Chapter 1849: One Clash Away

Slow, but persistent.

Even though He Lingchuan had warned him beforehand, Xiao Wencheng’s face still changed the moment he saw Her.

Miao Zhantian was still alive. The Immortal Venerable had sacrificed himself, but hadn’t managed to destroy Her!

“Panlong Isolated City is about to collapse. Once Miao Zhantian breaks free, She will slaughter us all.”

“This kid isn’t completely unafraid of death after all.” Just as Xiao Wencheng was about to sneer, He Lingchuan reminded him, “Not only us, but not a single living soul from the Illusion Sect will be spared either.”

Xiao Wencheng remained silent, his gaze lowered.

With the Immortal Venerable dead, the Illusion Sect had lost its greatest patron. No matter how complicated Xiao Wencheng's feelings were, as the sect master, his most pressing task was to quickly find a way for himself and his sect to survive.

A voice from the side interjected, “Nonsense! We can always surrender, can’t we? Qianhuan is already dead, so why would Miao Zhantian insist on killing these hundreds of people from the Illusion Sect?”

Xiao Wencheng looked up at the sound and was startled to see a red-eyed crow.

After failing to pursue He Xiao and his group earlier, the Blood Demon seemed to have been severely wounded and had disappeared. Xiao Wencheng had summoned it several times, but it hadn't appeared. So it had sneaked off here?

The red-eyed crow immediately added, “If you and I work together, we can capture this group of people named He, hand them directly to Miao Zhantian, and beg Her to let bygones be bygones. What’s so difficult about that?”

Xiao Wencheng's face was grim.

He certainly couldn’t handle He Lingchuan and his people on his own.

But what if the Blood Demon joined him?

Hmm, it still seemed a bit iffy. Earlier, he and Junior Brother Ning had been ordered to intercept He Lingchuan, and the Blood Demon had gone with them. What was the result?

That scoundrel had fled on the spot, and now it had the nerve to come back and talk about joining forces!

“There’s no ‘us,’ only you!” He Lingchuan glanced at the Blood Demon. “The Blood Demon is instigating you because Miao Zhantian doesn’t care about it at all and would likely let it go. But you, Sect Master Xiao, are different!”

He Lingchuan’s ability to read people was formidable, and by addressing Xiao Wencheng through the Haoyuan Golden Mirror, he was confident he could persuade him.

“You needn’t consider surrendering; Miao Zhantian will never accept it.” He Lingchuan’s penetrating gaze at this moment reminded Xiao Wencheng of Qianhuan. In the past, that venerable one was also like this… Alas, why couldn't he see through He Xiao? “I know many immortals surrendered before, but you won’t have that chance.”

“Why?” Xiao Wencheng remained silent.

“Because you’ve inflicted too great a loss on Miao Zhantian. Sect Master Xiao, over the past two days, more than a dozen divine demons have died by your brothers’ hands. As you learned from interrogating that large lizard, Miao Zhantian not only went all out to enter the Inverted Sea this time but also enlisted the help of other great demon lords, including Saint Venerable Lingxu!”

He Lingchuan quickly added, “Sect Master Xiao, you hold a high position, so you know that such ‘help’ always demands a return, and always involves an exchange of interests. Miao Zhantian must have made many promises to the other great demon lords. Given Her purpose for invading the Inverted Sea, it’s quite possible that the bodies of the Illusion Sect elders have already been pre-reserved internally.”

Upon hearing the last sentence, a muscle twitched in Xiao Wencheng’s cheek.

The Blood Demon grew anxious. “Hey, hey, don’t listen to his nonsense! ‘Definitely,’ ‘always’—this kid is just guessing! He has no proof whatsoever.”

It would be disastrous for the Blood Demon if He Lingchuan managed to win Xiao Wencheng over.

However, even though Xiao Wencheng knew He Lingchuan was alarmist, he couldn’t deny the logic of his words.

