Gui Mu looked at the group of righteous high-ranking officials in front of him, but there was not much fear in his eyes.
Apart from the completely unexpected variable of Ye Wushang, the Blood Sect had already devised corresponding countermeasures against any possible interference from the righteous path.
He snorted coldly, "Pavilion Master Ouyang, you've finally remembered that this is within the Central Continent? If your seven major sects could simply and cleanly suppress that demonic vine, why would I need to overstep my bounds and clean up your own mess?"
This statement is half true and half false, and carries a certain degree of personal emotion.
In fact, when he learned that Daoist Qianhe had messed things up and that he needed to personally suppress the Demon Vine, he was secretly delighted... believing that this was a golden opportunity to devour the Demon Vine's essence and break through to the Taixu Realm.
I never expected that my attempt to steal a chicken would backfire so badly, resulting in such a miserable end!
Luo Yuchen smiled slightly upon hearing this, her slender fingers twirling a strand of hair. Her tone was teasing: "We righteous people always act according to reason. That Demon Vine Moyan has no grudge against us, so why should we meddle? But…"
"Since when did your Blood Sect become so arrogant and domineering on the righteous path's territory? Do you really think our Pavilion Master Ouyang is a good-for-nothing?"
Ouyang Jingfeng: "..."
Why do I feel like I've been insulted?
Gui Mu was in a terrible mood and didn't bother with any more pretense. "Enough with the nonsense! The victor is king, the loser is villain. Today I've lost... If you want to take advantage of my misfortune, then come on!"
The answer to Guimu was not words, but an unparalleled sword aura that cleaved the heavens!
Before anyone could see Ouyang Jingfeng make any move, or even clearly see if he drew his sword, a dazzling sword aura, containing extreme sharpness and destructive will, was generated out of thin air. The huge shockwave from the sword aura surged out like a tsunami, tearing a thousand-foot-long vacuum chasm through the thick clouds in the sky...
The sword light was faster than anyone could imagine, flashing past like a teleportation, and struck the remaining body of the ghost tree without any hindrance!
"puff--!"
Under the astonished gazes of the crowd, Guimu's body shattered instantly, like glass struck by a heavy blow, turning into countless black wood chips flying everywhere.
On the other side, Ouyang Jingfeng paused, his brows furrowing slightly, his tone carrying a hint of surprise and understanding:
"A cicada shedding its shell? It's actually a pre-prepared substitute wooden puppet?"
Luo Yuchen, who had been watching the show with his arms crossed, suddenly let out a light, silvery laugh, his tone full of mockery: "So here's the question: look at the Demon Emperor, he just casually set off a small fire and burned that old ghost half to death. And you made such a huge commotion, so earth-shattering, just to chop down a piece of broken wood?"
Ouyang Jingfeng glanced at her expressionlessly, too lazy to pay attention to the woman's sarcastic remarks.
He had no reason to question why Guimu hadn't used this technique to escape when facing the Undying Flame. Clearly, given the overwhelming difference in their levels and mechanics, even if he had used this method, it would have simply meant he was being burned in a different spot...
“This guy was prepared. We don’t have another Demon Emperor here, so we can’t keep him here. Let’s go. There’s an even bigger problem to solve in Wanren City.”
...
Meanwhile, higher up in the clouds.
Both Zhu Xuan and the white-robed elder of the Tai Xuan Dao Sect, who were inexplicably affected by Ouyang Jingfeng's sword energy, frowned.
Zhu Xuan raised his hand to suppress the mist stirred up by the sword energy, and rolled his eyes in annoyance. "Did this kid get provoked by that girl Shangguan? Does he want to show off in front of her? Making such a big fuss..."
The white-bearded old man slowly shook his head, not responding to his words. "Once this matter is settled, let these young people handle the task of eliminating the remnants of the Blood Sect. I will take my leave now."
After saying this, his figure gradually faded and merged into the void.
Upon hearing this, Zhu Xuan picked up his wine cup, took a sip, and a cool smile curled at the corner of his lips. Watching the gradually dispersing crowd below, he murmured:
"It's over? I think...maybe not."
...
Ouyang Jingfeng and the others transformed into streaks of light and returned to the sky above Wanren City.
Meanwhile, the battle between Shangguan Jingming and Tianyuan Daoren, both half-step Taixu cultivators, was nearing its end.
Strangely, the clash between these two top experts was far from the earth-shattering spectacle expected; instead, it appeared unusually restrained.
Both of them tacitly controlled their power within a certain range, precisely controlling all the sword energy and spell power so as not to affect the surrounding area too much.
Tianyuan Daoist stood in mid-air, and with the wave of his wide Daoist robe sleeves, he could create one intricate spiritual array after another, each with its own unique light.
These spirit arrays, each with distinct attributes, overlapped one another, resembling traps and mechanisms that relentlessly suppressed and bound Shangguan Jingming. The intertwining and flashing of different colored spiritual energy beams dazzled the eye.
Shangguan Jingming, shrouded in countless formations, responded in an extremely simple, even... elegant, manner.
Her slender and aloof figure moved gracefully through the dense and dangerous array attacks, her movements as elegant as a fairy, and each swing of her long sword was perfectly timed.
Most of those seemingly fancy and powerful array attacks were easily dodged by her with the simplest and most effective footwork.
Only when she could not avoid it did she swing her longsword, accurately shattering the incoming lightning and fireballs with fluid movements, without a trace of malice.
When Ouyang Jingfeng and the others returned to the scene of the fight, they saw Shangguan Jingming thrust out a sword.
The sword energy she unleashed was far less imposing than Ouyang Jingfeng's earlier attack, but its speed was extremely fast. It drew a strange arc in the air and precisely pierced through the layers of seemingly impenetrable array gaps, heading straight for Tianyuan Daoist's face!
Daoist Tianyuan was startled. Helpless, he conjured a thick Yin-Yang defensive array in front of him.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, Shangguan Jingming slightly turned his wrist, and the tip of his sword trembled, like a butterfly flitting among flowers, instantly breaking through the core nodes of several key formations around him.
"Crack... Bang! Bang! Bang!"
A series of soft cracking sounds rang out, and many of the massive complex spirit arrays that had bound her collapsed and dissipated. Shangguan Jingming's figure calmly broke free from the arrays and landed lightly in mid-air.
That light blue gauze dress was not damaged at all; not even the hem was curled or wrinkled. It remained clean and pristine, ethereal and otherworldly.
It was as if what had just happened wasn't a clash of titans representing the pinnacle of the continent, but rather a leisurely stroll in their own backyard...
On the other hand, although Tianyuan Daoist blocked the sharp sword energy, his figure was forced back quite a distance. Although his expression remained unchanged and his Daoist robe was not disheveled, he was clearly at a disadvantage in the overall battle.
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