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--- Chapter 142 ---
Back at the Hall of Souls' Western Branch Base, Elder Qin and Elder Yung are still talking merrily to each other. They even had wine and snacks while waiting for Lady Yue to finish her job.
Their confidence in Lady Yue's prowess and disdain toward the mere Magical Beast Tribe couldn't be more showing than this.
What can 2-Star Dou Saint with a group of weaklings possibly do against their Man-Eating Mistress? Nothing.
But sometimes, keeping high expectations led to utter disappointment and shock in the face of failure.
A Hall of Souls disciple assigned to monitor vital at the Soul Palace hurriedly entered the meeting room. He panicked and appeared extremely pale as if a ghost had scared him to death.
"Elder, Elder, Elder!" The disciple wept in anxiety.
"Emergency!"
Elder Qin frowned and asked, "What happened?"
"What emergency? Can't you see I'm enjoying my wine?"
The disciple gasped and stuttered, "T-The vital."
"The vital stones have been shattered!"
Elder Yung drank his wine and commented casually, "Some losses, understandable."
"After all, the Nine Serene Deep Ground Python Tribe is still a top-tier faction."
The disciple wailed, "Noooo!!"
"Lady Yue's vital stone and everyone that followed him has been destroyed!!"
Crack!
The wine cup in Elder Qin's hand dropped and shattered into pieces. The room soon filled with deadly silence.
Elder Yung couldn't believe his ears for a moment.
That woman died? No fucking way.
She's 2-Star Dou Saint with extreme sensory ability, which means no one in the same cultivation level could ambush her. In the Hall of Souls, Lady Yue could get considered to enter the top forty masters.
Her mastery over Hall of Souls' specialty and Spatial Strength is strong, making her a formidable opponent for anyone.
Elder Yung gripped his wine cup strongly and mumbled, "Are you telling me Lady Yue died in a frontal battle? It's ridiculous."
The wine cup turned into dust as he sighed ruefully, "There must be something we didn't know."
"Yeah, what about the Vital Replay? Did you see anything from the last moment of their lives?" Elder Qin stared at the disciple.
The disciple shook his head and answered, "The vital stones don't show any replay, as if their souls devoured into the void."
"The only thing I know was one member died first, then Lady Yue and everyone followed shortly after."
"The battle didn't last long... Only five breaths or so."
"Five breaths..." Elder Qin solemnly mumbled to himself. He couldn't help but ask himself if he could finish Lady Yue and over six hundred elites of the Hall of Souls in such a short time.
He's 2-Star Dou Saint himself, but that doesn't make him invincible.
There are countless ways for others to kill a Dou Saint, from damaging their saint-like body and soul. Even though Dou Saints are standing on the peak of the Dou Qi continent, Elder Qin knew very well Eight Ancient Clans possessed ancestral arrays or power to kill them.
"Wait, Gu Clan!" Elder Qin suddenly raised his voice.
"I guessed Gu Clan supported the Nine Serene Deep Ground Python Tribe. Those Magical Beasts couldn't defeat Lady Yue with just one Dou Saint."
Elder Yung nodded in agreement, "Gu Clan is so sneaky."
"They wanted to be hidden from the limelight while avenging their loss a month ago."
"You should return to your post." He said to the disciple.
"No, wait. Gather every member in the Soul Palace."
"O-Okay." The disciple bowed, walking out of the room.
Elder Qin calmed himself and asked, "What should we do?"
"With our firepower, we couldn't attack Gu Clan."
"But we can still attack the Nine Serene Deep Ground Python Tribe and claim the Nine Serene Spring's Essence to complete the mission from the chief."
"How dare they kill Lady Yue!"
"We'll show them the hegemony of Hall of Souls!"
"I also thought that way, but..." Elder Yung frowned because the support from the Gu Clan couldn't be simple. "If we went to the Tribe, I'm afraid the Western Branch Base will get attacked."
"Even if we asked for support from other branches, they wouldn't reach Western Region in two or three days."
"Gu Clan won't wait two or three days."
"Aih, this is more annoying than I thought." Elder Qin furrowed his brows.
"Let's activate the Bloody Soul Formation. We have enough Blood and Soul Energy from killing small tribes a few months ago, so the Branch should be fine without our protection."
"We will leave behind the Branch to Ming Ke and Ming Jun. They reached the high stage of the Half-Saint Realm recently."
"What do you think?"
"If you think so, I don't have many words." Elder Yung agreed immediately.
"Prepare your men, and I'll mobilize 6.000 on the Western Branch."
"See you on the peak." Elder Qin nodded, disappearing from the meeting room.
Watching his friend disappear, Elder Yung finished his wine and opened his mouth, "The Nine Serene Deep Ground Python Tribe."
"I don't know how you scheme against Lady Yue, but you can't possibly resist our second attack."
After some thought, Elder Yung maintained his cautiousness and sent a message to other branches. If Elder Yung failed this mission, he wanted other elders and the chief to know.
