In almost the same instant that the words left Bai Xiaochun’s mouth, Bruiser raised his head from amidst the boundless cloud of battle beasts in the Spirit Stream Sect army, and then let out a roar that could shake heaven and earth.

As his roar echoed out, he began to grow larger. 9 meters. 30 meters. 60 meters. 90 meters!!

In the blink of an eye, he transformed into something like a small mountain, bristling with intense energy, with black flames roiling out from beneath his feet. He had the head of a dragon and the body of a horse, and as of this moment, was bursting with heaven-shaking, earth-shattering power!!

That was power that only a beast king could possess!!

This was none other than beast king energy!

Incredible rumbling echoed out as Bruiser shot forward with lightning speed, then spun to a halt in front of Bai Xiaochun and let out a deafening howl.

Although there were mixed emotions in his eyes, he didn’t hesitate. Regardless of the circumstances, he would do anything that Bai Xiaochun asked of him, even if that meant fighting against the Spirit Stream Sect. As long as he was with Bai Xiaochun, he didn’t care!

There was only one important person in his life, and that was his father. Back when he’d lacked the power to even live, that person had offered soft, warm comfort, and that was something that Bruiser would never forget for his entire life.

His roar contained the power of a beast king, and caused all of the Spirit Stream Sect’s battle beasts to shiver, and then turn toward their masters and howl.

The cry of countless battle beasts caused brightly colored light to flash in heaven and earth. Everyone in the Spirit Stream Sect was completely, utterly shocked, and began to cry out in astonishment.

“This....”

“What are you doing, Bai Xiaochun?!?!”

“Heavens! Bruiser, you....”

The Spirit Stream Sect was struck by chaos. Their ranks began to dissolve, and the sudden change on the part of the battle beasts ensured that the forces of the north bank were completely thrown out of order. Even more shocking was that, after a brief moment of hesitation, the Heavenhorn ink dragon looked down at Bruiser, and then sped into motion. A moment later, he was right next to Bruiser, staring out at the Spirit Stream Sect.

Countless shouts of alarm rose up. The patriarchs, the prime elders and the legacy echelon cultivators all felt like they were going mad, and their eyes shone with intense disbelief.

To them, Bai Xiaochun was a Heaven-Dao expert and the legacy echelon-designate. If he reached Core Formation, it would be virtually impossible to find anyone who could be a match for him.

However, at a single word from him, Bruiser caused all of the north banks’ battle beasts to change sides. This sudden turn of events was something that, regardless of Bai Xiaochun’s status or position, no one could ever have possibly predicted would happen!

As of this moment, the Spirit Stream Sect as a whole was just as shaken as the Blood Stream Sect had been moments ago.

Shangguan Tianyou’s hands were clenched into fists, and rage burned in his eyes. Mixed emotions could be seen on the faces of Ghostfang, Beihan Lie, Gongsun Yun, Xu Song, and all of the other Chosen.

Zhou Xinqi was struck mute, and Hou Yunfei’s eyes were wide. As for Hou Xiaomei, her jaw dropped, and her heart began to pound rapidly.

Big Fatty Zhang, Third Fatty Hei, Chen Fei, and Bai Xiaochun’s other friends were all dumbstruck, completely and utterly shaken, even left reeling, by Bai Xiaochun’s actions.

Mixed feelings could also be seen in Li Qinghou’s eyes. However, as he continued to look at Bai Xiaochun, those feelings coalesced into a gleam of approval.

“Xiaochun has grown up,” he murmured.

As the Spirit Stream Sect was shaken, and as the founding patriarch and other leaders looked in astonishment at Bai Xiaochun, Bai Xiaochun took a deep breath. The Blood Stream Sect was at his back now as he looked up at the patriarchs.

His heart burned with grief; he didn’t want these two sets to go to war! After a moment of silence, he said, “If you want to exterminate the Blood Stream Sect, then just like I said before, you’ll have to do it over Bai Xiaochun’s dead body!”

Although his voice sounded sad, the determination therein was plain for all to see, and left everyone shaken.

The patriarchs of the Blood Stream Sect were trembling. The blood rippers, prime elders, and the three blood masters were all shaking, strange and indescribable emotions rising up in them as they looked at Bai Xiaochun.

Xu Xiaoshan, Song Que, and Jia Lie had similar reactions. In this most critical of moments, Bai Xiaochun was stepping forward bravely on their behalf, causing warm feelings to suddenly rise up in their hearts.

As they looked at Bai Xiaochun standing there, his back to them as he faced the Spirit Stream Sect, using his own life to protect theirs, he once again became Nightcrypt from Middle Peak!

A tremor ran through Song Junwan as she looked up at Bai Xiaochun; once again, a bright glow appeared in her eyes.

As of this moment, all eyes on the battlefield were fixed solely on Bai Xiaochun!!

No one could afford to ignore his words now. Now, they had to pay attention!

