Chapter 151: Alliance

"Su Xichen!" Hua Xianglian bit her silver teeth, her expression sullen.

Deng Jingyao cupped his fists with a desolate look on his face, saying, "You all have witnessed the attitude of the Heaven Derivation Sect. This Su Xichen simply does not regard us as anything!"

Zhang Shoubai had a fiery temperament. With a flushed face, he blurted out, "Just a single Su Xichen makes the Heaven Derivation Sect so arrogant and conceited! If Mo Qingli succeeds in forming her nascent soul, won't sects like ours have to live entirely at their mercy from now on?"

As soon as these words were spoken, the expressions of all the sect masters, elders, and even the Master of the Taixu Sacred Land shifted drastically.

Huo Huahong took in everyone's expressions, his gaze glancing slightly toward the closed mountain gate of the Heaven Derivation Sect. He stepped forward and said, "Everyone, this is the territory of the Heaven Derivation Sect! Since Sect Master Deng has already agreed to a three-day period, there is no need for us to continue waiting here."

Everyone understood the implication behind his words.

Shi Changli swept his long robe, stroked his white beard, and said, "The Patriarch of the Huo family is right. Let us all return!"

Deng Jingyao exchanged subtle winks with the crowd.

While speaking, Shi Changli gave a slight nod.

The heads of the three major sects—Zhang Shoubai, Hua Xianglian, and Zhou Guanghui—looked at each other and silently nodded in agreement.

Everyone then turned their gaze toward Chu Gongming, the Master of the Taixu Sacred Land.

At this moment, he was the only one who had yet to nod.

Chu Gongming possessed a delicate and handsome face that made it difficult to distinguish his gender.

His slender, beautiful eyes swept across the crowd, and he nodded expressionlessly.

Deng Jingyao, along with the three major sects and two great families, exchanged smiles and instantly transformed into several streaks of multicolored light, flying away from the scene.

As for Chu Gongming, the Master of the Taixu Sacred Land, he gracefully boarded a luxurious flying chariot and departed with his sect's elders and disciples.

Before leaving, Deng Jingyao's lips moved slightly, conveying the designated gathering location.

Ten thousand miles away.

In a small mountain hollow, Deng Jingyao and Huo Huahong appeared one after the other.

Huo Huahong carried his hands behind his back, looked around the surrounding scenery, and teased, "How did Sect Master Deng ever find such a place? What an exquisite hideaway for a lover!"

Deng Jingyao waved his hand to project a cup of tea, which hovered in front of Huo Huahong out of thin air, and laughed heartily, "Patriarch Huo jests. How could a woman possibly compare to the grand ambitions we are plotting?"

Huo Huahong picked up the teacup with practiced ease, smiling indifferently, "Sect Master Deng, do you really intend to wait for them for three days?"

Deng Jingyao's laughter gradually subsided. With deep, profound eyes fixed on him, he asked, "Does Patriarch Huo have other thoughts?"

Huo Huahong gently rotated the teacup with his well-defined fingers. A trace of murderous intent leaked from his eyes as he stated with stern dignity, "Our Profound Intent Sect has lost far too many disciples in this endeavor; we cannot afford the slightest failure! Three days is far too long!"

Deng Jingyao abruptly put down his teacup, his fierce and ruthless expression fully exposed. "What you reminded me of earlier was correct. Too many of our Profound Intent Sect disciples have died. Facing Su Xichen and the others head-on is indeed asking too much!"

"You persuaded me to agree to these three days—do you have a good idea on how to deal with them?" Deng Jingyao's tone suddenly softened by a fraction.

Huo Huahong shifted his gaze to the teacup in his hand and slowly shook his head. "If Su Xichen were not within the Heaven Derivation Sect, matters would certainly not be this thorny. These three days are given as much to them as they are to us."

Deng Jingyao sat back down on the stone stool, his brows tightly furrowed. "Should we invite the Old Ancestor out of seclusion?"

Huo Huahong's expression shifted slightly. "The ancestor of the Heaven Derivation Sect is guarding the gate in seclusion. Even if we were to summon Ancestor Jiuye right now, it would not make much of a difference."

"If only there were some way to eliminate Su Xichen first!" Deng Jingyao smashed the stone table with a single punch, gritting his teeth as he spoke.

