Chapter 9: Who? Who did you say you were going to arrest!?

After a "friendly" exchange, Jiang Wanwan emerged from the Nine Nether Cavern.

Gone was her initial high-spirited demeanor; she now looked rather disheveled, gasping for air with her hair a tangled mess and her sect robes bearing scorched marks.

"I never imagined that the beast king imprisoned by our sect would be the divine Azure Dragon. Even the breath it exhales is overwhelming."

Thinking of how she had been blown away hundreds of times by the dragon’s breath, she gritted her teeth in frustration. She couldn't fathom what kind of perverse hobby this divine beast had—it didn't care about breaking its seal, yet it insisted on making her withstand its attacks. She had braced herself for some formidable technique, only to be utterly humiliated when the creature merely let out a cold snort! The worst part was the dragon’s demand: every time she withstood an attack, she had to kneel, kowtow, and shout, "The Great Azure Dragon King is supreme and peerless, unmatched in all the world..."

She had been impersonating Shi Muran for so long, and never before had she been subjected to such indignity! Jiang Wanwan felt a murderous impulse; if any other disciples were to see her in such a wretched state, her carefully cultivated persona would crumble. At the Heavenly Dao Sect, what she was most revered for was her spotless, pure, and kind heart, and her noble spirit that refused to bow to power or strength—she was hailed as the untainted lotus of the cultivation world! This incident simply could not be exposed.

"At least the final outcome isn't bad. Although I didn't manage to make it my spirit pet, Senior Azure Dragon promised to act on my behalf twice." She smoothed her clothes and muttered to herself, seemingly confident. "It is a divine beast, after all; arrogance is to be expected. There will be future opportunities to show it my uniqueness so that it will be willing to sign a contract with me!"

"ROAR—!"

The next second, a deafening dragon roar erupted like a collapsing mountain. A vast, overwhelming pressure rippled out from the Nine Nether Cavern, sweeping across the entire Heavenly Dao Sect!

"Ah! What, what is this monster!?"
"A demonic beast! A beast is invading the sect!"
"Quick! Activate the Grand Sect-Protecting Array immediately!"

Zhai Zhe issued orders instantly, successfully triggering the array. The disciples gathered at the main peak fell into a state of chaos. Then, an arrogant, furious voice boomed: "Hahahaha! Heavenly Dao Sect? I, your grandfather, have returned!"

"Prepare yourselves for terror, everyone!!"
"Old Dog Wang, you sealed me away for thousands of years; it is time for revenge! Come out and face your death!"

Boom!

The dragon's might descended, dimming the heavens and the earth. Every spirit beast in the mountain range where the Heavenly Dao Sect resided shivered and prostrated themselves on the ground!

"Ugh! Such powerful pressure! What kind of monster is this?"
"Ah!! Help! Sect Master, save me!"

Numerous elders coughed up blood, and disciples below the Foundation Establishment stage were crushed to death by the sheer pressure, bleeding from their seven orifices.

The Azure Dragon's massive form broke through the clouds, growing ever larger until it obscured nearly twenty percent of the sky above the Heavenly Dao Sect! Its azure scales shimmered brilliantly under the sunlight. Zhai Zhe, protecting himself with spiritual energy, saw his expression shift violently: "Oh no, it’s actually this fellow!"

"Quick! Deactivate the Grand Sect-Protecting Array!"

The Heavenly Dao Sect's protective array was immensely powerful and easy to defend but difficult to attack. Several major sects had once joined forces to crusade against them, only to return empty-handed because of this very array. However, as strong as the array was, it had a fatal flaw: once activated, nothing could enter, and nothing could leave! Outsiders couldn't get in, but those inside couldn't get out either!

But the Azure Dragon was already inside the sect! Zhai Zhe, not having anticipated this, surged with the strength of a nascent Nascent Soul stage cultivator and shot into the sky. The array was already active, and it could not be shut down quickly. As the Sect Master, Zhai Zhe had to step up. Several elders followed, leading the disciples into formation: "Disciples, form up! Defend against the external enemy!"

