Chapter 67 She Alone Is Enough

Chu Qinglan hurriedly got up and walked to the door. Looking out from Tinglan Pavilion, she saw sparks of spiritual energy colliding with the protective barrier. This time, Linyi Sect came with great force, leaving Changjin Mountain no chance to react. She immediately ordered the cultivators to attack fiercely, trying to break through the barrier.

By this time, the sky had completely darkened. Dark clouds on the horizon obscured the moon, leaving no trace of light. The surroundings were deathly silent, as black as ink, so dark that one could not see their own hand in front of their face, a darkness that made one's heart tremble.

Conversely, the spiritual energy from Linyi Gate exploded on the protective barrier, the enormous sound shaking the earth again and again, like stones falling into a still pool, creating ripples of red light.

Under this eerie light, the two tall figures at the mountain gate appeared unusually out of place.

"Looking at it this way, it seems your master made a mistake."

Mr. Wang looked up at the breathtaking scene on the horizon, his expression calm, even a slight smile playing on his lips, and asked, "How long do you think this barrier can hold?"

Cheng Yuan replied, "With this barrier alone, it certainly won't last longer than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn."

Mr. Wang turned his head and asked, "Your master is so cunning, didn't he have any backup plans?"

Cheng Yuan replied, "Master had anticipated that Linyi Sect would act this way, but the situation seems to be a little worse than expected."

As Mr. Wang watched the cracks slowly appearing in the barrier, he gripped his sword tightly and couldn't help but sigh, "It's far from perfect."

Seeing this, Cheng Yuan quickly took out a pre-prepared communication talisman. After a series of hand gestures, the talisman emitted light, and he said urgently, "Senior brother, activate the restriction."

Almost the instant he finished speaking, a golden light burst forth from the back mountain, climbing up along the edge of the protective barrier and tightly enveloping Changjin Mountain. The original cracks in the barrier began to repair themselves, resisting another wave of attacks from Linyi Sect.

Bai Qianfan spent a considerable amount of time revising this restriction. As long as there are no problems, it should be able to hold off Linyi Gate for at least three days, until Chu Jianshan returns.

Before Cheng Yuan could even breathe a sigh of relief, he looked up and saw the light of the barrier rapidly fading, and faint cracks reappearing at the edge of the barrier. Upon seeing this, Cheng Yuan activated the communication talisman again, wanting to know what the problem was, but no matter how he called out, there was no response from the other side.

"What happened?" Mr. Wang asked.

Cheng Yuan frowned, then immediately understood. This restriction was different from a barrier. Although it could withstand powerful spiritual energy, it required human intervention and no one could withdraw midway. Only by constantly infusing spiritual energy could the restriction be guaranteed not to dissipate.

Given the current situation, it's likely that there's a traitor within Changjin Mountain. This person must be quite influential to have managed to bypass layers of protection and enter the forbidden formation.

“There’s no other way,” Mr. Wang said, drawing his sword. “They came prepared. The only option now is to fight to the death. If we can hold out until Chu Qingyuan returns, there might still be a glimmer of hope.”

He raised his hand and sent a signal to the sky. In an instant, the disciples of Changjin Mountain surged forward, each one poised and ready to fight to the very end for Changjin Mountain.

Without the support of restrictions, the barrier quickly became cracked. After the Linyi Sect members attacked together, it shattered into countless fragments with a crash, which then dissipated in mid-air like scattered stars.

Ji Ziyan, who was guarding outside the barrier, smiled and waved her hand. In an instant, countless arrows with flaming tips were released. The flames even illuminated half of Changjin Mountain. The arrows fell one after another, and wherever they hit, they quickly ignited into a great fire. Before long, the flames soared into the sky, as bright as day.

"kill--!!"

Almost instantly, the people of Linyi Gate and Changjin Mountain were engaged in a fierce battle. Shouts of battle and the clash of weapons mingled together, and the flashing of swords and the shadows of blades were incessant. The two armies clashed like surging tides, and the entire battlefield descended into a chaotic and bloody hellish scene, instantly staining a patch of land red. But as one wave of people died, another wave took their place, endlessly and without end.

Cheng Yuan strode forward, rushing to the front to confront Ji Ziyan, intending to capture her alive.

