Chapter 443

"Depart!"

Zheng Qian now only wants to resolve this matter quickly; after returning to the sect, he will sever all ties with Liu Qianyun and never speak to her again.

Liu Qianyun covered her mouth and smiled.

Clearly, Yan Wencheng's actions had fully provoked this sister.

She had no intention of adding fuel to the fire, and simply followed after them.

With the route map in hand, the entire ascent became unusually easy.

As the summit drew nearer.

Zheng Qian nearly suppressed all her aura to its extreme, while one artifact after another was drawn forth—utterly flawless.

Even Shen Yi was somewhat surprised.

No wonder external cultivators called them Immortals; even a mere ordinary steward within the sect possessed such profound reserves.

If the Bihai Toad from that day were replaced by Zheng Qian before him.

That old dog would've died trying and still failed to take her down.

"Shen Daoist, we don't need to get so close."

Yan Wencheng gave a slight reminder—being a formation master, they were beings who needed protection.

As long as they stood at a distance, able to barely observe the battle and ready to adjust the formation at any moment, that was enough.

"Mm."

Shen Yi murmured in reply, but his gaze remained locked on the peak.

Until this moment, he could already sense the vast aura—far surpassing all demons and monsters he had ever encountered.

"How is it?" Liu Qianyun, too, had sensed the formidable demonic aura, and turned to Zheng Qian.

"..."

Zheng Qian slightly bit her lip, closed her eyes, and sensed for a moment.

Then she turned back in silence, fixing her gaze on the black-robed youth, her pupils trembling faintly.

One ancient demon at Return Void fourth layer, the other a severely wounded Return Void third layer.

Exactly as Shen Yi had previously described.

Only after verifying it with one's own eyes could one grasp how terrifying such a technique was.

Across more than ten formations, at such a distance, he hadn't even been seen activating any spell—yet he had silently mastered all information.

She withdrew her gaze and reevaluated this young man in her mind.

The conclusion she reached, however, was brutally realistic.

Even if this youth was merely newly entered into Return Void, merely with such reconnaissance ability, he would never lack stewards willing to take him out.

Had Nanyang Sect ever been this strong?

Merely by leaving behind a portion of its legacy, it had cultivated such an outstanding disciple.

"It should be fine."

Zheng Qian gathered her spirit and spoke softly.

If it were a direct confrontation, she might suffer disadvantage—but now that she held the initiative, the situation had instantly changed.

"But..."

Zheng Qian did not turn back, but silently added Shen Yi back into her calculations: "Starting from this side certainly gives us an advantage, but you can't contain the demons on the right peak—can your newly laid formation hold them off?"

As the leader, she had to consider everything—if those two demons on the right peak didn't come to reinforce, but instead went to retaliate against the Yu clan...

Of course, even if it couldn't hold, there was nothing to be done.

After all, if they returned to the sect now to summon help, next time they came, the Yu clan would likely be utterly exterminated.

"Mm."

Shen Yi nodded briefly and succinctly.

He didn't waste words trying to bolster others' confidence.

Unnoticed by anyone, two streams of light emerged from his third eye and darted off into the distance.

"..."

Zheng Qian had wanted to ask more, but didn't want to press her warmth against his cold indifference.

Her gaze fixed on the unusually massive tree atop the peak.

Her face instantly filled with killing intent.

She swept her right palm—the azure treasure seal rolled skyward, expanding to dozens of zhang wide, like a small mountain peak crashing down upon the giant tree.

At the same time.

Light surged from her third eye, shooting straight into the heavens, causing heaven and earth to change color.

A four-tiered moon palace now dominated the sky.

It poured down moonlight as thin as gauze, turning day into night.

Each tier bore three coiled-dragon pillars.

In the upper three halls, between the two Dao halls, a wisp of white mist floated in each.

The hazy white vapor—two of the tiers were Spirit Palaces!

"..."

Seeing the four-tiered Dao Palace, Liu Qianyun instinctively felt a pang of pity.

The woman was a lone cultivator who had fought her way out within Qingyue's sacred grounds; after joining Qingyue Sect, due to her advanced age, she had received only one scripture: the Three-Pillar Ascending Palace Method.

Yet she had not been discouraged.

With only the Three-Pillar Method, she had still forged two Spirit Palaces.

If one could achieve the third layer, there would be a chance to become a personal disciple, and perhaps an Elder would be willing to alter their fate.

Unfortunately, in the end it still failed.

But even so, the Three Pillar Cavern was still a genuine four-layer Dao Palace, a mid Return-to-Void cultivator!

"Give it to me! Die!"

The deep-blue great seal crashed down, yet it did not harm the giant tree; instead, at the instant of contact, it transformed into dense light, instantly binding the two demons within it.

The true killing move came from the heavens!

One could see, within the resplendent Moon Palace, a wisp of full moon gradually fading, taking on the shape of an ox horn.

Then the two streams of dense spiritual Qi both merged into it.

Under their augmentation, the crescent moon's aura surged more than twofold, like a blade that could sever the heavens, and slashed viciously toward the giant tree.

"..."

The ground rumbled and trembled beneath his feet, Shen Yi's black robes billowing—this was the first time he had witnessed a mid Return-to-Void cultivator make a move.

