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Chapter 304 The Pill Sect's Hidden Secrets
"The Immortal Sect wants to lend out its disciples, naturally for the sake of secrecy."

"If they were to break the immortal rules to keep it a secret, how could they possibly return alive as promised by the immortal sect?"

"This……"

Danyangzi opened his mouth, but was suddenly rendered speechless by the question.

He did feel that the five major sects, including the Dao Asking Sect and the Spirit Sword Mountain, were relatively amiable this time. Apart from the Jade Balance Hall's somewhat forceful response, they were not aggressive. He thought that lending out disciples might not be a problem.

However, he overlooked the fact that if it were truly necessary to borrow disciples from the Pill Sect to return to the mountain, then once these disciples were used up, how would they have the opportunity to leave the mountain?

Indeed, prolonged periods of peace can erode a person's vigilance.

Yuan Li slightly tilted his hand, using a white candle to light sandalwood incense, and said, "If the Pill Sect compromises today, they will face endless pressure. Moreover, the substance they want to refine is not benevolent and goes against the teachings of our Pill Sect..."

"What exactly are those immortal sects trying to refine?"

"You only need to know that if it is a good thing, there is no need to hide it from others."

Yuan Li murmured something and blew out the incense, watching the white smoke curl upwards, his deep eyes like a dark vortex.

After hearing this, Danyangzi and the others exchanged glances and finally nodded slightly.

It seems that the headmaster must know the origin of those precious materials to resist them so much.

At this moment, Yuan Li inserted sandalwood into the incense burner in front of him, bowed and knelt down before rising up: "Back then, our Dan Sect was torn apart and our disciples were enslaved for a hundred years. If we lend out our disciples today, how can we face our ancestors? The Dan Sect should live or die.

"What you say is absolutely right, Senior Brother..."

As the ancestral hall suddenly fell silent, the sandalwood incense began to burn slowly downwards.

Before long, the sky gradually darkened, and the breeze around the mountains began to grow stronger, causing the lush greenery on the mountaintop to sway westward.

Amidst the strong winds, more than twenty families with kinship ties, including Jin, Jing, Xu, and Bie, appeared in the mountains, standing between Danxiaping and Yuheng Hall.

Before long, Elder Dan Xunzi stepped into the incense-filled ancestral hall and bowed to Yuan Li, who was kneeling on a prayer mat.

"Sect Leader, the Lian family, the Gong family, the Sha family, and the Pu family have left the mountain."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Li couldn't help but look up: "Seeing that a storm was brewing, you left?"

Dan Xunzi nodded: "They left from the back mountain not long after the meeting in Kaiyang Hall, without informing my Dan Sect before they left."

Before Yuan Li could speak, Danyangzi frowned angrily: "The Gong family and the Pu family are one thing, they are already in decline and have few strong people, but how can the Lian family and the Sha family be like this? The pills we give them every year are something that even the Immortal Sects would be envious of!"

"Senior Brother Yang, some aristocratic families may not necessarily be grateful."

"Those heartless bastards! It's a wonder that Senior Brother Hui married his two granddaughters to them!"

Upon seeing this, Dan Xunzi pursed his lips and said, "Yuan Cai and Yuan Jie were also taken down the mountain by them."

Upon hearing this, Danyangzi clenched his fists: "Do they think that my Dan Sect is doomed to perish this time, and that even if they bring the two back, they will still have pills to use?"

Dan Xunzi did not respond, but this was tantamount to acquiescence, and a fierce cursing broke out in the entire ancestral hall.

After a long silence, Yuan Li waved his hand at the crowd with a gloomy face: "Forget it, everyone has their own ambitions. It is only natural to feel fear when seeing the Immortal Sects joining forces to attack. We have no right to ask them to die for our Pill Sect."

Danyangzi was furious: "When we were betrothed, we presented people and pills as gifts, but they didn't say that."

"In this kind of battle, the strong are the key. There is no one among these four families who is worth relying on. Their absence will not affect the battle. It's just a pity that my Caiwei is a bit too willful..."

"This can't be blamed on Caiwei..."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Li sighed softly: "I don't blame her either, but I had no choice but to face the disaster without any support and take my disciples to their deaths."

