Traitor Naming
While the Main Hall was extremely large and expansive because of the sheer number of traitors within his sect, Yue Zifeng didn't even bother entering the building but instead hovered above it, waiting for everyone to converge.
Thankfully the area surrounding it was wide and expansive, which was more than enough to hold all of the Soaring Sword Sect members.
And while usually Outer Disciples weren't allowed near here, still no one dared to delay and ran over as fast as they could, not daring to test Yue ZIfeng's bottom limit. Even the guards who protected important forbidden areas came over afraid.
Though there were many factions in the Soaring Sword Sect, and some even openly contested Yue Zifeng, when someone is that angry, no one dares to test you.
There were many scary things in life, but one of the scariest was someone with nothing to lose.
The sheer anger that was in Yue Zifeng's voice during his shout was undoubtedly portrayed.
Hundreds of thousands of men and women in every single uniform that the sect required all stood still, not daring to even let out a breath in the presence of Yue Zifeng, who was in the air above everyone.
Whether it was an Outer Disciple or a Core Elder, everyone was equally quiet and obedient.
Yue Zifeng also didn't say anything but merely waited for everyone who wished to see the spectacle come.
Heads were going to roll, and he wasn't to make an example out of every traitor, and he wanted to make sure every important person in his sect saw it.
Minutes passed, with each person in attendance getting more and more anxious and Yue Zifeng becoming increasingly calm and serene.
However, no one thought that his becoming calm was anything good.
That scream contained enough anger to cover the continent, and a half hour spent in silence was nowhere near enough to quell it.
Eventually, the now 'calm' Yue ZIfeng spoke up. But instead of a speech or anything that the elders expected, Yue Zifeng pulled out five jade slips and let them hover in front of him before he started to list out names.
"When I call out your name, step forward and make your presence known. Outer Elder of the Weapons Forging Pavilion Luo Bing, Outer Elder Mo Yi of the Weapons Forging Pavillion, Outer Elder Bai Lin…" Yue Zifeng turned into a monotonous robot, reading the names that Xue Bai gave him.
He trusted both Xue Bai, and while he was hated deeply by Li Rou, she would never resort to such an odd underhanded scheme to get back at him. It was far behind her to do something that would give her nothing but only destroy their relationship and endanger her child.
So while he knew that after this purging, The strength of the Soaring Sword Sect would be decreased by almost 10%, it was worth it.
Keeping traitors and spies in his mix was dangerous. Xue Feng had told him that a war would engulf the continent soon, and having a trustworthy comrade to hold your back was necessary. And having a traitor hold your back was just asking to be backstabbed.
Did he feel regretful? Of course, he did. But regret was better than deathbed remorse.
Xue Bai took almost an hour to write out the names, and while Yue Zifeng could speak fast, it still took him almost twice as much time to speak them all out, especially since he had to speak clearly and amplify the sound of his voice to ensure that everyone in attendance heard it.
Time passed on as the surrounding atmosphere became more awkward and tense, but Yue Zifeng didn't care and continued to read out names until something happened that made everyone's expression change.
An Inner Elder that everyone respected from the Alchemy Pavilion suddenly turned around in a panic and started blasting everyone around him out of the way before making a break for the teleportation array nearby.
"GET OUT OF MY WAY, RIGHTEOUS TRASH!" The man yelled as he reached the doors of the teleportation array hall.
He was no fool. He was one of the highest-positioned spies in the sect, so when he saw so many of his subordinates be called up, he could piece together what was happening.
Thankfully, because of the Blood Saber Sect's strict rules, he was forced to hide his cultivation of almost an entire realm.
So while he had an 8th-stage Law Manifestation realm cultivation base and could only be an Inner Elder, his true cultivation was in the Domain Lord realm and the 6th stage at that.
Of course, he didn't think he could get away from Yue Zifeng, but he was already extremely close to the teleportation array hall, and coupled with his profound cultivation base, it seemed reasonable he could escape.
However, just as he was about to step foot into the hall, he was rebounded back by the hall's protective array.
Someone had turned on the hall's defensive array!
Panicstriken and full of anxiety, the Inner Elder pulled out a red saber from his spatial ring and tried to send off a blood-covered saber strike at the shield protecting the teleportation array in hopes of saving his life, but before he could, a lighting bolt flickered in front of him, and a large terrifying palm reached for his face.
It happened so quickly that the Inner Elder couldn't even react and could only watch in despair as the palm got larger and larger until his vision went blank.
Yue Zifeng's normally calm and indifferent face was full of fury and maliciousness as he slammed the elder's entire being into the ground, sending shockwaves in the area surrounding them.
The Blood Saber Sect spy's face burst on impact, sending blood mist everywhere, terrifying everyone equally.
He died on impact with the ground. Yue Zifeng showed no mercy.
Sending a lightning bolt to the corpse, Yue Zifeng incinerated it, turning it into a pile of ashes that was swept away by a calm gush of wind that contrasted greatly with his devilish appearance.
