Chapter 320: Has Jade Cauldron Sect Already Fallen?

Chapter 320: Has Jade Cauldron Sect Already Fallen?

Hai Qiankun felt an icy chill spread through his heart upon hearing Xiang Jue's words.

Since Xiang Jue had said it himself, there were bound to be many who would be tempted.

Sure enough.

He turned to look at the Divine Transformation Realm elders beside him.

They were all visibly wavering.

One elder, his hair snow-white and appearance seemingly upright and righteous, suddenly stomped on the ground and shot into the sky the moment Hai Qiankun looked at him.

Then, he flew straight toward Xiang Jue.

"Your Highness! I have always admired the Ten Thousand Demons Nation and am willing to serve at your command!"

His voice rang out impatiently.

It was as if he couldn't wait to rush to Xiang Jue's side and kneel to kiss his hooves.

The actions of this Divine Transformation elder were nothing less than a vicious stab to the hearts of the Pill River Sect cultivators still resisting.

We are fighting to the death to defend against the demons.

Yet you, a sect elder, are the first to surrender?!

Hai Qiankun gritted his teeth.

He had always provided these elders with generous treatment.

Let them enjoy a life of luxury.

And yet, this was the result.

They discarded the sect like worthless trash.

Outside the mountain gate, countless demons erupted into unbridled laughter.

"Humans are truly pathetic!"

"Willing to become slaves just to save their own lives!"

"Creatures like this deserve to be swallowed by us demons! They deserve to be livestock!"

Their laughter rose into the sky, forming an oppressive force that seemed to shake the very air.

The Pill River Sect cultivators felt their heads throb as if some strange force was attacking their minds.

Xiang Jue also let out a sinister chuckle.

His gaze toward the surrendering Divine Transformation elder was cold and cruel.

He did enjoy keeping human slaves.

But only those who resisted fiercely—the more they struggled, the more he enjoyed it.

As for those who surrendered on their own…

He despised them the most.

Such human slaves had no value.

They should be killed.

The elder, however, had yet to realize the coldness in Xiang Jue's eyes. He continued flying toward him at high speed, his heart filled with misplaced relief.

It's fine.

I surrendered before the grand formation broke.

If I had waited until Xiang Jue stormed the mountain gate, I might not even have the chance to be a slave.

Then—

A massive shadow suddenly loomed over him.

It nearly blocked out the entire sky.

Instinctively, he looked up.

And what he saw made his soul tremble—

A colossal blood-red pillar was descending upon him, spanning over sixty feet in diameter!

Upon closer inspection, it was no pillar at all.

It was a gigantic elephant hoof!

Its intricate patterns and textures were clearly visible.

A deep, overwhelming fear surged through the old man's heart.

It was the omen of death!

He knew, without a doubt—

This was an attack he could never withstand.

He was doomed!

"Your Highness!" the elder shrieked in terror.

Xiang Jue, however, merely said coldly,

"The thing I despise most is spineless cowards who surrender without a fight."

"You are not worthy to be my human slave.

You're not even worthy to be livestock.

You deserve only death."

As his words fell, the blood-soaked elephant hoof accelerated downward.

Boom!

The elder was instantly smashed into the ground.

His body burst apart, reduced to a splattered mess of flesh and blood.

The massive hoof crashed into the earth, sending clouds of dust and debris flying.

A nearby hill crumbled under the impact.

The resulting shockwave struck the sect's defensive formation.

The protective light flickered violently, then rapidly dimmed.

Then, like a fragile eggshell—

It shattered.

Crack!

Countless shimmering fragments dissolved into nothingness.

The entire Pill River Sect trembled violently.

Buildings swayed chaotically.

Roof tiles, wooden beams, and bricks came crashing down.

All around, the sect was filled with panicked cries, terrified screams, and agonized wails.

Hai Qiankun was dumbfounded.

Countless cultivators were shaken to their core, overwhelmed by fear.

