Vol 2 Chapter 88 – Peculiar Tastes

Zheng Fa hadn’t expected that after inviting thoseNascent Soul cultivators, Martial Uncle Pang would still be wary of them.

“I told you before,” Pang said with a smirk, seemingly amused by Zheng Fa’s surprise. “Some sects within theHundred Immortals Allianceare unreliable.”

“In fact, they probably oppose Senior Sister Zhang forming herNascent Souleven more than the demonic sects do.”

“Martial Uncle, it’s just one moreNascent Soul cultivator…”

“Do you think Senior Sister Zhang is anordinaryNascent Soul cultivator?” Pang sneered. “She could already contend with Nascent Soul experts while still at theGolden Corestage. Once she forms herNascent Soul, she’ll be stronger than me by at least thirty percent—easily among the top ranks of theHundred Immortals Alliance.”

“Then why did you invite these people?”

“I gathered nearly everyNascent Soul cultivatorfrom the alliance in the area,” Pang said coolly. “And, as expected, some of them are already harboring ulterior motives.”

Zheng Fa nodded in understanding. “So they’re not just unreliable allies… they could actually become enemies?”

Zheng Fa agreed. He trusted Pang’s judgment.

And if these cultivators had their own agendas, who knew what they had heard? There could very well be collusion between the enemy and these so-called “righteous” cultivators.

“But you can’t stay here,” Pang said with a sigh. “There are too manyNascent Soul cultivatorsaround. I can’t protect you at all times… and frankly, I’m not capable of it either. Senior Sister Zhang’s breakthrough happened too suddenly—if I had known earlier, I would have sent you back to the mountain first.”

Zheng Fa shook his head.

That was impossible.

The moment Senior Sister Zhang’sNascent Soul Phenomenonappeared,Jiushan Sectwas bound to draw attention.

Going back alone would be suicide.

“You’re in the most dangerous position right now,” Pang continued, frowning. “First, you’re a well-known genius in our sect. Some of them might have their eyes on you already.”

“Second, your close relationship with Senior Sister Zhang is no secret…”

“Martial Uncle, are you saying someone might use me to sabotage her breakthrough?”

“There’s aHeart Demon Tribulationinvolved in forming aNascent Soul.” Pang nodded. “They’ll definitely try to exploit it.”

“For theGreat Freedom Demonic Sect, killing any of us fromJiushan Sectwould be a win. If they can’t kill Senior Sister Zhang, attackingFive Dragons Palaceis the next best thing—probably an inevitability. If they kill us first, she’ll lose her support. By the time she completes herNascent Soul, she’ll be isolated and much easier to deal with.”

“As for those so-called righteousNascent Soul cultivators,” Pang sneered, “their best option… is simply to kill you and make sure Senior Sister Zhang doesn’t survive her tribulation.”

Zheng Fa fell silent.

“Inside, we have untrustworthyNascent Soul cultivators. Outside, we have theGreat Freedom Demonic Sect,” Pang said, shaking his head. “Five Dragons Palaceis under siege from both within and without.”

His eyes glowed silver as he scanned the palace, taking in each disciple—especially his own students.

His expression was unreadable, his surveillance completely open.

Zheng Fa had nothing to say.

It would be false to claim Pang didn’t care about his disciples.

But it was also undeniable—Pang was prepared tosacrificethem.

He had warned Zheng Fa about the danger of being targeted, but they both knew—

Once aNascent Soul-levelbattle broke out, no one inFive Dragons Palacewould be safe.

Zheng Fa was just a more obvious target.

Pang’s reluctance to let him stay wasn’t an act, but as Sun Daoyu had said—

If he had to choose between Zheng Fa’s survival andJiushan Sect, he would choose the sect every single time.

“Martial Uncle.”

“Hmm?”

“Let me lead the disciples into theThunder Pool.”

Pang was stunned and looked at him.

Zheng Fa explained his reasoning.

“The senior brothers have already trained extensively inDao Struggle Immortal. They’ve undergone special training under Lin Bufan and are highly familiar with theThunder Pool’s environment.”

“More importantly, in theThunder Pool, high-level cultivators have their power significantly restricted.”

“In that setting, the senior brothers might not be a liability. They could even become anasset.”

“Anasset?” Pang’s brows furrowed.

“I want toblock the Great Freedom Demonic Sect’s entrance.”

