Chapter 295: 295. Chapter 292: The People

295. Chapter 292: The People's Hearts Have Scattered

"I understand," Shan Beishu said suddenly, watching Fu Qijian force Wu Zhanxia back with a single sword stroke—Wu Zhanxia, whom Shan Beishu had believed had already crossed the Immortal-Fanqiao.

At least sixty others were watching now, all staring at Fu Qijian with disbelief.

Fu Qijian had actually forced Wu Zhanxia back with one strike, showing no sign of disadvantage—it was simply terrifying.

Could someone else beyond the Fourfold Sea Pass have crossed the Immortal-Fanqiao?

Wu Zhanxia of the Fourfold Sea Pass was universally acknowledged as one who had crossed it.

Only Wu Zhanxia knew that he had been at a disadvantage during his duel with Fu Qijian.

The reason was simple: Ding Huan broke the rules and ambushed him.

But he could never admit this—he had to maintain his image of invincible Dao mastery.

Even if ten people ambushed him at once, he was still invincible.

Now he feared only that Ding Huan, in desperation, would reveal everything.

Ding Huan definitely knew his secret.

Ding Huan smiled:

"So I told you not to worry about him. And don't be fooled by the crowd here—once we leave this space, no matter how many are outside, we won't fear them."

Shan Beishu laughed heartily: "Exactly."

Outside, within Ding Huan's domain, their spiritual senses remained unaffected, while others' were compressed to just one percent—how could they possibly compete?

Wu Zhanxia bowed:

"Since we are all Dao companions who have crossed the Immortal-Fanqiao, today I, Wu Zhanxia, will give you this courtesy. Qu Shan, go bring Ji Xuwén."

A man swiftly departed, but a woman in the crowd stared at Shan Beishu in astonishment and asked:

"Are you Shan Beishu, Daoist?"

Shan Beishu's gaze fell on the woman, and he too said in disbelief: "Cen Huan, Daoist? How are you here?"

Cen Huan? Ding Huan immediately remembered—wasn't this woman from the Changyuan Sword Dao?

There was also Cang Yongqian—both had been unable to ascend via the Ascension Tower, so they entered the Opening Heaven Battlefield seeking Immortal Fortune, only to end up on this fraud Wu Zhanxia's territory.

He'd never liked the Changyuan Sword Dao; the two women he knew from it were both no good.

Cen Huan exclaimed in delight: "It really is you! Not only am I here, but Cang Yongqian is here too."

"Could you please call Cang Yongqian over?" Shan Beishu said quickly.

He knew Ding Huan was about to fight Jiuyuan, so the more powerful allies he could gather, the better.

He feared Cang Yongqian would refuse to leave—once one sensed the Dao rhythm of the Immortal-Fanqiao here, no Earth Immortal at the peak could resist staying.

"Of course… oh, Cang Daoist is here."

As Cen Huan spoke, a man with a long blade on his back hurried over. He saw Shan Beishu and laughed:

"Shan Beishu, are you here to join Master Wu?"

Shan Beishu smiled: "Cang Brother, I'm here to ask you to leave with me."

Cang Yongqian stared at Shan Beishu in surprise:

"Beishu, are you sure? There's the Immortal-Fanqiao's Dao rhythm here—why leave?"

Shan Beishu said solemnly:

"Cang Brother, Cen Huan Daoist—if you trust me, come with me. Don't you know who I am?"

Wu Zhanxia's face turned cold at Shan Beishu's words.

But he couldn't act—he felt something deeply strange about Ding Huan.

He feared even more that Ding Huan would reveal everything.

After a moment's thought, Cen Huan said: "Fine, I'll leave with you. But whether we can break through the Fourfold Sea Pass—I'm not confident."

Shan Beishu laughed heartily: "Cen Daoist, don't worry—we'll definitely get out."

Cang Yongqian hesitated for a long while, then said:

"Very well. I've been here for years, unable to reach the step I dreamed of. Better to leave with you for now."

"Master Wu, I'm leaving with my friends—perhaps I'll return to join you someday," Cang Yongqian bowed respectfully to Wu Zhanxia.

Cen Huan also bowed: "Thank you, Master Wu, for your care these years. I too plan to leave and wander."

Shan Beishu knew Cang Yongqian's nature well—though he said he might return, he never would.

For Cang Yongqian, once he decided to leave, he never turned back.

Wu Zhanxia felt like he'd swallowed a fly. If not for Ding Huan here, Cang Yongqian and Cen Huan leaving together would mean death.

His territory needed more Earth Immortals—it was already short. How could he let any in leave?