"Yes!"

The disciples quickly maintained their formation, but looking at the imposing Azure Dragon, they felt their hearts trembling with fear. The very array meant to protect them had turned them into caged animals; they had trapped themselves! They had no idea what tier of beast this was to possess such terrifying power.

Deep within the Nine Nether Cavern, Shi Muran returned to her cage, observing the situation outside through her connection with the Azure Dragon.

"A mere junior dares to block me? Hmph."

The dragon’s aura crushed down. Zhai Zhe’s expression changed drastically; before he could even stabilize his stance, he spat out a mouthful of blood. The entire sect watched as Zhai Zhe was easily pulverized by the Azure Dragon. With a single flick of its tail, the dragon sent him crashing into the main hall, causing the entire structure to collapse!

It was treating a Nascent Soul expert like a dog!

"No, how can this be? Could this be a beast approaching the seventh tier!?"
"Heaven help us, even the Sect Master can't withstand it!"
"Is our Heavenly Dao Sect truly finished?"

The disciples' morale collapsed. In this region of the Eastern Continent, the Nascent Soul stage was already the peak of combat power. The Heavenly Dao Sect was the premier sect of the East, and Zhai Zhe was its youngest genius Sect Master. Though the Eastern Continent was the region with the most depleted spiritual energy in the Profound Nether Realm, it was still densely populated with thousands of sects and tens of thousands of families. Zhai Zhe's rise to become the youngest Nascent Soul Sect Master of the Heavenly Dao Sect had made him legendary throughout the East. Yet now, their invincible Sect Master had been swatted away like a fly!

The disciples were terrified, feeling their end was near. "If even the Sect Master can't beat it, what can we do? We are nothing but ants trying to shake a tree."

Just as everyone thought all was lost, an inner sect elder shouted in surprise: "The Ancestor! The Ancestor has emerged from seclusion!"

"Great! We are saved!"

Hearing this, the disciples' eyes regained their luster, filled with hope. They collectively bowed toward the direction of the Ancestor: "We welcome the Ancestor's emergence!"

"We welcome the Ancestor's emergence!!"
"We welcome the Ancestor's emergence!!!"

The unison of their shouts showed their renewed fervor. In the Profound Nether Realm, the cultivation ranks were: Qi Refining, Foundation Establishment, Golden Core, Nascent Soul, Spirit Severing, Integration, Tribulation, and Mahayana. The peak combat power in the entire Eastern Continent was currently the Spirit Severing stage. The disciples didn't recognize the Azure Dragon and assumed it was just a fierce, high-level beast. They guessed it was a seventh-tier beast, comparable at most to a peak Spirit Severing expert. Their Ancestor, however, was a peak Spirit Severing master, an expert on the verge of breaking through to the Integration stage!

With that in mind, if the Sect Master couldn't beat it, perhaps the Ancestor could! Even if he couldn't win, holding out long enough to deactivate the array and call for reinforcements would be enough. Everyone looked to the Ancestor with high expectations.

Mo Zichuan, as the head disciple, bowed respectfully toward the elderly man who had appeared. "Ancestor, this is the beast invading our sect. Please, Ancestor, capture it!"

"Please, Ancestor, take action!" the disciples echoed.

The elder who had just appeared hadn't even steadied himself when he heard this, and he nearly tumbled over in fright! He felt a chill run through his entire body.

(ﾟДﾟ≡ﾟДﾟ)?

Who!? Who did they want him to capture???

This was the divine Azure Dragon! Capture it? He was more likely to capture a hammer! He desperately wanted to slap Mo Zichuan across the face and send him flying!

With no time to deal with Mo Zichuan, the elder hunched his back, approached the Azure Dragon with trembling, obsequious care, and spoke in a quivering voice: "Senior Azure Dragon, this little one is the 1111th generation protector of the Heavenly Dao Sect. The Ancestor Wang you are looking for has long since passed away. Can we discuss this? Surely, there is room for negotiation!"