"Hu Yong, what do you mean?"
Tian Dao Lao Ren stared directly into Hu Yong's eyes and said in a deep voice.
Seeing that the aura emanating from him was about to become uncontrollable, it was clear that Hu Yong's words had completely angered Tian Dao Lao Ren. However, out of consideration for the bigger picture, Tian Dao Lao Ren did not erupt completely.
But this did not mean that Tian Dao Lao Ren was without temper.
At this critical juncture, Hu Yong spoke up, intending to put pressure on Tian Dao Lao Ren, with his target so obvious.
It clearly indicated ill intentions.
"Haha, Tian Dao, you dare to do it but don't let others talk about it, then who do you say will be responsible for the lives of these thousand disciples?"
Hu Yong was unfazed by Tian Dao Lao Ren's oppressive aura. Or rather, the pressure Tian Dao Lao Ren released could only intimidate juniors; it had no effect on old foxes like them.
Upon hearing Hu Yong's words, the other elders cast their gazes towards Tian Dao Lao Ren.
Although it was Tian Dao Lao Ren's suggestion to have the disciples go out for training and face the beast horde head-on, it had been approved by the Elder Council.
If the truth were to be pursued, none of the inner sect elders gathered here could escape.
They would all be nailed to the Pillar of Shame of the Misty Sect, enduring the scolding of future generations.
Therefore, at this moment, everyone was intently watching Tian Dao Lao Ren, fearing that he would say they would all bear this responsibility together. This was not what they wanted.
No matter how high their cultivation, these elders did not want such a disgraceful mark on their cultivation path.
Tian Dao Lao Ren observed everyone's reactions and inwardly snorted. It seemed that Hu Yong had done this intentionally, having planned it long ago.
Now, the deaths of nearly a thousand inner sect disciples had given him the perfect opportunity.
Furthermore, by bringing up the topic of responsibility, he could prevent the other elders from siding with Tian Dao Lao Ren. They were all eager to distance themselves, so why would they get involved and soil themselves?
Hu Yong smirked inwardly, very satisfied with how things were unfolding.
If Tian Dao Lao Ren were to say they would all bear the responsibility together, then he would have grounds to incite everyone to oppose Tian Dao Lao Ren. At that time, Tian Dao Lao Ren's situation would be perilous.
Tian Dao Lao Ren scanned the crowd. The elders whose gazes met his all lowered their heads in shame.
"This matter was initiated by me, and the current situation is naturally my responsibility," Tian Dao Lao Ren stated in a deep voice, which not only shocked Hu Yong standing beside him, but also left the inner sect elders looking at Tian Dao Lao Ren with disbelief, a hint of gratitude in their eyes.
"However, now is not the time to discuss who is responsible. The origin of the beast horde has yet to be ascertained. With dozens of Nascent Soul stage demonic beasts, even if all of you were to join forces, it would not be easy to resolve this crisis."
Tian Dao Lao Ren glanced at the somewhat dazed Hu Yong and continued to analyze the current situation.
"Moreover, according to the information provided by Wang Tao, the leaders of those demonic beasts are highly intelligent. This is not good news. Judging from the deaths of these thousand disciples, although Wang Tao and his group were at fault for being overconfident and recklessly pursuing them,"
"The fundamental reason lies in the deliberate actions of that group of demonic beasts."
Tian Dao Lao Ren carefully observed everyone present, wanting to commit their expressions to memory.
"Have any of you considered where the first echelon of nearly a thousand inner sect disciples led by Wang Tao was when they initially engaged the beast horde?" Su Dan Novel Network.
"At the border of the Demonic Beast Forest, what's the doubt? Didn't everyone see it at the time?"
A grey-bearded elder beside Hu Yong responded, his tone suggesting that Tian Dao Lao Ren had asked a redundant question.
"Then do you know where we found Wang Tao and the others?"
Tian Dao Lao Ren, not angered, continued to question the elders.
"Where?" The few elders who had accompanied Tian Dao Lao Ren to investigate, along with Chun Yang San Ren, remained silent.
"We found the corpses of Wang Tao and those thousand disciples in the core area of the Demonic Beast Forest."
Instantly, the elders who had not gone to investigate began to whisper amongst themselves, their faces showing disbelief.
"Impossible. The core area of the Demonic Beast Forest is tens of miles away from the border, and there are so many demonic beasts lurking within. How could Wang Tao and his group have attacked the core area of the Demonic Beast Forest in less than half an hour?"
Finally, someone raised a question, clearly finding it unbelievable that Wang Tao could have traversed the Demonic Beast Forest and reached its core area in such a short time.
The number of demonic beasts in the Demonic Beast Forest, if not tens of thousands, was certainly not small. Even if Wang Tao and his group had pushed through, it would have taken them more than ten days to reach the core area.
This was assuming ideal conditions where the demonic beasts did not resist.
"Yes, I also find this unbelievable, but we did find Wang Tao and the others in the core area of the Demonic Beast Forest. Not only can Wang Tao himself testify, but the other elders also know the situation."
Tian Dao Lao Ren pointed towards Chun Yang San Ren and the others. They nodded, affirming Tian Dao Lao Ren's statement.
Suddenly, the standing elders turned pale and could no longer maintain their composure.
They understood what this meant.
Without Tian Dao Lao Ren needing to say more, all the elders knew that this demonic beast attack had far exceeded their expectations.
Setting aside the dozens of Nascent Soul stage demonic beasts and the hundreds of peak Golden Core late stage demonic beast leaders,
Just luring Wang Tao and a thousand inner sect disciples straight into the core area of the Demonic Beast Forest, and then trapping them like fish in a barrel, was something no ordinary demonic beast could conceive.
Moreover, so many demonic beasts in the Demonic Beast Forest, all obeying the command of the one behind the scenes, had dodged Wang Tao's attack route.
The thought sent shivers down their spines. This was clearly a trap set for human cultivators.
If an experienced elder had led the team, perhaps such heavy losses would not have occurred. But the mistake was that the leader was the hot-headed young Wang Tao.
But how would the demonic beasts know that the leader was a young disciple?
This was clearly a pre-arranged trap, but it was too coincidental!
"Report! A large number of demonic beasts have rushed out of the Demonic Beast Forest and are heading directly towards our encampment."
Just as everyone was racking their brains, a disciple responsible for reconnaissance reported.
Instantly, all the elders composed themselves and turned their gazes to Tian Dao Lao Ren, awaiting his command.
The inner sect disciples of the other nine echelons in the encampment were also bewildered. Didn't Wang Tao's thousand inner sect disciples chase the beast horde away?
Wang Tao and his group had not returned after such a long time, could it be...
The elders had been so busy discussing that they hadn't yet announced the defeat of Wang Tao and his group.
This wave of demonic beast attack had arrived again...