Miao Zhantian had come precisely for the body of True Lord Qianhuan. Now that She was here, would She really spare the immortals of the Illusion Sect? These were all excellent vessels for divine possession!

He Lingchuan was right about that; they were more useful dead than alive.

With so many demon lords having fallen in the Inverted Sea, Miao Zhantian would have to account for it upon Her return. How could She easily let Her enemies go?

If he surrendered directly, wouldn’t that just make things easier for Miao Zhantian?

He Lingchuan noticed his hesitation. “Once Miao Zhantian emerges from True Lord Qianhuan’s sea of consciousness, She will have an overwhelming advantage over the Illusion Sect. So why would She spare you?”

This was a winner-take-all game. With victory imminent, what reason would Miao Zhantian, who was about to become the winner, have not to take everything?

So, was the Illusion Sect, without Qianhuan’s protection, just doomed to wait for death within the confined Inverted Sea?

Xiao Wencheng finally spoke, “What exactly are you trying to say? An alliance?”

“This place will become a massive graveyard,” He Lingchuan revealed his true intention. “Unless we join forces to stop Miao Zhantian before She breaks out of Panlong Isolated City.”

He had long realized that although Xiao Wencheng had received Qianhuan’s final order, he wasn't particularly keen on executing it.

“Join forces?” Xiao Wencheng looked at the Haoyuan Golden Mirror. “Are you saying you can enter this… Panlong Isolated City?”

To stop Miao Zhantian, they would have to do so within the sea of consciousness. Otherwise, once She returned to reality, who could stand against True Monarch Shenxi?

However, Miao Zhantian had needed divine spells and Silver Lantern Fruit just to enter the Immortal Venerable’s sea of consciousness world back then. Could He Xiao truly enter directly?

“Yes, I can enter right now.”

After all, Miao Zhantian didn’t have the Haoyuan Golden Mirror, let alone the help of the Grand Flask.

When it came to smuggling and subtly altering rules, the Grand Flask was an expert.

“The dead are gone, but the living can still strive,” He Lingchuan said gravely. “Sect Master Xiao, Miao Zhantian is also nearing the end of Her tether. We still have a chance to eliminate Her. Don’t you want to complete the Immortal Venerable’s unfinished work?”

Xiao Wencheng subconsciously swallowed.

Although the Immortal Venerable’s death wasn’t directly caused by this He fellow, he was greatly involved. Joining him now to enter the sea of consciousness and confront Miao Zhantian felt somewhat distasteful to Xiao Wencheng.

However, circumstances were stronger than personal feelings. Though He Xiao was no benevolent sort, his foresight and strategic mind were top-notch.

“For the past 150 years, Qianhuan has been almost constantly in seclusion, paying little attention to the sect. But you are different from Qianhuan; you have diligently and painstakingly managed this vast sect.” He Lingchuan then pressed, “Don’t you want to carve out a path to survival for yourself and the Illusion Sect? Sect Master Xiao, now is the time to find a way out amidst peril!”

Xiao Wencheng’s eyes flickered.

In fact, it wasn’t just 150 years. For the past three millennia, the Immortal Venerable had either been in seclusion or overseeing Spirit Mountain, leaving all matters, big and small, for him to handle—not just concerning the sect.

Within the Illusion Sect, he had been the second-in-command for thousands of years.

Indeed, this was Miao Zhantian’s weakest moment in terms of soul power. For the sake of their own survival, He Xiao’s proposal seemed truly worth a risky attempt!

But before Xiao Wencheng could reply, He Lingchuan suddenly pointed to the side:

“We have another important helper. Oh, it just ran off.”

Seeing that it couldn't persuade Xiao Wencheng, the red-eyed crow decisively slipped away.

He Lingchuan wasn’t in a hurry to pursue it. “Sect Master Xiao, your sect originally made a pact with the Blood Demon, and it must help you eliminate Miao Zhantian to regain its freedom, right?”

