The Valley Regulations of Ice Mist Valley

Gu Changyuan looked down at the crowd below. With a single sweep of his divine sense, he grasped the strength of the Ice Mist Valley with absolute clarity.

One Fourth Stage Half-Immortal—precisely the Bai Ning before him.

Twenty-four Tribulation Transcendence realm experts. Among them, three were at the peak of the Tribulation Transcendence realm, while the rest were at the early, mid, or late stages.

However, Bai Ling'er, who stood respectfully by his side, was already a Sixth Stage Half-Immortal, steadily suppressing them by a wide margin.

"Matriarch!" Seeing the old woman appear, the cultivators of Ice Mist Valley felt as if they had finally found their backbone. They hurriedly bowed in salute, their expressions filled with reverence.

The old woman slowly nodded. Her calm gaze turned toward Gu Changyuan, who was suspended in mid-air, though a trace of profound solemnity flashed deep within her eyes.

The reason she took the initiative to sue for peace was not out of cowardice, but because she could not see through Gu Changyuan's cultivation at all. It was as if his aura had been concealed to the absolute limit, making him appear as nothing more than an ordinary mortal.

But it was precisely this extreme "ordinariness," coupled with the oppressive aura that enveloped the entire valley and made even her own heart palpitate, that made him all the more terrifying.

Not to mention the peerless beauty beside him, whose aura was already far superior to her own.

She knew very well that if they were to actually fight, Ice Mist Valley would have absolutely no chance of winning.

"I am Bai Ning, in charge of Ice Mist Valley. May I ask why Your Excellency has graced us with your presence? If my Ice Mist Valley has indeed offended you in any way, I am willing to expend the full power of the valley to offer compensation, seeking only to turn weapons of war into gifts of jade and silk."

Matriarch Bai Ning spoke again, her tone growing increasingly earnest and her posture lowered to the extreme.

As a Fourth Stage Half-Immortal matriarch, she represented the peak of their apparent combat power, yet at this moment, she was acting with utmost caution.

Seeing their own matriarch adopt such a humble stance, the expressions of the Ice Mist Valley's elders and Valley Master instantly turned incredibly grave, and stormy waves of shock surged in their hearts.

To make a Fourth Stage Half-Immortal matriarch so fearful, the other party's strength was likely far beyond simply being "above the matriarch."

He was very likely a terrifying existence capable of effortlessly wiping out the entirety of Ice Mist Valley.

Everyone's hearts leaped to their throats. They looked nervously at the three figures in the sky, especially the leading man in black whose aura was completely unfathomable.

Gu Changyuan did not beat around the bush and went straight to the point. His voice was plain, yet it clearly transmitted into everyone's ears:

"I am here for the matter of the Myriad Treasures Pavilion. Relying on their connection to your Ice Mist Valley, the Xuanming Sect seized the newly discovered 'Cold Jade Marrow' spirit mine belonging to the Myriad Treasures Pavilion and injured their disciples.

I have already casually annihilated the Xuanming Sect, but their backer—which is your Ice Mist Valley—might still harbor resentment and stir up trouble in the future.

Since I was passing by, I decided to settle this matter all at once to eliminate any future troubles."

As soon as these words were spoken, Matriarch Bai Ning's face instantly darkened. It was not because of the visitor's intent, but because of the words "relying on their connection to Ice Mist Valley."

For Ice Mist Valley to stand tall in this cruel cultivation world for so many years, aside from their strength, their strict sect rules and emphasis on reputation were also key factors.

One of their core rules was: disciples and affiliated factions are strictly prohibited from using the name of Ice Mist Valley to commit evil deeds in the outside world.

How was the Xuanming Sect's action any different from someone from Ice Mist Valley personally making a move?

Bai Ning was advanced in age. Although she was a Half-Immortal expert, her talent was not top-tier, and she was nearing the end of her lifespan.

She had long since stopped involving herself in mundane affairs, remaining in closed-door cultivation year-round. The daily operations of the valley were mostly managed by Valley Master Ding Yuanming and the elders.

She had indeed never heard of this matter.

She slowly turned around, her gaze sweeping over the high-ranking members behind her like ten-thousand-year-old ice. Her voice betrayed no joy or anger, but it carried a chilling intent that made their hearts palpitate:

"Who was it?"

The elders looked at one another, most of them wearing expressions of complete bewilderment.

The conflict between the Xuanming Sect and the Myriad Treasures Pavilion had not happened long ago, and not all the elders were privy to the details.

