Chapter 294 - 205: Bountiful Harvest

Chapter 294: Chapter 205: Bountiful Harvest

Qin Zhenyang gave a brief report, then said:

"...Master, I don’t know what happened. My junior brothers and sisters and I were all teleported out together."

Li Xingtuo raised an eyebrow, finding it odd.

"That shouldn’t have happened."

Some of the Grandmasters, unwilling to give up, frantically attacked the spot where the large hole had been, digging several zhang deep into the yellow sand. However, they found nothing but more sand beneath.

The other Grandmasters were not surprised. They didn’t need to see it with their own eyes to sense that there was only yellow sand below, with no Treasure Tower. The entrance had opened there, but it connected to a separate ruin space.

’The ancient ruins are just... gone? They’ve suddenly closed?’

The Grandmasters were reluctant to accept this, but the ruins were mysterious. Nothing that happened there was truly surprising, so they could only accept it helplessly.

Lu the Third circled the basin, his expression shifting several times. Unable to restrain himself, he grabbed a disciple from the Western Regions and barked:

"Where’s Tian Yong? Have you seen Tian Yong?!"

The disciple’s face went pale, terrified by Lu the Third’s violent aura. He stammered:

"Grandmaster... Grandmaster Lu..."

But that disciple was not without his own master, who was also a Grandmaster. He slapped Lu the Third’s hand away and said coldly:

"Lu the Third, you can’t find your son, so you take it out on my disciple?"

Lu the Third suppressed the unease in his chest, took a deep breath, and stared at the disciple.

"Continue."

"Grandmaster Lu, Brother Lu has... unfortunately perished."

"What?!"

Lu the Third’s eyes turned red.

"How is that possible? He was already in the Qi Blood Third Transformation Realm! Who could have killed him?"

"It... it was Roto."

"Roto?"

Lu the Third whipped his head around to look at the Ming King and the sturdy, dark-skinned monk with the severed hand beside him, his eyes blazing with fury and confusion.

Indeed, of all the people who had entered, only Roto and Qin Zhenyang were capable of harming Lu Tianyong.

’But why?’

However, he didn’t dare confront the Ming King directly. He turned back and stared intently at the disciple.

"Why would Roto kill Tian Yong?"

"Roto and Brother Lu fought over a Profound Weapon. A conflict broke out, and in the heat of the moment, he was killed."

Lu the Third’s eyes were completely bloodshot.

"Even if Roto is powerful, Tian Yong was cautious and alert. His Body Technique is far better than that clumsy oaf’s. Even if he couldn’t win, he wouldn’t have died on the spot... Tell me exactly what happened."

"..."

After listening to the explanation, Lu the Third’s eyes widened, a look of disbelief spreading across his face.

"Xie Yuan? What did you say?! Xie Yuan? With his level of strength, how could he possibly have injured Tian Yong?"

"Grandmaster Lu, everything I said, I saw with my own eyes. Everyone else present witnessed it too. You can ask any of them."

Lu the Third froze for a moment. His features gradually twisted into a terrifying expression as he muttered to himself:

"Xie Yuan? Xie Yuan... Xie Yuan! You dare kill Tian Yong? I’ll tear you to shreds!"

He couldn’t possibly go after Roto and the Ming King to settle the score, so he placed all the blame on Xie Yuan. Besides, if it hadn’t been for Xie Yuan, Lu Tianyong would have had no problem escaping with his life.

Lu Tianyong was Lu the Third’s most accomplished son and his right-hand man. He had invested immense effort and resources into him, holding high hopes for his future. But after entering the ruins just once, he had died without even a complete corpse left behind.

He roared at the sky in fury, causing everyone present to turn and stare.

The Ming King looked at Roto’s severed hand, his eyes narrowing to slits.

"You said you were injured, and that you didn’t kill many people from the Central Plains. Instead, you just killed Lu Tianyong?"

Beads of sweat formed on Roto’s forehead. For all his arrogance, he was utterly terrified in front of the Ming King.

"It was... it was because the people of the Central Plains are treacherous..."

"Enough," the Ming King said lightly.

"What was that person’s name? Xie Yuan?"

"I heard them call him that..."

"Xie Yuan..."

The Ming King revealed a benevolent smile and, in a flash, appeared before the experts from the Great Li.

Seeing this, Li Xingtuo drifted forward to meet him, smiling as he said:

"How may I be of service to you, Ming King?"

In this contest over the ruins, although the Grandmasters hadn’t been able to enter, not only had they recovered their disciples, but the young experts from the Western Regions had suffered heavy casualties. Even among their Third Transformation Realm experts, one was dead and another severely injured.

In contrast, the Great Li side had lost very few people. It was clearly a resounding victory.

The Ming King was still all smiles, looking just like a laughing Buddha, but his eyes were filled with an icy chill.

"Sect Leader Li, may I ask, this disciple of yours named Xie Yuan—which family’s junior is he?"

Li Xingtuo smiled faintly, his expression unchanged.

"And why might you be looking for this Xie Yuan, Ming King?"

Li Xingtuo was asking a question to which he already knew the answer. As a top-tier Grandmaster, he had overheard all the surrounding commotion and conversations. The name "Xie Yuan" had been mentioned the most, and he had already pieced together most of what had happened.

The Ming King chuckled. "This one was just curious to see which family’s brilliant prodigy could be so accomplished, yet I have never heard of him before."

Just then, Lu the Third also emerged from the side, his eyes scanning back and forth through the crowd as he roared:

"Where is Xie Yuan! Where is Xie Yuan?! Get your ass out here!"

From within the crowd, the Lin family siblings watched the furious Lu the Third with hatred, a look of pure satisfaction in their eyes as they saw his state.

"Hmph, that villain wants to find Master Xie! Master Xie is as elusive as a divine dragon; does he think he can meet him just by asking? The next time he sees him, it will be to have his head chopped off!" Lin Zhen’s voice was soft, but her tone was filled with resentment.

Xie Yuan, standing beside her, nodded in agreement.

"That’s right. As if someone like him could find the incredible Master Xie."

Lin Zhen had been in a good mood, but hearing Xie Yuan agree, she couldn’t help but feel he was teasing her. Her face flushed, and she shot him a glare.

However, neither Lu the Third nor the Ming King could spot Xie Yuan, so they could only look back at Li Xingtuo, unwilling to give up.

Li Xingtuo’s expression remained placid as he looked at the two and spoke:

"Ming King, do you think this sword of mine is just for decoration? To think you’d come before me and demand one of my people."