You don't hit Why are you nodding

At the face of the cliff, Yaoqin watched with a puzzled expression as Chu Xingchen reached out toward the mountain.

Soon, the same blood-qi that had appeared earlier began seeping out from the steep rock face, coiling around Chu Xingchen's arm like tendrils.

Seeing this, Yaoqin couldn't help but voice her concern, "Are you sure this is safe?!"

Chu Xingchen didn’t answer. Instead, he allowed the blood-qi to cling to him, letting its frenzied energy seep into his body.

Without hesitation, he immediately channeled his spiritual power, suppressing the violent energy with the techniques of Li Xingtian’s cultivation method.

The once-rampant blood-qi was instantly subdued under the force of his spiritual power, bending to his will.

Chu Xingchen wasted no time—he wrapped his own spiritual energy around the blood-qi and yanked it free.

The blood-qi offered no resistance, shattering effortlessly under his grasp.

Before Yaoqin’s astonished eyes, the wall crumbled into dissipating blood-qi.

Was the Evil Spirit Sect really this sloppy?

"Done!" Chu Xingchen nodded in satisfaction. "Let’s go in and take a look."

He stepped in first, with Yaoqin following closely behind.

The cave bore obvious signs of crude excavation.

A narrow passage, wide enough for three people, stretched ahead with no light to guide the way.

But for Golden Core cultivators, that was hardly an issue.

The moment they stepped inside, an overwhelming stench of blood assaulted their senses.

Yaoqin’s expression darkened as she stepped forward. "I’ll take the lead. The Tianyan Sect’s concealment arts are unmatched in the Central Continent."

Chu Xingchen had no objections.

Deeper into the cave, the bloody aura thickened, almost congealing into a physical presence.

Yaoqin felt as if she were trudging through mud, every movement sluggish.

She glanced worriedly at Chu Xingchen but found him perfectly at ease, far more composed than she was. Relieved, she pressed on.

After cautiously advancing several dozen steps, voices reached their ears.

"Useless fools!"

"Can’t even handle the simplest tasks?! Now we have to rely on the Central Continent’s Sacred Sect?! Do you realize the highest-quality Sacred Seed was lost because of your shoddy blood-qi?!"

"Dead! Dead! Dead!"

A shrill, furious woman’s voice shrieked:

"Now we’re left with a sickly runt, and only now do you bring spirit stones?! What were you doing earlier?!"

Hearing this, the two exchanged glances and crept closer, peering around the corner.

A vast chamber stretched before them, its floor marked with intricate ritual arrays. Six massive, dark-red cauldrons stood at fixed positions, boiling with blood-qi that rose in thick, swirling columns.

The crimson energy converged above the central array, forming a dense, spherical mass that seemed to envelop something within.

Beneath the blood sphere, a middle-aged woman clad in dark-red robes sat with her back to Chu Xingchen and Yaoqin.

She appeared to be meditating at the heart of the ritual formation.

Meanwhile, the Wind Sword Sect Leader and his men were emptying sacks of blood-infused spirit stones into the cauldrons.

Hesitating for the sake of future relations, the Wind Sword Sect Leader attempted to explain:

"It was the Qingfeng Sect’s people who caused the mishap—"

Before he could finish, the woman in red robes roared even louder:

"Mishap?! Mishap?! Everything’s a mishap with you lot! Why don’t you just die from one?!"

The Wind Sword Sect Leader fell silent. Things didn’t have to be this difficult—had the Qingfeng Sect’s mine not encountered trouble, the spirit stones they’d gathered would have been enough to sustain the Sacred Seed’s transformation...

And the lost Sacred Seed had indeed been the highest quality of them all—far superior to the current one.

No wonder the Holy Mother was so enraged... Well, all they could do now was pray for success.

They endured her furious tirade in silence, methodically placing the remaining blood-infused spirit stones.

The sight made Chu Xingchen’s heart ache—countless spirit stones were already dissolving into bloody mist.

Finally, the Wind Sword Sect Leader steeled himself and spoke:

"Holy Mother, everything is in place. If there’s nothing else, we shall take our leave—"

"Go! Get out of my sight, you worthless trash!" the woman snapped.

With a stiff bow, the Wind Sword Sect Leader and his men departed through another passage.

Yaoqin had been right—the exit was separate from the entrance.

Now, only the red-robed woman remained in the cavern, still muttering curses under her breath.

After observing the scene, Yaoqin turned to Chu Xingchen. Her gaze was firm—first a shake of her head, then a slight nod.

Chu Xingchen understood immediately. He knew Yaoqin well—this was her way of saying:

"Just a measly Nascent Soul-stage evil cultivator! No need for you to intervene—I’ll handle her myself!"

Without hesitation, Chu Xingchen summoned his spirit sword. When it came to fights, ganging up was always better than a fair duel.

But the moment his blade materialized, Yaoqin’s expression twisted in alarm—

She hastily drew her own sword, her voice grave:

"I meant retreat just now!"

Chu Xingchen’s summoning had already alerted the red-robed woman—her divine sense locked onto them instantly.

A surge of dark-red blood-qi shot toward them.

Chu Xingchen’s sword gleamed as a water dragon coiled around it, slashing through the incoming attack.

Frustrated, he hissed, "If you didn’t want to fight, why did you nod?!"

"That wasn’t a nod! I was telling you to turn back, not attack!"

Yaoqin’s blade erupted with razor-sharp spiritual light—she unleashed the Tianyan Supreme Sword without restraint, aiming straight for the red-robed woman!

"A divine ability?!" The woman’s eyes narrowed as a thick wall of blood-qi materialized before her.

The Tianyan Supreme Sword was devastating—the blood barrier shattered instantly, scattering the crimson energy in all directions.

Frowning, the woman summoned a blood-red lotus behind her. Its petals unfurled, unleashing a torrent of violent blood-qi that clashed against the incoming sword strike.

The collision of blood-qi and spiritual power sent shockwaves rippling through the cavern, threatening to bring the entire mountain down.

The woman’s eyes widened—she forced more energy into the lotus, struggling to contain the destructive force.

Seizing the moment, Chu Xingchen lunged forward, his water dragon-engulfed blade streaking toward her.

The woman flicked her wrist—a bell at her waist flew out on its own, spewing endless blood-qi.

The crimson mist thickened, nearly solidifying as it wrapped around the oncoming water dragon.

With a light step, she activated the ritual array beneath her—dark-red light flared as blood-qi surged from the markings, feeding into the lotus behind her.

The six cauldrons pulsed, sending fresh waves of energy into the lotus, intensifying its glow.

The woman sneered.

"Two mere Golden Core cultivators, daring to cause trouble in my domain?!"