Chapter 424 - The Meticulous Plot (1/2)
There was scarcely anyone who was not gripped by the fear sown by witnessing the terrible fight between Xiao Chen and the former High Chieftain. But no one believed at any rate that he would emerge victorious; the evil auras radiating from the twelve Corpse Puppets were just too strong. Too strong beyond the belief that anyone would be able to defeat them.
Hanging a few yards above the ground, Xiao Chen’s hairs flailed violently with the high winds reaching down to flay at his face. His anger and hatred were what fueled him now, keeping his veins coursing with adrenaline and frenzy as he continued to fight against the ancient Corpse Puppet. His enemy’s black-onyx eyes glimmered with malice as it sent a tacit command to its comrades and they moved as one, lunging in unison at Xiao Chen. Twelve magic bolts they sent at Xiao Chen; the magical energy projectiles fused as one and slammed into Xiao Chen and he fell backward, groaning at the pain he felt in his chest where he was hit.
A man flew up to catch him. It was Yu Yifeng, who had anticipated this. He quickly muttered, “Retreat for now! Senior Fengxi has gone to the Mystic Lands of Kunlun for Perfected Immortal Tian Yi for help.”
“Wait…” Xiao Chen hissed through his clenched teeth, looking more sorrowful than angry, “B-but… but Muxue is still with them…”
“We’ll think of something! Come on, let’s go!”
Luo Shangyan broke from the crowd, coming towards them. The twelve High Chieftain Corpse Puppets merely hovered at where they were, showing no signs of pursuing. With their vigor sapped and their morale spent, the invaders of the Orthodox Path turned and retreated under the lead of the Elders from various schools and sects, moving in orderly files down the slopes. Xiao Chen balled his fists in frustration; but there was no other choice. He relented with utmost reluctance and withdrew with his companions from the Jade Qing Sect.
Standing alone in the dark, Su Lianyue watched as Xiao Chen returned into the fold of the Orthodox Path with a sulk before she disappeared, leaving her hiding place.
The joint invasion of the Summit of Mystics by the Orthodox Path might have gravely crippled the Corpse Refinery Sect, but not without a great cost; almost every school and sect which had taken part in the invasion had suffered many a great loss. So great that another assault was virtually impossible without the help of more reinforcements.
By evenfall, the army of mages retreated for almost a hundred of miles to a place called the Ridge of Broken Souls, a tranquil forest with lush vegetation but with lesser foul energies swirling about. They stopped for a rest for the hurt to tend to their injuries and the exhausted to replenish their powers but there was little talk and banter as the invaders licked their wounds; their spirits were low and tension ran high.
Xiao Chen propped his back up upon the trunk of a large tree. A placid and emotionless expression hung on his face as he watched into nowhere in particular with a blank and hollow stare. His clothes were filthy; caked with blood, sweat, and dirt and his battle-wearied self was utterly spent with the fatigue setting in as soon as the spiking emotions he had during his fights at the Ridge of the Fallen Drake were completely no more.
Yu Yifeng came to look at him. In his hand, he held a set of fresh clothing. “Put this on,” he said gently to Xiao Chen.
Xiao Chen did not even raise his head. He simply found no words to respond, merely keeping his gaze locked upon the few blades of grass right before him. An old man, dressed in a frock of green, walked slowly to them. “Can I trouble you with a few questions, young friend?”
Xiao Chen could feel powers of the Nirvana Realm radiating from his seemingly-frail person, yet still, the old man spoke in an amicable tone. But his presence was hardly unnoticed; many heads began to turn and look at them. Small wonder it would seem, as Xiao Chen had heard many a great number of whispers of his name all the way here.
“Ask away,” Xiao Chen responded brusquely. He was still restless from the unresolved victory and Muxue’s captivity.
“Well,” the old man smiled, “I have heard a great deal about you and I wish only to confirm a few things…”
“ENOUGH OF THIS!” A woman’s shrill scream tore across the watchful silence of the woods before the old man could finish, “Enough of all this! All of you have been talking behind Junior Brother Xiao since we’ve been leaving the Corpse Refinery Sect! And what are you up to now!?”
Xiao Chen looked and found a seething Qingyu glowering at the old man, standing beside Yu Yifeng. The latter grimaced and urged hushedly, “Come on now, Junior Sister. We treat our seniors with respect.”
Miffed, Qingyu scowled at the cyan-robed elderly man, “It was only by Junior Brother Xiao’s help during the fight earlier that we managed to escape alive! Many more of us could be dead or worst if not for him! Yet now you still wonder if he is one of the evil folk!?”
The buzzing murmurs around them stopped at once and everyone hung their heads in shame. Indeed, none of them would have been here if not for Xiao Chen’s timely ability to control the army of Blood Corpses.
The elderly man stroked his beard and smiled. “I’m afraid you have misunderstood my intentions, young girl. I am not suspicious of our young hero’s allegiance. But there is something…”
“RED SLEEVE!” Xiao Chen cried suddenly, his hands clawing deep into the soil.
“Red Sleeve?” The elderly man uttered with surprise, his forehead creasing into a frown. He was meaning to ask Xiao Chen some questions to understand more about the Corpse Refinery Sect. More information would be needed to redraw new plans for a future campaign and Xiao Chen seemed to know more than what they knew about this infernal order. He mulled quietly at the name Xiao Chen mentioned, knowing that it could be something significant.
Xiao Chen heaved a long and deep breath, his eyes gleamed with a cold fury. “True. Red Sleeve is the name of a girl. The girl who is the Divine Corpse of the Corpse Refinery Sect. A woman who should have been dead for three thousand years!”
“WHAT!? THREE THOUSAND YEARS?! That would mean that she carries at least three thousand years’ worth of Malicious Grudge!”
Anxious chatters and worried murmurs chorused from the rest of the mages around them while more began to sidle closer, hoping to be able to glean more information from Xiao Chen. The elder seniors of the Orthodox Path came directly over and gathered around the large tree, neither of them bearing any grudges or enmity towards Xiao Chen, unlike Qi Heng and the rest of the Order of the Divine Fire who would prefer to remain afar.
The senior leaders discussed and talked and eventually began squawking fiercely at each other like chickens bickering and snapping at each other, only to be silenced by a harsh “SILENCE!” by an annoyed Perfected Immortal Feng Lan who finally joined them. He threw his sleeves indignantly and continued when he finally got the silence he wanted and drew the attention of his peers. “Let Xiao Chen speak,” he glowered in a low voice. He turned to Xiao Chen and said, “Speak, Xiao Chen. This is a matter of grave importance. Let bygones be bygones for now. The existence of the Corpse Refinery Sect is a bane to all mankind and we would appreciate any intelligence you can supply us.”
Xiao Chen exhaled wearily. “This woman is sustained by her intense emotion of grudge. That makes her very, very dangerous and she belongs nowhere. Not here and certainly not in the rest of the Three Domains and certainly not the Six Paths of Samsara. But she is no common Corpse Puppet. She’s older than them. Possibly even the true founder of this accursed organization. And one more thing, she has many dealings with the Administration of Heaven, the brotherhood that deals with souls.”
“What?!” A few voices gasped as the buzzing started again. The elders ringed around the tree looked awed and shocked by this news. Facing an enemy who was no part of the Three Domains and the Six Paths of Samsara, while being closely involved with the Administration of Heaven definitely seemed more than they could stomach…