The final battle concluded. The vast majority of the Void Gods from the three factions had been slaughtered right there. The rest of their ordinary troops were either dead or gravely wounded, with only a handful lucky enough to escape.
After the fight ended, the Golden-Horned Dragon Silkworm, Hu Miao, Huang Shang, and the others began cleaning up the battlefield.
"Let me come out too. I'm getting more and more annoyed staying inside cultivating all the time," Qin Xiaoyu suddenly said to Ye Yunfei.
Qin Xiaoyu had been staying inside the Phantom Tower all this while. Ye Yunfei had refined a batch of pills specially suited for her, allowing Qin Xiaoyu's strength to increase greatly in a short period. As soon as her cultivation session ended, she couldn't stand the solitude any longer and wanted out.
Ye Yunfei teleported Qin Xiaoyu out, letting her help clean up the battlefield. Lu Shi, however, was still in a state of secluded cultivation.
Soon after, everything of value on the battlefield had been scavenged. Ye Yunfei then teleported everyone into the Phantom Tower.
"If I can continue to devour Soul Bodies in the near future, I'll soon need to enter seclusion and charge towards a higher realm," Huang Shang said to Ye Yunfei. He had been consuming many Soul Bodies lately, and his power had been constantly improving.
With a stomp of his foot, Ye Yunfei recalled all the Earth Dragons and formations. Then, with his hands clasped behind his back, he began walking towards the headquarters of the Beidou Sect, soon arriving right before its main entrance.
The forces of the Green Mountain Sect followed closely behind Ye Yunfei.
At this moment, many scouts from the Beidou Sect were cautiously emerging from within. Seeing Ye Yunfei standing calmly with his hands behind his back right outside their headquarters' entrance, they all wore shocked expressions.
"Who is this kid?
He should only be a Void God-level cultivator. What is he doing here?
And why are the Green Mountain Sect forces following behind him? Is he some sort of remarkable figure within that sect?"
"But according to our intelligence, the Green Mountain Sect never had such a young fellow."
"The battle outside seems to have ended. It looks like the Green Mountain Sect was victorious.
It's strange, though. Why did the Green Mountain Sect and the other three factions turn against each other? And the Green Mountain Sect's strength is only average. How did they defeat the other three? Could it be they were hiding their true power all along?"
...
The Beidou Sect scouts stared at Ye Yunfei and the Green Mountain Sect followers behind him, feeling both shocked and confused, all offering up various speculations.
Ye Yunfei stood before the entrance of the Beidou Sect's headquarters and swept it with his perception. Then, he stepped forward.
Many formations had been arranged here before, but most had already been destroyed earlier. Now only a handful remained. These formations posed no problem for Ye Yunfei. With a simple, light stomp, he shattered them all and proceeded to walk inside the Beidou Sect headquarters.
The Green Mountain Sect forces swarmed behind Ye Yunfei.
"Halt, young man. This is the headquarters of the Beidou Sect. No one may enter without permission!" Two middle-aged men suddenly appeared in front of Ye Yunfei.
Both men were Intermediate-stage Void Gods. Several fully activated magical treasures floated before them, ready to strike at any moment.
"Step aside. I wish to see your Sect Master and the Supreme Elders," Ye Yunfei said indifferently.
"Young man, didn't you hear what I just said? No one is allowed to barge into our Beidou Sect headquarters without permission! Furthermore, our Sect Master and the Supreme Elders are currently in secluded cultivation and are not receiving any guests at the moment," one of the middle-aged men spoke.
Ye Yunfei, however, had no intention of wasting words. He took a single step forward, unleashing a powerful surge of physical force that instantly shook the surrounding space.
Boom! The very air began to violently churn, space rippling like disturbed water, directly forcing the two men back a good distance.
"So strong!" The two men wore astonished expressions.
Next, Ye Yunfei took another step forward. An invisible yet insidious Mental Force energy surged forward, violently blasting the two men aside and sending them flying. Ye Yunfei simply walked straight into the Beidou Sect headquarters.
The Green Mountain Sect forces behind him also rushed inside in a grand swarm.
"Sect Master, Elders, a huge problem! People from the Green Mountain Sect have broken in! A young man is leading them!" The Beidou Sect scouts immediately began sending urgent transmission messages to their Sect Master and Supreme Elders at the fastest speed possible.
In truth, the Beidou Sect Master, the Supreme Elders, and the other high-ranking members had already noticed Ye Yunfei and the Green Mountain Sect forces breaking in. It was just that Ye Yunfei's movements were too swift, leaving the Beidou Sect's upper echelons with no time to react.
"The Green Mountain Sect wiped out the forces of the other three factions, and now they barge into our Beidou Sect... What exactly do those guys from Green Mountain intend to do?" Questions filled the minds of every Beidou Sect high-ranking member.
"Let's go and see," the Beidou Sect Master said. The Sect Master, a few Supreme Elders, and a large group of high-ranking officials all soared into the air and flew forward to intercept Ye Yunfei. A sizeable force of Beidou Sect disciples also followed closely behind them.
When the Beidou Sect headquarters had come under attack earlier, the sect's forces had already assembled and stood ready for battle.
