474: Tid Quest
The world had fallen into chaos in just a brief span of ti.
The news that Jiang Mo and Yun Qingyue heard from the Wanfa Sect Leader was rely his observations along the journey. As the leader of a sect, Sect Leader Qingxiao, who had also ford an alliance with Harmony Sect, naturally had access to far more information than the two of them. Thus, as report after report reached his hands, they told tales of blood and tears that would evoke compassion even from the most stone-hearted of people.
And now, these reports lay before Jiang Mo and Yun Qingyue. After reading them, both fell silent. After a long while, they finally asked hoarsely: "Isn't there anything we can do?"
Sect Leader Qingxiao remained silent, then shook his head: "It's not that we don't want to, but that we simply cannot."
Jiang Mo and Yun Qingyue knew that Sect Leader Qingxiao wasn't making excuses, as the people of Xuanqing Sect weren't naturally immune to demonic forces. They too could be infected by demonic patterns, could lose their nature to demonic influence. Rashly leaving the sect wouldn't save the world but would only mire them deeper in this quagmire.
The two left Lingyun Hall. When they erged, the sunlight was perfect, just as it had always been, as if these were still the carefree, worry-free days of the past. Yet both knew that beneath this brilliant sunshine, darkness was spreading. They were rely in a pure land, and even this pure land couldn't last long—sooner or later, it too would be surrounded and devoured by darkness.
"Senior Sister, do you think we should do sothing?" Jiang Mo suddenly asked, gazing at the blue sky and white clouds.
She had called her "Senior Sister" again. Yun Qingyue turned to look at her, feeling that since hearing about the world's suffering from the Wanfa Sect Leader, Jiang Mo had been preoccupied. This was quite rare for the carefree little tiger, but Yun Qingyue still didn't have much curiosity, and simply replied: "Do what we should do, do what we can do, that's enough."
Yun Qingyue felt that in the face of overwhelming forces, her own capabilities were quite limited. Following the Sect Leader's instructions, going out daily to eliminate threats and rescue people was all she could do at present.
Hearing this, Jiang Mo's heart wasn't as calm as Yun Qingyue's, because she knew she could do more—in terms of cultivation, she wasn't much higher than Yun Qingyue, and there were many in Xuanqing Sect with deeper cultivation than her. Faced with the current situation, she seed unable to do much, but there was one thing at which she excelled beyond everyone else: she had the system, and main quests that were essentially spoilers!
Usually, since completing main quests often resulted in more loss than gain, Jiang Mo's attitude toward tasks wasn't at all proactive; more often, she just went with the flow rather than actively completing quests.
But now, for the first ti, she regretted this approach. If she had completed quests earlier, would the current situation be different?
Jiang Mo's mood grew heavy. Although she didn't say anything more, she secretly prodded the system again, hoping to get so hints. At the very least, if it could reveal the na of the next main quest, that would also be a kind of spoiler, letting her know which direction to take next.
Unfortunately, the system was truly useless, not even knowing this, saying that subsequent quests would be issued by the main system. Finally, unable to resist the host's persistent coaxing, the system reluctantly issued a rescue mission to her, a tid quest at that.
When Jiang Mo opened it, she saw it was to rescue Tiandao Sect disciples, with the first na on the list being her old acquaintance, You Yi...
"System, are you trying to gather the seven sects and then summon the divine dragon to save the world?" Jiang Mo wanted to take this seriously, but in the end, she couldn't resist the urge to joke, feeling that her quest-taking self might seem like a saint.
The system, however, responded solemnly: "The culti...vation world has no divine dragons." After delivering this factual cold joke, it stealthily added: "H-host, this quest has be...nefits, take it."
Jiang Mo didn't know what benefits the system was referring to, and further questioning yielded no answers, but throughout their ti together, the system had never deceived her on important matters. Therefore, deep down, she was inclined to trust it.
So when they returned to Purple Cloud Peak, Jiang Mo suddenly grabbed Yun Qingyue's hand.
Yun Qingyue turned back: "What is it?"
Jiang Mo had already quickly devised an explanation. Now she revealed so hesitation, dawdling for a mont before saying: "Ah Yue, there's actually sothing I haven't told you. Not long ago, I received a distress call from You Yi. He and so Tiandao Sect disciples are in danger in the southwest region... The ssage was brief and unclear, but you know Tiandao Sect's current situation. He's an old acquaintance after all, shouldn't we go check on them?"
Yun Qingyue wasn't so easily fooled, her first reaction being: "You're still in contact with You Yi?"
You Yi was the person with whom they had the deepest connection at Tiandao Sect, but at most they were casual acquaintances. They had crossed paths several tis, but neither the tiger cub from the Canglán Secret Realm nor the later incognito Jiang Mo on rperson Island seed likely to have exchanged communication talismans with You Yi.
Indeed, Jiang Mo didn't have You Yi's contact information; she was rely making an excuse, as she couldn't exactly say she was doing this for a quest: "Just, a distress call I received by chance. We don't usually stay in touch."
Yun Qingyue grew more suspicious: "Could it be a trap?"
Jiang Mo imdiately declared with conviction: "No way."
Seeing her like this, Yun Qingyue guessed that there must be more to the story, at least that Jiang Mo might have confird this through so other information channel. She probed a couple more tis, confird that Jiang Mo was full of confidence, and finally agreed to the matter.
· · ─────── ·??· ─────── · · · · ─────── ·??· ─────── · ·
Xuanqing Sect had its Sect Leader, Peak Masters, Supre Elders, and Divine Lord Zhiming. Having them there or not wouldn't make much difference. With no concerns to hold them back, and given the ti-sensitive nature of the tid quest—with rescue being all the more urgent—the two reported to Sect Leader Qingxiao and temporarily left Xuanqing Sect.
