The spiritual energy surged like the tide.
The Xuan Tian Sect's massive fleet had already reached the Southern Region. On the flagship at the head of the fleet, Zhao Xuan stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze piercing through the clouds and locking onto this land in the Southern Region, his eyes gleaming with an air of certainty.
In the courtyard, Lin Zhou sat lazily on a bamboo chair, twirling a freshly picked leaf between his fingers. Looking at the light screen and the dark mass of flying boats in the sky, a playful smile appeared on his lips: "So many people, I can just slap them all to death and save myself the trouble."
As soon as he finished speaking, an invisible pressure spread out, and the sky seemed to darken. The Xuan Tian Sect cultivators on the flying boat suddenly felt a pang of fear, as if a catastrophe was about to befall them.
"Master!" Jiang Li rushed forward, stopping Lin Zhou's hand, her eyes burning with fighting spirit. "Let me go!"
"Hmm?" Lin Zhou raised an eyebrow and looked at his second apprentice.
“We’re from the same sect, after all. I can’t bear to lose face like this. I want to avenge my senior brother.” Jiang Li gripped the rusty iron sword tightly, her red clothes fluttering in the wind. “Besides… I also want to test how far I can go with my current strength.”
She didn't want to live under the protection of her master and senior brother forever. Young people always need to be tempered in blood and fire to truly grow.
Lin Zhou looked at the determination in her eyes, then glanced at Xiao Chen who was still sleeping beside him, and stroked his chin: "Alright, it's good for young people to practice more, so they won't be idle all day."
He withdrew his world-destroying pressure, and the sky brightened again. The cultivators of the Xuantian Sect felt as if they had been granted a pardon, but none of them knew that they had just walked through the gates of hell.
"Thank you, Master!" Jiang Li's eyes lit up, and she turned to rush out.
"Wait a minute." Lin Zhou called out to her, casually tossing her a jade slip. "This is the second half of the annotations to the 'Emperor's Sword Scripture.' Use it if you can't win, don't force it."
"Yes!" Jiang Li caught the jade slip, and in a flash, she appeared outside the Qingyun Sect's mountain gate, her red clothes shining like a burning flame in the sunlight.
In front of the Xuantian Sect's fleet, Zhao Xuan was preparing to order an attack on the city when he suddenly saw a slender figure appear in the sky, and he was stunned.
"Who...is that person?"
"A girl? Is there no one else in the Southern Region?"
The cultivators of the Xuantian Sect were buzzing with discussion, their faces filled with disdain as they looked at the young woman in red. In their eyes, this was nothing more than a petty trick used by the Qingyun Sect to buy time.
Jiang Li ignored their mockery, her red lips parted slightly, and her voice, clear as a sword's cry, echoed throughout the battlefield: "You scum of the Xuantian Sect, listen up!"
"I'll collect half of my senior brother Xiao Chen's debt on his behalf!"
"You want to fight? There's no need for the sect leader to intervene. I, Jiang Li, will take you all on my own!"
As soon as she finished speaking, a powerful aura suddenly erupted from her body—mid-stage Void Refinement!
That aura was like a sword drawn from its sheath, sharp and fierce, carrying the unique pressure of the Empress's divine soul, and instantly swept across the entire area!
"Mid-stage Refinement...Void Refinement Realm?!"
"How is that possible! She looks like she's not even twenty yet!"
"When did such a prodigy emerge from the Four Regions? Even the top geniuses of the Central Region might not possess such cultivation!"
The Xuan Tian Sect's fleet was in complete chaos. The disdain on the cultivators' faces turned into horror, and even Zhao Xuan's expression became extremely solemn.
Standing behind his father, Zhao Feng looked at the figure in red and his heart clenched. A strong sense of regret welled up in his heart—he never expected that there would be such a monster among Xiao Chen's fellow disciples!
Xiao Chen is already incredibly powerful, and now there's a female cultivator at the mid-stage of the Void Refinement realm... Just what kind of background does this Qingyun Sect have? And what kind of terrifying existence must their master be?
"It's over... I think I've really messed with them this time." Zhao Feng muttered to himself, his hands and feet turning ice-cold. He finally realized that he had provoked a behemoth that even the Xuan Tian Sect couldn't contend with.
Before the mountain gate, Jiang Li gripped her rusty iron sword, her gaze sweeping over the Xuan Tian Sect's fleet with undisguised killing intent: "What? No one dares to accept the challenge? Or is it that the Xuan Tian Sect only knows how to bully the few with their numbers?"
"Insolence!" An elder at the Nascent Soul stage beside Zhao Xuan roared angrily, about to make a move, but was stopped by Zhao Xuan.
Zhao Xuan stared intently at Jiang Li, his eyes flashing with surprise and uncertainty. This female cultivator's aura was too strange, possessing both the strength of a Void Refinement cultivator and an ancient pressure that made his heart tremble; she was definitely not as simple as she appeared.
"Father..." Zhao Feng said in a trembling voice, "Should we... retreat?"
"Withdraw?" Zhao Xuan glanced at him coldly. "Once the arrow is released, there's no turning back! So what if she's at the Void Refinement stage? Are we afraid of a mere young girl like her?"
He spoke toughly, but in his heart he was already making plans—the Qingyun Sect was full of hidden talents, and a direct confrontation would probably not yield any good results. Perhaps he could first stabilize the opponent and then look for weaknesses.
Just then, a soft footstep sound came from inside the Qingyun Sect's mountain gate.
Xiao Chen slowly walked out, his face still somewhat pale, but his eyes had regained their usual firmness. He had just woken up and had seen everything on the battlefield through his master's light screen.
"Master." Xiao Chen walked up to Lin Zhou and bowed.
Lin Zhou rocked the bamboo chair, pointed to the battlefield outside, and said casually, "Awake? Perfect, I'll give you two choices."
"First, I'll go out now and slap them all to death, saving us the trouble."
"Second, you should handle it yourself. After all, they're after you. If you keep hiding behind me, you'll easily develop inner demons."
Xiao Chen followed his master's gaze and looked outside. He seemed to see his junior sister fighting a bloody battle (although the battle had not yet started, the atmosphere was already there), he saw the arrogance of the Xuan Tian Sect, and he also saw the expectation in Jiang Li's eyes.
He took a deep breath, gripped the rusty iron gun in his hand, and his inner strength quietly gathered.
"Master, this disciple chooses the second option."
"Some debts must be collected by oneself."
Lin Zhou looked at the determination in his eyes and nodded in satisfaction: "Okay, handle your own affairs. Remember, if you can't beat someone, just call for help, don't force yourself."
"Yes, Master," Xiao Chen replied, turning and walking towards the mountain gate.
The sunlight shone on him, casting a long shadow. Despite his recent serious injuries, he exuded an unstoppable sharpness.
When Jiang Li saw Xiao Chen flying over, a hint of joy flashed in her eyes. She then stepped aside and stood next to him.
Red and green robes, long spears and rusty swords—these formed a striking yet resolute scene in front of the Qingyun Sect's mountain gate.
On the Xuantian Sect's fleet, Zhao Xuan looked at Xiao Chen walking towards him, then at the two standing side by side, and for the first time felt a sense of unease.
This seemingly invincible battle appeared to have slipped out of their control from the very beginning.
Lin Zhou, still leisurely basking in the sun on the bamboo chair, seemed to regard the sword fights outside as nothing more than a childish game.
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