My Disciples Are All Villains

The statue was truly life-like, clearly the work of a highly-skilled sculptor. It was like a human had been coated with a layer of gray cement.

The statue's eyes were slightly closed, and its arms were hanging down. Its wingspan was wide. The passage on either side of its body was narrow and square.

Si Wuya fell into a daze briefly before he shook his head to wake himself up. He had to think rationally. He looked to the left and right before he began to search. He looked around the statue but found nothing noteworthy.

At this moment, Jiang Aijian finally arrived and saw the statue. He was so shocked that he could not close his mouth for a long time. It was even more shocking than the treasures he had just seen.

"What's this?!"

Jiang Aijian's exclamation drew Huang Shijie and Li Jinyi over. When they saw the statue, they were impressed as well. They had never seen such a sculpture so they did not know what it was supposed to be.

Three pairs of burning eyes looked at Si Wuya, eagerly waiting for an explanation.

Si Wuya looked up, down, left, and right. Then, he shook his head and said, "If I said I don't know, would you believe me?"

"Yes," the trio replied in unison without any hesitation

"..."

'It seems like I've overestimated myself…'

Si Wuya sighed. "Halcyon Bird, Mount Halcyon… This should be the Halcyon Divine Bird's habitat."

Si Wuya could still remember when he saw the Halcyon Divine Bird at the White Tower Council. No one knew that when the Halcyon Divine Bird looked at him, a light flashed in its eyes. In its eyes, he had seen a picture of a lone island in the Endless Ocean.

When he returned to the Sky Martial Academy, he had pored through many ancient books. When he was done, he even asked for people to search for more ancient books in the respective royal palaces in the black lotus domain and the white lotus domain. He needed to find some clues.

"Halcyon Divine Bird? Is this supposed to be the Halcyon Divine Bird?" Jiang Aijian asked doubtfully.

Si Wuya shook his head. "No."

"So this is supposed to be the Halcyon Divine Bird's nest, but this isn't the Halcyon Divine Bird… Hmmm, this statue is of a… birdman," Jiang Aijian said as he looked at the stone statue and the wings on its sides.

"..."

Si Wuya was speechless.

Jiang Aijian nudged Si Wuya and said, "Hey, did you notice the way its wings are unfurled is a little similar to yours?"

"Me?" Si Wuya furrowed his brows.

"You know, when you use your Peacock Plume," Jiang Aijian said.

Huang Shijie immediately said reproachfully, "What nonsense are you speaking? Some things can't be casually joked about."

"It's fine. I have a very good relationship with Mr. Seventh," Jiang Aijian said as he stepped forward and slung his arm across Si Wuya's shoulders.

Si Wuya pushed Jiang Aijian's arm away and murmured, "It does slightly resemble…"

"Alright, so this isn't the Halcyon Divine Bird. However, how can humans have wings?" Jiang Aijian asked.

Si Wuya replied confidently, "In ancient times, the distinction between humans and fierce beasts wasn't as clear as it is now. In the Great Void, there's Ying Zhao who possessed a human face and a horse's body. There are also mermaids whose upper bodies are that of humans, but their lower bodies are that of fishes. There are also those from the Six Great Deformed Tribes. The land split, and the nine domains were born. The jade green lotus domain appeared first, followed by the dark green lotus domain. Then, the third and fourth to appear were the black lotus domain and the white lotus domain. The fifth and the sixth were the red lotus domain and the purple lotus domain. The seventh was the golden lotus domain, and the eighth was the yellow lotus domain."

"They didn't appear at the same time?" Jiang Aijian asked, slightly surprised.

Si Wuya shook his head. "I'm just speculating. This is also why I came here."

"Mount Halcyon has been here for more than 10,000 years. What does it have to do with the Unknown Land or the Great Void?" Jiang Aijian asked.

Si Wuya asked, "What if… What if Mount Halcyon is a part of the Great Void?"

