“How did my clothes come off?”

“Why is my spiritual power being drained by him?”

Xu Heming was both shocked and terrified, no longer bothering to retrieve his severed hand, he spun around and launched a barrage of attacks on Du Ge with his remaining hand.

The swirling spiritual power blew the surrounding grass and trees into disarray.

Crack!

Crack!

The onlookers could hear the sound of Du Ge’s tendons snapping and bones breaking, and even see large bulges occasionally protruding from Du Ge’s back, clearly indicating his bones were being forced out of his body.

Du Ge spewed blood mouthful after mouthful, as if it cost him nothing.

But Xu Heming’s clothes were similarly disappearing piece by piece, and in the blink of an eye, he was left with only a few inner garments.

“Third senior brother!” The seventh junior brother had never seen Du Ge beaten so miserably and cried out in alarm, about to step forward to help.

“Don’t come over.” Du Ge stopped him just in time. He didn’t want this capable helper he had finally trained to fall here.

“Third senior brother…”

Tears welled up in the seventh junior brother’s eyes. The simple command “Don’t come over” convinced him that for the rest of his life, Du Ge was his true third senior brother, and he would lay down his life for him.

“What are you standing around for, come and help me!” Compared to the self-sacrificing Du Ge, Xu Heming’s command made him seem inferior, and the hearts of the Tianlan Valley disciples grew colder.

Qian Dajin and the other three Foundation Establishment cultivators watched their Valley Master being stripped and the indestructible Du Ge, hesitating to step forward.

“Idiots, do you think you can survive if I die?” Xu Heming said in a fit of rage.

He was out of options.

Truth be told, he had never encountered such a tenacious enemy; just a brush against him could drain spiritual power.

This was every cultivator’s nightmare.

Compared to having their cultivation drained, being stripped of their clothes was child’s play.

“Join the Seven Stars Sect, and we are all family.” Du Ge grew more valiant as the battle raged on, his adrenaline surging, and before he even felt the pain, his wounds were healing.

Moreover, Xu Heming’s spiritual power was vast and mighty. Once absorbed by Du Ge, it could be used directly. Plus, plundering from someone of a higher level granted even greater attributes. As a result, Du Ge’s strength steadily increased.

Xu Heming was hitting him less and less.

“Do you trust me or him?” Xu Heming shouted angrily, “Go kill the people of the Seven Stars Sect, distract him.”

“Touch my people and after killing Xu Heming, I’ll flay and dismember you,” Du Ge countered sharply.

Qian Dajin and the others, who had just begun to move, were rooted to the spot.

The seventh junior brother looked at the three Foundation Establishment elders and calmly said, “Elders, my Sect Leader brother risks his life to protect us; Valley Master Xu, for his own safety, urges you to court death. Who is more trustworthy, do you even need to ask?”

Qian Dajin and the others looked at the two fighting, their expressions complex.

Logically speaking.

Wang Chong’s actions, stripping clothes and chopping off arms, were the deeds of a demon.

But somehow, compared to their own cowardly Sect Leader, they found themselves admiring the other side more.

“Elders, Tianlan Valley’s influence is waning, and the Seven Stars Sect lacks Foundation Establishment experts. If you join us, you will be treated far better than in Tianlan Valley,” the seventh junior brother said. “Moreover, after Sect Leader defeats Valley Master Xu, you’ll even get Tianlan Valley’s cultivation techniques, so you won’t even need to change your cultivation methods…”

Qian Dajin and the others exchanged glances, tempted.

“Traitor!” Xu Heming was both shocked and scared, “Don’t try to sow discord among my troops.”

“Valley Master Xu, there’s a saying: ‘If the upper beam is not straight, the lower ones will go aslant.’ You look forward and back, fearing death, how can you expect your disciples to lay down their lives for you?” Du Ge laughed heartily, “Unlike me, who leads by example and cares for my disciples, I will have people truly follow me. Disciples of the Seven Stars Sect, do you regret joining?”

“Never regret,” the seventh junior brother was the first to respond.

“Never regret,” Lu Dong was the second to speak. Du Ge had drained his cultivation and chopped off his arm, but at this moment, he was truly captivated by Du Ge’s charisma. He believed that following such a Sect Leader would not lead to loss.

“Never regret.”

Those who had been wronged were moved, not to mention those whose cultivation had been enriched by Du Ge. In an instant, voices of no regret formed a chorus that echoed throughout Tianlan Valley.

On the hillside.

Hundreds of Tianlan Valley disciples watched the impassioned Seven Stars Sect disciples with mixed feelings, feeling a tinge of envy in their hearts.

…

What is nobility?

This is nobility!

As long as you can win the sincere admiration of others, they won’t care how despicable your actions are.

A wave of attributes flooded into Du Ge’s body.

His personal interface flickered, clearly indicating new skills had been unlocked, but Du Ge had no time to check what the new skills were.

Xu Heming’s clothes had long been stripped clean by him.

The old fellow realized that their power would be drained upon contact, becoming slippery and elusive, preventing Du Ge from touching him. It had been half a day since Du Ge had absorbed any spiritual power.

He needed to think of a plan.

Du Ge’s gaze instinctively shifted towards Xu Heming’s legs.

Xu Heming suddenly felt a shock and instinctively stepped back.

At this moment.

He was filled with both hatred and fear. If he had known this would happen, why did he think of expansion and provoking the Seven Stars Sect?

