What now?

Sensing the strange looks directed at him from all sides, Yin Qingyuan felt a strong urge to vomit blood.

He had thought that by throwing his lot in with Shen Wuji—a True Disciple of a Demonic Sect with profound methods—seizing the position of Falling Cloud Valley’s Sect Leader would be as easy as reaching into a bag.

He never expected the situation to reverse so violently. He went from a “surefire victory” to a “total wipeout” in less than half an hour.

The only silver lining was that, despite his suspicious behavior earlier, he hadn’t completely torn off his mask and joined the fight. If he came up with enough excuses now, he might just be able to muddle through.

For now, he could only pray that Shen Wuji would die quickly—and keep his mouth shut about the betrayal before he croaked. Otherwise, it was game over.

It’s all because of that little bastard!

Yin Qingyuan cast a discreet, hate-filled glance at Qi Yuan standing in the hall. His murderous intent boiled beneath the surface.

Then, as if remembering something, he frowned slightly. He walked slowly up to Qi Yuan and asked in a cold voice:

“Big Qi, my son Yin Hong has been missing for several days. I heard that before he disappeared, he issued a task to you at the Merit Hall. Do you know where he is now?”

“You’re asking about Senior Brother Yin?” Qi Yuan’s expression didn’t change as he replied indifferently. “I don’t know where he went. Perhaps he did too many shameful things, feared they’d come to light, and fled to avoid punishment.”

“Watch your tongue! My son has always been upright in character. How could he do anything shameful?”

Yin Qingyuan’s face instantly turned ashen, his tone dropping to a freezing temperature. “He must have left the sect to travel. When he returns, I will have him properly teach you the rules of conduct.”

With the entire hall watching, he couldn’t attack Qi Yuan directly, no matter how furious he was. He had to endure. But in the future, he would make this detestable junior pay a heavy price!

Qi Yuan shrugged nonchalantly, a mocking smile curling at the corner of his lips. “Sure, I’ll be waiting.”

Then, he shifted the topic abruptly.

“However, since Elder Yin is here, I do have a question for you.”

Hearing this, Yin Qingyuan’s expression tightened. He stared at Qi Yuan warily.

“If you have a question, just say it. Why beat around the bush?”

Qi Yuan nodded with a brilliant smile and asked casually:

“Then, Elder Yin, please explain to everyone here: As a perfectly good Elder of the Induction Pavilion, why did you collude with a Demonic Sect and plot against your own Sect Leader?”

As soon as these words left his mouth, an uproar swept through the hall.

Shock and disbelief were plastered on most faces as they turned to look at Yin Qingyuan.

Between the suspicious-acting Elder and the hero of the hour, the cultivators of Falling Cloud Valley were clearly inclined to believe Qi Yuan.

Anyone with eyes could see the truth: if not for Qi Yuan turning the tide from within, the entire sect would probably still be worshipping a demonic cultivator as a Holy Scion. The consequences would have been unimaginable.

If this colossal blunder were to spread, Falling Cloud Valley would lose all face. Even if they escaped annihilation, they would become a laughingstock for the next ten thousand years. They could forget about ever mixing in righteous circles again.

“Yin Qingyuan! So you really are a traitor!”

Bai Xirou, standing beside Qi Yuan, was stunned for a moment before her pretty face turned icy with rage. She rebuked him sharply, “My father placed such trust in you, yet you committed such beastly acts! Do you have no conscience at all?”

Seeing this, Piao Genshuo, who had just picked himself up off the floor, crossed his arms. Adopting the posture of a melon-eating spectator, he clicked his tongue and commented:

“Why even ask? This guy was definitely planning a takeover. He wanted to off your dad and become the Sect Leader himself.”

He shook his head mockingly. “But trying to usurp the throne at the Golden Core realm? Buddy, aren’t you being a little too ambitious?”

“Big Qi! What nonsense are you spouting?!”

Seeing several Elders who usually held grudges against him subtly moving to encircle him, Yin Qingyuan’s face turned livid. He shouted in exasperation:

“Don’t make baseless accusations! I was merely deceived! I thought that demonic cultivator was truly the Celestial Zenith Holy Scion, which is why I spoke up for him!”

“Everything I did was for the lives of the three thousand disciples of Falling Cloud Valley! How dare you slander me? You say I colluded with a Demonic Sect? Do you have any proof?”

“You want proof?”

Qi Yuan couldn’t be bothered to drag it out. He pulled a Sound Retention Talisman from his robe and activated it.

