Chapter 501 - 511: Life-and-Death Duel

Suddenly, a clear voice rang out from the entrance, and everyone subconsciously turned to look at the doorway of the great hall.

Wen Qingye walked in, step by step, his gaze as tranquil as still water as he looked at Xia Qianhe and Liu Mingliang.

Xia Qianhe shot to his feet, his eyes locked on Wen Qingye. "You’re Wen Qingye?"

"I am," Wen Qingye nodded.

"Why did you kill my son? Why?" Xia Qianhe’s eyes were bloodshot, and by the end, his voice trembled.

Wen Qingye shook his head. "I didn’t kill him. I was saving him."

Xia Qianhe couldn’t help but burst into laughter. "HAHAHA! His breathing has stopped, his pulse is gone, and you say you were saving him?"

Gao Changtian strode forward and bellowed, "Wen Qingye, tell the truth! Did you kill my disciple for the True Essence Fruit?"

Hearing Gao Changtian’s words, Wen Qingye scoffed. "A mere True Essence Fruit? Is it even worthy of me drawing my sword?"

Wu Shuangying snorted coldly, "Such arrogance. But didn’t you draw your sword in the end?"

Wen Qingye looked at the members of the Flowing Cloud Sect and the Three Realms Sect and sneered, "I pity your disciples. If they truly are dead, then you are the ones who killed them."

He knew that any explanation he offered now would be dismissed as a poor excuse. They wouldn’t believe him; they had already lost all reason.

Liu Mingliang stepped forward and shouted, "Wen Qingye, what do you mean by that? The man is dead, and you’re speaking so flippantly?"

Wen Qingye looked at Liu Mingliang and said calmly, "You wanted a duel to the death, did you not? I accept. You can fight me yourselves or send your disciples. I await this duel at any time."

His words were skillfully phrased. By saying this, Xia Qianhe would be shamed into not fighting personally and would only send disciples from the Three Realms Sect. But would Wen Qingye be afraid?

Yum Tianyang’s brow furrowed, and he said slowly, "Enough. A duel to the death... I don’t think that’s necessary. Our sects have a thousand years of friendship between them. A deathmatch would be too damaging to our relations. Wen Qingye is a disciple of our Celestial Profound Sect, and we will give you a satisfactory explanation."

Yum Tianyang naturally did not want a deathmatch to happen in the Celestial Profound Sect. No matter who lived or died, it would be a difficult situation to resolve.

Xia Qianhe sneered, "Your ’satisfactory explanation’? I’m afraid I don’t trust it anymore."

"I agree with Master Xia," Gao Changtian chimed in.

The expressions of the surrounding Celestial Profound Sect members all changed. Xia Qianhe’s demeanor was simply too aggressive, especially with Gao Changtian backing him up.

Hua Lie pondered for a moment before asking, "Then what exactly does Master Xia propose?"

Xia Qianhe said, "Wen Qingye will fight a duel to the death against a disciple of my Three Realms Sect. If he wins, your Celestial Profound Sect can punish him as you see fit, and my Three Realms Sect will have no further complaints. If he loses... well, then he has only fate to blame."

Liu Mingliang chimed in again, "Master Xia’s words represent the will of my Flowing Cloud Sect."

Ji Hai frowned and said, "Must it be a duel to the death? With me here, the Celestial Profound Sect will absolutely not shield..."

"Fine. I accept."

Before Ji Hai could finish speaking, Wen Qingye cut in, his voice ringing out clearly.

A trace of impatience had risen in his heart. He had clearly saved their disciple’s life, yet these people were not only ungrateful but were pressing him relentlessly. They were being completely irrational.

At this point, no explanation would get through to them.

When faced with an irrational situation, Wen Qingye knew there was only one solution: the sword. There was no problem a sword couldn’t solve. If it couldn’t, it only meant your sword wasn’t sharp enough.

