"Brothers, this standoff is getting us nowhere. How about a gentleman’s agreement?"

With every second that passed, it became clearer that this stalemate could last forever and yield no results. Finally, a bald, browless Outer Mansion Disciple with a menacing scowl broke the deadlock.

At his words, everyone grew thoughtful.

Making a gentleman’s agreement wasn’t the hard part.

The problem was that they were all Holy Sect Disciples...

Would such an agreement even mean anything?

Just as another round of silence and confrontation was about to begin...

The bald brute’s patience wore thin. He waved a hand as large as a fan, his voice booming like distant thunder.

"Stop acting like a bunch of sissies! What’s all this damn dawdling for? If you won’t go, I’ll go myself!"

Before the words had even faded, he cast aside all hesitation. With a faint surge of True Qi, he leaped into the air. SPLOOSH! He plunged headfirst into the seemingly bottomless, bone-chilling Old Dragon Pool, sending up a spray of icy water.

A commotion erupted on the shore. The majority of the remaining Outer Mansion Disciples exchanged wary, urgent glances. Then, one after another, they plunged into the pool like dumplings being dropped into a pot.

SPLASH! SPLASH! SPLASH—

In an instant, the water churned with constant splashing, sending ripples surging outwards.

The once-calm surface of the pool erupted with spray as ripples spread out in concentric circles, shattering the silence of the forest.

In less than half a minute, the once-crowded shore was left with only seven or eight figures.

Some of these people watched with cold, calculating eyes, their arms crossed. Their intentions were as venomous as a snake’s: they planned to wait for someone else to find the Enlightenment Bell and then ambush them on their way out. It was a simple, efficient plan.

Others hesitated, their faces betraying their fear of the unknown as they stared into the inky depths of the pool.

The world beneath the water was nothing like the land above. Even if True Qi and Inner Breath could extend the time they could hold their breath, the murky depths were fraught with peril. One wrong move could mean sinking to the bottom forever.

’Cowards...’

Du Fei glanced at a pretty boy a few dozen meters away, whose face was a mask of hesitation. Shaking his head, Du Fei strolled over to an old tree and lay down. A small, inch-long curved blade spun between his fingers like a living creature, making a heart-stopping *SWISH-SWISH-SWISH* as it cut through the air.

’Let the fish fight for the bait. I’ll just sit back and reel in the prize.’

’Now all I have to do is wait for my "dear little fish" to take the bait.’

A cool breeze brushed against his face, and Du Fei looked utterly content. He had no intention of getting wet. Why not just wait for those idiots to find the Enlightenment Bell and come ashore, then snatch it from them?

Otherwise, what was the point of mastering the Tunneling Stealth Attack?

As Du Fei was mentally plotting how to seize the Enlightenment Bell without a scratch, a sudden, inexplicable chill washed over him.

He touched his neck. It was wet.

He looked down. His hand was covered in blood—a shocking, terrifying red.

"Who—"

Panic seized him. Just as Du Fei tried to speak, a short blade shot out from the shadows behind him and plunged deep into his throat, silencing him completely.

"Ghh..."

His legs kicked wildly as he coughed up mouthfuls of blood. One moment, Du Fei was plotting to assassinate others; the next, he had been assassinated himself.

Yet, at the very instant Du Fei collapsed, dead—

A wild peal of laughter suddenly echoed for dozens of meters in every direction. A rolling shockwave accompanied the sound, buffeting the surrounding trees until they swayed violently.

"Junior Brother Qi! You finally couldn’t resist showing yourself!"

A terrifying, ferocious black shadow leaped from a nearby cliff. It landed with the force of a falling mountain, the impact smashing into the ground. The resulting shockwave instantly ripped the surrounding trees from the earth and sent them flying. The ground itself fractured with spiderweb cracks, a crater several meters in diameter sinking where the figure had landed.

Struck head-on by the shockwave, Du Fei’s assassin was nearly thrown off his feet. He had to stab his dagger into the ground just to keep his balance.

It had been over half a year, and Yue Rong, having activated his Demon Body once more, possessed an even more terrifying aura. A faint, black-red energy swirled around him. The gaze from his bronze eyes seemed tangible, as if it could pierce the very fabric of space.

"Come, come, Junior Brother Qi. I have yet to see your true abilities.

I hear that for the past six months, you single-handedly kept the entire Seventh Outer Mansion in line.

My hands are itching for a fight!"

With his eyes blazing, Yue Rong instantly locked onto the hidden figure. He took a single step, his entire body like a volcano on the verge of eruption. Within a one-foot radius of him, heat waves rolled, distorting the very air.

With a roar, he thrust out a massive hand, fingers spread wide, and brought it down with crushing force.

As the overwhelmingly powerful grab descended, "Qi Yun’s" eyes went cold. Reacting with incredible speed, his short blade became a vicious streak of frigid light, stabbing straight for the center of Yue Rong’s palm!

CLANG—

The expected sight of blade piercing flesh never came.

The instant the blade met Yue Rong’s palm, it was as if it had struck Divine Iron. The dagger shattered inch by inch, exploding into a thousand fragments!

"What?"

"Qi Yun" stared in horrified disbelief at the hilt still clutched in his hand.

BOOM!

The next second, Yue Rong seized him. The searing heat of Yue Rong’s vitality instantly shattered "Qi Yun’s" Illusionary Body Concealment Technique.

It revealed a face that made the smile on Yue Rong’s own face freeze solid.

"You’re not Junior Brother Qi?"

Staring at the unfamiliar face, a vein pulsed on Yue Rong’s forehead. His expression grew darker.

"What... Junior Brother Qi? I don’t know what you’re talking about!"

Struggling to break free from Yue Rong’s grip, Fei Nanyun’s face contorted in pain. The massive hand was slowly closing, threatening to crush him to death.

"Then how do you also know the Illusionary Body Concealment Technique...?" Yue Rong trailed off and fell silent, a flash of annoyance in his eyes.

Everyone in the Outer Mansion knew that the previous Champion Scholar, Qi Yun, was a master of the Illusionary Body Concealment Technique.

’Over time, the name Qi Yun has become synonymous with the Illusionary Body Concealment Technique.’

’But I forgot... as difficult as the technique is to master...’

’...he isn’t the only one in the Outer Mansion who knows it.’

’That was reckless. I’ve alerted him. Catching him now will be much harder...’

His fingers snapped shut, cleanly breaking Fei Nanyun’s neck. Yue Rong spun around, his bronze eyes scanning the surrounding mountains and dense forests, searching for that elusive, hidden figure.

...

’That savage lion really is looking for me. A pity about the disciple who took the fall for me.’

High on a cliff face above the Old Dragon Pool, Qi Yun sat cross-legged on a dead branch jutting out from the rock. He had transformed into a Clear Wind—he had form, but no substance—so he had no fear of the fragile branch breaking beneath him.

Holding an exquisitely crafted, retractable spyglass, Qi Yun looked down, observing all the activity around the Old Dragon Pool.

Gazing down at Yue Rong, who was still searching for him, Qi Yun put away his spyglass. He slowly began to form a Spell with his hands. All around the Old Dragon Pool, within a perfect hundred-meter circle, ten black spheres the size of large soup bowls slowly began to rise.

’After today,’ he thought, ’the Holy Sect’s Outer Mansion should be quiet for a good long while.’

Before the thought had even faded, Qi Yun slammed his palms together!

An invisible ripple instantly spread out!

...