"That's right. Fellow Daoist Han's words do carry some logic to them." Jin Cha chuckled as he spoke.
"Since several Fellow Daoists wish to learn the situation at the Land of the Origin Seal first, there is naturally no harm in that. However, the truth is that we Saint Ancestors from the outside only know the general picture. The exact details remain unclear to us even now." The palace-robed woman mulled it over briefly before unexpectedly nodding in agreement.
"Only the general picture? How can that be? You should either know what happened at the Land of the Origin Seal, or, as the rumors say, have never investigated the situation there at all." The bald sturdy man's expression darkened, clearly showing some displeasure.
"Brother Jin must have misunderstood. Ever since things went wrong at the Land of the Origin Seal, we Saint Ancestors from the outside have indeed refrained from taking much action. But the reason for that lies in a message that was sent out from the Land of the Origin Seal before the incident occurred." Saint Ancestor Xie Lian sighed and replied with a bitter tone.
"I was just saying—with so many powerful cultivators of our level stationed at the Land of the Origin Seal, how could no news possibly get out?" Jin Cha's face brightened with a hint of a smile upon hearing this.
"Don't celebrate too early, Brother Jin. That message was a vague scrap of information that Fellow Daoist Yuan Yan managed to transmit using a rare secret technique. It only vaguely stated that an abrupt change had occurred at the Land of the Origin Seal—the Mother of the Mo Insects appeared to have broken through most of the ancient seal's restrictions ahead of schedule. Furthermore, by some unknown means, she was able to manipulate a portion of the seal's power, trapping all those who had gone to suppress her within the Land of the Origin Seal. However, the Mother of the Mo Insects hadn't truly broken free of the seal's control. She was still being suppressed by the restrictions of the Land of the Origin Seal and couldn't easily leave the area. Of course, this was also because the fearsome insect's power had been nearly depleted once more, and it had no choice but to fall back into slumber. The Mo Insects currently appearing throughout the Sacred World are the result of that Mother's aura leaking out unconsciously during her slumber and infecting the surroundings." The palace-robed woman relayed everything she knew, sentence by sentence.
"So what you're saying is that us Fellow Daoists who came from other realms to help are now all trapped alongside your Sacred World's Saint Ancestors inside an ancient Immortal's seal. This ancient seal must be truly terrifying—to think that just a fraction of its power can restrain so many cultivators of our level." Jin Cha drew in a sharp breath, his face filled with shock.
"That appears to be the case. That message was the only one that ever reached us from the Land of the Origin Seal—and the last. No further communication has come through since. It seems the Mother of the Mo Insects employed some manner of isolation technique before falling into slumber, rendering Yuan Yan's secret technique ineffective from that point on." Xie Lian replied without hesitation.
"Fellow Daoist Xie Lian, there are still things you haven't made clear, aren't there? If what you just said is true, you Saint Ancestors from the outside should have taken action long ago. Why wait until now to hold this gathering? Besides, I still don't see why rescuing our captured companions and re-suppressing the Mother of the Mo Insects can't be done simultaneously." Han Li stroked his chin and asked in a flat tone.
"Fellow Daoist Han, do you know who was the first to receive the message from the Land of the Origin Seal?" Xie Lian's expression darkened as she posed the counter-question.
"Who else could it be? One of you Saint Ancestors who remained on the outside, surely." Han Li's eyes flickered as he replied slowly.
"Hmph. It was the person you initially mistook me for." Xie Lian gave a cold snort.
"Bao… it was her." Han Li was genuinely taken aback.
"Indeed. The message from the Land of the Origin Seal was first delivered to my dear elder sister. Presumably, Yuan Yan and the others figured that only Bao—the original founding Saint Ancestor—would have any way to rescue them from the outside." The palace-robed woman's tone turned gloomy.
"So you're saying it was Fellow Daoist Bao who convinced you to wait until now before taking action, and who claimed that suppressing the Mother of the Mo Insects and rescuing the other cultivators couldn't be done at the same time?" Han Li furrowed his brows, and after a long moment, asked thoughtfully.
"It seems Fellow Daoist Han is rather well acquainted with my elder sister. That's right—back then, she was indeed the one who gathered us remaining Saint Ancestors together once, displayed Yuan Yan's transmitted message before us, and confirmed its authenticity beyond doubt. If she hadn't, she wouldn't still be a founding Saint Ancestor of the Sacred World, and we certainly wouldn't have obeyed her instructions so readily. According to her, the final, unclear portion of Yuan Yan's message seemed to imply that the portion of the seal's power the Mother of the Mo Insects controlled—the power that trapped them—was still unstable and would undergo a cycle period. It would be several decades from then—this very year—when that seal power would be at its weakest. But at the same time, this was also when the Land of the Origin Seal's restrictions would be at their strongest in suppressing the Mother of the Mo Insects. So whether it was re-sealing the Mother or rescuing Yuan Yan and the others, efforts now would yield twice the results with half the effort. As for why the two couldn't be done simultaneously, that was Bao's idea. After she received Yuan Yan's message, she had already secretly infiltrated the Land of the Origin Seal through the insect sea to conduct her own investigation before reaching that conclusion. Whether it's true or false, that is something each of you will have to judge for yourselves when the time comes. But at the very least, we Saint Ancestors believe it to be true. After all, all of us have served rotating guard duty at the Land of the Origin Seal before and are quite familiar with that ancient seal. Bao may be enormously powerful, but deceiving us on a matter like this would be nearly impossible. Furthermore, we can't think of any reason Bao would need to tamper with this information. She is, after all, a member of the Sacred World and couldn't simply disregard its safety." Xie Lian, her expression icy, finally laid out everything she knew.
