All the higher-ups of the Emotionless Cult knew that Wu Lei was habitually solemn, harbored no emotional fluctuations, and had traversed far along the Dao of Emotionlessness. But right now, it truly was difficult for him to keep his mind as calm as still water.
Back then, Daoist Buyu's actions had practically severed the cult's fortune, grievously depleting the Emotionless Cult's vitality.
Once the Emotionless Cult regained its strength, many people harbored private desires for revenge against Daoist Buyu—all of them cultivators whose states of mind he had utterly wrecked.
By that time, however, Daoist Buyu had already grown from the Soul Formation stage to the Body Integration stage, and had even become the master of a sect. Killing him was no longer a simple matter.
Moreover, the scoundrel had far too many enemies. Whenever members of the Emotionless Cult sought to kill him, a righteous Body Integration cultivator would very likely pop out of nowhere, also seeking vengeance against Daoist Buyu.
The trouble was, with the Emotionless Cult present, the righteous Body Integration expert would inevitably deal with the Emotionless Cult first before going after Daoist Buyu.
To make matters worse, the modified version of "slaying one's wife to prove the Dao" proposed by Daoist Buyu had earned the Cult Master's approval—one could even describe it as being met with lavish praise. Even after Daoist Buyu defected, the Emotionless Cult continued using his modified version internally.
This led to almost no one in the Emotionless Cult wanting to attain emotionlessness through marriage anymore. The moment they thought about dating and marrying with the ultimate goal of sending their wife away to someone else—who on earth could go through with romance under those conditions?!
In cultivation, the higher one's realm, the stricter the requirements on one's state of mind. Following the Daoist Buyu incident, the cultivation of many senior members had ground to a halt, taking hundreds of years of recuperation to finally restore their original mental states.
Now, Wu Lei looked very much on the verge of losing his composure entirely.
"You're... Old Sect Master Buyu?" City Lord Duan hadn't expected Daoist Buyu to step in and save the day. Was he just happening to be in Ye City?
Daoist Buyu scratched his chin. "Well, truthfully, I've been staying right here in your Ye City Prison lately. But I was worried my old friends might come gawk and disrupt order in our Ye City Prison, so, being the considerate man I am, I used a fake name and changed my appearance.
"And seeing our Ye City facing a crisis, I came out to atone for my crimes through meritorious service and join the battle!"
Daoist Buyu wore an expression that plainly said, *After I rack up this merit, you'd better commute my sentence.*
Hearing Daoist Buyu's words, Wu Lei's heart stirred, and he secretly crushed a jade slip.
Then Daoist Buyu began reminiscing with Wu Lei: "I see no future for you in the Emotionless Cult. Why not come to our Dao Seeking Sect's Prison Peak? It's full of mighty cultivators who can guide a mere Body Integration cultivator like you more than adequately.
"Let me tell you, I usually don't tell anyone our Dao Seeking Sect has such a wonderful place. I'm only telling you because we're old acquaintances."
"Shut up!" Wu Lei snapped.
Clapping his palms together, lightning surged brilliantly around him, instantly summoning a thundercloud. Amidst rumbling thunder, countless bolts of lightning darted out from the clouds like spirit serpents, lunging toward Daoist Buyu.
They were both at the late Body Integration stage, and having lingered in late Body Integration for two thousand years, he was a bona fide veteran late Body Integration cultivator. How could he possibly fail to kill him!
A longsword unsheathed, sword qi crisscrossing like a cascading river of stars, resembling a flowing ink-wash painting. The waterfall of sword qi surged backward into the sky, colliding with the thundercloud.
As though made of paper, the thundercloud was pierced clean through by the waterfall of sword qi.
Daoist Buyu flicked his wrist and lightly lifted the sword tip. As if resonating with heaven and earth, he stirred the free-floating sword intent in the surroundings, condensing it onto the blade—impossibly fine, impossibly swift.
The sword intent erupted, illuminating Wu Lei's terrified face.
Wu Lei hastily condensed lightning into armor to protect his vitals, but the defense was still no match for the concentrated sword intent, which punched straight through his shoulder blade.
Wu Lei retreated repeatedly, putting distance between himself and Daoist Buyu.
"We're both Body Integration cultivators, so how is it you can't even withstand a single move of mine? Why is the gap between us even bigger than I imagined?"
"Buyu, you little thief!"
Wu Lei could no longer suppress his fury. In terms of seniority, he was a cultivator of the same generation as the child Grandmaster; Daoist Buyu was merely a junior!
Daoist Buyu shook his head lightly, looking concerned for Wu Lei's future. "Look at you. Your state of mind is terrible. How can you get by in the Emotionless Cult like this?"
Wu Lei formed hand seals and chanted a lightning incantation. In an instant, clouds churned in the sky with rolling thunder, and several thick bolts of lightning answered his summon, crashing down with tremendous force.
