CHAPTER 425: FIGHTING FOR THE NARRATIVE

"These four... they look really familiar!" Sun Xiangyuan said, eyes widening with mock surprise. "Ah, that’s it! Aren’t they the four Great Heavenly Bandits from Red Cliff Mountain? The ones our Purple Crest Immortal Sect’s been hunting for? And now they’re brazen enough to show up here, right in our territory? Unreal."

"No way they’d take that kind of risk unless someone was backing them. Liang Youwen, this whole thing has your fingerprints all over it—you’re pulling the strings, aren’t you?" He shot Liang Youwen a sharp look.

"Exactly! Everyone involved in this so-called battle is from your Compassionate Sword Immortal Palace. Who do you think you’re fooling?" Sun Anming added with a scoff.

"You really cooked up a clever little scheme, didn’t you, Liang Youwen?" You Shaojun snapped, his face flushing with anger. "Not only are you smearing the name of our Purple Crest Immortal Sect, but you’re using it as an excuse to sneak your Nirvana Cleansing realm experts into our territory. And you still dare to call yourselves the number one righteous sect in the world? What a joke."

One after another, they kept piling on, each tossing out their own "analysis" until all the blame was squarely thrown at the Compassionate Sword Immortal Palace.

"Ridiculous! What about Jiang Chen, the one who showed up and took out those so-called Great Heavenly Bandits from Red Cliff Mountain? The fact that he went straight for them just proves they were from your Purple Crest Immortal Sect," snapped a Supreme Elder from the Compassionate Sword Immortal Palace.

Sun Anming let out a dry laugh, shaking his head. "Please. You’re the ones who forced those four to drop their disguises. That’s what led Jiang Chen straight to them. And let’s not forget—he killed your three Nirvana Peering realm experts too. What do you have to say about that?"

"Ha! Amazing. Truly amazing! When it comes to twisting the truth and flipping things around, you lot are unmatched!" An old man in a blue crown from the Compassionate Sword Immortal Palace was so furious his beard bristled, eyes bulging as if he might leap across and tear their tongues out right then and there.

"Hmph! You know exactly what you’ve done," Sun Xiangyuan shot back with a sneer. "The Purple Crest Immortal Sect walks the righteous path. We don’t need to answer to your nonsense."

"I’ve never seen such shameless people in my life!" The blue-crowned elder trembled with rage, eyes burning.

Liang Youwen stepped forward and gave the blue-crowned elder a light pat on the shoulder. His cold eyes stayed fixed on You Shaojun and the others. "I know exactly what you’re after. You just want to keep chasing Lu Yi down and wipe him off the map like he never existed. But if you think any of you are leaving here today, you’re dreaming."

At the same time, he quietly issued his orders.

The Supreme Elders stationed at Giant Spirit Ghost Mountain were told to confront the Purple Crest Immortal Sect’s upper ranks head-on.

Back at the Compassionate Sword Immortal Palace, more reinforcements were already being mobilized—headed straight into the Purple Crest Immortal Sect’s territory. Their mission: find Lu Yi and take him alive.

"Heh, you really think you can stop us?" You Shaojun shot back, eyes locked with Liang Youwen’s. "Save your breath. We’re not going anywhere."

"Right. This Lu Yi you keep talking about? He’s a complete fabrication," Sun Xiangyuan said, standing tall. "And don’t even try using fakes dressed as our people to chase him down. Won’t work. We’ll find him first—we’ll prove to the world that he’s no human-demon hybrid. And even if he is, what does that have to do with the Purple Crest Immortal Sect? Or Lu Tingyun?"

"Sun Xiangyuan, you lying coward!" The blue-crowned elder from the Compassionate Sword Immortal Palace jabbed a trembling finger at him, nearly foaming at the mouth. "Everyone knows there’s a traitor in your ranks—one who gave birth to a half-demon bastard! And yet here you are, shouting lies and pointing fingers like you’ve done nothing wrong. You’re beyond shameless!"

Sun Anming stepped forward, fists clenched. "Old man, you’ve lost your mind. Got proof? No? Then keep your mouth shut. Once we find Lu Yi, the truth will speak for itself—and the world will see who’s really been lying."

Liang Youwen’s eyes narrowed. The air around him seemed to still as his patience wore thin. "I’m done wasting words," he said coldly. "When the fighting starts, we’ll settle this properly."

Sun Xiangyuan suddenly burst into laughter—loud and sharp. "Fine by me. Let’s see who walks away in the end."

...

Meanwhile, news of the battle at Burning Sun City continued to spread like wildfire.

Before long, almost every cultivator on Prosperous Stone Immortal Star had heard about it.

"Hey, did you hear? The fight at Burning Sun City’s over!"

"No way—who won? Was it the Compassionate Sword Immortal Palace or the Purple Crest Immortal Sect?"

"Neither. You won’t believe it—a single dragon-blooded cultivator showed up and took out people from both sides."

"What?! All of them? That’s seven Nirvana Peering realm experts dead!"

"Wait a minute. Since when did we have a dragon-blooded cultivator here? Aren’t they supposed to be myths?"

"Seriously, how strong must this guy be—to take on both factions like that and walk away? And who is he, to have the guts to do it? This changes everything."

All across the cities, cultivators were deep in heated discussion. The news from Burning Sun City had thrown everything into chaos.

No one could believe what had happened—and the mysterious dragon-blooded cultivator was now etched into everyone’s minds.

"Hey, is it true? Is Lu Yi really a human-demon hybrid? Did he die in the battle?"

"Come on, do you even have to ask? The way the Compassionate Sword Immortal Palace and the Purple Crest Immortal Sect are going at it basically confirms it."

"Yeah, no doubt about it. Lu Yi’s definitely a half-demon. Word is, he’s still alive too. For some reason, that dragon-blooded cultivator let him go."

"Let him go? That thing’s a bastard child—spawn of that demon spy Lu Tingyun!"

"Figures. That dragon-blooded guy probably isn’t some noble hero either. Killing people from both sects like that? He’s gotta be ruthless. Arrogant too, to make enemies out of both sides."

The chatter in the streets didn’t stop. More and more people started labeling Jiang Chen as a ruthless killer, his reputation taking a serious hit.

But then, different voices started popping up in the crowd.

"Who said it’s confirmed that Lu Yi’s a human-demon hybrid? I heard the whole thing was staged by the Compassionate Sword Immortal Palace."

"Yeah, same here. Word is, they planned this mess just to frame the Purple Crest Immortal Sect."

"Honestly, Lu Yi might not even be a half-demon. And even if he is, there’s no proof he’s tied to Supreme Elder Lu Tingyun. Didn’t you hear? Lu Tingyun got quietly pulled back from the front lines."

It wasn’t hard to guess what was going on—these new rumors were clearly being spread on purpose, trying to clean up the Purple Crest Immortal Sect’s name.

Not to be outdone, the Compassionate Sword Immortal Palace started spreading their own rumors. Before long, both factions were locked in a messy smear campaign, each trying to control the story.

With so much conflicting talk flying around, most people didn’t know what to believe anymore. Caught between both sides, they were left scratching their heads—unsure who was lying and who was telling the truth.

It didn’t take long before Prosperous Stone Immortal Star was thrown into complete chaos.

From a distance, Jiang Chen watched it all unfold through his divine sense, already close to the Nirvana Cleansing level. None of this surprised him.

He saw it coming.

When two giants like the Compassionate Sword Immortal Palace and the Purple Crest Immortal Sect clashed, it was only natural they’d fight just as hard for control over public opinion as they did on the battlefield.