Chapter 1297: Yu City

The Mortal Realm

Old Daoist Zhenyi turned to look at Qingjun, shaking his head. "This humble Daoist knows nothing about these matters. I had only just received this intelligence report, less than a moment ago, when you fellow Daoists arrived."

Everyone exchanged glances.

"For now, let's assume the intelligence report is true and not a trap. Old Devil Ye is extremely cunning; he wouldn't do this without a reason. Have any of you recently engaged with Old Devil Ye and discovered anything?"

Demon Lord Tongyou stood up, surveying the crowd.

Everyone shook their heads.

At this moment, a Nascent Soul cultivator from the Skywalk Alliance stepped forward and said in a deep voice, "If we're talking about major recent events, it's probably only the Battle of Blood Lake. Everyone, remember, Old Devil Ye lost an avatar in Blood Lake, but acquired a jade bone! I remember you said the jade bone was ultimately taken away by Old Devil Ye himself."

"Are you saying, fellow Daoist, that Old Devil Ye was affected by the jade bone..."

Only this could explain why Old Devil Ye's temperament has drastically changed.

Demon Lord Tongyou paused, then turned to look at Qingjun.

Among everyone, only Qingjun had close contact with the jade bone and silken skin.

Qingjun understood what they meant. Her gaze was serene as she calmly said, "The consciousness within the jade bone and silken skin must have perished. If any remnant soul were lurking, it couldn't possibly escape my perception! You don't need to overestimate ancient cultivators, nor underestimate Old Devil Ye. How could Old Devil Ye be completely unprepared? Even if that person were truly alive, they would merely be a lonely spirit at the end of its tether. Trying to seize control of or manipulate Old Devil Ye is almost impossible."

Hearing Qingjun's words, Qin Sang felt a surge of surprise and marveled at his senior sister's bold demeanor, treating ancient cultivators with utter disdain.

On second thought, his senior sister was proficient in the Path of Puppetry, so her divine sense wouldn't be weak. She must possess unique soul secrets, and she truly had the confidence to say such things.

Everyone then speculated from other angles, "Could it be that Old Devil Ye deciphered the secret of the jade bone, obtained some secret art or treasure, and wants to keep it all to himself?"

At this moment, Madam Luo suddenly spoke, her voice carrying a hint of allure. She said lazily, "Fellow Daoists, why do you assume Old Devil Ye actively betrayed us? Why not consider the opposite? Old Devil Ye has always acted domineeringly and has a cruel temperament, making countless enemies in Sin Abyss. Those people were intimidated by Old Devil Ye's power and dared not harbor any malicious thoughts. But recently, he first lost his blood demon avatar and was then injured by Fellow Daoist Zhenyi. Isn't this the best time to deal with him?"

For a moment, opinions varied widely.

Old Daoist Zhenyi remained silent, listening to everyone's discussion. After a while, he publicly stated his position, "In this humble Daoist's opinion, even if there's a fifty percent chance it's a trap, it's still worth the risk. Opportunity knocks but once; we can't just sit here idly waiting for more intelligence! Mobilizing a large army would definitely be too late, but with our speed of flight, we might be able to reach Yu City before the chaos in Sin Abyss settles down!"

With Sin Abyss engaged in internal strife and too preoccupied to notice, if all Nascent Soul cultivators act together, there might indeed be a chance.

The Skywalk Alliance naturally deferred to Old Daoist Zhenyi's lead.

The Nascent Soul cultivators from the Minor Cold Region were somewhat hesitant but were all greatly tempted.

Breaking through Yu City, the benefits were self-evident.

"This truly is a once-in-a-thousand-years opportunity! Lord Shengjun, Fellow Daoist Leng, and Fellow Daoist Qin are all here. As long as we are vigilant enough, even if there's anything strange, we can still retreat safely. Whether the intelligence is true or false, the truth will be revealed once we reach Yu City," Xiang Qing spoke up, persuading them, full of confidence in the strength of the Minor Cold Region.

Qin Sang and Qingjun exchanged a glance.

