The sacred land, Brahma Sound Pure Land.
A place beyond the mundane world, purest and most pristine, as if an immortal paradise. There are ten palaces within the Pure Land, the residences of the ten Sage Rulers.
There is also a tall mountain, eternally snow-capped at the peak, appearing sacred and majestic from afar. At this moment, there were eight figures atop the mountain peak, all women. They were aloof and independent like winter plum blossoms, fearless of the wind and snow.
"Blood Phoenix has died," the First Sage Ruler spoke first.
When she made a sound, there was an overwhelming sense of imperial grace. Were this not Brahma Sound Pure Land, one might suspect she was actually the empress of some nation.
The other Sage Rulers revealed looks of shock. How many years has it been since such a tragic accident resulting in the death of a Sage Ruler appeared in Brahma Sound Pure Land?!
One of the Sage Rulers closer to Blood Phoenix angrily said, "What exactly happened? I will avenge Blood Phoenix!"
The First Sage Ruler shook her head. "The Pure Land received Blood Phoenix's distress signal, she specifically named Sage Ruler Qing Qiu to go save her."
At these words, the expression on the face of the one close to Blood Phoenix became even uglier.
Sage Ruler Qing Qiu's secret art could extend the life of one on the brink of death by fifty years. Each person could only receive this art once in their lifetime. And Sage Ruler Qing Qiu's uses of this secret art were also limited.
Blood Phoenix had already reached the point of needing Qing Qiu's secret art. Everyone immediately realized her situation must have been extremely dire!
There were two types of secret arts in Brahma Sound Pure Land. One type consisted of internal authority restricted arts. For example, the ten great Sage Rulers could study all the authority restricted arts. Princess Chang Le passed the Pure Land's 108 Heavenly Tribulations and obtained rights equivalent to half that of a Sage Ruler, able to study half of the authority restricted arts.
As for ordinary disciples of the Pure Land, they could also obtain limited rights to study secret arts depending on their cultivation level and contributions.
The other type consisted of the personal, exclusive secret arts of the current Sage Rulers which were basically not taught during their lifetimes.
Unless the Sage Ruler had no hope of ascending to immortality and passed down the methods of cultivating their secret arts before their lifespan ended, becoming the first type of authority restricted secret arts.
Blood Phoenix's unexpected death resulted not only in Brahma Sound Pure Land losing a Sage Ruler, but also in all of Blood Phoenix's various secret arts such as the Blood Fairy Vanishing into the Void being lost!
"Sage Ruler Qing Qiu went to save her, so why did Blood Phoenix still die? Could it be Qing Qiu disregarded the Pure Land's ironclad rules and simply watched Blood Phoenix die without saving her?" The Sage Ruler close to Blood Phoenix raised her doubts again.
Sage Ruler Qing Qiu was aloof in personality. She basically didn't have any friends in Brahma Sound Pure Land. At this time, with her being doubted, not a single person present spoke up for Qing Qiu.
It was still the First Sage Ruler who explained. "It wasn't that Qing Qiu watched her die without saving. In fact, right after I notified Qing Qiu to go save her, the life tablet Blood Phoenix left in the Pure Land suddenly shattered. This proved her body had already perished and fallen. Even if Qing Qiu was willing to save her, she no longer had time."
The few Sage Rulers became even more astonished!
A distinguished Sage Ruler of the Pure Lands actually didn't even have the strength to await rescue?
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The First Sage Ruler continued. "The Pure Land cannot suffer the loss of a Sage Ruler for no reason. I will order Qing Qiu again to investigate the truth of the situation. Then we can decide how to handle the aftermath."
Brahma Sound Pure Land was in essence an organization formed from female cultivators banding together. If any woman from the Pure Land suffered harm outside, they would definitely investigate the reason.
Unless it was determined she was completely in the wrong and deserved her death, as long as there was the slightest injustice or unfairness, the Pure Land would send experts to avenge the dead!
This level of unity akin to blood ties caused Brahma Sound Pure Land to become an existence most practitioners wouldn't dare provoke lightly.
And the numerous secret arts left behind from generations of Sage Rulers caused the Pure Land's heritage to become increasingly profound, its strength increasingly powerful, until today where it towered high above the mundane world and was respected as a "Sacred Land"!
"Can that aloof Qing Qiu properly handle this matter? Why not let me go instead!"
