"Wretch, where do you think you're going!" Tian Xu Zi rushed out, seizing one person, "Tian Ze, capture them."
Tian Ze glanced at Nangong Yu, who was the last to charge forward, and went to apprehend the escaping evildoers. Nangong Yu cupped his hands at Tian Ze from afar, "Many thanks for your assistance, Brother Tian Ze. I shall take my leave. We shall meet again."
Tian Ze, with one hand grabbing an evildoer, followed Nangong Yu with his gaze. Ultimately, he did not pursue Nangong Yu but threw the two subdued evildoers onto the ground.
"Insolent, utterly insolent!" Tian Xu Zi was furious, "It was bad enough that he let the Demon Lord's soul escape, but he even let the lower-tier villains out! Detestable!"
"Sect Master, I should descend the mountain."
"It is time to descend the mountain," Tian Xu Zi sighed. "The Sect Master of the Heavenly Xuan Sect..."
"Sect Master, when I say descend the mountain, I mean to leave," Tian Ze said slowly. "Once the seal in the Land of No Return is broken, it will surely alert that person. I must make preparations."
"Tian Ze, what exactly are you planning to do?"
"Sect Master, after I descend the mountain, you are to recall all disciples, activate the sect protection formation, and instruct the disciples to avoid leaving the sect as much as possible." Tian Ze looked into the distance. "Cang Xuan is about to be thrown into chaos."
"You..." Tian Xu Zi felt a pang in his chest upon hearing this. "You and that Xiao Man are truly a couple, treating my Heavenly Xuan Sect like a cowering turtle!"
Tian Ze blinked in surprise. "You saw Man'er?"
"I did. She went with the Ghost King towards the Land of No Return."
"Has the Ghost King emerged from the Ghost Domain?" Tian Ze sighed. "It seems the Demon Lord's advent is unstoppable."
"This is all your wife's doing!"
"Sect Master, she does not admit to this crime, nor do I," Tian Ze retorted. "She was perfectly content being a young lady on the continent of Yong An. Yet, Sect Master Yue of the Cang Xuan Continent tore through space, exterminated her entire family, and didn't even bother to finish the job. If it were you, could you swallow that?"
"But... her family was annihilated, so she must drag countless other families down with her?"
"Sect Master, we have no idea what the outcome will be if the Demon Lord emerges, do we?" Tian Ze's voice grew colder. "If the Demon Lord emerges, the Four Great Sects will focus their attention on dealing with him, rather than scrutinizing her, digging three feet deep to find her, squeezing every last drop of her value, and then obliterating everyone she cares about."
"That is something that has not yet happened."
"Indeed, the Demon Lord will bring ruin to the world; that has not yet happened. However, Man'er's family was destroyed, her friends were harmed, and she is being hunted. This is happening now. In this vast Cang Xuan, everyone covets the value of the 'medicine person,' everyone covets the treasures she possesses. No one considers that she is being persecuted!"
"This..." Tian Xu Zi did not know how to refute. Of course, he knew this was persecution, but the adage that an innocent person is guilty for possessing treasures was also well-known. She lacked the ability but held divine artifacts; who wouldn't want to seize them?
"Sect Master, are you about to say that an innocent person is guilty for possessing treasures?" Tian Ze seemed to have seen through Tian Xu Zi's thoughts. "Lacking ability but possessing heavenly treasures, she deserves to be robbed and her family annihilated?"
Tian Xu Zi pursed his lips, not answering, but his facial expression conveyed agreement.
"Therefore, if she has the ability to release the Demon Lord, then others deserve to suffer. Who told them they didn't have the ability to release the Demon Lord?" Tian Ze used his own logic against him. "Therefore, you should not concern yourself with it. After all, you do not possess the ability to release the Demon Lord."
"I can stop it."
"Ten years ago, you might have had the ability to stop it. Now, there is no opportunity," Tian Ze said softly. "We must thank Yue Tian Xia for teaching her such a harsh lesson ten years ago. By the way, Sect Master, you have seen her as well. Can you discern her cultivation level?"
Tian Xu Zi's expression shifted from dark to pale, then to ashen. "Once the Demon Lord emerges, the world will be plunged into suffering..."
"Sect Master, look at you. When Man'er was being hunted by Yue Tian Xia all over the world, you stood by and watched, thinking it had nothing to do with you. Now that Man'er has decided to release the Demon Lord to survive, why are you so anxious?"
"How can one person compare to everyone in the world?"
"Sect Master, it's not that one person cannot compare to everyone. It's that when one person is persecuted, it does not affect the interests of the Heavenly Xuan Sect. But if the Demon Lord emerges, it will affect the interests of the Heavenly Xuan Sect." Tian Ze's tone was entirely icy. "As long as it doesn't concern oneself, one allows others to be persecuted. But when it starts to affect one's own interests, one jumps out and accuses others of selfishness. What is that called?"
"Are you accusing me?"
"Sect Master, you jest. I have no intention of accusing you. My point is that during a snow avalanche, no snowflake is innocent." Tian Ze looked at the Sect Master, his expression calm and composed. "When one person is persecuted, we turn a blind eye. When a small group of people is persecuted, we still turn a blind eye. When the persecuted become us, we become anxious and cry out that it's unacceptable. Do you think anyone will help us at that point?"
"In the end, you still blame me for not saving her back then."
"Sect Master, you did save her," Tian Ze said quietly. "If it weren't for your soul force in the Land of No Return back then, she would likely have died there. I truly do not blame you. I only hope that the Heavenly Xuan Sect does not get involved in this matter, and that you do not get involved either."
"But the Demon Lord won't care if we stay out of it. The Four Great Sects jointly suppressed the Demon Lord back then. If he emerges, he will surely seek revenge. The instigator of all this is Yue Tian Xia. There's no need for others to pay the price!"
"Was the annihilation of the Qin clan truly something Yue Tian Xia alone could achieve?"
"Wasn't it?"
"Let's put it this way. If the Qin clan's annihilation was due to Yue Tian Xia's jealousy, then the Tian Dun Sect, a vast sect, was annihilated. Nowadays, apart from a few individuals, most people have never even heard of the Tian Dun Sect." Tian Ze paused. "Why do you think the Tian Dun Sect was annihilated? Why is it that no one knows of its existence even now? And why don't they know that the Tian Dun Sect was the true orthodox sect of the Heavenly Gate?"
"Was it coercion by the Heavenly Sword Sect using its power?"
"Would the Heavenly Xuan Sect be afraid? Would the Heavenly Xuan Sect obediently comply?"
Tian Xu Zi looked at Tian Ze with bewilderment. "Speak plainly. What are you hiding from me?"
"Our true enemy is not the Demon Lord, nor Man'er, but another hidden force. This force has infiltrated various sects and factions. I do not want you to get involved because, once involved, the blow from the hidden power against the Heavenly Xuan Sect would be far greater than the harm brought by the Demon Lord."
"But if you descend the mountain, how can the Heavenly Xuan Sect remain aloof?"
Tian Ze smiled gently. "Therefore, as soon as I descend the mountain, I will ask the Sect Master to announce to the world that I have been expelled from the Heavenly Xuan Sect."