The woman's weapon was a bone whip. Although her cultivation was inferior to Cheng Yuan's, she had the advantage of a long enough range. Therefore, Cheng Yuan's several surprise attacks failed to get close to her, and he could only maintain a stalemate with her from the outside.

Mr. Wang stayed behind, doing his best to protect more Changjinshan disciples. He knew most of these disciples and had watched them grow from mischievous kids into upright and capable individuals. He couldn't bear to see any of them go to their deaths.

Ji Ziyan and Cheng Yuan were locked in a passionate encounter when she suddenly lashed out with her bone whip. The whip wrapped around the Liuyin Sword, rendering Cheng Yuan unable to move, and he and Ji Ziyan locked eyes.

Ji Ziyan smiled, her slender eyebrows framed by alluring eyes: "Young Master, please don't be blinded by greed and choose the wrong side. As long as you obediently return, the Lord will not make things difficult for you."

Cheng Yuan lowered his eyes and looked at her: "If you want me to submit to Linyi Sect, I will die."

Ji Ziyan was not annoyed by these words; on the contrary, she seemed even more expectant, a wicked smile appearing before her: "Young Master, you will return."

With a clang, Ji Ziyan's bone whip flung Cheng Yuan away. Cheng Yuan was caught off guard and was pushed back more than ten steps. When he tried to move forward again, he was blocked by Mr. Wang's sword.

Cheng Yuan frowned: "What do you mean by this?"

Without consulting him, Mr. Wang directly ordered, "Go to the back mountain and protect Tinglan Pavilion."

Cheng Yuan was unwilling and tried to stay: "My fellow disciples are all here, how can I leave alone?"

Mr. Wang's tone left no room for argument: "I'm here. You just need to protect Qinglan. If anything happens to Qinglan, your master will definitely go crazy."

When Chu Jianshan was mentioned, Cheng Yuan hesitated. Under Mr. Wang's repeated urging, he finally nodded and hurriedly headed to Tinglan Pavilion.

Seeing Cheng Yuan leave, Mr. Wang finally breathed a sigh of relief, turned to Ji Ziyan, and asked, "What exactly is the purpose of Linyi Gate?"

Ji Ziyan approached slowly and deliberately, her fair face stained with traces of blood from the disciples of Changjin Mountain, making her look even more crazed and morbid.

She spoke firmly: "The great cause that Your Majesty desires is naturally to unify the world."

Mr. Wang sneered: "If that's really the case, wouldn't it be better to take down Shao Xuan Sect first? Why go through all this trouble? Your goal is Chu Qingyuan and his master, isn't it?"

Ji Ziyan smiled faintly and remained silent, raising an eyebrow as she said, "I only just recognized you, Wang Min."

Mr. Wang sighed softly: "I haven't used this name for a long time."

Ji Ziyan said, "I had long heard that the He Cang Sword was broken and the sword immortal's life was lost, but I never thought you were hiding in Changjin Mountain. What a pity. How does it feel to be forgotten?"

Wang Min smiled wryly: "Not good."

Ji Ziyan pretended to sigh and said, "Wang Min was so glorious back then. Such a dragon among men, he became famous at a young age, and even the children on the street knew him."

She sneered, "Now you're willing to stay in Changjin Mountain, guarding your dilapidated garden every day? What, for whom?"

Wang Min gripped his sword tightly and said in a low voice, "You have a lot of questions."

He timed it carefully, thinking that Cheng Yuan had already arrived at Tinglan Pavilion by now, and whatever he did later, Cheng Yuan would definitely not be able to make it back in time.

He suddenly struck Ji Ziyan with a palm strike, but Ji Ziyan retreated three steps, dodging the palm wind. Wang Min then turned to the people of Changjin Mountain behind him and shouted, "Everyone! Retreat to the back of the mountain!"

The disciples of Changjin Mountain retreated upon order, and the people of Linyi Sect wanted to give chase, but they were blocked by a wall of fire several feet high. This wall of fire was imbued with spiritual power, making it impossible for them to even fly on their swords.

Ji Ziyan scoffed: "You think this can stop me?"

Although this wall of fire is powerful, it can only target disciples of the Linyi Sect with low cultivation levels. If someone like Ji Ziyan has high cultivation and a spiritual weapon, a full-force attack can break through it.

Wang Min laughed, biting his finger and drawing a blood curse in the air: "Of course not."

