587: Chapter 587 Some sold their treasures, some borrowed money, all to bring back their ancestors.

The old Sect Head closed his eyes, his voice becoming low.

"A Legacy can be found again if lost, but if the people are gone, they are truly gone."

"Those few are the mainstays of the Sect; if they die, the Tianxuan Sect will fall apart."

The few people stopped talking and went to move things with reddened eyes.

Sect Leader Li of the Tianji Sect brought out her own dowry.

Several boxes of jewelry and ornaments, all of which she had saved for most of her life; she didn't even give them a final glance before directly having people move them onto a spirit boat.

"Go. Exchange them for Spirit Stones and redeem the people."

Someone nearby tried to advise her otherwise, but she waved them off.

"Don't try to persuade me. You can't take those things with you when you're born or when you die. Being alive is more important than anything."

Xuanbingzi of the North Pole Ice Soul Palace directly mortgaged the mountain gate.

It wasn't mortgaged to another Sect, but to a Loose Cultivator organization that specialized in lending.

The interest was ridiculously high, but he couldn't care about that anymore.

He signed, pressed his thumbprint, and loaded boxes of Spirit Stones onto the spirit boat.

Someone beside him asked, "Palace Master, this interest... will we be able to pay it back?"

Xuanbingzi gave a bitter laugh.

"We have to pay it back even if we can't. Saving the Old Ancestor comes first."

Sect Leader Zhou of the Tianquan Sect was quite straightforward.

He had someone inventory the Spirit Stones in the storehouse and found they were still quite short.

He then sold his private collection—several famous paintings, a few ancient swords, and an ancient inkstone.

They were all his precious treasures that had been with him for decades; he touched them one by one for a long time before waving his hand.

Sell them, sell them all.

The other small Sects were even more desperate, going bankrupt for the cause.

Some Sect Heads even sold their own Lifebound Magical Artifacts, some Disciples donated savings they had accumulated for over a decade, and one old Cultivator even brought out the relics left to him by his Master.

It wasn't for anything else but to redeem the core figures of their Sects who were being held prisoner.

If those few people died, these remaining small Sects probably wouldn't even have a tomorrow.

Three days was neither long nor short.

Spirit boats from various Sects flew toward the Hehuan Sect from all directions; some were fast, some were slow, and some were still scraping together Spirit Stones on the way.

But they all came; not a single person dared not to show up.

In front of the Hehuan Sect's mountain gate, a large area was filled with parked spirit boats.

There were those from the Tianxuan Sect, Tianji Sect, Tianquan Sect, North Pole Ice Soul Palace, Frost Hall, and over a dozen other small Sects.

There were many people, but it was very quiet.

No one spoke, no one shouted, and no one cursed.

They just stood there, holding storage rings in their hands, eyes fixed on the Hehuan Sect's mountain gate, waiting.

Xu Ruyu didn't make them wait too long. He walked out from the mountain gate, followed by Xiao Nianyin and the Grand Elder.

Zhao Yan, Li Ergou, and Zhou Daniu stood on both sides, holding qi-breaking guns and Chuanyang Guns; although the safeties weren't off, the display was intimidating enough.

Xuanbingzi stood at the very front of the crowd. Seeing Xu Ruyu come out, he took a deep breath, stepped forward, and handed him the storage ring without saying a word.

Xu Ruyu took the storage ring and scanned it with his Divine Sense.

The Spirit Stones were piled into a small mountain, along with several Magical Artifacts and some Medicinal Pills.

"Not enough Spirit Stones, so you're using items to make up the difference?"

He asked.

Xuanbingzi gritted his teeth.

"The insufficient portion is covered by Magical Artifacts and Medicinal Pills; those are the best items of our Frost Hall."

The Grand Elder double-checked everything beside him and nodded to Xu Ruyu.

Xu Ruyu smiled.

"Fine. Grand Elder, go release them."

An opening appeared in the light screen.

Ancestor Xuan Yin walked out from within.

His hair was whiter, the wrinkles on his face were deeper, and his eyes were no longer as sharp as before, looking like a dulled blade.

He walked at the very front, followed by the Disciples of the Frost Hall, each with their heads bowed like defeated soldiers.

Xuanbingzi went to meet him, wanting to support him, but he waved his hand, refusing help.

But he didn't leave.

He stood before the mountain gate, turned around, and looked at Xu Ruyu.

His lips moved as if he wanted to say something.

There were many things in his eyes—hatred, resentment, unwillingness, and a trace of something indescribable; it might have been respect, it might have been fear, or it might have been nothing at all.

Xu Ruyu looked at him, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly.

"Ancestor Xuan Yin, do you have anything else to say?"

Ancestor Xuan Yin closed his mouth and led his people away.

He didn't say a single word.

It wasn't that he didn't want to speak, but that he didn't dare to.

He was afraid that as soon as he spoke, Xu Ruyu would say he was threatening him again and demand more money.

He had thoroughly experienced the horror of that Grand Array over the past month—the more you resisted, the stronger the array became, like a beast that could never be satiated; the more you struggled, the tighter it bit.

He had tried countless times, and each time he was thrown back by the counter-shock, leaving his Qi and blood churning and his internal organs aching.

He had thought about self-detonation, but he couldn't bring himself to do it.

He had lived for nearly ten thousand years and had finally reached the level of a Half-step True Immortal with great difficulty; he hadn't lived long enough yet.

What scared him even more was that Tian Jianzi had been killed by Xu Ruyu.

Tian Jianzi was also a Half-step True Immortal, an old monster who had lived for nearly ten thousand years, yet he was ground down to death by Xu Ruyu until not even ashes remained.

He didn't want to become the second Tian Jianzi; he only wanted to leave this hellish place alive.

So he stopped speaking and stopped glaring, turning to leave with his people.

The old Sect Head of the Tianxuan Sect walked forward tremblingly and handed the storage ring to Xu Ruyu.

His fingers were shaking, not because of fear, but because of old age.

He had lived most of his life and thought he could retire and live out his days in peace, never expecting to be pulled out again to clean up such a mess.

Since there weren't enough Spirit Stones, he used Magical Artifacts to compensate.

Those Magical Artifacts were passed down by the successive Ancestral Masters of the Tianxuan Sect, each with over a thousand years of history.

He placed them into the storage ring one by one, as if he were dismantling his own bones piece by piece.

Xu Ruyu glanced at the storage ring and nodded.

"Grand Elder, release them."

The light screen opened another gap.

The people from the Tianxuan Sect walked out; some Disciples were limping, and some were supporting each other.

They walked up to the old Sect Head and fell to their knees with a thud.

"Sect Head, your Disciples are incompetent and have caused you such trouble."

The old Sect Head helped them up one by one, his voice hoarse.

"It's good that you're back, it's good that you're back. Is everyone here? Count them, is anyone missing?"

Next was the Tianji Sect.

Sect Leader Li came in person.

She didn't let an Elder do it for her; she personally carried the storage ring to Xu Ruyu and handed it to him.

She didn't say anything, nor did she curse.

It wasn't that she didn't want to curse, but that she didn't dare to.

Her son was still inside; she was afraid that if she opened her mouth and Xu Ruyu turned hostile, her son wouldn't be able to come out.

Xu Ruyu took the storage ring, scanned it with his Divine Sense, and nodded.

"Grand Elder, release him."

The light screen opened a gap.

Sect Leader Li's son ran out, and upon seeing his mother, tears instantly welled up.

"Mother!"

He ran over and threw himself into her arms, crying like a small child.

Sect Leader Li held him, gently patting his back, her own eyes red.

"It's okay now, it's okay. Come home with mother."