Chapter 13 The Whole Story

The three of them turned to look at the seven elders who were currently surveying the scene, their faces showing hostility.

According to His Majesty's decree, if the protective amulet explodes, it will trigger the hidden true energy inside, causing it to explode and alert the three of them that the princess is in danger.

Whoever harms the princess shall be killed without mercy.

But standing before us are the seven elders of the Sword Cloud Sect; the outcome of the battle is already quite clear.

How could cultivators from the Southern Kingdom possibly defeat the seven elders of the Sword Cloud Sect?

"What business do the seven elders have of making things difficult for our Southern Kingdom Princess?"

The three of them squatted down around the princess and said in unison.

"You...you mustn't make false accusations..." the Second Elder retorted excitedly upon seeing this.

But before he could finish speaking, he was interrupted by the Grand Elder.

"Junior brother, calm down. This battle area hasn't been damaged yet, why not let them explore it themselves?"

The reconnaissance of the battle site is mainly based on the residual true energy in the area. Since everyone cultivates different techniques, the true energy absorbed into their bodies will naturally be transformed differently.

Just like that man in black earlier, his true energy contained the aura of corpses, which was something he cultivated.

The golden spear of true energy that burst forth from the explosion of the protective barrier contained the aura of royalty, which naturally suggests that it was a cultivation technique used by the royal family of a nation.

"Holy Halberd, go and take a look. Imperial Bow and I will protect the princess." The man in the golden robe who was leading the three said, and a golden spear had already materialized in his hand.

The aura of royalty instantly enveloped the entire area.

The three cultivators from the Southern Kingdom each named their weapon after it: Golden Spear, Holy Halberd, and Imperial Bow.

Huang Gong was not idle either. A golden longbow appeared in his hand, along with a golden arrow, the arrowhead aimed at the seven elders.

"Are you declaring war on my Sword Cloud Sect?!"

Seeing this, the Second Elder was furious. He hated this misunderstanding. Now even the Southern Kingdom, which he had never taken seriously before, was pointing its arrow at him.

"Junior brother, stop your insolence!" the First Elder shouted, his pure true energy suppressing the turbulent true energy surrounding the Second Elder.

Instead of channeling his true energy into a halberd, the Holy Halberd arrived at the pit empty-handed.

As soon as he entered the pit, the overwhelming aura of death startled the Holy Halberd.

All true energies in the world have mutual restraint, and the corpse energy and the true energy of the royal family have a natural restraint.

Therefore, members of the royal family are extremely sensitive to this corpse energy.

After examining the pit, Shengji did not rush to draw conclusions. Instead, he walked around and carefully sensed the surrounding true energy.

The residual true energy in the surrounding area usually doesn't disappear so quickly after a battle ends.

"The aura of death here is overwhelming. What on earth happened?" Saint Halberd asked, frowning.

The elder looked at the clothes hanging on the tree branch and said slowly, "An ancient corpse has appeared. Immediately seal off the back mountain. If you want to know the truth, come with me."

After saying that, the Grand Elder rode his sword into the air and flew towards the sect.

The other elders followed closely behind.

The remaining golden spears gritted their teeth, still pondering whether to follow.

Jiang Ying raised her head, her eyes red and swollen, her face pale, and said as if she had used all her strength, "Follow them!"

"Princess..."

At this moment, in a wooden house on a mountaintop within the sect, Chen Zhou's wounds had been mostly treated, bandaged, and he had changed into clean clothes.

Although all the wounds had been treated, Chen Zhou remained unconscious.

The Third Elder had already used his true energy to mostly calm the raging true energy within Chen Zhou's body. Strangely, this true energy didn't dissipate quickly; instead, it was slowly absorbed by Chen Zhou within his body.

And that method of absorption is the Spiritual Breathing Technique!

What shocked the Third Elder was not the Spirit Breathing Technique, but the fact that Chen Zhou could still practice it even while unconscious.

"Ding! Host has not cultivated for one minute. True Qi value +2! Blood Qi value +3! Root Bone value +3!"

"Ding! Host has not cultivated for ten minutes. True Qi value +20! Blood Qi value +30! Root Bone value +30!"

...............

Just as the Third Elder was wondering what was going on, the group arrived outside the wooden house and soon went inside.

As soon as Jiang Ying entered, she saw Chen Zhou lying on the bed. Without saying a word, she rushed over to him. Seeing the bandages wrapped around his body and his already swollen eyes, which should have stopped shedding tears, she saw tears again.

The three cultivators from the South were completely bewildered. Who was that young man?

On the way here, Jin Qiang secretly used his true energy to scan Jiang Ying. The princess was not injured, but her body was unusually weak. What is going on?

Now, seeing the young man lying on the bed, the three of them exchanged glances and seemed to understand something. The pool of blood next to the princess was not hers, but the young man's!

"Elders, please forgive our earlier offense! The three of us were only acting under orders." Jin Qiang frowned slightly and cupped his hands to the Seventh Elder.

The Second Elder snorted coldly, while the First Elder waved his hand to indicate that nothing was wrong, and instead focused intently on Chen Zhou on the bed.

The Third Elder stood up and met the gazes of the First Elder and the others.

"How about it?"

"Still unconscious," the Third Elder replied.

Just when everyone was at a loss, Jiang Ying asked, "Master, will he die?"

Upon hearing this, the Third Elder couldn't help but smile.

"This injury isn't serious."

Hearing this, Jiang Ying felt as if a huge weight had been lifted from her shoulders. She wiped away her tears, squatted down beside Chen Zhou's bed, and began to recount what had just happened.

It was almost midnight when I finished speaking.

"I see. It seems someone has been controlled by that ancient corpse, and someone with considerable strength at that," the Grand Elder said thoughtfully.

The Second Elder is now feeling uneasy again. His eldest disciple has not yet returned and has accepted a mission from the sect to explore an ancient tomb.

He dared not think any further.

He firmly believed that his eldest disciple was the most outstanding disciple of the Sword Cloud Sect in this generation, so how could he possibly submit to an ancient corpse?

"I have now ordered the back mountain to be sealed off and have dispatched a large number of disciples to strictly check the gates of the four sects. People entering and leaving the Sword Cloud Sect will be strictly screened. You don't need to worry too much. I don't think that ancient corpse would dare to cause trouble in my Sword Cloud Sect."

"Sixth Brother, Seventh Brother, you two set off immediately to hunt down that ancient corpse! Kill those who kill my Sword Cloud Sect disciples!"

"yes!"

The two vanished from the spot and reappeared a thousand miles away in the blink of an eye.

"Then the three of us will stay at your sect for the night. His Majesty will arrive tomorrow," Jin Qiang said upon seeing this. Tomorrow was the Sword Cloud Sect's grand competition.

"Alright! The sect competition will proceed as scheduled tomorrow!"

After saying this, Chen Zhou, who was still asleep, couldn't help but feel a pang of heartache. He was so badly injured. What would he do for the sect competition tomorrow?