The Sect Leader Raised a Fox to His Own Detriment - Chapter 18

A-Yin’s heart skipped a beat as he realized his actions were incredibly inappropriate.

Even if he disliked this stone sword, it had been personally bestowed upon him by Yue Xichen. If he were to throw it away right in front of him, would he not be stripping Yue Xichen of all his dignity?

At this thought, A-Yin withdrew his hand, muttering in his heart: Once I’ve obtained a divine weapon, I’ll find a place with no one around and toss you then.

The mountain shook even more violently, as if a volcano were on the verge of eruption. Magma surged upward, rising higher than a thousand feet. The members of Lingyun Mountain and the other sects all deployed their protective barriers, fearing that the waterfall of lava would submerge them.

Finally, from within the scalding, crimson magma, the divine weapon Shocking Thunder manifested.

Everyone’s eyes were drawn to the weapon, but A-Yin was the only one whose face fell in disappointment.

What a joke… So this divine weapon isn’t a sword, but a hammer!

Shocking Thunder was crafted entirely of ancient bronze—a war hammer wreathed in indigo lightning. At that moment, a bolt of lightning struck from above, followed by a deafening roar of thunder.

Perhaps because the divine weapon had already appeared, the mountain range flowing with magma gradually began to cool. The torrential rain no longer evaporated into steam but fell once again as water.

However, the members of the four major sects had no time to seek shelter. They revealed their own magical treasures and artifacts, preparing to claim Shocking Thunder as their own.

But a divine weapon was not something that would acknowledge just anyone as its master especially Shocking Thunder, which clearly possessed a violent temperament.

Lin Fengfei and Luo Feiyu were the first to charge toward the hammer with their swords, only to be nearly struck down by the arcs of electricity it released.

“Aaagh!”

Suddenly, a disciple from Crescent Moon Island let out a piercing scream.

Everyone turned their heads in unison, their faces pale with shock. Only now did they realize, too late, that they had long since been surrounded. The area was swarming with corpse puppets crawling out from beneath the earth.

“It’s the Blood Spirit Sect!”

“The Demonic Sect is actually here too?!”

The cultivators of the four major sects immediately grew alert. The Blood Spirit Sect was the number one demonic sect in the cultivation world, home to many powerful demonic cultivators. They knew how to refine the dead into puppets and how to stimulate the resentment of evil spirits; they were viewed by the immortal families as no different from the foulest demons.

“The Blood Spirit Sect wants the divine weapon too?”

“They might just be using our struggle for the weapon as a chance to wipe out the four major sects in one fell swoop.”

The cultivators exchanged brief assessments while striking down the puppets.

“We want the divine weapon, and we want your lives!” a demonic cultivator hidden in the shadows suddenly roared.

The next second, a bizarre, ear-piercing bell began to toll, causing every cultivator present to change countenance.

“It’s the Soul-Devouring Bell,” Yue Xichen said, his expression grim.

“The Soul-Devouring Bell… the guardian treasure of the Blood Spirit Sect…” A-Yin took a sharp breath. He had heard Zhan Ning mention it before. This bell was a demonic object capable of stimulating the deepest fears and darkness in a person’s heart; it possessed the power to disrupt the soul, and even covering one’s ears was useless.

Deep within the mountains, the tolling echoed, making it impossible to tell where the sound originated.

Among the Xuanqing Sect, Crescent Moon Island, and Heavenly Abyss Valley, many disciples had already begun to kill one another under the bell’s influence. Upon death, they were turned into puppets by demonic power, while others fell into the magma and were reduced to ash.

Because Lingyun Mountain had brought fewer disciples than the other three sects, they remained safe under Yue Xichen’s protection.

Swish!

A flash of sword light passed just inches from Yue Xichen’s nose, shearing off a few locks of his black hair.

“Lin Fengfei, have you gone mad?!” Just as A-Yin spoke, Lin Fengfei lunged at him with Cold Frost. It was clear that Lin Fengfei’s mind had been compromised by the bell.

A-Yin immediately raised his stone sword to block Cold Frost, but how could an ordinary stone sword be a match for a divine weapon? Watching his stone sword begin to shatter under the immense pressure, A-Yin’s heart rose to his throat.

Master…

Subconsciously, he turned to look at Yue Xichen, but Yue Xichen was busy protecting the other disciples. Simultaneously, he had summoned Falling Flower, chanting incantations to drive his true essence.

A-Yin’s heart went half-cold in an instant. Perhaps in his Master’s eyes, someone at the first level of Qi Refining wasn’t even worth saving.

Amidst his chaotic thoughts, a sharp crack rang out. The stone sword in A-Yin’s hand finally reached its limit and fell apart under Cold Frost’s power.

For a heartbeat, everyone’s eyes were fixed on A-Yin. Only Yue Xichen continued to chant calmly, appearing completely indifferent to whether A-Yin lived or died.

Closing his eyes, A-Yin thought he was beyond dead.

But when he opened them, he saw Lin Fengfei spitting blood.

“How can this be…” A-Yin’s eyes were round with shock.

What he held in his hand was no longer a broken stone sword, but—

“Silver Moon? Isn’t… isn’t that the Silver Moon Sword of the Lingyun Mountain Sect Leader?!” Luo Feiyu pointed at the sword in A-Yin’s hand, his voice cracking.

The others followed suit, realizing that the blade in A-Yin’s grip was one of Yue Xichen’s two legendary divine weapons: Silver Moon.

A-Yin stared blankly at the sword—it had a slender blade, an edge that spilled silver light, and a crescent-moon hilt that shone brilliantly. This sword was indeed Silver Moon, without a doubt!

“This… this…” A-Yin was speechless, unable to believe it for a moment.

So… back at the snowy summit, the stone sword his Master had casually tossed to him was actually his own personal divine weapon, Silver Moon?!

Silver Moon seemed irritated at having been sealed for so long and then provoked by Cold Frost. The entire sword, from hilt to tip, released a spiritual aura that was bone-chilling.

The frost-like silver light was soul-stirring. Without needing A-Yin to control it, Silver Moon flew out on its own, slaying hundreds of puppets in the blink of an eye.

While everyone’s attention was fixed on A-Yin and the sword, Yue Xichen finally finished his incantation.

Countless peach blossom petals flew from the Falling Flower sword, scattering through the air. Undeterred by the wind and rain, they hung quietly in the sky as if sensing something. Suddenly, the petals turned into living objects and surged toward a single direction.

Without a word, Yue Xichen gripped Falling Flower and gave chase.

Crack!

A boulder was split in two by Falling Flower. The demonic cultivator hiding behind it let out a cry and fell into the magma below. Simultaneously, the Soul-Devouring Bell in his hand shattered into pieces.

The demonic music vanished, and the cultivators returned to their senses.

Lin Fengfei clutched his head with one hand, watching as Silver Moon flew back into A-Yin’s hand.

“Why do you have…” Before he could finish, memories of what had just happened flooded his mind. Picking up Cold Frost from the ground, he discovered a visible nick on its sharp edge.

“Master actually gave you the Silver Moon Sword?!” Lin Fengfei’s voice trembled. That was Silver Moon—the greatest among divine weapons!

Suddenly, Shocking Thunder shot toward the clouds and flew away, and the mountain range began to collapse without the divine weapon to anchor it.

The cultivators took to their swords to flee. This time, A-Yin stepped directly onto the Silver Moon Sword.

The feeling was absolutely incredible. His Master’s personal weapon, the number one divine weapon in the world, was actually beneath his feet?!

Following behind Yue Xichen as they flew out of the collapsing mountains, A-Yin gazed at the snow-white back already drenched by the rain, and his heart pounded fiercely.