100: Chapter 100 One Must Die Today

"Elder Jia, stop attacking! If you keep going, we'll all die inside the Formation!" Xia Shaoxin shouted to the outside.

The attacks outside did not stop.

Jia Tianru said coldly, "This old man is foolish and does not know how to break Formations, so I can only use this clumsy method. You all could clearly deactivate the Formation from the inside."

Xia Shaoxin looked at Liu Tingting and remained silent.

Liu Tingting's eyes were already blurred with tears.

"If you hesitate any longer, we're all finished," Xia Shaoxin growled, staring intently at Liu Tingting.

The remaining few Senior Brothers didn't dare to make a sound, all looking at Liu Tingting with pleading eyes.

"Master..."

Liu Tingting called out toward the Spirit Cave.

From within the Spirit Cave, Elder Qian Yunchang's deep voice finally drifted out: "My Disciples, hold out against Jia Tianru's attacks for me! I have already consumed the taisui evil pill. Once I make a Breakthrough to Foundation Establishment, I will kill this bastard!"

Looking at the unconscious Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters scattered across the ground, Liu Tingting grit her teeth and said, "Yes, Master!"

Xia Shaoxin smiled bitterly; they were truly risking their lives to buy time for Elder Qian Yunchang.

By the time he successfully reaches Foundation Establishment, I'm afraid I'll already be dead here.

Is the only benefit of being a Personal Disciple having Elder Qian avenge me?

Having received her instructions, Liu Tingting decided to hold out to the very end.

Everyone sighed softly, and the Jingsi Courtyard fell completely silent.

Outside the courtyard, Jia Tianru roared in anger, "Qian! The taisui evil pill cannot be consumed in such a rush. You will easily fail like this and waste the Medicinal Pill!"

"Even if I fail, I won't give it to you! I am about to charge into Foundation Establishment, you are dead meat!"

Jia Tianru's Disciples hesitated, filled with doubt, and stopped their attacks one after another.

"Don't stop!" Jia Tianru roared.

The arrow had already been shot; there was no turning back.

The Disciples had no choice but to swing their swords again, attacking the Jingsi Courtyard's Formation.

But their power had clearly decreased. Xia Shaoxin could feel that the pressure he was under had dropped significantly.

Jia Tianru quickly recovered from his brief panic.

"Don't believe Elder Qian Yunchang's words, everyone. It's impossible for him to consume the Medicinal Pill right now. He's just bluffing us."

Liu Tingting sneered, "The Medicinal Pill is in my Master's hands. How would you know whether he swallowed it or not? He just raised his hand and tossed it into his mouth."

"Impossible!" Jia Tianru bellowed in rage.

"Elder Qian Yunchang's Lifespan is near its end. He failed his previous attempt to charge into Foundation Establishment. Only a fool would believe him when he says his Dao foundation wasn't damaged."

"Precisely because his Dao foundation was damaged, he couldn't afford to wait. That's why he recklessly went to the Zhuyun Courtyard's Forbidden Ground, sacrificing several Disciples just to luckily obtain the toxic grass."

"According to the experience passed down by my late Master, anyone who enters the Forbidden Ground will be corroded. Upon returning, they must adhere to the Dao of purity and rest for a month or two to fully recover."

"Not only did Elder Qian Yunchang not rest, but he also performed Alchemy. How could a Medicinal Pill of this caliber be easily refined by someone in the Qi Refining Realm?"

"Without a robust body, is this kind of Medicinal Pill even consumable?"

Hearing their Elder's analysis, Jia Tianru's Disciples instantly felt their morale boost, and they restored their original attacking power.

Xia Shaoxin felt his body being bombarded by an invisible force every single second.

The qi and blood pill did not seem suitable for this kind of situation.

But he temporarily had no other body-strengthening Medicinal Pills on hand.

Being able to hold out until now was not due to taking a three-corpse three-insect body refining pill on the spot, but rather the subtle, long-term influence of having consumed over a hundred of them in his daily life.

Only now did he understand why it was called a "Body Refining pill," and why "three-corpse three-insect" was emphasized at the beginning.

It turned out that this was not an orthodox immortal pill either, but rather a type of evil pill.

No matter what it was, his body was tempered well enough and was sufficiently sturdy.

