Chapter 557: Chapter 327: Finally Meeting the Youth—His Person, His Bearing, Far Surpassing His Name. Rescuing the Women Alone.

He Lijun said, "Though the Sword Sect is in crisis now, it is also an opportunity. Our Five Great Sword Sects are renowned in Jianghu. Once we overcome this difficult situation, our bonds will be as strong as gold, alliances steadfast as iron! Fellow Sword Sect sisters, and sisters from other factions of Jianghu, there is no need to panic; this is a good thing, not a bad one!"

Zheng Decun chuckled quietly, "You Sword Sect women indeed carry a sharp edge. The more you grind, the sharper you become, yet you are utterly ignorant, speaking of women’s sensibilities. It’s a great pity; though the vision is good, it is bound to fall short!"

He was tall and thin, with odd strides, and said, "Since City Lord He dared to capture you, he must have a foolproof plan. Do you know where you are? This is the ’Petal Heart Cliff’ of the Nine Orifice Dragon Heart Acupoint, which I now call ’Prisoner Canyon.’ Even if you’re a Sword Sect master and you’ve entered the Nine Orifice Dragon Heart Acupoint, finding this place would be extremely difficult!"

"This place does not ventilate, sees no light, and is solely favored by the cold snow and northern winds. It is winter now, the days are freezing, making it inevitable for you to suffer from coldness. When summer arrives, the gorge is stuffy, damp, and hot, with walls growing moss, making it even more unbearable."

"Without a chance or a method, finding this place is difficult! Difficult! Difficult!"

His voice blended with the slow, heavy grind of the "stone door," diminishing the spirits of the women greatly. The elders understood the meaning of the "Nine Orifice Dragon Heart Acupoint," while the younger disciples did not, but seeing Zheng Decun’s calm demeanor, they guessed it was nothing good.

Zheng Decun continued, "Even if I were to tell you the details within each of the Five Great Sword Sects and provide them with a map, without profound knowledge of Feng Shui and Geomancy, claiming to find this place is nothing but nonsense!"

An elder of the Jius Mountain Sword Sect spoke, "Hm, if it’s about Feng Shui and Geomancy, our Jius Mountain Sword Sect’s Elder Wang Tiexin has some expertise!"

Zheng Decun sneered, "What a pity, what a pity, that Elder Wang Tiexin is now on good terms with City Lord He, trusting him beyond doubt."

The female elder, "Yang Piaoxue," of the Yue Mountain Sword Sect laughed coldly, "Quite a joke. How could our Sword Sect be foolish? Whatever He Wentian says, do we just believe it? Your City Lord doesn’t seem to have that capability, does he?"

Zheng Decun laughed coldly, "Since you’re so clever, then why did you believe it initially? Why did you become a caged flower?" The women fell silent, unable to refute. Baohanhan from the Li Mountain Sword Sect said, "Our Sword Sect has many members; naturally, some are shrewd and can see through the villain’s tricks and come to rescue us. Even if deceived for a time, there will be awakening later on. If you wish for something to remain unknown, you must not do it."

Suddenly, the stone door closed with a roar.

Zheng Decun, seeing everything secure, relaxed slightly. Zhao Chunxia, worried, didn’t intend to inquire, but suddenly a strange glint flashed in her eyes, thinking, "This person is exceedingly loyal to He Wentian and supremely confident in his plan. If you lure him to reveal his plan, he will naturally relax his vigilance. If Li Xian... truly wishes to kill him, this is the perfect opportunity."

Zhao Chunxia asked calmly, "You seem utterly confident, certain we can’t be saved; what’s the basis? If you have any, speak it out to break our hopes, wouldn’t that be fitting?"

A few female elders of the Yue Mountain Sword Sect frowned, "Senior Sister Chunxia, how can you bolster others’ resolve?" Zhao Chunxia shook her head, "No, no, there is no perfect plan in the world. If he doesn’t dare to reveal it, it proves he knows the plan has flaws and is afraid to speak. If he dares to say it, we can think about it and find a way to break his scheme."

All the women fell silent, truly unwilling to hear this villain’s scheme. Zheng Decun said, "Well, well, you’re hard to escape, so it’s no harm speaking with you about it."

He said, "Alas, it’s truly a pity for you. A few days ago, Jieyou Tower collapsed; you were only a step away from rescue."

Zhao Chunxia didn’t know about Jieyou Tower; Lin Aoshan experienced it firsthand, so she remained indifferent. Luo Feiyan and the other captured women from the Phoenix Banquet, having been seized at Jieyou Tower, remained out of touch with external events, now learning of the collapse, gasped in surprise, with some crying out in relief.

Zheng Decun said, "After Jieyou Tower collapsed, one of the Nine Orifice Dragon Heart Acupoint’s apertures was revealed. This is hard to conceal; even if your Sword Sect elders are foolish, they must have become suspicious. Our City Lord tried hard to explain, saying the crypt is perilous, not to be tread lightly, persuading with all sorts of words."

"The Sword Sect elders didn’t believe and were quite unkind in tone, suspecting your disappearance was the work of City Lord He."

The women felt extremely uneasy hearing this. Zheng Decun continued, "The Five Great Sword Sects united to enter the tomb and investigate. They declared City Lord He couldn’t follow, and if he did, they would turn against him. City Lord He was powerless to stop them, so let them be. However, although the elders were capable, they underestimated the dangers of exploring the tomb. This Nine Orifice Dragon Heart Acupoint is a perilous place nurtured by Feng Shui over countless years!"

"The person buried here was a notorious figure in ancient times. City Lord He has discovered the tomb for years but has never fully explored it. The elders of each sect have considerable strength but quickly met setbacks, losing several disciples, with morale plummeting."

"At this time, the Five Great Sword Sects were about to retreat. But, by mistake, they ventured deep into an incredibly perilous area within the Nine Orifice Dragon Heart Acupoint: ’Palace Thundercloud.’ Above this area floats thunderclouds that, if disturbed, will strike with groundway thunder. To save themselves, the elders abandoned their swords, trying to escape, but with every move, the thunderclouds would encompass them."

"All the elders were trapped here. Only a few young disciples came later and by luck avoided being trapped. The elders exhausted all their efforts but ultimately couldn’t escape, forced to hold out for days. At this point, morale waned, haha... one by one these virtuous men, truly in dire situations, cried, lamented, got angry, yet displayed no courage, was genuinely laughable."