Chapter 404 — A Sudden Turn of Events

The moment Long Juxue collapsed, the higher-ups of the Purple Sun Sect practically erupted in unison. They had just watched, with their own eyes, as an unprecedented genius of the Purple Sun Sect was cleaved in two by a single strike!

Master Shuiyue, in particular, swayed on her feet, nearly fainting on the spot.

For Long Juxue's sake, she had poured her heart and soul into the task over these years. Nearly every ounce of her energy had been devoted to nurturing Long Juxue, all with the goal of making her shine like no one before and become a genius without precedent.

In Long Juxue, Master Shuiyue had placed her life's work, the ideals and ambitions she had failed to realize in her youth.

She had hoped that Long Juxue would successfully enter the Yuan Realm before the age of twenty-five, becoming the first person in the history of the Sixteen Kingdoms Alliance to achieve such a feat — a name known throughout the world.

And indeed, every step taken, every detail up to this point, had been unfolding exactly as she had envisioned. Her grand design had been entirely foreseeable.

However—

Jiang Chen's blade had shattered Master Shuiyue's fantasy. It had destroyed every last one of her unrealistic dreams. All that remained was the mutilated corpse of Long Juxue, split in half — that blood-soaked scene would be frozen in her memory forever.

And every one of her beautiful dreams had been obliterated in this single moment.

For this dream, she had struggled, she had gone mad, and she had gone mad to the point of inhumanity. Her fourth disciple, He Yan, had been crippled; her third disciple, Hai Tian, had died; her second disciple, Chu Xinghan, was missing — fate unknown; and her eldest disciple, Zeng Shi, had defected from the sect entirely.

All of it — for the sake of Long Juxue.

A flicker of regret suddenly surged through Master Shuiyue's heart.

Meanwhile, Old Freak Zhuiyang caught his breath, wariness flickering in his eyes. He bellowed, "Which expert struck just now? Will you show yourself?"

Jiang Chen, having just slain Long Juxue, kept his mind clear and his guard up, wary that the old freak might lash out in desperation and shamelessly attack him.

Yet Zhuiyang the old freak seemed equally wary of what had just happened. He stood on the arena platform, nostrils flaring, but didn't dare take a single step forward onto it.

Clearly, the fact that a lone pine cone had been enough to repel him was terrifying beyond measure. If a simple pine cone carried that kind of power, then whoever had thrown it could absolutely kill him without the slightest effort!

"Jiang Chen, come over here to me," Grand Ancestor Qianye said, finally stepping forward with authority.

This was absurd. In an arena duel, killing one's opponent was perfectly legitimate. Since when could powerful sect elders interfere in an arena battle? If such a precedent were set, how could order among the four great sects possibly be maintained?

This Zhuiyang the old freak was far too overbearing.

Fortunately, by some inexplicable stroke of fate, when the old freak had approached the arena, he had been struck back by an invisible force and even injured. Grand Ancestor Qianye didn't have time to worry about Zhuiyang's affairs right now — he knew only one thing: the Treasure Tree Sect had found a treasure. And not just any treasure — a treasure for the ages.

This brilliant genius absolutely could not come to harm.

This would be the turning point that propelled the Treasure Tree Sect toward glory.

A genius capable of slaying even someone with an Innate Constitution — did the value of such talent even need to be debated?

Even Old Freak Jiushi felt a pang of jealousy. But ultimately, he was still pleased. The arrogance of the Purple Sun Sect and its monopolistic dominance over the four great sects had finally been broken.

Powerful geniuses were no longer exclusive to the Purple Sun Sect.

"Senior Qianye, congratulations," said Ice Blue Venerable, a slight hint of sourness in his tone, though he still maintained his composure and offered his congratulations.

The Treasure Tree Sect had truly been struck by a pie falling from the sky, landing such a genius in their laps.

Tang Hong also called out, "Boss, come down! Get over here by the Grand Ancestor. Can't have some sore losers launching an attack on you."

In truth, the higher-ups of the Purple Sun Sect did seem poised to do exactly that.

But in the current situation, the other three sects clearly had an unspoken understanding to stand together. If the Purple Sun Sect made any rash moves, it would very likely ignite the fury of all three other sects.

And if that happened, the Purple Sun Sect would be completely at odds with the other three.

When he heard the call, Jiang Chen gave a slight smile and leaped off the arena platform.

Just then, the entire ground of the Heavenly Spirit Zone lurched violently once more.

And this time, the tremor was far stronger, far more intense than the last.

"Oh no — the formation has become completely unstable!" Grand Ancestor Jiushi was the first to realize.

Zhuiyang the old freak, murder still gleaming in his eyes, felt the tremor as well. His expression darkened, his brow furrowed, and he cast a glance toward the sky before fixing Jiang Chen with a cold, venomous stare for several long moments. Gritting his teeth but ultimately unwilling to act, he spat through clenched jaws: "The formation is about to be depleted. Fall back!"

The members of the other three sects likewise didn't dare linger. Everyone knew that once the formation's spiritual energy was exhausted, the Undying Spirit Mountain would seal itself shut entirely.

Once that happened, getting out would be nearly impossible.

The crowd surged downward, flying toward the base of the mountain.

Jiang Chen, however, did not follow the crowd. His figure flickered, and he dashed off toward a different area.

"Boss, why aren't you leaving?" Tang Hong was startled to see Jiang Chen not joining the main group.

"Tang Hong, you all go ahead first. I have something to take care of."

Something had occurred to him, and he couldn't very well ignore it.

Tang Hong stomped his massive foot on the ground. "Boss, if you're not leaving, then do you think I, Tang Hong, am the kind to run and save my own skin?"