588: Chapter 588 Sigh, what a great target! Where will we find such a good target in the future?

Sect Leader Zhou of the Tianquan Sect was the last one.

He handed the storage ring to Xu Ruyu. Since he was a bit short on Spirit Stones, he fished a jade pendant out of his sleeve and placed it on top of the storage ring.

"This is a family heirloom; it's not worth much, but it's all I have left."

Xu Ruyu picked up the jade pendant, looked at it, and returned it to him.

"No need to make up the difference. Your Tianquan Sect was the first to hand over Spirit Stones, so I'll give you a discount."

Sect Leader Zhou was stunned for a moment, then gave a deep bow, turned, and left.

Other small Sects also gradually handed over Spirit Stones and collected their people.

No one dared to say a word; no one dared to linger for even a breath.

They arrived looking like they were at a funeral and left as if they were fleeing for their lives.

The space inside the light screen gradually emptied.

Only scattered debris, a few pieces of torn clothing, and several discarded broken swords remained on the Martial Arts Arena.

Those Righteous Path Alliance Cultivators, who had once clamored to destroy the Hehuan Sect, had now slunk away into the distance.

Zhao Yan stood at the edge of the Martial Arts Arena, watching those receding figures, and suddenly felt a bit lost.

He scratched his head.

"Sigh, what great targets. Where will I find such good targets in the future?"

His voice wasn't loud, but those Righteous Path Alliance Disciples who hadn't gone far heard him.

A Disciple from the Tianxuan Sect stumbled, nearly falling.

With reddened eyes, he looked back at those Hehuan Sect Disciples carrying guns and cannons, feeling a suffocating pressure in his chest.

He wanted to curse back, but he didn't dare. His robes still had several holes, and the wound on his butt from the shot by Zhou Daniu hadn't fully healed yet.

He gritted his teeth, turned his head back, and continued walking.

They weren't targets, but they had served as living targets for nearly a month.

From morning to night every day, they were used as bullseyes for target practice by those Hehuan Sect Disciples, who shot at them until they didn't even dare to lift their heads.

Now they were finally out, but that kind of humiliation and fear was etched into their bones; they probably wouldn't be able to forget it for the rest of their lives.

Li Ergou also walked over, looking at the empty Grand Array. He shouldered his Chuanyang Gun and sighed.

"Yeah, so many good targets, and now they're just gone.

There won't be anywhere to practice shooting later. Zhou Daniu, how many rounds of energy do you have left in that qi-breaking gun?"

Zhou Daniu counted on his fingers and also sighed.

"There are still several Energy Crystals left. What a waste, what a waste. If I'd known, I would've fired a few more shots yesterday."

Zhao Tiezhu, who was wiping his Thunder Roar Cannon nearby, couldn't help but chime in.

"My cannon only fired a dozen or so rounds; I haven't even had my fill yet. Those people are really something—why leave so fast? Staying a few more days wouldn't kill them."

Several Disciples from small Sects who hadn't gone far almost fell off their Flying Swords upon hearing this.

Stay a few more days? They didn't want to stay for even one more day.

They never wanted to come to this gods-forsaken place again in their lives.

Qingyan squatted in a corner, tilting her head as she looked at the empty Grand Array. Resting her chin in her hands, she gave a sweet smile.

"It's good that they're gone. It's peaceful. But the call to arms written by Sect Master Brother was really fun, even more interesting than target practice."

The Grand Elder stood before the mountain gate, watching the departing Spirit Boats, remaining silent for a long time.

He remembered a few months ago when the Hehuan Sect was besieged by the Righteous Path Alliance and driven into a corner. Disciples died or fled, and he had knelt at the Tianyan Sect, begging Shen Biyun to take them in.

At that time, he felt the Hehuan Sect was finished and would never be able to recover in this lifetime.

And now? Those people from the Righteous Path Alliance were kneeling and begging them to accept Spirit Stones and release the prisoners.

He stood before this light screen like a stake driven into the ground, remaining there until the last Spirit Boat disappeared over the horizon.

Then he turned around and walked back to Ningyin Hall.

Xu Ruyu was drinking tea in the hall.

Xiao Nianyin sat opposite him, holding that old book she had already flipped through several times. It was unclear what she was actually looking at; perhaps she wasn't reading at all, just waiting.

"Are they all gone?"

Xu Ruyu asked.

"Gone."

The Grand Elder sat down and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

Xu Ruyu smiled.

"Grand Elder, you look a bit lost."

The Grand Elder was silent for a while.

"This old man isn't lost; I'm just emotional. A few months ago, they came to besiege us, intending to wipe us out completely.

Now they come to ransom people, and when they don't have enough Spirit Stones, they have to use Magical Artifacts as collateral. I've lived for most of my life and have never seen such a scene."

Xu Ruyu smiled again.

"Grand Elder, there will be many such scenes in the future. You'll get used to it."

The Grand Elder looked at Xu Ruyu's youthful face and suddenly felt that this young man was truly different.

The things he did, the calls to arms he wrote, and the words he spoke were all things the Grand Elder had never imagined and could never do.

He didn't understand the rules of the Cultivation World, nor did he care what the Cultivation World thought of him.

He only did what he believed was right and only protected those he wanted to protect.

And the Hehuan Sect, precisely because it had him, was able to crawl out of the mire and reach its current height.

The Grand Elder stood up, poured a cup of tea for Xu Ruyu, and then poured one for Xiao Nianyin as well.

Then he raised his own cup of tea toward Xu Ruyu.

"Sect Master, this old man offers tea instead of wine to toast you."

Xu Ruyu raised his teacup and clinked it.

"Grand Elder, you're too kind."

The Grand Elder drained it in one gulp, his eyes reddening slightly.

Outside the hall, the light screen was still flowing, its golden-red light reflecting off the entire Hehuan Sect mountain gate like a city that never sleeps.

There was no one left inside; not a single person from the Righteous Path Alliance remained.

With the Righteous Path Alliance gone, the Hehuan Sect returned to its former tranquility.

There were no more gunshots on the Martial Arts Arena, no more screams, and no more figures being beaten into a scurrying mess.

Zhou Daniu and the others began cleaning their guns, wiping the barrels until they gleamed.

Although the days of target practice were over, they knew this peace was only temporary.

The winds of the Cultivation World never truly stop; they just weren't blowing at the moment.

As long as those Righteous Path Sects still had a breath left in them, they would not let matters rest.

But Xu Ruyu didn't care.

He never cared how others viewed him, how they cursed him, or how they plotted against him.

All he cared about was the Hehuan Sect and these Disciples who had gone through life and death with him.

The night had grown deep.

The lights in Ningyin Hall were still lit. Xu Ruyu sat by the window, continuing to draw his blueprints.

Xiao Nianyin sat beside him. Today she didn't have a book in hand; she just sat quietly.

"What are you drawing?"

she asked.

"A tank."

Xu Ruyu didn't even look up.

It was another thing she didn't understand, so Xiao Nianyin stopped asking.

She just sat there, watching that layer of light screen slowly flow in the night wind.

Outside the light screen, the moon had risen overhead, illuminating the entire mountain gate of the Hehuan Sect.

The war was over—for now.

No one knew when the next storm would come; maybe tomorrow, maybe the day after, or maybe it would never come.

Regardless of when it arrived, they were already prepared.