In the past, the Dan Sect had always used marriage alliances to win over the surrounding minor families in order to strengthen its ability to resist risks, but it was also wary of forming marriage alliances with too powerful families.

In times of peace and stability, this was indeed a good approach, ensuring independence while deterring unscrupulous individuals from harboring malicious intentions.

However, when the world descends into chaos, the drawbacks of this practice become glaringly obvious.

Because in the face of a powerful force, the forces they have won over seem insignificant.

In fact, Yuan Li had been worried about this problem for a long time, so he had many ideas about Yuan Caiwei's marriage, hoping to change the situation of Danzong.

The increasingly frequent chaos within Qingyun Tianxia made him feel he had to be on guard.

You Buyu was not the first person he chose for his daughter. In fact, there were countless others before him, all of whom were of noble status, in order to gain greater support.

Unfortunately, the daughter kept delaying marriage, and now she has nowhere to turn when disaster strikes.

After regaining his senses, Yuan Li stepped out of the ancestral hall and led the elders to the top floor of the palace. Then he looked at the distant mountains and waited for night to fall.

As they waited, they suddenly saw a figure appear on the distant mountain.

He held a long sword in his hand, his white robes fluttering as he strolled along the mountain ridge, his head bowed as if searching for something, looking like he was going to bring back some mountain goods.

After recognizing him, all the elders of the Dan Sect couldn't help but look back at Yuan Li, only to see that the sect leader was also looking at that figure.

There was a rebellious disciple in the Heavenly Academy named Ji You, whom many people felt perfectly matched the previous criteria for choosing a son-in-law in the Dan Sect.

Since he has no noble family or support, but is quite talented, we can directly recruit him as a son-in-law. Moreover, he and his daughter seem to be in love, so marrying his daughter to him would be a good choice.

However, Yuan Li later disagreed because he was worried about the current situation.

At this moment, the sun slowly descended in his pupils, its last rays creating a breathtaking spectacle on the horizon.

And after this last glimmer of light, the night slowly creeps up along the horizon.

Meanwhile, at the Yaoguang Palace atop Danshan Mountain.

All the female alchemists in the upper five realms were looking out the window, anxiously watching the sunset gradually disappear into the sky, their hands tightly gripping the poison pills.

At this moment, Yuan Chen emerged from the deepest secluded cultivation room, his face pale.

He had just learned about the current situation facing the Pill Sect. As he walked into the front hall and looked around, he saw Yuan Bingqing standing in front of the hall: "Sister Qing, where is my sister? Have you seen my sister?"

Yuan Bingqing turned to look at him: "Come with me."

Yuan Chen immediately followed Yuan Bingqing out of the main hall, where they saw Yuan Caiwei standing in front of the hall: "Sister..."

Hearing the sound, Yuan Caiwei turned to look at Yuan Chen: "What are you doing out here?"

“I…I’m worried about you, Dad, and my mother.”

“Aunt Rong has been sent away, and Father is fine. Those immortal sect members waited a day hoping he could come to his senses, because they didn’t dare to exterminate him, let alone kill an immortal sect leader.”

Yuan Chen opened his mouth: "Really...?"

Yuan Caiwei nodded: "Young Master Ji said that even the most supreme immortal sects, after so many years of hypocrisy, will not easily expose their evil intentions. What they want most is to capture the Dan Sect disciples they need, so that the Dan Sect can be shown to the world as an empty shell."

"Brother-in-law? Where is brother-in-law now?"

"I don't know..."

The Yaoguang Hall was not only staffed with female disciples; a group of male disciples, including Hong Zhen, Wen Bin, and Lu Ze, were also guarding the outside.

Hearing the siblings' conversation, they couldn't help but glance back slightly.

The Dan Sect is now facing a great calamity, and killing intent is rising all around the foot of the mountain. Their own Holy Maiden Junior Sister is still clinging to the words of a disciple from the Heavenly Scripture Academy as a lifeline, which makes them feel uneasy.

Indeed, this statement is true.

If any of the seven great immortal sects were to perish as a result, it would be a world-shaking event, and everyone in Qingyun would feel insecure upon seeing the immortal sects' actions.

So even if it's just an empty shell, they will still leave behind the Dan Sect.

