83: Chapter 83 The Mysterious Sword Sect's Unexpected Changes, the Chu Family's Rebellion and the Blood Sacrifice Array

The white light of the spatial vortex receded like a tide, and the figures of Li Siwen, Xiao Xiner, and Yue Li landed steadily on the plaza behind the Xuanjian Sect mountain gate.

As soon as their feet touched the ground, a strong smell of blood rushed into their noses, mixed with Death Qi that was similar to the Bone Tower but even more viscous, causing the expressions of the three to instantly turn grave.

The scene before them was far more tragic than they had imagined.

The Xuanjian Sect mountain gate, originally adorned with carved beams and painted pillars and surrounded by Immortal Qi, had now collapsed by more than half, and wet bloodstains still clung to the broken beams and pillars.

The stone slabs of the plaza were stained dark red, and dozens of Disciple corpses lay scattered about; some had their chests pierced through, others had twisted necks, and the fear they felt before death still lingered in their eyes.

These were all fellow Sect members they were familiar with.

"Th-this... what is going on?" Xiao Xiner stumbled forward a step.

Her fingertips trembled as she brushed over the corpse of an Outer Sect Disciple. On the Disciple's lapel was embroidered the emblem of the Xuanjian Sect; it was the very youth who had asked her for advice on sword techniques just half a month ago.

Her voice trembled with disbelief, and the Xuanyuan Realm aura around her fluctuated violently due to anger, with ice-blue Yuan power faintly gathering in her palms.

Yue Li's soul body also trembled slightly, and a trace of vigilance flashed in her clear eyes: "Master, the Death Qi here is not right. It is not naturally emitted; it seems to be forcibly guided and gathered by some kind of Formation... Moreover, it is mixed with evil Blood Qi."

As soon as she finished speaking, a burst of urgent screams came from the east side of the mountain gate: "Help! Someone save us!"

The three looked in the direction of the sound and saw two Outer Sect Disciples stumbling toward them. Their clothes were tattered, their bodies were covered in wounds, and they were being followed by three Disciples dressed in Chu Family attire.

The aura of those three had actually reached the Late Stage of the Origin Opening.

What was even more bizarre was that one person's left arm had been slashed by a sword blade, leaving a wound deep enough to see the bone, dripping with blood. Yet, the wound was glowing with an evil red light, and the flesh was squirming and healing at a speed visible to the naked eye.

In just a breath's time, only a shallow scar remained.

"Run? Can you escape?" The Chu Family Disciple sneered, his speed not slowing down.

One of them raised his hand and struck out a jet-black palm wind, aiming straight for the back of the Outer Sect Disciple running in the rear.

That palm wind was wrapped in thick Death Qi, exactly the same evil power belonging to the Ghost Soul Sect that Xiao Xiner had seen in the Bone Tower!

"Stop!" Li Siwen shouted angrily, his Yuan power, nearing the Kaiyuan Realm, instantly circulating within his body.

The fengwu sword was unsheathed, and the crimson Sword Qi, like a burning meteor, arrived first despite being launched later, accurately slashing onto that jet-black palm wind!

Bang!

The Sword Qi and palm wind collided, erupting with a muffled sound. The jet-black palm wind was instantly shredded, and the remaining ripples of the Sword Qi even shook that Chu Family Disciple into retreating repeatedly, a trace of black blood spilling from the corner of his mouth.

"Li Shiwen?! Why are you back?!"

Seeing Li Siwen, the three Chu Family Disciples felt a flash of surprise and suspicion in their eyes, which immediately turned into ruthlessness.

"Perfect! You, this escaped fish, have also returned, saving us the trouble of searching! Today, we will round up all of you 'Sect pests' in one fell swoop!"

After saying this, the three pounced forward simultaneously. Their Moves were ruthless, and their palm winds and fist energies were all wrapped in evil Death Qi. Every attack carried the malice of "wanting to tear people apart and drain their Blood Qi."

Li Siwen advanced instead of retreating. The fengwu sword danced into a sea of crimson sword shadows, and he pushed his Dongxu Spirit Eye Technique to the limit, accurately capturing the flaws in the three's Moves.

He discovered that although the attacks of these Chu Family Disciples were fierce, they carried a hint of sluggishness in their movements due to the backlash of their evil techniques.

"Yue Li, help me pin down the one on the left!" Li Siwen shouted in a low voice, his sword stance changing to thrust directly at the Dantian of the Chu Family Disciple in the middle.

That was the core of their evil technique's operation, where the Qi was most chaotic.

Yue Li immediately understood. Her soul body flashed, and a grey-white beam of light shot out, landing accurately on the shoulder of the Chu Family Disciple on the left.

The purification beam touched the evil red light on the opponent's body, instantly erupting with a "hissing" sound, and the red light melted like ice and snow encountering the sun.

