Tonight's moonlight was especially clear and refreshing.

High above, the moon was oblivious to the bloody slaughter occurring on the ground below.

Like evil eyes, the flares of Sandal Gold Flame Energy surrounded nearly a hundred people who encircled two grievously wounded individuals at the center.

"As fellow warriors from Shengzhou, why do we turn on each other instead of uniting against outsiders? What is the reason for this?"

"We have already given you the Insect Extreme Crystal. Why won't you let us go?"

The encircled man and woman shouted almost hysterically, their faces displaying the despair and unwillingness of those at their wit's end.

Among the crowd surrounding them, the leader, Bai Shuchuan, also roared, "Bian Weiyin, attack! I'm telling you to attack. Did you not hear me?"

Bian Weiyin, in the crowd, had an expressionless face, as if he truly hadn't heard. Instead of obeying, he signaled with his eyes to Gan Tangyu and Xiang Laner beside him, then turned and led the two away from the crowd.

Such a public act of defiance made Bai Shuchuan, under the scrutiny of all, feel a great and strange humiliation; under the illumination of Sandal Gold Flame Energy, his face looked somewhat fierce. He turned and waved his hand, "Everyone, attack together!"

He led the charge himself, and nearly a hundred people swarmed forward.

After a brief but intense sounding skirmish, the encircled man and woman lay on the ground, blood pooling around them, decapitated and with eyes wide open in death.

Emerging from the crowd, Bai Shuchuan, still fuming, hurried after Bian Weiyin and the others.

He confronted Bian Weiyin, berating, "We all agreed that I would command everyone. Why did you from Wukang Mountain betray our agreement and ignore the command?"

Bian Weiyin calmly rebutted, "Those were our own people from Shengzhou. You wanted to rob others, and I didn't stop you. You wanted to kill, and I didn't stop you. But we from Wukang Mountain cannot kill our own people. Bai Shuchuan, by robbing and killing our own, is that really necessary?"

She didn't want to be involved in killing their own people. Additionally, she realized the malicious intent of Bai Shuchuan, suspecting that he wanted to drag Wukang Mountain into his scheming. Also, each robbery started with her being asked first to use an immobilization charm.

It was said to be for reducing casualties among everyone.

Xiang Laner had warned her early on that if things continued this way, they would be unable to protect themselves.

Initially, she didn't heed the warning, intoxicated by the flattery of the sects and envisioning her glorious return; desire always has a way of clouding judgment.

Only when she realized the dwindling supply of talismans in her possession and restrained her use of them, and the immediate change in the demeanor of the surrounding sects, did she sober up. Once she was no longer of use, they might not acknowledge any significant contribution from Wukang Mountain after the conference ended.

She still had a clear understanding of this aspect when she was sober.

Bai Shuchuan was infuriated to the point of almost getting in her face, gritting his teeth and whispering fiercely, "Not kill him? Do you want him to go back and accuse us of robbery? What kind of place do you think this is? Some things are better left unspoken by everyone; why must you break the silence? Don't pretend to have the compassion of a woman!"

He didn't want to kill people from Shengzhou either, but he really had no choice. The three-month-long Sky Rain Meteor Conference had already been going for over a month, and his group had only managed to collect about forty Insect Extreme Crystals, most of which had been taken by force.

Meaning that even if they searched properly, with over a hundred people, they couldn't find even one in a day.

Jieyun Mountain was the top sect of Shengzhou. It was acceptable for Jieyun Mountain or Shengzhou not to rank first on Shengshen Continent, but it was absolutely unacceptable for his Jieyun Mountain not to be the first in Shengzhou. Otherwise, as the leader, he wouldn't be able to escape the blame upon his return or be able to show his face to the Sect, and his future would be ruined.

It was not just him; the first-ranked sects from each province nearly all had a distorted mindset given the difficulty of finding Insect Extreme Crystals, much beyond their expectations.

By now, fuelled by desperation, Bai Shuchuan had turned a blind eye to whether they were own people or not, as long as there were Insect Extreme Crystals, he would take them!

Bian Weiyin didn't argue with him about whether to kill or not, but countered, "Brother Bai, don't you think we from Wukang Mountain have contributed enough all along this journey?"

She still had grounds to say this at the time.

After all, she had once commanded a city, and her words left Bai Shuchuan speechless, wanting to say more but unable.

Zhao Shanqi, the leader of the Divine Light Sect and someone close to Bai Shuchuan, acted as the peacemaker. He grabbed Bai Shuchuan's arm forcefully and pulled him away.

Once they were in a secluded spot, Zhao Shanqi finally let him go and whispered in persuasion, "Falling out with her right now does us no good."

Bai Shuchuan fumed, "It's infuriating. Just because her hands are clean now, once the conference ends, everyone else will be on edge."

Zhao Shanqi: "The talismans in her hands are still useful to us, but there will come a time when they are all used up, and then you can do as you please. I know you have your eye on that Xiang woman. Everyone is watching, and it wouldn't be easy for you to make a move, but if they end up clean-handed, and you do something to the Xiang woman, I think everyone would just pretend not to see."

