Qingliang Sect.
Lin Zhao stood on the flying sword Hong Ye, looking down at the battlefield, his gaze falling on Xiao Jiu'er's retreating back. He was still a little worried. Zhao Sui Guang was individually very strong. Back then, Fu Zhi was defeated by Zhao Jingyu because she had to expend too much spiritual energy trying to take him down. What if Xiao Jiu'er also repeated the same mistake? If she couldn't defeat Zhao Sui Guang within a hundred or two hundred moves, what would happen?
He frowned, his heart filled with anxiety.
...
"Sword Immortal Su, I'm here to learn from you!"
Zhao Sui Guang, knowing he was outmatched, still flicked his sleeve and brought out a bronze owl zun, rich in spiritual energy. This owl zun was Zhao Sui Guang's lifebound artifact, replacing the previous bronze treasure cauldron that Lin Zhao had taken to plant garlic. The bronze owl zun's spiritual energy was equally abundant, enough to support Zhao Sui Guang's Twelfth Realm cultivation.
As the bronze owl zun glowed, strands of solid and powerful spiritual qi surged through Zhao Sui Guang's body. This was Zhao Sui Guang's signature move: attacking defensively. As long as you couldn't defeat me, I could wear you down until you surrendered. Of course, this was only done when facing stronger opponents; otherwise, an offensive spell would have ended it.
"I await your guidance."
Su Qingjiu nodded with a smile and drew her sword decisively. The moment her sword Lingxi pierced out, a profound sword qi restriction rose in the space between heaven and earth, directly sealing Zhao Sui Guang in place. As Lingxi's tip touched the bronze owl zun with a sharp clang, two flying swords shot out from the Yun Jian Lake: one was the flying sword Bai Yu, and the other was the flying sword Qing Yu.
The instant the two flying swords attacked, Zhao Sui Guang's heart almost cracked. He had never experienced such terrifying flying sword intent in his life. Was this even a sword cultivator?!
His two lifebound artifacts exploded on either side. Zhao Sui Guang spared no effort in damaging his own cultivation to buy time, but in the next second, Su Qingjiu's third flying sword, trailing a streak of light, arrived. The flying sword Liu Xu transformed into countless willow catkins, entangling Zhao Sui Guang's body and forcibly dragging him towards the mountain wall behind him.
"Ching!"
Su Qingjiu raised her hand slightly, and a mid-grade flying sword shot through the air, piercing Zhao Sui Guang's chest with a "噗嗤" sound, pinning his body firmly to the mountain wall. Zhao Sui Guang spurted blood, already on the verge of a cultivation regression.
"Don't move."
Su Qingjiu retracted her three lifebound flying swords, her eyes filled with a smile. "The more you struggle, the faster you die. Stay put obediently. My brother Lin Zhao doesn't want to kill you, or you'd already be a corpse."
...
"Buzz—"
Lin Zhao's mind went blank. What was this? What happened to the promised hundred moves? How did Zhao Sui Guang lose in a single round? And it was a crushing defeat; the man was pinned to the mountain rock.
Just then, with a "ching" sound, a sharp branch radiating a tender golden glow suddenly broke through the air, unexpectedly stabbing towards Su Qingjiu's nape with vicious intent!
Su Qingjiu dodged, her eyes icy cold as she watched the branch whiz past her cheek. Immediately, the branch swept forward, poised to wrap around her neck.
"Seeking death!?"
Su Qingjiu stepped back and lightly tapped the void with her sword sheath. With a loud "bang," a woman in white, covered in pear blossom branches, was sent flying backward from the void, spitting blood. It was a pear demon, its true form being an elemental spirit of a pear blossom, at the Eleventh Realm!
"Sword Immortal Su, I'll handle this."
Gu Lingyu stepped forward and tore a page from the book in her hand, throwing it out. The golden characters on the paper shimmered layer upon layer, and a seemingly thin scroll of paper directly bound the Eleventh Realm pear demon tightly.