He had single-handedly changed the course of the battle. He alone had suppressed the Blood Stream Sect and the Spirit Stream Sect alike!

“Now will you people listen to me...?” he asked quietly, looking at the patriarchs of both the Blood Stream Sect and the Spirit Stream Sect. Although his words seemed laced with sadness, they also contained something that made it impossible for anyone to refuse him.

He suddenly seemed far more powerful and glorious than anyone could have imagined, someone who could force everyone else to stay their hands.

“Why are we doing all this fighting and killing? What is the point of all this death? We’re all cultivators of the eastern Lower Reaches of the cultivation world, right? Is the point of our cultivation really just to kill people?!?!?!” In response to his words, the Spirit Stream Sect cultivators sank into further silence, as did the Blood Stream Sect.

The only sound on the battlefield was Bai Xiaochun’s voice.

“Cultivation is supposed to be about living forever, right? Magical techniques are supposed to be used to protect ourselves, aren’t they? If we can avoid all the death and killing, then couldn’t we find some better solutions to our problems? Why don’t we at least give it a try?!?!” Although he started out speaking quietly, his voice continued to grow louder and louder until he was yelling. Pain stabbed at his heart, and his eyes were completely bloodshot. He looked around at all the familiar faces, and could see people who were bleeding and wounded from the little bit of fighting which had already taken place.

The pain he felt grew stronger.

“I’m just a cowardly cultivator who’s scared of death. But you know what? It’s not just the idea of

my

death that scares me! I don’t want to see my family die! I don’t want my fellow sect members to die, and I don’t want my friends to die!!

“I don’t want anybody to die, not in the Spirit Stream Sect, and not in the Blood Stream Sect either!!” As his voice grew louder and louder, the cultivators from the Spirit Stream Sect bowed their heads. In the Blood Stream Sect, numerous clenched fists slowly relaxed.

The patriarchs of both sects heard Bai Xiaochun’s words, and it gave rise to complex feelings within their hearts.

“I didn’t have to jump out in the middle of you two. I could have just stood by and watched you kill each other. Whether the Blood Stream Sect or the Spirit Stream Sect won in the end, I would have survived. After all, I’m a blood master of the Blood Stream Sect, and I’m essentially in the legacy echelon of the Spirit Stream Sect!

“But I didn’t want that! If all of you hate me and blame me, that’s fine, as long as I can stop you from killing each other!” As he yelled, tears welled up in his eyes.

His words shook many people down to their hearts. The look in Song Junwan’s eyes grew softer. Hou Xiaomei, Zhou Xinqi, Hou Yunfei, Big Fatty Zhang, Song Que, Xu Xiaoshan....

Many cultivators on both sides had to agree that what Bai Xiaochun was saying made sense, and their gazes also softened.

“Spirit Stream Sect, you know that this war will likely end with ninety percent of the disciples dying. Maybe the sect wouldn’t be destroyed, but it would be a disastrous setback. The sect might even lose the qualifications to remain in the Lower Reaches.” Turning his head, he looked at the Blood Stream Sect.

“Blood Stream Sect, even if you won, it would be a brutal fight. Afterward, you would have to face the Profound Stream Sect, and then the Sky River Court. Do you really think you could win? What will your chances be? Even if you do win, what good will it do to be one of the weakest sects in the Middle Reaches? It wouldn’t be long before you were wiped out!” Bai Xiaochun wasn’t being polite in anything he said. He was simply stating the objective truth of the situation. Nor was he giving anyone a chance to try to refute his arguments. More and more cultivators were lowering their heads thoughtfully.

“I know for a fact that the Spirit Stream Sect doesn’t really want this war, and neither does the Blood Stream Sect. You just feel that you have no other options. You have to fight for the chance to become a Middle Reaches sect.

“But why don’t we just join forces? Why don’t we become one big sect? That would make us even more powerful! We can wipe out the Profound Stream Sect and the Pill Stream Sect, or maybe even absorb them to become stronger than ever. Then we can go wipe out the Sky River Court, and earn our spot in the Middle Reaches.”

He clenched his hands into fists, getting more excited as he shouted, “There are plenty of resources available for Middle Reaches sects. There’s more than enough for us all. Cooperate, and everyone benefits! Fight together! Share victories and losses! Why won’t that work?!

“Spirit Stream Sect, Blood Stream Sect, let’s form a new sect! We can make a sect the likes of which has never been seen before! We can be the most powerful of all sects, a sect that can shake all other sects!!”

As his words echoed out into the hearts of the cultivators of the Spirit Stream Sect and the Blood Stream Sect, it led to profound thoughts within their minds.

The patriarchs of the two sects maintained their silence. Everything Bai Xiaochun was saying made sense. In the past, there had been no common ground that would ensure that they could trust each other. Even if they merged together into a larger sect, each side would always be suspicious of the other, and the possibility of a betrayal would always loom in their hearts.

But now, they had that common ground in Bai Xiaochun. With him, their two sects were now inextricably linked.