Having been given a second chance at life, I choose to join the Demonic Sect!

Daoist Tiancong regretted it a little. If he had known that Su Qingyue would go against him, he shouldn't have brought her here.

No, it's because I, Tiancong Daoist, shouldn't have come to the Hehuan Sect.

Mingfeng, this Void Refinement stage ancestor, doesn't care about anything.

He was forced to take charge as a junior, but when he took charge, the people under him didn't cooperate and even went against him.

If I hadn't come, I wouldn't have been implicated in all sorts of things, not only being stripped of my position as sect leader by Mingfeng, but also being made a laughingstock by everyone.

"Senior Brother Tiancong, it's true that they were afraid of fighting, but they weren't wrong either!"

Su Qingyue admitted that the six people were cowardly, but she added:
"There have long been rumors that Cao Meng once defied a Nascent Soul cultivator."

"If it weren't for your wrong decision, those forty-odd deputy hall masters at the half-step Nascent Soul stage wouldn't have died so tragically at Cao Meng's hands!"

"Now Cao Meng is challenging the sect's Nascent Soul stage one again, just like before. Senior Brother Tian Cong, how many more Nascent Soul stage one junior brothers and sisters do you want to send to their deaths?"

Su Qingyue can only use this to pressure Tiancong Daoist, thereby preventing Cao Meng and the Xuantian Sect's Nascent Soul stage cultivators from fighting.

"Senior Sister Su is absolutely right!"

The six hall masters, all at the first level of the Nascent Soul stage, chimed in to echo Su Qingyue's sentiments.

Previously, when Daoist Tiancong used the lives of those half-step Nascent Soul cultivators to gamble, they had no objections, but to gamble with their lives was impossible.

For a moment, Daoist Tiancong was at a loss for words to refute Su Qingyue, so he could only turn his gaze to Mingfeng and say:
"Uncle-Master Mingfeng, are we just going to let this little devil run rampant like this?"

Daoist Tiancong hoped that Mingfeng, this Void Refinement stage ancestor, would stop being just a decoration and quickly say a word for him!
"Ugh!"

Mingfeng sighed and said helplessly:

"This little devil has indeed gone too far in his arrogance. Now that he wants to challenge you, whether you are willing to fight for the honor of your sect is entirely up to you!"

Mingfeng did not express his opinion, but left the choice to them.

After all, among those six Nascent Soul stage cultivators, three of them had Void Refinement stage elders from their sects backing them up.

If Mingfeng forces them to fight, and they die, Mingfeng won't be able to explain it to their successors!

Just as the Xuantian Sect was hesitating, something interesting came up.

Qin Lin'er, Shi Shi, and Hong Qi brought up a group of half-dead, sickly people.

"Look, those are Hall Master Gu and the elders of Qingfeng Hall?"

Immediately, someone from the Xuantian Sect recognized Gu Qingfeng and the Nascent Soul elders of the Qingfeng Hall.

"These demons of the Hehuan Sect actually tortured Junior Brother Gu and the others like this, they deserve to die!"

Seeing Gu Qingfeng and his group like this, Daoist Tiancong cursed angrily.

Wu Hui glanced at Daoist Tiancong, his eyes seeming to say:
Tiancong, how could you say such a thing?
If it weren't for your wrong decision, would Gu Qingfeng have been captured by the Hehuan Sect? Would he have ended up like this?
After Cao Meng brought the hostages up, he pointed his sword at the Xuantian Sect and shouted:

“You rats of the Xuantian Sect, I’ll give you a cup of tea’s worth of time to think it over.”

If none of you cultivators at the first level of the Nascent Soul stage will fight me, I will extract Gu Qingfeng's soul and refine his spirit, ensuring he will never be reborn!

"If you defeat me, you will release Gu Qingfeng and the others!"

"Nangong Yan, aren't the disciples of your Hehuan Sect acting far too despicably?"

Mingfeng was very dissatisfied with Cao Meng's use of hostages as a threat, and he needed an explanation from the Hehuan Sect.

"Our Hehuan Sect is a demonic sect; as long as we get the result we want, that's enough."

The methods used are irrelevant, so I don't think there's anything wrong with what this bastard did.

