SHHIIING!

The web of sword light passed through the entire giant mountain like a hot knife through chocolate, easily dicing it into countless small pieces.

The brown-haired old man’s expression changed drastically. He hadn’t expected Xia Si to be able to accelerate. But this was a clash of their full power; both had already gambled everything.

He had no time to pull back or change direction and could only meet the incomparably sharp net of the Gale Sword head-on.

WHOOSH!

The phantom of the giant mountain dissipated.

The gale died down.

Two figures crashed to the ground. One was kneeling, the other standing.

Both were covered in blood.

The difference was, Xia Si was smiling. The brown-haired old man, however, could no longer form any expression.

His face was a mangled mess of flesh and blood, completely unrecognizable.

"What... what is this Swordsmanship?!" He staggered forward a step, barely managing to stay on his feet.

"The Gale Sword of Qingfeng Temple." With a CLANG, Xia Si sheathed her sword.

Behind her, the brown-haired old man collapsed to the ground as a large pool of blood slowly spread out from under him.

Turning back, she looked at the old man’s corpse.

"You were actually quite good."

"How is this possible!?" In the distance, Fu Chunxing of the Wanhua Sect—who was posing as a member of the local Hongfei Martial Arts Hall—retreated several steps, a look of disbelief on his face.

The Vice Sect Leader of the Fushan Sect, a Great Three Harmonies Grandmaster and also a Summoner... actually... lost!?

The Fushan Sect was one of the three major sects of the Inner City. Not only had their identity now been exposed, but they had actually lost the fight!?

Before making their move, they had estimated the situation here to the greatest possible extent.

To deal with a single Priest, they had mobilized a Great Three Harmonies Grandmaster comparable to a High Priest, along with two other Priest experts, for a joint attack.

They thought such a lineup was foolproof, but...

The Fushan Sect’s Vice Sect Leader, Liu Sheng, who possessed the combat power of a High Priest, had actually lost!! He was now lying on the ground, his condition unknown.

And it was all because of that young girl who had suddenly appeared from Qingfeng Temple!

Qingfeng Temple, Qingfeng Temple!

’How could a place like this possibly produce a High Priest no one has ever heard of!? She’s this old, yet there’s not a single trace of news about her. Did she just pop out from a crack in a rock!?’

At this moment, Fu Chunxing had no time for further thought. He made a snap decision. Just now, to avoid the aftershocks of the battle, they had pulled back a distance of at least five hundred meters.

This distance now served as the perfect cover for their escape.

Fu Chunxing and the others turned and fled without a second thought, abandoning everything.

WOOHOO!!

From the distance, the fierce cheers of the Qingfeng Temple disciples carried on the wind.

Chen Sui’s throat bobbed as he watched Senior Sister Xia slowly walk toward them, his mind a tangled mess.

He only knew that over a year ago, their master, Observatory Master Lin Hui, had suddenly brought her back and announced that she was his personal disciple.

And then... Xia Si had displayed an incredibly terrifying constitution and talent for Martial Arts.

Even so, she was still within the realm of a martial arts genius, and everything seemed normal.

But starting with the expedition out into the Fog Area, when Xia Si first displayed her precise, practiced, and brutal combat prowess, things gradually started to seem abnormal.

To be precise, Qingfeng Temple had always been a bit abnormal. It was just that they used to think it was normal for the strongest and largest martial arts power in the area to have a few secrets.

But ever since Xia Si had joined, this abnormality had grown more and more pronounced.

Then there was Mingxia. The Qingfeng Sword they practiced was so different from the version the ordinary disciples learned that they hardly seemed like the same Swordsmanship at all.

Its power was astounding, and its Body Technique was unbelievably fast.

And now... Senior Sister Xia had suddenly acted and—according to Priest Liu—had defeated a Great Three Harmonies Grandmaster suspected to be at the Grand Priest Level, face-to-face, head-on, with no tricks...!

After the cheering died down, Chen Sui and the other Qingfeng Temple disciples fell silent. They were all thinking about how abnormal Xia Si was.

’Does she have ulterior motives and has been hiding her strength, or did the Observatory Master conceal Qingfeng Temple’s true foundation from the very beginning?’

No one knew the answer.

"No matter what, she saved everyone. Senior Sister Xia saved us all. Every single one of us owes her our lives!" Chen Sui said in a low voice.

Liu Xiao gave him a surprised glance but said nothing, her gaze instead falling on the slowly approaching Xia Si.

"You...!" Suddenly, her expression flickered, a hint of shock in her eyes. "You still have energy left!?"

Xia Si gave her a surprised look.

"Pushing yourself into a state of exhaustion where you can’t self-defend is the most foolish thing one can do."

After a pause, she added with a sigh.

"Still, it’s been a long time since I had such a satisfying fight. Back when I was outside, with those big..." She seemed to remember something and quickly stopped herself.

Hearing her trail off like that made Liu Xiao burn with curiosity, but she knew better than to press for details.

"They were after me. I owe you my life for this! Otherwise... I would have certainly died."

"Not necessarily. Unless he could kill you instantly, he wouldn’t have truly succeeded," Xia Si said, shaking her head. "Not long after I made my move, I sensed an expert of a similar level watching from a distance, and their aura seemed poised to protect you."

"...That must have been a backup plan my brother arranged." Liu Xiao understood. Her older brother, Liu Wu Jun, was never a reckless person; it was only natural that he would make timely arrangements after receiving the news.

