"Qing Nan fellow Daoist!"
Zhao Jingyu's abdomen, after taking a punch from Chen Ben, was in an extremely sorry state. His eyes were filled with chilling coldness, and he retreated rapidly. Taking advantage of the moment Chen Ben took a breath to recover his internal energy, he directly ignited a golden talisman. Instantly, the talisman's core hummed. As Zhao Jingyu threw the talisman, his eyes were filled with ferocity, "A mere Celestial Origin realm cultivator, can you withstand Mount Qingliang?!"
In an instant, the talisman in the air transformed into countless divine techniques, stripping away the spiritual energy from the roots of Mount Qingliang. In the next second, as if an entire green mountain had descended from the heavens, it slammed directly towards Chen Ben.
"Hmm?"
The young martial artist charged forward bravely, almost without thinking. His entire body erupted with majestic fist intent, his feet firmly planted on the giant rocks of the Dew Receiving Platform. He raised his hands and let out a sudden, low roar, forcefully shouldering the entire Mount Qingliang. For a moment, crisp sounds emanated from his body as his internal energy erupted section by section. Although it was quite strenuous, there was no trace of fear in his eyes.
"It's the Mountain Moving Talisman!"
Xu Zhi's beautiful brows furrowed. "A profoundly mysterious Daoist talisman. I presume Zhao Jingyu considered this Mountain Moving Talisman his trump card. To think he would use it on Chen Ben now."
Lin Zhao frowned as he looked at Chen Ben, understanding dawning upon him. Chen Ben could withstand Mount Qingliang, and all he needed to do was hold on until the talisman's power was depleted.
Meanwhile, Zhao Jingyu, who had been flying backward, soared into the sky and shouted again, "Qing Nan fellow Daoist! Protect my ascension! Once I reach the Upper Realm, I, Zhao Jingyu, will spare no effort to pave a path for the Guiyuan Sword Sect, ensuring your sect's everlasting prosperity in this world!"
Although it was an empty promise, it was a commitment from a thirteenth-realm cultivator.
For a moment, Qing Nan roared, his long sword erupting with hundreds of sword lights, forcing Su Qingjiu back slightly as he charged towards the sky, wielding his sword to protect Zhao Jingyu during his ascension.
Simultaneously, Zhao Jingyu, bathed in golden heavenly light, exuded an aura of immortal grace. Even as his severed arm continued to bleed, he took a deep breath and thrust his hand towards the sky. Instantly, a heavenly gate filled with profound righteousness was opened. This first ascension to the thirteenth realm had already caused the heavens and earth to be filled with rolling celestial phenomena.
"Don't let him enter the heavenly gate!"
Lin Zhao, standing on his flying sword Hong Ye, called out, "Little Jiu'er, intercept him! Xu Zhi, go and block Qing Nan!"
"Understood!"
Su Qingjiu's sword shot towards the sky, while Xu Zhi glided away, the glow of ten demon soul swords trailing behind her. In terms of combat strength, Xu Zhi, a peak twelfth-realm sword cultivator, was in no way inferior to Qing Nan. As for why Su Qingjiu still couldn't kill Qing Nan, it was due to selfish reasons. Qing Nan's true form was golden cypress wood, a rare spiritual wood from the mountains. Lin Zhao, my brother, loved to tinker with small items, and he didn't know what this golden cypress wood would transform into in his hands. Therefore, Su Qingjiu was trying to find a way to kill Qing Nan without damaging the raw material.
In the sky, the rumbling sound of the Great Dao echoed.
Zhao Jingyu's entire body was enveloped in a layer of golden radiance, a sign of impending ascension. In the next moment, he stomped on the void, instantly conjuring a colossal dharma image thousands of feet high. Above the peak of Mount Qingliang, this thousand-foot dharma image soared upwards, rushing towards the heavenly gate, on the verge of ascension!
...
In the south, on a mountain range.
Cao Ying frowned. "Zhao Jingyu is about to ascend? Hmph, lingering in the human world for centuries, absorbing the human destiny of the Northern Region, yet unwilling to ascend. To be forced to ascend today is truly laughable."
Huang Qingning frowned. "If Zhao Jingyu ascends to the Upper Realm, he will likely harbor resentment towards humanity. Therefore, even if he goes to the Upper Realm, he will probably stand with the demon race and ghost race, never cooperating with the Eternal Secret Realm of humanity."
"Hmph..."
Cao Ying chuckled. "In that case, I rather hope Zhao Jingyu fails to ascend. The best outcome for someone like him... would be to die in the human world, returning all his thirteenth-realm destiny to the human world. In the remaining decades, even two fearless twelfth-realm human cultivators would be better than him, a thirteenth-realm cultivator."
Huang Qingning remained silent, but his expression was solemn. He merely considered Zhao Jingyu a pawn in the north, a pawn that could contend with the Snow Domain Heavenly Pond. Once Zhao Jingyu died, the influence of the Mountain Peak Villa on the Snow Domain Heavenly Pond over the cultivators of the northern human world would reach an unacceptable level.
...
Furong Province, Iron Fulu Mountain.
Long Dongjun, with his arms crossed, watched the scene in the Water Moon Grotto with a smile. He said, "This kid Chen Ben... his martial foundation is too profound. To carry Mount Qingliang with nothing but the flesh and blood of his shoulders, how many people in our Iron Fulu Mountain could achieve this?"
Several elders of the Celestial Origin realm showed embarrassed expressions and shook their heads.
How could they possibly compare?
That brat had traversed the peaks of twelve mountains, possessed a Battle God's heart, and was now accompanied by the intent of twelve ancient fists. With his Battle God's heart protecting him, let alone one Mount Qingliang, he could carry two!
