A Ruthless Man

Once Qin Sang sat down, Yu Lian leaned forward slightly and said, "Just now Youniang mentioned that Fellow Daoist Qin had something to inquire about. I wonder how I, Yu Lian, might be of help to you? Please feel free to speak your mind, Fellow Daoist Qin." "There is no hurry for that," Qin Sang smiled. "Just now, I heard Senior Yu mention major events in the cultivation world, and an itch rose in my heart. Not wanting to spoil everyone's mood, I think it would be better to hear Senior Yu finish revealing these secrets first." Hearing this, the others nodded repeatedly, and several smiled kindly at Qin Sang. Li Youniang brought over several cups of warmed wine, handed one to Qin Sang, and sat down beside them. Yu Lian took a sip of wine and praised, "Youniang's craft is only getting better! Since Fellow Daoist Qin wishes to hear it as well, this old man will explain it thoroughly to everyone... Now then, speaking of the biggest event in the cultivation world recently, it has to be the sudden invasion of the righteous and renowned Yuanzhao Sect's gates by the demonic Kuiyin Sect a few months ago. At that time, several Golden Core Masters engaged in battle after battle. This clash truly darkened the sun and moon and altered the mountains and rivers, culminating in the Kuiyin Sect being utterly wiped out." Qin Sang had been staring at the amber wine in his cup, but upon hearing this, he looked up in shock. The rest of the crowd also erupted into clamor. "Old fellow, are you pulling our leg? How did the Kuiyin Sect get themselves wiped out when they were the ones invading the Yuanzhao Sect? And what happened to the Yuanzhao Sect? Also, what is the origin of this Kuiyin Sect?" Yu Lian chuckled. "Don't rush, don't rush! Listen to me explain it slowly. To understand the cause of this battle, one must speak of the origins of the Kuiyin Sect and the Yuanzhao Sect. Though some of you fellow daoists have likely heard of them, you only know what happened, not why. Take the Yuanzhao Sect, for instance. Although it has fallen into decline today, several centuries ago its reputation was in no way inferior to the Eight Righteous Sects that are most prestigious in the Lesser Cold Domain today! The Kuiyin Sect was also an entity that rivaled the Yuanzhao Sect. "The founding master of the Yuanzhao Sect was the sect's Nascent Soul Patriarch, Patriarch Yuanzhao, while the Kuiyin Sect was founded by an old demonic fiend of the Nascent Soul stage, Patriarch Kuiyin. Both were figures who could summon wind and rain in their day. The two sects were founded almost at the exact same time, and both even adopted the names of their founding patriarchs. Tell me, isn't that a coincidence? What's more of a coincidence is that these two great sects were not far apart from each other. One could say they were evenly matched adversaries, pitted against each other with long-standing grievances. "Back then, Patriarch Yuanzhao and several of his prime disciples died untimely deaths in the Ancient Immortal Battlefield. Had the Wuji Sect not intervened with a warning, Patriarch Kuiyin would have bullied the weak and overturned Yuanzhao Peak long ago. It wasn't until Patriarch Kuiyin later passed away that both sides quieted down. Who could have thought that the Kuiyin Sect never forgot that old grudge? Pouring the entire sect's strength into a surprise raid on the Yuanzhao Sect, they ended up losing everything they wagered." At this point, Yu Lian took another sip of wine, closed his eyes, and leisurely savored it. The listeners, who were engrossed in the tale, instantly united in outrage and scolded Yu Lian. "You old ghost, always keeping people hanging!" "Indeed, so thoroughly ungenerous!" ... Qin Sang was also anxious, itching to pry open Yu Lian's skull and look inside. If the Kuiyin Sect was truly exterminated by the Yuanzhao Sect, wouldn't he have nothing to worry about in the future? That mysterious orchid would belong completely to him! Yu Lian, on the contrary, looked immensely pleased with himself and laughed heartily. "If this old man didn't keep your appetites whetted, wouldn't it be far too dull?" Drawing another round of denunciations, Yu Lian chuckled before continuing, "When news of this spread, my clan was discussing it as well. What nobody could figure out was why the Kuiyin Sect dared to invade the Yuanzhao Sect in the first place. You must realize that the Yuanzhao Sect's grand mountain-protecting array was no simple matter. It was laid down back then by Patriarch Yuanzhao alongside two Nascent Soul friends he