Lu Dengxian’s expression changed.
But he still handed the intelligence over to Zhang Liefeng.
This Supreme Elder had always been pessimistic about Gu Jinlai and the conflict with Dragon Sparrow Manor. What would he think upon seeing this piece of intelligence...?
"The entirety of Dragon Sparrow Manor has been annihilated!?"
Zhang Liefeng was startled, and his speed of reading clearly quickened.
Following that, his expression changed, "Huo Yuqing... has fallen!? She was a Peak Monarch, how could she have fallen!?"
He watched incredulously as he continued to read downward, his eyes involuntarily widening: "Dragon Sparrow Manor was utterly defeated at the foot of Dragon Ascending Mountain!? Including Huo Yuqing, Long Xiangtian, Ye Qianqiu—three Peak Monarchs, thirteen Divinity Transformations, a thousand elites, all perished in one battle!? How is this possible!?"
When he saw the final part of the intelligence "Gu Jinlai has already led troops into Dragon Roar City," he suddenly threw his sleeve, "Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"
"Huo Yuqing is dead?"
By his side, Lu Zhanxian took a step forward and appeared beside Zhang Liefeng, casually taking the report.
After a quick glance, this Peak Monarch, the number one expert of Purgatory Sect and one of the top ten experts of the Ten Demonic Sects, also dramatically changed colors.
"The total collapse of Dragon Sparrow Manor!? This..."
"Is Lu Zhanfeng joking!? How could the power of Star State possibly crush Dragon Sparrow Manor? With Huo Yuqing in command, even if Gu Jinlai wanted to ensure mutual destruction, it wouldn’t be easy."
Zhang Liefeng stared at Lu Dengxian with wide eyes: "Send a message immediately to inquire! What exactly happened!?"
Lu Dengxian knew that Lu Zhanfeng would never joke about such a serious matter.
The reason Zhang Liefeng doubted it was simply because the information recorded in the report was too shocking.
The capability of Gu Jinlai leading the forces of Lingxiao City to defeat Dragon Sparrow Manor was already the limit of their imagination.
Let alone causing the annihilation of three Peak Monarchs of Dragon Sparrow Manor, including the Peak Monarch Huo Yuqing, this...
They dared not even dream of such a thing.
"Lingxiao City won!? Gu Jinlai and his men have won!?"
Liu Jingtiao also stepped forward: "This is a major event. Lu Zhanfeng would never dare to hide it. Could it be... that Gu Jinlai really slew the three Peak Monarchs and twelve Divinity Transformations of Dragon Sparrow Manor..."
Lu Zhanxian said solemnly, "The Sparrow Sword Immortal, Huo Yuqing, was already a renowned Peak Monarch a hundred years ago. Her strength is not far behind mine. Even in a full-force battle, I might defeat her, but killing her would be as hard as reaching the heavens! Her Spiritual Sparrow technique is extremely fast, having once escaped unscathed from the Devas Battlefield. How could Gu Jinlai possibly kill her?"
He paused in his speech: "Unless..."
"Huo Yuqing, because of old age, retained only a tiny fraction of her cultivation."
Zhang Liefeng picked up on Lu Zhanxian’s speculation: "The reason Dragon Sparrow Manor pushed her forward was merely a bluff, hoping to scare Gu Jinlai away! Only Gu Jinlai somehow saw through this and, without any hesitation, invaded Jiangzhou State, seizing the opportunity to crush Dragon Sparrow Manor entirely."
This was the speculation that most closely aligned with reality.
But he still urged: "Send a message to Lu Zhanfeng immediately to get firsthand information at the highest speed."
Lu Dengxian complied immediately and quickly carried out the orders.
Less than a stick of incense in time after this Purgatory Sect Master sent the message, Lu Zhanfeng had already relayed new information.
This time, the three Supreme Elders showed no reserve, quickly stepping forward to take the information.
"A treasure from Aries Star Palace!?"
Lu Dengxian suddenly understood.
Zhang Liefeng’s face underwent several changes: "Gu Jinlai actually used such a trump card to turn the tide, devastating the masters of Dragon Sparrow Manor and causing even the Peak Monarch Huo Yuqing to die in defeat."
"The message shows, Lingxiao City has already stormed into Dragon Roar City and wiped out the main force of Dragon Sparrow Manor. They currently even occupy the palaces of Dragon Sparrow Manor..."
Liu Jingtiao spoke, his gaze shifting to Lu Zhanxian and Zhang Liefeng: "Does this mean..."
Zhang Liefeng opened his mouth: "Dragon Sparrow Manor... is finished?"
As he finished speaking, his expression became dazed.
A great entity like Dragon Sparrow Manor, just finished like that?
Lu Zhanxian said nothing.
He gazed in the direction of Dragon Sparrow Manor, his expression somewhat wistful.
"Dragon Sparrow Manor, ah."
The Ten Great Demon Sects and the Six Great Immortal Sects were, in theory, of the same level.
Or rather, they represented the fourteen forces that survived the great war anchored by Heavenly Immortal Palace and Sanqing Hall.
Though these fourteen forces could further be divided into those with Divine Weapons and those without, and also aligned with different factions...
At least, they were once equals in status.
A top-tier power with over six hundred years of heritage, an ancient sect founded by Devas, today was breached by Lingxiao City, annihilated by Gu Jinlai. He still felt a sense of shared loss, a mourning as if one’s own type had fallen.
"In the land of Tiannan, a new star is steadily rising, showing unstoppable momentum."
Lu Zhanxian said, "Perhaps in terms of foundation, Lingxiao City is not worth a laugh, but... being the first to ascend to Heavenly Monarch in over forty years, Gu Jinlai himself represents that foundation!"
