Hunyuan Immortal Sect

Chapter 409 Seeking Common Ground
Song Xian sat upright in his seat, deep in thought, unable to understand the matter at all.

Why did Emperor Xuanzong of Yun suddenly withdraw from Xijiang County and head to Huayang County?

Why did the Beast Taming Sect ambush them during their retreat?

Logically speaking, wouldn't Yun Xuanzong's willingness to leave Xijiang County be a great thing for the Beast Taming Sect?
Why would they ambush Emperor Yunxuan at this time?

Song Xian was completely baffled, but he believed there must be a major hidden story behind it, because things were just too unusual.

After pondering for a while, he returned to the inner room of the mansion, greeted Su Zhirou, and then quietly left the mountain gate, traveling all the way to Qiyuan Mountain.

"Senior Song, I'm so sorry, Uncle Xu has already rested. If you don't have anything urgent, please come again tomorrow!" A disciple of the Beast Taming Sect greeted him.

"It's alright, I can wait. Once Steward Xu gets up tomorrow morning, you can inform him immediately." Song Xian didn't want to delay for a moment and wanted to find out the truth as soon as possible.

The renewed war between Yunxuan Sect and Yushou Sect is no small matter; it could plunge the entire Western Frontier County back into conflict. Hunyuan Sect would naturally not be able to remain unaffected. Moreover, this matter is so strange that he senses there is a more significant secret behind it. If he could know the inside story sooner, he could take countermeasures sooner.

Often, opportunities are fleeting.

What is an opportunity?

Opportunity lies in what others haven't seen or noticed, but which only you have.

"Alright! Then I'll trouble Senior Song to rest in the guest courtyard. Tomorrow morning, as soon as Uncle Xu leaves, I'll report to him immediately." The Beast Taming Sect disciple politely escorted him to his room in the guest courtyard.

Song Xian was preoccupied with this matter and could not fall asleep. It wasn't until dawn that a disciple of the Beast Taming Sect came to invite him to meet at Xu Yaoming's residence.

In the spacious waiting room, he waited for a short while before Xu Yaoming walked in with a smile: "Fellow Daoist Song, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting. These people are so inconsiderate, only informing me this morning."

"Master Xu, you're too kind. It was my fault for disturbing you so late at night."

After exchanging a few pleasantries and taking their seats, Song Xian explained his purpose: "To be honest, I don't come here without a reason. I've come to inquire about the conflict between your sect and the Yunxuan Sect."

"I heard that Emperor Yunxuan led his troops to Huayang County, but was intercepted by your esteemed lord on the way, suffering heavy casualties. I wonder what happened? Is another war about to break out? I humbly request that you, Master Xu, inform me."

Xu Yaoming smiled slightly: "Fellow Daoist Song is very well-informed! You got the news so quickly. Actually, I only learned about this matter not long ago, so I probably don't know much more than you do."

"As far as I know, Qi Yunxuan used the news of joining forces with Yunxiao Sect to lure his disciples and forces that had come to him to Huayang County."

"As for why our sect intercepted the Yunxuan Sect, it was under orders from the Xuanyuan Sect. So Fellow Daoist Song, there is no need to worry that the war in Xijiang County will affect your sect."

"The Xuan Yuan Sect has made up its mind to completely eradicate the Yun Xuan Sect. Now, all the major sects in the counties of Xishu Prefecture have received orders from the Xuan Yuan Sect to immediately capture and kill any Yun Xuan Sect cultivators who are found crossing the border."

"The Xuan Yuan Sect issued the order?" Upon hearing this, Song Xian was not particularly shocked, as he had long suspected that there was a bigger secret behind this matter. The fate of the Xuan Yuan Sect coincided with his guess: "May I ask, Master Xu, why did the Xuan Yuan Sect suddenly want to exterminate the Yun Xuan Sect?"
"I don't know about that. This is all the information I have. As for the inside story, it's beyond the knowledge of someone as insignificant as me."