However, Valley Master Ding Yuanming's heart skipped a violent beat.

As the Valley Master, he naturally knew more about the affairs concerning the valley.

It seemed that Elder Zhu Yun's legitimate son had married into an outside family, and their in-laws were precisely the Xuanming Sect.

Thinking of this, Ding Yuanming's gaze suddenly became as sharp as a blade, piercing straight into the crowd toward Elder Zhu Yun, whose face had already turned somewhat unnatural.

"Elder Zhu Yun."

Ding Yuanming's voice carried a trace of suppressed fury.

"Regarding the matter between the Xuanming Sect and the Myriad Treasures Pavilion, do you have anything you need to explain?"

The moment the Valley Master called his name, everyone's gaze uniformly zeroed in on Zhu Yun.

Cold sweat instantly burst forth on Zhu Yun's forehead, and his back was drenched in a flash.

He did indeed know about this matter. In fact, when the Xuanming Sect first probed the Myriad Treasures Pavilion, they had secretly sent someone to "request instructions" from him.

At the time, he felt it was nothing more than a dispute over a single spirit mine, and the other party was merely an outer vassal of a Heavenly Human Holy Land, not their own disciples. Thus, he had tacitly consented and even hinted that he could provide them with a certain degree of "convenience."

He never could have imagined that the background of the Myriad Treasures Pavilion ran so deep, nor that the other party's reaction would be so swift and their methods so ruthless.

Even less did he expect that the other party would come crashing directly at their gates with such ferocity, making even their own matriarch dreadfully wary.

Seeing that his deeds were exposed under the watchful eyes of so many fellow sect members, and especially beneath the indifferent gaze of that terrifying man in green, Zhu Yun's psychological defenses instantly collapsed.

With a heavy thud, he fell to his knees, tears and snot streaming down his face as he pleaded incoherently:

"Valley Master! Matriarch! I was wrong! This matter was due to my negligence in discipline; I failed to restrain my in-laws!

But I, Zhu Yun, have served Ice Mist Valley for hundreds of years, working diligently and conscientiously. Even if I lack merit, I have put in hard work!

I beg the Valley Master and the Matriarch to look back on our past sentiments and spare me this once!

I am willing to personally travel to the Myriad Treasures Pavilion to apologize and compensate them ten times over for their losses! I only ask that you give me a way out!"

As he cried and begged, his mind raced frantically: as long as he wasn't thrown out on the spot to take the fall, perhaps there was still a sliver of hope for survival.

After all, he was a Tribulation Transcendence realm elder and had made significant contributions to the valley.

However, he clearly underestimated the severity of this matter in the matriarch's heart, and he vastly overestimated his own weight when a powerful enemy was bearing down upon them.

Ding Yuanming looked at Zhu Yun, who was kneeling and begging for mercy, and slowly shook his head without uttering another word.

This matter was no longer something he could decide upon, and it had far exceeded the boundaries of internal disciplinary action.

Matriarch Bai Ning did not even spare Zhu Yun another glance.

She slowly turned back around to face Gu Changyuan. Her voice returned to its previous tranquility, but it carried an unquestionable decisiveness:

"Your Excellency, please see clearly. My Ice Mist Valley will absolutely not shield such a person who corrupts our sect's morals and provokes powerful enemies.

This person is handed over to Your Excellency for full disposal.

If this still cannot quell Your Excellency's anger, my Ice Mist Valley is willing to offer further compensation with utmost sincerity. We only ask that Your Excellency be magnanimous, and the entirety of Ice Mist Valley will be endlessly grateful."

In truth, the moment Gu Changyuan saw these people, he knew exactly who was tied to the incident involving the Myriad Treasures Pavilion and the Xuanming Sect.

The reason he hadn't pointed it out directly was simply that he wanted to gauge Ice Mist Valley's attitude.

Now that the other party had chosen not to protect the culprit, it fell perfectly in line with his desires.

Gu Changyuan's gaze landed on Zhu Yun, who was kneeling and begging for mercy on the ground, and he slightly raised his right hand.

In an instant, the ice and snow spiritual energy of the surrounding heaven and earth gathered frantically, condensing into a completely translucent ice sword in the palm of his hand.

A bone-piercing chill lingered around the body of the sword, and the blade flickered with a cold light that induced pure dread.

With the sword formed, his gaze fell upon Zhu Yun below, who was kneeling prostrate with a face as ashen as death, and his wrist moved with only the slightest, almost imperceptible twitch.