Chapter 10: Is She the Savior?

Whoosh—

The disciples were dumbstruck, their mouths hanging open in unison. In an instant, the Heavenly Dao Sect fell into a deathly silence. Mo Zichuan, as the leader, stood completely frozen, staring in bewilderment at the ancestor who called himself a junior, his face turning pale.

It was over!

A Green Dragon! This was actually the legendary divine beast, the Green Dragon!

"I heard the beast king suppressed beneath the Nine Nether Cavern might be a divine beast cub. Could it be the one before us..." The sentence trailed off, but everyone understood the implication. The beast king that even Ancestor Wang could not subdue and thus had to suppress had now broken the seal!

"Is that old thing dead?" The Green Dragon felt a hint of surprise; he hadn't expected his target for revenge to have died so quickly. It was rather unsatisfying.

The old ancestor nodded repeatedly, trembling as he bowed low, hoping to negotiate with the Green Dragon and reach a compromise. A thousand years ago, when he was just a minor disciple, he had witnessed the power of the Green Dragon firsthand. Now, a millennium later, the dragon's strength had surely increased, making suppression even more impossible. For the sake of the Heavenly Dao Sect’s survival, he was unwilling to engage in a full-scale conflict. A divine beast's wrath was not to be taken lightly.

However, after a two-second silence, the Green Dragon, indifferent to the plea, began a ruthless slaughter! A single strike from him made the old man’s soul tremble, and the disciples below suffered heavy casualties! It was a joke—the Green Dragon was already consumed by towering rage; he had no intention of bargaining with these hypocritical cultivators. With Ancestor Wang gone, there was not a single fighter left in the Heavenly Dao Sect.

"Ah! No! I don't want to die!"

As screams echoed, Zhai Zhe climbed out of the ruins and flew in front of the disciples. "Senior Green Dragon, why! Why treat us like this? You merely lost a thousand years of freedom, you were not extinguished—why must you wreak such slaughter!"

"If you are heartless, don't blame us for being unrighteous!" Zhai Zhe’s face turned grim as he looked respectfully at the old ancestor. "Ancestor, if we cannot reason with it, then we must fight! We cannot let the prestige of our Heavenly Dao Sect be tarnished!"

"All elders, hear my command! Join me in sealing the beast king once more!"

"Disciples, form the formation!"

A spiritual energy shield rose, shielding the disciples around Zhai Zhe from the divine beast's crushing pressure. The Sect Master, the ancestor, and the elders combined their strength, attempting to force the Green Dragon back into the Nine Nether Cavern! A Nine-Star Sword Formation manifested in the sky, its light so blinding it scorched the eyes of everyone in the Heavenly Dao Sect.

Countless phantom longswords converged, each one teeming with boundless power! The momentum was immense, spiritual energy surged, and the entire sky grew thick with dark clouds, as if a great calamity were brewing. As the sword formation took shape, most of the Heavenly Dao Sect's spiritual energy was swallowed by it!

Zhai Zhe shouted, "Zichuan, place the Void Convergence Needle into the formation!"

The Nine-Star Sword Formation was the strongest technique of the Heavenly Dao Sect; combined with the Void Convergence Needle, it could instantly elevate its power level. They might just be able to take down the Green Dragon! Ancestor Wang had left them a lifeline after all!

But as his voice fell, there was no sign of Mo Zichuan moving. Zhai Zhe frowned, his blood surging. "Zichuan? What are you waiting for!?"

"Ma... Master." Mo Zichuan looked troubled, his eyes darting away. "The Void Convergence Needle... I don't have it."

"What!?" Zhai Zhe and the elders cried out in unison, the taste of blood already filling their mouths.

"Hahaha, die, all of you!"

The blood-crazed Green Dragon charged straight at them. Zhai Zhe had no time to think; he could only direct the incomplete sword formation toward the beast!

"Boom!"

Under the deafening roar, more than half of the main peak collapsed. Dust and debris filled the air, making it impossible to tell who was who. After an unknown amount of time, the Heavenly Dao Sect returned to silence.

