Chapter 768: Chapter 768

A remote seaside town on the edge of the South Sea.

The town wasn't large; given its distance from the big cities, the economy here was not particularly developed.

It was deep into the night now, and a few lights still shone sporadically on the streets of the town. However, most of the stores had closed their doors. While the nights in the big city were noisy, here they were much quieter.

At that moment, a figure swiftly swept past the corner of a street.

This figure was incredibly fast; ordinary people would certainly fail to catch even a glimpse. It was evident that this person's movement technique was quite formidable.

The shadow was very cautious, weaving back and forth before finally entering an alley and stopping in front of a rather ordinary two-story building.

The person cautiously surveyed the surroundings while gently rapping on the door.

Soon after, the door opened, and the person darted inside.

As soon as the man entered the room, the light quickly revealed his face. It was Sun Qi.

"Uncle Master Sun... you've finally arrived." The one who had opened the door was a man in his thirties. He greeted Sun Qi with evident joy.

"Guo Ai, how is Sect Leader Brother now?" Sun Qi nodded and went straight to the point.

A home cannot be without a master for a day, just as a country cannot be without a king. If something had happened to Sect Leader Brother, then reviving the Hundred Herbs Sect would be incredibly difficult.

"Uncle Master Sun, these past few days people from the Earth Dragon Sect have been searching everywhere for the Sect Leader, so he asked me to hide in the cellar," Guo Ai replied honestly.

"How is Sect Leader Brother's physical condition now?"

"The Sect Leader has sustained some injuries, but we haven't been able to get any medicinal herbs, so his condition is not good."

Sun Qi's brow furrowed slightly. "Come, take me to see Sect Leader Brother."

"This way, Uncle Master Sun," Guo Ai promptly led Sun Qi toward the cellar.

Behind the second floor lay a fairly large garden; the cellar was situated within it.

"You stand guard outside. I'll go down to visit Sect Leader Brother," Sun Qi instructed Guo Ai at the cellar entrance. ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ 𝖓𝖔𝖛𝖊𝖑~𝖋𝖎𝖗𝖾~𝖓𝖊𝖙

Sun Qi, concerned for Sect Leader Brother's safety, opened the cellar and jumped straight down.

This cellar was specially excavated by the Hundred Herbs Sect beforehand. Unlike ordinary cellars, it had a passage leading underground to a spacious secret chamber.

This place also served as one of the Hundred Herbs Sect's secret bases.

Sun Qi followed the passage all the way down and soon emerged into the capacious secret chamber.

On a large bed in the corner of the chamber lay a person. Sun Qi didn't hesitate and hurried over.

"Sect Leader Brother..."

The man lying on the bed was an elder with a head of silver-white hair that cascaded down onto his shoulders. His face was deathly pale, devoid of any coloration, and his lips looked very pallid.

This was Bai Fangqi, the Sect Leader of the Hundred Herbs Sect.

"Sun Qi? You... how did you come?" The elder in the bed turned at the sound of Sun Qi. "Don't tell me you've been captured too?"

"I rushed back as soon as I heard the Sect was in trouble..."

Before Sun Qi could finish, Bai Fangqi let out a deep sigh of exasperation.

"What on earth happened, Sect Leader Brother?" Sun Qi was bewildered.

As Sun Qi was still trying to grasp the situation, the secret chamber was suddenly filled with bursts of rumbling.

Instantly, a large net trapped Sun Qi in a corner.

Sun Qi's eyes narrowed, and he swiftly drew out the longsword given to him by Ding Fan.

Whoosh whoosh whoosh...

Sun Qi tried to cut through the net with the longsword, but after several slashes, the net remained unscathed. Sun Qi was no fool; he realized that the net must be a treasure, clearly set as a trap for him.

Sun Qi, while unable to cut through the net, stood with his sword across his chest, eyes fixedly watching the outside.

"Uncle Master Sun Qi, at your age, don't you think you should have learned to be a bit smarter?"

A voice drifted in from the passage outside.

Though Sun Qi couldn't see the person yet, just hearing that voice made his brow crease—it was none other than Guo Ai.

"Guo Ai has already betrayed the Sect... This traitor even fooled you into coming back. Our Hundred Herbs Sect is truly doomed this time..." Bai Fangqi lay in the bed, speaking bitterly.

By now, Sun Qi had also understood.

He silently blamed himself for his carelessness. If the Hundred Herbs Sect had been destroyed, how could the contact point in the secular world remain untouched? It was clear this was a trap waiting for him to leap into.

Soon, Guo Ai accompanied by two men appeared before Sun Qi.

"Guo Ai, you traitor, you actually betrayed us for power!" Sun Qi's longsword swung heavily onto the large net.

Sparks flew from the net every time it was struck by the longsword.

"Old Master Sun, don't bother getting so worked up. This net formation is the Earth Dragon Sect's number one Imprisonment Array. No matter if it's you or even a Heavenly Level martial artist caught within, there's no chance of escape," stated the elder in the lead indifferently.

"Zhou Wuji!" Sun Qi recognized the speaking elder instantly.

Zhou Wuji held a prestigious position in Earth Dragon Sect, second only to the Sect Leader. It was said that Zhou Wuji was now showing signs of breaking through from the Earth Level peak to the Heavenly Level.