Xiao Wencheng nodded. He Lingchuan had been present when that pact was made.

“Even with the Immortal Venerable gone, this pact is still valid, right?”

“Valid,” Xiao Wencheng replied. “This pact was signed between the Blood Demon and our sect, not with an individual.”

At this point, he understood He Lingchuan’s intention. He then took out a talisman plaque and began to chant.

Earlier, when the Blood Demon abandoned He Lingchuan and others and secretly left the battlefield, it wasn’t considered a breach of contract, nor did it incur any contractual punishment. This was because He Lingchuan had nothing to do with that pact, and the Blood Demon wasn't required to be his enemy.

That’s why his repeated attempts to summon the Blood Demon had failed; it had pretended to be deaf and mute.

But this time was different!

Xiao Wencheng now specifically declared that the Illusion Sect was going to crusade against Miao Zhantian, making it the Blood Demon’s inescapable duty to go!

Before long, the red-eyed crow came stumbling through the air from not far away, shedding several feathers along the way.

“Stop chanting, stop chanting!” Its voice was full of pain. “I’ll go, I’ll go! Isn’t that enough?”

Xiao Wencheng kept chanting incessantly. The Blood Demon wanted to resist, but the contractual chains were nearly strangling its soul!

It was no use for the Blood Demon to hide or flee. According to the pact, Xiao Wencheng could summon it; if it didn’t come, it would immediately suffer the backlash of the pact’s power.

“Tch!” The Blood Demon spat grudgingly, then asked He Lingchuan a long-standing question, “How on earth did you find me?!”

“As I’ve said, you reek of foulness, and your scent of blood is overpowering,” He Lingchuan replied solemnly. “I can smell it from hundreds of yards away!”

“...” Do souls have a scent? This guy is outrageous!

Xiao Wencheng then said to He Lingchuan, “If we defeat Miao Zhantian, we’ll go our separate ways and not bother each other once we’re out!”

The agreement had to be made beforehand, to avoid future conflict; if they lost, well, then nothing else would matter.

He Lingchuan readily agreed, “That’s exactly what I had in mind!”

Both took a blood oath, then sat down cross-legged.

Madam Zhu and Dong Rui knew that this was a safeguard Xiao Wencheng had placed upon himself; otherwise, if he were fighting in the Sea of Consciousness of the Mirage Immortal, and they were to damage his physical body there, Xiao Wencheng would be utterly helpless.

Now, with the blood oath in place, He Lingchuan’s companions also couldn’t harm him.

Panlong Isolated City, as seen in the mirror, looked rather grim. Xiao Wencheng jutted his chin at the Blood Demon:

“You first!”

The Blood Demon spat, then, reluctantly and against its will, drifted into the mirror, constrained by the power of the pact.

He Lingchuan, meanwhile, took a box from his embrace and opened it.

The box was called the "Juluo Treasure Casket," and inside was a miniature tree, graceful and covered in blossoms.

He Lingchuan casually picked a few small white flowers and put them away. With a major battle imminent, these small flowers might prove useful later.

Everyone looked serious and bowed, saying, “Master, please be careful!”

Success or failure, survival or destruction, depended on this battle.

Madam Zhu watched eagerly. “Are you sure I don’t need to go?”

She suddenly thought, why did this kid believe she couldn’t defeat Miao Zhantian, but he himself could?

The Queen of the Cave Spiders had once been an ancient grand immortal, after all.

“No need,” He Lingchuan smiled at her.

Madam Zhu had fallen once in ancient times, and her soul resided with her younger sister. He Lingchuan had long known that in terms of soul strength, she was not as strong as Second Sister Zhu.

It was like the human body: weaker when sick, stronger when well-trained, not immutable.

“Hurry,” Xiao Wencheng urged him, as Panlong Isolated City was about to collapse.

So, the two of them adjusted their breathing and entered a meditative state together, each sending a wisp of spiritual light out of their bodies into the Haoyuan Golden Mirror.