132: test

Li Pingan pondered for a moment before speaking in a deep voice, "This cave is quite spacious, but my Senior Sister and Junior Brother are cultivating inside. Please keep quiet so as not to disturb them."

Chu Ming nodded with a smile, "Naturally!"

The Blood Shadow Cult group entered the cave with light, careful movements.

Mo Yanya's eyes suddenly lit up as his gaze passed over Li Pingan and caught sight of the Yellow-Skirts Girl illuminated by the firelight inside the cave.

In the firelight, the girl sat upright on a stone. Her round, oval face appeared even more radiant under the warm glow, and even her silhouette revealed a touch of elegance. Especially the section of snow-white neck exposed between her cascading hair made him momentarily forget to breathe.

At the same time, he finally recognized the identity of this group... outside the Arena Stage!

On the high platform of the Blood Shadow Holy Land, faces that were usually either dignified or sinister were now as dark as the bottom of a pot, their breaths heavy with suppressed tension.

The Sect Master and a group of Elders all turned their gazes toward the green smoke, their eyes filled with anxiety.

They wished they could immediately send a message to the two in the Myriad Spirit Affinity Realm, warning them not to provoke this group. The precedent set by the Taixu Holy Land was still fresh in their minds. If not for the battle in the canyon during the day, the higher-ups of the Blood Shadow Holy Land might still have thought that Mo Yanya and the other might not be inferior to this group.

But that day's battle had been too astonishing.

"Chu Ming is still steady; that child's Heart-Nature is calm and cold, and he definitely won't stir up trouble on his own," an Elder said slowly. "But Mo Yanya..."

The Sect Master of the Blood Shadow Cult sighed lightly, "Leave it to fate. What will be, will be; if disaster comes, it cannot be avoided."

"Arrange for someone to keep an eye on the Families of the two Saints. They should be watching from below right now; we must not lose our capital as well."

As these words fell, the atmosphere on the high platform grew even more tense. Even the sound of the wind rustling through robes seemed unusually sharp.

Who would have thought that their own Holy Land might become the fourth Sect to miss out on the Heavenly Selection Grand Ceremony?

In stark contrast was the high platform of the Taixu Holy Land not far away.

The higher-ups, who had been clouded with worry over the loss of Disciples during the day, now all had smiles at the corners of their mouths, their eyes hiding barely concealed delight.

Although no one spoke, the looks they exchanged and their slightly relaxed postures had already laid bare their thoughts.

They wished they could buy a few jugs of flowing sunset drunkenness and wait for the show.

The Cultivators watching below began to chatter excitedly.

"Will they fight? I can't wait to see the Blood Shadow Holy Land get their comeuppance."

"If a conflict really breaks out, how long do you think the two Saints of the Blood Shadow Cult can last? Do they have a chance for half an incense stick's time?"

"I never thought that in just one day, nearly half of the Ten Great Sacred Lands would be eliminated. This year's Heavenly Selection Grand Ceremony is too thrilling."

"It seems the destruction of the Zixia Holy Land wasn't entirely a bad thing. At least for the Sect's Saint and Saintess, it's said that the Mysterious Realm Emissary is quite reasonable—not a single Cultivator below the Nascent Soul stage was killed."

"Look, look... something's about to happen."

...Inside the cave.

The air around Mo Yanya suddenly rippled with faint Spiritual Qi, and pale red Qi coiled around his fingertips like a swimming snake.

"I advise you not to court death!"

Chu Ming's voice suddenly turned cold, his eyes carrying a hint of frost. "To be treated differently by the Mysterious Realm Emissary, this group's methods are definitely not simple."

Mo Yanya, however, grinned, the red glow at his fingertips growing more intense. "It's just a small probe. If they really have some skill, I'll apologize at most. But if they're all show and no substance, just a hollow reputation... then I'll take that girl for myself."

Seeing that the fool beside him wouldn't listen to advice, Chu Ming thought for a moment, then simply stood up and walked to an ancient tree outside the cave entrance, where he sat cross-legged.

