117. Frustrated Three Sect Masters

At that moment, Chen Xuan spoke up, "If the three of you want to fight, whether all at once or one by one, I'll gladly take you on!"

"Kid, don’t get cocky! I was merely caught off guard before. If we really fought, you wouldn’t even be worthy to carry my shoes!" Ren Yuanzi retorted, his fury reaching new heights as he pointed at Chen Xuan, scolding him.

"Want to test that?" Chen Xuan raised his sword, pointing it directly at him.

Seeing his calm confidence, Tian Yuanzi began to question whether Chen Xuan was genuinely unafraid or just bluffing.

After all, they’d already lost several elders, and with the sect battles of the Eastern Xuan Region on the horizon, losing one of their three sect masters now would be a disastrous blow.

Just then, Ren Yuanzi seemed to think of something and suddenly announced, "Oh, that’s right—Chen Xuan colluded with a demon!"

The crowd froze in shock. Chen Xuan, colluding with a demon? How could that be?

Tian Yuanzi hesitated for a moment but quickly caught on, and he asked seriously, "Are you certain?"

Ren Yuanzi nodded, a smug look on his face. "I saw it with my own eyes. He summoned a demon from a black, smoky banner and fought alongside it!"

The pride on Ren Yuanzi’s face was unmistakable, as if saying, "Kid, you're done for!"

Di Yuanzi joined in, addressing Ying Xuanzi, "Exterminating demons is the duty of all cultivators. What will you do about this?"

Ying Xuanzi wasn’t about to fall for this. "This matter hasn’t been verified yet, and all we have is Ren Yuanzi’s empty words."

Chen Xuan smirked, "So just because you say I colluded with demons, it must be true? Where's your proof?"

Di Yuanzi countered, "Ren Yuanzi saw it with his own eyes—how could that be false?"

"Indeed, the demon was summoned from that black banner of yours!" Ren Yuanzi’s grin grew wider. He had already recognized the value of the banner and wanted it for himself.

"Black banner? What black banner?" Chen Xuan asked in return. He had already stored away the Soul Banner.

Ren Yuanzi exclaimed, "The one with black smoke, the one you used when fighting me!"

"Ren Yuanzi, you must be mistaken. I fought you with a sword the whole time—when did I ever use a black banner?"

"Impossible!"

"If you don’t believe me, you could ask them," Chen Xuan said, gesturing to Ying Huanhuan, Yun Yun, and the others.

"We didn’t see anything," the three of them said, shaking their heads in unison.

"You... You’re all in on it together! Of course, you’d cover for each other!" Ren Yuanzi was so enraged he nearly coughed up blood.

Chen Xuan pointed to the dead Yuan Gate elders and said, "Then why don’t you ask them?"

"Ask... them?" Ren Yuanzi’s face went stiff.

They were all dead. How was he supposed to ask? And even if he did, could they answer him?

Left speechless, he could only look to Tian Yuanzi for support.

After a moment’s thought, Tian Yuanzi said, "Fine. Chen Xuan can come back with us to Yuan Gate. We’ll use our secret methods to investigate, and the truth will be revealed."

For now, they couldn’t act against Chen Xuan here. But if he went to Yuan Gate, they would hold all the power.

Ying Xuanzi took a step forward, showing rare resolve. "Tian Yuanzi, while the matter with Zhou Tong back then was indeed his fault, this time, Yuan Gate is clearly in the wrong, yet you’re using this excuse to take our Dao Sect disciple away?"

He knew he couldn’t let Chen Xuan go to Yuan Gate. Otherwise, he would likely meet the same fate as Zhou Tong.

The situation remained deadlocked.

"I never expected that the revered masters of Yuan Gate would resort to mere slander," Chen Xuan sneered with contempt.

“Nonsense! We would never stoop to slandering you!” Ren Yuanzi retorted, fuming with anger.

Chen Xuan raised an eyebrow. “So, by that logic, I could just as easily claim that you, the Yuan Gate Sect masters, are colluding with demons. Perhaps you should come to Dao Sect to be investigated?”

“You… you’re speaking nonsense! You can’t just say anything that comes to mind!” Ren Yuanzi’s eyes flashed with a hint of dark energy as his killing intent surged.

[Ding! Ren Yuanzi’s killing intent increased, emotion value +500]
[Ding! Tian Yuanzi’s anger increased, emotion value +500]
[Ding! Di Yuanzi’s killing intent increased, emotion value +500]

Oh, struck a nerve, did I? The more agitated you get, the more it proves I’m right!

Chen Xuan remained calm. “No need to get so worked up. I’m only speculating. But if you’re not convinced, we could always fight again.”

Tian Yuanzi finally conceded, “Fine. Since our Yuan Gate elders made a mistake first, let’s drop this matter.”

“Elder Brother!” Ren Yuanzi protested, unwilling to back down.

Di Yuanzi gave him a look, calming him down.

[Ding! Ren Yuanzi’s frustration increased, emotion value +500]
[Ding! Tian Yuanzi’s frustration and killing intent increased, emotion value +600]

Tian Yuanzi, glaring at Chen Xuan, warned, “Remember, young one, ‘The tallest tree in the forest is the first to fall to the wind.’” With a flick of his robe, he gathered up the bodies of the fallen Yuan Gate elders and stepped through a spatial rift, disappearing.

As the three Yuan Gate sect masters departed, the onlookers were stunned.

“They actually left?”

“Is this for real? Yuan Gate usually isn’t one to take a loss without payback.”

“Yes, but Dao Sect now has three top-tier fighters, including Chen Xuan, whose power seems unrivaled. Plus, Ren Yuanzi was injured. What choice did they have?”

“Chen Xuan? That name sounds familiar…”

“Oh, that’s him! He used to be at the Nine Heavens Supreme Purity Palace and was a legendary talent in the Eastern Xuan Region!”

As the crowd buzzed with talk, the space above them suddenly twisted. A massive energy hand burst out from the rift with destructive force, crushing down on the onlookers below, turning several into pulp. Some managed to flee, but it was clear that Ren Yuanzi had struck, venting his frustration.

From within the rift, Ren Yuanzi’s cold voice echoed, “My Yuan Gate is not something for mere mortals to gossip about! They deserved their fate!”

The Dao Sect members did not interfere, and once the chaos subsided, Ying Huanhuan approached Chen Xuan.

Sincerely, she apologized, “I’m so sorry. It’s all my fault. If I hadn’t brought them along, Su Rou wouldn’t have died.”

[Ding! Ying Huanhuan’s guilt increased, emotion value +999]

“It’s partly my fault, too. He warned me not to leave Dao Sect lightly, but I… I forgot,” Yun Yun added, her voice full of remorse.

Self-blame? Really?

Chen Xuan was too tired to even respond.

Why do some people act this way? Tell them not to do something, and they rush to do it—and then regret it afterward.

Ying Xuanzi interjected, “Enough. Let’s return to Dao Sect. Those three Yuan Gate elders are nothing but trouble.”

“Yes. Now that we’ve crossed them, we’ll have to be cautious in the future,” Qian Tian agreed, nodding.

“Father, we found an ancient celestial yuan tree nearby!” Ying Huanhuan said excitedly.

“Oh? Where?” Ying Xuanzi’s eyes lit up, and he eagerly followed her to collect the ancient tree and bring it back to Dao Sect.