Although Nangong Yan disliked Cao Meng very much, calling him a bastard and wanting to kick his ass.

However, as her grandmaster, her stance remained firm.

"Your Xuantian Sect came here to rescue people, right?"
"If you don't want to save us, you can just get lost. All the sects are here today. If your Xuantian Sect wants to leave, our Hehuan Sect will not make things difficult for you!"

Nangong Yan's words were actually a strategic retreat; she didn't believe that Xuantian Sect would dare to abandon the hostages in front of all the other sects.

If Xuan Tian Sect dares to leave, Nangong Yan guarantees that their reputation for disregarding the lives of hostages will spread throughout the Eastern Dao Continent.

The infamy of disregarding the lives of hostages is far more serious than any of the previous infamy.

Mingfeng was furious, because he knew very well that if he did that, at the very least, his sect would be stigmatized.

In severe cases, it can affect the sect's recruitment of disciples and the disciples' sense of belonging to the sect.

At this moment, Mingfeng had to admit that Cao Meng truly lived up to his reputation as Nangong Yan's grand-disciple; these two were truly wicked!
"Shishi, are you hungry? Have a few to eat!"

Seeing that no one from the Xuantian Sect came forward to fight, Cao Meng told Shishi to start the meal and eat a few hostages first, to give the Xuantian Sect a warning!

Upon receiving Cao Meng's order to start the meal, Shi Shi was overjoyed and immediately devoured several Nascent Soul stage hostages.

"You rats of the Xuantian Sect, my patience is running out. You'd better make a decision quickly."

Cao Meng then began to urge them on, since the time it took for these people was enough for him to kill several of the beasts from the Xuantian Sect.

"You little thief, you've gone too far!"

Cao Meng's show of force enraged the Xuantian Sect.

This traitor Cao promised to give them a quarter of an hour to think, but now, less than half an hour has passed, and he's already started killing people.

Cao Meng: I have a hostage. I'll wait as long as I say.

"Are you all really going to be cowards who abandon the lives of your fellow disciples?"

Seeing that none of the six cultivators at the first level of the Nascent Soul stage had stepped forward, Daoist Tiancong couldn't help but angrily question them.

Even though those six people were being scolded, not one of them stood up.

They still know how to weigh the pros and cons when it comes to being scolded or being put on the fighting stage.

"Tang Yao, are you going to fight Cao Meng?"

Seeing that these six people were like dead pigs unafraid of boiling water, Daoist Tiancong had no choice but to call out their names.

Of these six people, three did not have a Void Refinement stage elder as a backer, and Tang Yao was one of them.

Daoist Tiancong felt that even if Tang Yao was defeated and killed by Cao Meng, he wouldn't cause much trouble after returning to Xuantian Sect.

"As ordered!"

Now that Tang Yao has been singled out, she has no choice but to bite the bullet and accept the task.

Tang Yao was filled with resentment. If she had a Void Refinement stage elder as her backer, why would she have been chosen by Daoist Tiancong to be the vanguard and go up to her death?

Tang Yao swore that if she were to die at the hands of Cao Meng, she would haunt the Taoist Tiancong, who had sent her to her death, even as a ghost.

"You little devil, I'll fight you to the death!"

As soon as Tang Yao entered the training ground, she immediately released the Dharma of Heaven and Earth, condensing a hundred-foot-long blue Dharma giant.

Tang Yao felt that she couldn't let Cao Meng make the first move; she had to strike first to turn the tide.

"Three thousand gleams of cold light!"

Tang Yao mobilized the power of her Dharma form and unleashed her technique to kill Cao Meng. The silver-white sword light struck Cao Meng like a storm.

Cao Meng did not dodge, but allowed himself to be swallowed by the sword's edge.

At this moment, Tang Yao seemed to see Cao Meng being completely devoured by her killing move, and she saw herself becoming a great contributor to the Xuan Tian Sect.

But the next moment, something surprising happened to her and all the guests.

Tang Yao's sword attack was as fierce as a storm, but its actual effect was like a gentle spring breeze, unable to harm Cao Meng in the slightest.

"How can this be?"

Tang Yao found it hard to accept that Cao Meng was completely unharmed despite her attacks, as if bathed in a gentle breeze.