If Yan Xi, the artifact spirit of the Jade Spirit Secret Realm, had not betrayed him, he would not have made a move against the Heaven Derivation Sect so soon.

The plan targeting Su Xichen had not yet had time to unfold before it was ruined by that damned, bitchy artifact spirit!

Cowering in a corner, Bai Shulan wrapped her arms around herself. Even when struck by flying fragments of the shattered stone table, she dared not move a muscle.

Terrified, she buried her head into her embrace, leaving only a patch of fair neck exposed.

Huo Huahong and Deng Jingyao cast a tacit glance at her.

Huo Huahong said, "How about using her as bait?"

Bai Shulan's body stiffened. The expression on the face buried in her knees changed drastically, and she nervously clutched her sleeves.

Deng Jingyao narrowed his eyes, a flicker of hesitation crossing his features. "She is the sole witness of the Jade Spirit Secret Realm!"

Huo Huahong chuckled lightly. "If she weren't the sole witness, she wouldn't be of any use!"

A brilliant light lit up in Deng Jingyao's eyes. "Right! Exactly! Isn't the sole witness the person the Heaven Derivation Sect cares about the most? Hahaha!"

Huo Huahong looked at her with a smile.

Bai Shulan tremblingly raised her head, her eyes filled with tears.

"Sect Master... what does the Sect Master need Shulan to do? Shulan will definitely do her utmost to help the sect suppress the Heaven Derivation Sect and achieve victory this time!"

"Still such an obedient little girl!" Huo Huahong looked her up and down with a smile that was not quite a smile.

Bai Shulan timidly lifted her small face, not daring to lower her head nor meet his gaze.

Deng Jingyao's expression softened somewhat as he feigned gentleness. "Girl, rest assured, this Sect Master will certainly protect you and let you live to see our Profound Intent Sect become the undisputed number one sect in the Dome Continent!"

Bai Shulan looked at Deng Jingyao weakly. "This disciple believes in the Sect Master!"

Deng Jingyao was in high spirits. "Hahaha, hahaha!"

A smile lingered on the corner of Huo Huahong's lips.

Suddenly, a pitch-black arrow whistled in from the southeast.

Huo Huahong leapt lightly into the air and grabbed it out of thin air. "The arrow is poisoned!"

At a single glance, Deng Jingyao recognized the origin of the arrow. "This is the Black Miasma Arrow of the Poison-Venerating Villa. It seems there are words inscribed upon it?"

Huo Huahong focused his gaze. "Indeed, there is a line of fine print."

"Let me see!" Deng Jingyao's expression shifted slightly. He took the Black Miasma Arrow with an empty hand and examined it closely.

Huo Huahong stood nearby, observing the handwriting on the arrow, yet unable to decipher its meaning.

"It seems this is the secret code of the Poison-Venerating Villa," Huo Huahong speculated inwardly.

Bai Shulan's eyelashes trembled. With her head lowered, she concealed the extreme anxiety within her heart.

After a moment.

Deng Jingyao burned the Black Miasma Arrow to ashes with a flick of his fire magic.

Huo Huahong asked in astonishment, "Sect Master Deng, why did you do that?"

The corners of Deng Jingyao's mouth curled into an eerie smile. He glanced sideways at Bai Shulan and said, "Girl, you can now peacefully await the outcome three days from now."

"Patriarch Huo, let us speak inside!" Deng Jingyao raised his right hand, politely inviting Huo Huahong into the immortal cave.

Bai Shulan raised her head in astonishment, shimmering tears involuntarily spilling and rolling onto the ground.

"Are they... sparing me?"

Her lips quivered, yet no words escaped; she could only weep in silence.

"Xiaoyang, Xiaoyang, where are you? Senior Brother Huo, won't Senior Brother take me away?"

She buried her head back into her arms, sobbing and crying softly.

From the moment she was lured and sold into the Spring Rain Pavilion, she was doomed never to return.

To preserve her so-called purity, she had watched with her own eyes as her younger brother was turned into a puppet of the demonic cultivators.

She knew all of this; she knew that Xiaoyang was struggling for her sake, yet she still feigned ignorance, pretending to win Xiaoyang's trust while enjoying slightly easier treatment within the Spring Rain Pavilion.

Back then, she had chosen herself.