620: parted ways

Late-stage Ninth Transformation of the Demon Venerable Realm!

Such strength could no longer be described as anything but formidable.

And this was merely the result after Chen De had caused a stir twice.

Now, he was already on his way to his next destination.

Heavenly Ice Pavilion!

Upon arriving at this place, he didn't hesitate at all and directly swept everything away.

Then he rushed toward his next targets—Yu You Hall... and Prison Heart Pavilion.

When the group of five arrived here, Li Xi immediately breathed a sigh of relief. Thank goodness, thank goodness.

Looking at the intact sect headquarters before him, the heart that had been hanging in his throat finally settled a bit.

However, Li Xi still needed to make doubly sure.

Pinpointing a certain location below, he waved his hand, and a figure immediately appeared before him.

"Huai'er, has anything happened within the pavilion during the time I was away?"

This person was named Li Huai, the Great Elder of the Prison Heart Pavilion. He was also the son of the Pavilion Master, Li Xi.

Given such a relationship, it could be said that he enjoyed Li Xi's deep trust; all matters of the sect, large and small, were entrusted to him.

Hearing this, Li Huai shook his head. "No, nothing has happened. Everything is exactly as it was when you left."

Though he was somewhat puzzled—his father had only just left not long ago, so why had he returned in such a frantic rush?

Furthermore, while he looked relieved, his expression was still quite grim.

As for the other four, he recognized them as well. All of them were at the Sect Master-level—figures on the same level as his father.

Two of them currently had expressions as foul as if they had eaten feces, while the other two appeared rather anxious.

They usually kept their emotions hidden, but at this moment, they didn't mask them in the slightest.

Vaguely, Li Huai felt as though something major had happened.

Hearing what his son said, Li Xi finally felt completely at ease. He then prepared to act and stow away the sect headquarters.

"Father, what are you..."

Though confused, he didn't ask further. Instead, he took the initiative to greet him; his father surely had his reasons for doing this.

In a short while, the Prison Heart Pavilion headquarters was stowed away.

Seeing that things were finished here, Jian Fan spoke up. "Next, it should be time to go to my Yu You Hall, right?"

"No!"

Ci Bing interrupted him, saying with extreme gravity, "Next, we should go to my Heavenly Ice Pavilion."

Seeing the state of the Prison Heart Pavilion, both of them were well aware that their own sects likely hadn't fallen victim yet.

Because they had just sent messages, and everything was fine.

If they rushed over now, there might still be a chance for salvation.

Thus, Jian Fan stared straight at Ci Bing and said, "Pavilion Master Ci, I think we shouldn't waste any more time."

"Heh." Ci Bing gave a cold laugh. "Hall Master Jian, I should be the one saying that. We're going back to check on my Heavenly Ice Pavilion first, and then yours.

Hurry up, and your Yu You Hall might still be saved. So, I suggest you stop wasting time with nonsense."

The two locked eyes, sparks seemingly flying between them.

In such a moment of life and death for their sects, they wouldn't yield an inch.

Especially after seeing the Prison Heart Pavilion safe and sound, hope suddenly flared in their hearts again.

Anyone in their position would surely cling to it with everything they had.

On the other side, however, Li Xi shook his head and said, "I won't be joining you all for the rest of the journey."

Undoubtedly, they had just happened to miss the person who was responsible for the attacks this time.

Which meant the other party was very likely at either Yu You Hall or the Heavenly Ice Pavilion right now.

If they rushed over now, there was a very high probability they would run right into him.

With the other party's strength, would it be a matter of 'you die' or 'I live' then?

So this time, Li Xi chose to refuse directly. After all, his sect was fine and had already been stowed away.

Why take such a risk for the sake of others?

Furthermore, the other party's speed was clearly much faster than theirs—faster by a significant margin.

Even if they went now, they probably wouldn't make it to those two sects in time.

His Prison Heart Pavilion had likely only been lucky enough to be left for last.

As soon as these words were spoken, Jian Fan and Ci Bing both looked toward Li Xi. "Pavilion Master Li, what do you mean by this?"

"Is it because your own sect is safe that you intend to break faith and ignore our previous agreement?"

As they spoke, a hint of killing intent was evident in both of their voices.

Li Xi didn't say anything in response. Instead, he intended to leave; he had no desire to encounter that fellow.

"Li Xi! What do you mean by this?"

This time, the two didn't address him as Pavilion Master but called him by his name directly.

Because if they had separated from the start, the time pressure on the two of them might not have been so dire.

Now that they were in deep water and he wanted to back out, it wouldn't be so easy.

Unexpectedly, at this moment, A person from Xu Kun Sect and A person from Fen Tian Palace stood on Li Xi's side.

"You two, I think we should still discuss this and come to an agreement."

"Exactly. There's no need to ruin our relationship over a small disagreement."

Their thinking was actually quite simple: right now, whether they went to the Heavenly Ice Pavilion or Yu You Hall, they were very likely to run directly into the attacker.

But their own sects were already destroyed. Helping the others offered no benefit and might even cost them their lives.

In such a thankless situation, did they even need to think about what choice to make?

Jian Fan and Ci Bing hadn't expected these two to speak up for Li Xi.

Livid, they laughed in anger and swept their gaze over the three of them.

"Fine, fine, fine!"

"Since that's the case, we'll part ways. We'll settle today's score slowly in the future!"

Then, the two of them headed toward their respective sects. They did not choose to travel together.

As things stood, going together was impossible, and there was no need for it.

After they had departed, Li Xi, A person from Xu Kun Sect, and A person from Fen Tian Palace exchanged glances.

They decided to leave this place first and then part ways once they were further away.

"Thank you both. You truly are reasonable." On the road, Li Xi cupped his hands to the other two, expressing his gratitude.

Although he knew what they were thinking, there was no need to say it out loud. After all, he wasn't the one who had suffered losses.

On the contrary, he was the only one among the five who hadn't lost out, so he needed to be even more humble.

"It's nothing. Since it's come to this, we shouldn't have continued anyway," A person from Xu Kun Sect said.

"It's just that those two are unwilling to let go. Why drag us into the mud with them?" A person from Fen Tian Palace expressed the same sentiment.

In truth, there was another reason for siding with Li Xi: their own sects were gone, while Li Xi's was safe.

Naturally, they didn't want to see anyone else's sect remain unscathed.

Perhaps having a few more people suffering the same fate would make them feel better.

As it stood, at least three of the five people's sects were gone.

Given the situation, if the other party's next stop was here, it would be three; if not, it would be four.

On this matter, the two long-time rivals had unexpectedly reached an agreement.

However, just ahead, a figure seemed to be waiting for them.

Seeing the appearance of that figure, they were immediately startled. That figure was...