The five from the clan: Finally, someone understood their feelings at this moment! But… aren't you a dignified Heavenly Dao! Can you not be so cowardly?
When the last piercing bolt of heavenly lightning struck the top of the golden bell!
"Kuang…"
The immense force struck, creating a powerful wave of energy, vast and boundless! The sound echoed through the heavens and earth, causing the world to hum!
The golden bell shook violently. The flowing characters and light on its surface were instantly split apart by the strike…
"Boom!!"
A massive explosion sounded, and the golden bell shattered into more than ten pieces, rapidly flying in all directions!
Jin Bao'er's heart tightened as she watched! Her eyes showed a hint of worry, but her hands remained still! She stared intently at the smoke and dust swirling in the sky…
A pure, pale gold pierced through the grey smoke, its sacred light illuminating the earth! As the light intensified, the indistinct object within finally revealed its true form!
The massive golden bell was half its previous size. Two more lines of cryptic characters flowed across its surface, and strange stripes encircled its body. Faintly visible were carved patterns, solemn and emanating immense pressure!
At this moment, the golden bell seemed like the purest essence left after shedding the dross.
The sky gradually returned to normal, and auspicious signs descended, all absorbed by the golden bell… A pale golden light, accompanied by the pressure of a second-grade immortal artifact, swept through the area! Powerful and elegant.
Meanwhile, among the astonished crowd, an elder instinctively glanced at Jin Bao'er before quickly averting his gaze, his eyes filled with deep dread!
The injuries inflicted by the Dragon Ancestor were more severe than he had imagined, and his cultivation had significantly scattered, halting him at the first stage of Heavenly Dao Saint. He had remained silent throughout the ordeal and now felt an immeasurable regret!
With this thought, he endured the pain in his body, retrieved a white jade bottle from his spatial artifact, and poured out a bright red pill that glowed with a pale white light. Without a word, he popped it into his mouth…
The moment the pill appeared, Jin Bao'er's head snapped around, her gaze instantly locking onto its source, her heart filled with surprise!
She frowned, her feet subtly shifting, and she instantly appeared before the elder. She reached out and snatched the bottle!
The elder on the ground was one of the three Heavenly Dao Sovereigns from before. He had just consumed something, and his cultivation was steadily increasing, his spiritual energy recovering faster! His injuries were also healing at a visible rate…
The elder was greatly alarmed! After realizing what had happened, he reached out to grab it back, but met a pair of strangely deep black eyes. His mind instinctively recalled the fate of Elder Cangqiong, and his face instantly turned ashen!
She was an anomaly!
Jin Bao'er didn't want to bother with him. She lowered her gaze to examine the bottle carefully. This was also a magical artifact! Therefore, the contents inside must be very important, right?
Thinking of the faint aura she had just sensed, her expression darkened. She opened the bottle. The medicine was gone; clearly, there was only one pill. However, the residual aura made her body tremble! Her expression changed drastically!
Phoenix Blood?!
Although there were scents of other things mixed in, phoenix blood was the essence of a divine beast! Its aura was unique! Ordinary people might not be able to detect it, but as the owner of Jin Huang for decades, she was intimately familiar with the smell of phoenix blood!
And in the Upper Realm… there was no Phoenix tribe!
Except for the one brought by Di Yuchuan when he ascended hundreds of years ago!!
With this realization, she suddenly understood everything! Di Yuchuan was being hunted, and she suspected the clan. She wasn't sure, but now that phoenix blood appeared in the hands of a clan member, the truth… was self-evident!
Jin Bao'er's eyes turned cold, a hint of killing intent emanating from her. She stared intently at the white-haired elder before her.
"Phoenix blood… where did it come from?"
The elder looked at her with a confused and bewildered expression!
"What phoenix blood? I don't understand!"
Jin Bao'er chuckled upon hearing this, her smile not reaching her eyes!
"Or I can ask another question! Do you recognize… Di Yuchuan?"
As she spoke, she stared intently into his eyes, and upon catching a fleeting flicker of shock, she unleashed her killing intent! Her right hand twisted, and a blinding white light erupted, directly pressing against his neck. A slight movement would result in the same fate as Elder Cangqiong!
"I advise you to explain clearly, or you'll suffer Elder Cangqiong's fate!"
The elder trembled! He looked at her in disbelief, but all he saw in her eyes were slaughter and coldness! It was as if any wrong word from him would lead to his complete destruction!
Having lived for so long and done so much for the sake of eternal life, how could he be willing to die here! With this thought, he gritted his teeth.
"If I tell you, will you let me go?"
His response was the sharp pain of the sword's edge piercing his collar, blood trickling down his neck and quickly soaking his collar!
He was terrified and didn't dare to move! His face was contorted with horror, and he stammered,
"I'll tell you! I'll tell you!"
"Hundreds of years ago, a young man ascended from the cultivation world, bringing a phoenix with him! The clan tried to win him over politely, but he was ungrateful! After enraging the clan elders and killing several clan disciples, the clan sent people to pursue him! The phoenix tried to intervene and was captured. He hid in the trial grounds, and since we couldn't enter… we…"
As he spoke more, Jin Bao'er's gaze grew colder! The elder, terrified, closed his eyes, his face ashen, and said,
"We extracted phoenix blood to refine pills, stripped phoenix feathers to make magic robes, extracted… extracted phoenix bones to forge weapons! And…"
Jin Bao'er listened, her knuckles turning white as she gripped her soul-slaying sword! Her blood surged, and her fury erupted!
"Silence!"
She could feel that these were Jin Huang's emotions!
Inside the immortal mansion, Jin Huang, upon hearing these words, stood frozen. Her crimson hair seemed to rise without wind, her eyes turned blood red, her fists clenched! Her body trembled slightly, and the killing intent radiating from her threatened to consume her reason entirely!
Her mother… a dignified divine beast phoenix! Treated so cruelly by these beasts! Recalling the kind concern and expectations of the Phoenix Clan Leader when she left, she could not control her hatred! Tears fell silently, hot and burning!
The companions behind her also heard the words, and emotions of sympathy and rage surged within them… Bao Bao couldn't help but curse the clan!
Jin Bao'er's eyes blazed with fury. Suppressing the urge to hack the person before her into a thousand pieces, she took a deep breath!
The clan… very good! Excellent!
* * *
Far away, on another side…
Inside the grand hall of the Foshan family…
A handsome and compassionate young man sat cross-legged on a meditation cushion, chanting scriptures! His aura was transcendent and serene, and the monks behind him were equally calm and peaceful!
Suddenly, the young man's eyes snapped open, his face instantly turning pale. As he was about to speak…
"Pfft!"
A large mouthful of blood gushed out, bright red droplets landing on his spotless white robe, looking both demonic and beautiful!