Jiang Aijian, Huang Shijie, and Li Jinyi were shocked. They were thoroughly shocked by Si Wuya's conjecture. They were not too knowledgeable about what happened before the land split. In their minds, Mount Halcyon was likely just a piece of land that drifted off to the sea when the land split.

Jiang Aijian's expression grew solemn as he asked, "Do you have any evidence?"

"No evidence. It's just a wild guess," Si Wuya replied honestly.

"..."

The trio was speechless.

Jiang Aijian flew around the underground palace again. Apart from the treasures and the weapons, there was nothing unusual.

At this time, Si Wuya called out, "Step back."

The trio stepped to the side immediately.

Jiang Aijian asked, "Don't tell me you think this is the entrance to the Great Void?"

Si Wuya glanced at Jiang Aijian before he said, "I do have this suspicion."

After saying that, Si Wuya pushed his hand out.

A palm seal landed on the statue, but the statue remained unscathed.

"It's quite sturdy."

Jiang Aijian drew Dragonsong and slashed it across the statue.

Bang!

Sparks flew, but not even a scratch could be seen on the statue.

"Wow! It's so sturdy that it can even withstand a strike from my desolate-grade sword?" Jiang Aijian found this hard to believe so he stepped forward and slashed at the statue again.

Bang!

Similar to before, not even a scratch could be seen.

"Enough." Huang Shijie stopped Jiang Aijian. "If it's so easy to break, how could it stay here for tens of thousands of years without showing signs of decay?"

Time was the nemesis of all things, after all. Stones were no exception and could be eroded by time.

"Master has a point," Jiang Aijian said as he sheathed Dragonsong, "Then, if this isn't the Halcyon Divine Bird or a birdman, then what is it?"

Si Wuya said, "I've seen the Halcyon Divine Bird before. Its body is red, and it's not too big. If I'm not mistaken, this stone statue should be of the Vermilion Bird King."

"Vermilion Bird?" Huang Shijie said, "I don't doubt that you've read a lot of books and are knowledgeable. However, as far as I know, the Vermilion Bird doesn't resemble humans at all."

"What if it gained a human form?" Si Wuya asked before he continued to say, "The words at the stone door speak of the Fire Deity, the Vermilion Bird."

"..."

Whoosh!

A gust of cold wind blew in from the entrance, causing everyone to shiver.

The experienced Huang Shijie's expression changed slightly as he said, "Someone's approaching…"

The four of them looked at the entrance at the same time.

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

The Halcyon Divine Bird walked in at this moment. Next to the Halcyon Divine Bird was a thin and weak man dressed in a black robe.

"Halcyon Divine Bird?" Si Wuya frowned.

The Halcyon Divine Bird looked to the left and right before it looked at the four humans in front of it curiously.

Then, the thin and weak man said, "They're here…"

'Heavens!' Jiang Aijian hurriedly moved to stand behind Li Jinyi.

Si Wuya's intuition told him something was amiss. He looked at the Halcyon Divine Bird warily as he asked, "Did you lure me here?"

"You're smart," the thin and weak man said.

"What's your purpose?"

"This is Mount Halcyon; home to the Halcyon Divine Bird. You should know why," the thin man bowed slightly as he said, "I'm Yang Liansheng, a beast tamer from the Great Void."

Si Wuya remained silent.

Yang Liansheng continued to say, "You're young so you may not know a lot of things. Let me explain."

Yang Liansheng paused for a moment to place his hands on his back before he said, "The stone statue behind you is that of Ling Guang, the Vermilion Bird or the Fire Deity."

Si Wuya, Jiang Aijian, Huang Shijie, and Li Jinyi inhaled sharply as they instinctively turned to look at the statue.

Yang Liangsheng continued to say, "100,000 years ago, the land split, shaking heaven and earth. Ling Guang traveled from the Great Void to the east and landed on Mount Halcyon."

"Wait," Si Wuya interjected, "When the land split, Mount Halcyon had yet to be found…"

Yang Liansheng shook his head and said, "Mount Halcyon existed even earlier than the nine domains."