The interweaving radiance of sword light and lightning illuminated the entire city, accompanied by a deafening roar.
*Pfft—*
As the light cleared, Wu Lei coughed up a mouthful of blood. His right arm was severed, sword light dancing at the stump to prevent the wound from healing!
Wu Lei never imagined that despite both being in late Body Integration, the gap between himself and Daoist Buyu would be so vast. In just a few exchanges, he was already wounded to this extent!
Daoist Buyu narrowed his eyes. He had been on guard against Wu Lei fleeing, yet the man seemed intent on stalling him, persistently tangling with him.
What was he waiting for?
Suddenly, a terrifying pressure engulfed Daoist Buyu. Suspended in midair, he could barely withstand the crushing weight and nearly plummeted to the ground!
The residual waves of pressure raged across Ye City. The common folk in the city felt as if plunged into an icy cavern, shivering with chattering teeth.
"Buyu, you wretched boy, who would have thought you were here.
"I hereby establish a rule: [No information may leave Ye City].
"I hereby establish a rule: [No person may leave Ye City]."
With the two rules established, a curtain darker than the night sky emerged above the man's head, swiftly spreading in all directions until it enveloped the entirety of Ye City.
"Now, it is time to settle our score."
A cold, expressionless middle-aged man looked toward Daoist Buyu, his voice like thunder. Merely speaking caused space to tremble.
Daoist Buyu looked up at the middle-aged man and chuckled. "I was wondering why a piece of trash like Wu Lei wasn't running. Turns out he was stalling until Great Cult Master Su arrived."
Vice Cult Master of the Emotionless Cult, Su Moran, middle Tribulation Transcendence stage!
With Su Moran backing him, Wu Lei instantly grew emboldened. "Buyu, you little thief, today is the day you die!"
Earlier, Daoist Buyu had mentioned that none of the righteous cultivators knew he was here, and Ye City was now sealed off by Vice Cult Master Su, allowing entry but no exit.
The immense gap in cultivation was obvious, and with no reinforcements, this was a once-in-a-millennium opportunity to slay Daoist Buyu!
Su Moran was also a victim of that past incident—in fact, the highest-cultivated victim among them. His hatred for Daoist Buyu went to the bone.
However, he was habitually cautious; without absolute certainty of a one-hit kill, he would not act.
If Daoist Buyu truly managed to escape, killing him in the future would be even harder!
"Great Cult Master Su, you old bastard, why are you just like that fool Wu Lei? Over a thousand years have passed, and you're still stuck at middle Tribulation Transcendence?
"Could it be your cultivation has hit its ceiling? Or perhaps your state of mind developed a flaw?"
Su Moran remained unmoved. Taking out two axes, he said in a deep voice, "Buyu, you little brat, stalling for time is useless. You will never find a loophole in my rules to escape Ye City.
"I have waited over a thousand years for this chance today."
Without killing Daoist Buyu, his state of mind would forever remain flawed and consumed by hatred. If he wanted his cultivation to advance further into late Tribulation Transcendence, he had to kill Daoist Buyu—no other method would work!
Daoist Buyu wanted to say more to buy time and search for a chance at survival. After all, though he possessed half-step Tribulation Transcendence combat strength, half-step was still only half-step; he could not yet contend with a true Tribulation Transcendence expert, let alone a seasoned middle Tribulation Transcendence cultivator.
Su Moran had been investigating Daoist Buyu all along and knew that if he let him talk any further, the man might actually find a flaw.
The way to deal with Daoist Buyu was to never let him speak.
*Clang!*
Su Moran's muscles tensed, and two giant axes came crashing down. The axe blades were broad and incomparably sharp. Originally two-handed battleaxes, Su Moran wielded one in each hand.
The giant axes slammed heavily toward Daoist Buyu. He raised his sword horizontally to block, but this level of power was simply not something Daoist Buyu could withstand.
Daoist Buyu spewed blood and was smashed directly into the rockery of the City Lord's Estate, embedded into the stone in the shape of a spread-eagled "大".
"If you attempt to flee, all three million residents of Ye City will be buried with you for your actions," Su Moran said coldly, knowing this was Daoist Buyu's weakness.
"Flee? Why should I flee?"
Daoist Buyu slowly raised his head, half his face dyed in blood, looking thoroughly ghastly. A bizarre smile pulled at the corner of his lips.
"Do you know why I've never advanced to the Tribulation Transcendence stage?"
Exerting force with both arms, he shattered the rockery and stepped toward Su Moran stride by stride, his aura climbing higher and higher like joints of bamboo.
"It's because I was afraid that once I advanced to Tribulation Transcendence, an old bastard like you wouldn't dare come looking for me!"
Chapter 897