"Did they mention what they plan to do to you?"

Jiang Feng withdrew his spiritual sense and asked.

"Yes, this is the jade scroll they sent."

Xiao Zhan respectfully presented a jade scroll with both hands.

Jiang Feng waved his hand, and the jade scroll shattered within Xiao Zhan’s hands, casting a phantom that appeared above everyone’s heads.

"I am the Blood Sea Immortal Venerable. I now order you to mobilize all the Great Tang’s soldiers and civilians to excavate the Underground Palace; otherwise, the Great Tang will vanish like the Divine Sect."

The phantom was an elder in a purple robe, exuding an aura of oppression.

After speaking, the phantom gradually faded in the air.

"Immortal Master, please save the Great Tang!"

Xiao Zhan bowed down.

"Your men have had contact with the Blood Sea Loose Cultivator, right?"

Jiang Feng sensed something amiss.

"Indeed, they previously commanded me to excavate the Underground Palace with a very arrogant attitude. Initially, I wanted to negotiate, but they ended up killing all my men I sent."

Xiao Zhan knew he couldn’t hide the truth and spoke honestly.

"These loose cultivators crossed the Sea of Blood, burning, killing, and plundering all the way. Even the Divine Sect couldn’t escape unscathed. If they all come to Dragon Capital, it would be disastrous for the people there."

Han Tieshan said with concern.

"Their goal has always been the Underground Palace. It’s impossible to make them give up and leave empty-handed."

Bao Longwei sighed and shook his head.

"Even the Divine Sect was seized by them; they are not easy to deal with."

Han Dong reminded Jiang Feng while holding his arm.

She didn’t want Jiang Feng to act impulsively, engaging in a bloody battle over the Underground Palace and the people of Dragon Capital.

"Try to negotiate with them as much as possible; avoid conflict if possible."

Jiang Feng thought for a moment and said to Xiao Zhan.

"What about you?"

Xiao Zhan looked at Jiang Feng expectantly.

"These men are aggressive, even the Divine Sect was wiped out by them. How could I possibly stop them single-handedly?"

Jiang Feng said helplessly.

The phantom earlier, although it appeared briefly, made Jiang Feng feel the Blood Sea Immortal Venerable was stronger than Mo Changlin.

Given the large number of Blood Sea Loose Cultivators, he might not be able to resist them alone; otherwise, he would have gone to the Divine Sect long ago, seeking to decipher the Blood God Curse Talisman’s secret manual.

Xiao Zhan felt dispirited upon hearing this.

Without Jiang Feng’s help, his soldiers were nothing against the Blood Sea Loose Cultivators.

"Don’t be too pessimistic; I’ll try to see if I can block them. If not, I can only retreat with Sister Dong and the others."

Seeing Xiao Zhan’s expression change, Jiang Feng couldn’t help but comfort him.

He had already freely entered and exited the outer ring of the Underground Palace, which held various hidden opportunities; unless absolutely necessary, Jiang Feng wouldn’t easily give up.

"Thank you, Immortal Master."

Xiao Zhan was overjoyed, bowed three times, then stood up and left.

"Xiao Zhan is cunning and bold; if he knows you can’t protect him, he’ll quickly find a way to ingratiate himself with the Blood Sea Loose Cultivators and align with them."

Han Tieshan warned, worried Xiao Zhan might deceive Jiang Feng.

"Don’t worry; even if I have to leave, he wouldn’t dare cause trouble behind my back."

Jiang Feng understood Han Tieshan’s kind reminder.

Though the Qi Condensation Realm Perfection might not repel the Blood Sea Loose Cultivators, it’s quite simple to deal with Xiao Zhan; all schemes and plots become powerless before overwhelming strength.

Ten days later.

More and more Blood Sea Loose Cultivators gathered outside the South City Gate.

Their numbers had reached over a hundred.

Their cultivation varied.

But at least they all had Qi Condensation Realm cultivation.

Over these days, Xiao Zhan was overwhelmed, continuously dispatching batches of cultivators to negotiate with the loose cultivators, promising spirit stones, spirit grass, and other benefits as long as they stayed out of Dragon Capital.

However, the Purple Bamboo Forest Cultivators sent for negotiations were either humiliated or publicly executed.

Unable to manage, Xiao Zhan sought Jiang Feng again.

He kneeled before Jiang Feng.

He pleaded: "Immortal Master, the troops of the Blood Sea Immortal Venerable have specifically demanded you meet them; otherwise, they will invade Dragon Capital tomorrow to seize the Underground Palace. Please, Immortal Master, save the people of the Great Tang."

"Give them this jade scroll and see how they react first."

Jiang Feng tossed a jade scroll to Xiao Zhan.

"Understood."

Xiao Zhan was skeptical.

He sent someone to deliver the jade scroll to the Blood Sea Loose Cultivators.

"It’s Jiang Feng’s jade scroll."

"Quick, open it and listen to what he says."

The jade scroll reached the hands of the loose cultivators, who gathered around.

A cunning fellow squeezed the jade scroll, and a line of words appeared in the void, accompanied by Jiang Feng’s voice: "Dear Daoists, I am Jiang Feng. I know you have traveled across the Sea of Blood just to explore the Underground Palace and gain the opportunities inside. As long as you agree to coexist peacefully with the Great Tang cultivators, not disrupt Great Tang’s order and not kill innocents, I am willing to share all the opportunities inside the Underground Palace with you and explore its secrets together."

"Wow!"

As Jiang Feng finished speaking, there was an uproar.

"Oh, he’s quite sensible."

"What’s everyone’s opinion?"

The one who crushed the jade scroll asked.

"In my view, we should just charge in, seize the Dragon Bone Bow and Qinglong Cauldron; Jiang Feng is nothing to fear."

"Precisely, talking about sharing the Underground Palace’s opportunities, how can we trust the words of Central Earth Cultivators?"

"Tell him to leave and hand over the Underground Palace Key if he doesn’t want to die!"

"Kill him and seize the Underground Palace."

...

Everyone was talking over each other.

They gathered outside the South City Gate but didn’t dare to breach Dragon Capital mainly due to Jiang Feng’s Dragon Bone Bow. Jiang Feng had previously made Xiao Zhan announce that Dragon Capital was his territory, and no loose cultivators could enter without permission.

These people could conquer the Divine Sect, not only because the Divine Sect’s fate had run out and Mo Changlin voluntarily withdrew his disciples, but mainly because Elder Wang and the Three-Eyed Divine General were killed by Jiang Feng’s arrow.