This was the first real journey they had taken since the outbreak of chaos, and a long one at that. What they saw along the way matched exactly what the Wanfa Sect Leader had described: either chaos or desolation, flying millions of miles without seeing any sign of human habitation was common.
Both traveled with heavy hearts. After flying swiftly for about a month, they finally reached the southwestern region.
The southwest was mountainous, with only ordinary levels of spiritual energy, so there weren't many sects established there, and few cultivators passed through. The two had thought this place might still maintain so peace, but the few towns they passed were already in ruins.
Even Yun Qingyue, with her firm temperant, grew more silent after witnessing all this.
The two hovered above the ruins of a town, and with one sweep of their divine sense, they knew there were no survivors here. This alone would have been acceptable—perhaps everyone had fled—but divine sense revealed all, so the two clearly "saw" just how many once-vibrant lives were buried beneath these ruins, and how much resentnt and unwillingness had been bred.
Jiang Mo sighed inwardly, thinking that if soone from Buddha Sect were here, they could at least recite so scriptures to help these departed souls transcend.
Yun Qingyue's brows were also tightly knit as she waved her sleeve, bringing mountain rocks and soil to completely bury the ruins beneath their feet. Without indulging in lancholy, she raised her head and asked Jiang Mo: "Where are they, and how much farther?"
Hearing this, Jiang Mo answered without thinking, giving the latest coordinates shown by the system. The two imdiately headed in that direction. But halfway there, she suddenly realized that she had given the real-ti coordinates too precisely. Would her Senior Sister be suspicious? So midway through the flight, she added uncertainly: "It should be around this location. Let's go look, do our best and leave the rest to fate."
Yun Qingyue made no comnt, or perhaps she had long detected secrets in Jiang Mo, but simply never ntioned or inquired deeply about them. Even now that their relationship had progressed further, she didn't find Jiang Mo's secrets problematic.
Jiang Mo couldn't discern her Senior Sister's thoughts, but since she wasn't being exposed, she continued to play dumb.
……
When Jiang Mo and Yun Qingyue found You Yi's group following the system's coordinates, it was already the last day of the tid quest, and You Yi's group was at the end of their rope—they were being hunted by a group of people, or rather, they had been continuously hunted. From the beginning of the world's chaos and Tiandao Sect's collapse, this pursuit had never ceased, continuing until now, enough to exhaust anyone completely.
The mont before Jiang Mo and Yun Qingyue appeared, You Yi had already felt despair. He had been striving all along to protect the junior brothers and sisters who followed him, but no matter how hard he tried, the number of people behind him continued to dwindle.
On this day, it seed the mont of life and death had finally arrived. He launched a final attack with a resolve to die.
Unfortunately, his opponent was Jiang Shen, the genius of Tiandao Sect who had always been one step ahead of him. Now, having willingly fallen to demonic influence, Jiang Shen's strength had increased dramatically, making You Yi even less of a match. That attack was easily deflected, leaving You Yi standing there in a sorry state. He didn't plan to flee anymore; with only himself left, there was no need. He squeezed the last bit of spiritual energy from his ridians, planning to self-destruct when his opponent approached, taking his enemy down with him.
This was when Jiang Mo and Yun Qingyue arrived—sowhat late, but not too late. Their strength was almost overwhelming among the younger generation, even against Tiandao Sect's number one genius. They successfully rescued You Yi.
You Yi looked at the two, more shocked than delighted, on the verge of tears yet unable to cry, about to smile yet unable to.
Seeing his almost distorted expression, Jiang Mo felt strangely chilled, but constrained by her earlier lie to her Senior Sister, she didn't dare let Yun Qingyue speak first. So she asked quickly: "Friend You, are you alright?"
You Yi finally smiled, but it was a bitter smile, bitter enough to crumble: "Alright? Perhaps."
Jiang Mo felt strangely choked, but seeing his miserable state, she couldn't really bla him. Looking behind You Yi, she was surprised to find no one else with him, and asked with so confusion: "Are you alone? I heard you and so fellow sect mbers encountered danger. Where are the others?" She asked, but in her heart, she already had an answer.
Sure enough, You Yi shook his head: "Where would there be others? All dead. I couldn't protect them; they're all dead."
Jiang Mo drew a sharp breath and checked her quest panel, finding that the tid rescue mission was now marked complete. However, of the long list of nas, only You Yi's na remained lit; the others had all dimd, making it clear she had arrived too late to save those people.
As for the quest reward, it was only 500 points. This wasn't unexpected; the amount of reward points was probably related to the number of people rescued. If she had saved everyone on that long list, the reward would have been substantial. Unfortunately, she had only saved one person.
Jiang Mo sighed inwardly. Setting aside the matter of rewards, her heart also sank: "I'm sorry. My condolences."
You Yi naturally didn't know about Jiang Mo's regret for being late, nor did he care why they had appeared in ti to save him; regardless, he should be grateful that soone had saved him. But he really couldn't muster any spirit, opening his mouth without saying anything.
The current You Yi had lost his forr vigor, his entire person in despair. Jiang Mo thought he might need so ti. But Yun Qingyue, who had been observing silently, finally asked: "Senior Brother You, I see the force hunting you is substantial, with a determination to fight to the death. Tell , if we drive away this batch, will another co?"
You Yi paused, raising his eyes to et Yun Qingyue's clear gaze, and smiled bitterly: "Yes."
Yun Qingyue didn't press further, but those glass-like eyes clearly asked: Don't you want to explain a bit?
You Yi understood. Wiping his face, he finally suppressed his earlier despondency: "As long as I'm alive, they'll keep hunting . Because I accidentally learned a secret, they must kill
to silence ."
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