The individuals who arrived were none other than the Venerable Realm powerhouses from the Promise Sect and Lingyun Daoist Temple.
These two witnessed the Great Monk being instantly killed but showed little emotional fluctuation.
In these times, death was too common, and their relationship with the Great Light Temple was not particularly close; it was merely a temporary cooperative one.
Usually, they were competitors.
However, the fact that Venerable Fox Slayer had set up formations in advance, blocking the crucial passage of the Earth Vein Dragon’s Lair, was troublesome.
Venerable Extinguishing Fox was drenched in cold sweat, surprised that the Venerables from the other two sects had arrived so quickly.
He looked at them and said, “We are all cultivators from Xiao Nation, and we know each other well. There’s no need for us to fight among ourselves… I discovered this place first. Why don’t you two show some courtesy as cultivators, acknowledge the ‘first come, first served’ rule, and leave quickly?”
“First come, first served? Since when did you, a con artist, start talking about courtesy?” The Promise Sect Venerable scoffed disdainfully.
“Move aside quickly. You’ve already killed the bald monk from the Great Light Temple. Do you really want to offend the other two major sects as well? You, a mere rogue cultivator, should carefully consider the consequences of offending the three great sects!”
Venerable Extinguishing Fox sneered, “Since I’ve already offended them, I can’t leave empty-handed! This dragon, I’m taking it for sure! If you dare, come and try to break through my formation!”
The Promise Sect Venerable was so angry he laughed.
“You must have forgotten what our Promise Sect relies on. How dare you show off your formations in front of me? Children, break the formation!”
Venerable Fox Slayer’s face turned pale.
Suddenly, Promise Sect cultivators swarmed out from all over the mountains and plains, each holding a compass-like magical artifact, and began scanning the entire area.
“What are you standing there for? Go and kill them!” Venerable Extinguishing Fox ordered, then took the lead to slaughter the Promise Sect disciples who were breaking the formation.
The Promise Sect Venerable naturally wouldn’t let him succeed.
Although he didn’t enter the formation, he remotely threw out some talismans and formation stones to hinder Venerable Fox Slayer’s actions.
Kuang Yuanwei and the others were already trying their best to kill, but they were vastly outnumbered and couldn’t even protect themselves.
“Don’t just stand there! Help!” The Promise Sect Venerable shouted to the Lingyun Daoist Temple Venerable.
The Lingyun Daoist Temple Venerable nodded and also sent out Lingyun Daoist Temple disciples to encircle and kill Kuang Yuanwei and the others.
Jiang Ke’er, seizing the opportunity, noticed that the three Venerables were too busy to pay attention to the chaotic situation on the ground.
She immediately targeted the small cultivators from Lingyun Daoist Temple, her hands moving rapidly.
After doing all this, she felt as if a weight had been lifted from her heart, letting out a long sigh of relief, and then began to focus on the battle in the sky.
Venerable Fox Slayer, relying on the advantage of his formation, was locked in a fierce, back-and-forth battle with the other two Venerables.
However, the power of his formation was constantly being weakened by the formation-breaking disciples.
Under the cover of the Lingyun Daoist Temple disciples, the formation-breaking disciples continuously dug up the formation stones that Venerable Extinguishing Fox had placed beforehand, causing Venerable Extinguishing Fox to gradually fall into a disadvantage, on the verge of being surrounded and killed by the two.
Finally, with a hum, the power of the formation completely dissipated.
Venerable Fox Slayer, Kuang Yuanwei, and the others were all exposed to the encirclement of the disciples from the three great sects.
“Fellow Daoist, let’s deliver the final blow to him!” The Promise Sect Venerable drew his long sword and smiled at the Lingyun Daoist Temple Venerable.
“Naturally,” the Lingyun Daoist Temple Venerable returned a slight smile, forming hand seals and muttering incantations.
Both cultivators mustered their full power, looking at Venerable Fox Slayer as if he were already dead.
Venerable Fox Slayer sighed, knowing he stood no chance against their combined might.
Moreover, as a rogue cultivator, his cultivation and magical artifacts were inferior to theirs… This battle, he feared, was inescapable.
There was no escaping this coming attack. If he could survive it, he’d make a run for it.
The Promise Sect Venerable’s longsword erupted with chilling sword energy.
With a low shout, the sword, carrying sword energy that seemed to rip through the sky, slashed down heavily towards Venerable Fox Slayer!