But with a formidable enemy at hand, what use is a mere empty word of comfort?

Hong Zhen and Wen Bin then turned to Yuan Caiwei: "Junior Sister, you should quickly take Junior Brother Yuan Chen and Junior Sister Bing Qing back to the hall. It's not safe outside."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Bingqing also pulled Yuan Caiwei back: "Yes, Senior Sister, let's go back to the palace first."

"You may go back, I will stay here..."

"Junior sister, don't act rashly. Staying here won't change anything."

Yuan Caiwei did not reply after hearing this, but clenched her hands tightly, her determination to stay here unwavering.

In fact, this was not the first time Hong Zhen, Wen Bin, and others had tried to persuade her.

When all the female disciples entered the hall at Shenshi (3-5 PM), she stood in front of the hall gate, gazing down the mountain, unwilling to enter.

Hong Zhen and the others couldn't understand her behavior, but seeing that she wouldn't change her mind, they stopped trying to persuade her.

In their view, if the Immortal Sect members slaughtered all the in-laws of the Pill Sect and captured their leader to come here, then there would be no difference between inside and outside the hall.

They could easily use threats of life and death to force the sect leader to withdraw the protection of the sacred artifact, or directly kill the wielder of the sacred artifact.

The Immortal Sect truly had to consider the well-being of the world and was unwilling to exterminate everyone.

But that was the best outcome they needed, not their bottom line, because if things really came down to the last minute, nobody knew what would happen.

Therefore, for these disciples guarding the outer perimeter, if death was the only outcome, then dying alongside Junior Sister Caiwei would be a good choice.

While pondering, Wenbin suddenly pulled a jade pendant from his pocket: "Junior Sister..."

The sound had barely appeared, before it reached the ears of those around it, when it was instantly drowned out by a deafening roar.

At this moment, everyone's eyes reflected countless bursts of celestial light that splashed down from the foot of the mountain and crashed onto Danxia Plain.

The people from the five major immortal sects truly chose to make their move at nightfall.

While they were still stunned, a gust of wind, stirred up by the magic, swept through the mountains and forests, bending countless thousand-year-old pines. The powerful force caused the disciples guarding the temple gate to stagger, their faces instantly turning pale. Alchemists do not cultivate the Heavenly Dao; in essence, they are not much different from mortals.

In addition, they rarely go down the mountain and only hear about the stories of cultivators, so it is difficult for them to know exactly what their power is like.

Even now, when the mere clash of magical energy was enough to make them lose their footing, they realized that it was far beyond their imagination, and their despair grew even stronger.

"It's incredibly strong..."

"A palace collapsed, this immortal sect's magic..."

Under the thick darkness of night, the mountain wind howled incessantly, like the wailing of evil spirits.

On the rooftop of the sect leader's residence below Yaoguang Hall, under the eaves where bright lanterns hung, the sect leader of Danzong and a group of elders were looking solemnly towards Danxia Plain.

In their semi-secluded state, they rarely witnessed the battles between immortal sects, and even when they went to the Heavenly Dao Society, it was to repair the broken space at the sacred land of the sages.

At this moment, as the spiritual energy surged wildly across the sky, they were also shocked.

First it was the Mountain and Sea Pavilion, then the Spirit Sword Mountain, and then the Dao Seeking Sect...

One after another, the disciples of the immortal sects descended like dark clouds, then exploded the moment the spiritual energy accumulated.

boom--

Amidst the scorching flames, a powerful heavy hammer crashed down.

The moment the hammer struck, the entire Danxia Plain rippled up like waves, and the nine Xuan pillars shattered inch by inch under the violent impact of spiritual power, with rubble flying everywhere like a rainstorm.

The hammer-wielder was as imposing as a mountain, and as he brought down the hammer, he directly attacked the nine-tiered steps behind Danxia Plain.

At the same time, several beams of immortal light directly distorted the remaining immortal light and followed closely behind, stepping onto the steps.

"clank!"

Just then, two jet-black blades descended from the ninth step. Before the blades even arrived, a chilling killing intent swept down like a tide, pressing down directly on the heavy hammer.

Amidst the deafening clang of metal clashing, a visible burst of energy swept out, instantly shattering the white jade steps.