"You bitch from the Xuantian Sect, have you been sleeping with that old dog Tiancong for so long that you're too weak?"

"Now die!" Cao Meng cursed, then raised the Liuhong Sword high, its sword aura crimson and bloodthirsty.

"One sword separates the worlds!"

Cao Meng unleashed a fierce sword strike, its energy pouring forth with earth-shattering force as it slashed towards Tang Yao.

"Cao Meng, stop!"

Su Qingyue's shouts slowed down, and as her words fell, Tang Yao's magic connection and physical body were both cleaved apart by a single sword strike.

"A half-step Nascent Soul cultivator defying the Nascent Soul stage, cleaving a Nascent Soul cultivator in two with a single sword strike—truly terrifying!"

Cao Meng possesses the power to defy the Nascent Soul stage, as the guests had all witnessed through the previous battles.

But Cao Meng's reversal of the Divine Transformation realm was a bit too easy; he simply cleaved the opponent in two with a single sword strike.

This is a Nascent Soul Stage 1 cultivator from the Xuantian Sect, one of the top powers, not a Nascent Soul Stage 1 cultivator from an outside rogue cultivator!

Zi Dongji of the Beast Soul Sect watched as Cao Meng cleaved a Nascent Soul cultivator in two with a single sword strike, then smiled at Jian Yun and Jian Yan:

"Jian Yun, Jian Yan, compared to Cao Meng's 'Sword Separation from the World,' your Demon Sword Sect's 'Sword Separation from the World' is somewhat unorthodox!"

"Hahaha!"

When Zi Dongji spoke up, the other sects' Void Refinement stage elders also laughed.

"Cough, cough, cough!"

Jianyan coughed and said irritably:
"What's so funny? You all know the situation of my Demon Sword Sect!"

The "One Sword Across Worlds" technique used by the Demon Sword Sect and the Sword Inquiry Sect is an incomplete, censored version. It wasn't a big secret to begin with, and basically all sects knew about it.

A white light suddenly emerged from Tang Yao's cleaved body.

Although Tang Yao's physical body was cleaved in two by Cao Meng's sword, her primordial spirit survived under the protection of the spiritual artifact.

Tang Yao's primordial spirit wanted to escape the martial arts arena and return to the Xuan Tian Sect.

Tang Yao thought that as long as she escaped back and the Xuantian Sect helped her get a physical body, she could possess another body and be resurrected.

"You want to escape? Dream on!"

"Star-Picking and Moon-Playing Hand!"

Tang Yao tried to escape, but Cao Meng wouldn't allow it; with a single large hand, he captured Tang Yao's primordial spirit.

Cao Meng threw Tang Yao's primordial spirit directly into the Myriad Souls Snow Banner, intending to refine her into a Snow Maiden when he had time.

"Who's next? Hurry up and come up!"

After dealing with Tang Yao, Cao Meng felt refreshed and continued to challenge the Xuan Tian Sect.

The happier Cao Meng was, the more distressed the Xuantian Sect became.

"Ruize, are you going?"

Seeing Cao Meng's smug look, Tiancong Daoist, whose mind had long been clouded by anger, began to call out names of the dead.

Tiancong Daoren did not believe that Cao Meng could use such a killing move repeatedly.

Moreover, Cao Meng must have very little spiritual energy left after fighting so many battles.

"Senior Brother Tiancong, judging from Cao Meng's fighting prowess, whoever goes there will die!"

"If I go up there, I will only be throwing my life away and becoming Cao Meng's stepping stone!"

Rui Ze did not obey Tian Cong Dao Ren's order to go to the training ground, but instead protested directly.

His strength was only slightly better than Tang Yao's. Cao Meng could kill Tang Yao with one sword, and he could also kill Ruize with one sword. Therefore, Ruize did not want to go up and die.

Of course, there was a reason why Rui Ze dared to confront Tian Cong Daoist. He also had a powerful backer. He was the junior brother of Hu Yanke, the master of Giant Sword Peak, and his master and Hu Yanke's master were also Void Refinement stage elders!

“Senior Brother Tiancong, Senior Brother Ruizhe (Junior Brother) is right. Cao Meng also used this method to kill those half-step Nascent Soul stage cultivators before!”

If we all go now, aren't we just repeating the same mistakes?

