At East Yigong Palace, Bai Xixue of East Yigong Palace and Qin Yutang of Tianyu Sect stood before the crowd. Both wore red ceremonial robes as they appeared on the elevated platform in the inner hall, standing shoulder to shoulder. To all present, Qin Yutang and Bai Xixue seemed a perfect match - a talented gentleman paired with a beautiful lady.
"I've long heard that Young Master Qin is an outstanding talent among the younger generation. Meeting you today proves your reputation is well-deserved," the elders from various factions began their flattery.
Qin Yutang swept his gaze across the crowd until he noticed Chen Qingyuan sitting in the corner. His lips curled into a provocative smirk, clearly mocking. Chen Qingyuan met Qin Yutang's gaze for a moment but showed no emotional response, remaining as calm as still water. Having spent over a hundred years in the Heavenly Abyss Forbidden Zone had tempered Chen Qingyuan greatly - he wasn't easily provoked.
"Thank you all, fellow Daoists, for gracing us with your presence," Tianyu Sect Leader Qin Yang stood in the center, smiling as he clasped his hands in greeting.
After a lengthy speech, Qin Yang expressed that henceforth, Tianyu Sect would stand together with East Yigong Palace through thick and thin. East Yigong Palace's Holy Master Du Ruosheng also took the stage and shared some ceremonial words.
With the tedious procedures concluded, the couple prepared to perform the heaven-worship ceremony. Once completed, they would officially become Dao partners, sharing life's joys and sorrows. A ten-meter-tall incense stick was lit, its smoke rising to the nine heavens as part of the ceremony.
Watching the ceremony near completion, a gleam of joy flashed in the depths of Qin Yang's eyes, along with something rather intriguing. Logically speaking, Tianyu Sect had deep foundations and ranked among the top in this stellar region. As the sect leader, Qin Yang shouldn't be this excited about a marriage alliance with East Yigong Palace!
Suddenly, an icy voice carried from afar, reaching everyone's ears: "If these two sects unite in marriage today, East Yigong Palace will surely regret it!"
The statement caused the two newlyweds to halt their ceremony.
"Master Du need not worry. It must be some petty troublemakers causing deliberate disruption. I'll send someone to handle it right away," Qin Yang's expression changed instantly as he turned to Du Ruosheng with a slight smile. He then transmitted a message to the sect elders: "Seal all barriers, don't let anyone enter."
Du Ruosheng frowned, feeling uneasy. However, he didn't stop the marriage ceremony, choosing instead to look toward the direction of the voice, wanting to see what would unfold.
Tianyu Sect's barrier suddenly activated, drawing everyone's attention and causing confusion.
"Sect Leader Qin, what is the meaning of this?" a cultivator questioned.
"It's to prevent troublemakers from interfering. The barrier will open after the union is complete. Fellow Daoists need not worry," Qin Yang maintained his composure, asking the various guests for their understanding.
Most people nodded in agreement after hearing this explanation. However, a few found it suspicious and frowned in deep thought.
"Continue!" Qin Yang hurriedly looked toward the Grand Elder, urging him to complete the marriage alliance ceremony quickly.
The Grand Elder understood and prepared to have the couple exchange tokens, perform the blood ritual, and sign the soul contract, thereby becoming Dao partners.
"BOOM!"
At that moment, a tremendous sound erupted from the eastern barrier. A hole was torn in the barrier, and a black-robed figure used all their strength to shout: "Tianyu Sect has a demon's lair imprisoned beneath it! If East Yigong Palace allies with them through marriage, great calamity will surely follow!"
With these words, the crowd was in an uproar.
Countless pairs of eyes turned toward Qin Yang, as if they were waiting for an accurate answer.
"Wait a moment." Du Ruosheng, who had remained silent until now, spoke up and halted the ceremony. "Sect Master Qin, aren't you going to explain this?"
"Pure nonsense," Qin Yang firmly denied.
"Is that so?" Du Ruosheng's expression was serious. "If it's false, would Sect Master Qin dare to swear on your Dao heart?"
In an instant, the scene became eerily quiet, as if a needle could be heard dropping.
Many elders of the Tianyu Sect moved toward the eastern barrier, intending to suppress and kill the intruders who had disturbed the union.
The black-clad man who had come here clearly had no intention of leaving alive.
"I am Wang Ping, a core disciple of Tianyu Sect five hundred years ago. I mistakenly entered a forbidden area and discovered the Devil's Cave, which made the high-ranking members of the sect plot to kill me. But I was lucky enough to survive."
To break open a gap in the barrier, Wang Ping had used all his life-saving techniques, hoping to bring disgrace to the Tianyu Sect and take revenge.
