Chapter 126: Astonishing News

Liu Junhuai gradually recovered from his deep contemplation. Seeing Xiao Qingtian’s thoughtful expression, he said apologetically, "My apologies, Uncle Xiao! I was a bit lost in thought after hearing what you said. It seems the world outside is vast, and we still have a long way to go. Thank you for your careful guidance; this information is incredibly important to me, and knowing it makes my cultivation goals much clearer. By the way, my sect elders asked me to pass these on to you."

With that, Liu Junhuai took out two small jade bottles.

"This is a Barrier-Breaking Pill, and this is a Meridian-Clearing Pill. Keep them for when you attempt to breakthrough to the Spirit Transformation stage. The Meridian-Clearing Pill should be taken before attempting the bottleneck, and the Barrier-Breaking Pill should be used once the bottleneck has begun to crack," Liu Junhuai explained in detail.

Xiao Qingtian had stood up in shock the moment Liu Junhuai mentioned the names of the pills, his hands trembling slightly as he took the two jade bottles.

These two types of pills were legendary. Every time one appeared in the cultivation world, it would incite the covetousness of countless cultivators; even those usually strict and upright would find their inner greed stirred by such items.

Having obtained such precious pills so easily, Xiao Qingtian was left speechless, not knowing where to begin. His usually stern eyes even misted over with moisture.

Liu Junhuai understood Xiao Qingtian’s state of mind. These pills were incredibly rare, existing only as legends to most cultivators. Xiao Qingtian likely never dared to hope for them, so their sudden appearance would naturally cause anyone to lose their composure.

Liu Junhuai still had some of these pills left, enough for those around him. Since Xiao Qingtian had been a great help to the development of the Myriad Phenomena Sect and had always been dedicated to assisting him, Liu Junhuai was more than willing to part with such valuable items.

Xiao Qingtian finally regained some stability. Looking at Liu Junhuai, his voice was deep: "Junhuai, I know it is because of you that your sect provided such precious pills. I won't bother with words of thanks. In the future, if you or the Myriad Phenomena Sect need anything, just say the word, and I will do my utmost!"

"I cannot say these pills will grant me a rebirth, but once I cross the threshold of the Nascent Soul stage, the road of cultivation will be smooth sailing for me. My master once told me that the Nascent Soul stage is a major hurdle; if one can cross it, it is equivalent to completing half the journey to the Tribulation stage. This bottleneck is truly critical. Your help, and that of your sect, is immense. If needed, I will personally visit your sect to express my gratitude!"

Liu Junhuai spoke solemnly: "Uncle Xiao, please don't mention help. Arguably, I have received more help from you. I simply see you as an elder who, despite the risks, stood up against the Blood-Slaying Alliance’s atrocities in the Western Region. You are a person of great virtue and righteousness. I have admired such people since I was young, so I firmly support all your actions. For the sake of order in the cultivation world and for the Myriad Phenomena Sect to have a strong backing, I will support you no matter what!"

Xiao Qingtian was clearly touched to his core. His eyes revealed a newfound sense of determination: "Thank you, Junhuai, for such high praise. I never expected my unintentional actions to be called acts of great virtue and righteousness. Because of your words tonight, I will continue to fight against the forces of evil and make my own contribution to the cultivation world of the Western Region!"

Liu Junhuai secretly chuckled to himself. Uncle Xiao was easily swayed by a few kind words, which triggered his sense of righteousness. At the very least, it showed that Uncle Xiao was someone worth trusting.

Liu Junhuai said, "Alright, let us not dwell on these sentiments any longer. Let us discuss the matter of the Chu family."

***

Xiao Qingtian chuckled as well and said, "I am a man of temperament; I hope you don't find it laughable, Junhuai. According to Huo Shaoying's confession, in the Western Region, this Chu family has frequent dealings with Jing Mowei, the Great Hall Master of the Sea God Palace. As for Gonghu Changkong, I have also looked into him. He has an elder brother named Gonghu Wanli, who bears an uncanny resemblance to him."

"This Gonghu Wanli is a junior brother to Jing Mowei, the Great Hall Master of the Sea God Palace. I had a faint recollection not of Gonghu Changkong, but of his brother, Gonghu Wanli. Twenty or thirty years ago, I had contact with Gonghu Wanli; he is an alchemist, and we met at an alchemy conference in the Western Region."

"Both brothers are affiliated with the Capital Prefecture of the Yihai Kingdom. The elder brother is an alchemist maintained by the Capital Prefecture, and the younger is a guard for the Lord of the Capital Prefecture. The Glazed Villa is located in the Yihai Kingdom. When you told me earlier that Gonghu Changkong was very familiar with Li Wanqiu, the young master of the Glazed Villa, I began to suspect the Capital Prefecture."

"The Chuanyang Palace, a small sect that recently joined the Sect Alliance, is also located in the Yihai Kingdom, and that is where the news about Gonghu Wanli came from." Xiao Qingtian spoke in one breath, taking Liu Junhuai a moment to sort out the relationships.

Liu Junhuai pondered for a while and said, "The deeper we dig, the more blurred the connection to the Blood-Slaying Alliance becomes. To truly uncover the bottom line of the Blood-Slaying Alliance, we must first untangle this complex web of relationships. My thoughts are a bit chaotic now; help me sort them out, Uncle Xiao."

