320: Fight

Because flying in mid-air was too conspicuous, everyone traveled on the ground.

Xu Sanyan followed at the back of the group. To be safe, he tore off the sleeve of his robe and covered his face. Although the people from Gan Country did not recognize him, it was better to conceal his appearance.

Suddenly, the Grand Elder in the lead stopped. Everyone halted in succession. The dozen or so of them were all in the Soul Refinement Realm, and they moved without making a single sound.

Xu Sanyan twitched his nose. He caught the faint scent of blood. The lingering odor had not yet dissipated, which meant the other party was not far away.

The Grand Elder took nine small swords from his Storage Pouch and handed them to the nine members of the Wang family; Xu Sanyan and the Feng Family Old Ancestor received none.

Those nine were clearly aware of the purpose of these small swords. After receiving them, they nodded slightly without saying a word.

Once prepared, the group pursued rapidly. A moment later, voices could be vaguely heard from the forest ahead.

"Sister Mei, that Xu Sanyan is hiding somewhere unknown. I think we might as well separate to search; the range would be larger. What do you think?"

Xu Sanyan recognized this as the voice of Princeess Zheyun, which he had heard before.

"You are not permitted to leave my side for even a step." A cold, feminine voice replied.

Suddenly, the woman gave a soft shout, "Someone is here!"

The Grand Elder knew he had been discovered. He had never intended to ambush them anyway. If the other party was a He Dao Realm powerhouse, even if he could hide his own aura, the Wang family members beside him could not evade the perception of a He Dao Realm expert.

"Hehe, I wondered who it was; so it is Mr. Mei."

The Grand Elder flicked his robe and looked toward the middle-aged woman in front of him, who was dressed in Taoist robes. The two could be considered old acquaintances.

Mr. Mei was somewhat displeased by his form of address and sneered, "Wang Huishu, you still have the guts to appear before me?"

The Grand Elder narrowed his eyes. "That is what I should be saying. You dare to step into Luan Yun Mountain—are you not afraid of not being able to return?"

"Just by relying on you? It seems the lesson from last time was not profound enough."

Xu Sanyan raised an eyebrow. Listening to the implication of her words, it seemed the two had clashed before, and the Grand Elder had suffered a loss.

"Let us not bring up matters from two hundred years ago." The Grand Elder's eyes shone with a dangerous light. "For these past few days, you have acted recklessly in my Wang family's territory. If I let you leave, where would my Wang family's face be?"

As he spoke, the Grand Elder gripped the air, and a radiant golden sword light condensed in his hand.

Princeess Zheyun looked at the Wang family members, her eyes full of eagerness to try. It was unclear if she was truly foolish or just bold.

Xu Sanyan retreated a few steps silently. A battle between He Dao Realm Cultivators was far from something he could involve himself in; it was safer to stay further away.

"Since you are sincerely seeking death, I shall fulfill your wish!"

The Taoist Nun raised her hand and grabbed into the Void Realm. A tearing hole appeared before her. As she grasped with her five fingers, a flash of lightning flickered, and she actually pulled a long sword out from the empty air!

Xu Sanyan's eyes narrowed slightly. What kind of technique was this? Retrieving items from across space?

Her move was different from the Grand Elder's. The long sword the Grand Elder condensed was nourished within his body and could be retrieved at any time, just like Xu Sanyan's.

But the Taoist Nun's move was more like tearing through the Void Realm to retrieve a long sword from an unknown place. It seemed like some kind of spatial technique.

"The feud between you and me from a hundred years ago should be settled today!" The Grand Elder's internal magic power surged, and the surging waves of Qi blew his robes, his beard fluttering beneath his jaw, giving him an extraordinary appearance.

"Form the Formation!"

The Grand Elder spat out the command lightly. The nine people who had previously held the small swords fanned out, simultaneously slashing their palms and dripping crimson blood onto the small swords. In an instant, the small swords shone with fierce golden light, illuminating the evening sky into gold, so piercing that it made people unable to open their eyes.