Si Wuya was speechless. He had subconsciously thought that the nine domains and the other places only formed after the land split. He did not expect Mount Halcyon to have existed way before then.

Yang Liansheng looked at Si Wuya and continued to say, "Ling Guang was ordered to leave the Great Void to search for the lost Great Void Seeds. It was suspected that the Halcyon clan took them away. In the end, the Halcyon clan was slaughtered…"

Jiang Aijian. "..."

The ominous feeling in Jiang Aijian's heart grew even stronger. He could already see the killing intent burning in the Halcyon Bird's eyes.

Si Wuya said, "The ten Great Void Seeds were only lost 300 years ago. The timeline doesn't match."

Si Wuya almost said that his master had taken all of them.

Yang Liansheng chuckled and said, "Young man, the Great Void Seeds mature once every 30,000 years. In the past 100,000 years, 30 Great Void Seeds have matured, and 18 were lost…"

"..."

Out of his desperation to survive, Jiang Aijian had to forcefully stop himself from saying that the people from the Great Void were really a bunch of trash for losing more than half of something so precious.

Si Wuya smiled and said, "The Great Void Seeds hold the power of heaven and earth, their shackles, the power of the Dao, and the essence of the heavens, earth, sun, and moon. Since when did it belong to the Great Void? I don't think you should use the word 'lost'. It's more appropriate to say that the Great Void took 12 of what should've belonged to everyone in the world."

Si Wuya really would not rest until he shocked people to death. After inwardly giving Si Wuya a thumbs-up, Jiang Aijian thought to himself, 'This is brilliant! It's also a logical explanation. The Great Void is so powerful so how could they have lost so many Great Void Seeds? It's more appropriate to say that they took 12 Great Void Seeds and couldn't find the others."

As expected, a frown appeared on Yang Liansheng's face as he sized Si Wuya up. Then, he chuckled and said, "In any case, that's not important anymore. All you have to know is that it's true that Ling Guang massacred the Halcyon Clan."

"Huh?" Jiang Aijian asked, puzzled, "What does that have to do with us?"

Yang Liansheng slowly raised his hand and pointed at Si Wuya, "You're the descendant of the Fire Deity. The heaven has dictated that it's time for you to pay off your ancestor's debt."

Swoosh!

Jiang Aijian, Huang Shijie, and Li Jinyin turned to look at Si Wuya in unison. They expected to see a shocked expression on Si Wuya's face. However, they discovered that he looked calm and not very surprised.

Si Wuya sighed and asked, "How did you know?"

"Sense of smell," Yang Liansheng said as he pointed at the Halcyon Bird.

Tha Halcyon parted its beak slightly and looked down at the four people with eyes shining with arrogance and contempt. It raised its sharp claws and placed them on a huge rock.

Crack!

The huge rock crumbled into pieces easily under the weight of the Halcyon Bird's claws as though it was a piece of tofu.

Jiang Aijian froze.

Si Wuya asked, "So you want to kill me to avenge the Halcyon clan?"

Yang Liansheng shook his head and said, "If it was just revenge, you would have died long ago. Hatred will eventually blind you. Ling Guang didn't have a good ending as well. He was sealed here to guard Mount Halcyon for the Halcyon clan for 100,000 years."

Si Wuya turned to look at the stone statue and asked, "And then?"

"Do you know why the Halcyon clan placed so many treasures in the underground palace?" Yang Liansheng asked.

Si Wuya shook his head.

Yang Liansheng said, "Humans have a fatal weakness, and that is greed. These treasures can cause even courageous humans to throw their lives away. Their blood essence will serve to nourish Ling Guang's consciousness. Only with this, it can guard Mount Halcyon for a long time to atone for its sin."

No wonder there were skeletons scattered outside.

