The murderer must be from Yuhua Xianmen!

Inside the headquarters of the Shangqing Immortal Sect.

The melodious chime of a bell rang out, nine times in succession.

This was the bell that summoned the Elders for an emergency meeting when urgent matters arose within the sect.

A moment later, inside the main hall.

The atmosphere was somewhat somber.

They had already received the news that Deng Zhong’s soul tablet had shattered.

It had been nearly a million years since a high-level Elder of the Shangqing Immortal Sect had fallen.

Although Deng Zhong’s strength was not considered strong among the Elders, and he had reincarnated and cultivated to only a One-turn Pseudo-immortal Realm.

However, his identity as an Elder of the Shangqing Immortal Sect was his greatest protective charm.

The Shangqing Immortal Sect was the undisputed overlord of the Second Heaven. Not to mention a small force in a Spiritual Land, even those Three-star forces would never dare to lay a hand on Deng Zhong if he revealed his identity.

“What do you all think?”

Amidst the silence, Sect Leader Ling Tian spoke.

A white-haired old man with a serious face and a gaunt physique spoke up.

“I believe, Sect Leader, that you misjudged.”

Ling Tian glanced at the old man.

If anyone else had spoken so directly, he might have become angry.

But this person, even he had to give him some face.

This was precisely the current Second Elder Tai Shu Yuan of the Shangqing Immortal Sect. Although he ranked second, his strength was even above that of the First Elder Zhu She, and he was also the strongest expert within the sect besides Ling Tian. He usually oversaw many sect affairs, and his prestige was also the highest among all the Elders.

Only he dared to directly criticize Ling Tian to his face.

Therefore, Ling Tian was not angry, but instead asked, “Oh, Second Elder, why do you say that?”

Tai Shu Yuan said in a deep voice, “Before that, Sect Leader, please tell us first, did you see anything from the fragments of Nine Elder’s soul tablet?”

Ling Tian shook his head, “If I had seen anything, Sect Leader would have said so long ago. Would Sect Leader intentionally keep you in suspense?”

“Even if Sect Leader used a secret technique, he couldn't glimpse the scene of Nine Elder’s death from the fragments.”

“There is only one possibility for this situation to occur.”

“That is, Nine Elder used his Virtual Spirit Secret Art and transformed into a Virtual Spirit Body.”

“In such a situation, only he himself knows what he saw.”

Second Elder Tai Shu Yuan nodded, “Since that’s the case, it means that the enemy is extraordinary. To be able to force Nine Elder to transform into a Virtual Spirit Body and still not escape their clutches.”

“Sect Leader, do you think Zhong Qing, a Three Tribulation Emperor from the lower realm, has the ability to do that?”

Ling Tian fell silent.

He had to admit, it was indeed unlikely.

It was well known that the lower realm was covered by a curse. Once tainted, it was absolutely impossible to break through to the Pseudo-immortal Realm.

And experts above the Pseudo-immortal Realm, after being tainted by the curse, could no longer advance further, their cultivation path severed.

Although Nine Elder Deng Zhong currently only had the strength of a One-turn Pseudo-Immortal, it would be one thing if he was counter-attacked by some heaven-defying Three Tribulation Emperor using certain special means. But he even used his Virtual Spirit Body and still couldn’t escape the calamity, without even a chance to flee.

Not to mention a Three Tribulation Emperor, even a Three-turn or even Four-turn Pseudo-Immortal would not have this ability.

Second Elder said in a deep voice, “That’s why I said, Sect Leader, you misjudged.”

“From the beginning, I felt something was off. A commoner from the lower realm, a Three Tribulation Emperor tainted by the curse, where did he get the guts to steal something from my Shangqing Immortal Sect, kill someone from my Shangqing Immortal Sect, and even dare to come to the upper realm? Is he here to die?”

Upon hearing this, many Elders agreed.

Firstly, the other party was tainted by the curse, so even if he obtained the Heaven and Earth Xuan Jian, he couldn't break through to Pseudo-Immortal.

Secondly, after offending the Shangqing Immortal Sect, he still ran to the Second Heaven. How foolish was that? If he had the strength to kill Deng Zhong, wouldn't it be much safer to just stay in the lower realm? Who would be willing to risk severing their cultivation path to kill someone in the lower realm?

Second Elder continued, “There are only two possibilities for him to dare to do this. One is that from the beginning, he was not some Emperor Realm, but a Pseudo-Immortal, and not an ordinary Pseudo-Immortal, at least above Four-turn.”

“Or, although he himself is just a Great Emperor, he has an expert above Four-turn Pseudo-Immortal behind him.”

“Regardless of which one, this person is most likely not some native of the lower realm, but was originally from the Second Heaven, and has an extraordinary background!”

Everyone present nodded in agreement.

Second Elder’s eyes darkened as he swept his gaze across the crowd.

“We were calculated from the start!”

“Sect Leader, however, immediately assumed he was just a native of the lower realm. This was a misjudgment, and it led to Deng Zhong’s death!”

Being accused like this in front of so many people, Ling Tian did not get angry.

If he didn't have such magnanimity, he wouldn't have been able to become the Sect Leader of the Shangqing Immortal Sect today.

He just nodded and said in a deep voice, “Second Elder is right. This time, it was Sect Leader’s misjudgment. I shouldn’t have jumped to conclusions.”

“Then, according to Second Elder, what is the truth?”

Second Elder’s eyes flickered as he spoke.

“Actually, it’s not hard to guess.”

“Looking at the entire Second Heaven, there are quite a few Two-star and even Three-star forces that possess Pseudo-Immortal experts above Four-turn.”

“But how many forces would dare to do such a thing, sending people to scheme against my Shangqing Immortal Sect, and even daring to directly kill an Elder of my Immortal Sect? I believe everyone already has an answer in their hearts.”

The Elders present remained silent, but their eyes gleamed, having already thought of something.

Second Elder was right.

Killing Deng Zhong was not just a matter of strength, but also a matter of courage.

Not to mention just a One-turn Pseudo-Immortal, even if he were just a chicken, as long as he carried the identity of an Immortal Sect Elder, few people would dare to touch him.

“Is it the other three Immortal Sects?”

Fifth Elder Tang Xi Zhi spoke.

Second Elder nodded, “Nine times out of ten.”

“Besides the three Immortal Sects that are on par with my Shangqing Immortal Sect, among those with some strength in the Second Heaven, there is only the Nine Clouds Sect. But they have always acted discreetly and don’t seem to have the guts to kill an Elder of my Immortal Sect.”

Ling Tian then asked, “Then, according to Second Elder, which one is the most likely?”

Second Elder pondered for a moment before speaking, “It’s very likely the Yuhua Immortal Sect!”

Everyone present was startled.

Ling Tian asked, “Second Elder, why do you make such a judgment?”

Second Elder said, “It’s simple. The Spiritual Land where the Liuguang Sect is located is closest to the Yuhua Immortal Sect.”

“If Zhong Qing was from the Yuhua Immortal Sect, knowing that he would be pursued and killed by my Shangqing Immortal Sect, he would naturally be in the place closest to his own sect, so that the sect could come to his aid.”

“Of course, that’s just one reason. The second reason is, as you all know, the Yuhua Immortal Sect was the one stationed in the lower realm collecting luck for the previous two hundred thousand years!”

“The scheme to seize the Heaven and Earth Xuan Jian clearly couldn’t have been a spur-of-the-moment decision. We took over from the Yuhua Immortal Sect, and in the two hundred thousand years before that, if anyone could have made arrangements and planned ahead, it could only have been the Yuhua Immortal Sect!”