173: Hong Sanqian, how dare you betray me?

The night mist on the island was hazy, making it difficult to distinguish anything in the surroundings.

A small path paved with bluestone wound upward, leading deep into the island.

Ye Chen and his party walked for about fifteen minutes before the view ahead suddenly opened up.

A stone mountain gate, seven or eight meters high, stood before them. Two ancient and weathered characters were carved into the lintel—Hidden Sect.

On either side of the mountain gate stood a guard dressed in gray martial attire.

The guards saw someone approaching from a distance; their originally vigilant gazes instantly turned respectful when they landed on Red Three Thousand.

One of them hurriedly stepped down the stone stairs, cupped his fists, and bowed, his voice carrying an irrepressible joy.

"Elder Hong! You... you've returned in triumph?!"

Red Three Thousand: "..."

His old face twitched, and the corners of his mouth jerked uncontrollably several times.

Triumph?

Returned?

He certainly wanted to "return"!

But right now, he was being escorted back to "raid the nest"!

The guard's words were so awkward that his toes almost dug a three-bedroom apartment into the ground.

Seeing that Red Three Thousand didn't respond and just stood there with a strange expression, the guard couldn't help but feel a bit confused.

He subconsciously looked up, his gaze passing over Red Three Thousand and landing on Ye Chen and Liu Qingluo behind him.

A young man wearing casual clothes with his hands in his pockets.

A young woman with peerless beauty but as cold as frost, her hand constantly resting on her waist.

This combination... no matter how you looked at it, something was wrong.

However.

Before he could speak.

Ye Chen had already cleared up his confusion.

"You're wrong."

"He didn't return in triumph."

The guard was stunned. "Ah?"

Ye Chen pointed at himself. "He brought me here to kill you all."

Guard: "???"

The respect on his face instantly froze, replaced by a sense of absurdity and shock.

Kill... kill us?

Bringing an outsider to kill members of his own Hidden Sect?

And Elder Hong was the one leading him?

What kind of new-fangled joke is this?!

The guard's eyes widened.

"You... what nonsense are you talking?!"

He suddenly turned his head to look at Red Three Thousand.

"Elder Hong!"

"What... what exactly is going on?"

"Who is he? Why does he speak such arrogant words?!"

At this moment, Red Three Thousand wished there was a crack in the ground he could crawl into.

His face flushed red, and after holding it in for a long time, he finally roared angrily.

"Enough nonsense!"

"Do whatever he tells you to do!"

"Go now! Ring the alarm! Summon the entire sect! Everyone who is still breathing, get your asses to the mountain gate square!"

The guard was completely bewildered, his head buzzing.

Elder Hong's reaction... something was wrong!

Very wrong!

Could it be... that what the young man said was actually true?!

A chill shot up his spine to the back of his head, and the guard shuddered violently.

He didn't dare ask another word, let alone delay for a moment. He spun around and ran toward the mountain gate with all his might.

Clang—!!!

Clang—!!!

Clang—!!!

In less than a minute, the urgent sound of the bell rippled out, echoing across the entire island.

The alarm bell rang out!

This was the highest-level alarm, only sounded when the Hidden Sect encountered an enemy attack!

It hadn't rung once in decades, perhaps even a century!

Tonight, it rang.

And it was rung so frantically, so shrilly!

Wherever the sound reached, countless people who were cultivating, sleeping, or on duty were all startled awake from their dreams!

Shock!

Confusion!

Followed by heaven-shaking fury and killing intent!

One powerful aura after another, like sleeping volcanoes, erupted from all parts of the island, soaring into the sky!

Figures flickered, and the sound of breaking through the air rose from all sides!

Countless figures sped toward the mountain gate square!

Ye Chen stood before the mountain gate, listening to the echoing alarm bell, a playful smile appearing on his face.

"The more that come, the better. Saves me from having to hunt them down one by one."

He glanced at Red Three Thousand. "You're quite sensible. I'll have to fix your energy center later."

Red Three Thousand: "..."

Why did it feel like he was being insulted by Ye Chen?

Before long.

The sounds of breaking through the air approached from near and far, as dense as rain!

In just a short moment, the bluestone square in front of the mountain gate was already crowded with figures.

The first to arrive were a dozen or so old men with thick, powerful auras.

They were the Elders of the Hidden Sect!

Behind them followed a dense crowd of Hidden Sect disciples, each holding a weapon, their eyes scanning the few people outside the gate with suspicion and uncertainty.

Ultimately... their gazes landed in unison on Red Three Thousand.

The leader was a purple-robed old man with a sallow face and eyes as sharp as an eagle's. He was the Great Elder of the Inner Sect of the Hidden Sect—Lin Xuanchen!

He stared at Red Three Thousand and shouted a stern question.

"Red Three Thousand!"

"Who are these two?!"

"You brought outsiders to trespass upon the mountain gate and even rang the alarm bell. What exactly are you trying to do?!"

Furious!

He was beyond furious!

Didn't Red Three Thousand run off to kill Ye Chen and seize the Bing Lan?

How could he bring people here?

Could he have betrayed them???

The gazes of all the Hidden Sect disciples instantly fell on Red Three Thousand, waiting for his explanation.

Red Three Thousand felt extremely uncomfortable under these gazes, and cold sweat dripped from his forehead.

Damn!

What could he say?

That he was a guide for the enemy?

That the person behind him was here to wipe out the sect?

