Qin Yang led the way, with the high-level members of various sects following.
To one side, Qin Yutang's face looked extremely unpleasant, with a trace of doubt in his eyes. He knew nothing about the demon cave affair.
The union with Bai Xixue was his father Qin Yang's order. Plus, since Bai Xixue was Chen Qingyuan's former sweetheart, Qin Yutang was quite willing and spent considerable effort pursuing her.
Qin Yutang had originally planned to have a good chat with Chen Qingyuan after the marriage ceremony, throw in some unpleasant words, and surely feel delighted about it.
Unexpectedly, things changed suddenly, leaving Qin Yutang bewildered.
Bai Xixue was equally at a loss, standing among the East Yigong crowd, her expression blank, seemingly still unclear about the specific situation.
"Senior Brother Yan, let's go take a look."
Chen Qingyuan, dressed in a cyan robe, didn't want to miss the excitement and pulled Yan Minghai along with the crowd.
"Don't wander off later, you must stay by Senior Brother's side."
Yan Minghai was very concerned about Chen Qingyuan's safety. He had wanted to send Chen Qingyuan to the warship, but unable to overcome Chen Qingyuan's personality, he could only nod in agreement.
"Don't worry!" Chen Qingyuan certainly wouldn't wander off - this wasn't Xuanqing Sect, and caution was needed.
Qin Yang disabled multiple barriers, leading everyone to the restricted area behind the mountain, where a dense forest thrived with vitality.
Initially, some core elders wanted to argue with Qin Yang about bringing members of various sects to the demon cave. However, after Qin Yang's reasoned argument, the informed elders gave up their objections and had to agree.
If they didn't find a solution to the demon cave now, once it erupted, Tianyu Sect would surely be in danger. At that time, not only would Tianyu Sect suffer, but it would also affect the entire Fuliuxing Region.
After passing through the dense forest, over a thousand people arrived at a desolate plain.
Deep in the plain was an abyss about ten thousand meters in diameter. Complex demonic pattern laws flickered at the entrance, with thick demonic qi emanating from within.
The demon cave was located at the bottom of the abyss, right at the core position beneath Tianyu Sect.
Due to the multiple barriers Tianyu Sect had placed around the abyss, the demonic qi hadn't dispersed.
"Such a large demon cave!"
"Where does it lead? Is it connected to the demon realm?"
"If something goes wrong with the demon cave, Tianyu Sect will bring disaster to the entire Fuliuxing Region. Damn it!"
"Sect Leader Qin, why weren't we informed immediately when the demon cave appeared? Now the demon cave's power has already taken shape. If it erupts, the consequences will be endless."
The various sect elders began to question, their faces grim.
Hearing everyone's accusations, Qin Yang didn't get angry, maintaining a calm expression. He had long anticipated this day and was mentally prepared.
After everyone had tired of scolding, Qin Yang finally spoke: "Fellow Daoists, indeed Tianyu Sect is at fault, and we willingly accept punishment. However, I ask that when you return, please discuss with your respected sects about jointly dealing with the demon cave problem. You should all understand clearly that if the demon cave erupts, it will affect every part of the Fuliuxing Region, and even other star regions - no one can stay uninvolved."
"Sect Leader Qin, this is a disaster your Tianyu Sect created, why should we be responsible?"
Someone angrily demanded.
"Tianyu Sect is willing to take out half of its treasury's foundation and gift it to various sects." Qin Yang rose into the air, standing at a height, and announced to everyone: "Once this matter is concluded, Tianyu Sect is willing to bear the questioning of all heroes under heaven."
Then, Qin Yang looked toward the East Yigong crowd's direction: "Sect Leader Du, if East Yigong is willing to continue being allies with our Tianyu Sect, we are willing to offer up the other half of our foundation with both hands."
Although Qin Yang felt the pain of it, he had to do this. When the demon cave erupts, Tianyu Sect would be the first to be destroyed.
For the future of Tianyu Sect, Qin Yang had no choice but to set aside his pride and deplete the sect's resources in order to gain the support of the other sects.
