Chapter 343 - 217: Spar

Chapter 343: Chapter 217: Spar

"Are you questioning me?!"

Su Xing was an outsider to the sect. Despite his recent fame, his true strength was unknown. His words may have been unintentional, but they struck a nerve with Elder Lu, who erupted in a thunderous rage.

"Elder Lu, please calm yourself. Su Xiaoyou is from Cang City, so of course he wouldn’t know the intricacies of our Luocheng. I’m sure he was merely curious and meant no harm."

Elder Ling was the first to speak.

Although Elder Ling spoke in a somewhat old-fashioned, scholarly manner, his clear and logical words were endearing. It made Su Xing take a second look at the man, only then noticing that Elder Ling was surprisingly young. Su Xing couldn’t quite tell his exact age, however.

"HMPH!!!"

Lu Wengu naturally understood this as well, but he couldn’t control the anger flaring in his heart. With a single furious snort, he dropped the matter.

He could see that Sect Leader Gu was willing to let this brat named Su Xing meddle in their affairs, which surely meant he intended to win him over. As an Elder of the Cyan Cloud Sect, he couldn’t very well jeopardize that relationship.

"Su Xiaoyou, do you know what happened in Luocheng all those years ago?"

Gu Che asked seriously.

Su Xing shook his head. "I’d heard vague rumors before I came here. They said Luocheng once suffered a disaster that drastically reduced its habitable area..."

At this, Su Xing’s expression sobered, and he asked in a very serious tone, "Could this disaster have something to do with the Yin Crow?"

If that were the case,

then the conflict between them would be one to the death,

and her strength was likely even greater than they had estimated.

Fortunately,

Gu Che shook his head.

He didn’t confirm whether the Yin Crow was connected to that incident, but he did say, "I don’t know if the Yin Crow was involved in that event, but she did indeed strike against our Cyan Cloud Sect during the disaster."

"As for the specifics, I’ll let Elder Ling tell you."

With that, Gu Che shook his head and fell silent. Elder Ling, having been called upon, took a step forward, cupped his hands in a fist, and said,

"Yes."

"The Luocheng catastrophe... it’s a complicated matter. To put it simply, an incredibly powerful Secret Realm descended upon Luocheng, plunging the entire city into absolute disaster."

"As members of the organization, and with Luocheng as our neighbor, we naturally lent our strength. But it was then that the Yin Crow appeared. She slaughtered the entire family of one of our sect’s elders, down to the last child, and then hung all of their heads on the gate of the Cyan Cloud Sect."

"That elder was our Cyan Cloud Sect’s own Elder Ye. Though he has been dead for many years, some within the sect still remember the prestige he once held."

Elder Ling said gravely.

"..."

Su Xing never would have imagined that something like this had happened to the Cyan Cloud Sect. No wonder the Yin Crow was on the organization’s wanted list for Extraordinary Beings. This also meant there was practically no room for reconciliation between the two sides.

To be honest, Su Xing could sense Li Longxuan’s feelings about his friend; it was a sense of loss and exhaustion he’d never shown before. If possible, Su Xing wanted to bring the Yin Crow back in one piece. But if she truly was as wicked as they said, he would not hesitate to act.

"Forgive me for asking, but did Elder Ye’s family also die by puppets, just like this?"

"Yes."

Elder Ling nodded.

"Su Xiaoyou, you’ve seen that wicked woman with us before, so you know her miraculous puppet technique makes them practically indistinguishable from real people. In truth, the puppets are also incredibly adept at harming others."

"Indeed."

Su Xing nodded.

’If they had died at the hands of puppets, the murderer was all but confirmed. On the path of Sequences, every Sequence is unique. Besides the Yin Crow, there really is no second person who can control such a bizarre method of killing.’

"It must be the power of a Sequence. Coincidentally, when she awakened this Sequence, she happened to be studying in a puppet theater troupe."

Seeing Su Xing’s agreement, Elder Ling continued, but as he spoke, his thoughts began to wander into seemingly unrelated territory. It was this tangent, however, that caught Su Xing’s attention.

Puppet theater...

Hearing the name, Su Xing could almost see the connection to the Yin Crow’s Sequence. ’Could there be a link between the two?’

Su Xing knew in his heart that the path of Sequences wasn’t like that of Martial Artists or Qi Cultivators, which relied on cultivation. Sequences relied more on awakening. The Yin Crow’s ascent to the path of Sequences wasn’t necessarily a natural awakening; it could have been triggered by some intense stimulus.

Of course, Su Xing had no proof. These were just idle speculations.

However, the song the Yin Crow had sung on stage—its sorrowful, lamenting tone, like a weeping plea—didn’t sound like something fabricated simply to frame someone. ’The truth,’ Su Xing thought, ’is likely not so simple.’

"Alright."

"Now that we’ve discussed the past, we should address the matter at hand. Everyone, what do you think the Cyan Cloud Sect should do ten days from now?"

"If that Yin Crow truly dares to enter our Cyan Cloud Sect’s Secret Realm, we must seal the space and ensure she can never leave!"

Elder Lu was the first to declare.

"Well said. I’m just afraid the killer is all talk. When the time actually comes, she might not have the guts to show up."

One of the other elders sneered.

Indeed, the Cyan Cloud Sect’s Secret Realm was a tiger’s den, if not a dragon’s pool. With five seventh-rank and one eighth-rank experts, their strength was truly terrifying.