"Tianyu Sect tortured and killed all my relatives to force me out, showing their cruelty. I've been hiding for five hundred years, but today I finally found an opportunity to reveal everything."
"A thousand years ago, Tianyu Sect was just a third-rate power in the Fuliu Star Domain. But in a few hundred years, it rose to prominence, and the reason for this is the Devil's Cave beneath them. Tianyu Sect has been drawing resources from the Devil's Cave, allowing it to expand without revealing it. Now, the power of the Devil's Cave has become uncontrollable, and Tianyu Sect is trying to find someone to take the fall."
As Wang Ping fought back against the Tianyu Sect elders, he loudly revealed everything he knew.
The Devil's Cave was filled with countless resources. Tianyu Sect had only extracted a small portion, but it was enough to propel them to the top of the Fuliu Star Domain. To conceal the existence of the Devil's Cave and prevent the information from leaking, only fewer than five people in the sect knew of it.
Now, the Devil's Cave had grown immense, like an endless abyss of darkness. Tianyu Sect had finally realized that it was too late to suppress it.
Thus, they had gone to great lengths to arrange a marriage alliance with Dongyi Palace. Once the two sects were united, Dongyi Palace would no longer be able to stay out of it and would be forced to help Tianyu Sect deal with the Devil's Cave.
"No way!"
"I think I remember a Wang Ping, but he mysteriously disappeared later."
"Now that you mention it, Tianyu Sect's rise does seem strange. They went from being a third-rate power to a giant in the Fuliu Star Domain in just a few hundred years. That's a bit odd."
"If what this person says is true, and there really is a Devil's Cave beneath Tianyu Sect, the consequences if it erupts would be unimaginable."
The crowd was in an uproar as they listened to Wang Ping's words.
Chen Qingyuan, sitting to the side, hadn't expected things to develop like this. It was getting more interesting by the moment. He was glad he was here, not missing out on any of it.
"If this is true, then things will be troublesome," Yan Minghai muttered, furrowing his brows.
The atmosphere became tense. The faces of the various guests grew serious. The more they thought about it, the more horrified they became.
Qin Yang's face turned extremely ugly. His hands, hidden in his sleeves, were clenched tightly as he glared at the black-clad intruder on the eastern barrier, wishing he could slice him into a thousand pieces.
Seeing that Qin Yang had yet to speak, Du Ruosheng felt that this matter was likely not just a baseless rumor. She quickly moved to Bai Xixue's side, forcibly severing the connection between Bai Xixue and Qin Yutang, and coldly said, "If your sect doesn't provide a reasonable explanation, the marriage between our two sects will be very difficult to proceed with."
"Sect Master Du, after the ceremony, I will explain everything to you," Qin Yang said, still trying to hold onto the hope of forming an alliance with Dongyi Palace.
Having sat in the position of sect master, Du Ruosheng was not so easily deceived. She directly replied, "Whatever you have to say, you can say it now. Why wait until later?"
"Bang!"
After the battle, Wang Ping was surrounded and killed by the elders of Tianyu Sect. His body exploded into a mist of blood.
No one felt sorry for Wang Ping's death; their expressions remained indifferent.
The people of Dongyi Palace glanced at where Wang Ping had perished, feeling grateful. If not for Wang Ping's warning at the cost of his life, Dongyi Palace would have already fallen into Tianyu Sect's trap.
"Sect Leader Qin, don't you owe us an explanation?"
"The matter of the demon cave is no small issue. If this is true and Tianyu Sect concealed it, you may become the enemy of all sects in the Fuliu Star Region."
"Please be honest with us, Sect Leader Qin. Don't hide anything."
"Sect Leader Qin..."
Representatives from various sects spoke up, putting immense pressure on Qin Yang.
The elders and disciples of Tianyu Sect were completely bewildered, not understanding how this alliance ceremony had taken such a turn.
"No wonder Tianyu Sect was so eager to form an alliance with Dongyi Palace - they had ulterior motives!"
Judging from Qin Yang's reaction, no one doubted the truth about the demon cave.
"Dongyi Palace almost fell for it."
Many people felt relieved on behalf of Dongyi Palace.
"If they had really formed an alliance, Dongyi Palace would have been entangled in the demon cave's fate, with no way to stay uninvolved."
Dongyi Palace was considered a first-rate power in the Fuliu Star Region and could have helped Tianyu Sect share the burden well.
Originally, Dongyi Palace had hoped to strengthen their foundation and gain more influence in this star region through an alliance with Tianyu Sect. They never imagined Tianyu Sect was hiding such a deep secret.
"Since this is the case, please, fellow Daoists, let's move somewhere to discuss this in detail."
At this point, Qin Yang knew he couldn't keep it hidden anymore, so he might as well be frank with everyone.