The aftermath of the ambush was a grim, sobering affair. The ethereal blades of Elder Feng's judgment had faded, leaving behind a forest floor littered with the still forms of the assassins. There was no celebration, only the heavy silence of a battle won at a cost.
"Tend to the wounded," Elder Feng commanded, her voice a sharp, authoritative blade that cut through the disciples' shock. "Harvest the materials from the assassins' bodies. Their poisoned weapons and storage rings are proof of their syndicate's crimes. We will leave nothing for their masters to find."
While the other disciples moved with a grim efficiency, Li Yu knelt beside the body of the assassin he had disarmed. He ignored the man's storage ring for a moment, his gaze fixed on a small, black spider tattooed on the man's neck. He had seen the same mark on the assassins who had ambushed Feng Xuan. It was the definitive mark of the Blackwood Syndicate.
"Their poison is potent," he said quietly as Su Ling approached, her own face pale but composed. "It's a fast-acting neurotoxin designed to stop the heart. Standard detoxification pills would be too slow."
"They are not common bandits," Su Ling replied, her gaze sweeping over the carnage. "They are trained killers. The three disciples who fell… they were all from powerful factions. This was a message."
Li Yu nodded in agreement. This was more than just a rogue organization; it was a tool, a weapon being wielded by a greater power.
He stood up and joined his own small group. Brother Kai was already tending to a disciple whose arm had been grazed by a poisoned needle, his steady hands applying a poultice that was drawing out the black, venomous blood. Hu Jian and Lin Tao stood guard, their earlier battle-lust replaced by a grim, watchful silence. They had seen how quickly a life could be extinguished in this dark forest.
After the battlefield was cleared and the three fallen disciples were respectfully enshrouded for their final journey home, the expedition gathered. The mood was heavy. Their initial confidence had been shattered, replaced by a raw, tense awareness of their own mortality.
Elder Ma, who had been silent throughout the cleanup, finally spoke, his voice a low growl. "We have wasted enough time. We must press on to their stronghold before they have time to prepare more ambushes."
"And walk into a larger trap?" Elder Feng countered, her voice like ice. "Your recklessness has already cost this sect two disciples, Elder Ma. We will proceed with caution." She turned her sharp, commanding gaze to Li Yu. "Disciple Li. Your senses have proven to be the most reliable. What is the path forward?"
All eyes once again turned to Li Yu. He closed his eyes, feigning a deep, meditative state. In reality, he was communicating with his swarm. The twelve Scout Shrimp were now spread out in a wide, semi-circular net, a thousand feet ahead of the group, mapping the terrain, the spiritual energy, and the very life force of the forest.
Report, he commanded.
A flood of information entered his mind. He saw the winding, hidden paths, the nests of sleeping beasts, and the subtle, almost invisible threads of the Syndicate's patrol routes. And he saw their destination.
He opened his eyes. "The forest's energy flows towards a single point, three miles to the northwest," he said, his voice calm and certain. "It leads to a deep, narrow valley, hidden between two cliffs. I feel a great concentration of… malice… from that direction. It is a place of death. That is where their den must be."
"A valley," Elder Feng mused. "A natural chokepoint. It will be heavily defended."
"Then we will not take the direct path," Li Yu continued, a plan born of pure, cautious instinct forming in his mind. "There is a river that flows along the base of the eastern cliff. It is deep, and the current is strong. My senses tell me it is home to a few powerful, territorial beasts, but it is not a path the assassins would expect us to take. We can follow the river under the cover of the water itself. It should lead us directly to the base of their stronghold, bypassing most of their land-based patrols and traps."
It was a risky, unconventional plan. But in this forest, the obvious path was a death sentence.
Elder Ma scoffed. "You want us to swim through a river of unknown beasts to avoid a few patrols? That is a coward's path."
"It is a survivor's path, Elder Ma," Su Ling's cold voice interjected, her support for Li Yu now clear and unwavering. "Disciple Li's instincts have not failed us yet. I agree with his assessment."
With the support of another high-ranking disciple, Elder Ma was silenced, his face turning a deeper shade of purple. Elder Feng nodded, her decision made. "We will take the river. Disciple Li, you will lead the way."
They made their way to the deep, fast-flowing river. It was a ribbon of black, churning water that cut through the dark forest. Li Yu was the first to enter, the cold water a familiar, comforting presence. He used the «Flowing Water, Still Shadow» art to create a thin, almost invisible bubble of air around his head and sank beneath the surface. The others followed, their own water-repelling arts and techniques creating a silent, ghostly procession in the dark water.
As Li Yu had predicted, the river was not empty. His swarm, now acting as underwater scouts, warned him of a massive, ancient-looking Rank 4 Thorn-Backed Crocodile resting in the muddy depths. Li Yu did not try to fight it. He simply manifested his Koi spirit, its pure, noble aura a silent, passing king. The ancient crocodile, sensing the presence of a higher-order being, did not stir from its slumber, allowing the small group of cultivators to pass through its territory unmolested.
