Villain Master, my disciples all want to backstab me

In the middle of the plot of "Asking the Immortal", there is a very difficult side quest, which is to rescue Jiang Cheng from somewhere in Yunhezhou.

That place was the Blood Pool Prison, located within the Blood Origin Sect's main hall. Besides Jiang Cheng, there were also a number of cultivators from other clans and sects. Among them were several older, Divine Transformation cultivators who had been secretly captured by the Blood Origin Sect dozens or even hundreds of years ago. They had all been thrown into the pool, where they endured excruciating pain day and night.

Every once in a while, the Blood Source Sect would salvage those captives who died from the torture from the "blood pool" and replace them with the most recently captured ones.

As one of the last orphans of the Jiang family, Jiang Cheng has a unique physique. Furthermore, the Blood Origin Sect hopes to discover the ultimate secret of the Jiang family bloodline, the "Five Elements Divine King Body," from him. Therefore, he has survived until now. However, his condition is not very good.

If no one came to rescue him, he could probably only hold on for another two or three years before turning into a handful of bones.

Except for the "blood pool" itself, which is wrapped in a huge formation and difficult for outsiders to break in.

Around the blood pool, there were hundreds of well-trained blood pool guards who were strictly guarding the captives. In theory, even if a fly got in, it would be detected immediately and then met with a devastating blow.

Further out, there were other Blood Origin Sect organizations. Although the personnel in these organizations were not specifically assigned to guard the blood pool, they were still very close, and if they detected anything unusual, they could rush over to provide support in minutes.

Although the appearance of Bai Yuan caused many plot deviations on this timeline, and even the "War to Exterminate Demons" became different, but since no major changes occurred within the Blood Source Sect, Jiang Cheng should still be there.

The location is found.

Next, how to sneak in and rescue people.

In the previous life of the "Asking the Immortal" forum, a big player summarized two routes:

The first was a safer way to play, which was to first raise the protagonists, including Jiang Rao, to the Spiritual Transformation Realm, then recruit a few helpers from outside, and then rush into the Blood Source Sect's headquarters in one go, and kill all the demon cultivators in sight. Naturally, they would be able to rescue Jiang Cheng...

Well, no problem.

As long as everyone present is killed, it will be a perfect infiltration. With the talent of the players, coupled with the various rapid upgrade guides on the forum, as long as you prepare from the beginning, by the time of Jiang Cheng's branch, you will most likely be able to achieve the God Transformation.

Unfortunately, Bai Yuan can’t play.

The second option was to sneak into the blood pool through a secret passage in the back mountain of the Xueyuan Sect, then quickly pack up Jiang Cheng and return the same way.

This route is a bit more conservative than the previous one, but the strength requirements and operation difficulty are equally high.

Because, in order to rescue Jiang Cheng from the blood pool, the first thing to do is to eliminate the blood pool guards. The latter are not only numerous, but also have the blessing of the "Blood Pool Netherworld Array". In a short period of time, they are enough to compete with the strong men in the God Transformation Realm;

If we can't defeat and get rid of them quickly, and wait for the other people from the Blood Source Sect to arrive, it will be difficult to escape even if we have three heads and six arms.

Even if we can escape, it does not mean that the crisis is over.

Because the Yunhezhou area is the home of the Blood Origin Sect, they have been operating here for years, establishing deep roots and possessing powerful spies. Until the player team leaves Yunhezhou, they will be constantly pursued by the Blood Origin Sect. There's even a high chance that the Sect Leader himself will intervene.

——That guy's strength is only slightly inferior to Ling Xiuya's. Even if there are multiple powerful gods in the player team, there is no guarantee of victory. The result of encountering him is mostly annihilation of the whole team.

In short.

This branch quest is extremely difficult to complete, and can basically be described as a life-or-death struggle.

Many players only dare to attempt this task when their cultivation reaches the third or fourth level of the Spirit Transformation Realm, and they often need to use SL methods and try repeatedly to achieve a perfect ending.

