952: Chapter 953 Ming Qianye!

In the shadows, the figures of the three top immortal Sects—the Moyang Sect, Myriad Sword Valley, and the Yin Yang Sect—were active to the extreme.

Countless pieces of intelligence, resources, and even carefully disguised elite Disciples...

...were being continuously funneled into the core areas controlled by the Nine Nether Sect through various secret channels.

They knew better than anyone that once the Nine Nether Sect fell and the Xuan Ye Dynasty fell into the hands of the Sun Moon Divine Cult, which was supported by the Heavenly Demon Sect...

...it would be a disaster for the entire Righteous Path of the Eastern Region! Everyone understood the principle that if the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold.

At the Sun Moon Divine Cult's headquarters, Demonic Fiend Qi soared into the sky.

This place was no longer a temporary base; it was now shrouded by a massive Demonic Array, transformed into a grim war fortress.

A steady stream of Heavenly Demon Sect experts slipped inside like ghosts, bringing with them a suffocating sense of pressure.

This time, the Heavenly Demon Sect displayed its terrifying foundation as a giant of the Demonic Path—

Nearly half of the Sect's combat power had been mobilized onto the blood-stained chessboard of the Xuan Ye Dynasty!

Within the core hall, Devilish Qi surged.

A burly man, built like an iron tower with a hideous scar across his face and a wild, unrestrained aura...

...was clapping Zhu Wuneng on the shoulder, letting out a booming laugh that sounded like a great bell:

"Hahaha! Old Zhu! It's only been a few days. How did I hear you were intimidated by some little brat at the Void Refining Peak? This isn't the style of the Ten Thousand Demon Hall Master!"

This person was the Heavenly Demon Sect's Great Protector—Sha Wuji! His murderous aura had almost condensed into substance.

Zhu Wuneng gave him a sharp glare, about to retort...

...but he suddenly sensed the aura fluctuations coming from the other man. His pupils constricted, and he blurted out:

"Old Sha?! You... your cultivation broke through?!" This aura was heavy and violent, far exceeding the Body Integration Early Stage!

Sha Wuji grinned widely, revealing his pearly white teeth:

"Heh heh! The Sect Master is brilliant! In consideration of my merit in rescuing the Saintess last time, he specifically allowed me to soak thoroughly in the Devil Transformation Pool!

My luck was good, and I successfully crossed that hurdle!" His words were full of pride, as if that "rescue" really was his achievement.

A flash of envy and helplessness appeared in Zhu Wuneng's eyes; this guy's luck was truly good.

Then, a thought occurred to him, and a sinister smile appeared on his face:

"Good, good, good! A fine Breakthrough! Old Sha, there's a Gray-robed Mysterious Man in Blood Sea City..."

...whose Physical Body is freakishly strong. Even I am quite wary of him.

Since you've now reached the Body Integration Middle Stage Major Achievement, you should go and test his mettle! Bring some glory to our Heavenly Demon Sect!"

Upon hearing this, a fierce light flared in Sha Wuji's eyes. The majestic pressure of the Body Integration Middle Stage unconsciously spread out...

...making the air in the hall feel as if it had frozen. He clenched his fists, his knuckles letting out a thunderous crackle, and he grinned savagely:

"Hmph! A mere Void Refining cultivator dares to be so arrogant just because of some physical brute force?

Once the great war begins, I'll be the first to head to Blood Sea City and personally crush his bones! I'll make him understand what a true giant of the Demonic Path is!"

Just as Sha Wuji was feeling smug and speaking boastfully...

...a cold and slightly lazy voice rang out behind him like a ghost:

"Oh? Since the Great Protector has such lofty ambitions, then the heavy responsibility of taking Blood Sea City shall be entrusted to you."

Dressed in a blood-red palace dress, with hair as white as snow and eerie red eyes, the Blood Moon Fairy, Xin Yingying...

...had appeared silently in the hall at some unknown time, looking at Sha Wuji with a half-smile.

The smugness on Sha Wuji's face instantly froze, like a rooster being grabbed by the neck.

