Chief Elder Baishen took Chief Elder Suxian's body directly toward the physician pavilion. At the same time she sent all her spiritual senses in direction of Chief Elder Qinghe. Since Xiao Xuefeng had organized the elders herself, Chief Elder Baishen knew exactly where the physicians were. She had posted them at various key locations in case of emergency and Chief Elder Qinghe was still in the physician pavilion so he would be easy to contact if someone required more advanced care.
As it turned out, Chief Elder Suxian required extremely specific cares. The moment Chief Elder Qinghe heard about his conditions, he began to send several elders look for various materials and for books. Even for him, this kind of poison was very unfamiliar. It reminded him of many different poisons he had heard about but the effects were all wrong.
Most likely, this poison had been crafted by the demonic cultivators. In fact, Luoming Tian had found it where he had found the 'Blood Runes' cultivation method and most of the information he had been using. This had come directly from Demon God Da Mo himself. Even the greatest physician on the Piaolu planet would be powerless against this poison. Despite his strength, even he couldn't kill a late Spirit Warrior with one blow. But the poison would. According to what Luoming Tian had found, this poison was known as the Black Death Prison. This wasn't even the full version. Right now, he had only been able to produce a watered-down version that was only a 5-star Heaven poison. But the real deal was supposed to be a 3-star Spirit poison. If he had succeeded in synthesizing it, Chief Elder Suxian would have been dead already and even his soul would have turned to black goo.
Once Chief Elder Qinghe finally received the body of Chief Elder Suxian, he really understood the severity of the situation. His blood had been completely replaced by the poison, entirely corrupted. Then, it had attacked his acupoints, trapping his Qi and turning it into Evil Qi while he was still alive. Finally, because his acupoints had been sealed, his Soul Embryo got trapped inside his Upper Dantian. As a 7th-grade Spirit Warrior, his soul and his Soul Embryo had almost fused together. This meant that his Soul Embryo could live a few centuries outside of his body.
Since his body was dead anyway, Chief Elder Qinghe decided to try and save his Soul Embryo at the very least. Losing no time to try and explain the situation, the physician got to work immediately. Thousands of silver needles left from his cabinet. From Chief Elder Qinghe's fingers, flames of different colors appeared and engulfed some of the needles as they were flying toward Chief Elder Suxian. Each one reached a peculiar acupoint. Some even went to the same acupoints. Chief Elder Suxian's body got contorted by pain but he was completely silent. The spectacle was terrifying. And Chief Elder Baishen had had enough.
Now that her friend was in the hands of the best physicians they knew, she could leave him. In her eyes, there was only hatred. Those last few years, she had gotten closer to Chief Elders Suxian and Luoming. Even then, she didn't know what made her the most furious, that one of her friends was dying or that another one had betrayed not only the Wubei Sect but all of mankind. Anyway, she had no time to ponder over her feelings.
Leaving the physician work in peace, Chief Elder Baishen leapt toward the sounds of battle.
Despite possessing the Seal of Authority, Xiao Xuefeng was still only a 7th-grade Spirit Warrior. Chief Elder Luoming had been in charge of the disciplinary pavilion and apparently he had a good knowledge of array formations. In fact, concerning the Palace of Supreme Wisdom, he had exceeded his former friend. In truth, he had specifically studied the array formations of the Wubei Sect.
Because Xiao Xuefeng was still reluctant to activate all the array formations as there were still some damages being repaired, she had a hard time fighting against Chief Elder Luoming.
From his spatial ring, he took out a huge painting. There were many creatures painted on the canvas. All of them jumped out of it. They were literally made of black ink and were now racing through the air toward Xiao Xuefeng. Each one represented a different animal but they were moving so fast that the ink was in constant flux and their shapes ever changing. This time, Xiao Xuefeng had enough time to counter him. Instead of using the Seal of Authority, she took out her 'Crane Dancing on the Pillars of Heaven and Earth' guqin.
