As his voice faded, Li Xuan's presence slowly materialized before everyone.
Li Xuan stood with his hands behind his back, looking down at the man clad in blood-red robes, a sharp glint in his eyes.
"You are the one who took my Blood Fetus, aren't you? Boy, I don't care who you are. As long as you hand over the Blood Fetus you possess, I will grant you the position of Sect Master of the Beast Taming Sect. Heh heh, how about it, tempted?"
Upon seeing Li Xuan appear, a spark of acuity flashed in the eyes of the man in blood-red robes.
"Sect Master's position? Heh heh, if I recall correctly, that position doesn't belong to you. And the Blood Fetus you speak of, is it this item?"
Li Xuan let out a cold laugh. While on his way, he had overheard this man in blood-red robes address Zhou Haoran as 'big brother,' and he instantly understood why Zhou Haoran's expression had soured upon hearing Wu Sheng mention the Third Elder earlier.
Furthermore, Li Xuan noticed that Zhou Haoran's chest was already stained crimson with blood. It was clear that after leaving the main hall, Zhou Haoran had intended to capture this man in blood-red robes but had ended up injured.
"Zhou Yuan Tai, how dare you be so presumptuous! As the Sect Master's brother, you would commit such heinous acts. And now you have the audacity to speak of passing the Sect Master's position to another in front of our Sect Master! Today, no matter what, you will not escape the Beast Taming Sect!"
Wang Fan could no longer tolerate it upon hearing this. As soon as he finished speaking, he shot towards Zhou Yuan Tai. The surging spiritual energy within him instantly condensed, and he brought down a palm strike towards Zhou Yuan Tai.
"With just you?" Zhou Yuan Tai let out a cold snort, completely ignoring Wang Fan's attack. With a mere wave of his hand, an extremely dense, bloody aura shot towards Wang Fan.
Wang Fan's pupils contracted sharply at the sight. He was forced to stop his rapid advance and quickly shift to the side.
After Wang Fan steadied himself, he inadvertently glanced at the path he had attacked Zhou Yuan Tai on and was instantly drenched in a cold sweat.
He saw that the entire path had been swept by a bloody wind formed from blood-red energy, causing the space itself to collapse and distort. The surrounding area also showed signs of spreading.
Seeing this, Wang Fan couldn't help but be shocked. Among those present, besides Li Xuan, Wang Fan and the others understood Zhou Yuan Tai's strength the best.
If it weren't for the fact that Zhou Yuan Tai was Zhou Haoran's brother, he probably wouldn't have become the Third Elder of the Beast Taming Sect. Yet, with just this casual strike, it possessed such terrifying power.
"This is the power you gained by poisoning so many innocent people, isn't it? Zhou Yuan Tai, if I'm not mistaken, you'll be able to step into the Nascent Soul realm within another year."
Looking at the power displayed in Zhou Yuan Tai's strike, Li Xuan also became slightly more serious. Considering the price behind all this, the light in Li Xuan's eyes grew even colder.
"Heh heh, if a man doesn't look out for himself, heaven and earth will destroy him. The fact that they can provide a portion of power for my advancement is their honor. Boy, what I said earlier still stands. As long as you obediently hand over the Blood Fetus, I can promise you that you too can cultivate this supreme divine art!"
A trace of bloodlust flashed in Zhou Yuan Tai's eyes. He licked his lips and then looked at Li Xuan, speaking.
"Brother, is all of this truly your doing..." Seeing this, Zhou Haoran's disappointment deepened, and his expression became even more sorrowful.
"Sect Master, Zhou Yuan Tai has descended into demonic ways. He is no longer your brother. If we don't act decisively now, our Beast Taming Sect's foundation of thousands of years might be destroyed!"
Seeing Zhou Haoran's emotional state, Wang Fan immediately shouted.
Zhou Haoran paused slightly, muttering to himself, "The Beast Taming Sect cannot be destroyed in my hands... I'm sorry, brother..."
As Zhou Haoran's voice fell, his aura instantly surged. Upon witnessing Zhou Haoran's transformation, Wang Fan, Wu Sheng, and Chen Jian all breathed a sigh of relief. They then circulated their spiritual energy and instantly sealed off Zhou Yuan Tai's four routes.
Li Xuan, seeing this, had intended to mention that Zhou Yuan Tai's current strength far surpassed that of Zhou Haoran and the other three. However, observing their resolve, he realized that his words would likely be unable to dissuade them from their decision to fight.
Seeing this, Li Xuan said no more. After all, Zhou Haoran was Zhou Yuan Tai's own brother, and it could be considered a family matter. Moreover, it was clear that Wang Fan and the others were defending their sect, making it difficult for him to intervene.
"So be it. Although you cannot defeat him, you will not perish. Sometimes, what you hold dear in your heart, you must face even if you know you are outmatched. Perhaps this is what faith is," Li Xuan murmured to himself, then looked at the figures who had already engaged in fierce combat.
In mid-air, Zhou Haoran and the others had commenced their battle. Just as Li Xuan had predicted, currently, Zhou Haoran, Wang Fan, Wu Sheng, and Chen Jian, all possessing mid-level and early-level strength in the Other Shore realm, could not gain any advantage against Zhou Yuan Tai.
As Zhou Yuan Tai's battle continued, the bloody stench filling the air grew increasingly potent.
"What in the world happened? Why are the Sect Master and the others fighting the Third Elder?"
"No! It's the Third Elder alone fighting the Sect Master, the First Elder, the Second Elder, and the Outer Hall Elder—four of them!"
"My heavens! The Third Elder alone is fighting on par with the Sect Master and the other four!"
"..."
As Zhou Haoran and the others fought, disciples within the Beast Taming Sect were drawn by the sounds of battle and came to watch. However, upon realizing that the combatants were all high-ranking members of the Beast Taming Sect, they immediately began to discuss it with shock.
Meanwhile, Li Xuan, watching the battle in the field, frowned slightly. Currently, Zhou Haoran and the other three were each forming hand seals, and four colossal wild beasts materialized in the air. As these four mighty beasts appeared, the auras of Zhou Haoran and the other three further ascended.
Zhou Yuan Tai's expression also became somewhat solemn, clearly feeling the increased pressure with the presence of these four beasts. However, there was not much worry in his expression. After unleashing another palm strike, he retreated several steps.
"You've even summoned your Companion Life Beasts. It seems you are determined to keep me here," Zhou Yuan Tai said with a cold snort. He then formed hand seals with both hands, and a dense bloody aura instantly condensed the already thick bloody scent.
Upon seeing this, Li Xuan felt a sense of crisis and his expression instantly changed as he looked at the scene!
In front of Zhou Yuan Tai's body, a mangled infant slowly appeared. On the infant's face was a terrifying grimace utterly disproportionate to its form. Its glowing red eyes resembled those of a hellish demon, emitting a chilling light.
"Damn it! You actually cultivated such an evil thing!"