Chapter 1879: Long Yuntian Sect

In an instant, all the water from the pond surged upwards, forming a colossal starry-sky dragon in the air.

As the water and mist left the pond's original location, Xu Yang's team could instantly see the deep secret hidden beneath it. With all the water-attribute energy drained from the pond, the skeletons lying at the bottom were instantly revealed. Dozens of scattered human remains appeared before Xu Yang and his companions, all clearly belonging to top-tier martial artists, judging by their bone structure.

"See? This is the truth that answers your questions," Xu Yang said, turning his gaze back to Po Xiao. With a look of profound shock, she examined the deepest part of the pond and the skeletons within. Po Xiao quickly realized that all these individuals must have practiced the same martial arts technique.

"I see," she mused. "The psychic energy we just detected, coming from different sources, was emitted from these bodies. But without life essence to sustain them, it should theoretically be impossible for them to harbor their original souls."

Xu Yang smiled and nodded, confirming Po Xiao's deduction. "You're right," he replied. "There's only one explanation for this situation: the hibiscus plant itself is a puppet, cultivated by the shadowy forces behind the scenes. Based on our past experiences, there's only one source of power capable of controlling these corpses: the Disciples of the Dark Force!"

Nearby, the two onlookers, Little Mushroom and the Old Emperor, uttered that name in unison.

Xu Yang scoffed, then suddenly unleashed a powerful palm strike towards a massive tree several hundred meters away, instantly reducing all the plant matter in that section to ash. Simultaneously, the spy hiding behind the plants was revealed: a Millennium Disciple clad in a long silver robe.

"If I'm not mistaken," Xu Yang stated, "you've been lying in wait here for some time, intending to set this trap to ensnare us."

Xu Yang projected his incredibly potent and penetrating soul guidance directly into the silver-robed figure's spiritual world. The figure showed no intention of fleeing. Since Xu Yang had already discovered him, he simply swaggered forward, approaching their position.

"You few are indeed remarkable," the figure sneered, "especially you, Xu Yang, the leader. No wonder your emergence has enraged the higher-ups. However, your goal of reaching the Imperial Palace swiftly will likely prove difficult to achieve. Soon, since you've annihilated these martial artists in the pond, their avengers will come calling. Hahaha!!"

No sooner had the silver-robed disciple finished speaking than he deliberately began to incinerate his own soul essence. As his spiritual energy completely vanished, the hibiscus plant, which had just withered and shown no signs of life, revived once more. However, this revival wasn't due to the hibiscus plant's own soul power. Instead, it was the power forcibly imbued into its physical form by the Millennium Disciple who had just sacrificed himself and controlled it for so long.

Upon witnessing the opponent's actions, Xu Yang subtly raised an eyebrow. "This is bad," he murmured. "This individual is attempting to frame us and incite the martial arts factions associated with these corpses to cause trouble for us."

Almost as Xu Yang's words left his mouth, hundreds of powerful martial auras began to appear in the distant sky. Most of these individuals were soaring on their swords, and the martial energy halos emanating from their bodies clearly indicated that this group of experts had reached the peak of the Hedao and Grand Completion realms. Among the independent martial practitioners within the empire, those who reached the Grand Completion realm were revered figures. Such individuals would never typically appear in such large groups. The sudden emergence of this significant number of top-tier martial artists unequivocally suggested that a leading martial arts sect within the empire had been provoked.

Xu Yang and his companions could clearly see that the leader was, surprisingly, a young girl dressed in purple. However, judging by the formation they adopted, her identity was clearly not simple.

"Surround these individuals! Don't let a single one escape!"

As the purple-clad girl finished speaking, all the powerful martial artists accompanying her landed, instantly encircling Xu Yang and his three companions.

"You lot are incredibly audacious," the purple-clad girl declared, "to lay hands even on Changyun Tianzong, the foremost martial arts sect in our empire!" Upon landing, she immediately fixed her piercing gaze on Xu Yang, clearly recognizing him as the core of their group.

Xu Yang sighed helplessly and shook his head. He knew he was utterly indefensible in this situation, as these individuals were unaware of the true methods and ploys of the so-called Dark Force. Furthermore, the Millennium Disciple puppet had just incinerated its life force, turning to dust. At this point, even if he tried to explain, it would be impossible to clear their names – it would be like trying to wash oneself clean by jumping into the Yellow River.

"Fine," Xu Yang conceded. "Since we've stumbled into this, we'll accept our misfortune. No matter how we explain, your Changyun Tianzong likely won't believe us anyway. However, the four of us genuinely have urgent matters requiring our immediate return to the imperial capital. This young lady appears to be a person of considerable standing; perhaps you could grant us some leeway?"

The purple-clad girl remained entirely unyielding, though she didn't speak immediately. Soon, however, one of her attendants, a martial artist at the Hedao Peak realm, inspected the now-empty pond basin. Upon discovering that all the bodies belonged to the Changyun Tianzong, the girl's fury was fully ignited.

"My judgment was correct after all," she declared. "You individuals harmed our sect members. There's nothing more to discuss. First, disable each of them: one arm and one leg."

As soon as the purple-clad girl finished speaking, she made no move to act herself. With her hands clasped behind her back, she swiftly positioned herself behind four powerful martial artists, allowing the dozens of other equally formidable martial artists to engage personally.

It must be acknowledged that Changyun Tianzong, as the empire's undisputed foremost martial arts sect, possessed a formidable strength and profound heritage that even the widely experienced Xu Yang found himself momentarily surprised by. Within the entire Ancient Martial Divine Path region, Changyun Tianzong was undeniably a colossus.

However, Xu Yang's true intention was certainly not to make enemies of these genuine martial artists from the Ancient Martial Divine Path region. Killing them would represent an incalculable loss to the entire region's martial arts system. His only course of action was to resolve the conflict between the two parties as swiftly as possible, avoiding any further delay in front of the Changyun Tianzong members.