He hurriedly turned around and bowed to Xin Yingying, a hint of cold sweat even breaking out on his forehead:

"Cult... Cult Leader, please rest assured! I will certainly capture that reckless gray-robed brat and present him to the Cult Leader... as... as a Cauldron!"

He had a quick wit and thought of a shortcut for Demonic Path cultivation.

An unusual light flashed imperceptibly deep within Xin Yingying's red eyes; she did not deny Sha Wuji's "flattery."

That Gray-robed Mysterious Man's incredibly powerful Physical Body foundation... if he really could be captured and used as a Cauldron...

...it might truly help her break through her Bottleneck in one go and step into that dreamed-of Body Integration realm!

However, Xin Yingying was naturally suspicious and would never put all her eggs in one basket.

She turned and walked toward the main seat, her cold voice drifting through the hall: "Uncle Ming."

Silently, a withered old man, hunched like a shadow and completely shrouded in a large black robe, appeared beside Xin Yingying without warning.

He kept his head down, his face hidden in the shadows of his hood, with only a pair of eyes visible...

...like two bottomless dried wells, occasionally flashing with an eerie light that could freeze one's very Soul.

The moment he appeared, the previously smug and arrogant Sha Wuji...

...as well as Zhu Wuneng beside him, instantly felt a bone-chilling cold surge from their spines to the tops of their heads!

Their expressions changed drastically, their bodies tensing up involuntarily, and their eyes filled with deep reverence and dread!

Ming Qianye!

One of the Grand Elders of the Heavenly Demon Sect!

He had been notorious for hundreds of years, a true giant of the Demonic Path whose cultivation had reached the Body Integration Late Stage!

A living legend! To think the Sect Master had sent him to Xuan Ye as well!

Ming Qianye bowed slightly to Xin Yingying, his voice low and raspy like sandpaper rubbing together: "Young Miss."

Xin Yingying's attitude toward him was clearly different, carrying a hint of a Junior's respect:

"Uncle Ming, about Blood Sea City... that Gray-robed Mysterious Man, I always feel he isn't simple.

Although Protector Sha is brave, to ensure nothing goes wrong, I must trouble you to make a trip and watch over things from the shadows.

If things don't go well... step in directly to eliminate the threat."

She paused, an imperceptible ripple flashing deep in her red eyes. "If there's a chance... try to capture him alive."

The corner of Ming Qianye's mouth, hidden in the shadows, seemed to curl into an infinitesimal arc...

...as if he had seen through Xin Yingying's little scheme, but he did not point it out:

"Rest assured, Young Miss. With this old servant here, that gray-robed one... won't be able to stir up any waves."

His tone was flat, yet it contained absolute confidence and control.

"Everything is for the sake of the big picture," Xin Yingying added, as if trying to convince herself.

In the midst of this grim and oppressive atmosphere, a crisp and lively voice, like a clear mountain spring, suddenly broke the solemnity of the hall:

"Auntie—! I'm here!"

A pretty figure, like a joyful spirit butterfly, rushed into the hall with a gust of fragrant wind.

The newcomer also had white hair and red eyes, with an exquisite face that was seventy to eighty percent similar to Xin Yingying's, but her temperament was completely different.

She had less of an eerie charm and more of a naive liveliness—it was none other than Xin Yuelan!

All the Heavenly Demon Sect experts in the hall, including the previously ferocious Sha Wuji and Zhu Wuneng...

...immediately bowed and said solemnly, "Greetings, Saintess!"

Seeing the newcomer, a genuine, doting smile finally appeared on Xin Yingying's cold face:

"Little Lan Lan? Why have you come to the front lines, girl? Aren't you afraid your father will punish you if he finds out?"

She remembered that her niece had been placed under house arrest for a year by her brother.

Xin Yuelan ran over giggling and affectionately hugged Xin Yingying's arm, acting spoiled:

"Oh, I've long since grown tired of those old places in the Demon Realm!

I heard you were displaying your Divine Might here, Auntie, so I snuck over to cheer you on!

Father is busy with a myriad of affairs; he won't care about me~"

Xin Yingying shook her head helplessly, unable to do anything about her quirky niece:

"You! Last time you snuck off to the Ba Xia Dynasty, you almost didn't make it back twice. Have you forgotten the lesson?"