With only a few notes, hundreds of cranes appeared in the sky and dove down toward the ink creatures. They were perfectly white with red beaks. Every one of their movements was in harmony with the melody played by Xiao Xuefeng. As the former chief elder of the arts pavilion, Luoming Tian was also in expert in music, as well as in most arts. From his own spatial ring, he took out a very long dizi, a kind of transverse flute. It was carved in some sort of ivory tusk with many golden characters engraved on it. At a glance, Xiao Xuefeng recognized that this craftsmanship belonged to Luoming Tian himself.
She was a 4-star Heaven musician but she had heard Luoming Tian play before and he was almost as good as her if not more. But today she realized he had been hiding his real talent. With the very first note, her soul began to waver. Luoming Tian was almost a 1-star Spirit musician. Steeling her resolve, Xiao Xuefeng easily broke the spell Luoming Tian was trying to put her under. But it distracted her long enough for the ink animals to get close to her. Before she could retaliate, a powerful wave cut the air in front of her. A mighty torrent was rising from the ground.
When she looked down, Xiao Xuefeng saw Chief Elder Baishen. Both Xiao Xuefeng and Luoming Tian were flying very high in the sky. And now the chief elder of the martial arts pavilion was joining them.
"You despicable vermin! I'll rip you apart piece by piece!"
As soon as he heard Chief Elder Baishen's voice, Luoming Tian felt as though someone had just squeezed his heart. Despite his cultivation he had to admit that those two women were impressive. Xiao Xuefeng had spiritual senses even beyond his and Baishen Du had almost reached the level of Martial Spirit. Beyond the Martial Aura Cao Yun had discovered, there were Martial Intent, Martial Heart, and then Martial Spirit. Right now, Chief Elder Baishen was demonstrating her Palm Heart. Her mastery of martial arts was so deep Luoming Tian was sincerely afraid of her despite their disparity in strength.
"Sister Baishen, I would rather not have to kill you if possible."
"Oh, be assured you won't!"
'Crossing the Mighty Sea'!
With the edge of her hand, she struck forward. In an instant, she was close to Luoming Tian. All around him, the water in suspension in the air gathered and formed a blade going straight for his neck. He had no need to move at all. He blew in his dizi. The air around him pulsated and the water exploded and dispersed.
Before he could attack though, a giant crane was rushing toward him from above. At the same moment, Chief Elder Baishen kept on attacking. Each one of her palms seemed to be as vast as the sky itself. However, Luoming only seemed to be playing with those attacks. In fact, it would be more accurate to say that he was dancing to the rhythm of his own music.
"Sister Baishen, after Miss Xiao, I have to admit you were the one I feared the most. While you're really not as smart as any other chief elder... well, you're smarter than this Bian Gui. He was so dumb after all..."
Each of his words was obviously infuriating the old woman. But she also knew he was probably trying to provoke her so she would lose herself. Although she was not specialized in soul attacks, she could feel his music trying to rattle her mind. If she lost her calm, he would win this fight without even attacking her once.
"Miss Xiao, I knew you were the one I had to be most wary about. But it is also why I made sure that you would be close to me. Since you came in our Wubei Sect, I've been observing you. I am sad to inform you that there is nothing you can do that could really hurt me. Even if you were to use the full might of the Seal of Authority, which we both know you can't right now, I would still find a way to leave this place unharmed and with everything I desire."
None of the women fell for it. They stayed silent and kept on attacking.
'Ten Thousands Hands of Submission'!
Thousands of hands appeared in the sky. They all folded upon one another, forming a complex maze. Within the maze was Luoming Tian.
It was at that moment that all the other chief elders arrived. During the fight, Xiao Xuefeng had been able to send new orders to everyone. She had rearranged the protection of the Palace of Supreme Wisdom while preparing a counter-attack against Luoming Tian. Although he was a 9th-grade Spirit Warrior, they were all late Spirit Warriors who knew battle formations and could use all the array formations of the Wubei Sect. There was no way Luoming could win. In fact, he had probably no chance of escaping either. Sect Leader Xuan himself would be in a dire situation if he were in his stead right now. But deep down, Xiao Xuefeng knew he could somehow get out of this, so Luoming might be able to as well.