Zheng Fa’s voice was firm.

“…Block the entrance?” Pang blinked, staring at him. His eyes slowly brightened.

Then his face suddenly twisted in confusion.

“…Are youreallyJunior Nephew Zheng?”

“?”

“Since when did you have thegutsto pull something like this?”

“I just need Martial Uncle to lend me some talismans.”

“Talismans?”

Entrance to the Great Freedom Demonic Sect’s Secret Realm.

A massive group of demonic sect disciples stood inside the gate, seemingly preparing for a large-scale operation.

They looked both tense and excited.

Most were at theFoundation Establishmentstage, with a fewGolden Corecultivators mixed in, barking orders and maintaining order.

At the head of one of the groups, Lin Yangtian frowned slightly, a hint of unease creeping into his heart.

TheThunder Pooloutside placed severe restrictions onGolden Core cultivators.

“Yangtian, what’s on your mind?”

TheGolden Core cultivatornext to him—someone familiar—noticed his expression and asked.

“I’m worried about attackingJiushan Sect,” Lin Yangtian admitted.

“Hah! What isJiushan Sectto us?” TheGolden Core cultivatorscoffed. “If we hadn’t been trapped by theThunder Pool, how could we have tolerated their presence for so long?”

“I even heard that some people in theThunder Pool Markethave placed bounties on our sect members’ blood. Utterly intolerable! Now that we’re attacking, we must let them know that ourHoly Sectis not to be humiliated!”

Lin Yangtian remained expressionless.

To be honest, he didn’t care.

So what if they were insulted?

Hiding in a secret realm for years didn’t exactly do wonders for their reputation.

The real reason for their large-scale mobilization today wasZhang Wuyi.

She was about to form herNascent Soul, and that alone had thrown the higher-ups of theHoly Sectinto a fit of painful memories. They seemed determined to eliminate her at any cost.

The other reason was the bounty placed byJiushan Sectin theThunder Pool Market.

That bounty had made life miserable for many disciples of theGreat Freedom Demonic Sect—they didn’t even dare to leave their own doors for a while.

It washumiliating.

Lin Yangtian still frowned, though.

Something aboutJiushan Sectfeltoff—

His subordinates, Lin Bufan and his uncle, had been exposed last time under inexplicable circumstances. He had never been able to figure out why.

“What’s there to think about?Jiushan Sectis leagues beneath our Holy Sect. They only have oneNascent Soul cultivator, and that’s it. This battle is practically a reward.”

A fellow disciple beside him grinned.

“If you hadn’t visitedJiushan Sectbefore and learned about them, there’s no way you’d be leading this attack. I heard that even thoughThunder Pool Marketis newly established, it’s wealthy. If we capture it, we’ll make a fortune.”

Lin Yangtian finally smiled.

Nowthatwas something he could get behind.

Fighting for thehonor of the Holy Sect?

Not interested.

But fighting for thewealth of the Thunder Pool Market?

That was something he could definitely take the lead on.

He signaled to his squad ofFoundation Establishmentcultivators, and they began stepping through the secret realm’s gateway.

The next moment—

A commotion erupted ahead.

Several figures wereretreatingat full speed.

“What’s going on?”

Lin Yangtian’s expression darkened.

“Enemy attack!”

AFoundation Establishmentcultivator at the front shouted.

“They’re blocking the secret realm’s gate—three of our senior brothers are already dead!”

Lin Yangtian exchanged a bewildered look with theGolden Core cultivatorbeside him.

Wait…

Weren’ttheysupposed to be the ones attackingJiushan Sect?

Why weretheythe ones getting attacked?!

“Who is it?”

“It looks likeJiushan Sect!”

“…?”

Why are the outsiders even more aggressive than us?!

Zheng Fa stood with his fellowJiushan Sectdisciples in front of a black stone archway, their faces tense.

The archway was small, only wide enough for two or three people to pass through at a time.

Blocking the entranceseemeddangerous—

But in reality, it was muchsaferthan staying insideFive Dragons Palace.

Inside theThunder Pool, anyone aboveFoundation Establishmentwas significantly weakened.

Sun Daoyu stood nearby, visibly anxious.

“Junior Brother, shouldn’t we wait for more of them to come out before we attack?”

“Senior Brother, do we havethatmany people?”

Zheng Fa was speechless.

Sun Daoyu glanced around and fell silent.