After an hour of this silent, underwater journey, Li Yu's swarm sent him a clear image. They had arrived.
He led the group to the surface, where they emerged in a large, mist-shrouded cave behind a thundering waterfall. The cave was a natural opening that led into the base of the valley. From here, they could hear the faint, distant sounds of men shouting and the clang of steel on steel.
Li Yu, along with Elder Feng and Su Ling, crept to the edge of the cave's mouth, peering through the curtain of falling water.
Before them lay a deep, narrow valley. The valley floor was a bustling, fortified encampment, a hidden fortress filled with at least two hundred black-robed cultivators. They were not common bandits; they were a disciplined, well-equipped army. In the center of the valley, a massive, dark cave, reinforced with iron gates and watched by powerful guards, was clearly the entrance to their main stronghold.
The Syndicate clearly had its own beast tamers. Patrolling the perimeter of the camp were a dozen massive, hulking Rank 4 Black-Iron Gorillas, creatures of immense strength and ferocity, each one guided by a black-robed handler.
But that was not what made Elder Feng's face contort in a mask of pure, cold fury. Spread throughout the camp, performing the hard labor of building fortifications, carrying supplies, and tending to the beasts, were dozens of humans. They were gaunt, their faces devoid of hope, and around each of their necks was a glowing, restrictive collar that pulsed with a malevolent, spirit-suppressing energy. They were slaves.
Li Yu felt a cold knot form in his stomach. Even the Green Mountain Sect had laborers, like Uncle Wei, people who worked in exchange for protection and a meager wage. But that was a choice, a position people volunteered for. This was different. This was the forceful subjugation of a person's will, the ultimate violation in a world where the pursuit of personal strength was paramount.
"They are not just bandits," Elder Feng whispered, her voice a mixture of ice and fire. "They are human slavers." Her words dripped with a venom colder than any poison. "That is a forbidden art, a crime against the very heavens. Even the most bloodthirsty demonic clans find the act of enslaving a cultivator abhorrent. It is a line that is not crossed. To do so is a sin that warrants the extermination of one's entire clan."
"Look," Su Ling added, her finger pointing towards the main gate.
A new figure had emerged from the stronghold. He was a tall, powerfully built man in ornate, black-and-red robes, his aura that of a cultivator at the absolute peak of the Qi Condensation Realm. This was the leader of the Blackwood Syndicate. And walking beside him, as an equal, was a man whose face made the other disciples let out a choked gasp.
It was Jin Ao.
Elder Ma, who had crept up behind them to see what was happening, saw the disgraced disciple, and his face went from confusion to utter, soul-shaking disbelief. "What is he doing here? He is supposed to be in confinement!"
The truth hit them like a physical blow. The Blackwood Syndicate was not just a group of rogue cultivators. They were a secret, external arm of Elder Jin's own faction. The attacks on the sect, the ambushes… it had all been a part of a larger, more insidious plan.
"Treachery," Elder Feng hissed, her voice a low, dangerous whisper. She shot a sharp, suspicious glare at Elder Ma.
But the look on Elder Ma's face was not one of guilt. It was a mask of pure, unadulterated fury. His initial shock was instantly consumed by a volcanic eruption of rage. His face turned a deep, apoplectic red, and the Qi around him began to boil.
"That… traitorous… old… dog!" he quietly roared, his voice shaking with a rage so profound it was almost painful. "He dared to keep this from me! From us! We have been his political rivals, Feng, but our fight was for the future of the sect! I would never betray it!" His gaze, filled with a new, terrifying clarity, locked onto Jin Ao. "To collude with slavers… to plot against his own people… UNFORGIVABLE!"
In that moment, Elder Ma was no longer a political rival. He was an elder of the Green Mountain Sect, and his house had been invaded by traitors. He turned to Elder Feng, his expression grim, his earlier animosity completely gone, replaced by a warrior's resolve. "Feng. Our factions' disputes are now dust. Today, we are elders of the same sect. We will purge this filth together."
Elder Feng looked at the raw, undeniable fury in his eyes and knew it was the truth. She gave a single, sharp nod. The two Foundation Establishment experts, once at odds, were now a united, formidable front.
Li Yu remained silent, his mind processing the new, terrifying reality. This was not just a punitive expedition. This was the opening move in a civil war, and the battle lines had just been redrawn.
As they watched, the Syndicate leader laughed and clapped Jin Ao on the back. He turned and shouted an order to his men. A moment later, a wave of guttural, bestial roars echoed from the deep caves.
A new force was emerging. A dozen more demonic beasts, these ones even more powerful, their auras at the Rank 5 Tyrant Beast level, were being led out, their eyes glowing with a maddened, enraged light.
"They know we are here," Li Yu said, his voice a low, grim whisper. "The ambush was just the first test. This is the main assault."
He looked at the small, outnumbered force of sect disciples behind him, then at the fortified, beast-filled valley before him. The hunt was over. The true battle, a battle for the very soul of their sect, was about to begin.