And now.

Bai Yuan's cultivation level is only the sixth level of the Nascent Soul Stage. Even with the trump cards of [Exquisite Dice] and [Netherworld Bone Flute], he has just reached the threshold of "Route Two" and is not very suitable for this branch line.

but……

no way.

After all, she only had so much time after she traveled through time.

If there hadn't been a threat from Qingluo, Bai Yuan could have retreated for a year or two, waiting for himself, Ji Tingxue, and Ye Shuang'er to reach the Divine Transformation stage... Well, Ji Tingxue didn't need to work hard, just get her main account out, and then take them along, following "Route 1," to destroy the Blood Source Sect.

However, the demon tribe in the Eastern Wasteland has been making unusual movements, and news about her will most likely reach the demon tribe there, especially the Divine Phoenix tribe. Given Qingluo's hatred for her, it is very likely that they will soon appear in the Central Plains in the near future and seek revenge on her master.

In order to avoid death at the hands of this great disciple.

Bai Yuan can only take this risk once.

Fortunately, she still has two trump cards——

The "Shadow Travel" ability of the Moon Cat Earrings transforms the body into shadow, ignoring formations and traveling through space. Furthermore, this ability can also affect third parties, pulling them into the shadow dimension.

Add to that the corpse of the shadow leopard demon that possessed the ability to "transform"...

With these, Bai Yuan thought he had a 50% chance of rescuing Jiang Cheng. Perhaps... he could even divert the trouble away.

Ordinary cultivators couldn't tell the difference between "Aetherization" and "Shadow Walking," nor could they distinguish between a "Moon Shadow Cat Demon" and a "Shadow Leopard." In theory, these two were even from the same family, their appearance, size, and bloodline aura being very similar. With a little manipulation, they could achieve perfect disguise.

And when they learned that two "Shadow Leopards" appeared in the heart of the Blood Origin Sect and took away the important hostage Jiang Chengshi...

The expressions on the faces of the Blood Source Sect and the Eastern Wasteland Demon Clan should be very interesting.

As for the second trump card...

This was the other item drawn along with the Moon Cat Earrings. Theoretically, this item could pose a threat to the Blood Origin Sect's leader. If used properly, it might even have unexpected effects.

……

The distance from Ziwu Valley to Yunhezhou is not short.

About thousands of kilometers.

It took Bai Yuan several days to get there.

In fact, if you ride a white tiger and fly all the way there, you will arrive in one day at most.

However, in order to hide his identity, Bai Yuan was very cautious when traveling this time. Not only did he abandon the road in the air, he also avoided almost all populated places and only chose those jungle paths to move forward.

At the same time, she deliberately placed several Blood Origin Sect strongholds on both sides of her route. Every night, she would don her Moon Cat Earrings and venture out to explore the vicinity of these strongholds. This was to train her "shadow walking" ability, a rehearsal for the upcoming rescue operation.

On the other hand, it is to observe and collect the latest information about the Blood Source Sect and even the entire cultivation world, to fill his own intelligence network.

Sometimes when she encountered a heavily guarded stronghold that would attract the enemy's attention if she got even a little closer, she would take out her [Flowing Light Mirror] and, from a hundred miles away, review what had happened in the past half day and then compile it into intelligence.

After all this investigation.

Bai Yuan did discover some things——

First of all,

The two Blood Source Sect's Spirit Transformation Realm Hall Masters who participated in the "Hunting Ling Xiuya" operation should have been really injured, and the severity was not light.

The Blood Origin Sect has eight halls under its command, each with its own eight hall masters. The top two are Gu Youruo of the Blood Hidden Hall and Xing Yan of the Blood Slaughter Hall. Both participated in the hunt targeting the Tianyuan Mountain group outside of the Cangwu Abyss, and were severely injured. They are likely currently recuperating in seclusion somewhere.

