Hearing Xiahou's words, the three brothers Lu Jianxing couldn't help but look at each other with smiles on their faces.

Ning Caichen held the brush in his hand and stared at Xiahou's back in a daze.

"What does this mean?"

"What else could it mean!" Ding Xian chuckled and whispered in Ning Caichen's ear, "Brother Xiahou was intimidated by the domineering aura emanating from my master and has already expressed his intention to join us."

"...Ah?" Ning Caichen widened his eyes and asked subconsciously, "Why don't I have this feeling?"

After saying that, Ning Caichen reacted and waved his hand quickly, saying, "Brother Zhao, don't misunderstand me. I didn't mean to say anything bad about you. On the contrary, I agree with what you said. It's just that—"

"It's just that you have the imperial court in your heart." Yan Chixia said lightly, "So even if you hear such remarks, your first reaction is to serve the imperial court according to these remarks. Brother Xiahou is a gangster, and it is easy for him to be attracted by such inflammatory remarks..."

"Besides, including last night, Brother Xiahou suffered four tragic defeats in one day and one night. Two of them were in swordplay at my hands, one was in mindset at the hands of the female ghost in the pond, and the last was in the hands of a sudden thunder attack."

"After four disastrous defeats, Xiahou's face remained icy, but he was actually lost in his heart."

"The reason why he fought with me as soon as he woke up was because he was confused and ashamed, and even began to doubt his own swordsmanship. That's why he wanted to find his strong swordsman's heart in me..."

Ning Caichen subconsciously asked: "Then why didn't you lose to him?"

Yan Chixia was suddenly speechless and couldn't help but glare at him with a frown.

Ding Xian said with a grin, "Nonsense, if we lose to him, Brother Yan will lose his title as the best swordsman in the world!"

Yan Chixia's old face flushed, he coughed lightly, and turned to look at Zhao Lihe: "Brother Zhao's words are so inflammatory. For Xiahou, they are like a torch lit in the dark night, allowing him to find the direction to move forward again."

"If I'm not mistaken, after this incident, Xiahou's swordsmanship will be further improved!"

Speaking of this, the expression on Yan Chixia's face was both relieved and complicated.

Just as everyone guessed, Yan Chixia and Xiahou had been fighting for seven years, and they were both enemies and friends. Yan Chixia was also very happy to see Xiahou make further progress in swordsmanship.

But then again, Zhao Lihe's remarks are so inflammatory.

Yan Chixia was very worried that Xiahou would be bewitched by Zhao Lihe and become a stepping stone for his ambitions.

Zhao Lihe chuckled and said, "I thought Master Yan chose to live in seclusion here because he was not good at dealing with the trivialities of the mortal world, but now it seems that this is not the case."

Yan Chixia said calmly: "Of course I am not a young boy who is ignorant of the world, but it is precisely because I have seen the unpredictable human heart that I am more disgusted with this world. People's hearts are hidden in their stomachs. Sometimes, getting along with people is really worse than living with ghosts..."

Zhao Lihe laughed and shook his head: "Master Yan, you are pointing at me!"

Yan Chixia sighed and said, "If Ning Shusheng said this, I would just regard it as the words of a sage, but Brother Zhao...if I'm not mistaken, you have the energy of a dragon and a tiger. You must be a royal family or a top official in the current dynasty!"

No matter which one they are, they are all extremely noble and honorable people in the world.

Once such people have such ideas, there will be a bloody storm in China.

Zhao Lihe smiled and said, "My identity will be known to you, Master Yan, in the future. But for now, let's get back to the point and discuss how to deal with that thousand-year-old tree demon!"

“What else can we do?” Yan Chixia grabbed the long sword and said coldly, “If you really find the true form of the thousand-year-old tree demon, take me with you to kill it. We will tear the evil monster into pieces!”

Ning Caichen said weakly: "Why don't you make a plan first?"

Yan Chixia shook his head and said, "It's useless. All the flowers, plants and trees in this entire mountain area are the eyes and ears of the tree demon. No matter what plan we make, it can't be as good as going straight to Huanglong."

"Besides, this tree demon's root system is intricate and spreads throughout the entire mountain area. It is impossible to uproot it. We can only break all of its claws that have penetrated the ground. In this way, it will take at least hundreds of years for it to recuperate before it can come out to harm people again."

"But remember to make it quick and don't give her a chance to call for help."

After hearing Yan Chixia's words, Zhao Lihe frowned and thought, then nodded decisively.

"Okay, let's do as Master Yan says!"

After saying that, Zhao Lihe turned his head and looked at Ding Xian. Before he could open his mouth to give orders, Shen Lian beside him knelt on one knee and said, "Master, this time I will stay and guard Brother Ning. Third brother is stronger than me, so he is more suitable to go with you to kill the monster!"

“…”

Zhao Lihe raised his eyebrows, glanced at Shen Lian, and instantly understood what he meant.

Firstly, Shen Lian mastered the Five Thunders Method, which overlapped with his own abilities.

