It didn’t take long for the temperature in the dark wasteland to drop tremendously low.

The wind never ceased. Though the gusts weren’t terribly cold, they could pierce the depths of the body through the crevices of clothing like fine strands of hair and gradually rob the body of its warmth.

After evading yet another cracking on the ground, Ye Que’s group finally detected something unusual.

The Eldest Senior Brother of the Seven Sabers Sect of Qingqiu, Yan Ziyue, stared into the distance with a frown. Looking past the sparse and short shrubs, he could vaguely see some shadows moving.

“Something’s wrong. Let’s not set up camp first. Send a few people to scout out the place,” Yan Ziyue said, sounding a little uncertain.

“Senior Brother Yan, did you notice something?” Lin Xibei from the Incense Fragrance Valley of Qingqiu turned his head to look around.

“Better safe than sorry. It’s never wrong to be more cautious,” Yan Ziyue said.

“Then let’s have someone out to check. To be fair, all sects must send someone,” Lin Xibei told everyone.

Though they were exhausted, no one protested seeing as it was a fair request meant to ensure their safety.

As the first ray of morning light shattered dawn, several silhouettes moved away from the campsite in four directions.

Soon, the disciples responsible to check their surroundings rushed back. Four people came from four directions, all of them wearing changed expressions.

“We found wolves crowding in from the east. Moreover, we can vaguely see shadows. I think they’re from the Demon Race.”

“We also spotted wolves in the north. We confirmed that there’s a demon controlling them.”

“Nothing in the south but the cracking on the ground is catching up to us. The ground under us will sink in another hour at most.”

With enemies spotted in the north and east, and a natural disaster waiting on the south, everyone turned to look at Nalan Rongruo. She represented the Qingqiu Sword Sect to check on the west side. She was frowning and looked as if she was trying to think about how to describe what she saw. Moments later, she finally said, “It’s strange in the west.”

Nalan Rongruo pointed to behind her. “When I went over, the first thing I saw was a large group of cultivators. Judging from their clothing, they’re disciples of Mount Shu and members of the Judicature of the Tang Empire. But before I could get close, they retreated westward by more than a kilometer.”

After a brief pause, she added, “What happened next is the strange part. The cultivators had just retreated when more than twenty warriors from the Demon Race chased a large pack of wolves down the same path. What’s strange is that both sides didn’t fight each other at all!”

To think that disciples from Mount Shu and warriors from the Demon Race could coexist peacefully!

Everyone fell into silence after listening to the outcome of the inspections. A burst of coldness rose from the soles of their feet into their foreheads. This coldness, like an omen of death, seeped deep into their bones.

“We’re surrounded!”

This was everyone’s first reaction.

“Why did Mount Shu and the Judicature retire? Can’t they tell that this is the Demon Race’s scheme?” Yan Ziyue, the Eldest Senior Brother of the Seven Sabers Sect of Qingqiu, said indignantly.

“Even an idiot can tell that the Demon Race is trying to exterminate all of us from the Cultivation World. Don’t they know just how many small sects has the Demon Race wiped out?” The tone of Lin Xibei of the Incense Fragrance Valley of Qingqiu was even worse. He was so mad that he nearly cursed.

Li Jianqi was the only one who looked confused. She looked at everyone and asked softly, “Isn’t Mount Shu the number one sword sect in the Cultivation World and the leader of the orthodox path? Why did they pretend that they didn’t see anything? Shouldn’t they slay demons, rid of devils, and spread the word of the Orthodox Path? What a great opportunity it is! Where would they typically find that many warriors of the Demon Race?”

The moment Li Jianqi finished speaking, everyone immediately looked at her with an odd expression.

Ye Que glanced at her and rubbed his forehead helplessly. “Did you really believe all that talk about slaying demons, ridding of evils, and spreading the world of the Orthodox Path is real? It’s just a form of marketing, a form of…”

Ye Que paused. For a moment, he couldn’t find the right word. Finally, he sighed and said, “You can consider those words as boasting or farting. There’s not much difference.”

Boasting?

Farting?

“Mount Shu imprisons tens of thousands of demons in its Demon Holding Tower. How do you explain this? Is that boasting as well?”

Seeing the disbelief in Li Jianqi’s expression, Ye Que continued, “Of course, if they meet demons and have nothing better to do, they’ll slay the demons. But it’s not the same now. This is the ley lines of sovereignty of the Imperial Mausoleum. Everyone came here to fight over the Divine Tool. It’s easy for them to save you but after the Divine Tool is born, won’t you try and snatch it? Wouldn’t they have an additional competitor?”

Ye Que didn’t continue his explanation. He was sure everyone understood what he meant.

Mount Shu and the Judicature of the Tang Empire had given up slaying demons and chose to turn a blind eye in their quest for the Divine Tool. It was a realistic, ruthless decision but not the wrong one. In the first place, the Cultivation World was a snow-covered wasteland filled with social order and power. It wasn’t a place that tolerated dreams and impulses; cultivators would only unsheathe their swords for their own profit.

Of course, if they knew this was the rapport between the two sides, they might not find it excusable. They would probably scold them for being shameless.

Nevertheless, regardless of how fiercely they scolded the two sides, there was nothing that they could do. Humans had no choice but to bow their heads under the eaves. The situation had forced their hand. Their most urgent task was figuring out how to deal with their current predicament.