"Old Master Sun, since ancient times, the rule of nature has always been survival of the fittest. Today, the destruction of the Hundred Herbs Sect is set… However, I can offer you a way out today. As long as Old Master Sun is willing to join us at Earth Dragon Sect, I can spare your life."

Zhou Wuji spoke indifferently.

Sun Qi snorted coldly. "Do you think I would be a shameless traitor who betrays his own Sect?"

"Elder Uncle, those who understand the times are the true heroes. The Hundred Herbs Sect is already gone; what's the use of persisting in vain? The Sect Leader is already half-dead…" Guo Ai said from the side.

Sun Qi's forehead slightly furrowed, and then he said, "I can consider joining Earth Dragon Sect, but you must let me personally kill this Guo Ai."

Guo Ai was immediately dumbfounded; he had not expected Sun Qi to propose such a condition. "Elder Zhou, I have been utterly loyal to Earth Dragon Sect…"

Zhou Wuji did not wait for Guo Ai to finish speaking and directly said, "If exchanging a dog for a dragon is what it takes, I am willing. As long as you agree to join Earth Dragon Sect, you can kill Guo Ai however you like…"

"Elder Zhou, I am, after all, a member of Earth Dragon Sect…"

"You think too highly of yourself," Zhou Wuji said. "Strictly speaking, you are nothing but a dog of Earth Dragon Sect…"

For a moment, Guo Ai didn't know what to say…

He had originally thought that by luring Sun Qi here, Earth Dragon Sect would reward him greatly. But now, instead of any promise of reward, they were ready to throw him to Sun Qi.

Guo Ai knew that Sun Qi hated him to death; if he truly fell into Sun Qi's hands, his death was certain!

However, at this point, Guo Ai had no right to speak. He could only listen from the side.

Zhou Wuji said to Sun Qi, "Kill Bai Fangqi of Hundred Herbs Sect now, and I will let you out of the Imprisonment Array. Then, I will hand over Guo Ai to you…"

At this moment, Guo Ai truly felt like crying…

Sun Qi gave a light huff. "If you release me first and let me kill this Guo Ai, then I might consider joining Earth Dragon Sect…"

Zhou Wuji laughed. "Sun Qi, how could your little tricks deceive me? You are just trying to trick me into letting you out… Now, I'll give you two paths: within one minute, if you slay Bai Fangqi, I will set you free. The second path, if you do not kill Bai Fangqi within a minute, I will tighten the Imprisonment Array, and both you and Bai Fangqi will die here…"

Before Zhou Wuji could finish speaking, Sun Qi burst into laughter.

"I, Sun Qi, am not a despicable man who sells out his mentor for survival. Since it has come to this, go ahead and make your move…" Saying this, Sun Qi took big steps toward Bai Fangqi's bedside.

"Brother, today you and I shall embrace death together."

Bai Fangqi let out a sigh and then nodded.

"Since you seek death, then I will grant it to you." At this, Zhou Wuji directly took out an Array Flag from his bosom.

The Array Flag flickered in Zhou Wuji's hands.

Immediately, the Great Formation slowly began to contract, and the space for Sun Qi and Bai Fangqi became smaller and smaller.

At this moment, Sun Qi didn't care at all. Within the Imprisonment Array, even if he thrashed about, he could not escape death, so he might as well die cleanly.

Swish, swish, swish… Just as Sun Qi thought his end had come, three Wind Blades suddenly slashed through without warning, striking the Imprisonment Array.

The entire Imprisonment Array began to tremble slightly...

Boom, boom… Finally, after swaying for a while, the Great Formation collapsed outright.

From the inside, the Imprisonment Array indeed seemed unbreakable. However, the Imprisonment Array was designed to contain those within it and had no defenses against external forces.

Thus, with the three Wind Blades, the entire Imprisonment Array was shattered to pieces.

"Who?!" Zhou Wuji's gaze sharpened as he asked solemnly.

"Your killer…" Just at that moment, a figure appeared out of nowhere in front of Zhou Wuji.

Sun Qi looked at the person standing in front of him...

The person standing before him was none other than Ding Fan.

When Sun Qi had left Zhangzhou, Ding Fan had given him a third-grade Offensive Artifact, leaving his Divine Sense mark on it, so Ding Fan could find him even if he left the country. Now, it was even less of an issue since Sun Qi was still within the country.

"Leave this matter to me; take care of your elder brother over there," Ding Fan said nonchalantly.

By now, with Ding Fan's arrival, what else could Sun Qi say? He knew the extent of Ding Fan's capabilities and obediently followed Ding Fan's instructions to look after Bai Fangqi.

Seeing how Sun Qi addressed him, Guo Ai was somewhat baffled. The young man now standing before Sun Qi appeared to be just over twenty years old. Could such a young man be Sun Qi's master?

"Sun Qi, it seems you are regressing with age; now you even submit to a young man," Zhou Wuji remarked darkly.

"You were once a disciple of Hundred Herbs Sect, but you betrayed your mentor and sided with the enemy. For that alone, you deserve to die," Ding Fan said sternly to Guo Ai.

"Whether I live or die is none of your concern; you should worry about whether you can live," Guo Ai retorted with undisguised disdain.

Without another word, Ding Fan sent a Wind Blade slashing over.

Guo Ai didn't even have time to react.

Pfft… A flash of blood…

Guo Ai cried out in agony.

When everyone looked over, they saw that Guo Ai's right arm had been severed…