586: Chapter 586 The Great White Proclamation was Issued, and the Righteous Path Remained Angry but Speechless

Sun Xiaohua and Zhou Xiaolian sat at the edge of the Martial Arts Arena reading the proclamation, laughing so hard they were doubling over.

Sun Xiaohua pointed at one of the sentences, laughing so much she couldn't speak.

Zhou Xiaolian read aloud, "'If you're so capable, don't sleep with your wives from now on,'" and laughed as well.

Several female Disciples covered their mouths and giggled uncontrollably; after laughing for a long while, they felt a sense of relief.

They had been cursed by the Righteous Path Alliance for so long, and this single article by the Sect Master had vented all their frustrations.

Leng Ningshuang stood behind the crowd, not laughing.

She read the proclamation twice, then folded it neatly and handed it to a nearby Disciple.

"Keep it. This is the most valuable thing the Hehuan Sect has produced since its founding."

Ning Caihe also read it, and after finishing, he only said one word.

"Good."

Qingyan squatted in a corner, her chin resting on her hands as she looked at the proclamation, her eyes curving into crescent moons from smiling.

She whispered, "The Sect Master brother's literary talent is damn well good."

After they had laughed enough, the Disciples made many copies of the proclamation and posted them on the stone tablets in front of the Hehuan Sect's mountain gate.

When the proclamation reached the various major Sects, the reactions were quite different.

After Hall Master Xuan Qingzi of Frost Hall finished reading the proclamation, his face turned from green to purple, and from purple to black.

He slammed the table, shattering several teacups, and glared with wide eyes as he roared at the reporting Disciple, "He... how dare he!

I am of the Righteous Path; when have I ever turned black into white? This is pure slander!"

After roaring, he realized the proclamation had spread everywhere and simply couldn't be stopped.

Everyone who saw the proclamation was laughing, discussing it, and saying, "Xu Ruyu's scolding is truly satisfying."

He wasn't angry because Xu Ruyu's insults were harsh; he was angry because everything Xu Ruyu said was the truth.

Sect Leader Zhou of the Tianquan Sect finished reading the proclamation and remained silent for a long time before placing it on the table. "Now that this proclamation is out, nothing we say will matter anymore."

When someone nearby asked him why, Sect Leader Zhou said, "Because what he says is the truth. The Hehuan Sect has indeed never done anything heinous.

Our siege of them was indeed because we wanted to divide their resources.

Everyone knows these things in their hearts; they just don't say them.

Now Xu Ruyu has lifted the lid, the stench of shit is wafting out, and who can cover it up?"

When the proclamation reached those small Sects, some were exploding with rage: "This Xu Ruyu is simply arrogant!"

They prepared to pick up their pens to write a rebuttal, but after a long time, they couldn't squeeze out a single word.

Because they couldn't refute a single thing Xu Ruyu had said.

The Hehuan Sect had indeed never done anything heinous.

Their siege of the Hehuan Sect was indeed to take advantage.

How could they whitewash these things? They couldn't.

Someone slammed the table: "I'm not writing! I'll just pretend I never saw it!"

The news spread throughout the Cultivation World.

In a tavern, a Loose Cultivator read the proclamation to his companions, laughing loudly when he got to the part about "a bunch of ball-less things."

Nearby tea drinkers leaned over to look, clicking their tongues in wonder after reading it.

"This Xu Ruyu is a ruthless character."

Another Loose Cultivator chimed in: "If he wasn't ruthless, could he have locked up over a thousand people from the Righteous Path Alliance? If he wasn't ruthless, would he dare write such a proclamation? Those Righteous Path Sects are used to bullying small Sects and factions; this time they've kicked a steel plate."

The Hehuan Sect Disciples no longer cared about the outside public opinion.

They had discovered a principle—trying to reason with unreasonable people will never work.

But once you start a shouting match with them, they're the first to back down.

Because they couldn't out-insult an engineering student.

In Ningyin Hall, Xu Ruyu was sitting by the window drinking tea.

Xiao Nianyin sat opposite him.