"I wonder what the current situation is like at the Falling Cloud Sect?"

"The Luoyun Sect, the Fengxing Sect, and other affiliated forces were intercepted by our sect on their way to Huayang County, along with the main force of the Yunxuan Sect. I don't know the exact number of casualties yet, but I've heard that the casualties were heavy."

Song Xian asked a lot of other trivial questions, but Xu Yaoming couldn't explain them clearly either. After chatting for a while, he took his leave. After leaving Qiyuan Mountain, his mind was racing, and he had a vague idea of ​​what was going on.

Why Xuan Yuan Sect would change its usual practice and try to wipe out Yun Xuan Sect must involve higher-level secrets. If he is not mistaken, it should be related to the internal struggle within Qian Qing Sect.

Previously, Emperor Yunxuan had stirred up a bloody storm in Xijiang County, but Emperor Xuanyuan turned a blind eye and a deaf ear, letting them do whatever they wanted.

However, as soon as the new leader of the Qianqing Sect took office, the Xuanyuan Sect intervened forcefully. They not only made the Yunxuan Sect return the resources and territory they had previously occupied, but also warned them not to cause any more trouble. Their biased attitude was obvious to everyone.

He previously speculated that Xuan Yuan Sect's actions were due to the discord between the newly appointed Qian Qing Sect leader Liu Qingyue and Qi Yunxuan's backer Qi Xiaofeng. The two factions had been vying for the position of sect leader, which is why Xuan Yuan Sect initially tolerated Yunxuan Sect's behavior.

Later, Liu Qingyue won, and Qi Xiaofeng's forces were defeated. As a result, Xuan Yuan Sect immediately intervened in the struggle in Xijiang County and forcefully suppressed Yun Xuan Sect.

Now that the Xuan Yuan Sect is going to further annihilate the Yun Xuan Sect, there are only three possibilities.

First, Emperor Yun Xuanzong offended Emperor Xuanyuan, making it impossible for them to tolerate Emperor Yun Xuanzong's foothold in Xishu County any longer.

It's not impossible, but it's extremely unlikely. Qi Yunxuan isn't stupid. Even if Qi Xiaofeng, his backer, lost power, or even if Qi Xiaofeng's faction won, he wouldn't dare to provoke the Xuan Yuan Sect for no reason. Wouldn't that be like throwing an egg against a rock?
The second possibility is that the Xuan Yuan Sect leader coveted some secret treasure on Qi Yunxiao's body, just like how he unintentionally obtained the dark green bead, angered the Yin Yuan Island Lord, and brought about the destruction of his entire sect.

The probability of this is extremely small. If the sect leader of Xuan Yuan Sect had taken a liking to the secret treasure on Qi Yunxuan's body, he shouldn't have made such a big fuss and let everyone know about it. Moreover, Xuan Yuan Sect didn't even put in much effort; it was the Beast Taming Sect that carried out the task.

If it were truly a secret treasure, the Xuan Yuan Sect leader would definitely have personally taken action, because the fewer people who know about it, the better. Moreover, Qi Yunxuan is no small figure; he comes from the Qianqing Sect and has powerful backers there.

After eliminating these two extremely low-probability possibilities, only one remains.

This action by Xuan Yuan Sect is either a statement of stance or a gesture of goodwill towards Liu Qingyue, the leader of Qian Qing Sect.

Why would they resort to such a ruthless approach to exterminate Yunxuanzong to demonstrate their stance to Liu Qingyue, the leader of Qianqingzong? There is only one possibility: internal conflicts within Qianqingzong have escalated, and become extremely serious.

Liu Qingyue and Qi Xiaofeng are clearly two factions within the Qianqing Sect. They had a fierce struggle for the position of sect leader ten years ago, and it is entirely possible that the internal conflict will intensify further now.

If that's the case, the Qin state might be about to undergo a dramatic change.