Jin Cha and the long-haired sturdy man beside him exchanged stunned glances, each reading a look of shock in the other's eyes.
Clearly, everything Xie Lian had just revealed was far beyond what either of them had expected, and they needed time to think it through.
Han Li, after a brief pause, let out a sigh and said:
"If Fellow Daoist Bao said so, it's likely true. However, if Bao was willing to risk venturing into the Land of the Origin Seal for a look, I find it hard to believe that Xie Lian and the rest of you didn't at least consider making your own reconnaissance."
"If we could personally investigate the situation at the Land of the Origin Seal—even if only from the outer perimeter without entering—we Saint Ancestors from the outside would naturally not hesitate to take the risk. But what you don't know is that Bao's initial probe already alerted the Mother of the Mo Insects. Although that fearsome insect was in slumber, the sea of insects surrounding the Land of the Origin Seal surged to more than ten times its original size. And among them appeared several truly terrifying Mo Insects—even we Saint Ancestors have to give them a wide berth upon encountering them, not daring to engage. That is why our attempts to investigate the Land of the Origin Seal have been futile, despite our desire." Xie Lian's expression shifted, a flicker of fear crossing her features as she spoke.
"Something that even Mahayana-stage cultivators don't dare confront head-on? Could those be the high-rank Mo Insects comparable to the Integration stage?" Jin Cha couldn't help but ask directly.
"No. They're a different variety—crimson-bodied, barely a foot long, utterly bizarre Mo Insects. This type has never appeared anywhere else in the Sacred World; they exist solely within the sea of insects surrounding the Land of the Origin Seal. And their numbers are extremely scarce—no more than a thousand or so." Xie Lian quickly shook her head.
"Could these Mo Insects possess Mahayana-level strength? Otherwise, with so few of them, how could they intimidate you all to such a degree?" Jin Cha's eyes bulged as he asked incredulously.
"No. Judging by their aura alone, these spirit insects are only at the Void Refinement level. They possess just two abilities. Yet those two abilities alone were enough to grievously wound two Fellow Daoists who attempted to breach the insect sea—they nearly perished within it, and none of us have dared to try again." Xie Lian's lips twitched twice before she answered with a bitter smile.
"Two abilities, and they could force Saint Ancestors into such a corner? I really must hear the details." Han Li's pupils contracted slightly as he spoke.
"Quite simple: instantaneous movement, and self-detonation!" Xie Lian replied without a moment's hesitation.
"Instantaneous movement, and self-detonation!" The bald sturdy man's expression turned grave, a look of dawning realization crossing his face.
Han Li's expression also grew somewhat odd upon hearing this, but he said slowly:
"These two abilities… they must be fundamentally different from ordinary ones. Otherwise, they couldn't possibly force Mahayana-stage cultivators to retreat."
"Exactly. This crimson Mo Insect's instantaneous movement is something one simply cannot evade. Once it locks onto a target, the next instant it will appear right beside you—no treasure or artifact can keep it at bay. And when this insect self-detonates, no technique or treasure provides any protection whatsoever. One can only withstand the blast with one's physical body alone. But that isn't even the worst part. What's truly eerie is that once caught in the blast of its self-detonation, our very spiritual souls become corrupted and infected. And all our clones, no matter where they are, suffer severe damage as well. Some clones with weaker spiritual constitutions could even be destroyed on the spot." Xie Lian's expression was grim as she explained each point.
"Even our clones' spiritual souls would be corrupted?" The bald sturdy man blurted out, his face full of disbelief.
Han Li felt his heart sink to its lowest point upon hearing this.
"Now you Fellow Daoists understand the terror of these insects. Ever since Bao's initial probe of the Land of the Origin Seal, even she hasn't dared to brave that insect sea again under their threat." Xie Lian suddenly let out a cold laugh.
At this point, anyone could see that Saint Ancestor Xie Lian and Bao were clearly at odds with each other.
"If these newly appeared Mo Insects are that fearsome, then this gathering of yours—do you expect to find a way to deal with them?" Han Li pondered for a moment before asking.
"Hmph. Brother Han is truly a clever man. The reason we've chosen to act on a specific date in the near future is twofold. First, it's to gather reinforcements like Brother Jin and Brother Han—powerful cultivators from other realms—to bolster our chances. Second, it's to wait for Bao to finish crafting two special treasures specifically designed to counter these self-detonating Mo Insects. According to Bao, once these two treasures are ready, they should be able to neutralize the insects' self-detonation." Xie Lian gave a snort and replied.
(End of chapter)