Nameless Region Arc Chapter 60: My Sister and I Killed

On the martial stage, Xuan Qizi and three others, along with a host of disciples, gazed at the World Pearl. As the space around the pearl trembled, a beam of light projected into the center of the stage, slowly revealing just over twenty silhouettes. When the light descended to the ground, these figures materialized.

“What the hell? Is this it? Only these people made it out alive? That can’t be right!”

“This is absurd. Out of these twenty-five survivors, twelve are sword cultivators, and the combined numbers from the Five Spirits Pill Valley and the Nether Corpse Sect add up to just ten. Our Form Manifestation Sect is down to four, and even Wang Li, that prodigy, died in there. The casualty rate is insane!”

A late-stage Foundation Establishment disciple from the Nether Corpse Sect smacked his lips and muttered, “Useless lot, only two of ours survived. If you count that brat Bian Luxing who escaped earlier, we’re still worse off than the Form Manifestation Sect. Truly pitiful—if only I could enter a small world, I’d have refined countless corpse puppets!”

Xuan Qizi betrayed little sadness, and instead remarked to Elder Liu Xiang, “Junior Brother Liu, your disciple perished as well—aren’t you sorrowful?”

Liu Xiang’s smile was all teeth and no warmth as he replied, “He lost because he was inferior; there’s no need to grieve. But what about you, Senior Brother? Forty-seven disciples—are you truly so cold-blooded?”

“Heh.”

Old Ghost Shishan’s face was dark with displeasure. “Hmph! Since the trial in the small world is over, my Nether Corpse Sect will take its leave first!” With a wave of his sleeve, a gigantic corpse soared forth. Old Ghost Shishan leapt atop its head, and the corpse opened its maw, drawing in the elite disciples and Bian Luxing and his two companions with a powerful suction.

Before departing, Bai Youxuan called out to Xuan Qizi, “Senior, please tell Zhou Xuanhong this: he must come visit me at the Grand Yin Corpse Sect someday!” With that, she too was swept into the giant corpse’s mouth.

The giant corpse sank to its knees, then suddenly burst forth, flying straight through the gap in the Form Manifestation Sect’s mountain-guarding formation, heading in the direction of the Nether Corpse Sect. Two deep pits and a shattered sect avenue were left in its wake.

At this moment, Wei Cangyuan was with Wei Cuiyao. Only after confirming his great-granddaughter had come to no harm did he relax. Noticing Wei Cuiyao’s gaze fixed on a certain man, he followed her line of sight. It was a middle-aged Daoist with a calm expression.

The man’s bearing was impressive—tall, robust, his face marked by the passage of time, yet undeniably handsome. The occasional look of world-weariness in his eyes would surely capture the hearts of many women.

Wei Cangyuan’s eyelid twitched. “What is it, little Yao’er? Don’t tell me you’ve taken a liking to him?”

Wei Cuiyao was stunned, her cheeks flushing bright red. Embarrassed and indignant, she retorted, “Grandfather! What nonsense are you spouting? That man is the one who stole so many of my heavenly treasures—he piled them into a mountain, then disguised himself as one of us after killing a disciple from our Five Spirits Pill Valley. In the last moments, he snatched all the treasures we’d gathered and even killed four of my sect-mates!”

Wei Cangyuan seemed unconcerned. “Such things happen. His cultivation’s already at mid-Foundation Establishment, though his foundation looks shaky—must be some kind of forced advancement through a secret technique. Still, more than enough to deal with your group. He’s probably the Form Manifestation Sect’s trump card. It’s fine—just some resources; let them go. How much could he have taken?”

Wei Cuiyao pouted and handed him four storage pouches. “Here—this is all that’s left. He took more than two-thirds. You tell me if it’s a lot.”

A sweep of divine sense through the pouches made Wei Cangyuan’s heart ache—a sensation he hadn’t felt in years, given his current status. It was a testament to the great gains available in the small world.

“He really... took over two-thirds?”

“Of course. Why else do you think someone like me, who grew up among spirit herbs, would be so upset?”