Ji Ziyan immediately saw what he was trying to do and frowned: "Connection Spell".

With the blood curse complete, Wang Min withdrew his hand, and blood dripped from his fingers onto the ground. In an instant, the previously extinguished restriction glowed again, and a golden barrier protected the entire back mountain.

He sighed deeply: "I have protected Changjin Mountain for half my life, and I will never let you treat it like this."

The moment Chu Jianshan descended the mountain, he had a vague feeling that something was wrong. Although he knew that Chu Jianshan had a backup plan, he still took it upon himself to place a linking spell on the restriction, and the other end of the link was himself.

Ji Ziyan said indifferently, "What can you do? The linking spell will continue to drain your spiritual power. Once you die, the restriction will still fail, and you will be all alone outside this restriction."

Wang Min smiled and said, "We have to give it a try."

Ji Ziyan remained silent for a while, somewhat admiring the man's foolishness. She turned around and stopped looking at Wang Min, then said in a hoarse voice to the Linyimen crowd, "Kill him."

As soon as the order to kill was given, everyone rushed towards Wang Min. The flashing swords and the figures of people were reflected in his eyes. He did not dodge, but smiled, as if he were talking to someone: "In the next life... in the next life, I will repay you for everything I owe you."

After an incense stick has burned.

Wang Min knelt in a pool of blood, using his sword to support himself so he wouldn't fall. Before him lay countless Linyi Sect cultivators he had killed. Blood filled his eyes, making everything he saw blurry, yet he sensed Ji Ziyan walking towards him.

“I really underestimated you,” Himeko said calmly, “that you could hold out for so long even with the Linking Spell.”

Wang Min spat out a mouthful of blood and laughed, "What, are you planning to do it yourself?"

Ji Ziyan nodded: "I didn't originally plan to, but unfortunately, Immortal Venerable Chu is almost here. I have to let him see how you die by my hand."

Wang Min looked up, his eyes filled with ruthlessness: "Then what are we waiting for? Come on! Kill me!"

"ah--!"

He mustered his last bit of strength and raised his sword to stab Ji Ziyan, but he had very little spiritual power left. Ji Ziyan lightly waved his whip, blocking his attack, then rolled him up and threw him away violently.

Wang Min was slammed to the ground, blood dripping from the corner of his mouth, his hair disheveled and covered in blood and dirt, but he stood up again and blocked Chang Jinshan behind him.

"Tsk, troublesome."

Ji Ziyan has always despised people like this, who think they are some kind of savior, with pride and a willingness to die, as if they are afraid of not shining brightly enough for others. But after they die, who will remember them? In the end, it is nothing but self-deception.

She swung the bone whip at Wang Min, who was already powerless to resist. It could have been a fatal blow, but Ji Ziyan treated him as if she were toying with him. The whip struck his shoulders, legs, and arms, leaving bloody and gruesome wounds, yet none of them could kill him.

Ji Ziyan laughed cruelly: "Didn't you want to be a hero? Didn't you want to be remembered? Let me tell you, no matter how much you struggle, you can only be defeated by me, and your bones can only be buried under the yellow earth, trampled by thousands!"

He swung the whip with all his might, this time striking Wang Min in the chest. He could no longer hold on and spat out a mouthful of bright red blood.

“Ha,” he suddenly laughed, “She doesn’t need to be remembered by everyone, just her alone is enough.”

Ji Ziyan glanced sideways at the horizon, where it seemed two people were rushing over on swords. She smiled and said, "The protagonist has arrived, Mr. Wang, let's get going."

She held the whip and circled her wrist, causing the bone whip to immediately shorten and stiffen, becoming like a sharp sword.

"No..." Wang Min seemed to still want to struggle, at least not now, at least... not in front of that annoying guy Chu Qingyuan.

Just as Ji Ziyan was about to make a move, a streak of cyan sword light flashed past, and it was Mo Yang.

The distance was too far for Chu Jianshan to pinpoint their exact location. Mo Yang only managed to stab Ji Ziyan's arm. If she could bear the pain and stop, she could save Wang Min.

Ji Ziyan did not stop. Despite the pain of Mo Yang's sword piercing her arm, she plunged the bone whip into Wang Min's neck.

Blood gushed out, and the last thing Wang Min saw was the figures of Chu Jianshan and Bai Qianfan rushing towards him.