Chapter 130

Chapter 130

Hearing this, a flash of surprise crossed Victor's eyes.

What was going on? He hadn't even started moving up the mountain yet, so why were they already rushing to his door?

"What do you want to talk about?"

Marshall fought to keep his voice steady and repeated every word Mira had told him to say.

"I see."

A cold, sharp smile tugged at the corner of Victor's mouth.

The timing of this surrender was perfectly calculated.

If she had waited until every last one of Alvin's people was dead before surrendering, it would have been worthless.

But if she had surrendered too early, she would have likely been killed in the Sect's internal chaos first.

This Mira was pretty sharp.

"Alright, I've got the basic picture." Victor's tone was flat.

"Have your Deputy Palace Master get on the phone herself. I'll talk to her directly."

A few seconds later, a cool, clear female voice came through the receiver.

"Lord Shura, this is Mira."

"Go ahead." Victor turned the cup in his hand idly.

"I'm curious — why are you choosing to surrender right now?"

"Your main force just came down the mountain. Isn't reaching out this soon a little too eager?"

A soft sigh came from the other end of the line.

"You're joking. With your strength, dealing with them is nothing." Mira's voice was steady and certain.

"They're bringing this on themselves. That's not my problem."

Victor let out a quiet laugh.

"Still — what makes you think I'd agree?"

"You should understand that if I wipe all of you out, Moon Goddess Temple's resources are mine either way."

A brief silence fell on the other end.

"You're right." Mira spoke slowly.

"But while Shura Sanctum is full of elite fighters, the ones who have truly stepped into Cultivator rank are very few."

"Moon Goddess Temple has been passed down for fourteen hundred years. We have deep experience guiding Mortal Martial Artists through that threshold. If you spare us, we'll train a true army of Cultivators for you."

"This is a deal you can't lose."

Those words hit exactly where Victor was vulnerable.

Shura Sanctum's strength rested on him and his hundred and eight top fighters.

But aside from him, the others still faced a wall between themselves and the Hidden Sect — let alone the Divine-tier and King-tier fighters further down the ranks.

He had originally planned to simply seize the resources and use drugs to force his people's strength higher.

But now it was clear that taking in these people who actually understood the cultivation system was far more valuable than any drug.

"Fine, I agree." Victor gave his answer without hesitation.

"Once I finish cleaning up the trash down here, I'll come up the mountain and talk face to face."

Mira's voice noticeably brightened.

"We have a deal. I'll start going through the vaults right away and have everything ready for you."

He hung up and walked straight toward Drunken Sage Tavern.

If Alvin had brought his people down the mountain for a decisive fight, he would go somewhere he was sure to intercept Victor.

Drunken Sage Tavern, where Victor had stayed the night before, was the obvious choice.

Half a block from the tavern, the air was already thick with heavy waves of Spiritual Energy.

A rough count suggested at least seven Quasi-Ascendant Lords, plus over thirty Immortals.

Moon Goddess Temple had truly sent out everything they had.

Victor raised an eyebrow slightly.

Good thing he had told Ruby to close up and leave early that afternoon.

With a force like this, Ruby would have had no chance of surviving today.

He kept walking without slowing down and stepped up onto the entrance of Drunken Sage Tavern in no time.

The spacious main hall was packed wall to wall with people.

The middle-aged man at the front, dressed in fine robes, was exactly who the files described — Moon Goddess Temple's Palace Master, Alvin.

Standing beside him was Brad, the enforcement elder who had been causing trouble repeatedly these past few days.

Behind the two of them, dozens of Moon Goddess Temple fighters stood ready.

Victor walked in with his hands in his pockets, completely at ease.

"Everyone here?" He swept the room with a glance.

"Saves me a trip up the mountain tomorrow."

The hall went dead silent.

Alvin narrowed his eyes and looked the young man up and down.

Facing the pressure of dozens of top fighters, this person moved as if no one else was in the room.

That calm, for no clear reason, stirred a faint unease in Alvin's chest.

But as Palace Master, he couldn't show weakness in front of his people.

Alvin let out a cold snort and lifted his chin slightly.

"You're Victor, the one behind Shura Sanctum?" His tone was dismissive.

"Nothing special to look at."

Victor pulled out a chair that was still intact and sat down.

"That's me." He looked up at the man.

"And you're Alvin?"

"How dare you!" Brad stormed forward and jabbed a finger at Victor.

"You have the nerve to address the Palace Master by name? You're asking to die!"

Victor didn't even glance at him, treating it like background noise.

"Moon Goddess Temple really does put on quite a show."

He leaned back in the chair, his voice quiet but cutting through every sound in the room.

"Should I take this to mean none of you want to walk out of here today?"

Alvin laughed out of pure rage. "You don't know what you're dealing with! You think killing three worthless nobodies gives you the right to talk back to me?"

He swung his sleeve wide, and the Spiritual Energy shook the tables and chairs around him.

"Moon Goddess Temple has stood for a thousand years. I won't let you disgrace it! Today, this is where you die!"

"Is that so?" Victor rolled his neck and loosened his wrists.

He stood up slowly and brushed the dust from his clothes.

"Then stop talking. Come at me all at once — I don't have all day."

"Unbelievable arrogance!" The veins on Brad's forehead bulged as he shouted at Victor.

"Formation! Cut him to pieces!"

Before the words were fully out, the dozens of fighters behind him drew their swords in unison.

Bodies shifted and blurred, and a complex Formation took shape, locking Victor firmly at its center.

Violent Spiritual Energy laced with killing intent flooded every corner of the hall.

This was Moon Goddess Temple's most powerful combined technique — strong enough to destroy any cultivator below Ascendant Lord.

Alvin stepped back outside the Formation and couldn't help letting out a contemptuous laugh.

In his eyes, the young man trapped inside was already a corpse.

But Victor, standing at the center of the Formation, looked completely unbothered.

He reached over and picked up a leftover cup of cold tea from the table.

"Tea's gone cold." He took a small sip.

"Too bad. You won't even get the chance to drink cold tea."

The moment the words left his mouth, the cup crumbled to dust in his hand.

Victor simply raised his right hand and pushed it forward in one casual, unhurried motion.

Space seemed to freeze.

Then came the sound of metal shattering.

The swords those dozens of fighters were so proud of broke apart piece by piece, and the violent force tore straight back through their Spiritual Energy.

Without even a single cry, dozens of living people exploded in midair.

A crimson mist of blood bloomed like red spider lilies, staining the entire hall in an instant.

The elders standing at the back of the Formation stared with wide, horrified eyes.

They pushed their Spiritual Energy to the absolute limit, driving it as hard as they could, trying to hold back the terrifying shockwave.

But it was useless.

The invisible force rolled forward like a massive wheel, tearing through their defenses without effort.

A few dull thuds followed, and these once-untouchable elders were reduced to a shower of blood just the same.

From the moment Victor moved to the moment the Formation collapsed — no more than three seconds.

The thick smell of blood spread through the hall.

The vast Drunken Sage Tavern now held only three people still standing.

Alvin and Brad stood frozen in place, the cruel smiles not yet fully faded from their faces.