Ye Ling and Xu Xiao Qing blended into the crowd. The townsfolk of Fulong Town began a strange dance around the altar. The atmosphere near the Snow Mountain Hot Springs grew eerie. The sky, previously clear, suddenly became overcast, and thunder rumbled!
Rumble!
The sky boomed with muffled thunder, and the air pressure on the mountain peak dropped drastically. An immensely oppressive aura descended from the heavens.
"Has the great demon arrived?"
Xu Xiao Qing felt the terrifying aura and her expression changed drastically. She quickly shielded Ye Ling, "Senior, you retreat, I'll block..."
Before Xu Xiao Qing could finish, Ye Ling grabbed her collar and placed her behind him. "Don't cause trouble. You can't handle that fellow."
"Sen-Senior?"
Xu Xiao Qing was stunned when she was moved behind him, staring blankly at Ye Ling's back, unable to react.
Before she could regain her senses, lightning flashed across the sky, and a deafening dragon roar echoed from the clouds.
"Roar!!!"
Fulong Mountain trembled. The people around the Snow Mountain Hot Springs showed expressions of terror, screaming and fleeing in all directions. However, they didn't get far before being struck by the descending lightning and turned to dust!
The townsfolk around the altar, however, remained unharmed. They seemed oblivious to the dramatic changes in the surroundings, dancing with increasing fervor.
As the townsfolk danced, the altar made of snow and the ice sculpture of the young evil dragon began to glow with an eerie red light, making the surroundings incredibly oppressive and strange.
A colossal black dragon head broke through the thick storm clouds, roaring at Fulong Mountain, spewing black energy!
Amidst the lightning and thunder, one could vaguely see the dragon's unimaginably vast body!
Was it over a thousand meters?
"A dr-dragon?"
Xu Xiao Qing stared at the black dragon in the sky with shock, her mouth agape. "A real dragon!!!"
Although she had learned from the murals of the Fulong tribe that the great demon suppressed here was a black dragon, seeing the dragon appear now, the shock in her heart was beyond words!
Did dragons truly exist in this world?
Seeing such a mythical creature with her own eyes, Xu Xiao Qing was overwhelmed with awe!
Boom!
Thunder struck, and the townsfolk on the mountain were all turned to ash, surging towards the altar.
Xu Xiao Qing quickly looked down the mountain. Countless pillars of light rose from Fulong Town below, and a large amount of soul energy flew out, heading towards the Snow Mountain Hot Springs.
Seeing this, Xu Xiao Qing exclaimed, "Is it activating the formation now?"
Although she didn't know the principle behind the formation's operation, shouldn't such a heaven-defying act require favorable timing, location, and human harmony?
This was far too sudden!
Ye Ling observed the soul energy rising from Fulong Town, a hint of a smile flashing in his eyes. "This beast is quite clever. I must give it some credit."
"Senior?"
Hearing Ye Ling's words, a hint of confusion flickered in Xu Xiao Qing's eyes as she looked at Ye Ling in surprise.
What did that mean?
Ye Ling turned to look at the giant dragon in the sky and said, "It probably knows we might disrupt its ritual, causing all its efforts to go in vain."
"To prevent any accidents, it's willing to pay the price of its own cultivation to forcefully activate the formation, sacrificing the townsfolk of Fulong Town first."
"This way, even if something goes wrong, its child can still be resurrected."
"What should we do now? Should we stop it?"
Xu Xiao Qing hadn't expected things to happen so suddenly; she wasn't even mentally prepared.
"Should we stop it..."
Ye Ling pondered for a moment. "This matter is of no consequence to me. The townsfolk have committed many evils anyway, and their final fate is to turn to dust. It's all the same whether they are sacrificed or not."
Having said that, Ye Ling squinted and smiled at Xu Xiao Qing, "Then the decision is yours. You decide whether to let that great demon's child be resurrected."
"I, I decide?"
Suddenly being entrusted with such a significant decision, Xu Xiao Qing was completely bewildered, her mind a mess, unsure of what to do.
Such a difficult choice?
How could she make such a decision?
However, Ye Ling seemed to enjoy watching this scene. He sat down on the spot, looked down at Fulong Town, and smiled, "If you don't make a decision, it means you tacitly agree to let that ferocious creature be born. Time is running out."
"Senior, you..."
Xu Xiao Qing stomped her feet anxiously.
Her sect's ancestral teachings were to eliminate demons and uphold righteousness, to bring peace to the world. The act of a great demon sacrificing human souls to resurrect its child and create a ferocious creature was something that should not even be considered; it must be stopped.
Even if the sacrificed people were wicked and unworthy of reincarnation.
But...
The great demon, merely to resurrect its child, had slaughtered Fulong Town, inadvertently eliminating a nest of vipers and doing a great service to the world.
As for whether it would later create an unparalleled ferocious creature to wreak havoc upon the world, that was something for the future, and no one could say for sure.
Xu Xiao Qing's reason told her that she should stop the evil dragon now, but she couldn't bring herself to say it.
"It seems you've already made up your mind."
Ye Ling watched the soul energy filling the ice sculpture and smiled at Xu Xiao Qing.
Xu Xiao Qing lowered her head, her fists clenched, maintaining her silence.
She couldn't speak.
As a large amount of soul energy poured into the ice sculpture, the red light emanating from the formation grew more ominous, and a terrifying aura permeated from the ice sculpture.
Boom!
At this moment, a lightning tribulation descended from the sky, obliterating the ice sculpture, the altar, and the soul energy within!
The summit of Fulong Mountain was in ruins.
Xu Xiao Qing witnessed all of this up close, her expression dazed, her heart filled with complex emotions.
The black dragon in the sky cast a deep glance at Ye Ling and Xu Xiao Qing, then re-concealed itself within the clouds and disappeared.
The dark clouds gradually dispersed, and the gentle sunlight shone upon the mountaintop, making everything appear so peaceful.
Xu Xiao Qing looked at Ye Ling with complicated emotions, "Senior, I..."
"There is no right or wrong in this matter. If we weren't here, things would have developed in the same direction. You simply chose not to interfere."
Ye Ling stretched and stood up, walking towards the mountain. "Let's head down the mountain. The interesting part has just begun."
"Senior?"
Hearing Ye Ling's words, Xu Xiao Qing snapped back to attention and quickly caught up with Ye Ling, "What do you mean by that?"
"What do you mean it's just begun? The townsfolk of Fulong Town are all..."
Ye Ling chuckled, "The protagonists of the story haven't even appeared yet, how can it end so easily?"
"The protagonists of the story?" Xu Xiao Qing hurried to catch up with Ye Ling, "Are you referring to the swordsman who bewitched the Fulong tribe?"
"He will appear?"
"Why wouldn't he appear?"
Ye Ling glanced back at the sky, smiled slightly, and then leaped down the mountain.
Xu Xiao Qing quickly chased after him, "Senior!!! You have to explain properly!!!"