"Whether this Gonghu Wanli is also a member of the Blood-Slaying Alliance is a question for another time. What I don't understand is whether the Blood-Slaying Alliance and the Chu family are on the same path? In other words, is the Blood-Slaying Alliance merely a tool for the Chu family to dominate the cultivation world, or is the Chu family just a front for the Blood-Slaying Alliance?"

Xiao Qingtian laughed: "You want me to help you sort it out? I am just as confused! Junhuai, you are feeling a bit impatient. Think about it: how long have the Blood-Slaying Alliance and the Chu family been operating? How long have we been tracking them? Although we have wiped out most of the Blood-Slaying Alliance's power in the Western Region, the Western Region is only an area where they haven't invested much. Take it slow; you must adopt a patient mindset, like peeling silk from a cocoon, when dealing with these two organizations."

Liu Junhuai thought that was reasonable. With just the newly formed Sect Alliance and himself, it was impossible to cause significant damage to such a vast organization. What had been revealed was merely the tip of the iceberg; there was still a long way to go before touching the root of this evil power.

At this moment, Liu Junhuai’s divine sense detected that someone had come out from Ren Yinhuai’s side. It seemed the interrogation of Taishu Yong had yielded results.

Before long, Ren Yinhuai entered the VIP room with several others.

Looking at the heavy expression on Ren Yinhuai’s face, Liu Junhuai knew the clues provided by Taishu Yong must be truly shocking.

Sure enough, the moment Ren Yinhuai spoke, his tone carried a thick sense of disbelief: "Taishu Yong provided a clue, but it cannot be verified yet!"

Xiao Qingtian urged, "Sect Master Ren, please speak. I can handle even the most shocking news!"

Silently looking at Liu Junhuai and the others, Ren Yinhuai said, "Taishu Yong said that once, the leader of the Western Region's Blood-Slaying Alliance summoned them to a deserted island. While resting in his guest room at night, he smelled a faint odor of underarm sweat. Taishu Yong has a peculiar habit—he enjoys smelling odors like underarm sweat or fishy smells. However, the odor he smelled this time was mixed with a scent of agarwood. This agarwood is extremely expensive and rare, making the combination of the two scents very distinct. Taishu Yong’s mother happened to own a small piece of this agarwood, so he remembered the scent vividly."

"A year after that day, Taishu Yong accompanied the Sect Master of the Meteorite Mansion to the Western Region Domain Lord's Mansion to participate in the drawing ceremony for the thirty-year grand competition. During the opening, the Western Region Domain Lord, Liangqiu Tuochu, passed by him, and Taishu Yong caught that specific scent on him."

"Initially, Taishu Yong didn't pay much attention, but a comment Liangqiu Tuochu made to the Sect Master of the Meteorite Mansion left a deep impression. Liangqiu Tuochu mentioned his preference for agarwood and said that if anyone could collect a piece for him, he would exchange it for a ninth-grade pill. Taishu Yong recalled the scent from the deserted island, and upon comparing them, he became certain that Liangqiu Tuochu was the person who had left that scent on the island."

"The most critical point here is that the leader of the Western Region's Blood-Slaying Alliance mentioned at that meeting that the people from the Blood-Slaying Alliance's headquarters had just left!" At this point, Ren Yinhuai stopped speaking, as everyone realized that the Western Region Domain Lord, Liangqiu Tuochu, was very likely a member of the Blood-Slaying Alliance, and a high-ranking one at that.

Liu Junhuai asked with some confusion, "Besides his public identity as the Western Region Domain Lord, is there anything special about this Liangqiu Tuochu? Could it be his cultivation level?"

Xiao Qingtian smiled bitterly: "Junhuai, you might not know, but this Domain Lord's cultivation level is at the late stage of the Great Vehicle, just one step away from the Tribulation stage! Apart from the cultivators in the Han borderlands, he is an invincible existence on the Starry Sky Continent!"

Liu Junhuai gasped. If Liangqiu Tuochu were truly associated with the Blood-Slaying Alliance, the situation would be terrifying. No cultivator or faction could stand against them.

The fact that the Blood-Slaying Alliance possessed such powerful cultivators confirmed one thing: the Chu family of the Western Region was merely their front, and the true power was hidden behind the scenes. The Blood-Slaying Alliance was truly terrifying.

Everyone looked at each other in silence; the shock of this news was no less than an earthquake.

After a long while, Ren Yinhuai spoke first: "As things stand, our only choice is to temporarily forget about Liangqiu Tuochu. The Sect Alliance must continue as planned, and this news must be kept strictly confidential. Once leaked, I believe a large portion of the member sects will leave. The current primary task of the Sect Alliance is to retreat and defend, ensuring that the Western Region is not completely overrun by the Blood-Slaying Alliance. As for the other regions, we might as well delegate the responsibility; each region must handle its own Blood-Slaying Alliance forces. Unless absolutely necessary, the Western Region Sect Alliance must not participate in other regions—we simply do not have the power to guarantee it!"

Liu Junhuai shook his head: "If we do that, acting independently will only erode the vital strength and confidence of the Sect Alliance, and we might as well not have established it in the first place. It is too early to retreat. After all, we don't know the specific situation in other regions; perhaps the alliances they have established are quite powerful. Our primary task now is not to retreat and defend, but to act with great fanfare. Only then can we summon greater resistance. Sect Master Ren, I am not targeting you, but speaking based on the facts: once we retreat, all our efforts will be in vain, our cultivation environment will return to its former state, and the Blood-Slaying Alliance will become even more arrogant!"