The Shining Star Above The Heaven-Chapter 499: The Next Step

Aldrian sipped his tea in the calm atmosphere of the sect, while Sect Master Baek and Baek Jimin did the same. They seemed unaware of the chaos outside the Thorny Flower Garden Sect, but in truth, they had already received reports and updates on the situation.

Then why did they appear so relaxed, as if the chaos had nothing to do with them?

It was because, before sunrise this morning, Aldrian had already captured every traitor within the Thorny Flower Garden’s territory using the memories of Kwon Mira and Joon Suk. He only targeted those who knew about Kwon Mira’s ties to the devils—and those connected to the devils themselves.

After he had disappeared from the sect to heal Sect Master Baek, all the traitors from Kwon Mira’s faction immediately tried to flee. They knew that with Aldrian’s arrival, their lives were at risk, no matter what they had done within the sect.

Because of that—along with Sect Master Baek’s previous purges and Kwon Mira’s killing of several elders loyal to her—the sect lost more than half of its elders, including grand elders at the emperor stage. As a result, the sect was weaker than ever before.

Those who remained and didn’t flee were still loyal to Sect Master Baek but had been forced to compromise after Kwon Mira successfully seized the position of sect master.

The traitors scattered across various territories outside the Thorny Flower Garden and did their best to stay hidden.

Unfortunately for them, with the help of the heavens, Aldrian located each of their positions and teleported them back to the sect, where they were immediately apprehended. Despite their collective strength being greater, they could do nothing but surrender under Aldrian’s power.

Aldrian also eliminated all the devils within the Thorny Flower Garden territory as quickly as possible, a task that was easy for him. He moved like a killing machine—slaughtering devils in one place before teleporting to the next, leaving many corpses behind. He repeated this process over and over until not a single devil remained within the territory.

This was also Aldrian’s way of helping Sect Master Baek, as the Thorny Flower Garden Sect currently lacked the manpower to dispatch its own cultivators across the territory.

That was why, despite the sect’s power having dropped significantly, the Thorny Flower Garden enjoyed a calmer and more peaceful atmosphere compared to the rest of the demon territory.

Aldrian sighed after sipping his tea.

"So, what are you going to do after this? Even if the devils within the demon territory can be wiped out, we can’t ignore the fact that many families and sects were connected to them—and even supported them. If they betrayed us for the devils once, they can do it again in the future," Sect Master Baek said.

Her face had almost returned to its former mature beauty, with the wrinkles gone and only a few signs of age remaining. Her body had also begun to regain weight, with flesh and muscle returning after just two hours of cultivation—a quick and encouraging recovery that made Baek Jimin happy.

Aldrian had also told her and Baek Jimin what he discovered when he captured Kwon Mira and Joon Suk. He explained everything Kwon Mira had done, the devils’ plans, and other matters connected to them—including how he had orchestrated the chaos now spreading through the demon territory.

They were truly shocked after hearing it and couldn’t help but feel furious toward Kwon Mira, the traitors, and the devils.

To think that the demon territory had already been in the devils’ grasp for so long—and that even the three great sects had been fooled by them.

"I will visit the other great sects and help them eliminate some of their high-ranking members who turned traitor. After that, the great sects will have to deal with the traitors’ families and affiliated sects across the demon territory, with help from those who have not been corrupted by the devils. These will be bloody times, as a large-scale purge will sweep through the region."

"Since the number of traitorous families and sects is quite high, I’ll also provide support if they refuse to surrender. I can already imagine the resistance we’ll face—those families won’t hesitate to sacrifice their own family. I’ll prevent unnecessary bloodshed by targeting the rotten members directly. That way, the demon territory’s overall strength won’t drop too severely," Aldrian explained.

Sect Master Baek nodded. His plan was solid, and she believed it was the best course of action he could take. She knew that this chaos could easily spiral out of control if not handled properly. However, if Aldrian, along with the other great sects and families or sects still clean of the devils, spread across the territories to manage the situation, the bloodshed could be minimized.

Aldrian and the mother and daughter continued their discussion, while elsewhere in the demon territory, a battle shook the land. Within the territory of the Piercing Heaven Sect, dozens of cultivators, ranging from marquess to emperor stage, clashed in various locations.

The cultivators at the emperor and king stages battled high in the sky, while those below fought on the ground. Despite their fight taking place high above, the effects of the emperor and king stage clashes were felt by everyone on the ground. Spatial cracks appeared here and there, and the clouds were torn apart by the force of their battle.

The surrounding land—and everything rising from it—had been flattened or reduced to craters. Elements like fire, water, earth, and air were hurled in all directions, turning the area into a chaotic battlefield.

On one side, the cultivators wore the robes of the Piercing Heaven Sect, while on the other stood cultivators with bulky bodies and red skin. From the onlookers, it was obvious that the red-skinned cultivators were devils, already in their devil forms. The fact that they had resorted to their devil forms suggested they were desperate to withstand the attacks from the Piercing Heaven Sect’s cultivators.

Not far from the battle, the Sect Master of the Piercing Heaven Sect, Ryu Hyukjae, observed. His face was as calm as still water, and he had not made a move since the battle began. He was simply here to observe and ensure that the purging process was proceeding as planned.

After hearing the rumors, which only grew stronger as battles broke out in several locations, he decided to dispatch the elders to the areas where the rumors had originated and where the battles were taking place, in order to control the situation.

As time passed, the situation spiraled further out of control, with more rumors surfacing about the locations of the devils’ secret bases across the sect’s territory.

In response, he declared a state of emergency and dispatched disciples to help contain the chaos. This battle was just one of many erupting across the sect’s territory.

The devils were strong, but the demonic cultivators also had their own advantages and strengths. The cultivators of the sect pushed back the devils, killing them in droves, and their numbers dwindled rapidly. Before long, the devils in this area would be completely eradicated.

Once the battle was over, all of the elders and disciples began to clean up the battlefield. When Sect Master Ryu felt there was nothing more to address, he disappeared from the scene. A few minutes later, he appeared at the sect and walked toward the main building. Upon entering, he was immediately in the gathering hall, where he took his seat in the leader’s chair.

He was alone inside the hall, his expression still calm, but his eyes flashed dangerously. Truthfully, he was seething with rage inside. With all the battles taking place within his sect’s territory and the vast number of devils involved, how could he have been unaware of their existences?

His mind raced to make sense of the situation, but he found only one conclusion.

"There are traitors among us," he thought.

There was no way so many devils could infiltrate the sect’s territory without anyone noticing, especially with their surveillance in place—unless some of his own people had opened the door to these devils. He clenched his fist, thoughts racing as he considered who the traitors might be, his mind landing on a few figures who seemed most suspicious.

Not long after, an elder entered, cupping his hands respectfully to Sect Master Ryu.

"Reporting to Sect Master, the battle across the sect’s territory is almost concluded. Only a few locations still have devils persistently fighting. Most of the groups dispatched across the territory are now on their way back."

Sect Master Ryu nodded.

"Return to your post."

"Yes, Sect Master."

Once the elder left the hall, Sect Master Ryu sat in silence, deep in thought.

"It looks like I’ll have to do some ’cleaning’ in the sect after this."