The shrill alarms shattered the serenity of the Eastern Yang Mountains.
A moment later, countless people flew out, someone shouting, “Who is so audacious as to break into my Great Sun Sect!?”
Tang Jie had no choice but to stop. Turning to the crane spirit, he said, “I say: can you not misrepresent the truth? Don’t forget what we agreed on.”
The crane spirit raised its neck and crowed, “Regardless, it’s true that you broke through the formation.”
Tang Jie was rendered speechless by the crane spirit’s shameless conduct. Meanwhile, ten-some people had flown over and surrounded Tang Jie.
“Who is so bold as to intrude on my Great Sun Sect?!” a majestic voice rang out, though it contained no killing intent.
This wasn’t because the people of the Great Sun Sect were polite, but because humanity was in peril from the Nether Domain invasion, and it was understood that they needed to unite all of humanity against their common foe. This understanding made the aloof Great Sun Sect that stood at the peak of this world put down its pride and become humble and polite. Even though they knew that this was an intruder, they did not immediately attack.
In the past, the crime of intruding on the sect alone would have been enough for them to attack, with any further questions to be saved for the interrogation.
Tang Jie bowed and said, “This one is Tang Jie. I have a matter for which I wish to see the Great Sun Sect Master.”
Tang Jie knew that this uniform was worn by the Demon Hunter cultivators of the Great Sun Sect. The Demon Hunters were trained by the Great Sun Sect to deal with the Primordial Fog Calamity. They cultivated the sect’s secret arts and possessed impressive combat power. They also served as the guardians of the Great Sun Sect.
Of course, nobody had expected that a Nether Domain invasion would come first. Everyone had been caught completely off guard, and the Demon Hunters had also suffered terrible losses.
This young man was a Demon Hunter, and when he spoke, he commanded such prestige that everyone else remained silent.
Tang Jie explained his purpose in coming.
All the cultivators stared at each other in amazement when they heard that Tang Jie was coming to strengthen the Flame Yang Formation, and then they all burst out in laughter.
Tang Jie could only helplessly sigh.
As expected, the crowd began to make their opinions known.
“Where did this kid come from, daring to say that he can help my Great Sun Sect with its formation?”
“Just a Spirit Ring junior, so even if he’s a master of formations, what can he really do?”
“The arrogance in his tone!”
“This is what it means to not know how high the heavens are or how thick the earth is.”
Only the Demon Hunter cultivator remained silent, pensively gazing at the guardian formation behind Tang Jie.
A few moments later, the cultivator said, “This guardian formation… How did you get through it?”
All the mocking came to such a sudden stop that it was like someone had pressed “pause”.
Everyone looked at Tang Jie in realization as the significance of those words dawned upon them.
Tang Jie smiled. “Sir, why not ask the guardian formation’s crane spirit?”
The Demon Hunter cultivator nodded and said, “Little White!”
The crane spirit reluctantly manifested, its head drooping.
The Demon Hunter seemed to already know some of the story based on its appearance alone, but he still asked, “Tell me just how he managed to get through the formation.”
The crane spirit unwillingly replied, “Of the traps in the formation, he avoided forty percent, solved thirty percent, triggered twenty percent, swiftly broke through ten percent, and only once did he use force…”
The assembled cultivators gasped.
There was a method to breaking through a formation. Some people used their insight and spell arts, others used their strength and cultivation, and still others used their understanding of formations. If this person wanted to prove their formation mastery, the third option was the only choice.
The crane spirit’s recount showed that Tang Jie had almost perfectly accomplished what only a formation master could.
It was “almost” because of that one time he used force.
The Demon Hunter asked, “Where did he use force?”
The crane spirit’s voice fell. “The four… four tree sprites?”
What?
The cultivators were stunned.
The Demon Hunter said, “The four sprites protect the core of the formation and do not attack on their own. Why did the four sprites encircle him?”
The crane spirit said nothing.
The Demon Hunter saw the crane spirit’s expression and then saw how composed Tang Jie appeared. Understanding the crane spirit’s personality, he pointed at it and guessed, “You beast, what trouble did you cause this time? Did the four spirits suffer any damage?”
The crane spirit lowered its head and stammered, “One… one… was lost.”
What?
The cultivators were furious.
The four tree sprites were to protect the core, and one of them had been lost!
The crane spirit frantically shouted, “It was him! He did it! He destroyed a tree sprite with only one attack.”
The cultivators gasped again.
The tree sprites were all at the Heart Demon level, so how could a single Spirit Ring cultivator destroy one in a single strike?
Was he not at Spirit Ring but actually some Titan in disguise?
The cultivators’ hearts grew cold at this thought, and they warily gazed at Tang Jie, some of them even preparing to strike, the air suddenly brimming with tension.
Tang Jie continued to calmly stand there.
Everything was frozen.
A battle could erupt at any moment.
At this moment, a fiery cloud drifted over, and as it neared, it turned into a green-eyed, white-haired elder, seated upon a lotus of flames.
The cultivators prostrated. “Greetings, Sect Master!”
