238: mutation

Xuanji Zi stood between his two Disciples at this moment, watching them wield the Purple and Azure Twin Swords against the Elders.

He hardly needed to do anything to remain unharmed, for the Purple and Azure Twin Swords were faintly showing signs of merging. As they struck, the sword light twisted and danced in mid-air, flying everywhere, yet it possessed a subtle order that forced the Grand Elders to keep their distance.

He felt deeply comforted in his heart, thinking to himself, "At last, their efforts have not been in vain, nor have the painstaking efforts of the Sect Leader and myself!"

Before setting out, Baimei had already anticipated that he might meet with misfortune, so he entrusted the task of bestowing the Purple and Azure Twin Swords to him. The candidates Baimei had determined were none other than Yao Muyun and Xu Yinghua.

The opportunity for Emei's rise lay with the Three Heroes and Two Clouds; this was a destiny Baimei had calculated long ago.

Fortunately, his judgment had not failed him. These two Disciples, who had Cultivated for less than twenty years, had actually achieved such a feat. This could be considered a repayment of Baimei's kindness in recognizing their talent.

However, these Elders had Cultivated for far too long. While they were not fit to be Sect Leader, in terms of sheer magical power, they could absolutely crush these two juniors, especially since each of them possessed powerful techniques and Magic Treasures. Thus, as time dragged on, Yao Muyun and the other could only defend themselves.

Especially the Law Enforcement Elder Chang Yu and the middle-aged scholar named Huan Ling; their strength was the greatest among the remaining Elders.

Xuanji Zi watched as Chang Yu crossed his hands, and a slender, goose-tail arrow appeared in his palm. With a whistle, he shot it towards Yao Muyun. Meanwhile, Huan Ling held a brush and a book-like object in his hands. He scribbled furiously on the book with the brush, and within just two seconds, a Talismanic Incantation soared from the book and stamped down towards Xu Yinghua.

Xuanji Zi frowned slightly: "These old fogies are even using their trump cards. If I don't act now, I fear we are doomed... Hmm, Muyun, Yinghua, you two are wonderful. Even if I die, I can rest easy..."

As he spoke, he gathered all his magical power once more, preparing to unleash the trump card he had not yet used.

However... it was destined that he would not be able to execute this technique that consumed his life force.

Ding... Dang!

Suddenly, a golden metal ring appeared in mid-air, flying forward to smash the Talismanic Incantation into pieces, while the two-meter-long goose-tail arrow was knocked flying away.

Xuanji Zi looked up to see a young man in red, holding a Fire Tipped Spear and stepping on Wind Fire Wheels, drifting lazily down from the sky.

"Hey, the fight over there is just too boring. These enemies of yours are somewhat capable, so let me have some fun with them!"

Nezha said dismissively, picking his ear.

Xuanji Zi's mouth twitched, and he nodded repeatedly, "Since that's the case, then... then thank you very much..."

"Go on, go on. Help your Disciples merge those... what are they... Purple and Azure Twin Swords. The Holy Monk said this is a big deal; just leave the rest to us..."

"It seems I'm just not fated to use my finishing move... Hmm, it's good to be alive!"

Immediately, Xuanji Zi cupped his hands in a salute, grabbed his two Disciples, and ran off without a moment's hesitation.

Meanwhile, Nezha had already begun a chaotic battle with the group of Elders. With his endless array of Magic Treasures and violent spear techniques, he was able to suppress the Elders directly.

"Damn it... when will this fight end?"

Xingyunzi held a pistol in each hand, made of a material resembling jade... well, perhaps they could be called energy emitters. The pair of weapons in his hands flew up and down, firing large swathes of azure light, knocking down a large group of people in the blink of an eye. However, these controlled Shu Mountain Disciples were fearless and charged forward one after another.

The two guns in his hands were custom-made for him by Yuan Tiangang and could adjust energy intensity. Currently, they were set to stun mode and would not kill anyone.

"Pfft..."

Wei Zheng stabbed one of the Shu Mountain Disciples with his sword. The longsword in his hand was the Shangfang Sword bestowed by the Emperor. Usually, the Shangfang Sword was only granted to officials on imperial inspection missions, but this sword had been specially commissioned by Li Shimin from Master craftsmen and gifted to him personally. No one else in the world had such an honor... Moreover, because it was imbued with the righteousness of the Human Emperor and the spirit of a great Confucian scholar, it already possessed a faint sentience, so its power was naturally extraordinary.

"Little Daoist, haven't you noticed? More and more Shu Mountain Disciples are being infected!"

Wei Zheng flipped over and stabbed another person before speaking to Xingyunzi.

"Indeed..."

Xingyunzi scanned the area and smiled bitterly, "It was a chaotic battle just moments ago, but now it seems more and more people have joined the army attacking us... Hmm, although this Red Corpse Divine Lord doesn't have much real ability, his capacity to bewitch hearts and infect others with evil Qi is top-notch..."

"It's like a plague running rampant, hard to suppress..."

Wei Zheng continued without pause, exchanging a few moves with several Shu Mountain Disciples and knocking them down. However, he had not struck their vital points from the beginning, so many of them could still stand up and continue to besiege them after struggling on the ground for a long time.

"We can only hope that the Holy Monk can finish off that Red Corpse as soon as possible, so that this evil Qi will naturally dissipate..."

Xingyunzi smiled helplessly. He still had a few energy cartridges left for his dual guns, which should last for a while longer. But with several thousand Shu Mountain Disciples, it was unrealistic to completely incapacitate them all.

Just as the two were becoming numb from the fighting, Xingyunzi suddenly felt his heart tighten, as if something major was about to happen. His gaze subconsciously turned towards the blood sphere suspended in mid-air, covered by a net.

At this moment, Wei Zheng could not help but look in that direction as well, exclaiming in shock, "Why is it like this?"

They saw that the blood sphere, which originally had a diameter of only over three meters, was now contracting and expanding like a beating heart. In the blink of an eye, it had grown to a diameter of five or six meters and was still continuing to expand outward.

At this moment, all the Shu Mountain Disciples besieging them, and even the Elders besieging Nezha, stopped their attacks and turned to look at the massive blood sphere. Although they were already heavily infected and acting like wooden puppets, their eyes now revealed intense fear.

"This Demon-Binding Net was specially made by my Master before the Holy Monk set out, to bind liquid possessing demonic aura. My Master racked his brains and spent the night weaving it from the silk of Fire-Refining Spiders..." Xingyunzi said, sweat appearing on his forehead, "It seems the Holy Monk had anticipated encountering the Blood Demon... but looking at the swelling volume and the increasingly strong aura of this thing... I fear this Demon-Binding Net won't be effective at all..."

Bang!

Just as he had feared, the Demon-Binding Net was snapped by a powerful force. The blood sphere exploded suddenly, turning into a rain of blood that fell all over the ground. A handsome Young Master, appearing quite young and dressed in a white robe, suddenly appeared where the blood sphere had been. His face held a trace of astonishment, followed immediately by a burst of wild joy.

"Hahaha... Hahahaha... Hahaha! I, Ding Yin, have returned!"