Chapter 30: Scramble For Power
Long Tian, Ling Han, and Long Shan were already inside the Heavenly Demon Sect's territory. Numerous disciples watched them, their eyes wide in awe and fear.
The sect's disciples usually carried themselves with a prideful arrogance, but this time, they were fraught with fear and unease. This was due to Ling Han exuding an aura of dominance, something he had been instructed to do by Long Tian. The latter was in a rush to meet the sect's leader, Mo Yuegang.
After hurriedly traversing for more than ten minutes, the trio arrived at the entrance of the inner disciples' hall. The sect was vast, even after ten minutes of walking, they had only reached the inner disciple's courtyard. There was still the core disciples' yard, the elder's area, and finally, the leader's palace to navigate.
"Young master, walking is too slow. Let's fly," Ling Han suggested.
Without waiting for Long Tian's approval, Ling Han lightly waved his hand, and Long Tian levitated in the air.
He then swiftly took flight with Long Shan, carrying Long Tian along.
**************
Meanwhile, within a lavish palace, the atmosphere was rather grim.
"Master Mo, are you planning to wage war against the Ning family?" Ning Yuan threatened, her eyes sternly fixed on a middle-aged man with long hair sitting on the throne.
Mo Yuegang responded with a dismissive smirk. "What can you do, Ning Yuan? You are not even a direct descendant. Do you think the Ning family's elders and patriarch would risk attacking my sect just because I refuse your request? You overestimate yourself."
Ning Yuan fell silent at Mo Yuegang's words. It was true, she was not a direct descendant, her father was an elder and not in line to inherit the family.
Since her arrival with Qin Chen about 30 minutes ago, she had tried to bargain with Mo Yuegang numerous times, but to no avail.
"Ning Yuan, I could grant what you want, but I want something from the Ning family," Mo Yuegang suddenly announced, a smirk playing on his lips.
"What is it?" Ning Yuan asked.
"The Seven Shapes Pagoda of Grand Elder Ning Jian," Mo Yuegang answered, his smirk widening.
Ning Yuan's eyes widened in shock, "How do you know about the pagoda?" She questioned in disbelief.
"Isn't it common knowledge among the great families that Ning Jian owns the Seven Shapes Pagoda? If you give me that, I'll allow Qin Chen to enter the Demon's Abyss," Mo Yuegang responded, his smirk unwavering. n..Ove1b1n
"No way will I give that to you. You well know that I'm not a direct descendant, yet you desire something beyond my power," Ning Yuan retorted.
"Then he shall not enter the Devil's Abyss, but I..." His voice trailed off, he rose and gazed at the palace's entrance.
He sensed two powerful auras nearby. As expected, Ling Han, Long Tian, and Long Shan abruptly entered the palace.
Long Tian looked around. The palace was bustling, with several elders present and Mo Yuegang standing before his throne.
"Quite a palace, Master Mo. It took me 30 minutes to get here. Your sect is indeed vast," Long Tian remarked, a smile on his face.
Hearing this familiar voice, Ning Yuan was startled. She turned and saw Long Tian standing alongside two middle-aged men.
Qin Chen, who was beside her, was also taken aback by Long Tian's appearance. He suddenly had a bad premonition.
"Long Tian, what are you doing here?" Ning Yuan questioned, her voice stern.
"Oh, Teacher Ning, didn't expect to meet you here," Long Tian greeted with a smile, then his gaze shifted to Qin Chen, his smile growing more playful, "And you too, Qin Chen. The last time we met was when you punched me."
"Long Tian, you bastard, what are you doing here?" Qin Chen demanded, clearly upset.
"Just wanted to discuss a few things with Master Mo, hope you don't mind," Long Tian replied with a smile.
He then turned his attention to Mo Yuegang who seemed to be frowning.
"If I'm not mistaken, you're Long Tian, the young master of the Long family. What do you want from me?" Mo Yuegang queried, narrowing his eyes.
Long Tian smiled, "I wish to enter the Demon's Abyss," he responded lightly.
"What? Long Tian, you cannot!" Qin Chen blurted out.
"Why?" Long Tian simply asked.