Whether to make a move or not was debatable in Qin Sang's opinion.

After this battle, what he needed to do would largely be complete. He had no deep-seated animosity with Sin Abyss and no urgent desire to annihilate it.

However, if they could break through Yu City and force Sin Abyss to negotiate peace, the benefits would also be clear.

In the future, refining a flying sword to replace the Ebony Sword and an artifact to subdue the Southern Bright Lihuo would both require precious spiritual materials. They might be able to acquire them from Sin Abyss.

Qingjun nodded slightly. Qin Sang, seeing this, also spoke up, agreeing with the plan.

Everyone quickly reached a consensus.

"Good!"

Old Daoist Zhenyi suddenly stood up, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes. "Since you all agree, everyone, we will depart for Yu City immediately. However, before that, this old Daoist must make something clear. After leaving this hall, no one is allowed to leave the sight of others without permission. Otherwise, don't blame this old Daoist for turning hostile!"

Everyone felt a chill in their hearts and voiced their agreement one after another. They also didn't want their whereabouts to be leaked by spies.

The Nascent Soul cultivators quietly left Cai City. The army within the city was completely unaware of this.

In the wilderness.

Under the cover of Old Daoist Zhenyi's stealth artifact, they headed straight for Yu City.

As they drew closer to Sin Abyss, the terrain of the plains gradually changed. Low hills began to appear, initially scattered, later forming rolling mountain ranges.

The peaks became increasingly towering and treacherous.

Along the way, the Heavenly Eye Butterfly remained vigilant, and Qingjun also used secret arts to scout, but found nothing unusual.

Halfway through their journey, Demon Lord Tongyou let out a soft exclamation of surprise and suddenly requested a change of direction.

Not long after flying out, Demon Lord Tongyou waved his hand, signaling them to stop, and materialized out of thin air. Looking down at a patch of grass, he lowly commanded, "Come out!"

"Lord Shengjun!"

A joyful exclamation came from the grass, followed by a person flashing out, who was a Golden Core cultivator.

He was wearing a Daoist robe embroidered with special cloud patterns and a jade pendant with similar patterns at his waist. He was a disciple of the Hanyun Sect from Sin Abyss. But judging by his attitude towards Demon Lord Tongyou, there was clearly something suspicious.

"You're not in Yu City. What are you doing here?"

Demon Lord Tongyou exuded authority without needing to express anger, and questioned him in a deep voice.

The Golden Core cultivator's heart tightened, and he dared not conceal anything. He hastily said, "Reporting to Lord Shengjun, the Nascent Souls are fighting amongst themselves, Yu City is in chaos, and the city is blockaded. This disciple managed, before the city was sealed, to find an opportunity to leave the city and was just about to report to Lord Shengjun..."

It matched the intelligence Old Daoist Zhenyi had received!

The Nascent Soul cultivators exchanged glances and quickly revealed themselves to press for details.

The Golden Core cultivator, suddenly seeing so many Nascent Soul Grandmasters, was trembling with fear and divulged everything he knew. He had seen that the situation was bad and had stealthily left the city. Although he brought back the news in time, he didn't know the reason why.

"You are quite resourceful; you did well."

Demon Lord Tongyou praised him, took him along, and set off again.

"Yu City is not far ahead."

On a mountaintop, some figures appeared. It was Qin Sang and the others who had infiltrated this far. They had bypassed Sin Abyss's outposts and quietly infiltrated to this point; they were very close to Yu City.

Before them, small, winding cracks appeared on the ground, and there were many fissures in the mountains as well.

This place was the northern end of the Heavenly Scar.

However, this place looked no different from ordinary cracks; there were no ancient restrictions or secret realms within.

According to their previous conjectures, the Abyss Ruins had fallen into the heart of Sin Abyss, the impact forming the Heavenly Scar, and the aftershocks extending to this place, which then created this scene.

"They must have arrangements here. Trying to approach Yu City unnoticed is almost impossible. We might as well just force our way in, take them by surprise, and directly attack Yu City!"

Someone suggested.