With time swiftly running out, everyone began racking their brain. Some people were even starting to consider their own profit. Staying in the group gave them a small advantage and mitigated the risks as well. The goal of a group was undoubtedly more eye-catching than that of a single person.

The few Rogue Cultivators in the group might share this thought but those from sects couldn’t. Nalan Rongruo looked at the crowd and saw that no one said anything. In a moment of anxiousness, she stepped forward. “We must do something. Since Mount Shu and the Judicature are turning a blind eye to us, we must think of a way to force them to save us.”

“What are you suggesting?” Yan Ziyue asked.

“Let’s fire our sects’ flares into the sky. They’ll definitely notice at this distance and so will other sects. Mount Shu is a famous Orthodox sect. They wouldn’t want to taint their reputation.” Nalan Rongruo pointed to the west. “If they don’t want to save us, we’ll find a way to force them to.”

“Sounds like a plan. Give it a try.” Yan Ziyue pondered over it before adding, “But that’s the ideal situation. We must prepare for the worst-case scenario.”

“What should we do if no reinforcement comes?”

The most realistic problem was brought up.

The siege was gradually revealing its outline.

It was indeed a siege by the Demon Race. The atmosphere instantly stiffened.

Finally, a Rogue Cultivator without a sect or an affiliation stepped forward with a sullen expression. In a hoarse voice, he said, “I won’t interfere in whatever you plan to do next but from this moment onward, I’m leaving this group. We’ll go our separate ways. Let’s meet again if we’re fated.”

The person then walked away and stood at the edge of the group.

“We’ll go our separate ways?” Those words sounded pleasant but everyone could tell that this person was planning to use them as a bait. When the Demon Race attack, they would certainly attack the biggest group. This would give a solo cultivator a chance and if the cultivator was fortunate enough, he might very well escape.

“Leaving now, not a minute earlier or later. What do you take us for?” “Fools?” Yan Ziyue said coolly, prompting about nine males to stand up. The number of the Seven Saber Sect of Qingqiu disciples in the group was the greatest. Thus, they were also the most nervous ones about the group breaking up. If that happened, they would turn out to be the biggest target.

“Staying alive is triumphs everything.”

The Rogue Cultivator who had swiftly removed himself from the group said frankly, “What you think is your business.”

Yan Ziyue tried very hard to suppress his rage. “That wasn’t what you said when you wanted to join our group a few days ago.”

The Rogue Cultivator shrugged. “The Demon Race wasn’t besieging us then.”

“Are you betraying us?”

“You can take it however you want.”

While talking, the Rogue Cultivator took a few more steps away from the group to indicate that he was drawing a line.

At the same time, another three Rogue Cultivators left the group in different directions but all bearing the same thought of escaping amid the chaos.

Ye Que watched everything from his position next to the Qingqiu Sword Sect disciples but said nothing. His origin wasn’t apparent from his outfit, making him look no different from Rogue Cultivators.

“Internal conflict before the battle even begins? Did they think death isn’t coming fast enough?” Ye Que thought as he slowly walked over to the Rogue Cultivators that had just walked away.

The person frowned at him. He only relaxed when he saw that Ye Que was also without sect or affiliation.

Li Jianqi and Nalan Rongruo opened their mouth, wanting to yell at Ye Que, but they realized there was nothing to be said. They weren’t close, having just known one another for several days. What right did they have to yell at him? Everyone had their own fates and pursuits.

Silence fell over the campsite. The only audible sound was the whistling of the wind.

Ye Que slowly took another step backward so that he was behind the Rogue Cultivator. The Rogue Cultivator didn’t reveal any abnormal expression or went on the defensive. He had his eyes locked in the scene before him, looking nervous. Subconsciously, he had considered the Rogue Cultivator Ye Que as one of his own.

Out of the blue.

He noticed the drastic change in the expression of the group of people in front of him.

In the following moment, he felt a stab of coldness in the door of his heart. Then, an acute pain spread to all corners of his body and his vision turned to black. He fell to the ground and went to the Underworld with his eyes still open. He didn’t know what was going on even as he was dying!

Chaos broke out!

The three other Rogue Cultivators who left the group panicked even more.

Ye Que clapped his hands lightly as if he had done something of no significance. He pointed to the corpse on the ground. “It’s true that staying alive triumphs everything but watching someone live while you die, well, that’s just painful.”

“There’s a price to pay to inflict pain on innocent people for no reason.”

“There’s no reason for others to die while you live.” Ye Que glanced at Yan Ziyue of the Seven Sabers Sect of Qingqiu and then at Lin Xibei of the Incense Fragrance Valley of Qingqiu. Finally, he turned his gaze toward Qi Shenghua of the Qingqiu Sword Sect.

These were all intelligent people. They instantly understood what he meant.

Several cold lights flashed amid the cold wind. The other three Rogue Cultivators died as well.

“Now, we can discuss how to deal with our enemies.” Ye Que slowly returned to the group. His tone was neutral as if he had just done something of no importance.

When he walked past Li Jianqi, the girl gave him a look. The look seemed to be saying, “You shouldn’t have just killed him. That was very unreasonable.”

Ye Que returned with a look of his own. “These people courted their own death. They can’t blame anyone else.”