Martial Cultivator

The scholar held an old book in his hands, gazing at the demon cloud not far ahead.

The great demon on the snow hill was also looking at him.

They exchanged a glance, both meeting for the first time, unfamiliar with each other. But soon, they discerned each other’s cultivation realm.

Both were Nepenthe.

In this world, cultivators of such a level were rare.

The great demon frowned, expressing some distaste. “There’s a familiar scent on you. This venerable doesn’t like it.”

The scholar smiled slightly. “There are always things in the world we don’t like, but disliking something is just that. What else can you do?”

The great demon said indifferently, “This venerable will kill you.”

The scholar continued smiling but said nothing.

The great demon glanced into the distance before slowly withdrawing his gaze, intending to walk forward once more. Suddenly, the wind and snow between heaven and earth came to a halt.

The scholar calmly watched the great demon, his eyes lingering on the demon cloud above him in silence for a long time.

The great demon stared at the scholar, then suddenly asked, ”Are you from the academy?”

The demon race did not know much about the human race. They viewed humans as mere ants, and for a great demon like him, he held them in even greater disdain, not bothering to learn anything about them. However, the term ”academy” was something he remembered clearly. Back when that sword immortal first appeared on top of the city walls, his opening words had been, ”Liu Banbi from the academy, requesting guidance.”

Although one was a sword cultivator and the other was not, the great demon sensed a familiar aura on this scholar.

The scholar smiled and nodded, saying, ”Wei Xu from the academy.”

”I believe your esteemed self has met my fellow schoolmate.”

The relationship between Liu Banbi and Wei Xu had always been ordinary, perhaps even less than ordinary. After all, Liu Banbi did not have much affection for Wei Xu.

The great demon fell silent. Over the years on the northern battlefield, he had only encountered one cultivator from the academy, which was a sword immortal. But was the academy not supposed to be filled with scholars? How could such a highly skilled sword immortal come from there?

Now, this cultivator standing before him who had also reached the Nepenthe realm was also from the academy...

The great demon asked, ”What is your relationship with that girl?”

Wei Xu smiled. ”To be honest, that’s my junior sister.”

The great demon said, ”So you’re here to stop this venerable, to prevent this venerable from killing her?”

Wei Xu said calmly, ”Since it’s been stated this is a matter between the youngsters, as a great demon of an entire region, to strike at a junior truly demeans your esteemed self’s status.”

The great demon remained indifferent.

Such things were always understood without needing to be said openly.

The great demon replied calmly, ”There’s no point in talking further. Let’s see if you have the ability to stop this venerable.”

The scholar said nothing more. However, he put away the scroll in his hands with great care, and then spoke, ”Wei Xu from the academy, requesting guidance.”

Those words instantly filled the snowy hill with killing intent, causing the snow to cascade down.

The great demon stopped talking, merely looking at Wei Xu. He stepped forward heavily, and at that moment, heaven and earth seemed to tremble under his step. An overwhelming pressure surged forth, born from heaven and earth, crashing toward Wei Xu like a tidal wave.

If the great demon had become a mountain at that moment, then Wei Xu stood at the base, watching the mountain topple toward him.

But his expression remained unchanged.

But a moment later, he took a step forward as well.

Though the two Nepenthe Realm powerhouses still stood a distance apart, their powerful auras had already clashed long before they met. The wind and snow swirled violently, the earth quaked, and countless snowflakes were torn to pieces in midair. The black cloud above the great demon’s head was dark as ink, now appeared even thicker at this moment.

Ripples began to spread across Wei Xu’s face, like a stone cast into water, causing wave after wave.

A true battle between two powerhouses had already begun at this moment.

In the desolate north, many clashes between powerhouses had erupted, with varying outcomes. However, it seemed that only this one scholar had ever personally come to the desolate north to face off against a great demon.

In a sense, this was the beginning of something.

But whether it would also be the end remained unknown.

Either way, this was something unprecedented.

The great demon standing atop the snowy hill suddenly seemed inexplicably enormous. Even the hill beneath his feet seemed to have transformed into a lofty snowy mountain. The great demon stood tall on the mountain peak, while Wei Xu seemed exceedingly small by comparison.

He looked like a lone traveler climbing the mountain, slowly making his way toward the summit.

The overwhelming demonic qi between heaven and earth seemed to envelop Wei Xu at that moment.

Yet, in the next instant, a faint light suddenly appeared amidst the rolling demonic qi. Upon closer inspection, someone was holding a lantern within the torrent of demonic qi, though its light was weak.

Wei Xu was climbing the mountain.

But snow and wind constantly cascaded down the slope, blocking this Mr. Wei from the academy from advancing.

The lantern in Wei Xu’s hand swayed relentlessly, and though the bitter cold penetrated into the bones, he continued his slow ascent through the wind and snow.

It was unknown how long had passed.

The great demon on the snow hill began to descend. Hence, the demonic qi surged forward considerably.

Wei Xu looked up and smiled.

