Xin Hai glanced at Shangguan Yun and said calmly,

  “My senior brother has gone to receive the envoy of the Tongtian Tower. He should arrive shortly.”

  No sooner had he spoken than the valley’s formation lit up again.

  All discussion ceased.

  Countless eyes turned toward the pillar of Azure light. Teng Huayuan clenched his fists, killing intent nearly solidifying in his gaze. He had already decided—if that person appeared, he would instantly teleport through the curse’s resonance, seize him alive, and subject him to every torment imaginable.

  The light surged to its peak.

  Thirteen figures stepped out.

  Teng Huayuan’s expression darkened further.

  Not him.

  With a cold snort, he crushed another soul upon the Soul-Locking Banner.

  “Wang Lin… if you are truly so heartless as to ignore your kin and hide like a coward, then I have underestimated you,” he sneered inwardly. “But even if you escape today—whether in the heavens above or the netherworld below—once I reach mid–Nascent Soul and deepen the curse, I will find you and tear you to pieces.”

  The gathered cultivators burst into renewed chatter.

  “This qualification trial is too strange! In the past, the first sect out had the most survivors, and the numbers dwindled after that. But now the second group has more than the first?”

  “Something feels wrong… I have a bad premonition.”

  “Which sect is that?”

  “Joyful Union Sect! I recognize Wang Ying—her alluring fragrance can be sensed ten li away!”

  “Yes, it’s the Joyful Union Sect!”

  Amid the murmurs, the two Nascent Soul ancestors of the Joyful Union Sect—Chen Huan and Chen Yan—wore slightly grim expressions. They exchanged a glance and sighed inwardly before smoothing their expressions.

  Their disciples approached dejectedly. The leading female cultivator, Wang Ying, quickly handed over a jade slip.

  Chen Huan frowned and pressed it to his forehead.

  The instant his divine sense entered, his face changed drastically.

  “Is this true?”

  Wang Ying bowed respectfully. “Ancestor, we witnessed it with our own eyes.”

  The disciples behind her nodded.

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  Chen Yan took the jade slip and examined it carefully. After a long while, she gave a cold laugh and crushed it into powder.

  At that moment, a gaze from the righteous camp swept over.

  Chen Huan and Chen Yan turned simultaneously—meeting Xin Hai’s eyes. He gave a slight nod, his expression complex.

  They understood immediately.

  When the disciples of the Ethereal Sect had exited earlier, Xin Hai had reacted the same way.

  Teng Huayuan frowned deeply, studying the three Nascent Soul cultivators. An uneasy feeling stirred within him. After a moment of fruitless thought, he snorted again—and crushed yet another soul upon the banner.

  It was not only him.

  The other ancestors of both righteous and demonic factions had sensed something amiss. They exchanged looks, each silently speculating:

  What had the disciples of Ethereal Sect and Joyful Union Sect reported… to make three Nascent Soul ancestors react so gravely?

  Even the smaller sects and rogue cultivators felt the strange tension. Whispers rippled through the crowd.

  Then—

  The sky darkened abruptly.

  A ring of light materialized soundlessly in midair, expanding rapidly. When its diameter reached ten zhang, four figures stepped forth.

  The leading figure was round as a ball, smiling warmly. Yet the moment he appeared, every Nascent Soul cultivator on the ground rose into the air and bowed.

  He was Lin Yi—the envoy of Zhao’s Tongtian Tower.

  Lin Yi laughed heartily, his voice shaking the surroundings.

  “No need for such courtesy! I am here only to assist the envoy of the Upper Sect in opening the Nether Passage. As for the qualification disputes—I will not interfere. You may rest assured.”

  Behind him descended three more figures: Pu Nanzi, the white-haired Daoist Xu Mei of the Ethereal Sect, and the gaunt elder of the Heavenly Dao Sect.

  They landed upon an open space outside the valley, the other Nascent Soul cultivators standing respectfully to either side.

  Xin Hai seized a moment to approach Xu Mei and quietly transmit a message.

  Xu Mei nodded calmly.

  For the third time, the formation at the valley entrance lit up.

  Five figures staggered out.

  Dense yin-cold aura swirled around them. Their eyes were blood-red, expressions wooden. After scanning their surroundings, they found a corner and sat cross-legged in silence.

  “Which sect is that?”

  No one recognized them.

  Xu Mei smiled faintly.

  “Envoy, if I am not mistaken, these five are Corpse Yin Sect’s ‘human puppets.’ I’ve heard they possess a secret art that fuses disciple and corpse puppet into a half-human, half-corpse existence.”

  Lin Yi nodded. “Correct. Human puppets indeed.”

  The gaunt elder of Heavenly Dao Sect frowned. “Strange that Fellow Daoist Ye has not appeared today.”

  Lin Yi shook his head. “Corpse Yin Sect failed to leave their token inside the valley. Their qualification has been revoked. Whether they come or not makes no difference.”

  As he spoke, his gaze casually swept toward the northwest crowd, a trace of meaning flickering in his eyes.

  Corpse Yin Sect… When the Nether Passage opens this time, several more should succeed in possession and recover their cultivation…

  He withdrew his gaze and turned toward the direction of Wufeng Valley.

  “Wufeng Valley also failed to leave their token. Qualification revoked. However, since your token was transferred, the receiving sect may hold two tokens.”

  The Nascent Soul ancestor of Wufeng Valley, a dark-faced elder, merely glanced at Teng Huayuan without speaking.

  Teng Huayuan remained silent.

  He had acquired that token under the identity of guest elder of Wufeng Valley—at a price that would make most early Nascent Soul cultivators wince.

  But if it forced that person out—

  It was worth it.

  Then—

  For the fourth time, the formation lit up.

  Teng Huayuan’s heart pounded violently.

  The resonance of the bloodline curse was rapidly approaching.

  Savage light erupted in his eyes as he fixed his gaze upon the formation, spiritual energy surging wildly.

  The instant that person stepped out—

  He would teleport.

  (Four sects emerge. Under-currents surge. Ethereal and Joyful Union secretly transmit news. Wufeng and Corpse Yin lose qualification. Teng Huayuan waits with banner in hand, killing intent soaring to the heavens.)

  (And Yun Che… remains inside the valley.)