72: The sect was furious, and war clouds gathered.

The alarm bell of the Qingyun Sect was violently struck.

That was no ordinary bell chime.

It was the highest-level Soul Suppressing Bell, only used when the Sect faced a life-or-death crisis.

The bell's sound was dull and oppressive, like an ancient giant beast letting out a painful roar from the depths of the Qingyun Mountains, piercing through every peak, every Immortal Cave, and heavily striking the hearts of every Disciple of the Qingyun Sect.

On Medicine King Peak, the atmosphere was so heavy it could almost drip with water.

All the Alchemists on the entire peak, regardless of their status, stood outside the Alchemy Room, holding their breath, not daring to even take a deep breath.

Inside the Alchemy Room, the Sect's chief Alchemist, that white-haired Grandmaster of Alchemy whom even the Sect Head treated with three parts respect, was trembling as he withdrew his three fingers from Lin Gou's wrist.

His face was unprecedentedly grim.

Lin Gou lay quietly on the ten-thousand-year warm jade bed.

His eyes were tightly shut, his face ashen as paper, his lips cracked and devoid of any color.

His chest and limbs were wrapped in thick bandages, yet dark red blood continuously seeped through them.

The air was filled with a strong smell of blood and a chilling, burnt odor of annihilated spiritual power.

He looked like a broken piece of porcelain, freshly retrieved from a Nine Nether Blood Pool, utterly devoid of Life Qi.

Zhao Linger stood by the jade bed, her eyes, usually as gentle as water, were now brimming with tears, red like a rabbit's.

Her small hands were tightly clenched, her knuckles white from the effort.

She looked at Lin Gou's lifeless face, her heart feeling as if it was being fiercely gripped by an invisible hand, each breath accompanied by a tearing pain.

She didn't understand.

Just a few days ago, in the Secret Realm, he was still so high-spirited, single-handedly slaying the demonic Yao Beast and saving her.

How, in just a few days, had he become... this dying state?

"Junior Martial Uncle, how... how is he?"

Zhao Linger's voice trembled uncontrollably as she looked at the Grandmaster of Alchemy.

The old Grandmaster sighed deeply, his voice hoarse and heavy.

"His Meridians are shattered, and his internal organs all suffer from severe burns and ruptures."

"His Divine Soul is like a flickering candle in the wind, as if impacted by an extremely malicious force; it's a miracle he still retains a shred of consciousness."

With each sentence he spoke, Zhao Linger's face grew paler.

In the end, her body swayed slightly, almost unable to stand steady.

"Is... is there no hope?"

These five words seemed to drain all the strength from her body.

The old Grandmaster shook his head, then nodded, his expression complex.

"Difficult, as difficult as ascending to the Heavens."

"This old man can only use the Sect's best Nine Revolutions Soul Restoration Pill to sustain his last breath; whether he can wake up depends entirely on his own Luck."

As he spoke, he carefully took out a Medicinal Pill the size of a longan, glowing with nine-colored radiance, pried open Lin Gou's mouth, and, using pure spiritual power, sent the Medicinal Pill into his abdomen.

As the Medicinal Pill dissolved, a surge of immense Life Qi instantly spread.

Lin Gou's ashen face finally regained a faint trace of redness.

But his eyes remained tightly shut.

"You all may leave; let him rest quietly."

The old Grandmaster waved his hand, his face full of exhaustion.

Zhao Linger, however, did not move a step; she stubbornly guarded the bedside, extending her slightly trembling hand to gently grasp Lin Gou's cold palm.

She wanted to warm him with her own body temperature.

Inside the Alchemy Room, only the two of them remained.

Silence reigned.

Only Zhao Linger's uncontrollable, very soft, very faint sobs could be heard.

Lin Gou's heart, however, was completely calm.

'Excellent acting; even the Grandmaster of Alchemy couldn't find a flaw.'

'This injury disguise cost me a lot of spiritual power, but the effect is remarkable.'