Looking at Liu Tingting again, her face was even more terribly pale than when they were in the Forbidden Ground. She grit her teeth, hung her head, and didn't utter a single word.

One of Jia Tianru's Disciples suddenly asked, "What if Elder Qian really consumed the Medicinal Pill regardless of the consequences?"

"Then we'll end him once and for all before he can achieve Foundation Establishment!" Jia Tianru's expression was extremely terrifying.

Everyone understood that they had a tiger by the tail and could no longer back down.

Since things had reached this point, unless the Sect Head stepped in with the other Elders to guarantee that neither side would settle scores afterward, the Disciples who followed him today would definitely face dire consequences.

Since that was the case, they might as well pull up the grass by its roots and eliminate the source of trouble.

There was no point in worrying about Sect morality anymore; if he didn't die, they wouldn't be able to live in peace either.

Right at that moment, Elder Qian Yunchang spoke up again, "Stop!"

His voice was incredibly desolate and sorrowful.

"Jia! This is between the two of us. There is no need to involve the Disciples of both sides. Have them stop, and I will fight you to the death. What do you say?"

Jia Tianru laughed heartily and waved his hand, bringing the attacks to an abrupt halt.

Xia Shaoxin instantly felt the pressure on his body vanish.

The halo of light in the sky above the Jingsi Courtyard also quickly faded away.

Liu Tingting murmured, "Master..."

Her body tilted, and she collapsed to the ground.

At this moment, Xia Shaoxin was the only one conscious in the Jingsi Courtyard, but having been crushed by a heavy burden of ten thousand catties for so long, his body felt like it was falling apart, and he could not stand up.

The door to the Spirit Cave opened.

Elder Qian Yunchang walked out.

His hair was disheveled; once as white as silver needles, it was now as coarse as tangled hemp.

His face was haggard, like a starving refugee who hadn't eaten for days.

Xia Shaoxin was greatly shocked; this was a true sign of extreme aging.

Sure enough, Jia Tianru was right. Elder Qian Yunchang was in his twilight years, acting against nature just to make one final gamble.

In the Spirit Cave, he must have used a secret technique to rapidly strengthen his body to meet the requirements for consuming the taisui pill.

Now forced to come out, his eyes were gloomy and filled with hatred.

Passing by Xia Shaoxin, he murmured to himself, "You really are surprising, to actually still be holding on."

He slowly walked to the courtyard entrance.

Jia Tianru sized him up repeatedly and laughed heartily, "Brother Qian, was I not right? You simply cannot do it. In your current state, forcing yourself to consume the Medicinal Pill is no different from suicide."

Elder Qian Yunchang said coldly, "You are very clever, but unfortunately, your cleverness is misplaced."

Jia Tianru sneered, "Look at you, you're just stubborn, insisting on meeting this way."

With a wave of his hand, all the Disciples retreated.

"Well? Am I showing enough sincerity?"

Elder Qian Yunchang said with disgust, "For a wicked person, not actively murdering someone is already considered modest and yielding."

Jia Tianru's face flushed red, "Cut the useless talk. Under what conditions will you hand over your taisui evil pill to me?"

"I have no intention of handing it over. Today, one of us must die. Let the survivor decide."

Jia Tianru's face twitched, and he laughed uproariously, instructing the Disciples behind him:

"All Disciples, hear my command! This is a matter between Elder Qian and me. No matter the outcome, only one of us can die today. You are not allowed to help, nor are you allowed to cause trouble for the Disciples of Xueyan Cliff afterward."

He clapped his hands, "Is this enough sincerity?"

Elder Qian Yunchang nodded, "Very well. After all, we are within the Sect; we cannot involve the innocent."

With a wave of his hand, the Disciples behind Jia Tianru all retreated to a safe distance.

Elder Qian Yunchang said with grief, "You actually have the audacity to try and seize the Medicinal Pill I painstakingly obtained, and from a fellow Sect member at that. For this alone, you do not deserve to live in this world."

Jia Tianru said contemptuously, "You are no saint either. Don't you know that going to the Forbidden Ground would cause many deaths? Do you think I didn't want to go to the Forbidden Ground? I just didn't have the heart to be that cruel."

Elder Qian Yunchang smiled faintly, "You are so blatantly wicked; I truly misjudged you in the past!"

Clang! A flash of sword light suddenly burst from the scabbard, pointing straight at Jia Tianru's head!