"Someone from Guiyuan Sword Sect?"
Lin Zhao frowned and looked into the distance, saying, "Sect Leader Qing Nan, since you're here, why hide?"
"Hahahahaha~~~"
A wild laugh echoed from afar, followed by a surge of sword qi from the mountaintop, piercing the sky. Qing Nan, a Twelfth Realm demon sword cultivator in a green robe, descended from the heavens amidst myriad sword qi, laughing, "I originally just wanted to be a guest at Qingliang Sect, but I didn't expect to run into trouble. I am a guest of Qingliang Sect. Since I've encountered this, I can't just stand by."
"Alright!"
Xiao Jiu'er's willow-leaf eyebrows rose, her eyes filled with intense killing intent, and she said with a smile, "Brother Lin Zhao, Xiao Jiu'er requests to fight!"
"Don't be rash!"
Lin Zhao frowned, "The opponents are a Twelfth Realm and a Thirteenth Realm."
"No need to worry, I can fight both."
She, in her red skirt and white blouse, walked towards the two with a smile.
"Tsk tsk!"
Qing Nan sneered, "Well said, Su Qingjiu of Changming Mountain. You really think you're a Thirteenth Realm Great Sword Immortal!? Daoist friend Zhao Jingyu, since this is the case, would it be a violation of martial ethics for us to join forces and kill her?"
"That is precisely my intention!"
Before Zhao Jingyu's words fell, he had already attacked. Taking a step forward, a golden Dharma image of a thousand-zhang flying ascension realm rose behind him. He raised his hand, condensing a palm Dharma image the size of a small hill, and crushed it down towards Su Qingjiu's head. A Thirteenth Realm was still a Thirteenth Realm; the foundation of the realm was there, and an ordinary Twelfth Realm couldn't compare.
"Watch this sword!"
Qing Nan instantly swung his sword horizontally, his sword light incredibly sharp.
At this very moment, a dense golden radiance surged into Su Qingjiu's eyes, signifying her entry into the Sword Heart Communion state. She hadn't even used Sword Heart Communion in the previous round when she defeated Zhao Sui Guang. Her sword Lingxi rose, and with a "ching," it sliced through Qing Nan's sword qi. Then, the flying sword Bai Yu, trailing rosy clouds, forced Qing Nan to retreat while Su Qingjiu ascended with her sword, her sword qi pointing directly at Zhao Jingyu's descending golden palm Dharma image.
A rumbling sound erupted, and Su Qingjiu's golden radiance grew more intense. With a stab of her sword, the massive golden palm began to shatter. In the next moment, the flying sword Qing Yu blazed a trail, unleashing a blue rain from below, constantly bombarding Zhao Jingyu's Dharma image, leaving it riddled with holes. Simultaneously, Su Qingjiu rose with her sword.
"Ching!"
With a soft sound, Su Qingjiu's sword Lingxi was stained with a faint trace of golden blood, and the Thirteenth Realm Zhao Jingyu stood in disbelief in mid-air. He then let out a tragic howl as one of his right hands was directly severed by Su Qingjiu. In the next second, a spherical blue sword qi rose from the ground, shooting towards Su Qingjiu in the air. Qing Nan seized the opportunity to attack!
"Almost forgot about you."
Su Qingjiu's golden eyes looked down, and she pointed her sword Lingxi downwards. Instantly, the entire sky was filled with profound sword intent. The flying sword Qing Yu swirled in the air, like a vast azure lake above, now pouring down entirely, transforming into countless blue sword qi that cascaded towards the Twelfth Realm demon sword cultivator on the ground.
"Su Qingjiu! You..."
Qing Nan gripped his sword hilt with both hands, fiercely pushing his sword qi upwards, but he couldn't hold on. Although both were Twelfth Realm sword cultivators, their strength was completely incomparable. If Su Qingjiu could sever Zhao Jingyu's arm at the Thirteenth Realm with one sword, was it difficult for her to sever Qing Nan's head with one sword? In this world, there was sometimes a world of difference between Twelfth Realms.