Yang Liangshen let out a long sigh before he said, "The Halcyon clan has imprisoned Ling Guang forever. As for you…" He paused and pointed at Si Wuya's abdomen before he said, "Hand over the Great Void Seed, and you can leave."

Jiang Aijian, Huang Shijie, and Li Jinyi turned to look at Si Wuya in unison again. The same thought appeared in their minds: the Great Void Seed is in his body?

Si Wuya smiled and said, "My master has a good relationship with Lan Xihe. Halcyon Bird, are you sure you want to do this?"

"You don't have to worry about this. The Halcyon Divine Bird has lived for 100,000 years, and its time is running out. Only the Great Void Seed can prolong its life. Today, by saving its life, you can atone for Ling Guang's sin. I believe Ling Guang would be at peace if he could see this."

Si Wuya remained silent.

Yang Liansheng said, "It doesn't make a difference whether you're willing or unwilling."

With just a flash, the Halcyon Bird appeared in front of Si Wuya. It flapped its wings.

Bang!

Si Wuya was sent flying back, spitting out a mouthful of blood.

Bang!

He crashed against a huge rock and slid to the ground. He could not resist at all.

Jiang Aijian, Huang Shijie, and Li Jinyi froze. The Halcyon Bird's strength was self-evident.

Yang Liansheng chuckled and said, "You should know what the Halcyon Bird is capable of since you've witnessed its strength..."

Si Wuya clutched his chest. The pain was excruciating.

The Halcyon Bird stepped forward and swept its gaze across the trio.

Yang Liansheng said, "All of you should stay here together."

"This isn't right," Jiang Aijian protested.

"Only the dead can keep secrets," Yang Liansheng said as he waved his hand.

A purple palm seal shot out at the trio immediately.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The palm seal was big enough to hit the trio. They were also helpless and unable to withstand the attack. They landed on the wall and slid to the ground.

"Stop!" Si Wuya said, raising his hand.

"Do you still have something to say?" Yang Liansheng asked.

"If I die, the Great Void Seed will be destroyed. Let the three of them leave. Otherwise, I'll destroy the Great Void Seed now," Si Wuya said as he tore off the top of his robe, revealing his abdominal muscles. Then, he placed his hand on his Dantian's sea of Qi.

Yang Liansheng frowned. "Halcyon Bird."

The Halcyon Bird spread its wings that spanned hundreds of feet. The space seemed to freeze as time continued to flow.

Bang!

Si Wuya did not know when the Halcyon Bird appeared in front of him. It flapped its wings and sent him flying again. This time, he crashed against the stone statue, bleeding heavily.

The Halcyon Bird's control over its strength was impeccable. It was worthy of being a divine beast.

"You don't even have the strength to commit suicide now. Anyone who makes an enemy of the Great Void won't have a good ending. You and Ling Guang are both too self-righteous. From today onward, the Halcyon Underground Palace will be Ling Guang's and your grave," Yang Liansheng said as he raised his hand.

Si Wuya was lifted into the air.

From the beginning to the end, the four of them were helpless. They did not have the strength to resist at all. The gap between their strength was too wide so it was meaningless to resist.

Si Wuya used all his strength to raise his head. His eyes were red as he said, "You dare?!"

Si Wuya's voice was dignified and courageous.

Crack!

Si Wuya's voice caused a crisp cracking noise to ring from the stone statue. The sound drew everyone's attention.

When they looked over, they saw that Si Wuya's blood had seeped into the stone statue and now into the cracks.

Upon seeing this, Yang Liansheng's expression changed slightly. He said, "Let's go!"

The Halcyon Bird turned around and flew out.

Yang Liansheng grabbed Si Wuya and without thinking, he turned around and cast his grand technique

Crack!

With this crack, the layer of stone around the statue had broken completely.

The wings that spanned an unimaginable width burned with flames. With just a flap, everything in its reach crumbled and collapsed.

Its eyes emitted flames as it flapped its wings again and soared into the sky, destroying the underground palace.

The Fire Deity had returned to the world again!