A Diabolical Scheme!

The terrifying blood-red radiance manifested scales so vivid they seemed real, and its heaven-shaking roar was deafening. In an instant, the colossal blood python swallowed everyone whole in a single gulp! At the sight, Duan Xian could not help throwing his head back in wild laughter. Within this spell of his, anything swallowed into the blood python's body would be incinerated and corroded in an instant, leaving not even bones behind. The only reason he had spared Lu Kangnian earlier and cast him into the blood pool instead was to bait Li Guanqi into acting! Sure enough, Li Guanqi had still appeared, albeit in an unexpected manner. The corners of Duan Xian's lips curved upward slightly. He commanded the blood python to rampage wildly as crimson flames abruptly erupted across the beast's surface in an explosive burst. The giant python's eyes glowed an eerie scarlet as it roared, coiling in midair. Within the beast's belly. With Li Guanqi's aid, Lu Kangnian had regained his mobility, and the primal energy within his body had been restored as well. Yet a sinking feeling seized Lu Kangnian the moment he saw Li Guanqi struggling to hold on. Creaks and groans of strain echoed incessantly from the surrounding lightning barrier. Li Guanqi's expression was grim beyond measure. "What is it, Guanqi? Can't you break through this blood python?" Li Guanqi did not speak. His eyes flickered with unease as he cast a glance back at the Great Xia Sword Sect disciples behind him. The skin of these disciples had already been scorched to a dark purple. A swirling crimson radiance pinned them immovably where they stood. As if guided by some unseen conduit, this power bound the disciples' life force directly to the blood python. Li Guanqi rapidly explained his discovery to Lu Kangnian. Upon hearing that the disciples' lives were tied to the blood python, Lu Kangnian's mind suffered a violent jolt! With an exceedingly dark expression, he hung his head and muttered under his breath, "So that's it..." "Duan Xian! You dog bastard, how could you be so vicious?!" Unaware of what had transpired before, Li Guanqi listened as Lu Kangnian took the initiative to explain everything that had happened earlier. When Li Guanqi heard that Duan Xian had forced Lu Kangnian to recite the sect creed, shock rocked his heart as well. So that was it... Their opponent had devised this countermeasure from the very beginning. Duan Xian's first personal appearance had been nothing more than a probe of Li Guanqi's strength. The moment he realized he could not easily suppress Li Guanqi, he had conceived this sinister scheme. Since the Great Xia Sword Sect placed so much weight on the very creed he despised, he would make them carry it out to the bitter end! Especially with Lu Kangnian, the sect master of the Great Xia Sword Sect, right here. As things stood, if Li Guanqi and Lu Kangnian wished to survive, they had to slay the blood python. Yet the moment the blood python was destroyed, every last disciple would perish! When that happened, neither Lu Kangnian nor Li Guanqi could ever claim a clear conscience again. Duan Xian would only revel in madder triumph. To his mind, the sect master of the Great Xia Sword Sect—a sect that had always prided itself on righteousness—would have chosen to slaughter his own disciples merely to save his own skin! Yet if they chose to stand by their principles and adhere to the sect rules and creed, both of them would be swallowed and destroyed by the blood python's power! At that point, the Ancient Spirit-Burning Ring in Li Guanqi's hands would still fall into his possession. As Li Guanqi unraveled the truth, his eyes flickered with intense thought. He had to admit that Duan Xian's tactics were brilliant... At the outset, the plan had seemed crude and clumsy, almost earning Li Guanqi's contempt. The blatant, brazen ploy to lure the tiger from the mountain had been entirely unhidden. Yet now... He realized that he had unwittingly fallen into an intricately prepared trap. Whatever choice they made led straight into a bottomless abyss. Meanwhile, his adversary could achieve his ends without lifting a finger. "What frightening cunning..." "Such a man cannot be allowed to live!" Lu Kangnian's eyes held deep anxiety and torment. He knit his brows in agonizing conflict, at a complete loss for what to do! Even though he knew Li Guanqi was a once-in-a-myriad genius, he refused to trade the lives of dozens of disciples for his survival. Yet if this dragged on, both of them would die right here! At that moment, Duan Xian's voice rang in everyone's ears. "Heheh. What? Don't know how to choose?" "It's very simple. The two of you possess high realms and formidable strength—just kill them and you can walk right out!" "Trading the worthless lives of trash like them for a Tribulation Transcendence realm expert and a Mahayana realm expert is a bargain, isn't it...?" Duan Xian's tone dripped with sinister malice. Those last two sentences were calculated to crush their hearts and convictions! In his view, if Lu Kangnian and Li Guanqi truly made that choice, how would they be any different from him? How would they differ from who he had been back then? They would be just as guilty of regarding human life as worthless grass! Every disciple of the Great Xia Sword Sect heard Duan Xian's words clearly, and a heavy silence fell over them. Though their consciousness was fading, they understood their predicament all too well. The cracking and fracturing of the barrier around them tugged at their heartstrings with every tremor. They all knew that even their First Elder, a cultivator of the Tribulation Transcendence realm, was hard-pressed against such a terrifying foe. And now, they had become the bargaining chips used to hold both the sect master and the First Elder hostage. Suddenly! One disciple slowly closed his eyes. In an instant, his vitality began draining away even faster. He let go of his mind, allowing that power to corrode him freely. "Eldest Senior Brother... maybe this way, he won't be able to threaten you anymore." Suddenly! An incomparably vast surge of power enveloped him! Grabbing him by the collar, Li Guanqi roared in fury, "Fool, what are you doing?!" "Since when have disciples of Tianlei Peak been this stupid?!" The youth stared in disbelief at Li Guanqi before him. His lips trembled, but no words came out. Furious resolve blazed in Li Guanqi's eyes as he shouted, "Even if death looms today, you must fight to live!" "Disciples of Tianlei Peak stand upright and unyielding! Even trapped in mortal peril, you struggle to the last breath!" Carried by a spiritual shockwave, those two sentences jolted many disciples back to lucidity. Seeing this, Lu Kangnian breathed a sigh of relief. Li Guanqi's mind raced, searching for a way out. Currently, two major problems lay before him. On one hand was the relentless suppression from the Blood-Burning Flame and the blood fiend power. On the other hand was the blood fiend power that had seeped deep into the marrow of the Great Xia Sword Sect disciples. Only by severing their connection to the blood python could he fight without restraint! Thoughts churned rapidly in Li Guanqi's mind. He considered relying on Pengluo's power to relocate everyone, but Pengluo was currently in deep slumber preparing for a breakthrough and could not be awakened. Lu Kangnian remained silent, knowing Li Guanqi needed quiet to think. Suddenly! A flash of inspiration struck Li Guanqi. Turning to Lu Kangnian, he said with solemn urgency, "Sect Master, in a moment, I need you to buy me time!" Lu Kangnian replied with grave solemnity, "Understood!" With those words spoken, Li Guanqi took a deep breath, raised his hand, and slashed three times in rapid succession! These three sword strikes were not meant to attack, but to cleave the space inside the blood python into a separate, independent domain space. However, under external suppression, such power could not hold for long. Once the domain shattered... Lu Kangnian would have to face that terrifying corrosive power all by himself! Lu Kangnian's expression hardened. Sitting cross-legged on the spot, he unleashed a violent surge of primal energy, erecting layer upon layer of earthy-yellow barriers. "Don't worry. I can hold out!"