Within the Ten-Thousand Mountains, Soul-Breaking Mountain Range.
“Boom!”
A streak of blood-colored light fell from the sky, exhausted, smashing into the dense forest and carving out a deep crater.
Ye Fan crawled out of the pit in a miserable state. The moment he steadied himself, he bent forward uncontrollably, a metallic sweetness surging up his throat. “Wah—” He spat out a large mouthful of black blood mixed with fragments of his internal organs.
His entire body looked drained of vitality. His face was pale as paper, his clothes torn to shreds, soaked with mud and blood.
Before he could even catch his breath, the Medicine Saint’s furious and shocked roar exploded in his mind from within the Black Iron Ring.
“Old scheming bastard! This is absolutely the most insidious bastard I’ve ever seen in my entire life!”
“What righteous sect Ancestor? He didn’t even bother pretending! Ruthless in action, and the key is how terrifyingly deep his scheming is! If I still believe he’s righteous, then I’m the fool!”
The Medicine Saint cursed incoherently, venting the terror that nearly shattered his already weakened soul.
“He’s definitely not at the 6th stage Divine Transformation Realm! If not for my experience still being intact, I might’ve been fooled too! That sword intent—no doubt about it, that’s 8th stage Divine Transformation Realm! And not just any 8th stage, but the kind of monster that can fight above its level!”
“An old monster at the 8th stage Divine Transformation Realm who can cross realms to kill, yet disguises himself as someone who just entered the Divine Transformation Realm, hiding in a backwater like Lizhou as some so-called Ancestor… what exactly is he plotting? Someone who hides this deeply must be planning something enormous! Too terrifying… too insidious…”
The Medicine Saint’s voice gradually weakened, carrying a lingering tremor of fear.
“Kid, you’re lucky this time! If I hadn’t acted decisively and burned 20% of my soul origin to activate the Heavenly Demon Disintegration Escape Light, both of us would’ve died there today! Do you know how great the cost is? I’ll need at least half a year of slumber to recover… you… you brat…”
As he spoke, his voice suddenly cut off, clearly falling into weakness from the backlash of the secret technique.
Ye Fan dropped to his knees, gasping heavily, completely ignoring the rant.
He could clearly feel that his cultivation, which had just stabilized at the 7th stage Qi Refining Realm, was now rapidly falling like a receding tide. In the end, it barely stopped at the 4th stage Qi Refining Realm.
His foundation was damaged. All his previous efforts had gone to waste.
A surge of loss and unwillingness flooded his heart, yet he didn’t dare complain in the slightest.
Compared to that Liu Family guardian who had been reduced to ash with a single finger, simply being alive was already a tremendous fortune.
The image of that man calmly withdrawing his finger had already become an inescapable nightmare etched into his mind.
“Move!” The Medicine Saint’s weak but urgent voice rang out again. “Don’t just stand there! That old scheming bastard is meticulous—who knows if he left more backup! This place isn’t safe, leave immediately!”
Ye Fan shuddered. Forcing his exhausted, trembling body to move, he staggered toward the depths of the forest.
He froze instantly, not daring to move even a fraction.
A sword, thin as a cicada’s wing and flowing with cold light, had silently come to rest against his neck.
The sharp sword qi made even his breathing cautious, as if a single careless movement would send his head rolling.
A voice as cold as moonlight, utterly devoid of emotion, sounded behind him, “Fortunately, Master had me keep a hidden move and remain at a distance, ready at all times. Otherwise, you two villains might have truly escaped.”
Ye Fan turned his head with difficulty.
Behind him stood an incomparably beautiful woman, her presence quiet yet overwhelming.
The natural pressure radiating from her body, along with her unfathomable aura, left him without even the slightest thought of resistance.
It’s over.
Cold despair filled Ye Fan’s heart.
Su Qingyan held her sword as steady as a mountain. Her gaze swept indifferently over Ye Fan’s miserable state, yet within her heart there was only calm—and reverence.
As expected of Master.
In her view, once her master personally acted, those two petty figures were already trapped prey, with no chance of escape.
Yet before acting, her master had transmitted a message, instructing her not to approach, only to follow from afar as a precaution.
At the time, she had thought it excessive caution. Against such opponents, why go to such trouble?
Now she realized—her own understanding was far too shallow.
If not for this move her master had laid in advance, she would have failed his trust, allowing these insignificant insects—who might pose even the slightest trouble—to escape.
Her master’s wisdom was unfathomable, like an endless abyss. Every step calculated, nothing overlooked.
She still had so much to learn.
At that thought, Su Qingyan’s gaze softened slightly, filled with pure admiration and trust toward a supreme existence.
Within Ye Fan’s mind, the Medicine Saint’s remnant soul, which had just fallen silent, exploded again like a cat with its tail stepped on.
“He actually kept another move! I knew it! I knew it!”
“He might as well change his name to Lu ‘Keeps a Card Up His Sleeve’! This is a righteous sect? His schemes are denser than a beehive! I’ve roamed the Central Region for a thousand years, and I’ve never seen someone this shameless!”
The thin sword at his throat was so close to his artery it might as well be a hair’s breadth away.
He had no doubt that the slightest wrong move—even a single stray thought—would make this fairy-like woman sever his head without hesitation.
In the suffocating silence, a leisurely figure approached from afar, unhurried.
From the corner of his eye, Ye Fan caught sight of a familiar figure.
Clad in white, graceful and refined—it was that man who had shaken his soul apart, Lu Qingxuan.
He had arrived.
Ye Fan’s heart sank completely. The last trace of hope vanished like a bursting bubble.
However, at the instant Lu Qingxuan appeared, Ye Fan keenly felt that the sword at his neck… seemed to loosen slightly.
The chilling killing intent that had frozen his soul began to melt, like ice touched by spring wind.
Su Qingyan’s eyes filled instantly with pure admiration and joy. “Master.”
Lu Qingxuan walked forward with casual ease. His gaze swept over Ye Fan briefly before turning to Su Qingyan. A gentle smile appeared on his face as he reached out and rubbed her hair again. “Qingyan, well done.”
In an instant, Su Qingyan’s joy eclipsed the world itself.
At that very moment, the Medicine Saint’s weak voice suddenly turned urgent.
“Kid! Quick! Use all your spiritual energy to throw out that Demon Emperor token you bought at the market from the ring! Throw it with all your strength—straight into the sky! Hurry! This is our only chance!”
Demon Emperor token?
Ye Fan’s heart trembled violently.
That was the inheritance key he had paid a tremendous price for, something he had only just begun to activate under the Medicine Saint’s guidance.
His greatest reliance for future rise… and now he had to throw it away?
Reluctance. Pain. Unwillingness.
“Don’t hesitate!” The Medicine Saint roared desperately. “You’re about to lose your life, and you’re still clinging to that broken token like it’s your wife?! Throw it! It’ll create a massive disturbance, stirring the waters! Once that happens, powerful figures from all sides will gather! No matter how capable Lu ‘Keeps a Card Up His Sleeve’ is, he can’t cover the sky with one hand! That’s our only chance to slip through the chaos! Otherwise, we die right now!”
“Throw it!”