Therefore, Bai Yuan hadn't seen a single Spiritual Transformation Realm cultivator along the way. The highest cultivation level was only at the eighth or ninth level of the Nascent Soul Realm. However, because the Blood Origin Sect was currently on the defensive and had the advantage of terrain, they could still withstand the offensive of the four righteous sects for the time being.

Secondly, as Xiao Yuchen said, the Blood Source Sect has strategically contracted its various strongholds.

Some smaller strongholds that were far away from the branch altars were decisively abandoned by them. After taking away most of the important property, they filled them with a large number of self-destructive puppets, with the main strategy of preferring to destroy them rather than aid the enemy.

In the process, the larger branch temples gathered a large number of people and became unprecedentedly powerful, which brought huge entanglements and obstacles to the actions of the four righteous sects in eliminating demons and defending the way of righteousness.

The closer they got to Yunhe Island, the more intense the fighting became. It was basically a bloody battle. Many Jindan and Yuanying cultivators who had practiced hard for more than ten years or even dozens of years died in the battle, which was a shocking sight.

This is also normal.

The Yunhezhou area is the base of the Xueyuan Sect.

The outer areas could be lost, at the cost of some supplies, which could then be counterattacked and plundered again. However, the core base could not be abandoned, otherwise it would not only damage the Blood Source Sect's prestige but also cause the sect's morale to plummet.

To this end, the Blood Source Sect arranged no less than ten Nascent Soul elders in almost every large branch temple. They led their demonic cultivators and, with the support of the mountain protection formation, fought fiercely with the righteous cultivators who came to attack, resulting in heavy casualties on both sides.

——This is the second important situation.

After observing several times with the [Flowing Light Mirror], Bai Yuan discovered that the number of Nascent Souls from the Blood Source Sect was a bit too many.

More than she expected.

I remember that the Blood Origin Sect had indeed hidden many Nascent Soul cultivators, deliberately appearing weak to the enemy in the early stages of the "Demon Slaying War," only to suddenly unleash them when the battle became tense, causing the Four Righteous Sects to suffer a significant loss. But...

Even the hidden part wouldn't be that much.

Although there are no precise statistics, according to Bai Yuan's estimation, the total number of Nascent Souls in the Blood Source Sect's strongholds is probably 20% more than that of the Tianyuan Sword Sect.

"Could it be that the Blood Source Sect possesses some secret technique that can accelerate the growth of a disciple's cultivation in a short period of time..."

"Or are there people from other forces mixed in with these people?"

Bai Yuan stroked his chin, feeling that the latter guess was more reliable.

At this stage, Tianyuan Mountain still had no evidence that the Shentu family was behind the destruction of the Jiang family, and the latter was reluctant to expose themselves. Meanwhile, the Blood Origin Sect was struggling alone, unable to withstand the pressure from the Four Righteous Sects. Therefore, it made sense for the Shentu family to disguise themselves as Blood Origin Sect elders and engage the Four Righteous Sects.

If the Shentu family intervened, then this number difference would not be a problem. As an ancient cultivation clan that has existed for thousands of years, the Shentu family's foundation is only stronger than that of the Xueyuan Sect. It is not difficult to send dozens of Yuanying realm cultivators to help share the pressure of the allies.

Bai Yuan originally had no intention of getting involved in this war.

After all, her current public identity is that of a dead person.

but……

However, she saw an acquaintance in the [Liuguang Mirror]—

Shao An, the head of the "Blood Refining Hall" under the Blood Source Sect!

This guy is an old acquaintance of Bai Yuan.

The two first met in Qixia Town. At that time, Bai Yuan, under the pseudonym "Yu Qiuming", fought with him with all his might to protect Yan Shu, using the "108x Clear Crimson Sky Sword" to narrowly defeat him.

