At the headquarters of the Undying Sect, a bronze ancient cauldron was filled with swirling white mist, where the consciousness of rogue cultivators floated inside.
Suddenly, a celestial eye opened, casting a light screen that displayed the rankings.
The sect leader and the deputy leader were watching the outstanding performances of those ranked at the top.
"Look at this person from Kunlun City. Before he kills, he recites a death chant. Quite ceremonial," said the sect leader.
"I heard he used to be a monk in a temple, advocating for killing to achieve Buddhahood. He secretly killed quite a few people. When the abbot found out, he wanted to punish him severely. Realizing he was exposed, he smashed a Buddha statue and ran away. He came to our Undying Sect to see if the Undying Immortal supports his views," replied the deputy leader.
"That kid from Quhe County is also quite clever, making children kill their parents and grandchildren, then turning the dead into puppets," the sect leader commented.
"Oh, that's interesting. He smashed load-bearing walls, causing buildings to collapse and killing many people," the deputy leader added.
The two were eagerly discussing the top-ranked cultivators. Those who made it to the top were ruthless individuals, likely to rise to higher ranks in the future.
"What about the three kids who performed well in the first two rounds?" the sect leader asked.
They scrolled through the light screen for a long time before finding Lu Yang and his friends, who were discussing whether to visit a brothel.
The deputy leader was dissatisfied with their low ranking. "Being so far behind, they can't be undercover agents from the righteous path, can they? They wouldn't do anything bad, right?"
The sect leader shook his head with experience. "We can't think like that. I see that Lu Yang is a thoughtful person. He must have a remarkable plan. You should know that doing bad things doesn't always require immediate action; long-term planning is the best choice."
Seeing that Lu Yang was inactive, they scrolled back to the top to see what the first-ranked person had done.
"The first place is a poison user. He poisoned a well, killing an entire street. He even poisoned cows, making them go wild and trample people. Very good, very good. That's how poison should be used," the sect leader remarked.
"This is a strange method. He bought a large number of shops and then fired all the staff," the deputy leader noted.
"This one is similar. After taking over the shop, he makes the staff work overtime without pay? Is that considered bad?" the deputy leader wondered, feeling out of touch.
Suddenly, an extremely powerful spirit descended from the sky, breaking through the various formations set up at the headquarters and heading straight for the bronze ancient cauldron filled with chaotic energy!
The cauldron seemed unable to withstand such a violent impact, and a small crack appeared on its surface.
"Not good, my cauldron!" the sect leader shouted.
The bronze cauldron, named the Mountain River Cauldron, could hold everything. It was his life’s work, crafted with great effort, and was just a step away from being a celestial treasure!
"It's a spirit descending! A powerful figure from the righteous path has discovered us!" the sect leader couldn't believe it. What had happened that they were found so quickly?
"This aura... is it Yun Zhi from the Asking Dao Sect?!" The sect leader recognized the familiar presence and recalled some terrifying past events, feeling a chill run down his spine.
The deputy leader's expression turned fierce as he drew his weapon, ready to kill. "Yun Zhi? She's just a disciple of the Asking Dao Sect. It's only one person. Let's call everyone and overwhelm her. Can’t we take her down?"
Yun Zhi rarely acted, and her name was not well-known in the Central Continent. Even the fame of the sect leader, eight elders, and Dai Bufan overshadowed hers.
But lack of fame didn't mean she was weak. Anyone who had seen her in action felt their understanding of cultivation completely overturned!
The sect leader had witnessed her in action before, plucking stars and moons, reversing yin and yang, effortlessly suppressing strong enemies. He felt as if all his three thousand years of cultivation had gone to waste.
The sect leader kicked the deputy leader, realizing this was not the time to be reckless. "You haven’t seen her in action. You don’t know how terrifying she is. Listen to me, run! If we wait too long, even the Undying Immortal can't save you!"
He became the sect leader not only because of his deep devotion to the Undying Immortal and high cultivation but also because he was cautious enough to know when to fight, when to escape, and when to accept fate.
Facing Yun Zhi head-on wasn't fighting; it was accepting fate!
The sect leader cast ancient and mysterious seals into the Mountain River Cauldron to prevent Yun Zhi from breaking out.
The deputy leader had never seen the sect leader so flustered. Realizing the seriousness of the situation, he transmitted a message to all the higher-ups, issuing a death order to escape quickly and head to the backup headquarters.
The Undying Sect had prepared detailed plans and escape routes in case of a surprise attack from the righteous path, and the higher-ups were quite familiar with it.
In the blink of an eye, the higher-ups of the Undying Sect had vanished without a trace.
The sect leader used a powerful technique to create multiple arms, casting seals with both hands to reinforce the Mountain River Cauldron's seal while using four hands to return the consciousness of others inside the cauldron to their original positions.
The cracks in the cauldron multiplied, and the sealing speed couldn't keep up with the cracks' appearance.
Seeing everyone had successfully escaped, the sect leader breathed a sigh of relief, severing the connection with the Mountain River Cauldron. He spat out a mouthful of blood, a backlash from his life treasure.
His aura quickly fell, and his face turned pale as paper.
The sect leader didn't have time to think about it and turned to run!
Boom—
The Mountain River Cauldron shattered, shaking the entire headquarters.
Yun Zhi stepped out from the cauldron, her expression emotionless, like an ancient legendary Valkyrie, sacred and inviolable!
She leaned down, touched the blood left by the sect leader with her fingertip, calculated something, and a cold light flashed in her eyes.
"In that direction."
A blazing white light gathered in her hand, like divine thunder meant to eradicate evil.
The white light shot toward the sect leader with a whoosh. He didn't expect that even now, Yun Zhi could find him. He tried to dodge but was too late, and a spray of blood erupted from his shoulder.
"Golden Cicada Shedding Its Shell!" The sect leader had many life-saving techniques.
When Yun Zhi caught up, only a remnant of the sect leader remained.
...
The sect leader staggered back to the backup headquarters, shoving life-prolonging pills into his mouth like they were free, forcibly severing the connection with the Mountain River Cauldron and using the Golden Cicada Shedding Its Shell technique. After two rounds of attacks, he knew he wouldn't recover without hundreds of years of quiet cultivation.
All of that was manageable, but the most important thing was the Mountain River Cauldron!
That was a treasure crafted with the full strength of the sect, and the resources consumed could match ten years of taxes from the Great Xia Dynasty!
Such a treasure had just fallen into the hands of the Asking Dao Sect!
"How do you feel?" the deputy leader asked with concern. He had just seen Yun Zhi in action and felt terrified. If it had been him, he would have been done for. It was only because the sect leader was capable that he survived.
"I won't die," the sect leader replied, still shaken. "Fortunately, we had a plan and prepared hiding places in advance, cutting off the cause and effect. Yun Zhi won't be able to find us. Otherwise, the four great evil sects would have to become three."
"With the Mountain River Cauldron shattered, the third trial has ended. Let's see who is in first place now."
The celestial eye projected a light screen, and a name appeared prominently.
First place: Lu Yang.
"Huh?"
(End of chapter)