Qin Chen was at a loss for words. He wanted to say that he should be the one to enter the Demon's Abyss to heal his Dantian, but he had nothing to offer Mo Yuegang.
"What? You want to enter the Demon's Abyss too? Why?" Long Tian asked, his eyes narrowing in curiosity.
"That's none of your business," Qin Chen responded, his face sullen.
Long Tian squinted his eyes. Qin Chen did not possess the pure demon blood, so he shouldn't have ventured into the Demon's Abyss. Qin Chen's presence here was still a mystery to him.
But he soon shook his head and looked at Mo Yuegang. "What do you say, Master Shi? You know who I am. So, I wish to enter the Demon's Abyss," he stated.
Mo Yuegang reclined back on his throne. "Rumor has it that the young master of the Long family has high cultivation talent and understanding. But now, I can't sense any spiritual aura from you, are the rumors true?" He questioned, narrowing his eyes.
"Everything you heard about me is true. But now, I need to go to the Demon's Abyss," Long Tian replied.
"I refuse," Mo Yuegang immediately responded.
He then rose again, "I'm a bit puzzled. Ning Yuan came here wanting Qin Chen to enter the Demon Abyss to heal his dantian, but now, you, the young master of the Long family, is your dantian also damaged? I clearly sense a dantian pulse within you," he added, narrowing his eyes.
Long Tian was surprised. He somewhat couldn't believe that Qin Chen's dantian was damaged. As he recalled, at this time Qin Chen didn't have any strong enemies and the Meng family still didn't know about him.
"Why is your dantian damaged?" he asked, looking at Qin Chen.
"That's not your bussiness," Qin Chen responded.
Long Tian furrowed his brows, realizing that the plot had, of course, changed again. He didn't know what happened, but today, he had business with Mo Yuegang.
He retrieved the buffalo horn from his spatial ring and tossed it to Mo Yuegang.
"What's this?" Mo Yuegang asked, curiosity piqued.
"Your cultivation base is very high, can't you figure it out yourself?" Long Tian retorted.
Mo Yuegang furrowed his brows, slightly irritated by Long Tian's words. However, he chose to ignore it, knowing it wasn't wise to provoke the young master of the Long family.
He focused his power on his senses, trying to discern the nature of the buffalo horn.
His eyes seemed to penetrate the horn, revealing a red liquid within it, obviously blood, but his insight didn't stop there. He could even observe it down to the cellular level.
Something was off. Each cell had a black hue. It reminded him of a pattern on a scroll he'd once read.
After observing for several seconds, the realization hit him and his eyes widened in shock.
He immediately turned to Long Tian, "Where did you get this?" he demanded.
"That doesn't matter, does it? What matters is, I want to enter the Demon Abyss, right now. I believe it's also to your advantage, Master Mo, you know this," Long Tian replied, a smile playing on his lips.
Mo Yuegang didn't respond, he certainly knew about the Demon Abyss. It was a secret and forbidden place in this sect.
Not just anyone could enter it. Even he couldn't because only individuals with pure demon blood could do so.
One didn't have to be a pure demon, if a human mixed his blood with pure demon blood, he could be considered a half-demon.
Legend has it that if the Demon Abyss was revealed, the ten seals sealing the Reiki in the Heavenly Demon Sect would open, obviously bringing great benefits to the sect.
The problem was, there were no more humans with pure demon blood. The demon race had been extinct for thousands of years, even he, Mo Yuegang, despite being the leader of the Heavenly Demon Sect, was not a demon, but a human.
And yet, now, he held a buffalo horn filled with pure demon blood. It stirred his wicked thoughts of possessing it. With this, he would become a half-demon, and his power would increase dramatically.
Mo Yuegang couldn't hide his grin. However, Long Tian noticed it.
"What do you think of my offer, Master Mo?" Long Tian asked.
"Young Master Long, you kindly offered this to me, of course I gladly accept it. And your proposition... I decline," he said, a grin stretching across his face.
Long Tian sighed. He had anticipated this.
As he was about to speak, Long Shan stepped forward, unsheathing his sword towards Mo Yuegang.
"Then the Heavenly Demon Sect will be erased from history starting today," he stated, his voice laced with an icy ruthlessness.
A Golden Core level aura erupted, suppressing everyone within the grand hall.