After a few breaths, the ground on the mountainside suddenly sank.
Qing Nan's condensed sword qi was completely shattered, while Su Qingjiu descended from the air and pierced Qing Nan's abdomen with one sword. With another sword, she forced the Twelfth Realm demon sword cultivator to retreat steadily.
...
"..."
Lin Zhao was the most shocked person present, even more so than the people from Qingliang Sect and Guiyuan Sword Sect. He had gone to great lengths and meticulously planned for stability, intending to flatten Qingliang Sect when the crowds were largest and bring Old Huang home. But now that the day had come, Lin Zhao surprisingly found that even with the reinforcements from Guiyuan Sword Sect, Xiao Jiu'er, with just one sword, had finished all the work herself?!
"Lingyu."
Lin Zhao spoke directly through thought transmission, "Go to Qianlong Abyss in the back mountain and protect Old Huang. Be absolutely sure that the people of Qingliang Sect don't go mad and end up harming Old Huang!"
Gu Lingyu, as a disciple of the Confucian academy, was undoubtedly steady and cautious in her actions. However, even Gu Lingyu now admired Lin Zhao, her junior uncle, even more. He truly thought of everything ahead of time.
A faint golden light rippled, and almost without anyone noticing, Gu Lingyu was no longer in her original spot.
...
"No need to hide any longer!"
Qing Nan shouted, "The disciples of Guiyuan Sword Sect and Qingliang Sect have all come out. Are we going to sit and wait for death!?"
Instantly, more demons rushed out from the forest, most of them in the middle Five Realms. The disciples of Qingliang Sect who had been patiently waiting on Cheng Lu Tai to make their move also rushed out.
"Chu Yu, Mu Duo!"
Lin Zhao pointed with his hand, "Kill anyone who disobeys!"
"Yes, sir!"
The two Heavenly Origin Realm martial artists soared into the air, and fist qi rained down, engulfing the crowd. They faced no pressure at all.
"Chen Ben!"
Lin Zhao frowned and said, "The Thirteenth Realm Zhao Jingyu is yours. Fight him to the death, show no mercy! If he doesn't die, I'll hold you responsible!"
"Yes, Brother Lin Zhao!"
Chen Ben leaped up and charged towards Zhao Jingyu.
Zhao Jingyu in the air had already suppressed his injuries. Although he was now one-armed, he was still at the Thirteenth Realm. He frowned. How dare a mere Heavenly Origin Realm martial artist come to fight a Thirteenth Realm cultivator? And to fight him to the death? Who gave you the courage?
He let out a roar and thrust his palm forward, projecting a golden palm force Dharma image.
But in the next moment, Chen Ben also threw a punch. He punched upwards from the ground, precisely the first move of the Nirvana Fist technique, "Uprooting Scallions from Dry Land." His entire body was surrounded by twelve ancient fist intents, and his War God's Gall pulsed incessantly. With an indomitable spirit, he forcefully carved a path with his fist, and in the next second, he ferociously shattered the Thirteenth Realm's palm Dharma image, followed by his fist landing heavily on Zhao Jingyu's chin.
"Crack!"
Zhao Jingyu was sent flying upwards uncontrollably, his chin burning with pain. Even two of his front teeth were blown out by this Heavenly Origin Realm martial artist's punch. In an instant, this Thirteenth Realm Great Cultivator, who had stood proudly in the northern human domain for hundreds of years, was filled with confusion and bewilderment.
What was happening? How could a Heavenly Origin Realm martial artist be so fierce? Had the times changed?
In the air, lightning flashed and thunder rumbled. Chen Ben landed punch after punch on Zhao Jingyu's body. He was indeed fighting to the death. The dignified Thirteenth Realm cultivator was beaten to the point of having no power to retaliate, leaving the Qingliang Sect disciples who dared not intervene staring in dumbfounded amazement. Who were these people from Xueyu Tianchi? What kind of prodigies were they all?!