“Elder Xu!”

Liu Dong immediately crouched down and helped Elder Xu up. Upon discovering the severity of Elder Xu’s injuries and the presence of fresh wounds, he trembled with anger. He furiously glared at the burly cultivator.

“Oh? You’re from the Grand Thousand Dao Sect too?”

The burly cultivator chuckled and kept scrutinizing Fang Chen. Noticing Fang Chen was uninjured, he seemed puzzled.

“Who are you? How come you’re mingling with the Grand Thousand Dao Sect? They’re traitors, colluding with the Langya Clan and engaged in nefarious activities.”

At the same time, other cultivators from the Grand Thousand Dao Sect in nearby shelters rushed over, looking like defeated soldiers, thoroughly disheveled.

The burly cultivator didn’t mind. He paid no attention to the crowd of Grand Thousand Dao Sect cultivators. Seeing the commotion, other nearby cultivators stood up and approached, their eyes full of ill intent.

Fang Chen realized that the Parting Fiery Dao Gate had no intention of aiding the Qin clan. They just wanted to leech from the situation. In military campaigns, officers always saw battles as opportunities to gain merit and personal advantage.

If it were otherwise, the management here wouldn’t be so neglectful. They would have addressed the situation and provided healing to their injured cultivators. Instead, they were focused on extracting more value from the cultivators, rather than allowing them to create value on the battlefield.

For instance, Elder Xu and Liu Dong’s injuries could have been easily healed by any Golden Core Realm cultivator.

“I-Is it the ancestor…” asked one of the Grand Thousand Dao Sect cultivators in uncertainty.

His eyes were blank and somewhat dazed. These Grand Thousand Dao Sect disciples, who had only seen Fang Chen once or twice, were mentally and physically exhausted from their ordeal. Their thoughts were clouded, and they couldn’t confirm who was standing before them.

“It’s the ancestor!” answered Liu Dong through clenched teeth. “We don’t need to stay here and allow ourselves to be mistreated anymore. Prepare yourselves to fight! We are leaving this place with the ancestor.”

Elder Xu’s previously dazed gaze suddenly focused. “Senior Martial Uncle?”

Upon confirming it was indeed Fang Chen, his face reflected a mix of shame, anger, and grievance.

“Alright, you don’t need to say anything. I’ve heard about your situation,” Fang Chen said, nodding.

He waved his sleeve, and streams of spiritual energy fell on them, expelling the residual spiritual energy in their wounds. Now that this parasitic spiritual energy had been dispelled, their wounds would heal.

Seeing Fang Chen easily cure the injuries of Liu Dong and others, the cultivators who had been preparing to encircle them hesitated. They decided to observe first.

The burly cultivator was momentarily stunned, and a flicker of fear appeared in his eye. He subtly took a few steps and looked around, trying to assess if he’d be getting any backup.

Fang Chen pointed at the burly cultivator. “Elder Xu, who is he?”

Elder Xu slowly stood up and glared at the burly man with clenched teeth and a murderous gleam in his eyes. “He’s a cultivator from the Yunchuan Sect.” Ṝ

“Yo-you better not overstep. This is the Parting Fiery Dao Sect, not the Grand Thousand Dao Sect.”

Despite the burly cultivator's earlier bravado, he was now speaking with a sliver of fear. “No matter who you are to them, remember that this place is under the jurisdiction of the Parting Fiery Dao Sect. It’s not a place for you to cause trouble. Even your Golden Core Realm cultivator, Pei Qingfeng, fell because of this.”

Seeing Fang Chen remain silent, the burly cultivator grew increasingly nervous and continued in a more subdued tone, “I merely questioned Elder Xu about his association with the traitors. I might have been a bit rough, but I wouldn’t be able to drag things out of him otherwise; it’s only human nature.”

At this moment, the Foundation Building Realm cultivator who had been knocked unconscious by Fang Chen earlier arrived. He stood at a distance, glaring at Fang Chen and shouting, “Thief, cease your arrogance in our sect! I have reported to the elders, and they will come to suppress you soon!”

Having found support, the burly cultivator grew reassured and boldly pointed at Fang Chen. “Daoist Miao, you’ve arrived just in time. The Grand Thousand Dao Sect cultivators plan to cooperate with this person to break out of here. They’re all traitors!”

“They’re planning to escape our sect? Hahaha, you’re walking a dead end!”

Deacon Miao sneered in rage. “In these times, betraying our sect means betraying the Qin Family. Even without the Qin Family intervening, you will face a gruesome end for offending our ancestor!”

Fang Chen ignored him. “Elder Xu, aside from those dispatched elsewhere, are all the sect disciples still here?”

“There’s still Junior Brother Li,” Elder Xu said quietly. “The rest are all here.”

Elder Xu’s eyes suddenly reddened, and his voice choked with emotion, “Ancestor, he….”

“Even if he is missing, there’s no need to mourn for him just yet. He may not have died,” Fang Chen said, shaking his head.

He turned to Elder Miao and asked, “Why haven’t the elders you mentioned arrived yet?”

“Have I arrived late?”

Before Elder Miao could speak, an old Daoist with an immortal demeanor descended from the sky, standing on a green bamboo flute.

Fang Chen frowned slightly. “Since your magical tool is a flute, why do you tread on it like a flying sword? Wouldn’t you need to clean it when you play?”

The old Daoist, about to land before everyone, seemed momentarily thrown off by Fang Chen’s comment and almost lost his balance.

“Elder Huo, that’s him,” Elder Miao said as he stood forward respectfully.

“Alright.” Elder Huo nodded slightly, playing with the bamboo flute in his hand.

After a few moments, he looked at Fang Chen and asked, “Are you a Golden Core Realm cultivator? To my knowledge, the Grand Thousand Dao Sect only has one Golden Core Realm cultivator. Did you join them halfway?”

“You could say that,” Fang Chen replied, nodding. “Can you call the shots in the Parting Fiery Dao Sect? Why haven’t you called out your Nascent Soul Realm and Enlightenment Realm ancestors?”

“That’s preposterous. What kind of figures are those two ancestors? Their cultivation time is extremely precious. Why would they leave their seclusion for someone like you?” Elder Huo scoffed. “The sect master has heard that someone is causing trouble in the Parting Fiery Dao Sect and sent me to deal with it. Do you wish to kneel and apologize yourself, or shall I take action?”

Elder Xu and the others wore expressions of mockery. They knew that as long as the black and white paper figure made an appearance, Elder Huo would end up dying in humiliation.

Seeing Fang Chen remain silent, Elder Huo couldn’t help but chuckle again, bringing the bamboo flute to his lips.

At that moment, Fang Chen's figure vanished from his original position and appeared directly in front of Elder Huo before delivering a light slap. With a soft “puff,” the bamboo flute pierced through Elder Huo’s throat and emerged from the back of his head.

Elder Huo’s face was filled with shock. “You...”

Fang Chen remained expressionless. With a swift motion, he slapped Elder Huo’s shoulder, shattering his upper body to bits and pieces. Elder Huo’s lower half slumped down.

Fang Chen turned to Elder Miao. “Calling just the elders out isn’t enough for me. Get your Nascent Soul and Enlightenment Realm ancestors to come out.”

A chill raced down Elder Miao's spine, his skin pimpling with goosebumps. He stood still for a while, dumbfounded and tongue-tied.