At first, when she reached the accommodation of the disciples of the Blood Skull sect, she noticed that something was off about the light and behavior of everyone. These anomalies were because of the illusion formation.
If she had discovered that she was in an illusion then, things would have turned out different. But she eventually ignored these inconsistencies and went along with her crime.
This sealed her fate and ensured that the patriarch of the Purple Flower sect couldn't save her. So she will live the rest of her days in agony.
The two nascent soul cultivators didn't tell anyone about what happened that night. The news that they told people was that Purple Vine had entered seclusion in order to break through to the fifth mortal coil.
The people of the Purple Flower sect were excited to hear this. They also hoped dearly that she would succeed in her attempt and they would have two nascent soul patriarchs.
Not even the golden core elders of the sect were told what really happened to Purple Vine. When she doesn't appear after a while, they will think she failed and died in her attempt. Then they would forget about her like they did with the two failures before her.
Everyone moved on with their lives like something that could spark a war between the Purple Flower sect and the Blood Skull sect didn't nearly happen. But for those who knew what happened, the impact on their lives was significant.
This was especially the case for Purple Vine and her patriarch. Purple Vine's life would never be the same again. She would like in hell for the rest of her days.
What she will experience will make her regret her decision to kill the people of the Blood Skull sect. Her patriarch wasn't happy with this outcome either.
Her patriarch had high hopes for her and was highly disappointed that all of the years of investment and all the hopes hanging on Purple Vine's advancement to the fifth mortal coil will end in such a waste.
The disappointment she felt translated to a lackluster reaction to the exchange group from the Blood Skull sect leaving. She vetoed a closing ceremony that the junior elders suggested and even canceled the short farewell banquet that they planned to hold after.
Arthur didn't mind either way. But he did notice that the Purple Flower sect didn't seem enthusiastic about his presence anymore and wanted him to leave as soon as possible.
He obliged them without complaining, partly because he couldn't argue with the patriarch of the Purple Flower sect and partly because he too wanted to leave the Purple Flower sect as soon as possible and return to the mana-rich environment of the inner sect of the Blood Skull sect.
So he gathered the disciples of the Blood Skull sect, counted them to make sure that there were 505, and inspected them to make sure that they were who they said they were. Then he produced the rank 5 flying ship and asked them to get on it.
After everyone had gotten onto the flying ship, Arthur bid farewell to the people that came to see him off. Then he spurred the flying ship into action and made it fly away in the direction of the Blood Skull sect.
The people who came to bid them farewell were led by the golden core elders of the Purple Flower sect. This time, there were two of them compared to the singular golden core elder that welcomed them when their ship just arrived.
Pale Shadow and Green Viper watched Arthur leave for a while. Then they turned to leave themselves.
On their way back to their sect, Pale Shadow said, "If we lose the ear, we should join the Blood Skull sect."
Green Viper shook his head and said, "First of all, we are not going to lose the war. Secondly, joining the Blood Skull sect is a bad idea."
Pale Shadow glanced at him briefly. If she had emotions to spare, she would have looked at him with disdain.
Unfortunately, she wasn't that expressive. She could only continue in her monotonous tone, "Use your head. We are at a disadvantage in this war. The fact that we are desperately seeking allies to help us in the war is proof of that."
Green Viper wanted to refute, but she cut him off by looking at him eerily and saying, "There is a high and serious chance that we will lose to the Red and Blue Fire sect. That is an indisputable fact. The fact that you love your sect doesn't change that or suddenly grant us the power to overcome the Red and Blue Fire sect."
"If your love for your sect and your stubbornness not to accept inferiority were that important or significant, we would already be stronger than the Blood Skull sect, or at least you wouldn't have lost to the youngest and newest golden core elder of their sect in a fight."
"It was even a fight that occurred a year after he advanced to the fourth mortal coil. If he had more time to learn more rank 4 skills or the iconic techniques of his sect, you wouldn't have lasted a single move against him."
Green Viper's face fell when he heard this. This was a sign that he didn't like what she was saying and was about to get angry.
This weakness of showing his emotions on his face made her look down on him even further. But she didn't show her disdain on her face or mention this weakness since she was already tearing him down in another way.
But she decided to consider his feelings and adjust her approach so as not to anger him and instead convince him of the validity of her point.
She said, "I am not saying this to insult you or mock you. I just want you to be aware of the reality of the situation. I want you to understand the situation and make logical preparations for failure."