'Zhao Linger, this girl, is crying quite sadly; I feel a bit bad for her.'

He could clearly feel the softness and warmth of the girl's palm, as well as the genuine, unadulterated worry and heartache emanating from her.

This caused a barely perceptible ripple in his heart, which was accustomed to measuring everything by profit.

Just then, the Alchemy Room door was pushed open by a gentle yet irresistible force.

The Qingyun Sect Leader and the Grand Elder, whose aura was as deep as the sea, walked in, one after the other.

Their faces were terrifyingly grim.

"Lin Gou is awake."

The Grand Elder's voice was calm, yet it exploded in Zhao Linger's ears like a clap of thunder.

She whirled around.

Only to see Lin Gou on the bed, his eyes open at some unknown point.

He struggled, trying to sit up.

"Pfft!"

A mouthful of black blood suddenly spurted out, splashing onto the pristine jade bed, a shocking sight.

"Senior Brother Lin!"

Zhao Linger exclaimed, quickly stepping forward to support him.

"Sect Head... Grand Elder..."

Lin Gou's voice was so weak it seemed it could break at any moment; he leaned in Zhao Linger's soft embrace, his eyes, however, flickering with a stubborn and indignant light.

"Disciple... has important matters to report!"

He tremblingly took out two items from his Storage Pouch.

A charred black token, only a corner remaining, which had been blown up.

And a dull, unlit recording orb.

"This is... the token of an Elder from the Xuan Yin Sect!"

The Sect Head recognized the origin of the token at a glance; he reached out, and the token flew into his hand, an icy, malicious aura instantly turning his face ashen.

He injected spiritual power into the recording orb.

Buzz.

A light screen unfolded in mid-air.

The image shook violently, filled with chaotic energy explosions.

But one could still clearly see the opened "Four Directions Soul Locking Array" and the sinister face of the gloomy Pseudo-Core cultivator.

The footage was very short, abruptly ending the moment before Lin Gou initiated his self-detonation.

The air inside the Alchemy Room completely solidified.

The Sect Head clutched the token tightly, veins bulging on the back of his hand, and a terrifying Spiritual Pressure uncontrollably spread.

"Xuan Yin Sect... What a Xuan Yin Sect!"

His voice was squeezed out from between his teeth.

Lin Gou, however, seemed to have used his last bit of strength; he coughed violently and took out a third item.

It was a jade pendant shattered into several pieces.

The jade pendant itself was unremarkable, but on it, there remained a faint, almost imperceptible trace of an extremely evil Karma curse, which even caused the Grand Elder's expression to change.

"Disciple is incompetent..."

Tears of "humiliation" and "sorrow" flowed from Lin Gou's eyes.

"The resurrection anchor point Disciple set on the Sect's Holy Son Peak... was remotely destroyed by them using forbidden arts!"

These words were like a Nine Heavens Divine Thunder, fiercely striking the hearts of the Sect Head and the Grand Elder!

The Grand Elder's usually placid eyes suddenly erupted with terrifying brilliance at this moment.

He took a step, instantly appearing before Lin Gou, and snatched the broken jade pendant.

His fingertips barely touched the lingering aura.

His body suddenly trembled.

A monstrous, terrifying Killing Intent, suppressed for hundreds of years, erupted from his seemingly withered body with a roar!

"Soul Tracing Annihilation Curse!"

"Good! Good! Good! What a Xuan Yin Sect! What a 'never-ending' feud!"

The Grand Elder roared to the sky, his voice shaking the clouds.

The entire Medicine King Peak trembled under his wrath.

The Sect Head suddenly turned his head, looking at his favorite set of purple clay tea ware.

Crack!

The expensive teapot shattered under his uncontrolled Spiritual Pressure, turning into dust.

A Saint of a Sect.

On his way back from a trial, he was ambushed by an Elder from a hostile Sect leading a team, who set up a deadly array to kill him.