Every sound got quiet. There was a perfect silence in the world as a terrible battle was happening just above the Wubei Sect. Then, a single sound broke this silence and seemed to encompass the entire world. It came from a very simple bell. The moment it chimed, all the hands that had appeared dissipated. They were obviously Qi Manifestations and they had been dispelled. In the center of it was Luoming Tian. He had even changed his clothes. At last, he had discarded the symbol of the Wubei Sect. Now he was wearing a pure white robe without any insignia. Also, he appeared a few decades younger.
Until now he had been suppressing his cultivation so much that even Xiao Xuefeng had not seen through it. As such, his physical appearance had been affected. But now he looked as though he was in his thirties. In his left hand was his dizi and in his right a small copper bell. There was nothing impressive about this bell but everyone was afraid of it. It had been able to dispel a powerful Qi Manifestation by Chief Elder Baishen. There was clearly nothing simple about it apart from its appearance.
"It is really too bad you found me out earlier than I had planned. Well, in fact, it's my disciple who's just late. By this time, you should have all been dead. But do not worry, I will make it all better in a few seconds."
Despite the battle formation of the chief elders all around him, Luoming disappeared in an instant.
No one moved because no one had been able to follow his movement. Thus all the pressure fell upon Xiao Xuefeng. She was the one with the best perception. And indeed, she had been able to get a vague sense of his direction. But even she was surprised by his speed. Besides, she had finally detected traces of something wicked in his cultivation but this wasn't Evil Qi. No, Luoming Tian was manipulating something that was more pure and raw. He was using Death Energy.
"He's going for his pavilion!"
Xiao Xuefeng organized the troops. She also used the Seal of Authority to activate enough array formations to trap Luoming Tian inside the Wubei Sect. From the outside, the Wubei Sect was now impossible to see through. Anyone who would try would see no sign of life at all. They would only see the buildings but nothing else. And she also tried to contact Sect Leader Xuan but he did not answer her for now.
The chase ended with the chief elders besieging the disciplinary pavilion. Everyone had in mind the scene when Xiao Xuefeng had used the Seal of Authority to summon Ancestor Wu's words. Fleeing toward this pavilion was a mistake! But Luoming also knew about this and yet here he was. So, they were all very uneasy. And when they saw the look of satisfaction on the traitor's face, they became even more worried.
"How is my friend, Sister Baishen?"
"You'll die before he does, be sure of it!"
"I sincerely hope his soul survives. Like that he'll be able to see what I'll achieve. Once he does, he'll be able to die in peace knowing his death was not in vain."
"I'll rip out your very soul. Once Spirit Master Xiao is done with it, I'll grind it into dust myself. I swear that your death will be final and as painful and slow as I can make it."
"Sister, do you think I work alone?"
The chief elders all had the same idea. If Luoming had betrayed them, their other brothers and sisters could have as well. A wave of paranoia spread through the crowd. But then, music dispelled it completely.
"Do not fall for his words. He's trying to hypnotize you. He's just stalling. Get him!"
Xiao Xuefeng would have preferred capturing him alive but as long as she could get his Soul Embryo, she could extract almost all of his memories with sufficient time.
"You're indeed right. But I bought all the time I needed it seems."
From the Palace of Supreme Wisdom, a crimson red needle pierced through the array formations. Then, it flew toward Luoming Tian. It was so fast that even Xiao Xuefeng only detected it when it was already within Luoming Tian's reach. Immediately, she activated the Seal of Authority to mobilize all the rules written by Ancestor Wu. But at the same time, Luoming Tian threw this blood needle toward the Devil's Jail.
When it burrowed underground, the entire Wubei Sect began to shake.