Bai Shuchuan raised his eyebrows, a hint of secret pleasure in his eyes, as if his thoughts had wandered far.

Zhao Shanqi continued: "Personally, I still find Bian Weiyin more to my taste, I like her spirit, Brother Bai, you mustn't compete with me for the first shot."

"Ahaha, well said, well said," Bai Shuchuan patted his back, laughing joyously, instantly sharing the same bad smell.

After the joy, his face turned to worry, "The current problem is that the Insect Extreme Crystals are too hard to find, and the territory of the West Pole is too vast. It's hard to rob anyone, as one can hardly encounter anyone even if all hundred or so of our men scatter, perhaps passing by without even realizing. I'm thinking whether we should try our luck in the 'Moon Sea,' as it's supposedly a favored haunt of the Insect Extreme Crystals. If we're lucky enough to encounter a 'meteor shower,' we would strike it rich."

Zhao Shanqi frowned and pondered, "The Moon Sea, that's marked as a dangerous forbidden area on the map..."

Meanwhile, Xiang Laner also asked Bian Weiyin and Gan Tangyu to step aside to a secluded place to speak.

"Weiying, if we continue like this, they might turn hostile, and we could be in danger. Let's find an opportunity to escape."

Xiang Laner didn't beat around the bush and spoke directly about her intentions.

Gan Tangyu also looked towards Bian Weiyin upon hearing this.

But Bian Weiyin fell silent, then slowly shook her head: "It's too late. Either we shouldn't have joined from the beginning. If we retreat halfway now, and Bai Shuchuan and the others lose in the competition, a group of people will collectively push the blame onto us, and our sect cannot afford such responsibility. Alas, thinking back, Shi Chun was probably right in advising me initially; it was my blindness that led me here, and there's no turning back now."

Xiang Laner was silent. As the situation grew increasingly dire, she had also thought about this matter: the two men advising Bian Weiyin not to collaborate, and then disappearing with the talismans—they must have sensed the danger beforehand, hence they disappeared. It wasn't a coincidence but a sequential process.

Some things are unbearable upon reflection; thinking back, one grows increasingly suspicious that the disappearance of the two men was not due to an accident but because they had slipped away early.

Indeed, their danger- sensing ability was exceptional.

Another problem was that Sun Shigang was also unreachable to date. With both parties uncommunicated and simultaneously so to this day, it was hard for her not to link the two disappearances.

After a moment of silence, she whispered: "Weiying, there are indeed dangerous indicators against us. If you won't leave, then I'll have to go alone. After leaving, I'll find a place to hide until the conference ends."

She truly didn't dare to stay any longer. Sun Shigang's disconnect made it impossible for her to contact the twelve strategists she commanded. Without a response, she would have to act herself in any turn of events for self-preservation, and amidst prying eyes, her identity would surely be exposed.

She thought this farewell would demand much persuasion, but to her surprise, Bian Weiyin thought for a moment and then nodded in agreement, "That's fine, just be careful." He even took out two third-grade immobilization charms to give her, "I don't have many left, take these, having them is better than none."

She also saw that Bai Shuchuan was coveting her sister-in-law's beauty, and both morally and emotionally, she hoped no harm would come to her sister-in-law.

Upon receiving the charms, Xiang Laner still urged her one more time, "Come, Weiying, let's leave together."

Bian Weiyin shook her head: "You don't understand, the Shengzhou Domain Master has deep biases against Wukang Mountain. Once we give him an excuse to act, the entire sect couldn't bear the consequences. Even if something happens later, it would only be my personal matter and wouldn't involve the sect."

She then turned to Gan Tangyu, "Are you leaving with us? If you want, we can leave together."

Gan Tangyu calmly shook his head.

Knowing he wouldn't leave, Bian Weiyin could only sigh and said to Xiang Laner, "We'll cover for your escape."

Seeing this, Xiang Laner said no more.

Though the protection from Bian Weiyin and Gan Tangyu seemed smooth, they were still targeted.

Seeing Xiang Laner leaving alone, three men with ill intentions quietly followed her, and from that following, they never returned...

In the campsite of several thousand people, specks of fireworks decorated the night, creating a picturesque scene.

On a small hill within the camp, Mulan Qingqing, dressed in white like snow, stood with her hands clasped behind her back looking at the starry sky. Her slung sword obstructed the drifting breezy sari, her otherworldly beautiful and icy countenance softened by the moonlight.

Several figures dashed under the hill, and four men dressed in flowing white robes jumped up to greet her, "Senior sister."

The four, named Yan Ji, Guan Wen, Guann Yingjie, and Chao Zhilin, were lined up according to seniority. It was unclear whether the Su Yuan Sect had intentionally recruited or specifically sent good-looking disciples, as each was quite handsome.

The adoration and fondness in the eyes of the four men looking at their senior sister, who was renowned as the most beautiful disciple and the strongest among her peers in the Su Yuan Sect and still without a suitor, were undeniable. After all, which junior brother would not adore such qualities, unless he was blind or brain-damaged.

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