CHAPTER 1485: CHAPTER 1485: STRONG RESPONSE

Various messages gathered at Azure Woods Mountain, continuously delivered to Huo Yan’s hands.

Huo Yan’s brow furrowed even tighter. He leaned over and whispered to Sect Leader Sima Qingyun, "Sect Leader, Bamboo City Lord Ma Buwei has dispatched sixty thousand troops and is now camped fifty miles away at the small ravine. Along with them are various loose cultivators, numbering around ten thousand, and they are continuously gathering towards us."

Sima Qingyun gazed at the dark clouds in the sky and sighed, "What must come will eventually come; this heavy rain is inevitable."

Huo Yan said, "This crisis is all because of this Sharing Alliance. Their ambitions are great, not only targeting our Azure Woods Sect. In my opinion, they are aiming for all the major sects of the South Yangtze. We should request assistance from nearby Wudang and Mount Mao; they will surely help us."

Sima Qingyun shook his head and said, "You are too naive. These sects are short-sighted and harbor their own agendas. Not only will they not support us, but they might even hope to gain something from it."

"What should we do then?"

Huo Yan raised his brows, worried, and said, "These loose cultivator forces are continuously gathering, which is very unfavorable to us."

Sima Qingyun calmly said, "Loose cultivators are just a mob, with the highest cultivation level being merely at the Core Formation Stage. Relying on them to achieve anything is futile.

They are all watching; if they see us as weak, they will attack us en masse. If we show strength, they will scatter like birds and beasts.

The only real threat is the government forces, but since Ma Buwei’s son is in our hands, they wouldn’t dare to act rashly.

We need to guard against the mastermind behind this Sharing Alliance; once those people are eliminated, this crisis will dissolve without battle."

"Sect Leader, what is your plan?"

Huo Yan’s eyes lit up.

Sima Qingyun instructed, "Order the Inner Sect Disciples to go out in groups, and kill anyone within fifty miles. I want to frighten these loose cultivators so they dare not step one foot into Azure Woods’ territory. All Outer Sect Disciples are to defend the main peak and activate the Mountain-Defending Great Formation. You and I will go to the forbidden area and set a trap, waiting for that Sharing Alliance’s organizer to come."

"Understood!"

Huo Yan cupped his fists and immediately went to inform the heads of each inner and outer hall.

Thunderbolts rumbled constantly, as if trying to tear open the night sky.

The heavy rain poured down as expected.

The rising waters made the river swell by three points.

On Azure Woods Mountain, the sound of drums thundered, and streaks of sword light slashed through the night sky in all directions.

In the darkness, a dozen or so cultivators sat inside a drafty, rundown temple.

Torches burned inside, roasting several wild rabbits above the flames.

Someone took a sip of wine and exclaimed with a troubled brow, "Do you think this Sharing Alliance’s talk can be trusted?"

"Will they really flatten Azure Woods Mountain tomorrow?"

"I think it’s doubtful. The Azure Woods Sect is a millennium-old major sect, one of the best in Jingzhou Prefecture. Such a large sect, with solid foundations, cannot be destroyed just like that."

"Why worry so much, we’re just here to seize any benefits. We’ll take advantage of the situation if we can, and simply leave if we can’t, just as if we’re taking a stroll here."

"Quite right. You wouldn’t believe it, when Mount Heng Sect was destroyed, those people gained so much. I heard that the Golden Saber Sect, a small sect at the foot of Mount Heng, had its Sect Leader lead all disciples up there. They grabbed a Pill Furnace filled with hundreds of newly refined pills. It’s said that upon returning, the sect’s strength surged, becoming the top sect in their town."

"Won’t we gain a lot this time? We’re closest to the Azure Woods Sect, so we’ll surely gain first access when the opportunity arises!"

"Indeed, this place is so desolate and remote, not even ghosts discover it. We’ll just hide here and see how things unfold tomorrow!"

The group laughed as they drank, carving up and devouring the half-roasted rabbit meat.

Outside the broken temple, a cold laugh suddenly echoed, "What a brilliant scheme you’ve all contrived!"

A group of disciples, clad in bamboo green robes, entered with swords in hand, each wearing a murderous look while glancing at those inside the temple.

The people inside leaped up in fright, grasping knives, hammers, wolf fang clubs, and various magical weapons, exclaiming in shock, "Are you Azure Woods Sect disciples?"

"What do you think?"

The leading disciple sneered coldly, raising his longsword, and scolded them, "You ragtag bandits dare harbor intentions against our Azure Woods Sect. Killing you only sullies my Earth Immortal Sword."

The opposing loose cultivators quickly clasped their fists and pleaded, "Everyone, there’s a misunderstanding! We brothers were just passing by and had no intention against your Azure Woods Sect! If you dislike our presence, we’ll leave right away."

"Yes, yes, we’ll leave immediately. Our paths won’t cross, let’s pretend this encounter never happened."

One bowed and saluted, lifting his foot to slip out through a gap in the broken wall.

With a swish, sword light flashed.

The man had barely taken two steps before his body split, blood spraying three feet high where the sword qi cleaved air.

"Third Brother!"

"Third Brother!"

"Brother Wang!"

"..."

The group of loose cultivators screamed in terror, stepping back swiftly to widen the gap between them and the aggressive Azure Woods disciples.

The leading Senior Brother of Azure Woods Sect coldly snorted, "Come and go as you please, is this place a guest house to you?"

The loose cultivator’s leader shivered, wielding his blade, and cursed, "Brothers, let’s fight them!"

Both sides squared off, the murderous aura clashing as weapons rang.

An explosion shook the rundown temple, scattering its beams and surrounding stonewalls into fragments.

With dull, muffled sounds, a dozen loose cultivators fell dead beneath the sword light, each rolling into pools of blood, screaming in agony.

The Azure Woods disciples callously kicked their corpses, then hurried off to the next location.

Within a fifty-mile radius around the Azure Woods, murderous intent surged, not abating for the whole night.

Daylight arrived, and the rain stopped.

The scattered loose cultivators, upon receiving news, were scared witless, fleeing a hundred miles away like frightened birds.

Some hid behind the government forces, others simply escaped back to Bamboo City, waiting for everything to settle before returning.

Nobody anticipated that, even with the Azure Woods Sect’s impending doom, they would still emit such intense killing intent.

Those loose cultivators, aiming for easy gains, had to reconsider their options.

As the morning broke, and the lively atmosphere dissipated, nearly half of the cultivators retreated.

The news returned to the Azure Woods Sect, bringing hearty laughter and relief among all the sect leaders and hall heads.

Elder Huo Yan even declared, "What nonsense Sharing Alliance, just a rabble, incapable of achieving anything significant!"

The scattered loose cultivators shared the sentiment, believing they’d been duped by some useless trickster to gather there.

While they engaged in discussions, two leisurely approached the large gate below the mountain.

Beneath the archway, Ma Tengfei heard the commotion, looked up, and was overwhelmed with excitement, screaming hoarsely, "Big Brother, you’re finally here!"

He was drenched from a night of rain, resembling a soaked sponge.

To conserve energy, he dared not use his spiritual power, allowing the rain to drench him.

At this point, he looked like he was barely clinging to life.