Wouldn’t it have been better to just break through to the Golden Elixir stage before considering expansion?

Why can’t this one be killed?

There can’t be people in the world who can’t be killed; everyone has a weakness. His cultivation technique must have a flaw, and once it’s found, a fatal blow can be delivered.

As Du Ge pondered how to take down Xu Heming’s thigh.

Xu Heming was also searching on Du Ge’s body, looking for his weak point.

He was already in too deep; if he didn’t kill Du Ge, not to mention the Golden Elixir, all the industry he had painstakingly built would be gone.

“Brothers on the hillside, Tianlan Valley’s influence is waning. Tear off your sleeves, and you can join the Seven Stars Sect. I, as your Sect Leader, will protect you and help you soar,” Du Ge used his spiritual power to persuade the Tianlan Valley disciples to defect and distract Xu Heming.

Rip!

As soon as he finished speaking.

The sound of tearing sleeves echoed from the hillside.

…

“I wish to join the Seven Stars Sect.”

“I also wish to join the Seven Stars Sect, please take me in, Sect Leader.”

…

Voices began to rise sporadically, growing in number as more and more Tianlan Valley disciples tore off their sleeves.

Listening to the sound of sleeves being torn, Xu Heming felt as if his heart was bleeding. His face trembled with rage: “Traitor, traitor, I swear I’m not human if I don’t kill you.”

Before he could finish.

Rip!

A light sound.

It was Qian Dajin tearing off his own sleeve.

Xu Heming caught a glimpse of this scene from the corner of his eye and was jolted: “Qian Dajin.”

In the moment he was distracted, a pain shot through his wrist, and his last fighting hand was touched by Du Ge, detaching in an instant.

Du Ge laughed heartily: “Old Qian, well done. After taking down Xu Heming, you shall be credited with the first merit.”

Holding the torn sleeve in his hand, Qian Dajin was full of confusion. He didn’t intend to tear off his sleeve at all, but somehow, influenced by everyone, he did it unconsciously.

The other two Foundation Establishment cultivators gave Qian Dajin a disdainful look and without hesitation, tore off their own sleeves.

“Sect Leader Wang, I wish to join the Seven Stars Sect.”

“Sect Leader Wang, I come to lend you a hand.”

Two voices rang out.

One person declared their allegiance to the Seven Stars Sect.

The other simply drew his sword and charged, heading straight for Xu Heming’s back.

Seeing this, another person also joined the fray.

Qian Dajin stood there dumbfounded, you two idiots, you’re even more committed to defecting than I am, why the disdain for me, you unfilial wretches!

Then.

He drew his sword and also charged: “Xu Heming, I’ve long found you disagreeable.”

Seeing this, Xu Heming panicked, abandoning his hand and fleeing towards the valley. He couldn’t understand how, in the blink of an eye, his hard-built Tianlan Valley had become the Seven Stars Sect’s?

He provided for them, taught them skills, and when he was in trouble, everyone chose to betray him. Was he such a failure as a person?

Du Ge laughed heartily and pursued: “Valley Master Xu, the tide has turned, why not join the Seven Stars Sect as well, I can still leave you a whole corpse…”

Xu Heming didn’t look back: “Traitor, don’t be arrogant, once I leave, I will report you to the supervisory institution for being a Demon Head, let’s see if they’ll let you off…”

Bang!

A loud noise.

Interrupted Xu Heming’s words.

It was Ling Ping Shuang from the crowd who seized the opportunity, leaping up and intercepting Xu Heming.

Two bare old men collided, perfectly cutting off Xu Heming’s escape route.

Du Ge took the opportunity to catch up and removed Xu Heming’s legs.

He sealed the acupoints to stop the bleeding, grabbed Xu Heming by the neck with one hand, and lifted him up, plundering his spiritual power to his heart’s content.

Ling Ping Shuang looked at Du Ge with difficulty, showing a pleasing smile: “Sect Leader Wang, have I earned my merit?”

“Of course, Elder Ling, you too shall be credited with the first merit.” Du Ge glanced at him with a smile and instructed, “Elder Ling, go find your arm, preserve it with ice. Once I deal with Xu Heming, I’ll find a doctor to reattach it for you…”

Ling Ping Shuang was suddenly stunned.

At this time, his first thought wasn’t to integrate Tianlan Valley, but to reattach his arm?

After a moment of silence, Ling Ping Shuang sighed, stood up, and bowed deeply to Du Ge: “Sect Leader, Ling Ping Shuang swears, in this life, I am willing to lay down my life for the Seven Stars Sect, to go through fire and water. If I break this oath, may I be condemned by both man and gods.”

At this moment.

His heart was full of emotion, having forgotten that he was naked and how he lost his arm!

Feeling the attributes increasing in his body, Du Ge smiled and instructed the seventh junior brother: “Junior brother, go pick up the arms of those elders, preserve them with ice. Once we find a doctor, we’ll reattach them all…”

With these words.

Du Ge’s attributes increased again, and the naked elders lying on the ground pretending to be dead couldn’t stay down any longer. They all stood up and swore allegiance to the Seven Stars Sect.

“Feigned benevolence.” Xu Heming glared at Du Ge with rage, trembling all over, his fierce eyes wishing to devour his flesh and sleep in his skin.

“Valley Master Xu, it’s just karma. The killer is always killed in turn,” Du Ge said nonchalantly with a smile, “When you set your sights on taking over another’s sect, the fate of Tianlan Valley was sealed.”