The First Sage Ruler looked at the speaker. She knew her relationship with Blood Phoenix was quite close.
The First Sage Ruler shook her head again. "If you go, it would be the same as not giving Qing Qiu face. The Pure Land is one family, we are all as close as sisters. Why reject Qing Qiu so much?"
Hearing this, Blood Phoenix's friend no longer dared defy the First Sage Ruler and nodded in acquiescence.
The First Sage Ruler was very satisfied with her attitude. Smiling, she continued, "Everyone can rest assured. The sacredness of the Pure Land will not tolerate disrespect. I will investigate this matter to the end. There is also another matter we should seriously consider right now."
The other eight quickly understood the First Sage Ruler's meaning after some thought. There was an empty spot for Sage Ruler that needed to be filled as soon as possible.
Ever since Brahma Sound Pure Land was first established, its founding Sage Rulers set down the rule that there must always be ten Sage Rulers. This was to demonstrate that women didn't need to rely on men and could still be fully content and perfect!
"I'll leave Blood Phoenix's matter completely to Qing Qiu. Please discuss our options for the new Sage Ruler, sisters."
"Greetings Master, your disciple Liu Man wishes you immortal blessings without end." Even while kneeling, Princess Chang Le's movements were as elegant as a dance.
Yet Sage Ruler Qing Qiu remained expressionless, as if the person kneeling before her wasn't her sole personal disciple but a complete stranger.
The teacher-disciple relationship was meant to be like mother and daughter. This was indeed an ironclad rule of Brahma Sound Pure Land. But merely looking at their appearances, Qing Qiu and Chang Le resembled more like sisters.
Qing Qiu's beauty was tranquil and close to nature. Chang Le's beauty was elegant and of unapproachable nobility.
"You killed Blood Phoenix?" Sage Ruler Qing Qiu got straight to the point without any circumlocution, directly asking.
Princess Chang Le maintained her sweet smile. Almost without any hesitation, she immediately replied, "That's correct, this disciple personally ended Blood Phoenix."
"The Pure Land has an iron rule strictly forbidding mutual killing within this sacred land. Violators will have their cultivations crippled and souls seized to be tortured in the Unending Hell..."
Sage Ruler Qing Qiu still remained expressionless. She recited the rules of the Pure Land from memory as if simply reading from a book.
Qing Qiu then asked, "All those years ago after you passed the Pure Land's 108 Heavenly Tribulations, learning whatever secret arts you wished to learn, you then asked me to secretly revoke your discipleship and sever your ties with the Pure Land. You were waiting for this very day? So that I can't punish you under the Pure Land's rules?"
Princess Chang Le seemed prepared as if she immediately responded. "This disciple's heart lies within the mundane imperial courts. I was unable to cultivate the tranquility of the Pure Land. I left all those years ago simply to have less constraints, definitely not harboring any other schemes. As for why I acted against Blood Phoenix today, I also have my reasons with no other choice."
"The future husband this disciple has set her heart on, Duke Jin of Great Chu, Fan Li, bears irreconcilable hatred against Blood Phoenix. For the sake of the man I love, this disciple could only have Sage Ruler Blood Phoenix killed."
"As for the conflict between Fan Li and Sage Ruler Blood Phoenix, the cause was..."
Qing Qiu raised her hand to interrupt. "No need to continue. I will investigate the origins and truth myself. If Blood Phoenix was in the wrong, I will naturally let matters rest. If the fault lies with Fan Li, I will exterminate his entire clan to avenge Blood Phoenix. And that includes you as well."
Sage Ruler Qing Qiu spoke in an extremely indifferent tone, yet conveyed the most logical and harsh words.
Princess Chang Le wasn't despondent; instead, she sighed with relief in her heart. It worked. At least for now, Master Qing Qiu won't take action against him. This is the extent of what she can do for herself and Fan Li.
In a direct confrontation, Fan Li wouldn't stand a chance against Sage Ruler Qing Qiu. But in an investigation, Fan Li might be spared.
Therefore, after the princess killed the Blood Phoenix, she had to promptly meet with Qing Qiu and ascertain her stance.
"Fan Li, Fan Li, how should you repay me?" Princess Chang Le pondered. However, when she rose and looked up, she discovered that Master Qing Qiu had disappeared.
"Master has gone to Peng City..."