Wei Cangyuan patted her head affectionately and smiled. “Let it be. If he managed to trick his way close to you, escaped your notice, and even robbed you while under attack from Zi Ding, then we really can’t complain. So, what exactly happened in this trial?”

Surrounded by a formation that shielded their conversation, Wei Cuiyao recounted the events with lingering fear. “Grandfather, it was bizarre. Everything seemed normal at first. We teamed up with the Nether Corpse Sect to form a hundred-strong party, only to be beset by a beast tide of over a thousand monsters!

“That alone wasn’t surprising, but I felt as if some unseen hand was manipulating the battle. Some beasts and cultivators suffered odd mishaps mid-fight—sudden heart pains, or problems with their dantian, shifting the battlefield’s balance. My divine sense detected it was caused by tiny bugs—so small, with no cultivation or energy fluctuations, able to sneak into the body and hide until triggered.”

Wei Cangyuan nodded, troubled. “Such a thing? This warrants a thorough investigation. You aren’t infected, are you?”

Wei Cuiyao shook her head. “No. Those bugs can only sneak into the bodies of Qi Refining cultivators. Once at Foundation Establishment, with divine sense, you can sense any anomalies. Those Foundation Establishment cultivators who fell were caught while breaking through.”

“Grandfather Wei! Grandfather Wei! I have urgent news!”

Outside the formation, a young man called anxiously. It was Liu Lesong, heir to the Five Spirits Pill Valley and the one who’d purchased the Azure-scaled Eagle in the City of Freedom.

“Lesong, what is it you wish to report?”

Liu Lesong recounted how the Azure-scaled Eagle had unilaterally dissolved its master-servant immortal contract. He speculated, “I suspect the Beast Pavilion’s master tampered with the eagle. Otherwise, how could a beast free itself from an immortal contract? It’s just not possible!”

Wei Cuiyao laughed nearby. “Not bad! I didn’t expect you to be this sharp.”

Flattered, Liu Lesong nearly floated with pride. “I’ve always been clever—just overshadowed by you, Senior Sister. Patriarch, I’m sure this beast tide is tied to the Beast Pavilion’s master. I say we join forces with the Nether Corpse Sect and demand justice from him—burn down his wretched pavilion and see if he dares deceive others again!”

Wei Cangyuan’s face changed and he barked, “Silence! Never speak of this again, nor even dream of revenge. He is not someone you can afford to provoke. If I discover you attempt anything of the sort, I’ll have a serious talk with your father about your position as heir!”

Liu Lesong was stunned by Wei Cangyuan’s reaction, feeling deeply wronged as he left the formation without another word.

Wei Cangyuan sighed. “So it was that lofty, mysterious figure... Yao’er, go and dissuade your junior brother. If he really does something rash, our Five Spirits Pill Valley will face disaster.”

Wei Cuiyao hadn’t expected a mere shopkeeper to elicit such a response from the patriarch, but she asked no further questions. She left to comfort the aggrieved Liu Lesong, understanding that Wei Cangyuan only wished to protect him.

Meanwhile, at the Songshan Sword Pavilion, Daxi was in high spirits. Their sect had gained the most from this trial, suffering far fewer casualties than the other three sects.

“Daoist Xu, Daoist Liu, though we lost in the Foundation Establishment competition, our Sword Pavilion’s gains were substantial. On the whole, this trial was a success. We’ll take our leave now—may fate bring us together again!”

“Until we meet again!”

The sword cultivators then departed through the breach in the formation, leaving the martial stage with a little less sharpness in the air.

After Songshan Sword Pavilion left, Five Spirits Pill Valley followed suit. But before leaving, Wei Cuiyao shot a harsh warning at Mao Yishan from the Form Manifestation Sect: “Just you wait. Everything you took from me, I will reclaim, down to the last item!”

Mao Yishan smiled. “Perhaps you will.”

Wei Cuiyao could afford such threats—she had Wei Cangyuan behind her. Mao Yishan had no such backer; if Wei Cangyuan wanted to target him, he’d have no chance.