Countless waves of qi emanated from his body, spreading in all directions. All of a sudden, numerous areas across the entire snow hill exploded with a deafening roar. In that moment, the entire hill seemed on the verge of being destroyed by the overwhelming qi.

The great demon gazed coldly at Wei Xu, finally understanding that he had underestimated this scholar.

But this only further fueled this great demon’s killing intent. He no longer seemed particularly concerned about whether to kill the girl. Instead, his priority shifted to first killing this scholar, who came from the same academy as that sword immortal.

Wei Xu also sensed the great demon’s murderous intent. He looked at his opponent calmly and lightly waved his sleeve.

It seemed casual, but in an instant, another gust of wind and snow howled across the sky. For cultivators who had reached their level, when they truly began to fight, there was not much need for elaborate techniques. Yet, even their casual actions could stir heaven and earth.

Wei Xu had spent many years at the academy, and his number of fights could be counted on one hand. Back then, in that microcosm, he had intervened to save Song Changxi. Before that, he had also acted to save Zhu Xia. Later, when accompanying Xie Nandu to the White Deer’s Xie Clan, it hardly counted as a fight.

But now, to face a great demon in battle, this was his first time.

Wei Xu appeared calm, yet he was extremely serious.

Of course, it had nothing to do with the reputation of the human race, nor the academy. He simply wanted to protect Xie Nandu.

That was it.

In truth, there had long been issues between Wei Xu and Xie Nandu that could lead to the two standing opposed in the future, whether was it the rivalry between the Xie and Wei families, or the contention for the position of dean, it all pointed in that direction.

Yet, as always, he still regarded Xie Nandu as his junior sister. Until the point where they absolutely had to compete, that identity would not change.

The snow and wind fell.

The distance between Wei Xu and the great demon was continuously shrinking.

A grating sound, sharp enough to make one’s teeth ache, began to echo in the air.

Wei Xu’s robes started to tear, while the demonic cloud above the great demon’s head began to dissipate a little.

For some reason, both had chosen not to use grand, sweeping techniques. Instead, they resorted to methods imperceptible to the average person, ones hidden from plain sight.

The wind and snow between them twisted and shattered repeatedly, forming a vacuum where no snow could fall.

Within this space, anyone who stepped in would likely be reduced to a pile of flesh in an instant.

……

……

Over at Xie Nandu’s side, the battle had already ended. They had suffered significant casualties this time, with many academy cultivators dead or injured. Gao Xuan had nearly lost an arm. Fortunately, he managed to narrowly avoid that perilous strike. Otherwise, the consequences would have been unimaginable.

Xie Nandu withdrew her flying sword with a pale complexion. Looking toward the distant snow hill and sensing the aura there, she said softly, ”Let’s go.”

Gao Xuan was momentarily stunned but quickly smiled bitterly. He naturally understood that leaving the battlefield was the best choice at this moment. It was because someone over there was already holding off the greatest danger for them, and if they stayed, it would only distract him.

He could not see what was happening on the other side, but he asked, ”Is it Mr. Wei?”

Wei Xu of the academy was someone he had heard of long ago. He had even seen him once before, though they had not exchanged many words. As for these scholars, Gao Xuan’s opinion of them was not particularly good, but neither was it particularly bad.

Xie Nandu nodded, ”Senior Brother Wei is fighting a great demon.”

Gao Xuan furrowed his brows and sighed, ”As expected, in the end, all these so-called battles between young geniuses will turn into battles between the big shots.”

Xie Nandu softly said, ”It wasn’t supposed to happen so soon. It’s something he and I caused.”

Yuan Ling’s death, Autumn’s intervention, and Xie Nandu’s venture deep into the desolate north.

All of these things had accumulated into a fuse, speeding up the events.

Gao Xuan asked, ”Is it possible to return to Coldgate Pass now?”

Xie Nandu shook her head.

Gao Xuan sighed and said, ”Moving forward won’t be any easier.”

Xie Nandu listened to his words, then simply raised her head. In an instant, nine flying swords appeared once again, soaring into the sky.

In the distant horizon, without anyone noticing, a massive dharma idol had appeared, hidden within the wind and snow. Its face was obscured, but a giant hand had already descended toward them.

The might of heaven and earth arrived in an instant.

The nine flying swords had already dispersed into the sky, each one clashing against the giant hand.

But in a mere instant, the swords let out mournful cries!

Xie Nandu’s flying swords flew toward the sky, but as soon as they touched the giant hand, they were struck down one by one.

Although the sharpness of these swords was unparalleled in the world, Xie Nandu’s cultivation realm was too low to contend with the enormous dharma idol.

She spat out a mouthful of blood, her face turning ashen.

Wang Kuan and Gao Xuan also attacked, but it was destined to be futile.

The difference in cultivation was too great.

In the distance, Wei Xu had already seen what was happening, but he could not break free. When that dharma idol appeared between heaven and earth, the great demon before him had already pinned him down.

It was virtually impossible for Wei Xu to shake off this great demon in a short amount of time.

But at that moment, a voice suddenly sounded out in the wind and snow.

”Wei Xu, you’re really useless.”