At that moment, Han Tiange stood frozen in place, not daring to make the slightest movement. He could clearly sense that the strength of the elder beside him was utterly terrifying.
That faint, imperceptible pressure ran as deep as an abyss, so unfathomable that it almost seemed nonexistent. Or perhaps everything he could sense was merely what the elder permitted him to feel.
As the keeper of the Great Xia Sword Sect's Scripture Pavilion, Ling Daoyan rarely showed his face.
Even the two times Li Guanqi had seen him, it had only been because the old man wished to get a look at him.
Usually, the elder remained stationed in the back mountains, serving as the Great Xia Sword Sect's final line of defense.
Among the watching elders of the hundred sects, a few seniors now recognized the plump old man. One by one, their eyes went wide in disbelief.
"Ling Daoyan!! He isn't dead?! How can that be?"
A white-haired elder stared at him with an intensely complicated expression, murmuring under his breath, "Five hundred years have passed, yet he has already attained Soul Formation and continues to walk even further on the path... while I am still dreading how to survive my heavenly tribulation thirty years from now..."
*Boom!!*
Han Tiange suddenly raised the saber in his hand, and a golden arc of saber light flashed past as swift as lightning.
This strike forced the elder back several hundred zhang. Ling Daoyan used the momentum to glide before Lu Kangnian, guarding his path of ascension.
By now, the skies above the Fuyou Mountain Range had devolved into an open battlefield between the two sects.
The ten Nascent Soul realm elders from the Great Xia Sword Sect took on all seventeen Nascent Soul cultivators opposing them.
Formidable elders like Tu Kui each fought two opponents single-handedly!
Qin Xian, having broken through to the late Nascent Soul stage, was consumed with fury. Eyes blazing with murderous intent, he took on three Ziyang Palace Nascent Soul elders all by himself.
In an instant, countless streaks of light erupted across the void, and sword light ravaged the firmament.
Standing where he was, Li Guanqi watched with tear-filled eyes as his fellow disciples darted past him one after another, his heart torn by turmoil.
Perhaps his martial brothers and sisters also regarded Yu Sui'an as their own little sister. Seeing what had unfolded in the projection, the same fury blazed within them.
Yet Li Guanqi bowed his head, knowing this could not go on.
While the Great Xia Sword Sect might currently hold their ground against Ziyang Palace, as more reinforcements arrived from Ziyang Palace, the Great Xia Sword Sect would inevitably be overwhelmed.
Moreover... he did not want his martial brothers and sisters to lose their lives here because of his own reckless actions!
"Enough!!!"
A roar laced with origin energy pierced the clouds, momentarily causing everyone to halt their strikes.
Yet at that exact second, Li Nanting abruptly appeared at his side and shook his head.
The old man looked at him with an unwavering gaze, naturally knowing what Li Guanqi was about to say.
Even Lu Kangnian, who was preparing to face his tribulation, spoke in a deep voice: "Li Guanqi! Say no more!"
"Since I chose to make this decision, I will not let you solve this matter with some bullshit about withdrawing from the sect!"
"If something happens and the sect can only be preserved by having its disciples withdraw, then what face do I, Lu Kangnian, have to remain this damn Sect Master?"
"Today it's you; tomorrow it could be someone else!"
"Time after time, once a man gets on his knees, it's hard to ever straighten his back again!"
Disbelief flooded Li Guanqi's eyes. He had already thought through everything—he would slaughter everyone, then leave on his own. If Ziyang Palace wanted to seek vengeance, they could only come for him.
Yet now...
He opened his mouth, only to find words caught in his throat, unable to speak, unable to swallow them down.
Li Nanting smiled faintly, drew his sword, and soared into the sky!
The battle erupted in full fury!
Ling Daoyan went straight after Han Tiange!
The plump elder threw back his head to down a mouthful of strong liquor, and in the next instant, boundless, explosive crimson flames erupted around his body!
The Blazing Fire Mad Sword, Ling Daoyan!
Back in the day, he had been a renowned figure across the Northern Region, sweeping through every hero with his Blazing Fire Mad Sword!
Gripping his longsword, the elder's eyes shone brighter than ever before. Fire surged toward the saber as he spoke in a low, resonant voice:
"Ziyang Palace? Just because this old man hasn't stepped out for so many years, you truly think my Great Xia Sword Sect is a soft persimmon to be bullied?!"
*Boom!!*
The clash between the two instantly cleared the area for a thousand zhang around them. Blade light and sword energy scattered in all directions, causing the sky itself to warp slightly.
Spells flew wildly, and all manner of profound arts surfaced without end.
Li Guanqi took a deep breath, drew his sword, and shot into the fray!
In an instant, the chaotic brawl in the sky sent the observing cultivators fleeing in panic, terrified of being swept in.
No one had anticipated that things would escalate to such a state.
Originally, the onlookers had thought that, at most, the Great Xia Sword Sect would simply hand the youth over. Though he was a peerless genius, anyone could weigh the pros and cons between him and all-out war with Ziyang Palace.
Yet not even Ge Qing, who presided over the Hundred Sects Tournament, had imagined that Lu Kangnian would be so unyielding!
The elder's eyes flickered as he murmured softly, "He intends to change the very character of his sect! What sheer boldness!"
Then Ge Qing thought of something and bowed toward an empty space in the void, sending a voice transmission:
"Heavenly King, should we intervene and stop the clash between the two sects?"
Casualties were already mounting among the disciples of both sects in the sky. Both sides had been stirred into true fury, each strike aimed to kill.
Nearly every breath, disciples plummeted from the sky, only to be dragged away by more of their sect-mates. Blood rained down incessantly, and within a radius of three thousand zhang, fighting disciples were everywhere. The falling blood draped the expanse beneath the Fuyou Mountain Range in a layer of crimson!
Above, the heavy clouds of the heavenly tribulation shrouded a vast expanse of the sky.
Lu Kangnian stood as straight and unbending as a sword, looking up at the churning heavenly tribulation lightning without a trace of fear on his face!
Though everyone claimed he lacked the ambition to expand his domain, only he truly knew what lay within his heart. In the past, he had indeed wished only to guard his own modest territory, ensuring at the very least that the sect did not perish in his hands.
Yet since Li Guanqi had joined the sect, the youth's deeds had exerted an invisible influence over every disciple.
Those deeds had opened Lu Kangnian's eyes to so much, and he had resolved to change from this day forward!
A heavenly tribulation?
*If even my disciples dare draw their swords against the world, what reason do I, Lu Kangnian, have to fear?!*
*Boom!!*
A bolt of heavenly tribulation lightning as thick as an arm tore through the void and crashed down in an instant!
Lu Kangnian raised his hand against the heavens and swept his sword across in a horizontal slash!
*Boom!!*
The lightning shattered, and rampant electric arcs splashed against the surrounding mountain peaks, blasting loose countless boulders.
The crowd gasped, their faces stiffening. None had expected to witness two heavenly tribulations in a single day, let alone a Soul Formation tribulation consisting of thirty-six full bolts of lightning!
Yet a teasing chuckle sounded in Ge Qing's ear.
Long Qu's voice carried an intrigued excitement, as if he had stumbled upon something immensely entertaining.
"Fascinating. The Great Xia Sword Sect..."
"Give the Great Xia Sword Sect everything promised."
"It is time for the Three Sects and Six Palaces to be shuffled around. This Great Xia Sword Sect is quite impressive—especially that little blind boy."
Chapter 162