He completely isolated himself from that fool, clearly drawing a line between them.

Although the two Saints weren't exactly rivals, if Mo Yanya wanted to court death, Chu Ming had no intention of joining him in the grave.

Seeing Chu Ming's actions, a flicker of disdain flashed in Mo Yanya's eyes. He suddenly flicked his finger, and a condensed blood-red ray shot like an arrow into the cave, aimed directly at Mu Wanqing's forehead.

But before this fierce strike could even be launched, a figure suddenly flashed in front of him.

His wrist was clamped like an iron vice.

"Courting death!"

Li Pingan's voice suddenly rang out. The seemingly gentle youth now seemed to have reverted to the blood-soaked Asura from earlier in the day.

From the moment this group entered the cave, Li Pingan had been observing them closely. The one outside the cave was still honest and well-behaved.

But this one dared to attack his Senior Sister, so he would definitely not hold back.

"How dare you—!"

Mo Yanya was both shocked and furious. The Qi within his body surged wildly as he tried to break free, but Li Pingan's grip was like a welded iron shackle, unmoving no matter how he struggled.

To avoid disturbing his Senior Sister and the others' Cultivation, Li Pingan lifted the Blood Shadow Cult Saint like a chick and flashed outside the cave in an instant.

"Saint!"

The earlier lightning-fast actions had been too quick; many Blood Shadow Cult Disciples hadn't even reacted. The group rushed out of the cave, intending to rescue their Saint.

A few looked toward Chu Ming under the ancient tree. Seeing that he hadn't moved, they also focused on standing by.

Just as Li Pingan emerged from the cave, a black shadow suddenly darted out from the side behind him, moving so fast it left only an afterimage as it lunged straight for Li Pingan's back!

Li Pingan's eyes sharpened. He suddenly exerted force with his wrist and directly hurled Mo Yanya in his hand toward the black shadow.

Mo Yanya felt as if he had been struck by a boulder. His body flew uncontrollably and crashed heavily to the ground.

"Thud!"

A dull impact sounded as Mo Yanya fell, dazed and disoriented.

Struggling to lift his head, he wiped the blood from his face, his eyes filled with violence. "Courting death! Kill him!"

Before his words even finished, the black shadow had already come to a stop in front of Li Pingan.

By the faint light from the cave entrance, Li Pingan finally saw clearly: this black shadow wasn't a Cultivator at all, but a Puppet with a cold, metallic sheen all over its body.

The Puppet had a slender figure, dressed in a green gown, holding a slender long sword in its hand. Empty eye sockets flickered with dark red soul flames, and it emitted Spiritual Qi fluctuations at the Foundation Establishment Ninth Layer.

As if hearing Mo Yanya's command, the soul flames in the Puppet's empty eye sockets suddenly brightened. Its sword-wielding arm swung out fiercely, the blade light like a venomous snake striking, aimed straight at Li Pingan's heart!

But Li Pingan stood still. He took a deep breath, and the muscles all over his body suddenly tensed, as if thunder were rolling beneath his skin.

Body Refining Martial Artists don't Cultivate Spiritual Qi, but they can use their Physical Body to withstand Magic Treasures. His Physical Body strength had long surpassed that of Cultivators at the same level!

Just as the sword tip was about to pierce his heart, Li Pingan suddenly moved. His right hand shot out like lightning and directly grabbed the blade!

"Clang!"

The crisp sound of metal collision exploded through the night forest. Sparks flew where Li Pingan's palm met the rusty blade.

Seeing this, the Puppet exerted force, trying to push the sword forward, but the blade seemed welded to Li Pingan's hand. No matter how much Spiritual Qi it channeled, it didn't budge.

"Impossible!" Mo Yanya's eyes widened in disbelief.

This was a Foundation Establishment Ninth Layer Puppet, his life-saving trump card. How could it be suppressed like this!