The second time, they didn't meet directly. Instead, Bai Yuan, posing as "Qingxuan Sect Elder Xu Jingming," killed Shao An's nephew Shao Li in the Blood Origin Sect's stronghold in the northern region of Central Continent. This successfully provoked Shao An's anger, and the conflict between the Blood Origin Sect and the Qingxuan Sect nearly made him lose his mind...

The whitewashing and the blaming were both accomplished with Shao An's cooperation. If it were someone else, such as the two hall masters who were hunting Ling Xiuya, they might have seen through Bai Yuan's disguise and thwarted her plan.

From this perspective, Bai Yuan should thank him.

and so……

"Would you like to think of a way to reunite him with Shao Li as a token of gratitude?"

Just when this thought came to Bai Yuan's mind.

The image in the [Liuguang Mirror] has also reached the present moment.

Shao An, reflected in the mirror, seemed to sense something and suddenly turned his head to look in the direction of Bai Yuan, as if he realized that he was being spied on.

"Ok?"

Bai Yuan's eyes moved.

This guy...is his perception so sharp?

But it's not impossible.

The [Liuguang Mirror] was, after all, merely a magical artifact from the Great Fortune Bag. Its theoretical effect only reached the Nascent Soul stage. If used against a Spiritual Transformation stage, it would be immediately detected. Although Shao An hadn't reached the Spiritual Transformation stage, he was one of the strongest individuals in the Blood Origin Sect at this stage, making it possible for him to detect any anomalies.

and so……

Bai Yuan suddenly became serious.

Chapter 174 Lure the snake out of its hole

"Master, the casualties during this period have been tallied. Please review them..."

The moon is dark and the wind is high.

Located in the Blood Source Sect branch on a thousand-meter-high peak.

A subordinate in a black robe knelt on one knee and handed over the account book he had just sorted out with both hands.

Shao An took the account book, glanced at it, and his expression was obviously not very good.

Although the Blood Origin Sect had anticipated this "Demon Slaying War" months, or even longer, and had made extensive preparations in advance, when the battle actually began, both sides were still surprised by the intensity of the confrontation.

In less than two weeks, more than thirty Jindan cultivators and four Yuanying elders from the Blood Source Sect had been killed in battle.

In addition, there are hundreds of "blood puppets".

The so-called "blood puppet" refers to the human-shaped puppet concocted by the Blood Source Sect using secret methods.

This kind of puppet is very expensive. Each one requires the corpse of a cultivator above the Foundation Establishment Realm, and is then refined with specific medicinal materials, and finally engraved with specific secret runes.

According to the type of runes, these puppets are divided into two types. One is the self-destructive type, which is a disposable consumable engraved with explosion patterns and designed to launch suicidal attacks on the enemy; the other is relatively advanced, often only used by cultivators in the Nascent Soul Realm or the late Golden Core Realm. It can retain a certain degree of wisdom and play a greater role.

——Of course, they are said to have "intelligence", but in reality, they are no more than a clever beast. They are completely different from living people.

In a sense, this puppet could be considered a form of corpse refining, similar to the corpse-controlling ability of the Netherworld Bone Flute.

The Blood Origin Sect had been established for a thousand years, decimating countless sects, both large and small. A significant portion of the cultivators' bodies were collected and crafted into blood puppets. Previously, they had rarely been used, only on a small scale for trials. It wasn't until this "Demon Suppression War" that they were deployed en masse, inflicting considerable casualties on the Four Righteous Sects.

In theory, exchanging puppets for human lives was a win-win. After all, refining the corpse of a Nascent Soul cultivator was much easier than cultivating one yourself.

However, this consumption rate still made Shao An feel a little painful.

The medicinal materials needed to refine the "Blood Puppet" are not cheap, and the process is complicated, so it is difficult to replenish them in a short period of time...

As for the casualties of the two "allies" other than the Blood Source Sect, such as the Heavenly Demon Sect and the Black Cloud Mountain, those were not within Shao An's consideration.