Chapter 65: Sally Forth to Kill

Outside the Peach Miasma Illusion Array.

Thick clouds of mist churned violently.

Four Great Martial Masters gripped their swords and blades tightly, their eyes sharp and ruthless as they stared ahead.

As soon as Xia Daoming and Liu Qiaolian entered the array’s center, they vanished from sight; now they could only wait outside, like hunters guarding a tree stump.

They waited for anyone to emerge from the mist, ready to strike with full force.

With the strength of these four, even an Eighth-Rank Great Martial Master would suffer grave injury if caught off guard.

“Master, logically, if we circle around that peach tree, we should be able to exit the array,” Liu Qiaolian whispered, keeping her voice low.

“Your judgment is likely correct—someone is already waiting for us outside!” Xia Daoming squinted and murmured.

This array serves only to confuse and deceive the senses.

When standing at the array’s edge, though the outside scenery is invisible, some sounds and energies can still be perceived.

Xia Daoming’s senses were sharp and powerful; he now clearly sensed two Seventh-Rank Great Martial Masters and two Sixth-Rank Great Martial Masters lying in ambush nearby.

Such a formidable force—before entering Cangmang Mountain, Xia Daoming would never have dared to rush out, fearing more Great Martial Masters might lurk within the valley.

But now, even if all four were Seventh-Rank Great Martial Masters, he could sweep them aside effortlessly.

“Don’t come out yet. Wait until I break through—then I’ll tell you it’s safe to emerge,” Xia Daoming added in a hushed tone.

“Yes, Master. Be careful,” Liu Qiaolian whispered.

Xia Daoming nodded, then stepped around the peach tree before him.

The moment he circled the peach tree.

His vision suddenly brightened.

The thick fog vanished as if it had never been.

“Kill!”

Almost simultaneously, a sharp cry rang out.

Two swords and two great blades, gleaming with cold fury, shot toward Xia Daoming like four streaks of lightning.

“Die!”

Xia Daoming coldly roared, swinging his long spear in a sweeping arc.

The spear swept through the air, summoning a violent gale that howled fiercely.

“Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!”

Four sharp metallic clashes rang out in rapid succession.

Immediately after, the four blades and swords flew from their wielders’ hands and clattered to the ground.

The two Seventh-Rank Great Martial Masters instantly bled from their palms; the powerful hidden force surged through their weapons and into their arms, forcing them to stagger backward, their faces flushing crimson.

The two Sixth-Rank Great Martial Masters fared even worse.

Under the crushing impact of the hidden force, they were flung backward like autumn leaves swept by the wind; their arm tendons and blood vessels, unable to withstand the flood-like surge, ruptured completely.

Skin split open, muscles tore, blood gushed—horrible to behold.

“Run!”

The four had never imagined the man who suddenly appeared possessed such terrifying strength.

They even doubted that a Ninth-Rank Martial Master, despite his ability to shape and manipulate his force with spiritual awareness, could match the sheer overwhelming power of this man.

Without hesitation, the four scattered and fled in all directions.

“Where do you think you’re going!”

The long spear had somehow split into two, and Xia Daoming hurled them simultaneously—whistling through the air toward the two Seventh-Rank Martial Masters.

What strength did Xia Daoming possess?

When he hurled the split spear like javelins, their speed was like lightning.

In an instant, they caught up to the fleeing Seventh-Rank Great Martial Masters.

“Ssshh! Ssshh!”

One short spear pierced clean through the back of a Seventh-Rank Great Martial Master, who collapsed face-first, blood spurting out.

The other Seventh-Rank Great Martial Master wore clothing of exceptional resilience—the spear failed to pierce him completely; instead, it drove him and the spear several meters forward before pinning him firmly to a tree.

The pinned man still clung to life, struggling to turn his head backward.

He saw a dark shadow streaking toward another man, delivering a palm strike to his back.

The man collapsed, twitched a few times, then lay still.

The dark shadow, after knocking the man down, didn’t even glance back—it moved like a phantom, swift as a hawk diving, chasing the last Sixth-Rank Great Martial Master.

The last one was the wax-faced man known as the Fifth Brother.

In just a few breaths, Xia Daoming caught up to the wax-faced man, extended his hand like a dragon’s claw, and seized his throat from behind.

“H-Hero, s-spare my life!” the wax-faced man gasped, his face turning deep purple.

Xia Daoming gave no reply. He merely stared expressionlessly as he gripped the man’s neck, dragging him like a dead dog.

He retrieved the two short spears, then walked to the edge of the mist-shrouded illusion array and called out.

Soon, the mist parted, and Liu Qiaolian stepped out.

“Master!” Liu Qiaolian cried out in relief upon seeing Xia Daoming unharmed, then her gaze fell on the man he dragged.

“The Fifth of the Withered Corpse Six Killers!” Liu Qiaolian’s face paled, her eyes filled with bitter hatred.

“You know me?” the wax-faced man exclaimed.

“So it’s true!” Xia Daoming’s expression darkened slightly.

The leader of the Withered Corpse Six Killers had transformed into the County Magistrate of Luogui City; villagers within a hundred li of the city carefully bred venomous snakes born under Yin years and Yin months; the Gengyun Mountain had undergone such strange changes—Xia Daoming had already suspected the Withered Corpse Six Killers were involved, even while inside the illusion array.

Now, with Liu Qiaolian’s identification, Xia Daoming confirmed his suspicion.

“Know you? I’d kill you a hundred times over!” Liu Qiaolian snarled.

The wax-faced man’s face changed, but instead of fear, he grew calm. “Many have wanted to kill me, Sang Zhang, yet here I still stand. Do you know why?”

Liu Qiaolian, enraged that the man who destroyed her family dared to be so arrogant, raised her spear, ready to drive it through his chest.

Xia Daoming gestured to her to hold back, then looked at Sang Zhang and said calmly, “Tell me why.”

“Because I am now a Force-Bearer under the Immortal’s service, assigned to guard and oversee this Gengyun Mountain! If you kill me today, no matter where you flee, the Immortal will hunt you down.”

“So I advise you to release me. With your strength, if I vouch for you and speak well of you, the Immortal may accept you too—you’ll enter the Immortal Gate, forever separated from mortals, free and unbound.” Sang Zhang said.

Xia Daoming said nothing, but raised his eyes toward the golden glow rippling across the eastern fields of the valley.

They were currently on the valley’s western side, far from the east; his attack had been swift, ending the battle instantly, so the laborers to the east had not been disturbed.

But in a large mansion not far from the battle, several women peeked out from behind, their faces pale.

Yet their qi fluctuations were faint—no need to concern himself with them yet.

“Hero, rest assured—the Immortal holds me in high regard. If I speak well of you, he will surely…” Sang Zhang, seeing Xia Daoming’s silence, assumed he was swayed by his words—or intimidated by the Immortal’s name—and pressed on.

After all, few in this age could resist the lure of Immortal destiny.

PS: During this new book’s ranking period, please readers try to follow along. Thank you.