Chapter 465: State Preceptor of Great Yu: The Dao Seeking Sect Must Die

Within the masterless grotto-heaven, the elder whose face was lined with deep furrows stood up abruptly upon hearing the report from his subordinate, his terrifying aura sweeping through every single inch of space.

"What? Daybreak has been captured?!"

Seeing the State Preceptor's wrath, the subordinate steeled himself and said, "Yes, Venerable Daybreak was captured by the Great Xia. Several of our brothers hidden in Dingxin City have lost contact, and it is highly likely that they have been captured as well."

Venerable Daybreak was a crucial martial force for the restoration of the Great Yu, a blade meant to cut deep into the Great Xia; yet, who could have anticipated that before he could even carve a single piece of flesh from the Great Xia, he would be captured by them instead.

Damn it!

"I have seen the rules governing Dingxin City; they are indestructible. Outsiders should have absolutely no way of knowing what transpired inside, and the Great Xia should not have been able to react in time. Tell me the details of the news you gathered—how on earth was Daybreak discovered?"

The news had arrived far too suddenly, and in his haste, the subordinate had found it difficult to unearth more information.

"Venerable Daybreak was discovered by Daoist Buyu, the Sect Master of the Wendao Sect."

"Daoist Buyu?"

As the leader of one of the five great immortal sects, the State Preceptor had kept an eye on Daoist Buyu. The man's movements were erratic, and he had never been able to fathom the man's true intentions—he was a troublesome cultivator indeed.

"State Preceptor?" Seeing the State Preceptor murmuring to himself, the subordinate paused.

"It is nothing. Continue."

"Daoist Buyu used some unknown method to detect an anomaly in Dingxin City and entered the city entirely alone. Since Daoist Buyu was merely at the Body Integration stage, Venerable Daybreak did not pay him much mind. For several days in a row, Daoist Buyu simply told stories in a teahouse, showing no other signs of activity."

"Yet, for reasons unknown, a paper crane managed to bore its way into the barrier of rules that Venerable Daybreak had deployed, causing a loophole to appear in the rule-bound sky. This was precisely what gave Daoist Buyu his opportunity."

"Daoist Buyu executed the 'Sword Opening the Heavenly Gate,' cleaving the barrier apart, and clashed with Venerable Daybreak. The two fought a fierce, indistinguishable battle, but the Venerable possessed the superior skill and defeated Daoist Buyu. Just as the Venerable was about to execute him, Jiugong of the Luoshui Guards rushed to the scene and put a stop to the Venerable's actions."

"Originally, the Venerable could have escaped, but unfortunately, he was not the only one to arrive; there was another cultivator at the Tribulation Transcendence stage, along with over thirty at the Body Integration stage from the five great immortal sects, and about a dozen of the same stage from the imperial court."

The State Preceptor sighed, raising his hand to signal that there was no need to go on; the aftermath could be guessed without being spoken aloud.

Faced with such an overwhelming number of cultivators, it was utterly impossible for Daybreak to escape—even taking his own life would have been difficult.

The subordinate spoke with indignant resentment, "If those people hadn't rushed over, the Venerable would certainly have been able to flee!"

The State Preceptor shook his head, knowing the matter was far from being as simple as imagined, and calmly analyzed the causes and effects of the incident.

"There are three suspicious points in this matter."

"First, why did Daoist Buyu enter Dingxin City? Was it truly a coincidence?"

"Second, how did a paper crane bore into the barrier and cause a loophole to appear? Who was the person who folded that paper crane, and what was their cultivation level?"

"Third, how is it that the people from the court and the immortal sects happened to appear in Jizhou at that exact moment? Was it a coincidence, or a premeditated plot?"

"If you think about it carefully, these three suspicious points can be chained together."

The subordinate had been subservient and unable to lift his head before the State Preceptor, but in truth, he was a grand old monster of the Body Integration stage, a powerful hero who had once stirred up the winds and clouds during the early days of the Great Yu, possessing extraordinary wits. He had merely been stunned by the sudden news, and now, with the State Preceptor's guidance, he came to his senses.

Following the State Preceptor's line of thought, the subordinate analyzed, "Before entering Dingxin City, Daoist Buyu had already discovered the anomaly within it. He contacted the imperial court's faction in advance, arranging for them to lie in ambush in the surrounding area while he entered the city alone to investigate. The two parties also made an agreement: if there was no news within a few days, those outside the city would use a paper crane to shatter the barrier."