Emperor Qianqing was the one who held the reins of power in the Qin state. His stability meant that even if there was local chaos, the overall situation in the Qin state remained stable.

However, if something goes wrong with it, it will inevitably plunge the Qin state into chaos.

In the worst-case scenario, if the Qianqing Sect splits up, then all the sects, large and small, in the entire Qin Kingdom will be immediately dragged into the quagmire of war.

Of course, this is just Song Xian's speculation, and the situation is probably not as serious as he thinks.

He did not want this to happen, because Hunyuanzong had not occupied Bianxi City for very long and needed time to digest and develop it.

If the sect were to descend into war now, it would be extremely detrimental to the sect.

Upon returning to Luoyun Mountain, he immediately summoned Jiang Zichen and ordered him to send two capable disciples from the Intelligence Hall to Xijiang County on a spirit ship to investigate the details of the Yunxuan Sect incident, the more detailed the better.

.........

As night fell, dark clouds obscured the moon, and the starlight dimmed. Inside the house in the backyard of the mansion, Song Xian lay on the bed, his gaze unfocused on the ceiling, while Su Zhirou nestled in his arms, the two embracing tightly.

"I wonder how my aunt and Ling'er are doing? I hope they can escape this calamity." After a while, Su Zhirou said softly.

"You still think about them! They tried to kill us back then, have you forgotten? When the Luoyun Sect was dealing with us, they included you in their plans too."

"That was Tao Jinyuan's decision, not something that Aunt and Sister Ling'er could decide."

"Even if they didn't make the decision, your aunt must have known about it!"

Su Zhirou twisted her body and snuggled closer to him: "Why are you still talking about what happened before, husband? Would you be happy if they died?"

"I can't say I'm happy, but I'm not disappointed either. In any case, we are now enemies with the Luoyun Sect. It's always a good thing if the Luoyun Sect loses a few more Foundation Establishment cultivators. Ideally, they would all be wiped out by the Beast Taming Sect."

“My husband used to tell them that he was so grateful that he could never repay their kindness, but it turns out that it was all a lie.”

"It's just polite talk! Who would take it seriously?"

“If it weren’t for them, I wouldn’t be able to be with my husband. Aren’t they worth thinking about?”

Hearing the slight dissatisfaction in her voice, Song Xian lowered his head and kissed her cheek: "Then wish them all the best, may they live long and prosper, is that alright?"

Just as she finished speaking, footsteps suddenly sounded outside, followed by a knock on the door. It was Xiao Cui, Su Zhirou's personal maid: "Miss, young master."

"What is it?" Su Zhirou frowned.

"Master Yang Shen sent word that a man named Xiao Ling from Luoyun Sect has important business to discuss with me."

"Who? Xiao Ling?" Su Zhirou's furrowed brows immediately relaxed, and her eyes widened.

The couple exchanged a glance, both seeing the shock on each other's faces. It was truly a case of speaking of the devil and he appears.

No sooner had Xiao Ling been mentioned than she showed up at our door.

"Yes, that's what Master Yang Shen said. I told him that the young lady and the young master had already gone to sleep and that I should report back tomorrow, but he said that this matter was very important and that I had to be informed."

Su Zhirou quickly grabbed the clothes from the bedside and put them on. Song Xian also dressed neatly. The two left the inner courtyard and went to the outer room.

Yang Shen was waiting outside. He was Song Xian's disciple and lived in the outer courtyard of the mansion. When he saw the two of them come out, he immediately went up to them and bowed: "Sect Leader, Uncle Su, Senior Xiao Ling from Luoyun Sect has arrived at the mountain gate. She said she has important matters to discuss. Uncle Jiang Zichen cannot decide whether to let her in, so he sent someone to inform her."

Song Xian asked in a deep voice, "Did she come alone? Was there anyone else?"

"Yes."

"Husband, I'll go greet Ling'er."

"I'll go with you!" Song Xian was not at ease letting her go alone. Given the changes in the Luoyun Sect, they were capable of anything.