She just hadn’t expected the enemy to be so deranged as to mobilize Grand Priest Level combat power.

One had to understand that this level of combat power was considered upper-middle tier in the Inner City. Each one was a person of high status and great authority, with a large number of people relying on their patronage to make a living. They couldn’t be mobilized lightly.

That’s why those at the Grand Priest Level rarely engaged in duels to the death with each other.

For example, the enemy suing for peace near the end of the fight is one of the unwritten rules in these circles. High Priests are not easily cultivated. After a victor is decided, the loser concedes benefits, and the winner doesn’t have to risk injury by forcefully killing their opponent.

It’s a happy outcome for both sides.

Unfortunately... he miscalculated. He ran into Xia Si, who didn’t know a thing about unwritten rules.

"Xia Si, you need to be careful. Every High Priest has a vast network of interests behind them; they don’t just represent themselves. By ignoring his plea and forcefully killing him... you might face even greater trouble later on." Liu Xiao warned her gravely.

"It’s fine. As long as they fear me, everything will be alright," Xia Si replied with a faint smile.

"..." Liu Xiao wanted to say more, but then she thought of that increasingly mysterious junior, Lin Hui.

Then she looked at the calm expression on Xia Si’s face.

She didn’t know what to say.

After a moment of adjustment, the other disciples saw that Xia Si was still the same, smiling gently as always, and immediately crowded around her.

They were all excited, some even had looks of deep admiration in their eyes.

Everyone chattered at once, surrounding Xia Si and asking all sorts of questions.

Someone even took the initiative to wipe the sweat from her body and face.

"So, are we still going into town?" Liu Xiao asked.

"There’s no need. At this point, the situation has escalated far beyond something a mere Hongfei Martial Arts Hall can explain," Chen Sui sighed.

"You’re right... I should go too. If I continue to stay, I’ll only implicate you," Liu Xiao nodded.

She looked up into the distance, where a tall figure in a silver-trimmed white robe was flying toward them in a Moth Car.

She recognized his face. He was her older brother’s friend. He was of Original Blood status, and with the unique significance represented by a Moon Tower Moth Car, his arrival was undoubtedly the greatest form of protection for her.

The Moth Car quickly drew near. The blond man on it looked down, his gaze meeting Xia Si’s. They both gave a slight nod.

Like two apex predators politely acknowledging each other.

Restrained. Cautious.

Soon, Liu Xiao boarded the Moth Car, and it soared into the sky, disappearing into the distance.

Chen Sui and Xia Si quickly turned and headed back to Qingfeng Temple.

They carried the corpse from the Fushan Sect with them.

Meanwhile, outside the Fog Area, at Heaven’s Expanse Cliff in the Yanshan Mountain Range ruins, a great battle was about to erupt.

*

*

*

Gray mist surged, blanketing the area around the black cliff along with the raging wind.

In mid-air, flocks of black birds with human heads flapped their massive dark wings, circling constantly. They looked down on the two newcomers below, their sight unimpeded by the mist.

Heaven’s Expanse Cliff was the windiest place that could be found on any map around Tuyue.

Lin Hui stood at the edge of the cliff. Behind him was a bottomless black abyss, where mist also churned like ocean waves, only dyed the same shade of black by the light.

The gale swirled around him, carrying countless streams of mist past.

He hadn’t brought Ning Xiang. He just stood there calmly amidst the wind and mist, an ethereal and illusory figure.

Across from him, Supreme Master Yunxia of the Nine Dreams Sect also wore white robes. Her long hair was tied back with a silver ribbon, and a small, fog-free space naturally formed around her.

She stared at him, her expression serene.

"Do you know what lies below us?"

"No idea," Lin Hui said, his hand resting on the Ruyi Sword Handle. "But no matter what it is, it’s not as if either of us is going to fall."

"Below us is the habitat of monsters known as the Sea of Annihilating Flesh. If you were to fall forty thousand meters from here, you would see their massive bodies. They are invincible monsters, far surpassing the Destruction Level. But they don’t like to move, so as long as we don’t get close, they’re harmless to us," Master Yunxia explained.

"And?" Lin Hui asked, unsure of why she was bringing this up.

"So, the wind here is actually a torrent created by the collective breathing of the Sea of Annihilating Flesh. If you stay here too long, you might be tainted by their Heart and Spirit..." Master Yunxia said gravely.

"I’ve been cultivating here for a long time, and I’ve never noticed anything unusual," Lin Hui said as he slowly drew his sword, its tip pointing diagonally at the ground.

"Alright, let’s not change the subject. I can’t even remember the last time I went all out..."

"Don’t worry. No matter what kind of power it is, I can withstand it." A peculiar expression appeared on Master Yunxia’s face.

"To avoid accidentally killing you, I’ll start by revealing just ten percent of my Power."

He tapped his right temple with the forefinger of one hand.

BOOM!

In an instant, a terrifying, majestic white light—his Inner Strength—erupted from all over his body and spread out madly.

In the blink of an eye, it had completely covered Heaven’s Expanse Cliff.

With him at the center, an area hundreds of meters in every direction was transformed, in that moment, into a world of white light composed of Inner Strength.

It was like a massive, circular lake of white light.

The wind was forcefully suppressed, ceasing in that instant. The ground was covered, hidden, and the space beneath their feet became a solid expanse of white Inner Strength.