In an instant, with the giant tree as the boundary, a thin line actually appeared in the middle of the entire stretch of land and water.

The cut was as smooth as a mirror's surface.

With such power, it was truly hard to imagine that Old Dog and she were cultivators of the same realm.

Damn, my lifespan is about to run out.

"Set up the array!"

Zheng Qian had landed a strike, yet showed no unusual expression.

She stared at the giant tree with full concentration, and even summoned the treasured mirror she had prepared earlier, blocking it before her.

The giant tree that had been split by the crescent moon emitted no sound from within, as if there were no living thing inside.

But the next moment, a pillar of golden flame suddenly surged out from within, heading straight for Zheng Qian.

Crack.

A sparrow's claw, as if cast from refined iron, embedded itself into the mirror's surface.

As the flames faded like clouds and mist, the form within was revealed—a sparrow's head on a human body, its head crowned with feathers like pure gold, and a pair of eyes in an ink-green hue.

It looked majestic and imposing, but upon closer inspection, one could notice a thin line hanging down from the top of its head, running the length of its entire body.

It was using that scorching golden flame to forcibly glue its body back together.

"No recent grudge, no past enmity."

"Immortal of Qingyue Sect, it seems you are leaving us no way to live."

The Golden Flame Sparrow exerted force indifferently; bolstered by such a tenaciously vital demonic body, the treasured mirror shattered inch by inch.

"Lay a finger on a person of my Qingyue Sect, and you call that no grudge?"

A cold glint rose in Zheng Qian's eyes; as she raised her palm once more, moonlight gathered again within the Dao Palace.

"Person?" The Golden Flame Sparrow demon suddenly let out a scoff: "You mean that bunch of half-human, half-demon mongrels below are immortals of Qingyue Sect? Why not take them back to the Qingyue sacred ground?"

"..."

The corner of Zheng Qian's mouth twitched, yet the motions of her channeling Dao techniques grew faster: "Does this old lady just find you an eyesore, is that good enough?"

The two seemed to be chatting casually, but in truth both were going all out.

If the treasured mirror shattered first, Zheng Qian would inevitably be injured; if the moonlight fell first, the Golden Flame Sparrow demon would most likely be buried here today.

"Fellow Daoist Shen, I'll handle the main array, you just need to assist."

Yan Wencheng's hands moved in rapid succession, and one array material after another transformed into streaks of light that fell toward the surroundings.

He knew what means Shen Yi had just used to set up the Five-Element Treasure Lotus Grand Array, and that his divine soul was currently tied to the Yu clan member—there was certainly no spare strength left to lay down another array.

Before his words had even faded, he turned to look, only to find that Shen Yi's figure was gone.

"Huh?"

As an array master, being separated from Steward Liu's protection was an extremely dangerous matter.

Don't forget there are still two sparrow demons on the right peak.

Just then, a hint of ease appeared on Zheng Qian's face—she had clearly seized the upper hand again.

As she suddenly swung her palm, the moonlight descended in a straight slash!

Almost at that very instant, the Golden Flame Sparrow demon finally shattered the treasured mirror.

Between mid Return-to-Void combatants, a hair's breadth of difference meant a thousand miles of error; though it was only a single breath's gap, it was already enough to determine the victor.

Yet Zheng Qian caught a hint of mockery in the Golden Flame Sparrow demon's eyes.

Puchi—

In an instant, a crack split open in the Golden Flame Sparrow demon's body, which had been glued together with crimson flames.

A razor-sharp sparrow claw reached out from within.

It lunged straight for Zheng Qian's face!

Inside this sparrow demon's body, there was actually another sparrow demon hidden!

"Hiss!"

Zheng Qian instinctively threw her head back, trying to pull away.

A look of horror surged into her eyes.

This is bad!

A cultivator's body was nowhere near as sturdy as a demon's.

Liu Qianyun, who was currently guarding Yan Wencheng as he set up the array, also saw her expression change drastically.

Just as she was about to rise to help, she saw a figure that seemed to have anticipated this, suddenly streaking across the long sky, and biting down on that sparrow claw that had appeared so abruptly.

Kaka-ka!

It was a big yellow dog with a black back!

Liu Qianyun instinctively looked around, seeing Shen Yi, his face calm and brows slightly furrowed, slowly walk out from that giant tree.

"..."

Clearly, he had gone to find that heavily injured demon.

No, does this Shen Zongzhu just love to slay demons with his own hands?

"Ahh!"

A sharp, agonized cry came from inside the Golden Fire Sparrow Demon's belly.

It burst straight out of the abdomen; when it revealed its form, it was a young demon with pure golden feathers, without a trace of red.

It was being dragged and rolled through the air by Zhang Laifu.

"You!"

The injured Golden Sparrow Great Demon clutched its wound, suddenly turning its head to glare angrily at Shen Yi.

Zheng Qian also came to her senses, looked over at Zhang Laifu, and showed shock on her face.

A puppet comparable to the Fourth Layer of Return to Emptiness!

Was this also Shen Yi's doing?!

She looked down at Shen Yi again, opened her mouth, and finally shouted loudly: "Thank you!"

(End of this chapter)