If they are desperate and want to take advantage of the chaos to reclaim the Luoyun Sect, and have sent Xiao Ling here and arranged for people to follow her, intending to enter the mountain gate and break through the formation from the inside, that would be bad news.

Although the possibility is low, we should still be wary.

The two of them rose into the air and arrived outside the mountain gate. The mountain gate's grand formation had already been activated, and golden auspicious clouds covered the area above their heads.

Jiang Zichen and the other disciples of the Hunyuan Sect were all within the area shrouded in golden auspicious clouds, while Xiao Ling stood alone hundreds of feet away.

"Sect Leader." Everyone bowed and greeted him upon his arrival.

Jiang Zichen also bowed: "She said she had important matters to discuss with the sect leader and Senior Sister Su, but I dared not let her in rashly, so I asked her to wait outside."

"You did the right thing." Song Xian nodded, grabbed Su Zhirou's hand, and stopped her from rashly stepping out of the formation.

Su Zhirou turned her head and looked at him with a puzzled expression, but didn't say anything more.

Song Xian spread his divine sense and, with all his might, swept across an area of ​​several hundred feet in radius.

At the same time, he looked around several times but did not find any hidden figures before taking Su Zhirou's hand and walking out of the formation.

Outside Luoyun Mountain is an open area. Even if someone can evade his divine sense, they cannot hide under his true observation.

"Ling'er, what brings you here? I heard you were attacked by the Beast Taming Sect, and I was worried about your safety!" Su Zhirou was very happy and greeted her with a big smile.

"Thank you for your concern, Sister Zhirou." Xiao Ling smiled and bowed to Song Xian, "It's so late, I hope you won't mind disturbing Sect Leader Song's peace and quiet."

“Fellow Daoist Xiao, there’s no need for such formalities. Although your sect and ours are irreconcilable enemies, you are our benefactor. Without you, we wouldn’t be where we are today. We remember that. You are always welcome to visit us whenever you wish.” Song Xian replied with a smile, “This is not the place to talk. Please come inside!”

After entering the mountain gate, the three arrived at the main hall of the mansion and took their seats.

"Ling'er, it's so good that you're alright. I heard that you were tricked by Yunxuan Sect into going to Huayang County, and then you were ambushed and killed by the Beast Taming Sect. What exactly happened? How is Aunt now?" Before Song Xian could speak, Su Zhirou asked first.

"I don't even know if my aunt is alive or dead. We were ordered by the sect leader to go to Huayang County with Yunxuan Sect. We originally thought we were going to join forces with Yunxiao Sect to take Xijiang County, but who knew..."

Xiao Ling sighed softly and recounted what she knew about the events in detail.

Upon hearing that Tao Jinyuan, Jin Yuanxing, Wen Yiren, and Jiang Jian had all been caught up in the Blood Sea Divine Power of Xu Ziming, a Golden Core cultivator from the Beast Taming Sect, and their fates were unknown, Song Xian was overjoyed.

With these people dead, and the remaining disciples either dying or fleeing, and all their wealth being seized by the Beast Taming Sect, the Falling Cloud Sect was completely ruined.

"Fellow Daoist Xiao, what brings you to our sect today?" Song Xian had already guessed why Xiao Ling had come, but he remained expressionless.

Xiao Ling's eyes dimmed, her voice was low, and she looked pitiful: "I met Senior Brother Wang Feng while I was on the run, and I gathered some disciples from other sects. I learned that the Xuan Yuan Sect had ordered the search and arrest of the Yun Xuan Sect disciples who had fled. There is no place for us in Xi Shu County anymore. Now, let alone rebuilding the sect, we may not even be able to save our lives."

"My senior brother Wang and I have discussed returning to Bianxi City. I wonder if Sect Leader Song and Sister Zhirou would be willing to take us in? If they don't mind, I am willing to serve Sect Leader Song in the future."

(End of this chapter)