Even hybrid monsters have their day

The disciples of the Green Mountain Sect who were exposed to the light immediately felt that the bloody smell in the air had faded considerably, and the demonic energy that had been harassing them was slowly disappearing. This made them feel much more relaxed, and they were able to fight the demon soldiers with all their might, their swords flashing and their spirits high.

The demons who were exposed to the light suddenly felt the air around them become scorching hot, which made them very uncomfortable, and their magic even seemed to be suppressed.

The light illuminated the figure in the sky, and the disciples of the Green Mountain Sect couldn't help but show joy upon seeing the newcomer. Someone in the crowd shouted, "It's the Sect Leader! The Sect Leader has returned!"

"The sect leader has returned."

"The sect leader has returned!"

The sounds rose and fell, quickly spreading throughout the entire mountain, and inevitably reaching Haotian's ears not far away.

A wicked smile appeared on Haotian's bloodless face. His arrogant red eyes were fixed on the bowl-shaped object in Miao Renfeng's hand, and his eyes flashed with emotions that were hard to fathom.

He spun backward in an arc, raised his halberd with his right hand and thrust it towards Huangfu Aoran, deflecting his incoming fist. Then, he lunged forward, feinting in front of Xu Ruwen before his left hand struck Xu Ruwen squarely.

Xu Ruwen was immediately knocked back several steps. Huangfu Aoran saw that he had been hit and tried to reach out to help him, but he was also forced back several steps by Haotian's kick.

At this moment, Miao Renfeng also noticed Haotian. He glanced at the main hall with an ambiguous expression and then flew towards him.

Inside the forbidden area, Geng Miaowan stared dumbfounded at the scene before her, too shocked to utter a single word. She had never imagined that such a scene would be found underground.

This was a vast open space several times larger than the main hall, about ten meters high. A huge diagram was drawn across the entire space, covered with words she couldn't understand. If she wasn't mistaken, it was likely a magic circle.

In the very center of the magic circle stands a mountain that almost reaches the rock face above. The mountain splits into three at its waist, forming three peaks, with the middle one being the highest. The two on either side are connected by two iron suspension bridges.

"This is..." It looks like... a condensed version of Aoyama. "Aoyama?"

This miniature version of Green Mountain is exactly the same as the real one. Even the structure of the two iron chain bridges is exactly the same. A faint spiritual energy emanates from the magic circle, enveloping the entire Green Mountain.

Yin Qianze nodded. "This is where the green hills are full of life. As long as there is life, the green hills will live; if there is no life, the green hills will perish."

"So what do we do now?" she asked.

"Could you bring that box over there for me?" After chanting incantations and casting spells, Yin Qianze didn't have much strength left.

Following his instructions, Geng Miaowan walked to the table and saw a box on it that might contain the Nuwa Stone. She took it to Yin Qianze.

Yin Qianze reached out his hand. He trembled as he stroked the box for a while, a hint of eagerness appearing in his cloudy eyes, as if he were touching a precious work of art, or as if it contained the culmination of his life's work.

Geng Bitwan wanted to remind him that time was running out, but she gave up when she saw his expression.

Fortunately, he hadn't forgotten that this was a critical moment. After touching it a few times, he opened the box and, with a reverent expression, held the stone in his hands. A glimmer of light returned to his eyes as he said to her, "Help me over there."

Geng Miaowan lowered her body and helped him up.

However, at that very moment, something unexpected happened.

Geng Miaowan only saw a dark shadow flash before her eyes. When she came to her senses, the stone in Yin Qianze's hand had changed. Geng Miaowan quickly looked at the dark shadow and saw Qiu Pi staring at her expressionlessly, holding the stone in his hand.

"Qiu Pi?" How did he get in, and when? She hadn't noticed at all, not even Yin Qianze. "Give us back our things!"

Qiu Pi gave her a cryptic look, then turned and ran back the way he came. Geng Miaowan took a couple of steps to chase after him, but couldn't even see a shadow of him.

Neither of them expected anyone to trespass into the forbidden area, so they weren't on high alert. As a result, Qiu Pi snatched the items away effortlessly, without them even having a chance to resist.

“It’s over…” Yin Qianze slumped to the ground, her face ashen as a corpse, as if all her strength had been taken away with the stone.

Surprisingly, you couldn't bring yourself to hate her because of her appearance.

"Elder Yin, are you alright?" Geng Miaowan stepped forward to help her up, but he pushed her away.

"It's all my fault, it's all my fault..." Thinking of the hellish scene outside, tears welled up in his cloudy eyes and finally spilled down his cheeks. "If I had told Renfeng Mountain that the barrier on the mountaintop had a hole the moment I discovered the demons had infiltrated the Green Mountain Sect, none of this would have happened today..."

After saying that, he burst into tears, as remorse and guilt tore at his heart like two ferocious beasts.

"Why did you do this?" This was something she couldn't understand.

"Why..." he murmured, then suddenly burst into laughter, a desolate and sorrowful laugh. His eyes were fixed on the small green hill not far away, where the spiritual energy surrounding it was decreasing at a perceptible rate.

After laughing, he coughed several times before speaking again, "After my senior brother passed away, I thought he would let me succeed him as sect leader, but I never expected him to pass the position to Miao Renfeng. I, Yin Qianze, have devoted myself to the Green Mountain Sect with all my heart and soul; in no way am I inferior to that Miao Renfeng!"

At this point, his tone became somewhat intense. "I'm not convinced. Several years ago, during a night of training, I discovered that a demon had actually entered the sect. I didn't tell Renfeng, but secretly investigated for a long time. Finally, I discovered that the explosion at the summit more than 30 years ago had created a hole in the summit, and that demon had entered through that hole."

"And then?" Geng Miaowan urged, seeing that he had stopped, as if recalling something from so long ago.

"Later..." Yin Qianze's face had regained its composure, her eyes fixed on the small green mountain within the formation. "Later, I went to great lengths to contact Haotian and discussed with him letting them infiltrate the Green Mountain Sect to cause trouble. I would then suppress them, gain prestige among the disciples, and instruct a few disciples to secretly plot to force Miao Renfeng to relinquish the position of sect leader to me. I never expected the Demon Clan to be so untrustworthy!" (To be continued.)