Invincible Dad-Chapter 593_1

"Nonsense!"

"How could we ever join forces with Xu Lai of the Moon Clan? He destroyed the Penglai Sword Pavilion! Today, we represent the Sword Dao Cultivators of the world to seek justice and demand an explanation for the Penglai Sword Pavilion!"

"That's right! You are the evidence of Xu Lai's collusion with the Moon Clan. Don't even think about escaping today."

The masters of the Holy Lands spoke out in fury. Among them, Qi Jiuyang and the Pavilion Master of Lingyun Pavilion launched the most aggressive attacks, their faces burning with humiliation at having been so thoroughly fooled.

The Moon Clan is utterly cunning and despicable! To think they knew to pretend to be Xu Lai's enemies to get close to us. Luckily, the Dragon Spirit that the Dragon Vein transformed into gave itself away, otherwise we would have been completely deceived.

BOOM!

The Sect Master of the Formation Sect, Shen Xun, threw an attack formation, and a terrifying aura suddenly spread out.

Ji Jie hastily dodged, filled with boundless fury.

To think that I, the dignified Crown Princess of the Moon Clan, who has played countless clansmen and Earthlings in the palm of my hand, would be capsized in the gutter today. Xu Lai's strength clearly surpasses the Golden Core Stage—he's in the Nascent Soul Realm or even stronger—yet he still resorts to such despicable schemes… What a terrifying mind! The plan to attack the city today must be stopped.

The more Ji Jie thought, the more anxious she became. She began to suspect that there might be an ambush in Chang'an City as well, especially since Xu Lai had never appeared at Mount Haitang from the very beginning.

What if… what if Xu Lai is in Chang'an City!?

At that thought, Ji Jie felt as if she had been plunged into an icy cavern, overcome by an unspeakable terror. She was supposed to be the one stopping Xu Lai, but now she was the one being cornered by eleven Golden Core Stage cultivators, unable to even send a warning back in time.

"My Moon Clan will remember the grudge of today, and I, Ji Jie, will remember it too!"

Empowered by the Blood Moon Technique, Ji Jie shook off the eleven masters of the Holy Lands and flew onto a disposable formation she had prepared in advance. After throwing down her fierce words, Ji Jie's figure vanished with the formation by the seaside, reappearing an instant later on an island thousands of kilometers away.

SPLASH.

The seawater surged onto the beach and quickly receded in a never-ending cycle. On the golden sand, only eleven people remained.

Shen Xun, Sect Master of the Formation Sect, sighed. "What a pity. She escaped. She was the proof of Xu Lai's collusion with the Moon Clan."

The area fell silent. Most of them had never wanted to get involved in this mess; after all, the cautionary tale of the Penglai Sword Pavilion's destruction was still fresh in their minds.

It was the Yunxiao Sect—the leading faction of the Three Sects and Nine Pavilions—that had issued the decree commanding them to retrieve the demon sword, Mojian Wuzheng, and kill Xu Lai as an example to others. At the time, the masters of the Three Sects, Eight Pavilions, and Eleven Sacred Lands were merely chilled by the fact that the Yunxiao Sect knew their location; they hadn't pondered why the Yunxiao Sect wanted Xu Lai dead.

Now, they understood.

The Yunxiao Sect had known about Xu Lai's collusion with the Moon Clan all along!

"One Faction, Three Sects, and Nine Pavilions… Although we stand apart from the Martial Dao of Hua Country, we are ultimately cultivators of this star."

"From ancient times to the present, under the leadership of the Yunxiao Sect, the thirteen Holy Lands have sent countless masters to guard Chang'an City. For what reason?"

"For the peace of the world."

"For the common people!"

Daoist Chi Huo of the Red Fire Pavilion, his face pale from severe mental strain, staggered to his feet. His voice was weak but firm.

"I know, my fellow Daoists, that you only came here reluctantly because of the Superior Sect's decree."

"But now, I, Daoist Chi Huo, earnestly implore you all to set aside the past grievances between our Holy Lands and join forces to slay the human traitor, Xu Lai."

"Let us restore a clear and bright sky to our Hua Country and protect this star!"

