Chapter 1084 - 734: Radiant as the Stars

Chapter 1084: Chapter 734: Radiant as the Stars

The two of them were using their Divine Sense to inspect the piles of Jade Scrolls and Jade Tokens that resembled small mountains.

The man in the purple robe had a thin face and a long beard hanging to his chest. He was True Monarch Tongming, the leader of the Moonrise Sect.

The young man in the white robe had eyebrows like swords and a commanding presence, known as True Monarch Yinlun, the Sect’s strongest combat force.

"Junior Sister is muddle-headed!"

True Monarch Yinlun gave a low shout, worry evident in his brows.

"Why do you say that, Junior Brother?"

True Monarch Tongming put down the Jade Scroll in his hand and looked up.

"Please look, Senior Brother!"

True Monarch Yinlun pushed a communication Jade Token over.

Spiritual Light flowed over, revealing the message on it.

It was an urgent message sent back to the Sect by True Monarch Suxue.

The content was simple.

She represented the Moonrise Sect in accepting a challenge delivered by the Demon Race.

Both sides would send a Core Formation Cultivator and a Tier Three Demon King for a death match to determine the victor.

The stakes were the ownership of Yueqi City.

True Monarch Tongming scanned the message with his Divine Sense, paused for a moment, and sighed lightly: "Junior Sister had no choice in this."

"I’ve said it before, we shouldn’t have let Junior Sister leave the mountain!"

True Monarch Yinlun had a trace of blame in his voice: "Abandoning Yueqi City and firmly defending our mountain gate is the more prudent strategy!"

True Monarch Tongming uttered a light reprimand: "Junior Brother! Are you not aware of Junior Sister’s intentions? The city holds not only hundreds of thousands of our Sect’s offspring and relatives, but also our descendants by blood. Speak lightly of abandonment, and you will lose the people’s hearts!"

"Things have their importance, emotions their urgency! Senior Brother, it’s not that I wish for this! At present, there’s truly no other good strategy!"

True Monarch Yinlun asked bitterly: "When will reinforcements from the Daoist Palace arrive?"

True Monarch Tongming’s gaze deepened, and he shook his head slowly, "Do not place the hope of our Sect’s survival on outsiders. Whether the Daoist Palace comes or not, the Moonrise Sect will stand firmly on its own. The flame of the Dao will not extinguish, and our inheritance will not cease."

"You’re absolutely right, Senior Brother, my mind was in chaos,"

True Monarch Yinlun composed himself, took a deep breath, and bowed respectfully.

True Monarch Tongming picked up the communication Jade Token again, glanced over the contents, and murmured: "Could it be a delaying tactic?"

"That possibility exists."

True Monarch Yinlun’s expression was complex: "Junior Sister has always been kind-hearted. The Demon Race’s great army besieges the city, with mountains of corpses and seas of blood, the casualties are grave. If a death match temporarily replaces the siege, cultivators and mortals in the city can catch their breath. However..."

Shifting his tone, his worry deepened, "The chance of victory in a death match is almost non-existent!"

True Monarch Tongming asked: "How many Core Formation Cultivators are there in Yueqi City currently?"

"Very few. There are seven Golden Core Cultivators, thirteen Core Formation Cultivators. Junior Sister went down the mountain with two Golden Core Inheritors."

"Senior Brother’s direct disciple Xuan Ming, and my disciple Gu Guang accompanied her down the mountain. Only these two can still fight."

Xuan Ming and Gu Guang are both in the Golden Core Late Stage, outstanding among the Golden Core Disciples of the Moonrise Sect.

"With the two of them, they can perhaps maneuver for some time." True Monarch Tongming pondered aloud.

True Monarch Yinlun, however, did not think so: "Senior Brother, the Demon Race is powerful and cunning! Under Yueqi City, there are more than a hundred Tier Three Demon Kings, how can two fists fend off four hands? Moreover, the Demon Race comes in many forms, with various Divine Powers, impossible to guard against!"

As for the potential presence of loose Golden Core cultivators in the city, neither man mentioned it.

Golden Core cultivators among the loose cultivators are rare.

Even if they manage to break through, their foundational Cultivation Technique, Magical Treasures, and Elixirs are far incomparable to the Sect’s direct disciples.

In such life-and-death challenges, they are of little use.

True Monarch Suxue kept it confidential in her message, not mentioning Shen Xuan.

"In your opinion, should we send more Golden Core Disciples down the mountain to aid in battle?"

True Monarch Tongming asked.

"Absolutely not!"

True Monarch Yinlun firmly denied, his expression serious: "The fall of the Bright Flame Sect is a precedent! The core combat strength of the Sect must not be further divided. The Green Python Ox Emperor commands three factions, with two Demon Emperors under his command, and countless Demon Kings, all eyeing our mountain gate. To spread our forces now would be like dismantling our own Great Wall. The most urgent task is still to firmly defend our foundation."

True Monarch Tongming remained silent for a long time.

Incense wafted softly in the hall.

Finally, True Monarch Tongming sighed deeply: "Enough, it must be this way."

"Rest easy, Senior Brother."

True Monarch Yinlun, seeing this, consoled: "Junior Sister cast a divination before going down the mountain. The hexagram indicated that though danger is all around, there are auspicious stars shining, an omen of adversity turning into fortune. Yueqi City might survive."

"Oh?"

True Monarch Tongming opened his eyes, a gleam passing through them: "If the hexagram comes true, then it is Heaven’s blessing for our Moonrise Sect."

"Let it be so."

True Monarch Yinlun looked out into the distance outside the hall.

There, dark clouds loomed low, precisely in the direction of Yueqi City.

...

Inside Yueqi City, at the four city gates and the central square, notices bearing the Dharma Seal of True Monarch Suxue appeared simultaneously.

To lift the siege of Yueqi City, the Moonrise Sect responded to the Demon Race’s invitation to set up a life-and-death platform.

Each side would dispatch a Core Formation Realm force to engage in a death match on the platform.

The victors would be decided, as well as life and death.

The outcome of the platform battle directly determines the ownership of Yueqi City.

All Golden Core cultivators in the city can register to participate in the battle.

The order and timing of the battle are to be decided by True Monarch Suxue on the spot.

As soon as the announcement was made, the whole city was in an uproar.

Countless cultivators swarmed toward the City Lord’s Mansion.

The square in front of the mansion was designated as the place for registration, with True Monarch Suxue personally overseeing the proceedings.

She sat poised atop a Jade Platform, with a cold expression and calm gaze.

Four people stood as attendants beside her, all of them Golden Core cultivators, possessing extraordinary demeanor.

On her left were two female cultivators of stunning beauty and ethereal presence, her direct disciples Immortal Biyao and Immortal Yuhua.

To her right were two men, one with a resolute face and eyes bright with Divine Sense, the other tall and straight, with an aura like a sword, they were True Master Xuan Ming and True Master Gu Guang, direct disciples of True Monarch Tongming and True Monarch Yinlun.

Both of them were in the Golden Core Late Stage.

Such a lineup brought an innate majesty.

Ordinary cultivators observed from a distance, talking among themselves, but few dared to approach rashly.

After a moment of silence, a green-robed cultivator with a stern face and an ancient sword on his back stepped forward with steady steps from the crowd.

Walking to the registration Jade Mirror, he used two fingers as a pen, his Spiritual Power flowing, writing two lines of firm and bold verses on the mirror’s surface.