Chapter 1764: Borrowing a Knife to Kill Someone

However, facing the inexplicable beheading of a brother who had faced life and death with them, the fury in anyone's heart would be hard to quell. Yet, Xu Yang, still smiling nonchalantly, calmly spoke.

"My apologies, Young Pavilion Master, but I have a short temper and particularly dislike being interrupted. Your subordinate isn't very well-behaved. He even dared to threaten me with such arrogant words. I certainly won't tolerate such bad habits from him.

Of course, I'm not targeting you or the War Heaven Pavilion behind you. It's just this matter of submitting resources that I regretfully cannot comply with.

I have only just taken over the Xuanhuang Sect, and I have already made plans to expand this faction significantly.

Currently, the Xuanhuang Sect has suffered a significant blow, losing over a thousand disciples. If we are still required to submit resources, the urgent resource issues faced by the remaining young disciples will only worsen. I ask for Young Pavilion Master Qingya's understanding."

Qingya gritted her teeth and clenched her fists. She desperately wanted to personally avenge her Fourth Protector, who had inexplicably perished. However, she clearly sensed that the man before her exuded an unfathomable aura, along with immense authority and oppressive power.

If she acted rashly, Qingya knew she might suffer greatly at Xu Yang's hands. With her intelligence and wisdom, she would never make such a basic mistake. Blind impulsiveness would only make the situation more unmanageable.

"Very well. Your audacity suggests that the future of the Xuanhuang Sect will be limitless. However, I would like to remind you that the War Heaven Pavilion has always been on good terms with the Xuanhuang Sect. But the other powerful sects within Congyun Province might not be so easy to deal with.

Furthermore, the Xuanhuang Sect's sudden attack on the Donghua Sect has alarmed the imperial forces. If a top-tier powerhouse from the imperial court arrives to maintain order, even our War Heaven Pavilion would find it difficult to protect the Xuanhuang Sect."

In reality, Qingya's words were a clear, albeit veiled, threat to Xu Yang. She implied that if the Xuanhuang Sect did not submit resources on time as before, other rivals would continuously cause trouble for them.

Xu Yang, having traversed the world for hundreds of thousands of years, feared no one's threats or advice. Upon hearing these words, he burst into laughter.

"Young Pavilion Master, you needn't worry about that. As long as the War Heaven Pavilion doesn't bring misfortune upon the Xuanhuang Sect, any other cultivation force that dares to come to my territory will not return. If anyone suggests to you, Young Pavilion Master, that they intend to challenge our Xuanhuang Sect, you don't need to intercede for us. Just let them come. I will be waiting for them at the entrance of the Xuanhuang Sect."

Xu Yang's unyielding demeanor left a profound impression on Young Pavilion Master Qingya, making her itch with suppressed fury. She had a thousand impulses to kill Xu Yang, but her strength simply would not permit it. Through their subsequent conversation, Qingya was able to ascertain that Xu Yang was even more formidable than she had initially imagined.

On the way back, the remaining three protectors ceaselessly urged Qingya to use the War Heaven Pavilion's inherent power to punish the Xuanhuang Sect. They argued that this act would serve as a warning to other restless sects, deterring them from making rash moves against other factions.

Even if the War Heaven Pavilion were to do so, their actions would be justified, allowing them to act under the imperial banner and exert immense pressure on the Xuanhuang Sect.

However, due to their brief exchange just moments ago, Qingya decisively abandoned this idea.

"The three of you, stop trying to persuade me. I will remember the fall of Fourth Protector. But you should already see that the one who just took over the Xuanhuang Sect is not someone to be trifled with. This time, I want to use this opportunity to test the true capabilities of the Xuanhuang Sect's new master. Why should we dirty our own hands to get rid of them?"

Young Pavilion Master Qingya's words immediately received the unanimous support of her three protectors.

"So, Miss, you already had your own plans. We three brothers can rest easy then. Fourth Protector's great vengeance will be repaid very soon!"

Indeed, Young Pavilion Master Qingya was not one to be provoked easily. After returning to the War Heaven Pavilion, she secretly issued orders, gathering representatives from several major top forces in Congyun Province, all affiliated with the War Heaven Pavilion, to its headquarters.

In the name of the imperial court, she orchestrated a joint attack by several other top forces in Congyun Province, excluding the War Heaven Pavilion itself, to collectively encircle and suppress the Xuanhuang Sect.

Just two days after Qingya led her group to attack the Xuanhuang Sect, a new, even more formidable wave of opponents began to appear. This time, several major sects combined forces, bringing three thousand powerful disciples to the foot of the Xuanhuang Sect's mountain. They called themselves the "Three Thousand Martial Alliance."

Behind these three thousand individuals were approximately four top-tier sectarian forces, all eager to seize this opportunity to claim a share and completely dismantle the Xuanhuang Sect's power. This also served as a chance to demonstrate their loyalty to the War Heaven Pavilion, a win-win situation with seemingly no risks.

After all, four factions were working together. Everyone easily reached a consensus on this matter, with no apparent conflicts. However, they overlooked one crucial point.

The enemy that even the War Heaven Pavilion chose not to confront directly—how could they be as easy to deal with as Qingya suggested? After receiving the message from the foot of the mountain, Xu Yang, alone with his sword, stood before the mountain gate, where the three characters "Xuanhuang Sect" were carved. He presented an imposing figure, like a single warrior capable of holding off a thousand.

Yet, despite this, he completely concealed all the aura he emanated, showing no intention of revealing his true strength.

The main divine artifact clutched in his hand, emanating an icy blue aura, was naturally the Cold Spring.

Xu Yang, alone with his sword, calmly observed the thousands of top martial artists gathered not far from the mountain's base, along with their respective leaders who had reached the Soul Transformation realm.

These leaders were either young sect masters of various factions or highly influential elders within their respective forces. If these three thousand people targeted any single sect in Congyun, they would undoubtedly pose an enormous threat.

Unfortunately, they had finally chosen the wrong opponent. Of all people to challenge, they had picked Xu Yang, an immovable iron plate.

Before the battle began, members of the Three Thousand Martial Alliance were still audaciously shouting provocations.

"Is there truly no one left in your Xuanhuang Sect? Or are the remaining thousand-plus young disciples all cowards who cling to life, sending you, the new sect master, alone to face so many martial artists? Even if each of us spits once, we could drown you. In this battle, you'd better get out of our sight quickly. Abandoning the Xuanhuang Sect is your only option to survive."