"S-sheng Tian!!!"
The monks of the Everlasting Temple looked in horror at the young man they had wanted to avoid at all costs.
Sheng Tian eyed the group with clear killing intent, "You've got some nerve to come over here with your meager cultivation bases"
The pressure on them increased even more, causing the monks to spit out some blood essence in the process.
Their leader pointed at Sheng Tian with trembling hands, "Y-you! You can't kill us! The rules-"
"You've trespassed on our territory," Sheng Tian started, "Now you shall pay the price of entry"
Weng!
Snap!
With a slight wave of his hand, the necks of the troublemakers were snapped in a clean fashion.
"S...senior..."
Sheng Tian turned around to face his fellow sect disciples. The trio looked at him with slight awe and fear.
Sheng Tian placed a hand on the shoulder of the young man with blue hair, stunning him, "You have guts. Not bad"
And with that, he left the scene and went to find Long Chen. The young man snapped out of his revere and quickly left with his friends.
-
Sheng Tian used his All Seeing Eyes and saw that the bone age of the young man and his friends were around 30 to 40 years. At that age and being stuck at the third level of Foundation, the trio's cultivation journey will likely end there unless they seize a fortuitous encounter.
He placed a hand on the man's shoulder and secretly sent some of his qi into the bodies of the trio. With that, the three of them should be able to reach the peak of Foundation, but nothing more unless something happens.
"You have guts. Not bad"
Without another word, Sheng Tian went to find Long Chen. It seems that the lockdown imposed by the representative ended much earlier than he had anticipated.
Whoosh!
Sheng Tian arrived once more at the huge building that housed everyone from the Sky Sword Sect who had come to partake in the competition.
Creak!
Sheng Tian pushed open the doors to reveal a spacious lounge and stairs and hallways leading to different rooms.
Sheng Tian moved up the staircase leading to the highest floor, greeting fellow sect disciples along the way. Before long, Sheng Tian stood before a set of double doors.
Knock* Knock* Knock*
Sheng Tian then heard Long Chen's familiar voice, "Come in"
Creak!
Sheng Tian pushed open the doors to reveal a semi spacious room with a bed, table, and chairs.
Long Chen eyed Sheng Tian and shrunk back after feeling the refined aura contained in Sheng Tian's body. If Sheng Tian was a wild tiger before, now he was more like a seasoned hunter, one with plenty of experience in combat.
'What did he go through to get such a result in 5 days?"
Sheng Tian cupped his fist, "Master"
Long Chen was pulled out of his thoughts. He gestured towards a chair, "Have a seat"
Sheng Tian naturally complied and pulled out a chair.
"You seemed to have come out of seclusion quite fast haven't you?"
Sheng Tian nodded, "I thought that it would take a few weeks, but I had reached a state of enlightenment that helped me greatly"
"It that so"
Long Chen wasn't a fool to believe Sheng Tian, but he wasn't someone that would pry either. He poured himself a cup of tea, "So, is there any reason you have come to see me?"
Sheng Tian nodded, "I wish to know what has happened in the past few days, and if the envoy has discovered anything"
Long Chen looked through his spatial ring for a moment before pulling out a jade slip. Sheng Tian took it and sent his spiritual sense in.
What was revealed was a 4 pointed star in a circle with an eye at its center. While not the original, just seeing the image unsettled Sheng Tian.
"The envoy had called experts from the Xia Palace to examine the body. After some time, they found that this image had been carved into White Crane's chest before the heart had been removed"
Sheng Tian furrowed his brows, "What is this mark?"
Long Chen shook his head, "No clue, apparently it had been found in several records in completely different cases, but its meaning is unknown. They have ruled out the possibility of demon worshipers however"
Sheng Tian set down the jade slip, "That's not comforting in the slightest. Now we have a different organization to worry about"
Long Chen nodded in agreement, "The lockdown had been lifted just 2 days after White Crane's body had been found, and all the sect leaders had been gathered for a meeting. Unfortunately, whatever that organization's purpose, it is likely that they have succeeded"
"Did the sects argue or something?"
Long Chen shook his head, "Even worse, they pointed fingers and were on the verge of fighting. Thankfully, the experts of the Xia Empire broke up the meeting and trusted sects have formed temporary alliances"
"What are the current standings?"
Long Chen took out another jade slip. Sheng Tian looked into it and found that this one was a list of different parties.
"So we are neutral huh?"
There were 16 sects that were in the neutral side, most of which were powerful sects and the minority being the smart sects.
Another party was led by the Sacred Blood Palace, who wanted to thoroughly search everyone and cause large movements in general. Surprisingly, there were only 10 other sects on their side.
Finally, the last party wanted everyone to work together and aid each other in times of need. There were 12 sects within this group, and Sheng Tian could tell that every one of them wish for the top sects to shield them.
Long Chen nodded, "I felt that this was the best decision, plus I made an alliance with the Lotus Fairy Master and she has ordered her disciples to move into the nearest residence by us"
Sheng Tian nodded. Long Chen was indeed smart to choose to lie low and make connections. That was probably why he was chosen to be the sect leader in the first place, because of his good decision making skills.
"I'm going to visit Yu- the Lotus Fairy Master and see if she has any ideas. Oh, and one more thing"
Sheng Tian took out the portrait that Yue Ling'er had drawn, "See if you can find anything about her"