Following his powerful declaration, the other ten masters of the Holy Lands all grew somber and nodded in solemn agreement.

"Let us set the conscience for Heaven and Earth, secure the destiny of the people, carry on the ultimate teachings of the ancients, and forge everlasting peace for all generations!" Daoist Chi Huo declared resolutely.

Before, he had sent the condemnation letter to the Martial Dao Association in the name of the thirteen Holy Lands and gathered the other ten masters out of a selfish desire for revenge. This time, he had come, albeit reluctantly, because of the authority of the Superior Sect.

But now, faced with such a clear-cut matter of right and wrong, Daoist Chi Huo's killing intent toward Xu Lai was pure. His heart was filled with nothing but righteousness!

"To forge everlasting peace for all generations!" the other Holy Land masters roared in unison.

The next moment, a faint thud was heard.

Everyone turned to look, only to see Daoist Chi Huo collapse, having fainted from excessive blood loss.

"..."

There was a moment of silence.

Mo Lian, the Sect Master of the Dao Sect, hesitated. "What should we do now?"

"Save him first!" the Formation Sect's Master Shen Xun said gravely. "Then, notify all available forces of the Holy Lands. At dawn tomorrow, we attack Mount Haitang!"

...

Mount Haitang had become Mo Shan, the base of the Moon Clan.

This news spread overnight throughout the Three Sects and Eight Pavilions, but it did not reach the Martial Dao Association. Sect Master Shen Xun suspected there were spies for Xu Lai within the association, such as the Martial Ancestor named Tan Chang and Gao He of the East Sea Wushu Association.

「Haitang Court.」

In the room, Ruan Tang was lying on top of Xu Lai, reading a book. Feeling drowsy, she closed it and placed it on the bedside table.

"Honey, let's go to sleep," she said softly.

"..."

Xu Lai didn't speak, staring out the window in a daze.

"Xu Lai? Honey?" Ruan Tang called a few more times with no response. She nudged him. "What's wrong?"

"Oh, it's nothing." Xu Lai came back to his senses and said with a wry smile, "I was just watching a farce unfold."

Xu Lai had a bit of a headache. He hadn't done anything, yet Ji Jie called him despicable, and those cultivators from Earth called him despicable. This was all too much.

"This is all your fault," Xu Lai couldn't help but send a thread of Divine Sense to scold the Dragon Spirit of Mount Haitang.

Dragon Spirit Xiao Hai felt extremely wronged. It was one thing for that group to fight at the foot of Mount Haitang, but that corpse dragon had crushed one of the mistress's favorite Haitang flowers. How could it not intervene?

"Forget it, forget it."

Xu Lai didn't want to deal with the matters down the mountain. He simply turned off the lights in the room and hugged Ruan Tang's soft, supple body.

"Honey," he chuckled mischievously, "it's still early. Why don't we have another little meeting?"

"No way!" Ruan Tang said anxiously. "We're sleeping. If you don't behave, you can go sleep on the sofa."

She was genuinely scared. If they carried on until dawn like they had on other nights, how could she possibly go to work tomorrow?

"Fine," Xu Lai pouted. "But honey, I think you should take up cultivation."

"Pfft," Ruan Tang retorted. "And let you bully me even more?"

"How is it bullying when it's between a husband and wife? That's called mutual affection."

"..."

Ruan Tang could never win an argument against the thick-skinned Xu Lai. She changed the subject. "Xu Lai, tell me a bedtime story."

"Sure."

Xu Lai wrapped his arms around Ruan Tang and whispered, "Once upon a time, there was a mountain. This mountain had no name, but it was home to a small sect called Heavenly Court."

Ruan Tang perked up her ears to listen. But to her surprise, Xu Lai didn't talk about his sect; he spoke of something else.

"Travel west from Heavenly Court for 30,000 li, and you will find a peach grove stretching for dozens of li. Local villagers say that a Fairy fell from the heavens there..."

Xu Lai recounted a tale he had heard during his solitary travels, a hundred thousand years ago, after he had single-handedly destroyed the Hehuan Valley with his sword.