Jiushan Secthad fewer than fiftyFoundation Establishmentdisciples altogether.

Now he understood Zheng Fa’s point.

“We strike the moment they step out—all at once!” Zheng Fa commanded. “Don’t be stingy with the talismans. Use as many as you want!”

Behind him, Li Nuo led a group of disciples, rapidly crafting talismans with their seals.

“Oh, right,” Zheng Fa added, “what about the corpses of those demonic sect disciples we just killed? Drag them over. No need to waste them.”

Sun Daoyu’s lips twitched.

What kind of ‘use the enemy’s resources’ strategy was this?

Something aboutJiushan Sect’stactics didn’t feel quiteright.

But…

Glancing at the endless stream of talismans being produced behind him, he couldn’t deny—

It was strangely reassuring.

Before long, the demonic sect disciples inside the secret realm realized their gateway was blocked.

At first, a fewFoundation Establishmentcultivators tried rushing out—

They were promptly annihilated by Zheng Fa and the others.

Seeing this, the demonic sect decided thatFoundation Establishmentcultivators were too fragile and sent out twoGolden Core cultivatorsinstead.

AGolden Core cultivator’s bodywas far more resilient.

These two emerged from the archway shrouded in black mist, charging forward while enduring a torrential rain ofMysterious-Grade Talismans.

“Junior Brother!”

Seeing their sheer ferocity, manyJiushan Sectdisciples turned pale with fear.

Zheng Fa observed carefully.

The two weren’timmuneto the talismans—

They were simplytankingthem with their enhanced physique.

More demonic sect disciples followed behind, using theGolden Core cultivatorsto clear the way as they poured into theThunder Pool.

Moments ago, they had beentrappedinside their secret realm, too afraid to even stick their heads out.

Now, their faces were filled with exhilaration as they surged forward.

Zheng Fa glanced at his fellow disciples and whispered,

“Fall back.”

TheJiushan Sectdisciples hesitated but complied due to their trust in him.

Now, only the twoGolden Core cultivatorsand a group ofFoundation Establishmentdisciples continued charging forward.

Zheng Fa watched them approach, then suddenly—

He took off his Daoist robe and carefully placed it into his storage bag.

The twoGolden Core cultivatorsabruptlyfroze in place.

Their expressions shifted—

As if they had justremembered something.

Zheng Fa smiled.

A single talisman flew from his fingertips into the thunderclouds above.

It was aThunderfire Talisman—an Earth-Grade Talisman containing the divine sense and power of aGolden Core cultivator.

In an instant—

The storm clouds above roared like an enraged beast.

TheGolden Core cultivators’ divine sense within the talisman hadprovokedthe thunderstorm.

Lightning poured down like a torrential downpour.

Within a hundred-zhang radius around Zheng Fa—

The entire battlefield transformed into a playground for thunder.

The twoGolden Core cultivators’ expressions shifted fromfiercetostunned—

And then to absolute terror.

Finally—

They turned and ran.

But in theThunder Pool, they couldn’t usemagical artifactsordivine abilities.

Zheng Fa caught up in no time.

Two bolts of heavenly lightning struck down—

BothGolden Core cultivatorswere severely injured in an instant.

The remaining demonic sect disciples saw Zheng Fa advancing toward them, wreathed in endless lightning—

Their faces turned pale, and they immediately retreated back into the secret realm.

The problem was…

When they were charging out, they thought the archway wastoo small.

Now that they were trying to squeeze back in—

It felteven smaller.

From a distance.

Yan Wushuang, along with twoTrue DisciplesfromHaori MountainandTaishang Dao, observed the battle.

Seeing Zheng Fa’s actions, all three were momentarilystunned.

Chu Tianque, fromHaori Mountain, looked at Zheng Fa, then at Yan Wushuang.

After a long silence, he finally asked,

“…Senior Brother Yan, do you have some kind of connection with this Daoist Zheng?”

Yan Wushuang was equally baffled.

Wasn’t this exactly his own battle strategy?!

After thinking deeply for a moment, Yan Wushuang suddenly burst into laughter.

“Daoist Zheng—histastestruly match mine perfectly!”

“…Tastes?”

The other two exchanged glances, clearly knowing exactly what kind of “taste” he meant.

Their expressions shifted.

Looking at Zheng Fa again, they instinctively took a step back.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by lotustale.com