"Friends of the Green Mountain Sect, for what purpose have you intruded into our headquarters?" a Supreme Elder of the Beidou Sect called out clearly.
Previously, the Beidou Sect had always considered the Green Mountain Sect an enemy. But earlier, the Green Mountain Sect had annihilated the forces of the other three factions, leaving the Beidou Sect's higher-ups confused about the Green Mountain Sect's true stance. Therefore, they hadn't immediately torn the mask off and opted to probe further before deciding.
"Young man, your face is unfamiliar. May I ask if you are a disciple of the Green Mountain Sect?" The speaking Supreme Elder's gaze fell upon Ye Yunfei, who was at the very front of the Green Mountain Sect procession.
Ye Yunfei had previously used Guo Hua's identity and appearance within the Beidou Sect. Now, he had transformed into a completely different, unfamiliar young man's appearance. Thus, these Beidou Sect high-rankers could not recognize Ye Yunfei.
Moreover, Ye Yunfei currently possessed the Jade Ruyi, which allowed him to perfectly conceal his aura. Forget these Beidou Sect members; even if a True God came, they wouldn't recognize Ye Yunfei's true identity.
"Everyone, I've come to discuss forming an alliance to oppose the Guardian Faction together," Ye Yunfei declared directly, coming straight to the point.
"Oppose the Guardian Faction?" The Beidou Sect high-rankers all paused upon hearing Ye Yunfei's words.
"I have a grudge against the Guardian Faction. You, the Beidou Sect, also have a grudge against the Guardian Faction. Starting now, we shall form an alliance to oppose the Guardian Faction together," Ye Yunfei said without any additional preamble.
"Young man, just who are you? You propose forming an alliance with our Beidou Sect—are you representing the Green Mountain Sect, or yourself?" Seeing Ye Yunfei standing at the forefront of the Green Mountain Sect forces, hands behind his back and speaking calmly, while the Green Mountain Sect's own leaders just stood in the back like emotionless statues, the Beidou Sect high-rankers couldn't help but feel curious about Ye Yunfei's identity.
"Does anyone recognize this young man? What is his origin?
He actually has the leaders of Green Mountain Sect following behind him, and they seem to treat him as their superior. Could he be a core disciple from one of the formidable major powers in our Sixth Void? Only such a disciple would hold this kind of status and standing." One Supreme Elder sent a mental transmission to the other high-rankers.
However, the other Beidou Sect officials all shook their heads, indicating they didn't recognize Ye Yunfei.
"Who I am is not your concern. Did you hear what I said?" Ye Yunfei replied indifferently.
Although the Beidou Sect's strength was quite average, what Ye Yunfei wanted now was to gather as many factions as possible within this Sixth Void, forming a large-scale alliance with both quality and quantity. Ideally, he could mobilize a large group of powers to jointly oppose the Guardian Faction.
Hearing Ye Yunfei's words, the Beidou Sect high-rankers exchanged glances, seemingly unable to make a decision.
While the Beidou Sect's leaders understood perfectly that the factions sent to deal with them earlier were all subordinate forces of the Guardian Faction—essentially, it was the Guardian Faction itself taking action against the Beidou Sect—openly declaring enmity against the Guardian Faction would undoubtedly invite a far more ferocious and severe retaliation from them.
"Your Beidou Sect has no other choice. The Guardian Faction definitely won't let you off from now on. Fine, then. Come find me at the Green Mountain Sect once you've thought it through." Seeing the indecisive looks on the faces of the Beidou Sect leaders before him, Ye Yunfei spoke casually, then turned and walked away.
He didn't have much time to waste on the Beidou Sect.
"Elder Deng, please hold on! I have some questions I wish to ask!" A Supreme Elder of the Beidou Sect suddenly looked towards an old man following Ye Yunfei. This old man was the Grand Elder of the Green Mountain Sect, surnamed Deng, holding a high position within the sect.
However, this Grand Elder had long been possessed by Ye Yunfei after his Soul Body was devoured. Currently, this figure was essentially one of Ye Yunfei's clones. No matter how the Beidou Sect's Supreme Elder called out, the Green Mountain Sect's Grand Elder did not respond.
"Everyone, what do we do now?" Seeing Ye Yunfei turn and leave, soon to exit the Beidou Sect headquarters altogether, the sect's high-rankers looked at each other, completely unable to make a decision.
"Sect Master, Supreme Elders, I believe our Beidou Sect truly has no other choice.
Just now, the forces of three factions were annihilated right at our doorstep. Moreover, a True God fell here. That True God is undoubtedly from the Guardian Faction. Having lost a True God expert and the forces of three subordinate factions, the Guardian Faction will most likely blame our Beidou Sect for this.
Therefore, what that young man said is correct—the Guardian Faction definitely will not let our Beidou Sect off. With our current strength, we are akin to an insignificant ant in the face of the Guardian Faction. So, our Beidou Sect must join forces with other powers to have any hope of resisting the Guardian Faction." A senior Elder suddenly spoke up.
Hearing this Elder's words, the other Beidou Sect higher-ups all fell silent.
"Elder Chen, you make a valid point. If our Beidou Sect wishes to oppose the Guardian Faction, we must ally with other powers," a Supreme Elder finally nodded in agreement.