"We've already fallen for this trick once. If we fall for it a second time, how will the other sects ridicule our Xuantian Sect?"
"Senior Brother Tiancong, if the Void Refinement stage elders in the forbidden area question us, how will you explain it to them?"

The other four Nascent Soul Stage One cultivators who hadn't been named also spoke up.

If Rui Ze were to perform martial arts on the field and be cleaved in two by Cao Meng's sword, who would be the next to die? And the one after that?

Therefore, the five Nascent Soul stage cultivators at the first level united their stance and decided not to engage in combat or fight Cao Meng!

"This……"

Daoist Tiancong knew that the five men from Ruizhe said those things because they were afraid of dying, but there was some truth to what those five said!

If things really turn out like before, with everyone going up to their deaths and ending up dead, then things will indeed be difficult to handle!
Especially since three of these five people have Void Refinement stage elders backing them up, if they die because of his decisions, and their Void Refinement stage elders turn against him, he definitely won't be able to withstand it.

As for asking Mingfeng to share the responsibility, that's obviously impossible!
If Mingfeng wanted to help share the responsibility, he wouldn't have remained completely silent.

"Please let Uncle Mingfeng decide!"

Tiancong Daoist simply stopped caring and passed the buck to Mingfeng.

As for his own anger, he'd already gotten used to it after being scolded by Cao Meng for so long.

My reputation is already ruined, so no matter how much that little devil curses me, it won't hurt me.

Mingfeng turned his gaze to Cao Meng on the training ground and said:

"Little devil, your strength surpasses the first level of the Nascent Soul stage. Do you dare to fight against a second-level Nascent Soul cultivator from my Xuantian Sect?"

Mingfeng also realized that going to fight Cao Meng at the first level of the Nascent Soul stage, even if it was a war of attrition, was extremely risky and would result in his death.

Therefore, he directly admitted that Cao Meng was invincible at the first level of the Nascent Soul stage, and that the first level of the Nascent Soul stage of the Xuantian Sect was no match for Cao Meng.

Those who wish to challenge Cao Meng should do so at the second stage of the Nascent Soul realm.

"Old dog, of course I'm not afraid of your Xuantian Sect's second-level Nascent Soul cultivators, but why should I cooperate with you? What benefit would I get from that?"
Don't forget, the hostages are still in my hands!

Cao Mengzhen was not afraid of the second-stage Nascent Soul cultivators of the Xuantian Sect. His original plan was to kill all the first-stage Nascent Soul cultivators of the Xuantian Sect first, and then kill the second-stage Nascent Soul cultivators.

"Little devil, if you dare to accept the challenge, how about I reward you with 100,000 mid-grade spirit stones for your commendable courage?"

One hundred thousand mid-grade spirit stones are just a small amount of money for Mingfeng. It's no problem to use this small amount of money to buy Cao Meng's life!

Moreover, as long as a Nascent Soul cultivator from the Xuantian Sect kills Cao Meng, they can also seize his storage ring and recoup their investment.

"Old dog, who are you trying to fool with 100,000 mid-grade spirit stones?"

Cao Meng felt that Mingfeng the old dog had given too little; 100,000 mid-grade spirit stones only amounted to 10 million low-grade spirit stones, which didn't even reach a small goal.

"Little devil, how many spirit stones do you want to dare to fight against my sect's second-stage Nascent Soul cultivator?"

Didn't Cao Meng complain about not having enough spirit stones? Mingfeng wanted to see how many the other party wanted.

If the other party asks for an exorbitant price, it means they are afraid.

"Three million mid-grade spirit stones, give them to me immediately!"

After thinking for a while, Cao Meng came up with this number.

He currently has over two million mid-grade spirit stones. If he gets another three million mid-grade spirit stones, it will be enough for him to level up two levels in one go!

In fact, Cao Meng wanted more, but he was afraid that he couldn't afford to take advantage of Ming Feng.

"it is good!"

After thinking it over for a moment, Mingfeng nodded in agreement.

Mingfeng can afford to give a mere three million mid-grade spirit stones, but he's afraid that this little devil might have the life to take the money but not the life to spend it!
"But you can't use talismans or anything like that!"

Just in case, Mingfeng added another sentence. (End of this chapter)