On a forest path in the Black Wind Mountains, three figures swaggered along, their blue Void Fiend Sect robes standing out against the dappled shadows of the trees.
"Senior Brother, do you think... the sect really wants to use us as bait?"
A round-faced disciple shrank back, his eyes scanning the surroundings warily, his voice hushed, "I heard that little thief is quite ruthless; he even killed several core disciples..."
The young man called "Senior Brother" chuckled and patted the long sword at his waist: "What's there to be afraid of? There are four elders following behind! They are all important figures in the late stage of the Dao Proving Realm. Even if that little thief is bold, what can he do?"
He lowered his voice, a glint of greed in his eyes: "Besides, didn't the elder say that after this is done, we'll be promoted directly to core disciples! Do you know how many resources a core disciple receives each month? Ten high-grade spirit crystals, three 'Spirit Tempering Pills,' and the chance to enter the Scripture Pavilion to choose a cultivation technique..."
The third, tall and thin disciple licked his lips: "What if... what if we really die?"
"You jinx!" The eldest brother glared at him. "With four elders around, you won't die! Relax and go on your way. Once we lure that little thief out, our good days will begin!"
The three of them whispered among themselves as they moved forward, pretending to be relaxed, but their pace unconsciously quickened, clearly indicating their uncertainty.
Unbeknownst to them, four figures, almost blending into the shadows, were silently following them from the dense forest a hundred feet behind, their auras concealed to the extreme.
These were the second, third, fourth, and fifth elders of the Xu Sha Sect. The four elders had icy eyes, their divine senses spreading out like a spider web, carefully examining their surroundings, waiting for the "little thief" to appear.
"rustle--"
A barely audible gust of wind swept through the treetops.
Before the three disciples could react, a figure in red appeared before them like a ghost.
The newcomer wore a silver mask that covered most of his face, revealing only a pair of cold, clear eyes. The rusty iron sword in his hand gleamed with a chilling light, and the blade was still stained with undried blood.
"Who?!" the senior brother exclaimed in surprise, instinctively drawing his sword, but his movements were a beat too slow.
Jiang Li said nothing, and didn't even glance at them. Her rusty iron sword trailed a crimson light, so fast that it left only a blur.
"Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!"
Three soft sounds rang out almost simultaneously.
A thin line of blood appeared on the necks of all three disciples. Their eyes froze in terror, and their bodies went limp as they collapsed to the ground, falling silent without even a scream.
From the moment of appearance to the moment of killing, it takes only a breath.
"court death!"
Four angry shouts came from the depths of the dense forest, and four powerful auras erupted like volcanoes, instantly engulfing the entire area.
The second elder held a whisk, the third elder wielded two hammers, the fourth elder was bound by chains, and the fifth elder held a short dagger. They appeared almost the instant their disciple fell to the ground, forming a square around Jiang Li. Their late-stage Dao-proving pressure was so tangible that it made the surrounding trees rustle.
"You little thief! You've finally dared to show yourself!"
The Second Elder's eyes were sinister, and the silver strands on his whisk stood up like poisonous needles. "State your name! Why are you an enemy of my Void Fiend Sect?!"
Jiang Li gripped the rusty iron sword, a cold smile curving her lips beneath the mask. She had long sensed the four presences behind her, and the reason she dared to act was because she had a plan to deal with them.
"Villains all die from talking too much."
As the cold voice fell, Jiang Li's figure suddenly blurred in place—it was the "Shadow Step" taught by Lin Zhou, which used spiritual power to distort light and instantly close the distance with the enemy.
Her target was the Fifth Elder, who seemed to have the weakest defense among the four!
"clang!"
The rusty iron sword clashed with the Fifth Elder's short dagger, sparks flying. The Fifth Elder felt a tricky, skillful force strike him, nearly causing him to drop the dagger. He was startled—this thief wasn't particularly strong, but his swordplay was ridiculously fast, and the angles were incredibly unpredictable!
"Attack together! Don't let her get away!" the Second Elder roared, waving his whisk, the silver threads forming a net that enveloped Jiang Li's back.
The Third Elder's twin hammers came crashing down with a whooshing sound, determined to smash Jiang Li into a pulp; the Fourth Elder's chains rattled as they coiled around her legs like living snakes.
The combined power of the four late-stage Dao-proving elders was terrifying. The surrounding trees were swept by the aftershocks and instantly turned into dust, and the ground cracked open with spiderweb-like fissures.
Jiang Li remained completely calm. She moved with Shadow Step again, her figure flitting like a butterfly amidst the four's attacks, always managing to evade fatal blows at the last possible moment.
Her swordplay appeared chaotic, but each strike precisely targeted the four men's weaknesses—the gaps in the Second Elder's whisk rotation, the hesitation in the Third Elder's double hammer retraction, the gaps in the Fourth Elder's chain connection, and the instant the Fifth Elder switched moves with his short dagger.
"Jingle bells!"
The sounds of weapons clashing were as dense as raindrops, yet Jiang Li, fighting four against one, was not at a disadvantage at all!
Although her spiritual power was not as abundant as that of the four elders, it was more refined and pure. Coupled with the unpredictability of her Shadow Step and the trickiness of her swordsmanship, she managed to tear a gap in the encirclement.
"This is impossible! She was clearly only at the peak of the Dao-seeking stage!"
The Third Elder roared, his twin hammers striking empty air, the impact leaving his arms numb. The fact that a mere peak-stage Dao Inquiry cultivator could hold his own against four late-stage Dao Proof cultivators was utterly astounding!
Jiang Li's eyes narrowed, and seizing the moment when the Third Elder's old strength was exhausted and new strength had not yet been generated, the rusty iron sword suddenly changed its move, abandoning the attack and instead slamming the spine of the sword heavily onto the Third Elder's hammer handle.
"Buzz—"
The Third Elder felt a shock, and his double hammers went out of control, smashing towards the Fourth Elder beside him!
"Fool!" the Fourth Elder cursed angrily, quickly retracting the chains to block, instantly creating an opening in the encirclement.
Now!
Jiang Li's spiritual power suddenly erupted, and a faint layer of crimson flames ignited on the rusty iron sword—that was her "Burning Sword Style" activated with her divine soul. The sword speed increased by three points, like a crimson lightning bolt, piercing straight into the Second Elder's heart!
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