155: Deng Qi

Li Xiangyun didn't pay attention to Tang Fu's shock. Instead, his gaze suddenly turned to a corner, and he sneered, "I found you!"

As he spoke, the Yin and Yang Sword Intent in front of him condensed into a giant Dragon spanning heaven and earth.

It had a black fish head and a white fish tail, with life and death alternating on its scales. With an open mouth, it swallowed countless blades into its belly, then spewed out an even more majestic force of life and death, pressing towards the Formation's core.

Deng Qi watched this scene from the shadows, his heart pounding. He never imagined that his Ten Thousand Blades Returning to Ruins Formation, combined with his Domain, was capable of hunting Nascent Soul Cultivators.

Now, it had become nourishment for the other party to refine his Sword Intent. Those blades, transformed by Yin and Yang Qi, had ironically become the sharpest weapons, turning their direction and attacking him.

He couldn't even fathom how the other party had pinpointed his location.

But no matter how much he pondered, Li Xiangyun was already charging towards him, enveloped in monstrous Sword Intent, forcing him to respond.

Li Xiangyun's figure advanced steadily amidst the sky-filling sword shadows, his robes unstained by a speck of dust. He looked at the approaching Formation core, a cold curve on his lips, and the Yin-Yang Life-Death Sword Intent around him grew even more intense.

"Boom!"

Accompanied by an earth-shattering roar, the giant Dragon formed by sword shadows, enveloped in black and white intertwining fierce Qi, crashed violently onto the core of the Ten Thousand Blades Returning to Ruins Formation like a falling meteor.

In an instant, the myriad blades suspended at the Formation core simultaneously erupted with dazzling silver light, attempting to form a barrier of blade energy to resist.

But the giant Dragon opened its massive mouth, and the Yin and Yang Qi transformed into two spiraling currents. Where the black Qi flowed, the blades instantly became covered in a layer of frost, their sharpness completely lost.

When the white Qi swept past, the steel peeled off like decaying wood, and even the runes around the Formation core began to twist and disintegrate.

"Crack!"

A crisp sound sliced through the heavens and earth. The crystal at the center of the Formation core cracked with spiderweb-like fissures under the Dragon's fierce stomp.

As the crystal shattered, the entire Formation seemed to lose its framework. The myriad blades lost control, first hovering in mid-air, trembling slightly, then falling to the ground like kites with broken strings, hitting the rocks with a dense clatter.

The murderous Qi that had enveloped the world quickly dissipated, and the surrounding scenery began to return to normal.

"Don't run!"

Just then, a figure flashed before their eyes, fleeing into the distance. Tang Fu exclaimed and was about to intercept him.

Li Xiangyun smiled slightly at this, waving his hand to signal Tang Fu not to rush.

Then, Deng Qi in the distance suddenly stopped, cold sweat pouring down his forehead.

However, upon closer inspection, a bloodstain could be seen on his neck, with drops of blood continuously oozing out.

At this moment, a gentle breeze blew, a sword light flickered with a cold gleam, and a strand of black hair fell immediately after.

"Damn it!"

At this moment, Deng Qi knew that he had fallen into a trap.

Now, his entire body was surrounded by sword light. Any slight movement would result in his death, leaving him to await judgment like a prisoner, waiting for the arrival of the person behind him.

"It's truly a case of hunting geese all day, only to have one's eyes pecked out by a goose," Deng Qi's lips curved into a bitter smile.

Unlike others who wanted to compete for the Netherworld Darkfire, Deng Qi knew he couldn't obtain it, so he planned to gain resources by hunting Cultivators.

Logically, with his arrangements, he even had a chance of successfully hunting some weaker Nascent Soul Cultivators.

But he never expected to fall into the hands of two Golden Core... no, it should be said, one Late-stage Golden Core Cultivator.

"What kind of monster is this!?"

While Deng Qi was lost in thought, Li Xiangyun and Tang Fu arrived in front of him.

It was only at this moment that Li Xiangyun clearly saw the appearance of the person who had ambushed them.

He had the appearance of a young man, with a tall and straight figure. His moon-white sword robe accentuated his narrow shoulders and taut waist, and a dark sword tassel wrapped around his wrist was faintly visible at his cuffs. His eyebrows were sharp, and his gaze towards them held a hint of casual coldness.

"Fellow Daoist Li, he should be from the Big Dipper Star Region."

While Li Xiangyun was observing Deng Qi, Tang Fu was also observing him, and with just one glance, he recognized that Deng Qi was from the Big Dipper Star Region.

This was actually very easy to recognize. For example, most Cultivators in the Four Symbols Star Region Cultivate the power of the Four Symbols, while those in the Big Dipper Star Region Cultivate the power of the stars.

"Big Dipper Star Region!?" Li Xiangyun repeated, then looked up at Deng Qi and asked, "What's your name?"

"Why did you attack us?"

"Heh~" Deng Qi sneered dismissively, "Deng Qi."

"As for why I attacked you, what else could it be? Of course, it's for wealth and to take your lives!"

"You..." Tang Fu was furious and immediately moved to teach Deng Qi a lesson, showing a strong sense of loyalty.

However, Li Xiangyun stopped him.

Despite this, Li Xiangyun still approved of Tang Fu's actions.

Not bad, little Fuzi, I have high hopes for you!

After all, no matter what, Tang Fu was a Golden Core Peak and was about to Breakthrough to Nascent Soul. If possible, he wanted to bring him into the Li family.

This way, the Li family would have another Nascent Soul Cultivator. Even without considering the increase in the Li family's strength from a Nascent Soul Cultivator, the prosperity value alone would be substantial.

Li Xiangyun had the same idea for Deng Qi, who was currently before him.

There was no other way; the Li family was simply too lacking in top-tier combat power. It was unknown how long they would have to wait for Li Xingyan and the others to grow.

Otherwise, he would have long since cut down someone as arrogant as Deng Qi with a single sword stroke.

Captured and still arrogant, did he really think Li Xiangyun had no temper!?

As for now, he could only say kindly, "Do you want to live?"

"Who doesn't?" Deng Qi turned his head, saying with a hint of haughtiness.

From this, it could be seen that while both were Nascent Soul, Deng Qi's mental maturity was far inferior to Lord Xuanwu's composure, let alone Lord Xuanjian's cunning, and he was even less capable than Lord Thunder Dragon.

This was actually very normal, as mental maturity has never been about age, but about experience.

After all, if an adult were raised in a room from childhood, never exposed to anything from the outside world, then his mind would be no different from a child's.

Similarly, many Cultivators, despite their powerful strength and long lifespans, spend decades Cultivating a single Cultivation Technique. Would their mental maturity necessarily be higher than those mortals who have been deeply involved in court affairs for decades?

Therefore, age is never directly proportional to mental maturity. The reason for this illusion is that as a person's age increases, their experiences also increase.

However, at present, Li Xiangyun rather liked Deng Qi's personality. He didn't want to recruit a cunning old fox.

So, he continued, "If you want to live, hand over your soul."

Hearing these familiar words, Tang Fu didn't feel anything was amiss; instead, a hint of schadenfreude flashed in his eyes.

Deng Qi's face instantly darkened at this, and he gritted his teeth, saying, "Wishful thinking!"

After all, handing over one's soul meant entrusting one's life and everything to another. Even Cultivation would be affected. This was something no ambitious person would accept.