As for the Celestial Origin realm martial artists of Iron Fulu Mountain, none of them could do it.
The only one who could, perhaps, was the Sect Master Long Dongjun, as he was a transcendent Rebirth realm cultivator with such a strong physique that carrying ten Mount Qingliangs would be no problem.
"Will Zhao Jingyu succeed in ascending?" a disciple of Iron Fulu Mountain asked with worry.
"Succeed my ass."
Long Dongjun laughed heartily. "With Su Qingjiu, Xu Zhi, and Gu Lingyu, any single one of them would not give Zhao Jingyu a chance to ascend. Let alone all three of them being present."
The disciples were relieved.
...
Forget Heart Lake, Lingyan Sword Sect.
The female disciples watched the colossal dharma image of Zhao Jingyu soaring upwards, on the verge of ascension, their eyes wide open.
"Master."
Chen Mengjun pursed her red lips. "If Zhao Jingyu ascends, he will surely cause trouble in the Upper Realm, targeting the Snow Domain Heavenly Pond, right?"
"No need to worry."
Xie Yiying squinted and smiled. "With Su Qingjiu present, that is absolutely impossible."
Chen Mengjun smiled faintly. That was good then.
...
Mount Qingliang.
A peerlessly beautiful figure shot towards the sky. She wore a red skirt and white robes, her figure graceful. Holding a spiritual stream, her eyes glowed with intense golden light. Her divinity at this moment far surpassed her humanity. Under the shroud of divinity, Su Qingjiu's heart held only one thought: In front of me, what right do you, Zhao Jingyu, have to ascend?!
In the next moment, she thrust her long sword, slicing horizontally, then splitting vertically. Immediately, her figure flickered and vanished, reappearing on the other side. With another sword strike, Zhao Jingyu's massive dharma image began to crack. Under Su Qingjiu's three sword strikes, the dharma image was split into at least eight pieces. At the center of the dharma image's brow, Zhao Jingyu's true body spat out a mouthful of blood. He looked down at Su Qingjiu, his eyes filled with unwillingness.
"If this hatred is not avenged, I, Zhao Jingyu, swear I am not human!"
His roar echoed across the Northern Region sky.
"You were never worthy of being human in the first place."
Su Qingjiu raised a finger, and the flying sword Qing Yu descended from the air, transforming into a stream of green sword rain that washed over Zhao Jingyu's physical body in the vast sky. The dignified thirteenth-realm cultivator's body, though robust, could not withstand the assault of Su Qingjiu's flying sword. In a flash, Zhao Jingyu's true body was vaporized into a sky full of blood mist by a single sword. Furthermore, this sword contained the divine power of Sword Heart Connecting to the Divine, severing even Zhao Jingyu's soul, leaving him no chance for reincarnation or deification.
As for the fragments of the colossal golden dharma image, they dissipated in the air, transforming into specks of golden dust that flew towards the human world, spreading evenly across the entire human realm. This destiny might, perhaps, create several more twelfth-realm cultivators for the human world.
...
"Ugh..."
Qing Nan looked up at Zhao Jingyu, who had failed to ascend and vanished into thin air. He was on the verge of collapse, suddenly feeling a sense of shared misfortune. Although he and Zhao Jingyu were not the same kind of people, ultimately, their interests were intertwined. Qing Nan had invested heavily in this endeavor at Mount Qingliang, even coming himself with Deputy Sect Master Li Tong. Yet, they still suffered such a crushing defeat. In simple terms, they were outmatched. The Snow Domain Heavenly Pond had Su Qingjiu, Gu Lingyu, and Xu Zhi, plus that young Celestial Origin realm martial artist who was comparable to half a Rebirth realm cultivator. Their overall strength had completely overwhelmed the Guiyuan Sword Sect and Mount Qingliang.
He glanced at Deputy Sect Master Li Tong, who was trapped in a corner by Confucian scrolls not far away. He couldn't bother with him. If he went to save Li Tong, he would likely face the fists of that young martial artist, and after Su Qingjiu killed Zhao Jingyu, she would join the attack. At that time, escape would be impossible. His only chance of survival was now!
In the next second, Qing Nan raised his hand abruptly. A strand of golden, innate cypress wood branch rose from his palm and exploded forward. This innate branch contained a portion of his cultivation foundation. It not only shattered Xu Zhi's ten demon soul swords but even blew a gap in the barrier. To Xu Zhi's astonished gaze, Qing Nan transformed into a streak of green light and disappeared into the spatial rift. When he reappeared, he was already east of Jiuzhang Plain.
"Ah?!"
Xu Zhi gritted her teeth, never expecting Qing Nan to escape from under her sword.
"It's fine."
In the sky, Lin Zhao, standing on his flying sword Hong Ye, smiled warmly at Xu Zhi. He gently pressed his hand down, signaling that it was alright. The escape of one Qing Nan did not affect the overall situation. Moreover, she and Qing Nan were both twelfth-realm sword cultivators. To be able to suppress Qing Nan was already good enough. To expect her to kill Qing Nan within a few moves would be too demanding.
Now, Lin Zhao's greatest concern was something else. He looked up at Su Qingjiu in the sky and asked, "Little Jiu'er, Zhao Jingyu just vanished into thin air like that?"
"Mm."
Su Qingjiu blinked her large eyes. "Is there something wrong?"
"No..."
Lin Zhao felt a pang of heartache. "I just feel it's a bit of a shame..."
"It's not a shame."
Su Qingjiu chuckled. "In this world, is there anyone who understands Brother Lin Zhao better than Little Jiu'er?"
As she spoke, she opened her palm, revealing a golden storage bag. She smiled, "Zhao Jingyu's private collection is all here."
Lin Zhao was relieved. What a blessing, what a blessing!