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"What?" Lin Qian furrowed his brow, struggling to look around, yet he didn't find any extra figure.
The voice he heard earlier seemed vague, almost like an auditory hallucination brought on by the poison, so Lin Qian didn't think much of it.
Before him now lay matters that truly required his attention.
As Lin Qian panted for breath and straightened his posture, the three who had surged out from the lake completely ignored his presence, passing by and approaching Liang Ren.
Despite emerging from underwater, the three remained dry and pristine.
The trio that appeared later, without exception, wore black-edged red robes, exuding the aura of Soul Martial Artists at the Nirvana Realm.
Clearly, these three were from the Great Spear Sect, other disciples in this valley.
Among them, two were elderly with white hair and beards, carrying an eerie, mystical presence.
Lin Qian recognized this eerie presence as the unique aura of an Array Master!
Clearly, these two elders had limited talent for cultivation but displayed some gift in arrays, focusing their skills in this direction. Their presence here was evidently to break the seal Lin Qian's father had set.
After all, a seal was also a form of array.
As for the younger-looking man, he had a delicate, sinister face with a faint smile. Yet to Lin Qian, this smile appeared extremely fake.
"Fu Yuxiang, it really was you who betrayed the Wanxiang Sect!" Lin Qian glared at the sinister man ahead, gritting his teeth.
A year ago, when the internal agent from the Great Spear Sect was assigned and left the Wanxiang Sect, Lin Qian, brought there by his mentor, happened to see the agent.
That person was none other than the sinister man before him, named Fu Yuxiang.
Reporting false information about the disciple force and personnel from the Great Spear Sect sent to Bashan City, then infiltrating it to investigate the ruins, Fu Yuxiang's betrayal was self-evident.
"I didn't expect that the boy back then would become today's renowned Young Emperor. The Shape Origin Realm's cultivation, hit by Junior Brother Liang's Fire Poison, and still able to stand, impressive." The delicately sinister Fu Yuxiang turned to Lin Qian, clapping lightly in admiration.
"Could it be that back then, it was you who betrayed Senior Brother Qi's team?" Lin Qian, unmoved by Fu Yuxiang's praise, was filled with anger.
"Senior Brother Qi's group was so formidable; upon entering the Great Spear Sect's domain, I had to lend a little help." Fu Yuxiang chuckled lightly, winding a lock of hair around his finger, "Who told him to stupidly share the action plan with me but not with others? There was no risk in betraying him for a reward from the Great Spear Sect."
"You were once a begging street urchin, and it was Senior Brother Qi who adopted you, brought you into the Wanxiang Sect, and helped you become a Soul Martial Artist. He treated you like a brother, yet you betrayed him!" Lin Qian, staring at Fu Yuxiang, gritted his teeth with every word.
Within the sect, Senior Brother Qi had the duty of guiding new disciples.
A year ago, Lin Qian, newly arrived at the Wanxiang Sect with his mentor, relied entirely on Senior Brother Qi's care. This sincere, kind-hearted brother was deeply respected by many junior disciples.
Half a year ago, when Senior Brother Qi went to the Great Spear Sect's territory for a mission, it seemed foolproof yet unexpectedly fell into an ambush. Not a single one of the forty-six disciples from the Wanxiang Sect survived to return.
The outcome was that Fu Yuxiang, whom he regarded as a brother, betrayed him, leading to their tragic fate.
"Brother? Who cares, I couldn't stand his pitying look day in and day out. I don't need his pity. So what if I was a beggar?" Lin Qian's words stirred intense emotions in Fu Yuxiang, causing his pale face to flush slightly.
"Worse than an animal!" Lin Qian spat on the ground, staring icily at the opponent.
"Hahaha..." Fu Yuxiang laughed loudly, then shook his head mockingly at Lin Qian, "A wise bird chooses the best tree to roost in. Acting as an agent for Wanxiang Sect, living in constant fear in the Great Spear Sect, it's better to take refuge with the Great Spear Sect and enjoy life."
"Letting former comrades die without knowing the truth gives a sense of strategic triumph."
Witnessing Fu Yuxiang's behavior, Lin Qian felt so disgusted he wanted to vomit.
Although Bashan City was near both Wanxiang Sect's and Great Spear Sect's territories, the boundaries were strictly patrolled.
For the plan to proceed, plus Fu Yuxiang's false reports, not a single Nirvana Realm was among the team dispatched by the Great Spear Sect.
Hence, the Wanxiang Sect oddly relaxed its patrol vigilance at the borders, allowing this team to slip through.
The Wanxiang Sect never anticipated that their agent would betray them, letting in a pack of wolves.
Logically, with Senior Brother Qi, whom Fu Yuxiang considered like a true brother, dead by the hands of the Great Spear Sect, the expectation was that he wouldn't betray.
Yet the Wanxiang Sect leaders didn't foresee Fu Yuxiang's treacherous nature, with Senior Brother Qi's death actually orchestrated by him.
Now backstabbed, faced with such truth, Lin Qian felt deep anguish.
"I might as well tell you, this time's team has ten at the Nirvana Realm. As for the Shape Origin Realm, there are a hundred." Fu Yuxiang mocked, watching Lin Qian, "Even with the unexpected appearance of you, the Young Emperor, it's to no avail."
"Besides, killing you would be a great achievement!"
Hearing this made Lin Qian's face turn pale.
If it was truly as Fu Yuxiang claimed, then Bashan City stood no chance before him.
Not to mention that Lin Qian was poisoned by Liang Ren's Fire Poison, even at his peak, he couldn't withstand ten Nirvana Realm Martial Artists.
Even if his physique was strong and his combat prowess was terrifying, he was only at the Shape Origin Realm, having truly cultivated for just over a year!
"Fu Yuxiang, I can help you open the ruins below the lake." With this thought, Lin Qian took a deep breath and addressed Fu Yuxiang earnestly.
"Oh?" The seal outside the ruins below the lake indeed troubled them, making Fu Yuxiang interested when Lin Qian claimed he had a solution, "It seems you have some conditions attached?"
"As long as you swear a blood oath now, ensuring no harm comes to anyone in Bashan City, I'll unlock the seal on the ruins for you."
After hearing Lin Qian's request, Fu Yuxiang shook his head in disbelief, "Since you suggest a blood oath, attempting to deceive you into unlocking the seal might be impossible. Unfortunately, this deal can't be made, as our primary task is to destroy the Ye family and kill the family head, Ye Nanxin."
"So, you can die peacefully now."
"What!" Lin Qian's eyes widened in anger, glaring at Fu Yuxiang approaching step by step. He couldn't comprehend why the primary task was to kill Ye Nanxin!
Lin Qian trembled all over, feeling utterly unwilling!
Was he going to die here today, watching Uncle Ye be executed, the entire Ye family and Bashan City destroyed?
He hadn't yet found his parents to share the good news that he could cultivate, nor reunited with Ye Xin, nor cleared his mentor's poison.
So many tasks left undone, and now he was about to die at the hands of such a vile bastard...
The more Lin Qian thought, the more agitated he became, finally raising his head to howl in fury.
"I'm not willing, not willing!"
"Hahaha, scream all you want, even if you scream your lungs out, no one will come to save you." Hearing Lin Qian's howl, Fu Yuxiang laughed triumphantly.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
But at that moment, the sound of clashing metal rang from behind Lin Qian.
As Lin Qian slowly turned around due to the commotion behind, he looked in bewilderment at the dense, suddenly appeared army before him.
This heavily-armored troop of at least a thousand abruptly pounded their fists on their left chests, kneeling on one knee, their resounding shout echoing throughout the valley.
"Hail, Your Majesty!"
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