A battle between Gods would not end in a day. The Devil Gods were no fools. After failing to kill the human Gods, they retreated back to the Devil Domain’s entrance. They aimed to move the Righteous Buddhist Sect’s golden leaf aside to allow more devils to enter the dominion.
But as more human experts arrived, they couldn’t proceed with their plan and had no choice but to escape to the outside domain where they would wait until a better opportunity to attack the dominion arrived.
In any case, so long as they could freely cause disturbances in the dominion, they would consider that an initial success to their war. They firmly believed that the golden leaf would not be able to stop their invasion forever.
After the devils retreated, Xiang Shaoyun met up with his father. He told Xiang Yangzhan of his plan to head to the Di Clan’s place. When Xiang Yangzhan heard of what the Di Clan had done, he raged, declaring that he would slaughter the entire Di Clan.
The Di Clan had played a great role in harming both the Ziling Sect and Xiang Shaoyun. Thus, the Di Clan was a place Xiang Shaoyun and company would definitely visit. After gathering all his people, Xiang Shaoyun returned to the sect with them.
As for Yu Huayan, she went with him as well. She claimed that she was Yu Caidie’s aunt and that it was her duty to help Yu Caidie. Of course, she also believed that she needed to be the middleman and see if she could ease the tension between Xiang Shaoyun and the Di Clan. After all, the Di Clan was no pushover since they were powerful enough to be taken seriously by the Yu Clan.
Xiang Shaoyun also knew how powerful the Di Clan was. Thus, he had to first return to the sect and have Purple Lightning Marquis and Scarlet Flame Monarch go with him as well. He couldn’t afford to be careless when dealing with the Di Clan.
He also had Lang Chen return to the Dragon Phoenix Academy and inform his master of the things that had transpired. He hoped that his master would understand his situation.
Xiang Yangzhan’s return was a major event for the Ziling Sect, as it was basically the return of the sect master. Xiang Yangzhan was the founder of the sect. Although the sect had only existed for about 100 years, it had gone through numerous hurdles. Of their members, only the likes of Duo Ji, Pang Tongyuan, and Old Yao still remembered their great sect master. Of the others, most didn’t know much about Xiang Yangzhan. Instead, they knew more about the young sect master, Xiang Shaoyun.
Xiang Yangzhan naturally didn’t mind that most knew more about his son. In any case, he had intended to have Xiang Shaoyun take over as the sect master. Xiang Yangzhan no longer had the time to manage a sect. With the growth in his cultivation, his sole goal was to pursue greater heights in cultivation so that he could gain enough strength to face the alien invaders and save his wife.
After returning to the sect, Xiang Shaoyun gathered all the sect’s crucial members.
The two Gods, Purple Lightning Marquis and Scarlet Flame Monarch, were the pillars keeping the sect stable. Additionally, Devouring Ghost, Green Ghost, Liu Qingchen, Despair, Bing Busi, and the other top-tier Saints were also extraordinary cultivators. As for the Sovereign Realm, elites like Du Xuanhao, Pang Tongyuan, Qian Furen, First Gold, and others populated its ranks.
These people could contend against any tier-8 organization when working together. Of them, Li Juetian, Yao Jiaojiao, Ugly Gambler, and Du Wusheng had been completely subdued by Scarlet Flame Monarch and had become full members of the sect.
The four villains had long left the Bloodsin City. With Li Juetian as the leader, they formed a small but tight-knit group. Li Juetian had stayed, waiting for Scarlet Flame Monarch to fulfill his previous promise regarding Old Man Three Severing’s inheritance.
True to his word, Scarlet Flame Monarch had been bringing Li Juetian out in search for Old Man Three Severing’s inheritance as of late. Li Juetian had benefited from the inheritance and had become a peak Saint.
Yao Jiaojiao had also entered the Heaven Battling Realm. Meanwhile, Ugly Gambler was only a pseudo-Saint. Du Wusheng had also grown considerably. For the sect, gaining them as members was akin to a tiger gaining a pair of wings.
Xiang Shaoyun’s disciple, Guo Po, had also returned after tempering himself away from the sect for several years. He was no longer the same immature young man of the past. Instead, he was a youth who had gone through the baptism of blood. He was only in his early twenties, but his imposing aura indicated that he was a ninth-stage Skysoar Realm cultivator, making him the strongest cultivator of his generation in the Ziling Sect. With his unique eyes, not even a regular Dragon Ascension Realm cultivator would be his match.
Additionally, Yao Qian, who had not been able to cultivate in the past, had finally reached the heavens in a single bound after about 10 years of hard work. She had reached the Sovereign Realm, growing at a speed that caused even Gong Qinyin to feel pressured.
One ought to know that Gong Qinyin had cultivated hard with the resources Xiang Shaoyun had left behind. Even so, she had only reached fourth-stage Sovereign Realm. She had also grown rapidly with her zither dao. For a regular cultivator, even advancing by a stage in 10 years could be considered an excellent result.
Yao Qian had not only increased her strength, but she had inherited Old Yao’s expertise as well. She had become an outstanding alchemist and had enough mastery in alchemy to make even Old Yao blush with shame. After several years of hard work, she had greatly surpassed Old Yao.
All these experts were the resources the sect had slowly gathered over the years. After some time, the newcomers would eventually replace the older generation, ensuring a smooth transition to the sect’s next generation.
After everyone arrived, Xiang Shaoyun offered the main seat to Xiang Yangzhan, who accepted the seat without any hesitation. Regardless of his strength, as Xiang Shaoyun’s father, Xiang Yangzhan was more than qualified to take the seat.
Everyone guessed Xiang Yangzhan’s identity upon seeing him. Their hearts thumped nervously as Xiang Shaoyun had been the one leading the sect in recent years. Xiang Yangzhan might be the old sect master, but he had no prestige among these new members. Thus, some of them found it unacceptable that he took over the main sect the moment he came back. They had only remained calm out of their respect for Xiang Shaoyun.
“Everyone, you might not know who I am, but it doesn’t matter. You will know me soon, as I’m this kid’s father, Xiang Yangzhan, the founder of the Ziling Sect. Alas, the sect had nearly caused my son to lose his life. Fortunately, my son is a super genius. He has not only managed to keep the sect under his control but has even grown the sect to such a level. As his father, I am naturally gratified.
“I hope that everyone will be able to stay united like one big family. Together, we shall bring the sect to new heights. Those who dare provoke us will have their entire family slaughtered,” said Xiang Yangzhan. He did not say any fancy words, only speaking from his heart. Of course, his straightforwardness and earnest attitude were the reasons why he had managed to build up a decently powerful organization in the past.
His words were naturally rather pleasing to the ears of these people, but this was still a world where strength was supreme. Without enough strength, it wouldn’t be proper for him to continue being the sect master. Xiang Yangzhan swept his gaze through the crowd. His God Realm aura rippled out, filling the great hall’s every nook and cranny.