Mo Zichuan crawled out of the ruins, gasping for air. "Cough, cough... it’s finally over..."

"Junior sister!? Junior sister, how are you!"

Before he could finish his sentence, his heart leaped into his throat. Everywhere he looked, Heavenly Dao Sect disciples lay scattered in pools of blood—more than half were dead! But he had no time to grieve. Jiang Wannian was lying heavily wounded right in front of him, as if she had taken a fatal blow to protect him!

Jiang Wannian’s face was deathly pale and covered in blood. Only when she saw that Mo Zichuan was safe did she let out a breath and manage a weak smile. "Sen... Senior brother, it’s really good that you’re alright."

"Don't speak!" Mo Zichuan held her, his heart aching. He frantically poured pills into her mouth as if his own life depended on it, his hands trembling. "Quick, take these healing pills! Eat them all!"

"Why are you so foolish!"

Apart from the two of them, the other surviving disciples were frantically searching for their friends, weeping and crying for help. The Heavenly Dao Sect was in complete chaos; where was the dignity of the number one sect in the Eastern Continent?

Zhai Zhe was in a bad way, too. The collision with the Green Dragon had drained the spiritual energy of him and the elders, leaving them in a pathetic state, and the ancestor was also severely wounded from protecting the disciples...

"I never imagined that even after all this, the sect would suffer such heavy casualties!"

"At least the Green Dragon should be slain! This time, we are the winners!"

Despite his words, Zhai Zhe spat out blood as he looked at the carnage around him, gritting his teeth in frustration. He no longer possessed his usual lofty, immortal demeanor; he felt nothing but profound resentment! The ancestor dragged himself back to his lair to tend to his wounds. "Handle the rest yourselves. This old man's bones can't take any more."

At this scene, inside the Nine Nether Cavern, Shi Muran’s lips curled into a smile as she issued her first command to the Green Dragon.

"Cangyuan, take the Sect Master's right arm! Now!"

Cangyuan was the Green Dragon’s true name. The moment the order was given, Cangyuan’s massive dragon head slammed into Zhai Zhe!

No! The Green Dragon! The Green Dragon hadn't been suppressed!!

Seeing the behemoth that had appeared out of nowhere, Zhai Zhe felt a chill run down his spine and instinctively moved to defend himself!

"Rip!"

"Ah!!!!"

A scream pierced the air as a bloody arm fell to the ground not far from Zhai Zhe. It was immediately swallowed by Cangyuan in one gulp!

"No!!!" Zhai Zhe let out a howl of agony. The dignity of his position as Sect Master was trampled once again! "My arm! My arm!"

"Green Dragon! You are not allowed to harm my master and my companions!" At that very moment, Jiang Wannian rushed in front of Zhai Zhe with lightning speed. She was determined to be the savior of the Heavenly Dao Sect!

"A perfect ending!" Shi Muran clapped her hands, feeling very satisfied with Jiang Wannian’s performance.

It was a pity that Jiang Wannian did not know that all of this had been planned by Shi Muran long ago. The Heaven-Tier Dragon Flame, the Void Convergence Needle, the ancestor's severe injury, Zhai Zhe's right arm... these were all part of her scheme!

"No one knows that this guy's right arm was once severed, and later fused into a new limb through the fortuitous encounter of an ancient master, containing infinite power."

"This was the greatest blessing the dog Sect Master possessed! He treated it like a treasure!"

"Tell me, System, in his current state of rage, will he be grateful for Jiang Wannian’s intervention, or will he hate her for not appearing sooner, causing him to lose his arm?"

Regardless, Shi Muran had achieved her goal. In the ruins, the oblivious Jiang Wannian was still acting according to her agreement with Cangyuan. Shi Muran wore a look of expectant, mischievous delight, showing her malice without reservation, unlike her usual self.

"This time, how high will you, the savior, be lifted?"

"It’s truly something to look forward to."