Seeing his appearance, Lin Xuanchen's face grew even gloomier. "Are you a mute? Speak!"

At that moment, a calm voice broke the suffocating silence.

Ye Chen stepped out from behind Red Three Thousand, his hands still in his pockets.

"I'll help him answer."

"My name is Ye Chen."

"As for him, he brought me here to kill you all."

"Yes, that's it."

The square instantly fell into a dead silence.

Everyone, including Lin Xuanchen and the other elders, was stunned, their faces filled with absurdity.

Kill... kill us?

Bringing a young man to the Hidden Sect's nest to kill people?

And Elder Hong personally led the way?!

This was simply the most ridiculous joke they had ever heard!

A few seconds later, the dead silence was broken by an uproar!

"Arrogant!"

"A brat who doesn't know the meaning of death!"

"Red Three Thousand! You actually dare to betray the sect?!"

Lin Xuanchen was so angry that his beard and hair stood on end. His old face instantly flushed bright red, and the killing intent in his eyes was like solid ice, fixed firmly on Red Three Thousand.

"Good! Well done, Red Three Thousand!"

"I thought you were the most upright elder, but I never expected you to dare to commit such a rebellious act!"

"Leading a foreign enemy into the sect, what should your punishment be?!"

Red Three Thousand trembled all over from the thunderous roar, his face turning from white to green.

"Great Elder! I... I was also forced into a corner!"

"My energy center was destroyed by him!"

"Only he can help me repair my energy center!"

"Great Elder, fellow disciples, I did it to survive, to be able to cultivate again!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the square fell silent again.

Everyone looked at Red Three Thousand in shock, then at Ye Chen.

Destroyed energy center?

And it can be repaired?

This was simply a fantasy!

Lin Xuanchen was stunned at first, then laughed out of extreme anger.

"Repair an energy center?"

"Red Three Thousand! Have you gone senile, or do you take us all for three-year-old children?!"

"The energy center is the foundation of a martial artist, the source of the sea of Qi!"

"If it's shattered, the foundation is completely destroyed. Throughout the ages, countless divine physicians and masters of alchemy have been helpless! This is an iron law of the martial path!"

"And you're relying on this wet-behind-the-ears brat?"

He suddenly cut off his laughter, a cold light exploding in his eyes as he pointed at Ye Chen.

"If he truly had the heaven-defying means to repair an energy center, why would he need to come to my Hidden Sect to run wild? He would have long been honored as a guest by all the major powers!"

"You are clearly afraid of death and have betrayed the sect, yet you still look for such a clumsy excuse!"

"Red Three Thousand, you've disappointed us too much!"

Red Three Thousand's face was flushed red. He was anxious and ashamed, but he couldn't argue.

The idea of repairing an energy center was indeed incredible. If he hadn't seen Liu Qingluo's example with his own eyes, he wouldn't have believed it himself.

But right now, this was his only life-saving straw and reason for defense, however pale and weak it was.

Ye Chen listened to their conversation and picked his ear somewhat impatiently.

"Hey."

"Are you done chatting about family matters and whether you believe him or not?"

"I don't have that much time to listen to your bickering."

"Let's make it simple."

"Are you all going to attack together?"

"Or... should I kill you one by one?"

"Choose for yourselves!"

The square was deathly silent.

Then, like cold water poured into boiling oil, it exploded!

"Arrogant! Too arrogant!"

"Is this kid crazy? Does he know where this is?"

"One person, running to the Hidden Sect's mountain gate and asking if we'll attack together or if he'll kill us one by one???"

"He simply doesn't know the height of the heavens or the depth of the earth!!!"

...All the Hidden Sect disciples were stunned by Ye Chen's casual yet extremely arrogant words, followed by heaven-shaking fury and humiliation!

How many years had it been?

The Hidden Sect dominated overseas and intimidated all directions. When had they ever been so looked down upon?

What's more... the opponent was just a young man in his early twenties!

Lin Xuanchen's face was now so gloomy it could drip water.

"Tian Sha Sixteen!"

"Go!"

"Tear this fellow who doesn't know his place into pieces!"

The moment the words fell—

"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh..."

The sound of breaking through the air rang out like a sudden downpour!

From the crowd, sixteen black shadows suddenly shot out like ghosts, landing silently in the center of the square and surrounding Ye Chen.

These sixteen people were all dressed in pitch-black martial attire, their faces covered by ferocious metal masks, revealing only pairs of cold eyes.

The auras emanating from them were all—at the Peak of the Yellow Realm!

Furthermore, the auras of the sixteen people were faintly connected as one, like a volcano ready to erupt at any moment!

"It's the Tian Sha Guards!"

"The Sixteen Tian Sha are all out! This is a great killing weapon that can even strangle Xuan Realm experts!"

"The Great Elder is truly enraged! This kid is dead for sure!"

"Let's see how arrogant he can be now!"

...A chorus of irrepressible exclamations rang out from the surroundings, and many Hidden Sect disciples showed excitement in their eyes.

The Tian Sha Guards, one of the Hidden Sect's true trump cards!

Personally selected and trained by the Sect Master, they specialized in slaughter!

The sixteen of them working together, combined with their unique battle formation, was enough to kill powerful enemies across realms!

Since the formation of the Tian Sha Guards, they had never suffered a defeat!

Today, for this Ye Chen who didn't know his place, the Great Elder had directly used this trump card!