Secondly, this thunder method had struck Xiahou before. If he suddenly came out and rushed to the battlefield, it would be a bit embarrassing to see Shen Lian controlling the thunder.

The reason for the three of them to come here was naturally for Ding Xian. He practiced the art of wielding a sword, and if he could watch Yan Chixia fight with all his strength, he would definitely benefit a lot.

"I didn't think it through."

Zhao Lihe nodded and said calmly: "Shen Lian, you stay. Jian Xing, Ah Xian, you follow me to kill the monster."

The three brothers respectfully accepted the order: "Yes!"

…

…

In the deep mountains and old forests, shadows are mottled and the evil aura is thick like fog.

Zhao Lihe, Yan Chixia and others stepped into the fog and headed in the direction Xiaoqing pointed.

Lu Jianxing and Ding Xian had already drawn their swords and were guarding Zhao Lihe, looking around vigilantly.

Yan Chixia carried a quiver on his back and held a longbow in his hand. The quiver on his waist was filled with brass arrows. The arrowheads were wide, like small brass shovels, and were covered with incantations to exorcise demons and exterminate evil spirits inscribed in cinnabar.

"The demonic energy is getting stronger and stronger. We should soon find the real body of that stinky old woman..."

Yan Chixia looked alert and asked without turning his head: "Brother Zhao, can you still identify the direction? I am a little confused."

Zhao Lihe took out his compass and saw that the needle was spinning around. He could only sigh and said, "No, I can't tell."

Yan Chixia frowned and said, "There is nothing we can do. We can only follow the direction where the evil spirit is most concentrated, hoping to find..."

"No need to go to so much trouble." Zhao Lihe interrupted him calmly, and then looked at the hazy fog in front of him and said, "Since this fog is blocking our eyes, why not just dispel it..."

Yan Chixia frowned and said, "This is not an ordinary fog, but a monster condensed from evil spirits. It is difficult to disperse it with ordinary wind."

Zhao Lihe glanced at Yan Chixia and said, "Who said I was going to use the wind?"

The two looked at each other, and Yan Chixia was shocked to find that Zhao Lihe's eyes had been filled with golden arcs of electricity without him noticing.

The next second, countless golden lightning suddenly burst out from Zhao Lihe's body. Hundreds of golden arcs intertwined and jumped on his body surface, quickly branching and spreading in the air like spider webs and tree branches.

In an instant, a gravitational field containing powerful repulsive force was formed, which pushed away the surrounding evil fog layer by layer.

The white mist was like a frightened little beast, fleeing in all directions at a rapid speed.

In just a few seconds, everyone's visible field of vision widened from within five steps to fifty steps away.

Yan Chixia widened his eyes and looked in shock at Zhao Lihe, who was like a god descended from heaven and was bursting with golden lightning all over his body.

He originally thought that the three guard brothers were the forceful ones in the group, but he didn't expect that Zhao Lihe, who seemed to be protected, was actually the most powerful one among the four!

Feeling the repulsion and attraction that canceled each other out, Yan Chixia couldn't help but ask:

"What kind of thunder technique is this?"

"Gravity Thunder."

Zhao Lihe answered calmly, and then took a step forward.

In an instant, golden lightning burst out instantly, and powerful repulsive force spread out layer by layer, blowing away all the evil fog within hundreds of meters ahead.

Although the fog formed by the evil spirits quickly healed, Zhao Lihe and Yan Chixia took the opportunity of the fog clearing to see the true form of the tree demon described by Xiaoqing.

It was an extremely sturdy ancient tree, standing at the foot of the cliff. Its trunk was big enough for ten people to hug, and its crown was over a hundred meters in diameter. Countless branches hung down from the dense leaves, sunk into the soil, and connected to the ancient tree's complex and tangled root system.

“That’s it!”

A gleam of light flashed in Yan Chixia's eyes, and he immediately drew his bow and arrow and shot without hesitation.

"call out--"

The arrow broke through the air, tore through the demonic fog, and turned into a golden stream of light that shot towards the direction where the tree demon's body was.

Zhao Lihe waved his hand casually, and a golden lightning suddenly attached to it, turning into a thin golden electric current that lingered around the arrow shaft.

The arrow accelerated again and disappeared into the mist in an instant.

The next second, faint cries and wails were heard from the fog.

Yan Chixia sneered, then immediately took a step forward and rushed towards the direction of the tree demon's body.

Before him, Zhao Lihe had already leaped up, his whole body surrounded by golden lightning. He rushed to the front like a bulldozer, using repulsive force to repel the fog in front of him while flying rapidly forward.

Brothers Lu Jianxing and Ding Xian also followed.

The former used Tiangang Qi and Vajra Indestructible Magical Skill to prevent sneak attacks from the tree monster in the fog.

The latter summoned two Flying Swallows, stepped forward, and flew on the swords.

Everyone showed off their skills and rushed forward, ready to launch a righteous group fight against the thousand-year-old tree demon.