Perhaps because of Junior Brother Song’s death earlier, the sect mobilized its people rather quickly this time.

Besides Mei Yong, Elder Fu was only two steps behind, and they rushed over together.

However, they were ultimately a bit late. The battle here was already over.

Xiao Chen first used his Magical Power to grab the Storage Bag from Ding Sanlei’s waist, tucking the spoils of war into his sleeve.

Only then did he and Elder Liu go up to greet them. "Mei, Fu, we’re fine. The Demon Cultivator who caused this trouble has been executed."

Huh?

Mei Yong was immediately a little surprised. He saw that Elder Liu had actually, intentionally, fallen half a step behind Xiao Chen.

He first glanced behind them to confirm there were no more enemies.

Only then did he relax and ask, "That’s good. Any idea where this Demon Cultivator came from?"

Elder Liu took the initiative to explain, "He used the Eight Demons Blood Refining Array. He must be a pawn of the Divine Fire Sect."

"This time, it was all thanks to Junior Brother Xiao arriving in time and killing the enemy leader."

SWISH. In an instant, the gazes of all three turned to Xiao Chen.

Huang Haoran, in particular, was full of questions.

’Didn’t you say you were just going to observe the situation?’

Xiao Chen replied humbly, "I was just lucky. I happened to have learned a Cultivation Technique that counters this Demon Cultivator."

"Besides, when I arrived, Elder Liu had already been fighting him for a while. I just finished him off."

In terms of time, it really was about half.

But Mei Yong interpreted this to mean that Elder Liu had already suppressed the Demon Cultivator. He had a sudden realization. "Oh, so that’s what happened."

From Huang Haoran’s earlier description, the situation had sounded extremely critical.

A moment ago, he had thought Xiao Chen had turned the tide against all odds and was wondering how that could have happened.

If there was a Demon Cultivator that even Elder Liu couldn’t defeat, Xiao Chen should have been powerless as well.

Now, this explanation made sense. 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

Huang Haoran also came to a sudden understanding. It seemed he had simply misjudged the situation earlier.

He figured that after Xiao Chen went over, he must have found that Elder Liu wasn’t at a disadvantage, so the two of them joined forces to surround and kill the Demon Cultivator.

Recalling their previous encounter with Ding Silei, Xiao Chen did indeed have the ability to threaten a late-stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator.

Thinking back now, that Sword Technique of his was truly formidable.

Huang Haoran wasn’t a Sword Cultivator, so he only felt the Sword Technique was unusual.

But Elder Fu was a true Sword Cultivator.

After he arrived, he had immediately noticed the traces left behind by a clash of Sword Qi.

The Sword Technique used by the one closer to the cave was clearly of a very high level.

Even the residual Sword Qi faintly carried a murderous aura, causing even him to feel a trace of pressure indirectly.

But judging by the destroyed trees all around, that person had unexpectedly lost.

And according to his knowledge, Elder Liu normally specialized in Magic, especially Wood and Fire Techniques, and was not skilled with a sword.

Then the one who had used a sword to defeat the Demon Cultivator could only be—Xiao Chen!

At this thought, a profound, intriguing look appeared in Elder Fu’s eyes as he gazed at Xiao Chen.

’Just finished him off?’

’It’s probably not that simple.’

Hearing this, Elder Liu, who was standing to the side, was also deeply puzzled.

He knew full well that Xiao Chen had just taken down Ding Sanlei purely through his own power.

So he couldn’t understand why Xiao Chen wasn’t taking the credit.

Elder Liu’s first reaction was: ’Could it be that he’s doing this to save my face?’

After all, he had been careless earlier. He’d failed to recognize the gap in their strength and retreat in time. By the time he realized his Magical Power was draining, the Demon Cultivator had completely suppressed him, leaving him in grave danger.

’Could Xiao Chen be worried that telling the truth would make me lose face?’

’But that’s not right either.’

’If an ordinary person encountered something like this, they would definitely publicize it to show off their own strength.’

Elder Liu thought carefully, recalling the few rumors he had heard about Xiao Chen in the past.

He realized that there were very few such rumors, and they were all spread by others.

Even though his own Cultivation breakthroughs were rapid and he repeatedly broke records, he himself had never actively shown off.

’I get it!’

Elder Liu understood at once. This must be a matter of personality.

Xiao Chen just wasn’t the type to be ostentatious; he was a relatively low-key person by nature.

’As they say, a wise man keeps his strengths concealed.’

’By hiding your powerful skills, you’re less likely to be targeted by your enemies.’

He felt he had grasped the truth of the matter.

So, he swallowed the words of praise he was about to say and proactively cooperated with Xiao Chen in changing the subject.

’Besides, this is good too.’

’If others don’t know how powerful Xiao Chen actually is, it will help when I try to win him over. Fewer competitors that way.’

And so, the five of them searched the vicinity and destroyed the remaining Talisman Array.

Along the way, they rescued a few relatively lucky Loose Cultivators who had been tied up in wooden barrels, and then returned to the sect together.

Of course, the matter was far from over, but since it involved the Divine Fire Sect, it required long-term planning.

The Song Family had lost a Foundation Establishment member, and the entire clan was simmering with indignation.

They began networking with the other Elders to discuss supporting their fellow Daoists in Hezhou and jointly attacking the Demon Cultivators.

But overall, whether they could take the initiative to go looking for trouble with the Divine Fire Sect actually depended more on Master Ming Yan’s will; it was not something they could decide.

Several Song Clan Members joined the Demon Extermination Hall to take on missions, seemingly wanting to vent their anger on members of the Divine Fire Sect.

They were naturally supported by the Song Family’s Foundation Establishment cultivators.

If it weren’t for the fact that the Demon Extermination Hall had no more open positions suitable for Foundation Establishment Cultivators, another two Foundation Establishment members might have joined it directly.

With the Song Family’s tireless assistance, various missions and clues were being handled in a timely manner.