"Good. A man should stand by his own actions. You’ve got some backbone." A sharp glint flashed in Xia Qianhe’s eyes as he suddenly bellowed, "My Three Realms Sect won’t be accused of bullying you. Cai Tianyuan, do you dare fight Wen Qingye to the death?"

"Why wouldn’t I dare?"

A man stepped out from behind Xia Qianhe. He was gaunt and bony, his frame shrouded in his robes. His eyes were deeply sunken, and in his hand, he held a long spear of a uniform Yellow Rhyme Color.

Zhang Zhilin could no longer restrain himself. Standing up, he stared directly at Xia Qianhe and said, "Cai Tianyuan? Xia Qianhe, do you truly think my Celestial Profound Sect is devoid of talent?"

Seeing the man, the surrounding members of the Celestial Profound Sect all frowned slightly.

Cai Tianyuan, Chief Disciple of the Three Realms Sect and its future Sect Leader. He had a Bone Age of twenty-five, and his cultivation had been at the Destruction Realm Ninth Layer Heaven for a year and a half.

His strength was so great that he could even rank among the True Disciples of the Celestial Profound Sect.

And Wen Qingye?

His cultivation seemed to be hovering around the Mid-stage of Destruction Realm, he had a Bone Age of only twenty-one, and he had been a Core Disciple for just a few months.

Comparing the two, how could the members of the Celestial Profound Sect not be worried?

Xia Qianhe sneered, "What? Scared now?"

At this point, Yum Tianyang’s brow also tightened. "Although both are disciples of their respective sects, isn’t the disparity between them a bit too great?"

Liu Mingliang mused for a moment, then said, "Both are disciples. One is an elite disciple from your Celestial Profound Sect, and the other is an elite disciple from the Three Realms Sect. I see nothing improper about it."

Hearing this, Hua Lie shook his head and said, "An elite disciple of the Celestial Profound Sect? Elder Liu, please don’t speak so carelessly. Wen Qingye cannot yet be considered an elite disciple of our Celestial Profound Sect."

Many of the elders behind him nodded in silent agreement. The true elite disciples of the Celestial Profound Sect were the True Disciples. Wen Qingye’s strength was still a fair bit lacking compared to a True Disciple, and the gap in their future prospects was an insurmountable chasm.

As if he hadn’t heard Hua Lie’s words, Wen Qingye stared directly at Xia Qianhe. "The battle on the Three Pristine Platform—I, Wen Qingye, accept. There’s no need for any more nonsense."

"Brother Wen!" Yum Baobao, who was behind him, exclaimed in shock. "But Cai Tianyuan is at the Destruction Realm Ninth Layer Heaven!"

"You don’t have to fight a deathmatch. I’d like to see who from the Three Realms Sect dares to make a move today."

Zhang Zhilin slowly walked to Wen Qingye’s side. His tone was calm, but for some reason, everyone felt their breath catch, as if an extremely powerful pressure was slowly bearing down on them.

"Are you threatening me?" Xia Qianhe’s tone shifted slightly.

Xia Qianhe took a deep breath, his palms trembling uncontrollably. His eyes swept over the members of the Celestial Profound Sect before him.

"Your Celestial Profound Sect is an Upper Sect, powerful and influential, with numerous subordinate kingdoms and tens of millions of disciples. My Three Realms Sect has barely a thousand disciples in total. We are weak and few, naturally no match for even a fraction of your Celestial Profound Upper Sect. But"—Xia Qianhe’s tone suddenly shifted as he roared—"my Three Realms Sect is not to be trifled with, nor are we lambs for you to slaughter! Today, a disciple of your Celestial Profound Sect kills my disciple; tomorrow, what’s to stop you from slaughtering your way into my Three Realms Sect? If you don’t give my Three Realms Sect a proper accounting today, then don’t blame us for disregarding our past friendship!"

As he finished speaking, Xia Qianhe drew himself up, glaring furiously at the members of the Celestial Profound Sect, exceptionally agitated.