213: On the night of the new moon

"Meteor Chasing the Moon!"

The sword speed was so fast that it exceeded Elder Yin's visual perception. A streak of red light flashed by, and the monstrous sea of blood he had painstakingly created was cleaved in two.

The incredibly scorching Sword Qi erupted violently, clashing fiercely against the extremely yin and filthy Blood Fiend power, emitting a "hissing" sound. Large waves of blood were evaporated, purified, and dissipated.

"What?!" The ferocity on Elder Yin's face turned into horror. His ultimate Divine Ability had actually been broken by his opponent so effortlessly?

However, the xingxiu sword did not stop. The sword light changed again, transforming from a high-speed piercing strike into a violent bombardment like a falling meteorite. The crimson Sword Qi slammed toward Elder Yin with the momentum of a thunderbolt.

"No—!" Elder Yin's pupils shrank abruptly. He only had time to let out a roar before being completely engulfed by the Sword Qi that seemed to burn through the Eight Desolations.

As the sword light dissipated, Elder Yin stood frozen in place. A charred hole pierced through his chest from front to back. With endless fear and confusion lingering in his eyes, he fell to the ground with a thud, dead.

Lin Feng remained expressionless. He took Elder Yin's Storage Pouch and pressed his hand down in the air. A wisp of flame swept over Elder Yin's corpse and the surrounding bloodstains. Wherever it passed, all traces were charred and vaporized, leaving not even a hint of the smell of blood.

His figure flickered as he dove into the shadows deeper within the gorge, disappearing after a few leaps.

Less than the time it takes to burn an incense stick after Lin Feng left, two powerful Escaping Lights arrived one after the other, landing at the site of the recent battle.

The light faded, revealing two figures. One was dressed in the attire of a Blood Fiend Sect Elder, looking grim; the other was a Heavenly Demon Palace Elder with sharp eyes.

"Too late." The Blood Fiend Sect Elder crouched down, pinched a bit of the charred ground trace with his fingertips, and sniffed it. His brows furrowed tightly. "It was an extremely powerful flame, cleaned up very thoroughly. Elder Yin was destroyed almost instantly. The opponent is ruthless, and their strength should not be underestimated."

That Heavenly Demon Palace Elder scanned the surroundings carefully with his Divine Sense and said coldly, "The remaining Sword Intent is extremely sharp; this is definitely not a common Loose Cultivator. It seems there really are people who don't fear death, sneaking in as the Night of the Dark Moon approaches. And they have quite an appetite."

The Blood Fiend Sect Elder stood up, his expression ugly. "Elder Yin has guarded the periphery of this place for many years, yet he was taken out silently... I'm afraid it's not just one group. I received word that people from Xuandan Pavilion and Tian Gong Workshop have been frequently active around the periphery of the Ten Thousand Demon Abyss recently, seemingly plotting something."

A cold light flashed in the Heavenly Demon Palace deacon's eyes. "Xuandan Pavilion covets the rare Spiritual Plants that might have newly grown within the abyss, and Tian Gong Workshop is obsessed with those ancient Artifact Refining Materials left behind. If they think they can get a share of the loot during the chaos, they have miscalculated! The Night of the Dark Moon is imminent; there must be no mistakes!"

Meanwhile, Lin Feng successfully avoided several waves of obviously reinforced patrols and arrived at the periphery of the Ten Thousand Demon Abyss.

He originally intended to find a way to leave this place of trouble as quickly as possible, but while passing near a branch valley filled with a strange medicinal fragrance called Hundred Herb Ravine, his attention was drawn by a burst of violent spiritual power collision and shouting.

Looking down into the valley, two groups of people were in a fierce standoff. The scene was tense, with several people already lying on the ground, clearly having just gone through a vicious fight.

One side was dressed in attire with Pill Furnace cloud patterns; these were Cultivators from Xuandan Pavilion. Leading them was an Early Core Formation Cultivator, an old man with a white beard, holding a medicinal hoe shimmering with green light. There was blood at the corner of his mouth, and his face was livid.

The other side's clothes were embroidered with intertwined hammer and chisel patterns; these were people from Tian Gong Workshop. Leading them was a sturdy man at the Early Core Formation Stage, holding a giant hammer flickering with lightning. The clothes on his chest were torn, and he was clearly also injured.

"Tie! Your Tian Gong Workshop shouldn't go too far! This Seven-Colored Soul-Nourishing Mushroom was discovered by my Xuandan Pavilion first!" the white-bearded old man shouted sternly.