Meanwhile, the Lingyun Daoist Temple Venerable also unleashed a spell, and instantly, an overwhelming torrent of runes converged into a Bagua pattern, hurtling towards Venerable Extinguishing Fox.
It was at this moment that an unexpected turn of events occurred.
Twenty-one small, golden stones suddenly flew out of the pockets of twenty-one Lingyun Daoist Temple disciples! These stones exploded with a thunderous roar, soaring into the air in a flash, arranging themselves into a pyramid formation, and heading straight for the Promise Sect Venerable’s back!
“Heavenly Thunder Annihilation Array?!” The Promise Sect Venerable had just unleashed his sword energy and hadn’t yet had time to retract it when he saw this lost treasure of his sect flying from the Lingyun Daoist Temple disciples and exploding towards him.
A net of lightning interwove between the array stones.
The air was filled with a scorched smell, dark clouds gathered in the sky, and tribulation lightning, summoned, also struck down towards the Promise Sect Venerable.
He was struck directly by the tribulation lightning and then trapped in the electric net, suffering a barrage of shocks that left him scorched black, his magical robe in tatters.
With great difficulty, he managed to break free, relying on his understanding of his own sect’s formation.
Having escaped the formation, the Promise Sect Venerable seemed to finally understand something.
He drew his sword and slashed at the Lingyun Daoist Temple Venerable: “You insidious scoundrel from Lingyun Daoist Temple! You stole my Promise Sect’s sect-protecting treasure and then tried to kill me to monopolize the demon dragon! If my Promise Sect doesn’t annihilate your Lingyun Daoist Temple today, I swear I am not human!”
“Huh? What happened?” The Lingyun Daoist Temple Venerable was utterly bewildered.
However, the Heavenly Thunder Annihilation Array stones seemed to have found their master, intimately circling around the Lingyun Daoist Temple Venerable.
They even adopted a defensive posture towards their former master, the Promise Sect Venerable, clearly protecting the Lingyun Daoist Temple Venerable.
It was undeniable.
The Promise Sect Venerable spat out a mouthful of old blood, and a refreshing sensation, like distant grass, inexplicably arose atop his head.
Because the Promise Sect Venerable was ambushed by the formation at a critical moment, that sword slash wasn’t very heavy, and Venerable Extinguishing Fox wasn’t seriously injured either.
Seeing this scene, Venerable Extinguishing Fox’s eyes darted about, and he quickly said, “Old man of the Promise Sect, let’s form an alliance! I’ll help you take down this shameless scoundrel who stole another’s sect-protecting treasure! Otherwise, with the advantage of the formation in his hands, not a single one of your Promise Sect members will escape!”
“Good, my Promise Sect will remember this favor. From now on, you, Extinguishing Fox, will be a distinguished guest of my Promise Sect!” The Promise Sect Venerable looked gratefully at Venerable Extinguishing Fox, then glared at the Lingyun Daoist Temple Venerable with gritted teeth, roaring, “All Promise Sect disciples, heed my command! Kill all the scoundrels from Lingyun Daoist Temple!”
The Lingyun Daoist Temple Venerable was dazed: “Hey! Wait! Let me explain!”
“Explain what nonsense! Kill!”
“Kill!”
The scene immediately descended into utter chaos.
Qiao Xiaoxian squatted on a nearby treetop, speechless as she watched it all unfold.
She had just arrived and heard the Promise Sect wanting to attack Lingyun Daoist Temple.
Although the Great Light Temple disciples around had lost their Venerable, they also believed that the Lingyun Daoist Temple members had stolen their sect’s treasure, so they joined in attacking Lingyun Daoist Temple.
But as far as she knew, the one who stole the Promise Sect’s sect-protecting treasure was clearly another fox…
She began to search the surroundings, and soon, she spotted her target.
The fighting stirred up gusts of wind.
A gust blew past, carrying away the pile of grass on Jiang Ke’er’s head, revealing two bright fox ears, sticking out of the cave entrance, twitching slightly like two periscopes, listening to the surrounding commotion.
“Oh! Crap!” Jiang Ke’er extended her small paw and touched her head, belatedly realizing that the grass cover on her head had been blown away, and quickly pulled her little head back into the cave entrance.
Because the line of sight was lost, the Heavenly Thunder Annihilation Array in the sky experienced a momentary pause.
Although it was only for an instant, neither side in the battle paid it any mind, but Qiao Xiaoxian noticed it.
Qiao Xiaoxian quickly figured out the cause and effect, and was instantly shocked by the audaciousness of the act, but she couldn’t help but laugh: “What a bold little fox!”