Chapter 676 Aftermath (1)
Yang Qing nodded as he started making his way. Yang Qing's steps felt heavier than usual as he was walking there and it felt like he was scaling up a mountain filled with thin air rather than a flat smooth surface with great ventilation.
Some part of him did not want to see what was at the other end of that hallway but alas he had no choice in the matter. In just a few seconds he had already made that dreaded turn and was already in the reception area where the guests were usually hosted.
In the area, he saw two figures holding each other so tightly that one could easily confuse them to be one figure. There were whimpering and muffled cries coming from the two figures and their bodies seemed to be shaking tremendously, their qi wave along with their breathing were erratic and their robes were filled with tear marks.
The two figures looked a little worse for wear.
"I knew it.." Yang Qing somberly thought when he saw them.
After a slight momentary pause in his steps, he slowly made his way to them. The two figures didn't notice his arrival up until he was just a few steps away from them.
"Brranch Chief, sorry for coming here, we just didn't know anywhere else to go.." said one of the figures with a trembling and cracking voice.
When the figure looked up, it revealed the face of a young man with scholarly handsome features which was hidden beneath a grime of dirt, blood, and overwhelming fear.
Yang Qing recognized that face. How could he not when he had seen that face almost eight hours ago?
"It's okay Elder Ling Qi..." Yang Qing said as he placed his hand over his shoulders in a bid to comfort him and also heal him.
Yang Qing stretched out his other hand which he placed on the person seated next to the elder of the Moon Essence Cauldron Sect.
The person flinched slightly when Yang Qing made contact with her, but she relaxed slightly when she felt the soothing gentleness of Yang Qing's qi. The source of this content nov(el)bi((n))
Her injuries seemed worse off than Ling Qi's though with a few broken ribs and tearing marks on her shoulders, arms, and legs. Her spiritual qi was also expended and her blood essence seemed dangerously low.
Yang Qing guessed she must have burned her essence to get through whatever it was they had just come from.
It took but just an instant for Yang Qing to completely restore both their bodies and spiritual qi to full capacity.
Once he saw they were slightly calm, Yang Qing asked,
"What happened?"
The vice sect master presented everything I had shared with him from you, along with our decision.
I expected him to agree. Even if he didn't outright believe the dangers of the blood crystals, I expected the information about us being tricked by someone impersonating the Imperial Secretary to at least sway his decision on the side of caution.
However, he told us to wait as the clan master of the Hua Clan was already at a critical junction and was not long from reaching the palace realm.
Per his admission, he told us, they had already received the information we were sharing from the Xin family's head whom Zephyr had already told..."
On reaching here, Ling Qi paused as his gaze fell on Xin Zephyr who was still crying softly.
"Having already fallen to the allure of the palace realm, they decided to make a dangerous gamble..." Ling Qi said with a sigh.
"They decided..." he said while clenching the fist of his free hand.
"The Hua Clan leader seemed to be a few steps away from reaching the palace realm and just needed a small push. That small push was the inheritance blood crystals.." Ling Qi said with an exhaustive sigh.
Yang Qing who had remained silent all this while couldn't help but frown at the statement.
"How reckless can they get?" he wondered in stupefaction.
"The Hua Clan leader needed just a few more blood crystals to complete the breakthrough but they had already exhausted the supply they had on hand, so they needed more.
They argued that even if the offer made by the Deer Mountain Kingdom was a fake one, it still did not take away the importance of having one of us reach the palace realm.
As long as we had a palace realm expert, it would make it easier for us to resettle outside of the Range, and with our four organizations sticking together, it would only be a matter of time before we were as powerful as the Deer Mountain Kingdom.
Even under such circumstances, that was all they could think about.." Ling Qi said with a bitter chuckle.
"The Xin clan bought into it as for the Flowing Fist Sect," Ling Qi paused as he shook his head for a bit.
"Their sect master had agreed to the plan at first, but immediately changed their mind after Wu Shen arrived.
Later, Wu Shen did call me to inform me that they were already leaving the Range. He ended up clashing with their sect master, which quickly turned from exchanging words to exchanging blows.
The fight was equal at first but something ended up happening to Wu Shen and he ended up making quick work of their sect master. With their sect master beaten up, he ordered the sect's evacuation.
He told me they only carried whatever could fit in their storage rings and left everything else behind.
He said he'd wait for us in Violet Hickory town in case we decided to escape without our organizations.."