"Bullshit! This ore vein was clearly marked by my Tian Gong Workshop Disciples first! It was your Xuandan Pavilion that got greedy upon seeing treasure and started grabbing it first!" the man surnamed Tie glared with wide eyes.

It turned out that these two groups had discovered the treasures in Hundred Herb Ravine at almost the same time.

Xuandan Pavilion's target was that Seven-Colored Soul-Nourishing Mushroom, which was about to mature and had miraculous effects on nourishing the Divine Soul, while Tian Gong Workshop had set their sights on a small, rare ore vein at the bottom of the ravine.

Both sides believed the other had infringed upon their interests, and unable to agree, they had already started fighting.

However, just as both sides were arguing and about to clash again, several Escaping Lights descended from the sky with sharp killing intent, completely sealing off the exit of the entire Hundred Herb Ravine.

The ones who arrived were indeed Cultivators from the Blood Fiend Sect and the Heavenly Demon Palace. Leading them were two Early Core Formation Cultivators, one of whom was the person taking over for Elder Yin to patrol this area.

"Good! It really was you outsiders causing trouble!" The Blood Fiend Sect leader's gaze swept over the chaotic scene, finally locking onto the people from Xuandan Pavilion and Tian Gong Workshop. His voice was freezing cold. "Elder Yin was murdered nearby; it really has something to do with you! Speak! Who among you did it? Or did you do it together?"

The people from Xuandan Pavilion and Tian Gong Workshop were stunned upon hearing this.

They had only just arrived here, only to search for treasure; how would they know anything about an Elder Yin?

"What Elder Yin? We don't know! This place is ownerless; treasures go to those who are fated to have them. You Blood Fiend Sect and Heavenly Demon Palace are overstepping your bounds!" the man surnamed Tie from Tian Gong Workshop had a fiery temper and immediately retorted.

"Still trying to quibble!" That Heavenly Demon Palace Core Formation Cultivator snorted coldly. "If you weren't guilty, why would you be sneaking around here and fighting? I think it's because you couldn't split the loot and had an internal conflict! If you don't give a proper explanation today, no one is leaving!"

For the next two days, the periphery of Lie Feng Gorge was in constant turmoil.

Xuandan Pavilion and Tian Gong Workshop were unwilling to be besieged and tried to force their way out several times, erupting into several conflicts with the Blood Fiend Sect and Heavenly Demon Palace patrol teams. Both sides suffered losses, but neither could break the blockade.

The Blood Fiend Sect and Heavenly Demon Palace had to suppress the "murderers" on one hand and guard the core of the great array deep in the gorge on the other, so their forces were inevitably stretched thin, causing some chaos and loopholes in the peripheral vigilance and searches.

Lin Feng was forced to be trapped in this area. Several times he wanted to find other ways out during the chaos, but he was blocked by sudden skirmishes or strict temporary searches.

Twice, he was almost dragged into the melee and had to use his methods to barely escape.

In this atmosphere of mutual suspicion, constant friction, and increasingly tense situations between the various forces, time passed bit by bit.

The black clouds over the gorge became increasingly thick and low, and the spatial fluctuations permeating the air became more and more violent and unstable.

The Night of the Dark Moon was finally about to arrive.

Lin Feng looked at the heart-palpitating energy pulsations faintly coming from the depths of the gorge, his eyes heavy.

The people from the Blood Fiend Sect and Heavenly Demon Palace were in fierce conflict with the Cultivators from Xuandan Pavilion and Tian Gong Workshop in the direction of Hundred Herb Ravine; the roaring of spiritual power collisions and shouting could be vaguely heard.

The number of Disciples patrolling near the exit had obviously increased, and the security was strict.

If he were to force a breakthrough now, the risk would indeed be extremely high, and it would be very easy to expose his whereabouts, attracting pursuit from Mid-stage Core Formation or even higher-ranked Cultivators.

However, if he were truly determined to leave, he might be able to find a sliver of opportunity in this chaos, survive in danger, and flee a thousand miles away.

The star mystic silver sand and yin marrow jade he had collected earlier were already enough; his initial goal had been achieved.

But...

He cast his gaze once more into the deepest part of the gorge, where an invisible vortex seemed to be forming, devouring light and warping space.

What exactly was the secret that the Blood Fiend Sect and Heavenly Demon Palace had spent decades operating here for, and were even willing to clash with Xuandan Pavilion and Tian Gong Workshop to protect?

What exactly would be summoned when the Nine Heavens Yin-Attracting Great Array was in full operation on that Night of the Dark Moon?