"Dongyi Palace is not fortunate enough to ally with Tianyu Sect. I think it's better to forget it!"
Du Ruosheng rejected him without hesitation. She would not risk Dongyi Palace's future on such a gamble.
Resolving the chaos caused by the Devil's Cave would grant them a large amount of resources. But if they failed, Dongyi Palace would undoubtedly be dragged into it, unable to recover for all eternity.
"Sect Master Du, have you considered it?"
Qin Yang tried to persuade her once more.
In response, Du Ruosheng merely shot him a cold glance, offering no reply.
Seeing her unwavering determination, Qin Yang understood that further persuasion would be futile and stopped insisting.
He then said a few more polished words, asking the guests to return to their respective sects and discuss a solution to the Devil's Cave issue as soon as possible.
"What kind of situation is this?"
"Now we're supposed to clean up Tianyu Sect's mess? This is infuriating. It's a serious matter, we need to go back and come up with a countermeasure right away."
"Let's go."
After some heated discussions, the guests left in frustration.
Before they left, Tianyu Sect returned all the gifts. Since the two sects were no longer forming an alliance, the celebratory feast no longer served any purpose.
"We apologize, fellow Daoists."
It seemed that Tianyu Sect's elders, not wanting to offend the other sects and hoping for their support, apologized one by one, which was a stark contrast to their earlier arrogance.
On the way back, Chen Qingyuan ran into the people from Dongyi Palace outside the gates of Tianyu Sect.
"Sect Master Du."
Yan Minghai, whose rank was a little lower, clasped his fists and greeted her.
"Elder Yan." Du Ruosheng nodded in acknowledgment, her expression indifferent, and it was impossible to discern what she was truly thinking.
After exchanging pleasantries, Du Ruosheng's gaze shifted to Chen Qingyuan.
She studied him intently for a moment but found nothing unusual. With a quiet sigh, she thought to herself, What a pity, a once-great genius reduced to nothing.
"Here."
One of the elders returned the gift from Xuanqing Sect, leaving with a look of defeat.
Chen Qingyuan glanced at the white umbrella in his hand, his expression slightly odd. He murmured to himself, The gift was returned, but this isn't my fault. The first agreement should still be considered fulfilled, right?
The crowd at Dongyi Palace couldn't help but notice the striking white umbrella. Previously, when Tianyu Sect didn't want to make too much commotion, many people weren't aware that Chen Qingyuan had given the white umbrella.
At this moment, numerous gazes converged on Chen Qingyuan, accompanied by whispers.
"Chen Qingyuan, what impeccable timing for this gift of yours!" Du Ruosheng said expressionlessly.
"Just a coincidence," Chen Qingyuan responded casually, showing no nervousness before the leader of Dongyi Palace.
"As far as I know, you're not someone who lacks grace like this."
Du Ruosheng spoke softly, standing more than ten meters away from Chen Qingyuan.
The elders standing behind wore unsightly expressions - this arranged marriage had become a joke, bringing shame to their faces!
Bai Xixue, dressed in a red gown, glanced at Chen Qingyuan from the corner of her eye, feeling a mixture of shame, embarrassment, and helplessness. She had no power to decide whether the sect would proceed with the arranged marriage.
If possible, Bai Xixue would rather go through with the marriage than face people's judgment and lose face completely.
Soon, Bai Xixue convinced herself internally and slowly raised her head, her eyes showing a change. She had chosen this path, and there was no turning back. From now on, she would still be a cultivator with exceptional talent, while Chen Qingyuan would have at most a hundred years of life.
That slight feeling of guilt in her heart had now completely vanished.
"Don't read too much into it, Sect Leader Du," Chen Qingyuan smiled faintly as he slowly put away the white umbrella.
"You were quite fortunate to make it out of Tianyuan alive. Care to share what happened in there?"
Du Ruosheng showed great interest in Tianyuan.
Upon hearing these words, many people stopped in their tracks, their gazes toward Chen Qingyuan turning unfriendly.