconscious.
But the woman in white had also fallen unconscious after being engulfed by the formation, so all she knew was that the Puppeteer had intended to use them to power the formation.
As for why things had turned out this way, she didn't know either.
"The scent of blood here is so thick—it seems like many have died."
"Could it be that someone else powerful helped us?"
"Could it be... the ones deep within our Sleeping Dragon Martial Sect?" the Sect Master asked.
Although not a single corpse could be seen, the thick scent of blood carried the aura of the Ancient Clan.
This led her to deduce that the Ancient Clan must have suffered heavy losses, and that they seemed truly safe now.
"That's possible."
"But it's also possible it was someone else entirely," the woman in white said.
"Someone else? Then who could it be?" The Sect Master of the Sleeping Dragon Martial Sect truly couldn't think of anyone.
She only knew that deep within the Sleeping Dragon Martial Sect, there existed powerful beings who kept themselves hidden.
Those beings should have been capable of intervening in this matter, though of course... they rarely involved themselves in worldly affairs.
In theory, they indeed had no reason to act.
"It's also possible that the rumors are true," the woman in white said.
"What rumors?" the Sect Master asked.
"The powerful clans of the vast cultivation world have attacked the Ancestral Martial Star River before—it was not the first time."
"The reason the Ancestral Martial Star River was never conquered by them is because the rumors say..."
"...there has always been someone secretly guarding the Ancestral Martial Star River, who once stopped the invasion of the outside clans."
"It's just that no one knows who this person is."