Before the blade's gleam had faded, the hammer-wielder roared, raised his arms, and slammed them down.

He cultivated the secret techniques of force fields and fire magic. The blazing fire waves roared out like angry dragons, carrying heavy energy, and once again met the two breathtaking beams of sword light.

At the same time, like a tidal wave, the disciples of the Immortal Sect leaped into the air from the moment the sword and hammer clashed, surrounded by various spiritual lights, sword beams, and the brilliance of magical artifacts, forming a dazzling torrent as they rushed towards the mountain.

At the same time, even more numerous figures appeared behind those two black blades, sweeping across the mountains and plains to meet the immortal sect disciples who were coming down the mountain.

"Buzz!"

It was a sword aura from the Fusion Realm of Spirit Sword Mountain. At first, it was just a faint glimmer in the night, but in an instant, it transformed into silvery moonlight, pouring down in a mighty torrent.

Where the sword light passed, a cloud of blood mist instantly exploded on the white jade steps.

In the first wave of chaotic collisions, countless members of the Dan Sect's in-law families were killed or injured, with severed limbs and broken bodies scattered all over the ground, while crimson blood flowed incessantly down the white jade steps.

"father!"

Do not disturb your peace of mind!

With a roar, the Jin family patriarch, wielding two swords, charged at the enemy. He and his son then faced the hammer-wielding elder of the Mountain and Sea Pavilion once again.

There are countless aristocratic families in Qingyun, but not all of them are on good terms with the immortal sects.

There are also some aristocratic families who, due to certain historical reasons, have been ostracized and suppressed by the immortal sects, and are trapped at the bottom with no way to rise up.

The Dan Sect has always been secretly cultivating these aristocratic families, and the Jin family, where the father and son are now fighting with two swords, is one of them.

Because of past grudges, they had been suppressed by one branch of the Chen Clan, and decades ago they were on the verge of decline and ruin. It was only after forming a marriage alliance with the Dan Sect that they were able to turn their lives around.

Therefore, for them, if the Dan Sect were destroyed, their family's fortune would be taken away as well, so they might as well fight to the death.

The Jin family patriarch suddenly shifted his stance, unleashing a surge of energy that caused nine golden ripples to erupt from the blade, sending the blade's light soaring outwards.

In the midst of the chaos, a whistling burst of energy swept across the entire mountain.

Streams of sword energy and bursts of blade light crashed down like ocean waves.

Faced with a killing intent powerful enough to shatter the heavens, the scions of those aristocratic families instantly clenched their fists and unleashed countless magical artifacts to meet the attack.

The cage called Kuntian can summon lightning pestles, golden lotuses with poisonous thorns flying like a rainstorm, thunder and fire intertwined with blood mist, the sound of clashing weapons like a thunderstorm, and the collision of mountains and seas made the entire Dan Sect feel like an earth dragon turning over.

The scions of aristocratic families are indeed at a great disadvantage compared to the disciples of immortal sects, but the Dan Sect has no shortage of money.

Always mindful of potential dangers, they had long ago stockpiled numerous magical artifacts as a foundation, which were now unleashed in the hands of their in-law families, directly halting the Immortal Sect's attack on the mountain.

However, magical artifacts are ultimately just miscellaneous skills; otherwise, there would surely be aristocratic families in the world whose foundation is artifact crafting.

Therefore, in this back-and-forth, the blood flowers on the nine-tiered white jade steps bloomed even more brilliantly.

Most of the dead and injured were children from families with close ties through marriage.

Seeing the corpses strewn across the ground below the mountain, the disciples in Yaoguang Hall were filled with despair.

They couldn't see the specific details of the battle, but they could see the movement of the crowd, which was as vast as the sea.

The Dan Sect's in-law families were numerous and appeared even larger than their opponents, yet they suffered repeated defeats and countless deaths under the fierce attacks of the Immortal Sect members.

"It's laughable that even those at the peak of the lower three realms have come here to fight. Don't you alchemists feel any heartache sending your children and grandchildren to their deaths? Or do you think you can stop the might of the immortal sect with your magical artifacts?"

"Like a mantis trying to stop a chariot, resisting to the very end is nothing more than a moth drawn to a flame."