This was the Great Sun Sect Master, Yuan Tianzhong.
Yuan Tianzhong nodded and said, “I understand what happened here. Little White acted above its station and ordered the four sprites to interfere, breaking the rules. Our honored guest cannot be blamed for the loss of a tree sprite.”
Tang Jie bowed. “Sect Master, thank you for your understanding.”
Yuan Tianzhong chuckled. “For an honored guest to come from afar to support this lowly sect, it is not right to make trouble for you. But while this old man need not quibble over the loss of the tree sprite, I must ask that you return the sprite core.”
A thousand-year-old sprite core was valuable, but compared to the future of the Great Sun Sect, of all the humans of the Flame Yang Domain, it was too insignificant.
Yuan Tianzhong asked for the sprite core from Tang Jie because he was accepting Tang Jie’s kindness, but he didn’t think that Tang Jie would actually be able to be of much help. Thus, he was forgiven for the tree sprite but had to hand over the sprite core.
Tang Jie didn’t mind, tossing the sprite core over to the Demon Hunter with a smile. “I was surrounded by four sprites at the time, so I had no choice but to strike with all my might. I am grateful to Sect Master for understanding. This item belongs to Sect Master Yuan, and Tang Jie would not dare to take it.”
Yuan Tianzhong’s avatar examined the sprite core and nodded. “To destroy a tree sprite while at Spirit Ring with one strike shows you have a power that cannot be underestimated. Twelfth Brother, bring Mister Tang to the Spiral Flame. I wish to see him personally.”
“As you command!” The Demon Hunter bowed, upon which Yuan Tianzhong’s avatar transformed back into a fiery cloud and flew off.
That Demon Hunter called Twelfth Brother gave Tang Jie a complicated look and said, “Sir, please follow me.”
His tone had become much more polite.
The feat of destroying one of the guardian tree sprites at Spirit Ring was an incredible one, regardless of the circumstances, and even the Demon Hunters, who were trained to fight demons and were the strongest of warriors, couldn’t replicate it. This was why Twelfth Brother was so respectful to Tang Jie.
The crowd dispersed, and Twelfth Brother led Tang Jie into the city.
As they walked, Twelfth Brother said, “Sir possesses astonishing cultivation, but I have never heard of you before. Might I inquire as to your master and sect?”
Tang Jie understood that Twelfth Brother was essentially gathering information for Yuan Tianzhong, as his own status was too high for him to do such things.
Tang Jie replied, “It’s not strange that you don’t know me. I’m not of this domain.”
Twelfth Brother seemed to be struck by lightning, his entire body shuddering. “You came from another domain? Then is Sir…”
Only Titans could travel between domains.
The Domain Astral Winds of the Flame Yang Domain were weaker than those of the Rosecloud Domain, but being able to go through them still required one to be at the peak of Violet Palace.
Tang Jie saw what he was thinking and shook his head. “Don’t misunderstand. I am not at Violet Palace, but came here by mere happenstance.”
“I see,” Twelfth Brother sighed, in both relief and disappointment. If this were really a peak Violet Palace True Lord, at least humanity would have another powerful ally, no?
Tang Jie saw his disappointment and chuckled. “No matter where I come from or what my cultivation level is, we’re all humans here. Isn’t that what’s most important?”
Twelfth Brother seemed to wake from a dream and bowed deeply to Tang Jie. “Sir is absolutely correct. This Twelfth Brother was wrong.”
He seemed like a very sincere man.
The two of them passed through the city and arrived at the Spiral Flame.
A young cultivator in white martial uniform was standing in front of the tower, possessing what seemed to be Soul Transformation cultivation. But when Tang Jie gazed at him, he suddenly felt an immense pressure.
This young man was suppressing an astonishing amount of energy, as if his form concealed an ocean. The brief moment of interaction made Tang Jie feel like he was being drowned in a tidal wave of energy.
A chief-level Soul Transformation cultivator!
The young man seemed to sense something and gazed at Tang Jie in surprise. “This one is Wu Xiuqian. I greet Sir Tang. For Sir Tang to be able to cause ripples in my Spirit Sea shows that you are no ordinary figure, so it is no wonder the sect master wished for me to receive you here.”
“So it is Hunter Captain Wu! This Tang Jie pays his respects.”
He had been in the Flame Yang Domain for long enough to know some things about the Great Sun Sect.
Sect Master Yuan Tianzhong was a peak Violet Palace cultivator, his status here akin to that of Yun Tianlan in the Basking Moon Sect, though he was in the forefront rather than in the background.
Under him were four Violet Palace True Lords and fifty peak Celestial Heart cultivators, the twelve strongest of these being chiefs. Other than the lack of an Immortal Platform expert, they were comparable to the sects of Rosecloud. Wu Xiuqian was the leader of the Demon Hunters and one of the twelve chiefs of the Great Sun Sect, a member of the upper echelon. That he was personally receiving Tang Jie showed just how much respect Yuan Tianzhong was showing Tang Jie.
Wu Xiuqian invited Tang Jie into the tower.