Now he could only force a laugh:

"Come and go as you please. My place always welcomes you back. I, Wu Zhanxia, never block anyone's freedom—we Dao cultivators value liberty above all."

"Thank you, Master Wu," Cen Huan and Cang Yongqian said quickly.

At that moment, Qu Shan returned with a refined-looking man.

"Master!" Fu Qijian shouted loudly upon seeing the man.

"Xiao Qi? How did you get here?" the man frowned.

But after asking, he gasped:

"You've reached the Earth Immortal realm?"

Fu Qijian quickly bowed and said: "Yes, I recently ascended to the Earth Immortal realm. I came here specifically to take you away."

Ji Xuwén instinctively glanced at Wu Zhanxia—he knew Wu Zhanxia never allowed anyone to leave this place.

To his surprise, Wu Zhanxia only smiled, saying nothing.

His gaze fell again on Ding Huan and Shan Beishu, silently wondering: Could it be because Xiao Qi brought friends along that Wugu Zhu could not stop them?

This didn't make sense—he knew better than anyone how strong Wugu Zhu was.

Wu Zhanxia said nothing; he quickly bowed deeply: "Wugu Zhu, my disciple has come to find me. I wish to leave with him and take a walk outside."

Wu Zhanxia laughed heartily:

"Of course you may."

Ji Xuwén became even more certain—it was exactly as he thought.

"Then let's go," Ding Huan said, waving his hand, ready to lead everyone away.

At that moment, a thin man approached, bowed to Ding Huan, and said:

"Friend, I am Qi Yonghan. I also wish to leave with you—could you take me along?"

Ding Huan was preparing to confront Jiuyuan; the more Earth Immortals, the better. He didn't even notice Wu Zhanxia's dark expression, and said directly:

"Of course you can—more hands, more strength."

Wu Zhanxia didn't wait for Qi Yonghan to bid him farewell—he said: "Then farewell, and don't see me off. I must seal this place and return to seclusion for cultivation."

He feared that if he delayed any longer, more people might want to leave.

The Immortal-Fanqiao Dao-Vibration space he had constructed thrived on more Earth Immortals—if too many left, what was the point of building it at all?

Seeing that Wu Zhanxia ignored him and offered no chance to take leave, Qi Yonghan didn't bother to bid him farewell either—he simply stepped beside Ding Huan.

He had long sensed something was off here, but had never dared to leave. Now that the chance had come, how could he miss it?

Though Ding Huan had the lowest cultivation, he could tell Ding Huan was the leader among this group.

"Who killed my Jiuyuan's Zhenghe Yiquan?" A furious voice rang out, followed by two figures racing toward them.

Wu Zhanxia frowned slightly at the approaching men.

He disliked Jiuyuan intensely—what they did outside was none of his concern.

But this was his territory. Jiuyuan's people could cultivate here, could contribute Dao-Vibration laws to his Great Dao space—but they could not form cliques here.

There were ninety-seven Earth Immortals in the Great Dao Zone; six of them came from Jiuyuan. And these six had formed a clique, which infuriated him.

"Jiuyuan's Chuanxi—he's strong. I'll handle him," Cen Huan said, opening her palm, a long sword appearing instantly.

Ding Huan smiled, about to speak—when suddenly, a dark streak erupted beneath Chuanxi.

Chuanxi had flown through the air directly—he never expected anyone in the Great Dao Zone to attack him.

In his subconscious, those residing in the Great Dao Zone were naturally allies.

At this moment, Chuanxi's killing intent was fully focused on Ding Huan's group, yet the one who struck him was no weaker than he was. By the time he reacted, a mist of blood exploded in the dark light.

Chuanxi let out a piercing scream, forcibly shifting sideways to evade the next killing blow.

Worse still, as he shifted, another red streak slashed down from above.

No matter how skilled he was, Chuanxi could not dodge two consecutive ambushes.

"Puff!" A jet of blood sprayed out—Chuanxi's body was split cleanly in two.

His Primordial Spirit had barely emerged when a woman seized it in her hand:

"Senior Ji Gu, you dare…"

Chuanxi cried out in terror.

Her reply was a burst of true energy in her palm—Chuanxi's Primordial Spirit shattered into chaotic Dao-Vibrations, crushed utterly.

The man who had come with Chuanxi dared not advance—he retreated hundreds of meters in haste, landing beyond the crowd.

Wu Zhanxia's face turned ashen. He swore that once Ding Huan and the others left, he would make that pair of male and female suffer worse than death.

Even though he despised Jiuyuan, these Jiuyuan people were still his allies within his territory—in his eyes, they were his subordinates.

The external enemy had not yet left, yet Senior Ji Gu and Fei Zhankong dared to launch a surprise attack and kill Chuanxi.