“Look at them, standing guard outside. They saw us activate the Starfall Holy Stone with their own eyes and even tried to break it, but they couldn’t damage it in the slightest.”
“Yet now, their gazes are utterly fearless, as if they don’t even consider the Starfall Holy Stone a threat.”
“They know we’re from the Starfall Holy Land and must have heard of the Starfall Holy Stone’s protective power, yet they still look down on us.”
“Either they have a method to break it that they haven’t used yet.”
“Or, more likely, they’re waiting for reinforcements, and those reinforcements are stronger than they are. I believe the latter is the most probable,” said the Holy Master of the Starfall Holy Land.
“Lord Holy Master, what should we do now?” Hearing these words, the elders grew even more panicked.
“We can only fight to the death,” the Holy Master replied.
“Lord Holy Master, absolutely not! Your injuries haven’t healed, and besides…”
Besides, the Holy Master had already faced the enemy before.
The enemy had eighteen First Rank Venerable experts, each wielding techniques that could boost their combat power by one rank.
The Holy Master, unable to overcome such odds, had been gravely wounded. With no other choice, he had activated the Starfall Holy Stone to protect everyone present.
If he wasn’t their match before, how could he face them now, injured as he was?
“Let me go out instead,” a voice suddenly said.
Along with the voice came a large group of people. From their attire, it was clear they weren’t from the Starfall Holy Land.
Yet they held significant status in the Great Thousand Upper Realm.
They were from the Ghost Sect Hall.
These were all top experts of the Ghost Sect Hall.
Leading them was the Hall Master of the Ghost Sect Hall.
In truth, it was the Ghost Sect Hall who first encountered this group from the Blood-Devouring Demon Clan.
The Starfall Holy Land’s group had come across them just as they were being captured by the Demon Clan. Though they didn’t know these were Blood-Devouring Demon Clan members, they could tell they weren’t from the Great Thousand Upper Realm.
While the Starfall Holy Land and Ghost Sect Hall weren’t particularly close allies, seeing outsiders oppressing a Great Thousand Upper Realm force was intolerable. Thus, upon witnessing the scene, they had acted decisively to help.
But even the Holy Master of the Starfall Holy Land was no match for them, leading to their current predicament.
“What good would it do for you to go out? To die?” the Holy Master asked.
“This all started because of us—it has nothing to do with you. We don’t know why they want to capture us, but if we go out, they might let you go,” said the Ghost Sect Hall Master.
“When did you become so naive?”
“Haven’t you realised? They’re not targeting just your Ghost Sect Hall—they’re after all of us,” the Holy Master said.
“But…” The Ghost Sect Hall Master knew the enemy was targeting everyone, but he didn’t want to drag the Starfall Holy Land down with them. Offering to go out was a desperate move.
“Hall Master Ghost, do you have the Soul-Breaking Life Pill of your Ghost Sect Hall with you?” the Holy Master asked.
“What are you planning?” The Ghost Sect Hall Master’s brows furrowed, a bad feeling creeping in.
“Lord Patriarch,” the Supreme Elders of the Starfall Holy Land also sensed something amiss.
“No more nonsense. At this point, do we have any other choice?”
“Do we all die here, or do we fight? Besides… the Soul-Breaking Life Pill, even with its strong backlash, won’t kill me, will it?” the Holy Master asked sternly.
At that moment, though the elders felt uneasy, they couldn’t find any grounds to argue.
Perhaps their last hope truly rested with the Holy Master.
“Sigh.” With no other option, the Ghost Sect Hall Master took two pills from his Cosmos Sack and handed them to the Holy Master. “Take both together to reduce the backlash, but the effect will be shorter. You’ll need to end the fight quickly.”
“I’ll make it quick,” the Holy Master said, taking the pills and swallowing them immediately.
*Whoosh—*
As the pills took effect, a dark purple aura emanated from his body, and even his eyes turned dark purple.
With the aura’s emergence, the Holy Master’s仙-like temperament vanished. Now, he resembled a demonic cultivator.
But his injuries healed completely, and his combat power surged.
“Starfall Holy Land, hear my command: no one is to leave the Starfall Holy Stone without permission, including those from the Ghost Sect Hall.”
“Because I need all of you to stay safe and wait for my return.”
With those words, the Holy Master crushed the stone in his hand.
As the stone shattered, he vanished, reappearing outside the Starfall Holy Stone.
The moment he emerged, eighteen figures charged at him, engaging the Holy Master in fierce combat.
Though from the outside the Starfall Holy Stone looked like a massive rock, those inside could see everything clearly.
Watching their Holy Master single-handedly battle eighteen Venerable-level experts, not only the Starfall Holy Land members but even the Ghost Sect Hall experts sweated nervously for him.
The clash of Venerable-level powerhouses was too fast for them to follow, but the sheer force made it clear the enemy’s strength was not to be underestimated.
“Hahaha, hiding like turtles for so long, and now you come out? I thought you had reinforcements, but it turns out you just took a forbidden pill. Looks like the Starfall Holy Land is nothing special.”
The enemy mocked while fighting, showing no respect for the Holy Master and radiating contempt.
Such arrogant words enraged the Starfall Holy Land members. This was their revered Holy Master—when had he ever been so belittled?
The younger generation, hot-blooded and impulsive, found it especially intolerable.
But they were powerless, forced to watch the scene unfold.
“I swear, if I ever find out who they are, once I’ve cultivated enough, I’ll wipe out their entire clan to avenge this humiliation.”
Suddenly, a voice rang out from the crowd of younger members.
Many turned to look. If anyone else had said this, they’d be mocked.
But this speaker, they dared not mock.
The speaker was an extraordinarily beautiful woman, her beauty akin to that of a fairy.
She was the Holy Maiden of the Starfall Holy Land, one of the three great beauties of the Great Thousand Upper Realm—Xia Yun’er.
