“That’s not necessarily the case,” Oriole repeatedly waved his hand.

Seeing that Elder Lin was about to lose his temper, Oriole dared not keep them in suspense any longer and immediately explained:

“Before the Sixth Princess of White Tree Nation, who is now Master Taoist Haitang, awoke, it was this young man who escorted her to Black Vulture Nation. The couple is grateful for his kindness, and they didn’t even bother visiting Qingxuan Sect this time.”

Upon hearing this, Elder Lin’s expression immediately turned grave.

He was well aware of the couple’s deep sense of gratitude.

If he were to harm this young man today, and the couple sought retribution, Yunjing Palace would surely suffer.

With this thought, a fine layer of sweat broke out on his forehead.

“Oriole, you’re not trying to deceive me, are you?”

Elder Lin was still somewhat skeptical.

Without another word, Oriole took out the ledger of merits and demerits and placed it in front of Elder Lin, saying:

“If you don’t believe me, surely you’ll believe this ledger?”

Elder Lin took a close look and furrowed his brows.

After only a moment’s hesitation, he shifted his gaze from the ledger and cleared his throat a few times before turning to the young palace master, Jing Hao, and saying, “Young master, it was all a misunderstanding. Let’s just let bygones be bygones.”

While speaking, he also gave Jing Hao a meaningful look.

Although the young palace master, Jing Hao, was arrogant, he had enough insight to know that Elder Lin must have learned something significant to change his attitude.

“Since Elder Lin has spoken, I will not pursue this matter further,” the young palace master suddenly declared magnanimously.

Xu Taiping and Xu Ziyan behind him were taken aback, not expecting the group’s attitude to change so quickly.

“Since it’s a misunderstanding, then have your people apologize to my Senior Brother,” Xu Taiping said, glancing at Zhou Ao, whose face was swollen like a pig’s head, then addressing the people from Yunjing Palace.

Although he didn’t know what Oriole had told them, since the advantage was on his side, he couldn’t show weakness in front of them. Otherwise, once they entered the secret realm, other sects would surely treat them like easy targets.

This was precisely why Xu Ziyan insisted on using the sword formation to battle the people from Yunjing Palace.

“You!…”

“Cough, cough, cough…”

The young palace master from Yunjing Palace was furious, but before he could finish, he was interrupted by Elder Lin’s coughing.

Elder Lin then looked at the two burly men who had also been injured by Xu Taiping and said:

“Apologize to the young brother.”

Upon hearing this, the young palace master immediately became unhappy and leaned in to whisper to Elder Lin:

“Elder Lin, what was that about just now? Why fear a mere disciple from Qingxuan Sect?”

Elder Lin whispered back in his ear:

“This young man is the benefactor of that demonic couple.”

Hearing this, the young palace master’s face also changed drastically, and he turned away with a cold snort, saying:

“You handle it yourselves. I’m out of this!”

…

“What did you just say to those people from Yunjing Palace?”

After the people from Yunjing Palace left, Xu Ziyan, who had withdrawn the sword formation, looked puzzledly at Oriole.

Xu Taiping also curiously looked over.

“I just told them that Taiping is the benefactor of that couple.”

Oriole grinned.

Xu Ziyan then understood.

The fact that Xu Taiping had escorted Haitang to Black Vulture Nation was well known among many in Qingxuan Sect, including Xu Ziyan.

“The reputation of Sister Haitang and Brother Xiang is that significant?”

Xu Taiping found it hard to believe.

Just mentioning the names of the two was enough to scare off the people from Yunjing Palace, which he found incomprehensible.

“You don’t know, after they left Black Vulture Nation, they first destroyed the sect behind the Queen of Qi, causing their sect gates to collapse. If it weren’t for the Mountain Protection Array, the entire sect might have been leveled. The other sects involved in that conflict also suffered greatly and won’t recover for decades.”

“If it weren’t for the mansion master’s intervention, I reckon that the seat of Sword Champion of the Nine Mansions would belong to Qingxuan Sect in the next cycle,” Oriole continued with a look of lingering fear.

Xu Taiping was speechless.

If things were really as Oriole described, then the reaction of the people from Yunjing Palace was understandable.

“Rumble…”

Just then, the platform beneath their feet suddenly shook violently.

“The array is about to activate. Gather quickly and stand together to avoid being scattered during the teleportation,” Oriole solemnly reminded them.

Xu Ziyan and Xu Taiping nodded.

“I have other matters to attend to and won’t accompany you inside. When you come out, I’ll treat you to a drink,” Oriole said, bowing to them.

“Thank you, Brother Oriole, for helping us out today,” Xu Ziyan thanked Oriole with a bow.

She had been so firm earlier because she didn’t want to appear weak in front of all the cultivators, which would lead to endless trouble inside the relic. But she didn’t really want to become mortal enemies with Yunjing Palace; even if they got what they wanted, it would still be a hassle for the Sixth Peak in the future. So Oriole’s timing was perfect.

“Thanks, Brother Oriole,” Xu Taiping also bowed to Oriole.

“Don’t mention it,” Oriole waved his hand and then quickly left the teleportation platform with his spirit pet, Little Black Bear.

“Senior Sister!” At this moment, several disciples from Qingxuan Sect also gathered around.

“The teleportation array is about to activate. Don’t wander around, or you might end up being teleported to different places,” Xu Ziyan reminded them.

They all nodded in agreement.

Lin Buyu, however, sheathed her sword and silently stood beside Xu Taiping.

Rumble…

Soon, the trembling beneath their feet grew more intense, and an indescribable ancient aura rose from the platform.

Xu Ziyan, who had entered the Cloud Dream Marsh relic before, knew this was a sign that the relic’s array was about to activate.

“The relic’s array is about to activate. Hold your breath and focus. Don’t move,” she immediately warned everyone.

“Boom!”

But at that moment, the sky above General’s Pass suddenly darkened with dense clouds, and the sound of thunder rumbled above.

In an instant, the world turned pitch black.

Everyone on the teleportation platform was in an uproar.

“Is this a sign of a demon appearing?”

Someone exclaimed in shock.

Xu Taiping was initially as astonished as everyone else, looking up at the sky, but soon the piercing pain in the palm of his left hand drew his attention.

Frowning, he quietly lifted his palm to look.

He noticed that the Ghost-Sealing Talisman, which had previously been hidden under his skin, had suddenly revealed itself, and the skin around the talisman was rapidly cracking. Not only that, but his blood and True Qi were also being rapidly depleted.

“Why is the Ghost-Sealing Talisman acting up now?”

Filled with surprise, he quickly took out a Qi Preserving Pill and popped it into his mouth to stop the loss of True Qi.

“Are you feeling unwell?”

Lin Buyu, who was beside him, suddenly turned to Xu Taiping.

“Uh, yeah, I don’t know what’s happening, but I’m feeling a bit unstable,” Xu Taiping gave an evasive answer.

Lin Buyu took hold of Xu Taiping’s hand without another word and transferred a stream of True Qi into his body.

“Hm?”

“Boom!”

Just as Xu Taiping was about to refuse, an incredibly powerful pressure suddenly descended from the clouds.

Then, an ear-splitting roar echoed.

A Flood Dragon, engulfed in black flames, burst forth from the clouds.

“Roar!…”

After a roar, the Flood Dragon, covered in mysterious fire, suddenly spewed a stream of black flame towards the teleportation platform below.

It was a scene reminiscent of the apocalypse.

“What on earth… is happening?”

Xu Taiping, no longer concerned about Lin Buyu’s hand, looked up in disbelief at the scene above and murmured to himself.