Even his foundation within the Sect—the anchor point symbolizing the Sect's Luck and prestige—was remotely destroyed using malicious forbidden arts!

This was not a provocation.

This was a declaration of war!

This was trampling the Qingyun Sect's face fiercely on the ground, then grinding it again and again!

"Issue my decree!"

The Sect Head's voice was devoid of any emotion, cold as ice.

"The mountain-protecting array, fully activate!"

"All Elders and Core Disciples currently out on expeditions, return to the Sect within three days!"

"Activate War Dreadnought Number Three; all war preparation resources, unseal!"

"Prepare for war!"

The last word was filled with Killing Intent.

The Qingyun Sect's war machine, dormant for a century, was completely activated at this moment.

Streaks of light shot up from the main peak, flying in all directions.

Ancient bell chimes intertwined with the blare of war horns, echoing across the sky.

The entire Sect was shrouded in a murderous war cloud.

The gazes of the Sect Head and the Grand Elder fell back on Lin Gou.

That towering rage transformed into extreme admiration and a hint of guilt.

In such a desperate situation, he was still able to counter-kill a powerful enemy, refusing to surrender even in death, and, with his last breath, brought back such crucial intelligence and evidence.

This child's Heart-Nature, methods, and courage are all one in ten thousand!

"Saint Lin Gou, in a time of crisis, protected the Sect's dignity and upheld our Sect's Divine Might; his contributions are immeasurable!"

The Sect Head's voice echoed throughout the entire Medicine King Peak.

"Effective immediately, the Sect's treasury is open to the Saint!"

"All Spirit Stones, Medicinal Pills, Heaven And Earth Treasures, regardless of cost, will be fully supplied to aid the Saint in his recovery!"

As his voice fell.

In less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn.

Teams of Core Disciples, carrying jade boxes and treasure chests, flowed into Holy Son Peak where Lin Gou was located.

Thousand-year blood ginseng.

Ten-thousand-year stone stalactites.

Mountains of Top-Grade Spirit Stones.

Various unheard-of sacred healing medicines and rare treasures for assisting Cultivation.

Their sheer quantity and high value made the eyes of all True Disciples who witnessed this scene turn red with envy.

Lin Gou outwardly maintained his appearance of being "overcome with grief and indignation, severely wounded," but inwardly, he was calmly calculating.

'It's done.'

'Personal grievances have successfully escalated into a Sect war.'

'Xuan Yin Sect, you destroyed one of my anchor points; I will make your entire Sect pay the price.'

He could already clearly feel that he had become the powder keg that would ignite the thousand-year-old accumulated grievances between the two major Sects.

This made him feel an unprecedented sense of urgency.

Just then, an Elder responsible for intelligence rushed in, his face looking strange.

"Sect Head, Grand Elder."

"The Xuan Yin Sect... the Xuan Yin Sect has sent a message to the world."

"What did they say?" the Sect Head asked coldly.

The Elder's expression grew even stranger.

"They... they bit back, saying that our Sect's Saint Lin Gou, driven by greed, infiltrated their team pursuing a traitor, first stealing a hellfire demon lotus, and then cruelly murdering several of their Disciples."

"They said they were merely... cleaning house and acting in self-defense."

"And they also said that if our Qingyun Sect insists on harboring the murderer, they... will fight to the very end."

Inside the Alchemy Room, silence once again fell.

Even Zhao Linger was so angry her small face turned red, and she clenched her fists.

"Shameless!"

The Sect Head and the Grand Elder, however, laughed in their extreme fury.

"What a reversal of black and white!"

"What a 'cleaning house'!"

At this moment of heightened tension.

The Grand Elder suddenly turned around and looked at Lin Gou with an unprecedentedly gentle gaze.

He handed over an ancient token, carved with cloud patterns.

"Child, you have suffered a grievance."

His voice carried a hint of heartache and an undeniable resolve.

"The Sect is your strongest backing."

"Hold this token, go to the deepest part of the Sect's treasure vault, and choose three items for self-defense."