One strike.

Just one strike.

And a Divine Transformation Realm cultivator had been reduced to pulp!

The aftershock alone had shattered the mountain gate formation!

This was the power of the eldest prince of the Ten Thousand Demons Nation?

Terrifying.

Utterly terrifying.

Though demon sovereigns and Divine Transformation cultivators were considered to be on the same level of strength, some demon sovereigns were clearly far more powerful than their human counterparts.

Xiang Jue was one such sovereign.

Despair took root in everyone's hearts.

The Divine Transformation elders beside Hai Qiankun were trembling, their faces deathly pale.

They had lived in luxury for far too long.

Despite reaching the early or mid-stage of the Divine Transformation Realm, their actual combat strength was likely no different from a newly advanced Divine Transformation cultivator.

Just now, that elder had been instantly killed with a single blow.

And Xiang Jue clearly despised those who surrendered willingly.

It was obvious—they would all meet the same fate.

A brutal death.

"Charge in and slaughter every human!"

Xiang Jue swung his massive trunk and let out a low growl.

His words were nothing less than a death sentence for every cultivator of Pill River Sect.

The morale of the demon forces soared to its peak.

Meanwhile, the morale of the Pill River Sect disciples plummeted into the abyss.

Faced with such an overwhelming gap in strength, no one dared to summon the courage to resist Xiang Jue.

They could only await death.

Hai Qiankun also gave up.

At that moment, his mind was filled with scattered thoughts.

"What about Supreme Purity Sect?"

"They must be completely surrounded by demons as well."

"But at least Xiang Jue isn't there. They might be able to hold out for a little longer—not as hopeless as we are."

"And Jade Cauldron Sect?"

Hai Qiankun shook his head.

"I heard that the Lihuo Flood Dragon had long fallen into deep slumber and would be unable to fight."

"Jade Cauldron Sect has probably been breached by now."

"What a pity. Shen Mo was truly a once-in-a-generation genius… but in the end, he still couldn't stop the tides of history from rolling forward."

Hai Qiankun sighed deeply, accepting his fate.

Beyond the Pill River Sect's mountain gate, deep within the dense forest.

A lone figure gazed at the sect, now engulfed in flames of war, his expression filled with emotion.

"Good thing, Dan Lao, you sensed something was wrong and told me to leave ahead of time."

"Otherwise, I would still be inside the sect right now… and soon to become nothing more than a corpse among the ruins."

Xiao Fan muttered softly, his tone filled with gratitude.

A chuckle echoed in his mind—Dan Lao's voice.

"I merely had a feeling and guessed what the demon sovereign was planning."

"I told you to leave under the pretense of carrying out a mission—just in case."

"If the demons really attacked, you wouldn't be trapped inside."

"And if they didn't, you could simply return unnoticed."

"But it seems… I was right."

"Sigh… All of Yuzhou will soon be trampled beneath the demons' iron hooves."

"After Wu Province, this is the second province to fall."

Dan Lao sighed deeply.

He never imagined that humans would one day become this weak.

Xiao Fan let out a faint smile.

"This is the fundamental weakness of Pill River Sect. Hai Qiankun used precious treasures to lure cultivators into joining, and while that did allow the sect to grow tremendously…"

"…it also meant that their loyalty was shallow at best. When there were benefits, they all rushed forward. When there was danger, they scattered like rats."

"This was inevitable."

Dan Lao nodded.

"Don't linger here. Leave now. I can't conceal your presence for long—eventually, that demon prince will sense you."

"Alright, I'm leaving now. I'll head to Longzhou—the capital of the Jing Kingdom. It should be the safest place." Xiao Fan nodded.

Just as he was about to leave, he suddenly felt something.

He turned his gaze toward the sky.

There—far in the distance—several figures were rapidly approaching Pill River Sect.

"Wait… those are… Jade Cauldron Sect cultivators?"

Xiao Fan's expression was one of astonishment.

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