"Those old foxes from Gu Clan... They are becoming more sly as time passes."
Unknown to Elder Yung, only one sly fox created this scheme.
And that sly fox wasn't old either.
...
...
Over six thousand people from the Hall of Souls gathered on the lonely mountain peak.
Elder Qin is standing with four red-robed people behind him. They are his loyal subordinates.
Meanwhile, Elder Yung arrived last. He wore dainty blood-colored armor with a black cape, making him look ominous.
"Let's march!" He shouted while drawing a sword.
"Destroy the Nine Serene Deep Ground Python Tribe!"
"Destroy!" Over six thousand combatants responded loudly. These people are the elites of the Hall of Souls' Western Branch. The weakest is Dou Kings, which is 69% of the combatants, but it's still a terrifying army.
These people have been cultivated by the Hall of Souls' Western Branch for over two hundred years or maybe more, considering there are still people from the older generation.
They flew into the distance, not realizing the people from the Gu Clan had been waiting for their departure.
Under Baek Ain's King of Parasites, he has ordered a bunch of Gu Clan's Elders to gather enough force to wipe Hall of Souls' Western Branch Base.
So what if you have a powerful defensive array? Baek Ain could relay his way to break it through parasitic links.
Baek Ain didn't play with fire. He will send the Hall of Souls straight up to the sun and burn them to oblivion.
Elder Yung, Senior Qin, and over six thousand elites arrived at the Nine Serene Mountain Range.
At first, they sent one thousand elites to test the water and observe from afar. Of course, they noticed the countless pillars all over the mountain range and felt something weird about them.
That's why Elder Yung commanded them to be careful first.
Soon, they witnessed the absurd power of Hell's Guidance Array.
A thousand imaginary soul beasts powered by Nine Serene Defying Serpent's Backbone manifested and slaughtered their army like it was nothing.
"..." Elder Yung.
"..." Elder Qin.
The jaw of Elder Qin was on the verge of falling to the floor.
Meanwhile, Elder Yung is thinking about how to break this array. He was sort of an array master himself.
Still, he couldn't get his mind into this array.
Elder Qin breathed in, "I have a bold proposition."
"Say it." Elder Yung's gaze was on the pillars.
Elder Qin nodded and added, "Let's split our task."
"I'll go to the Nine Serene Spring while you stay and attack the Tribe."
"This array is strong, so I need you to open a path for me and my men."
Elder Yung nodded in agreement as he replied, "Okay."
"My fellow members!"
"Follow me!!"
Elder Yung charged forward while releasing his cultivation base to the fullest and caused the sky to ramble. Over six thousand people followed him, moving toward the nearest tower.
Yao Ming has been waiting for them and chanted, "Hell's Festive."
ROAR!
SCREECH!
HISS!
Imaginary soul beasts appeared one after another, countering the Hall of Souls' army.
Elder Yung didn't fall into the trap and spread over his Spatial Strength, fending off the beast's attack.
Unfortunately for him, The Hell's Guidance Array isn't so simple.
If one could counter it with Spatial Strength, Baek Ain wouldn't build it to defend the Tribe.
SWOOOOOOOOOSH!
BOOOOOOM!!
As intense fights happened in the Nine Serene Mountain Range, Elder Qin and his four men sneaked to get Nine Serene Spring's Essence. It's not hard to find a place when it's too eye-catching.
They arrived at the yellowish-blood-colored lake.
Elder Qin couldn't hold his grin when seeing the lake.
He told his men to secure perimeters, believing no one in the Tribe could hold them back.
Elder Qin was about to jump into the Nine Serene Spring, but someone suddenly grabbed his leg and slammed him onto the ground. It was too quick.
BAM!
Cough!
Cough!
Elder Qin escaped by utilizing Spatial Strength. He coughed a few times, clearing his mouth, and saw a white-haired youth.
"W-Who are you?!" He was dumbfounded to see his ambusher was such a young fellow.
Baek Ain stared at him and returned, "As expected, the Hall of Souls' goal was the Nine Serene Spring's Essence."
"Lady Yue's memory is right."
Elder Qin's eyes widened in disbelief as he realized the person, who killed Lady Yue, was this youth.
He entered a stance solemnly and shouted, "Brat, you still have a chance to repent."
"Do not interfere with Hall of Souls' interest, or you will face a horrendous consequence."
Baek Ain laughed at his joke, "Ha!"
"Very funny."
"Do you hear him, Alicia?"
"Do not interfere with the Hall of Souls' interest~! Or you will face a horrendous consequence ~!!"
[Joke 100] Alicia commented casually.
Baek Ain could feel his stomach hurting. He saw Elder Qin's face turn red from anger.
"YOU BRAT!" Elder Qin's aura exploded. His cultivation base soared rapidly, causing a storm to appear in the sky and the surrounding area to shake violently.
Baek Ain pulled Domina-Tion and dual-wielded them.
He pointed his twin blades at the Hall of Souls' elder and taunted, "Come on, Old Man."
"Let my masterpiece taste their first blood."