A familiar voice instantly echoed throughout the hall:

“…Recently, this subordinate has constantly been marginalized and targeted by some adversaries within the sect, causing everything to go wrong and my prestige to plummet greatly.”

“This subordinate suffering some hidden losses is nothing, but if it were to ruin the grand plan of The Saint Sect, then this subordinate would deserve death ten thousand times over…”

The voice was crisp and resonant. Everyone present heard it clearly.

Though it was only two short sentences, the speaker’s sincere loyalty to ‘The Saint Sect’ was palpable. If the Sect Master of the Nether Fiend Sect heard this, he’d probably weep tears of joy and bestow a reward.

Yin Qingyuan stood frozen on the spot. “????”

“Gotcha! You damn traitor!”

In the blink of an eye, before Yin Qingyuan could even process what had happened, several Inner Sect Elders—who had been watching him like hawks—pounced. They suppressed him instantly, binding him tight as a dumpling.

Under the strange gazes of the crowd, Qi Yuan calmly stashed the Sound Retention Talisman away, sighing inwardly.

You can offend anyone in this world, but never offend a woman. Especially a woman from a Demonic Sect.

Their hearts were as small as the tip of a needle.

Back when he was rushing from Reed River City to Falling Cloud Valley, this Sound Retention Talisman had fallen from the sky, landing right in his hand.

Along with it came an extremely valuable, top-grade Communication Talisman.

There was no need to guess who sent it.

Clearly, Ji Chan’er’s main purpose was to deliver the Communication Jade Talisman for future contact. The evidence of treason was just a throw-in.

But Qi Yuan was perceptive. He grasped the subtext almost instantly:

Ji Chan’er didn’t want Yin Qingyuan to keep breathing.

He had no objections. Since he had already sent Yin Hong on his way, letting Yin Qingyuan go down to reunite with his son was only fitting. A family reunion in Hell.

Neither father nor son from the Yin family were any good. They were sinister, malicious, ambitious, and treacherous. Worst of all, they had managed to offend both him and his woman.

They wouldn’t be wronged even if they died ten thousand times.

Wait, Qi Yuan thought silently. ‘My woman’?

The only troublesome part was actually that Communication Talisman. If one day that enchantress insisted on rekindling their past “connection,” what should he do?

Does she expect me to travel a thousand miles just to make a special delivery… of myself?

Just then, the Formation Spirit returned to the hall, looking disgruntled. It didn’t even glance at Yin Qingyuan, who was shivering on the floor, but simply grumbled:

“This old man was careless. I didn’t expect that demonic brat to self-destruct his Demonic Infant to evade my killing strike. He seized the chance to flee.”

“However, that cunning fellow has lost his life-bound Demonic Infant. Eighty percent of his cultivation is gone. Even if he survives, don’t expect him to stir up trouble again anytime soon.”

Meanwhile.

Canglan Mountains. A hidden underground cavern.

A mass of pitch-black mist swirled in, churning and writhing in mid-air before finally coalescing into a black-robed man. He landed heavily on a cold, hard rock.

“Pfft—!”

The moment he landed, Shen Wuji violently spat out a large mouthful of blood.

His aura withered instantly, his face turning deathly pale. The vitality within him flickered like a candle in a gale, on the verge of extinguishing at any moment.

There was no joy of survival on his face. He expressionlessly wiped the blood from his mouth and inspected his internal condition. Immediately, his brows furrowed, his expression growing grim.

Although he had saved his life using the secret technique of sacrificing his Demonic Infant, the backlash was catastrophic.

Not only had his cultivation plummeted straight down to the Foundation Building realm, but his physical body was riddled with holes from the erosion of Nether Demon Qi. His Dao Foundation was severely damaged.

To return to his peak would require consuming countless precious elixirs and heavenly treasures, plus at least a hundred years of bitter cultivation!

Thinking of the losses, even someone with Shen Wuji’s iron will felt his insides burning with agony.

“Qi Da! Falling Cloud Valley! I swear I won’t rest until I’ve extracted your souls, refined your spirits, and torn you all to pieces!”

“Just wait! One day…”

Shen Wuji gritted his teeth and growled, his eyes flashing with insane ferocity.

Suddenly, a melodious and pleasant female voice floated into his ears:

“Senior Brother Shen, didn’t you say you’d treat me as a cauldron to freely plunder and use? Why are you hiding in a hole like a rat?”

“Also… who was it you said you wanted to kill? Would you like your Junior Sister to give you a hand?”

Ji Chan’er!

Hearing that voice, Shen Wuji’s pupils contracted to pinpoints, and his heart sank into the abyss.