She also held a copy of the proclamation, reading it for the third time, the corners of her mouth curving into a subtle arc.

"This proclamation of yours is written far too bluntly."

She said.

"Isn't bluntness good? If I beat around the bush, they won't understand."

Xiao Nianyin put down the proclamation.

"They are currently discussing uniting to denounce you.

With this scolding, they'll be even more provoked and even less able to back down gracefully."

Xu Ruyu shrugged.

"So what if they're provoked? Can they scold the Grand Array into breaking? Can they scold Xiao Nianyin into falling? A bunch of ball-less things."

Xiao Nianyin gave him a sidelong glance, but the arc at the corner of her mouth widened slightly.

The Grand Elder pushed the door open and entered, a smile on his face.

"Sect Master, those outside Sects aren't making much noise anymore.

After the proclamation was sent out, their voices have quieted down significantly."

"It's not that their voices are quieter; it's that they have no face left to shout." Xu Ruyu put away the proclamation. "If they're not satisfied, come and fight.

They don't dare, and they can't beat me in a war of words. Besides shutting up, what else can they do?"

The Grand Elder laughed, a very hearty laugh.

He had lived for more than half his life, and this was the first time he felt so satisfied.

Night fell.

The lights in Ningyin Hall were still lit.

Xu Ruyu sat at the table, continuing to draw his blueprints.

The light screen outside was still flowing, and those people from the Righteous Path Alliance whose Sects hadn't raised enough money were still locked inside.

The Spirit Stones from Frost Hall had not yet arrived.

Everything remained the same, yet everything had changed.

That proclamation was like a fire, burning away the Righteous Path Alliance's last fig leaf.

They no longer dared to use the name of 'justice' to crusade against the Hehuan Sect, because Xu Ruyu had already stripped them bare—to keep pretending would be truly shameless.

Meanwhile, the Hehuan Sect Disciples were currently gathered in small groups, still passing around the Sect Master's 'masterpiece,' laughing every time they read it.

Zhao Yan and Li Ergou were competing to see who could memorize more, while Zhou Daniu was asking Zhao Tiezhu what 'Root of Right and Wrong' meant, to which Zhao Tiezhu replied, 'Check if you have one on yourself.'

Bursts of laughter followed one after another, and the commotion didn't disperse until late at night.

Before the proclamation storm had even settled, the Hehuan Sect released another shocking piece of news.

This time, it wasn't a proclamation, but an ultimatum.

The message was personally drafted by the Grand Elder, with phrasing much more formal than the proclamation, but the core message was only one thing—if you don't come to ransom people within three days, everyone trapped in the Grand Array will be killed.

After the Grand Elder finished writing, he showed it to Xu Ruyu, who glanced at it and changed a few words.

He changed "Hope your noble Sect considers this" to "Come or don't come," and changed "Late arrivals will not be waited for" to "Late arrivals will be executed without mercy."

The Grand Elder's mouth twitched as he looked at those changes; he wanted to say something but swallowed it back.

He was used to it now; the Sect Master's style was just like this—straightforward and never beating around the bush.

Previously, he thought this was bad and easily offended people, but now he had realized—if they're offended, they're offended; anyway, those people can't beat the Hehuan Sect.

When the news spread, the entire Cultivation World boiled over once again.

Hall Master Xuan Qingzi of Frost Hall was counting the remaining family assets in the storehouse when he heard the news; the ledger in his hand dropped directly to the floor.

His face turned from white to green, from green to purple, and finally into an indescribable grayish-brown, like a piece of charred wood.

"Three days? Where are we going to get ten million Spirit Stones in three days?"

His voice was hoarse, like it had been ground by sand.

The people nearby didn't dare to respond.

The entire Frost Hall was so quiet that the sound of heartbeats could be heard.

The old Sect Head of the Tianxuan Sect finished reading the ultimatum and remained silent for a long time.

"Go, take out those few ancestral Magical Artifacts from the storehouse.

Sell them to gather the Spirit Stones."

The people nearby became anxious.

"Sect Head, those are the thousands of years of Legacy of our Tianxuan Sect!"