The Disciple's movements suddenly stiffened, the wound on his shoulder actually split open again, and blood gushed out.

"My wound... why did it split again?!" He shouted in terror. The ability to heal quickly by relying on Blood Qi had completely failed under the purification beam.

Xiao Xiner was not idle either. Seeing that the Chu Family Disciples were using Ghost Soul Sect evil techniques, the anger in her heart burned even hotter.

Her yuehua longsword erupted with brilliant ice-blue light, and she slashed with her sword toward the arm of the Chu Family Disciple on the right.

She wanted to test whether the bodies of these people, which recovered by relying on evil techniques, could withstand the Sword Qi of the Xuanyuan Realm!

Ding!

The Sword Qi accurately struck the opponent's arm, and without any resistance, it severed his arm at the shoulder!

Black-red blood splashed out and landed on the stone slabs on the ground, only to be instantly sucked away by the jet-black runes seeping out from the gaps in the stone slabs, causing the runes to light up with a faint glow.

Yet, in the eyes of the Chu Family Disciple with the severed arm, a trace of bizarre excitement flashed; the flesh at the severed arm began to squirm again, showing signs of regrowing!

"How is this possible?!" Xiao Xiner's pupils contracted.

The Sword Qi of the Xuanyuan Realm was enough to sever the bones of the Kaiyuan Realm, yet the opponent could recover again by relying on the evil technique. The bizarre degree of this evil technique far exceeded her imagination.

"Senior Sister, don't fight head-on!" Li Siwen saw the key, forced the middle Chu Family Disciple back with a sword strike, and said urgently: "The runes on the ground are absorbing their blood and feeding it back to them, helping them recover and increase their strength! This is a Blood Sacrifice Array!"

Just at this moment, the Chu Family Disciple who was being pinned down by Yue Li saw that the situation was not good and shouted: "Retreat! Go back and report first!"

After saying this, the three no longer lingered in the fight and turned to run toward the depths of the Sect. Their speed was astonishingly fast, obviously wanting to use the power of the Blood Sacrifice Array to escape.

Li Siwen wanted to pursue, but he was held back by two surviving Outer Sect Disciples: "Senior Sister Li, don't pursue! The Chu Family has set up ambushes inside. Elder Liu Qing and many other Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters have all been captured by them!"

The two Outer Sect Disciples were still shaken, gasping for breath while crying out: "Last night, Elder Chu (Chu Tianxing) suddenly led people to break into the Sect, saying they wanted to 'cleanse the traitors who defected to the Ghost Soul Sect,' but they killed everyone who was unwilling to submit to the Chu Family!"

"They even set up a pitch-black Formation in the Inner Sect plaza. After killing people, they would throw the corpses in. After those Chu Family Disciples killed people, their strength would become stronger, and their wounds would heal faster..."

"The Sect Leader tried to stop them, but was sneak-attacked by Chu Tianxing and severely injured. Together with the Elders who were unwilling to submit, they were locked up in the Penalty Hall! Senior Sister Xiao, Senior Sister Li, you must think of a way!"

Upon hearing that "the Sect Leader was severely injured and imprisoned," Xiao Xiner's expression darkened completely.

She gripped her yuehua longsword tightly, her voice as cold as frost: "The Chu Family... actually dared to betray the Sect, privately set up a Blood Sacrifice Array, and slaughter fellow Sect members! This debt, I, Xiao Xiner, will definitely make them pay back a hundredfold!"

Li Siwen patted her shoulder and said in a deep voice: "Senior Sister, now is not the time to be impulsive. The Chu Family has the blessing of the Blood Sacrifice Array and the evil techniques of the Ghost Soul Sect. We must first figure out the Formation core, find the imprisoned Elders and Disciples, and then make plans."

Yue Li also nodded in agreement, her soul body floating to Li Siwen's side: "Master, I can sense that the core of the Blood Sacrifice Array is in the direction of the Inner Sect plaza; the Death Qi and Blood Qi there are the thickest. However, there must be more ambushes along the way, so we must be careful."

The three looked at each other, a ray of determination flashing in their eyes.

Li Siwen held the fengwu sword horizontally in front of him, crimson Sword Qi faintly flickering: "Let's go, to the Inner Sect plaza. No matter what traps the Chu Family has set, we must charge through. The Sect is still here, and fellow Sect members are still waiting for us to save them."

Xiao Xiner took a deep breath, suppressing the anger in her heart, and protected her body with ice-blue Yuan power: "Mm! Junior Sister Li, Miss Yue Li, this time, we will still fight side by side!"

Yue Li's soul body glowed with a faint grey-white light, and the power of purification circulated around her, forming an invisible barrier: "Master, Yue Li will protect you well."

The three no longer hesitated and walked along the blood-stained stone path toward the direction of the Inner Sect plaza.