Yue Zifeng had broken through to the Qi Sea realm in his late teens and had always maintained an appearance of a young man in his early twenties. Because of that, he was always a handsome man that certainly snatched the hearts of many young maidens. Coupled with his profound strength and profound background, Yue ZIfeng was always a top bachelor and prospective son-in-law.
But now, no woman even dared to look the man in the eyes.
Ignoring his blood-soaked robes and face, Yue Zifeng swept his gaze across every person in attendance, seemingly warning them before turning around to the teleportation array hall behind him.
"Why are you here, Bai'er? Didn't I say not to leave the peak this month?" Yue Zifeng spoke to his three rebellious disciples hiding in the teleportation array hall.
It was obviously Xue Bai and co, inside the teleportation array hall, who had turned on the defensive, but he still had them grounded. So why the hell had they come?
However, Xue Bai only peaked his head for a moment to stick his tongue out in response before hiding himself.
'How can we miss such a cool thing happening so close to us? ' The trio thought.
Though Yue Zifeng was slightly annoyed that he was being defied so openly, this wasn't the time to do something about it. He could deal with them later at the mountain.
For now, heads must roll!
"Core Elders, the second that any living being moves a single step, attack to maim or kill! Attack first and ask questions later! You have my permission!" Yue Zifeng barked out orders before returning to his position hovering above the Main Hall.
Though the Blood Saber Sect had infiltrated the Soaring Sword Sect, none of the spies they managed to get in or disciples they corrupted had high positions in the Core Region.
After all, almost everyone in the Core Region was a chosen of the Southern Continent. Plus, most people living in the Core Region were a part of a Noble House. And traitors weren't dealt with kindly.
If one descendant or elder were a traitor, then the rest of the House would be dealt with harshly.
That's why the leader of their infiltration was only an Inner Elder and not someone else.
Knowing this, Yue Zifeng was fine with giving his Core Elders some authority during the purging.
They were all trustworthy.
"Yes, Sect Leader!" The Core Elders shouted in unison.
The naming continued. However, now, all of the people in the crowd, both named and unnamed, had a feeling about what Yue Zifeng was doing.
Every single disciple who entered the sect knew the mortal enemy of the three great sects.
And the red saber that the Inner Elder pulled out was a signature weapon that the higher-ups from the sect used.
"Do you think that all of those people are spies like Elder Tang?"
"There's no way that there are so many right? That's almost 5 thousand people already, and the Sect Leader doesn't look like he is going to stop anytime soon. I even know some of them. Senior Brother Fang had his entire family die to a demonic cultivator. So how could he be a traitor?"
"What if Senior Brother Fang is the demonic cultivator who killed them?"
"Shut up! Senior Brother Fang would never!"
Various similar discussions would happen across the crowd, but Yue Zifeng didn't care about them since none of them dared to disobey his order and stayed as still as a tree.
As for the people who had already been named, they were all panic-stricken. Almost all of them recognized Elder Tang since he was their leader, and they were all informants for them.
So while many of the people in the circle didn't recognize the others standing next to them, they were almost certain they were also fellow spies/traitors.
Knowing this, some bold or maybe ignorant people tried to escape just as Elder Tang did. However, no one was successful.
And outside the named crowd, the disciples and elders were even more certain of their guesses.
The naming continued for another 20 minutes until Yue Zifeng finished. However, the last name hurt someone that had a real standing in the sect.
"Feng Hai, step forward and make your presence known!"
It was the younger brother of the Head Disciple and respected Core Disciple, Feng Wei.
Though Jiang Xiaorou was the first disciple of the sect, she wasn't the strongest, so she couldn't truly be called the Head Disciple.
It was Feng Wei who was the strongest and most respected Core Disciple, so he was most often referred to as the Head Disciple.
Feng Wei was once an orphan who, at the cost of his left arm, managed to bring his younger brother and enter the Soaring Sword Sect.
And after showing his immense talent, the sect not only helped him regrow his arm but also made him a Core Disciple, where he soon gained the respect and praise of everyone.
Now at age 32, he was at the 2nd stage of the Law Engraving realm. And many Core Elders were hopeful of his chances to reach the Domain Lord before 50.
Feng Hai, on the other hand, was almost always overshadowed by his older brother.
He was only two years younger, was still an Inner Disciple, had a high Yellow-grade Martial Vein, and a cultivation base of the 3rd stage of the Dharma Idol realm.
However, no matter how less talented his younger brother was, Feng Wei was still his older brother who once protected him at the cost of an arm. How could their relationship be so distant?
But now Yue Zifeng had just announced that Feng Hai was a traitor?
Not only were the crowd shocked senseless, but Feng Wei was almost heartbroken and immediately fell into the 5 stages of grief.
Flying up in denial, Feng Wei quickly asked, "Sect Leader, surely you're mistaken right? Though Hai is certainly untalented, how could he be a traitor? This is a mistake, right?"