"Kill them, and finish this quickly!"

Amidst the chaotic light of the heavens, the disciples of the Immortal Sect, with arrogant expressions and surging immortal light, crashed down amidst the radiant light.

There is indeed a hierarchy of contempt among cultivators in the world, with immortal sects at the top and ancient families following in second place.

These aristocratic families who depend on the Pill Sect are no different from ants in the eyes of these immortal sect members. Even if they have endless magical artifacts, they can only buy time.

However, they overlooked one thing.

This is the Dan Sect.

The Jin family father and son worked together to defeat the man wielding the hammer, and then took out a crimson pill from their pockets and swallowed it.

In an instant, the auras around the two of them surged dramatically.

The dark blade flashed down like the night, and the hammer-wielder was sent flying backward with a crash.

At roughly the same time, the people standing on the ninth step also took pills and mustered their strength to fight.

But at that moment, a powerful aura suddenly swept across the mountains to the east, instantly causing everyone's hearts to tremble.

In that instant, the human wall of the Dan Sect's in-law families, which resembled a tsunami, was torn open, and mangled corpses rolled down the white jade steps, their thick and scalding blood splattering everywhere.

The Daoist Sect discussed the matter, and Huo Yu of the Mountain and Sea Pavilion, Chen Ke of the Chen Clan, Yan Jingfu of the Spirit Sword Mountain, and Chu Hong of the Xuan Yuan Immortal Mansion, five powerful figures from the immortal sects, ascended the mountain at this moment.

Under the cover of night, the magnificent energy was like the roar of a tiger and the cry of a dragon, pressing down on the mountains and making them tremble with a mere wave of its hand.

Finally, they were stopped by a dozen or so gray-haired figures, barely managing to hold them off before the fourth step.

This is the strongest line of defense of the Dan Sect, and everyone inside is an ancestor from a family related by marriage.

Most of them had already crossed the threshold of the Yingtian Realm and were already quite remarkable among the aristocratic families.

At this moment, as the five people were intercepted, all the old men guarding the mountain swallowed the pills in their hands.

Under the influence of the medicine, the aged figure suddenly became firm, and the meridians in his body suddenly swelled like dragons, radiating endless and vast immortal light.

"It seems the Pill Sect isn't just blindly resisting; they've been underestimated by the entire world..."

Shang Que couldn't help but mutter to himself, a cold glint flashing in his eyes.

Some of those magical artifacts had never appeared on the market before, presumably commissioned privately by the Dan Sect in preparation for an attack on the mountain.

Most importantly, those pills were something they had never even heard of before, and they were probably a secret stash that they had never revealed before in preparation for this day.

Such a foundation is enough to crush a thousand-year-old family.

However, if external things could truly overcome the Heavenly Dao, they wouldn't need to cultivate so diligently.

Shang Que of the Daodao Sect rolled up his sleeves, and a bronze disc flew out from them. The powerful energy had solidified into a tangible form, and the large hand pressed down, directly shattering the replica of the sacred artifact, the three-legged furnace, in the distance.

Huo Yu also leaped into the air, and with a clasp of his hands, an illusory mountain swept across him.

Then came the magnificent sword energy, the chilling iron blade, and a pair of fiery red palms, all of which crashed down.

In just a moment, the dozen or so white-haired elders were shaken so badly that their blood and qi surged, and they were clearly in a state of exhaustion. If it weren't for their numerical advantage, they would have been powerless to fight back.

Upon witnessing this scene, everyone on and off the mountain, from the sect leader and elders to the disciples, turned ashen-faced.

boom!
The five men attacked again, fiercely targeting the old men.

As the effects of the medicine began to take hold, these patriarchs of powerful families were able to fight back with great difficulty, but no one knew how long this could last.

Among the five realms, the gap between major realms cannot be bridged simply by numbers and pills; this is common knowledge. However, the sheer size of the gap at this moment still surprised everyone in the Pill Sect.

However, perhaps because the battle was too intense, they did not notice that arcs of light were beginning to flash on Dan Mountain.

(I'll try my best tomorrow and see if I can get more. I'm begging for monthly votes...or2)

(End of this chapter)