Spirit Ruin, Sword Coffin, Blind Swordsman

Li Guanqi’s killing intent surged uncontrollably. The Yanluo hologram behind him brightened, and a light blood mist hung in the air around him. His killing intent was becoming palpable.

The thick scent of blood sent chills through the bystanders, and their stomachs turned. Some of the weaker cultivators paled. The aura Li Guanqi released was terrifying. He was only supposed to be at the mid Illusory Refinement Realm, but his presence matched a late Illusory Refinement Realm cultivator.

“Cao Zhennan… What kind of monster have you offended?!”

“I wonder who’s the backer behind such an inhuman prodigy…” a white-haired elder said gravely. The others nodded in agreement. Someone like Li Guanqi couldn’t be unknown, and the people with him were also elites of their generation.

Cao Zhennan scoffed. “What background could he have? He’s just some brat from a tiny sect in the Daxia Territory. As for the people with him… just friends he brought for reinforcement, I suppose.”

That was all Cao Zhennan knew. Very few people knew about Li Guanqi’s connection to the Hell Rivers incident, and even fewer understood the true power backing him. The Heavenly Intelligence Pavilion tightly controlled that information.

Cao Zhennan had promised these cultivators he was telling the truth, swearing on his own character. He’d even crushed a jade slip in front of them.

Hearing this, the others relaxed somewhat. Li Guanqi was from a tiny sect whose sect master was only at the Divine Transformation Realm. He’d probably just gotten lucky while traveling across the continent. Greed shone in their eyes; if Li Guanqi had found such opportunities, he had likely found treasures too. Just the two swords in his hands were enough to make them want to kill him.

Ye Feng had heard enough. He shot forward. “Don’t worry! Second Brother is here!”

Boom!A hundred zhang away, a muscular man in red robes grinned and stepped forward, a powerful aura erupting from him. “Leave this one to me.”

Whoosh!

A wide knife appeared in his hand. The moment it materialized, it even sliced the surrounding space open.

Boom!

The man slashed, knocking Ye Feng back more than a hundred zhang. Ye Feng’s right hand trembled. The force had torn the skin between his thumb and index finger. His eyes turned demonic, wisps of black ghost qi wrapping around his arm and sword.

The man eyed him with amusement. He smirked and murmured, “This kid is pretty interesting.”

Another elder, old and frail in appearance, stepped forward. He eyed Xiao Chen with contempt and sneered. “Jiang Ting, you really know how to pick your opponents… Leave the kid with the spear to me.”

The space next to the elder tore open, and a shining silver spear appeared.

Jiang Ting didn’t respond. The ground beneath his feet exploded, and he launched toward Ye Feng.

The elder’s spear was exceptionally long, measuring about one zhang and two chi. He slowly pushed up his wide, thick sleeves, revealing muscular wrists and thick fingers.

“A large spear!” Xiao Chen murmured solemnly. The old man’s weapon was many times heavier than his Divine Blood Spear.

Spears were a superior weapon because every cun of length counted. The longer the spear, the more fearsome the warrior. Any opponent who wanted to get close had to first force themselves past the weapon’s range. A strong cultivator thrusting with this spear would generate unimaginable force.

Xiao Chen licked his lips, blazing with battle spirit. Facing a cultivator wielding a large spear for the first time, he felt a surge of excitement, especially since the elder had the same cultivation level as him.

Suddenly, Xiao Chen’s eyes flashed with recognition. He said calmly, “Black Sect Territory, Spear King, He Li!”

He Li’s eyes gleamed. Gripping his spear one-handed, he pointed the tip at Xiao Chen using just the strength of his wrist. “You’re quite knowledgeable, kid. I can’t believe you’ve heard of my nickname. Haha! In that case… I promise to keep your corpse intact.”

Xiao Chen burst into maniacal laughter, glaring at He Li. “Let’s fight!”

Boom!

The bystanders watched He Li sweep his spear sideways with a flick of his wrist, the weapon forming afterimages like a silver fan as it arced toward Xiao Chen’s head. The handle even bent slightly from the force.

Clang!

Xiao Chen blocked overhead with his Divine Blood Spear. Heavenly flames erupted around him.

Boom!

Xiao Chen shot toward the ground. The collision shattered all space within a hundred zhang, shockwaves radiating in every direction. The land groaned as Xiao Chen crashed into a mountain, forming a gigantic crater.

Li Guanqi still did not move.

A handsome man in purple robes stood beside Cao Zhennan. He looked at Li Guanqi’s group intently, brows knitted. Then he stared at the veiled Meng Wanshu, and his pupils trembled.

He turned, tore through space, and stepped into the void to flee.

Cao Zhennan grabbed the man’s arm and sent him a voice transmission. “Fang Jie! Why are you leaving too?”

More and more people were departing, and it was making him uneasy.

Fang Jie shook Cao Zhennan’s hand off and gave him a chilling glare. “If I were you, I would fall to my knees and beg them for forgiveness.”

He glanced around the battlefield and laughed, then took a long look at Meng Wanshu before hurrying off. He hadn’t recognized Li Guanqi, but he’d recognized Meng Wanshu.

After Fang Jie’s departure, Cao Zhennan had only six people left on his side, including himself. One by one, powerful Illusory Refinement Realm cultivators were abandoning him despite their initial confidence. This left many confused, wondering why they had fled.