"Miss Mei, ever since my last defeat, I have painstakingly studied for over two hundred years and finally created this 'Nine Extremes Immortal Slaughtering Formation'. Today, it reveals its edge for the first time; let me use you to sacrifice to this Formation."

A trace of solemnity flickered in the Taoist Nun's eyes, but her expression remained disdainful. "Hehe, should I call you foolish or stupid? No wonder over two hundred years have passed, and you are still at the initial stage of the He Dao Realm, with your cultivation not having advanced an inch."

"A fool who abandons the root to pursue the trivial," the Taoist Nun mocked.

The Grand Elder was not angry; instead, he smiled. "I hope you can still be this stubborn in a while."

As soon as he finished speaking, the nine beams of golden light turned into pillars of light that shot straight into the sky. The golden sword in the Grand Elder's hand shot into the sky, floating amidst the golden light and vibrating ceaselessly.

"Attack!"

The Taoist Nun knew she could not let him finish his preparations, so her long sword flew from her hand, shooting out with blue lightning exploding, heading straight for the Grand Elder's head.

Princeess Zheyun heard the Taoist Nun's command, and a look of excitement immediately appeared on her face. She actually rushed straight toward the Grand Elder to attack.

The four Soul Refinement Realm Cultivators guarding her were shocked. They had not expected the princess to be so senseless; a mere Mi Dao Realm Cultivator actually daring to swing a sword at a He Dao Realm expert!

"Princess, be careful!" the young man roared, flying over to intercept her. Their duty was to protect the princess; under no circumstances could Princeess Zheyun come to harm.

Princeess Zheyun looked annoyed and stared at him, shouting, "Why are you stopping me? Go kill the enemy!"

The young man did not answer, and the four of them surrounded her tightly.

Xu Sanyan surveyed the entire battlefield and did not make a move immediately. At this moment, the battlefield was divided into two parts: the Grand Elder and the nine Soul Cultivators were besieging the Taoist Nun, while the remaining Wang family members were being besieged by the Gan Country Cultivators.

"Follow me and kill him!" Princeess Zheyun's eyes darted around, and she happened to see Xu Sanyan hiding in the back. She was immediately overjoyed and charged over with her sword.

The four guards glanced at Xu Sanyan and, seeing that he was only in the Soul Refinement Realm, breathed a sigh of relief. They exchanged glances, nodded slightly, and followed closely behind the princess.

As long as the princess did not interfere in the battle between the two He Dao Realm experts, it would be fine.

Xu Sanyan was watching the battle ahead. He saw the Grand Elder form a sword with two fingers, and the golden light above his head immediately received some kind of instruction. Like a flood pouring down, it went straight to meet the long sword glistening with lightning.

In an instant, the lightning was extinguished, and the blue long sword flew backward, only to be caught by the Taoist Nun following behind, who stabbed it toward the Grand Elder once more.

Xu Sanyan pursed his lips. The battle between the two was exceptionally intense, with every move being a killing blow. Conversely, the nine Soul Cultivators of the Wang family looked ferocious, as if controlling the small swords had exhausted a great deal of their mental energy.

Before he could see the outcome, he caught sight of five people charging toward him out of the corner of his eye. Xu Sanyan frowned slightly; could he not even find a moment of peace?

"Little thief, die!"

Princeess Zheyun roared, a look of cruelty and ferocity appearing in her eyes. Combined with her pure and gentle face, it created a very stark contrast.

Truly, one cannot judge a person by their appearance.

Xu Sanyan had no time to think more. A pitch-black halberd appeared in his hand, and he backhandedly blocked the incoming sword slash without even swaying his body.

Her strength was too weak; if it were a one-on-one fight, Xu Sanyan was confident he could kill her in three moves.

"Swish—" A sharp sound of something breaking through the air came from the side of his ear, and a crimson stream of light tore through the air, shooting toward Xu Sanyan's head.