Chapter 586: Disappeared
The day after the experts from the Celestial Spirit Auction House arrived, ten colossal Fire Phoenix Carvings flew menacingly toward the Taiqing Academy early in the morning.
Watching the ten Fire Phoenix Carvings depart, all the families in Fire City, big and small, were on edge. A force of this magnitude was something the Taiqing Academy surely couldn’t withstand.
While some worried, others were naturally pleased. If the Taiqing Academy were truly destroyed by the Celestial Spirit Auction House, the entire territory under its rule would likely descend into chaos—the perfect opportunity for growth.
In the Wei Family’s main hall, Patriarch Wei sat in the seat of honor. He looked down at the Wei Family’s three Commanders and asked, "Is everything ready?"
"Yes, everything is in place," the Grand Commander replied.
Upon hearing this, Patriarch Wei nodded. From his expression, it seemed he knew something others didn’t, and because of this knowledge, the Wei Family had already made its preparations.
Whatever preparations the Wei Family had made were unknown. At that moment, the experts from the Celestial Spirit Auction House had already arrived outside the Taiqing Academy. They looked down from the sky, and the entire Academy was terrifyingly silent.
With Qingfeng Saint present, Lin Yun was also seated on the back of a Fire Phoenix Carving. Gazing down at the Taiqing Academy, Lin Yun’s brow furrowed. It was too strange. The people from the Celestial Spirit Auction House were right at their doorstep, yet not a single expert from the Academy had appeared.
He spoke to Qingfeng Saint, suggesting they land in the Taiqing Academy’s main plaza first.
Hearing Lin Yun’s words, Qingfeng Saint directed the group to fly toward the main plaza and descend slowly.
Once they arrived at the main plaza, Lin Yun finally saw disciples of the Taiqing Academy. However, they were all just Outer Disciples and Inner Sect Disciples, along with some ordinary Elders.
These Taiqing Academy disciples all stared in terror at the experts from the Celestial Spirit Auction House, none of them daring to approach.
"Attack! Slaughter every disciple of the Taiqing Academy!" Fire Cloud Saint roared at the people behind him.
However, just as the words left his mouth, Lin Yun spoke up. "Wait..."
Hearing Lin Yun, Fire Cloud Saint looked at him with a trace of anger in his eyes and said coldly, "Brat, letting you come along was already a favor to Qingfeng. Don’t push your luck."
"Senior, don’t you find this strange?" Lin Yun said, bowing respectfully instead of arguing with Fire Cloud Saint.
Hearing this, Fire Cloud Saint glanced at the Taiqing Academy disciples huddled far away and asked irritably, "What’s strange about it?"
"Senior, these are all Outer Disciples and Inner Sect Disciples of the Taiqing Academy. But not a single one of the Academy’s upper echelons, Direct Disciples, or Core Disciples is here. Don’t you find that odd?" Lin Yun explained.
Only then did Fire Cloud Saint notice this. ’That’s right. The enemy is already at their gates, so why haven’t any of the Taiqing Academy’s leaders shown themselves?’
After a moment of thought, Fire Cloud Saint ordered a Silver Order behind him, "Go, grab an Elder and bring him here for questioning."
Following Fire Cloud Saint’s command, the Silver Order quickly grabbed a Taiqing Academy Elder. He had a Primordial Ocean Realm cultivation, but upon seeing the three Gold Orders, the Elder was so frightened he dropped to his knees.
"Speak. Where have all the leaders of the Taiqing Academy gone?" Fire Cloud Saint demanded coldly, looking down at the kneeling Elder.
"The... the Headmaster... they’ve all disappeared..." he stammered in reply.
Hearing this, Lin Yun’s brow furrowed even deeper. ’Disappeared? What does that mean? Did the Academy’s leaders just run away? That’s impossible. Would they really abandon the Taiqing Academy and just leave?’
Learning that the Taiqing Academy’s leadership had vanished, the experts from the Celestial Spirit Auction House quickly searched the entire Academy. They gathered all the servant disciples, Outer Disciples, Inner Sect Disciples, and Elders who remained and herded them into the main plaza.
Standing on the stone platform at the front of the main plaza, Lin Yun looked out at the tens of thousands of Taiqing Academy disciples. Though they were still here, all of the Academy’s leaders and talented disciples had disappeared.
"Little brother, is there something about this Taiqing Academy business that you haven’t told us?" While Lin Yun was lost in thought, Flowing Water Saint appeared by his side at some point and asked with a light laugh.
"What do you mean, Senior?" Lin Yun asked, turning to Flowing Water Saint.
"Qing Zhu Association..." With a soft laugh, Flowing Water Saint said three words.
Hearing those three words, an unusual glint flashed in Lin Yun’s eyes. ’How could she know?’
Seeing his expression, Flowing Water Saint gave a seductive smile, caressed Lin Yun’s cheek, and said, "Little brother, even though I’ve guessed, I won’t tell anyone. Also, you’re not allowed to call me ’Senior’ anymore. You have to call me ’sister,’ understand?"
With that, Flowing Water Saint gracefully walked toward Taiching Hall behind them.
Having failed to find the Taiqing Academy’s leaders, the three Gold Orders commanded their subordinates to thoroughly search the Academy’s Treasure Pavilion and all of its storerooms, large and small. In the end, a result that was both shocking and yet somehow expected was presented to everyone.
All of the Taiqing Academy’s Spiritual Treasures had vanished. Only some daily living supplies remained.
"Damn it! They actually got away! In that case, I’ll just kill all you ants." At some unknown moment, Fire Cloud Saint appeared in the sky above the main plaza. Cursing angrily, he thrust a palm down at the Taiqing Academy disciples in the square.
A colossal hand of Elemental Power, seemingly wreathed in blazing flames, slammed viciously into the main plaza. A torrent of wretched screams instantly echoed across the entire square.
With that single palm strike, several thousand Taiqing Academy disciples died. The spot where the giant hand had landed was engulfed in raging flames, and many of the Academy’s disciples and Elders were burned alive.
After the first strike, Fire Cloud Saint was about to launch a second, but he was stopped by Qingfeng Saint and Flowing Water Saint together.
"Fire Cloud, that’s enough! The Leader’s order was to eliminate the Taiqing Academy. With their leaders all gone, the Taiqing Academy no longer exists. What’s the point in killing them?" Qingfeng Saint shouted.
Blocked by the two of them, Fire Cloud Saint held back from striking again. He snorted coldly and returned to Taiching Hall to await the final results of his subordinates’ search.
Watching the screaming Taiqing Academy disciples below, a flicker of pity crossed Lin Yun’s eyes. These were just the lowest-ranking disciples, yet now they had all become scapegoats.
Seeing the terror on their faces, hearing their incessant wails for help, and witnessing their helpless and desperate expressions left a bitter taste in Lin Yun’s mouth.
They were not the cause of any of this, but because of the mistakes of the Taiqing Academy’s experts, they were forced to bear the brunt of Fire Cloud Saint’s fury.
Perhaps in Fire Cloud Saint’s eyes, these disciples and Elders of the Taiqing Academy were no different from pigs and dogs that could be slaughtered at will. He had probably never even considered them human.
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