Once the three sects had left, Xuan Qizi led the Kong siblings, Mao Yishan, and the sole remaining disciple of the Form Manifestation Sect from the martial stage towards the Sect Master’s Hall atop the main peak.

In the vast hall, all the elders were present, but only four disciples stood at the center.

“We greet the elders!”

Xuan Qizi spoke, “No need for formalities. You four are all heroes of our Form Manifestation Sect. It is enough that you survived.”

He then turned to Mao Yishan, “Yishan, we’ve all watched you grow up. You know the situation. Mourn as you must, but the position of Second Elder will remain vacant for you. If one day you advance to the Golden Core stage, you shall be Second Elder.”

Since the Second Elder had always remained neutral, if he were from the Sect Master’s line, Liu Xiang would have objected. He would never push such a promising disciple toward the Sect Master’s faction.

Liu Xiang added, “The Second Elder was once my senior brother. He joined the sect at age twelve and lived to be 996. If not for this calamity, he could have celebrated his thousandth year. He was a hero of our sect, and as his disciple, so are you. The Form Manifestation Sect is proud of you.”

“Thank you, Sect Master. Thank you, Grand Elder. This is what every disciple of the sect should do. It is our duty, even unto death.”

Xuan Qizi then addressed the Kong siblings with concern. “Were either of you hurt?”

Kong Xiaori replied, “No injuries, but plenty of gains.”

“That’s good.”

Liu Xiang chimed in, “If you’re unharmed, that’s all that matters. The sect won’t take a single item from your harvests. But I do have a question.”

“Please, Elder.”

“Did either of you see my disciple, and do you know how he died?”

A smile flickered on Kong Xiaori’s lips. “Ah, that—well, even if you hadn’t asked, I would have told you. That Wang Li fellow was killed by my sister and me.”

“What!”

The elders were shocked, but none dared seize the perpetrator for slaying a fellow disciple.

Liu Xiang was astonished. “Since you killed him, I trust you had your reasons?”

Kong Xiaori produced a Memory Stone, revealing footage of the siege on Wang Li.

“Of course we did. As a personal disciple, he colluded with the Nether Corpse Sect, using the distress function of his token to lure and kill our own, aiding the enemy. He deserved death.”

The images showed Wang Li confessing his betrayal. The recording ended there.

Kong Xiaori added, “After that, Wang Li took a Berserk Spirit Pill and fought us, but we killed him.”

Xuan Qizi turned to Liu Xiang. “Grand Elder, your thoughts?”

Liu Xiang sighed. “A disgrace. I misjudged him, and the sect has suffered for it.” With that, he left the hall.

Kong Xiaori then said, “Sect Master, something else puzzles me. After the beast tide, I found an Azure-scaled Eagle near the battlefield. I recognized it as the one belonging to the Five Spirits Pill Valley heir, but it had somehow broken free of his control. Could you take a look and see why?”

“Is that so?”

Xuan Qizi beckoned, and the eagle’s corpse floated over. He examined its sea of consciousness with his divine sense, his expression growing strange.

Returning the body, Xuan Qizi waved a hand. “The heir of the Five Spirits Pill Valley has been outmaneuvered. There are traces of a mighty soul in the eagle’s consciousness. It seems that person was behind the beast tide. Well then, Xiaori, Xiaoyue, you’ve worked hard—go and rest.”

“Understood.”

At last, Xuan Qizi turned his attention to Xu Zhen. “As for all the strange happenings in the small world, what do you know?”

Xu Zhen coughed awkwardly. “Patriarch, I... I honestly don’t know. I didn’t take part in the battle. Maybe I was teleported too far—I spent the month being chased by disciples from the Nether Corpse Sect into a beast-infested mountain, and just hid there.”

Xuan Qizi bristled, beard trembling. “So you’re saying, you were driven into the mountains by the Nether Corpse Sect, and didn’t dare emerge for a whole month?”

“Not entirely my fault. I overheard them talking about consolidating their forces and coming prepared, so...”

“You... you—!”