had invited—one of whom even hailed from the Yuanshen Sect! It was definitely not something a mere handful of Golden Cores could breach. What is even stranger is that the Yuanzhao Sect's grand mountain-protecting array seemingly was broken by them!" "Broken?" The crowd was astonished. "Even their grand mountain-protecting array was broken, so how was it the Kuiyin Sect that was wiped out instead?" Yu Lian shook his head. "Rumors are flying everywhere right now, and I was not there in person, so I cannot say for sure what is true and what is false. There is only one piece of news that shouldn't be a rumor, because it leaked out from the Wuji Sect. It is said that demonic flames raged into the heavens that night, and the Kuiyin Sect pressed in with terrifying momentum, forcing the Yuanzhao Sect's Supreme Sect Master to self-detonate his Golden Core! Moreover, he detonated the grand mountain-protecting array and the mountain gate's spirit vein along with it. The horrifying power claimed the life of a Kuiyin Sect Golden Core Master on the spot, left two others gravely wounded, and caused countless casualties among their Foundation Establishment cultivators. If the situation hadn't been so dire and utterly beyond redemption, why would that Supreme Sect Master have ever gone so far as to detonate his own Golden Core?" The crowd cried out in shock, "Self-detonated his Golden Core?!" Golden Core Masters were beings far beyond their reach. It was hard to imagine just how terrifying the scene of a Golden Core Master's suicidal self-detonation must have been. Qin Sang was also dazed for a moment. That night, upon seeing the horrifying spectacle of that exploding sun, he had already made a faint guess, but having it confirmed now still shook him to the core. He couldn't help but murmur, "How ruthless..." His Golden Core, the mountain-protecting array, and the Yuanzhao Peak spirit vein—detonating all three together. How decisive that Supreme Sect Master had been! "A ruthless man indeed!" Yu Lian sighed with emotion. "His self-detonation appeared to hurt both sides equally, yet it preserved his sect's heritage and severed the roots of their mortal enemy. No wonder he was able to cultivate to the Core Formation stage and become Supreme Sect Master." A young man snorted coldly. "That was only because he had a Nascent Soul master. Give us the same cultivation resources, and our accomplishments wouldn't be any less than his!" Yu Lian chuckled and nodded, then steered the conversation back. "Presumably, the Kuiyin Sect's three Golden Cores never expected the Yuanzhao Sect's Supreme Sect Master to be so resolute either. With one dead and two heavily injured on the spot, their wits were instantly scared out of them, and they fled in panic. Pursued relentlessly by another Golden Core Master of the Yuanzhao Sect, yet another was slain, while the last fled back into the Kuiyin Sect and shrank into hiding. Later, reinforcements from the Wuji Sect arrived and laid siege to the Kuiyin Sect, only to discover that the sect had already dissolved in chaos—like monkeys scattering when the tree falls. That person is said to have fled into the Ancient Immortal Battlefield. The Kuiyin Sect is now occupied by the Yuanzhao Sect. One could say they went for wool and came home shorn." Qin Sang suddenly spoke up and asked, "Which of the Kuiyin Sect's old Golden Core fiends survived?" Yu Lian frowned. "I am not certain about that either. The news released by the Wuji Sect merely stated that the Kuiyin Sect Master brought about his own destruction through his wicked deeds, so that old fiend is likely dead. The other two were rather obscure, so no one knows which one managed to drag out an ignoble existence. To think of Old Fiend Kuiyin's fearsome name during his life, yet in just how many years, the heritage he left behind was severed? I don't know what that Kuiyin Sect Master was thinking either. It's said he was already at the advanced age of five hundred and on the verge of passing away, yet he suddenly pulled a stunt like this—not only losing his own life, but burying the foundation his patriarch built as well." Qin Sang lowered his head in thought. As long as one of the Kuiyin Sect's Golden Cores was still alive, he might not be safe. At this thought, Qin Sang offered some flattery. "The secrets Uncle Yu shared have truly broadened my horizons. Just now, I heard Senior Yu mention the Eight Righteous Sects. Being ill-informed, this junior knows little about many of those sects. I wonder if Senior Yu could give a brief overview to enlighten me?"