Zhang Liefeng opened his mouth, seeming to feel that emerging powerhouses like Gu Jinlai could never compare with their top sects.
The fall of Dragon Sparrow Manor, of the same rank as the Purgatory Sect, was right before their eyes.
No matter what he wanted to say, Lingxiao City had indeed achieved what their Purgatory Sect had not.
Thus, he closed his mouth and spoke no more rash words.
"Inform the Netherworld Sect of these tidings. Our standoff has now become meaningless."
As Lu Zhanxian spoke, he turned to Liu Jingtiao, "Venerable Daoist Liu, would you prepare to make a trip to Jiangzhou to express our Purgatory Sect’s congratulations... I hope... it will not have too much of an impact."
Liu Jingtiao knew the purpose of his go to Jiangzhou as Venerable Daoist Lu had sent him.
The Primordial Spirit Monarch organized his words and finally said, "He should understand our difficulties."
The Purgatory Sect need not deliver the message.
The Netherworld Sect’s interest in the battle between Dragon Sparrow Manor and Lingxiao City was in no way inferior to that of the Purgatory Sect.
Soon after they received the intelligence, the four Primordial Spirit Monarchs—You Quan, San Sheng, Blood Cloud, and Wu You—located on another peak of Jueyun Peak, had already received the information transmitted from Star State.
The only unknown was the means that Gu Jinlai had used.
Therefore, their guesses leaned more towards what Long Xuanguang had previously thought.
"Dragon Sparrow Manor, gone."
"Devas! Devas! There must be Devas behind Lingxiao City! It’s the Devas behind them who took action; otherwise, how could Lingxiao City have crushed Dragon Sparrow Manor, one of the Six Great Immortal Sects!"
"Lingxiao City... Gu Jinlai..."
The expressions of several Primordial Spirit Monarchs shifted as they looked toward the direction of Star State, or rather Jiangzhou, with deep wariness.
It took a while before their gazes fell back on You Quan.
"Senior brother, what next..."
"Since there’s someone behind Gu Jinlai, then, he most likely won’t act entirely according to the Purgatory Sect’s orders..."
As You Quan spoke, it seemed to confirm his guess, "Right, nominally, Gu Jinlai belongs to the Venerable Elders of the Purgatory Sect, but the Purgatory Sect really can’t command him. There have been conflicts between him and the Purgatory Sect. Some things that I couldn’t understand before now make sense when considering the possibility of Devas behind him."
After listening, San Sheng Ancestor pondered for a moment and said, "Although we speculate that Gu Jinlai has the aid of Devas, he ultimately originated from the Purgatory Sect..."
"Originated from the Purgatory Sect? If it weren’t for that Deva strongly supporting him, he would probably have died at the hands of Lin Xiao by now. Before that, the higher-ups of the Purgatory Sect had turned a blind eye to Lin Xiao’s actions. With these experiences, I don’t believe the Purgatory Sect and Gu Jinlai still have much of a relationship."
You Quan Ancestor said, followed by a sneer, "Relationships are cultivated, Junior brother, go on behalf of our Netherworld Sect to Jiangzhou and offer our congratulations to Gu Jinlai."
"We need not go to such lengths."
Ancestor Wu You frowned and said, "Don’t forget, the Divine Sword Conference is convening soon. At that time, regardless of who becomes the Sky Extreme Sword Master, the Ten Demonic Sects will unite as a whole. Even if Gu Jinlai has Devas behind him, what of it?"
"Better to dissolve grievances than to cultivate them. What we think in our hearts is one thing, but whether or not to act is another."
You Quan Ancestor looked at the others, "You all don’t want to provoke a foe in the Devas Realm, do you?"
His words left the Venerable Elders silent.
If a Divinity Transformation Great Cultivator faces off against a Primordial Spirit Monarch, there still might be a chance to turn the situation around. With five or six Divinity Transformation Flying Swords launched simultaneously, a Primordial Spirit Monarch would have to avoid their sharp edges.
It was like an insurmountable abyss.
They represented strength on all fronts.
Forget about five or six Primordial Spirit Monarchs, even if ten Monarchs joined forces to set up a Battle Formation, they might not be able to trouble a single Deva.
On the other hand, for a Deva...
If they wanted to kill those ten Monarchs, it would merely require some time.
After all, those ten Monarchs couldn’t always stay together in a Battle Formation.
If there was even a moment of laxity among them, a Deva could kill a Monarch in an extremely short span of time.
"I shall make a trip to Jiangzhou immediately," said San Sheng Ancestor.
Not just the Purgatory Sect and the Netherworld Sect.
Yellow Sky Sect and Cold Moon Sect, having already mustered troops to fortify their borders, heard the news of Lingxiao City and Dragon Sparrow Manor’s battle ending with Gu Jinlai’s great victory and quickly pulled their troops back.
Fearing that being too slow could lead to misunderstandings with Gu Jinlai, making this prominent Star State Governor turn his gaze upon them.
Unlike Dragon Sparrow Manor, Yellow Sky Sect and Cold Moon Sect had their own troubles that were already a headache, with devils lurking menacingly and preventing them from concentrating their sect’s full force on any single matter.
Under these circumstances, provoking Gu Jinlai and drawing the Star State’s army to attack could spell disaster for their sects from both the front and the rear.
Therefore, maintaining a good relationship with Gu Jinlai was considered the best course of action.
Especially for Cold Moon Sect, which immediately sent Fang Yumian with gifts to offer congratulations under the guise of allies.
The victor is king; the loser, the bandit.
Nobody would offend Lingxiao City, who was now in its prime, for the sake of Dragon Sparrow Manor, which was doomed to become a thing of the past.