"A few days later, the paper crane bored into the barrier, and the great battle erupted!"

The State Preceptor nodded slightly; his subordinate was clever enough to think along the same lines as he did, and he proceeded to add a few more points.

"A paper crane does not seem like something a Tribulation Transcendence cultivator could deploy; it ought to be the work of someone at the Half-Immortal level."

The State Preceptor tapped the armrest of his chair, a faint expression of relief flitting across his face. "At that time in Dingxin City, there must have been a figure of the Half-Immortal level presiding over the trap. One Half-Immortal, two Tribulation Transcendence cultivators, and over forty at the Body Integration stage—is this a lineup meant to catch Daybreak? No, they came to catch me!"

The State Preceptor continued, "I have studied Daoist Buyu before, and I found his behavior to be devious, bizarre, and entirely unpredictable. As a Sect Master, why would he abandon the Wendao Sect to its own devices and instead travel all over the land telling stories? Is this the sort of thing a Body Integration cultivator, the master of a prominent sect, would do?"

The subordinate nodded; he too was at the Body Integration stage and the master of a sect, and he would absolutely never do such a thing.

"It is only through this incident that I have finally unraveled his true purpose!"

"He feigns traveling around to tell stories, but in truth, he is searching for our tracks!"

Hearing the State Preceptor's explanation, the subordinate felt a sudden wave of enlightenment, realizing that the State Preceptor's wisdom was indeed far beyond his own.

"So that is how it is!"

"This Daoist Buyu—no, not just Daoist Buyu, but the entire Wendao Sect—is an obstacle to the restoration of our Great Yu!"

"Venerable Scourge was captured by the people of the Wendao Sect during the Qingzhou Grand Ceremony."

"Huang Ming, whom we planted in the Corpse Refining Sect, had his identity exposed by a disciple of the Wendao Sect, forcing His Majesty to move ahead of schedule, which led to the plan's failure, and to this day, we cannot contact the three of them!"

"And now, we have Daoist Buyu searching everywhere for our whereabouts."

"Every step of our plan is obstructed by the Wendao Sect. If it happened once or twice, it could be called a coincidence, but to happen three times like this proves that the destiny of the Wendao Sect is actively blocking the rising destiny of the Great Yu!"

"The Wendao Sect has a history of one hundred and twenty thousand years; it was established during our Great Yu Dynasty, yet now it opposes our Great Yu at every turn—it truly knows no discretion!"

"Do they honestly believe that by throwing in their lot with the imperial court and forming the so-called five great immortal sects, they can preserve their lives?"

A murderous intent flared in the State Preceptor's eyes, causing his subordinate to shudder.

The last time the State Preceptor had shown such an expression was one hundred and eighty thousand years ago, when the State Preceptor was in secluded cultivation and most of the Tribulation Transcendence cultivators had fallen into a deep slumber, waiting for the arrival of a great era.

Six Tribulation Transcendence cultivators had seized the opportunity to join forces; possessed by grand ambitions and harboring treacherous designs, they vainly attempted to change the dynasty.

When six Tribulation Transcendence cultivators joined forces, even the heavens and earth changed color; who could possibly withstand them? City after city fell, and the rebel army advanced irresistibly, singing songs of victory all the way, until even the imperial capital was lost.

It was precisely at that moment that the State Preceptor broke out of his seclusion, fighting one against six and gaining the absolute upper hand, ultimately slaying the six Tribulation Transcendence cultivators one by one and burying a million rebel troops; above the Central Continent, the bloody clouds did not scatter for three whole days.

Was the State Preceptor going to take action against the Wendao Sect this time?

The subordinate clenched his fists in excitement; it was time for the Wendao Sect to witness the wrath of the Great Yu!

Even six Tribulation Transcendence cultivators were no match for the State Preceptor; could a mere Wendao Sect possibly endure the State Preceptor's fury?

The State Preceptor rose slowly, looking like a dormant prehistoric beast awakening—an awakening that would roar through heaven and earth and shatter the void, letting the world witness the terror and majesty of the colossus.

His tone was decisive as he commanded his subordinate, "Gather everyone and prepare to move!"

The subordinate looked at the State Preceptor with uncontained excitement. "Are we going to take action against the Wendao Sect?"

The State Preceptor looked at his subordinate as if looking at an absolute idiot. "Daybreak has been captured, which means the location of this grotto-heaven will definitely become known to the Great Xia. Naturally, we must relocate our base."

The subordinate: "..."

(End of Chapter)