Chen Tianhua was shaken to his core...
"Even an eighth realm Mystic Immortal could not suppress and kill him?!"
"If memory serves, merely a month ago, he was only at the second realm of Mystic Immortal!!"
"Tell me! Who on earth is he?!"
"In barely over a month, how could he possibly have managed to kill someone at the eighth realm of Mystic Immortal?!"
Watching the furious Chen Tianhua, no one dared to breathe loudly.
Faced with Li Guanqi—ruthless and relentless, possessing endless means of concealment and escape—none of them had any viable solutions.
Once, nearly a thousand Tianhua Sword Sect disciples had ventured out each day.
Now, not even a few dozen dared step outside, terrified of meeting a gruesome end.
The crux of the matter was...
He would always slip away the instant they detected him, vanishing without a trace.
Chen Tianhua's chest heaved violently, his ragged breaths wheezing like a bellows.
"Tomorrow, all elders, consecrated retainers, and deacons will disguise themselves and blend in among the disciples."
"I refuse to believe he can still kill anyone then!"
By now, across the entirety of Qinzhou's black market, no one dared take up the Tianhua Sword Sect's bounty board anymore.
Even Tianlong and Diya had fallen by his hands.
Moreover, through Qisha's vivid embellishments, Li Guanqi had been painted as a monster at the peak of the Mystic Immortal realm.
Several days later.
Li Guanqi was hiding inside the treasure hall tending to his wounds when heaven and earth trembled, and the entire hall rocked violently.
Myriad arcs of sword energy crisscrossed through the mountains, and several sword strikes even slammed right into the treasure hall.
Fortunately, the treasure hall was exceptionally sturdy.
Even so, it put Li Guanqi somewhat on guard.
"Tsk. If those old bastards catch on after a while and simply refine the surrounding hundred li, they might actually spot something amiss."
"After all, a speck of dust that cannot be split by sword energy is bound to raise suspicion."
"Looks like I'll have to be even more careful in the future."
As he spoke, Li Guanqi expressionlessly gouged out his necrotic flesh and circulated his immortal primal energy to heal his wounds.
Swallowing a Spirit Blood Pill, his blood and vitality surged, recovering rapidly.
The corner of his mouth curved up slightly, and he murmured under his breath, "Mobai's alchemy is truly astonishing. The effects of this Spirit Blood Pill are far stronger than a Blood Replenishing Pill."
The tremors lasted for a full half-shichen before gradually subsiding.
Li Guanqi was in no rush to head out. His cultivation realm had only recently stabilized at the fifth realm of Mystic Immortal, and combined with consecutive days of slaughter, he had gained a few insights.
An incense stick's time later, vibrations came once more. A cold smirk played on Li Guanqi's lips.
"Old bastards, cunning indeed."
"Though their disguise techniques are a bit too amateurish."
Ambush and slaughter were everywhere, liable to strike at any given moment.
Li Guanqi's figure could even appear inside the Tianhua Sword Sect itself.
Once more, he escaped, leaving Chen Tianhua and the elders ashen-faced.
Corpses littered the ground... a scene of utter devastation.
Beneath his wide sleeves, Chen Tianhua clenched his fists tightly. A long time passed.
The man's back slowly hunched, and he let out a heavy sigh.
Closing his eyes, he tilted his head toward the heavens and spoke.
"Activate... the sect formation barrier, and withdraw the black market bounty..."
At those words, everyone was stunned.
Such an act was tantamount to admitting weakness to the enemy!
"Sect Master!"
"If we raise the sect-protecting grand formation, wouldn't that mean... It's just a mere Mystic Immortal! Where is our sect's dignity?!"
A man spoke up passionately, fury written across his face.
Chen Tianhua whipped his head around, his eyes locking onto the man's like a raging lion.
"Then tell me! Tell me what we should do! Can you catch him?!"
"Can you?! Can you?!"
"Spouting your mother's nonsense!"
"As of today, you are stripped of your post as the Eighth Elder! Go tend to the spiritual herbs! Scram!"
*Boom!*
The furious shout, infused with terrifying pressure, blasted the man hundreds of zhang away, slamming him violently into the boulders in the distance.
"Pass down the order..."
By nightfall, the crimson sect-protecting grand formation rose above the Tianhua Sword Sect.
This sight shocked everyone.
Such a move... was nothing less than showing weakness.
Chen Tianhua had no choice. He could not catch the boy.
The opponent was alone, a barefoot rogue cultivator with nothing to lose and nothing to threaten him with.
He was powerful, fled immediately after killing, and possessed disguise techniques that made him impossible to defend against.
Such a colossal sect was utterly helpless against him. Sect operations had ground to a halt for so long, incurring massive losses.
Li Guanqi watched this cold-eyed and sneered.
"Lowering your head is supposed to end this?"
"Heh, as if it were that simple."
"Since you wish to raise the grand formation, then raise it."
With those words, Li Guanqi vanished from the spot in an instant.
Several days later.
Even the Tianshu Ascension Hall was thrown into turmoil!
Subordinates beside the Vice Hall Master were dying one after another!
Their deaths were gruesome—their heads severed and tossed outside the main hall.
A line of fresh blood brazenly marked the doors of the hall:
"Zhao Chengyong, I have come for you."
For a time, panic gripped the entire Tianshu Ascension Hall.
Tianshu Ascension Hall.
A handsome youth clad in lavish robes sat squarely upon the throne.
He carried himself with refined poise, though an edge of displeasure lingered in his eyes.
Down below, Zhao Chengyong sat on his chair as if on pins and needles, thoroughly ill at ease, raising a hand to wipe the sweat from his forehead.
The youth casually looked down, smoothing his gold-patterned robes, and spoke softly.
"Speak."
"What exactly is going on?"
Zhao Chengyong hurriedly stood up, dropped to his knees, and prostrated himself on the floor, stammering shakily, "R-Reporting to... Hall Master..."
He proceeded to pour out everything without holding back.
By the end of it, the youth frowned.
"I give you seven days to resolve this yourself."
"Furthermore, vacate your position as Vice Hall Master."
"You couldn't even wipe your own ass after doing all those shady deeds, making me lose all face before the Chief Hall Master!"
With that, the youth walked away, offering him no chance to argue.
Only after the youth departed did Zhao Chengyong realize he was drenched in cold sweat.
Paralyzed on the floor for a long while, he scrambled to his feet on all fours and frantically rummaged for Chen Tianhua's jade slip.
"Sect Master Chen... you must help me!"
Yet he waited for half a day, only to receive no reply from Chen Tianhua.
In his study, Chen Tianhua had already smashed Zhao Chengyong's jade slip to smithereens.
"Phew... This should finally settle things, then."
"Disperse the sect-protecting grand formation. Pass down the word—there is no need to pursue him any longer."
In a small town a hundred li away from the Tianshu Ascension Hall.
A youth dressed in plain hemp robes was wolfing down steamed buns.
Suddenly, he looked up and murmured, "Can't hold out anymore?"
With a flash, he vanished from the spot...
For the Tianhua Sword Sect, maintaining the sect-protecting grand formation consumed an astronomical amount of resources each day.
Yet as night fell, two more corpses appeared at the Tianhua Sword Sect's gates!
Chen Tianhua soared thousands of zhang into the sky, his furious voice infused with immortal primal energy echoing across a hundred li:
"What in the world do you want?!"
"What will it take for you to stop?!"
"Speak! Tell me!"
In over seven thousand years of cultivation, Chen Tianhua had never felt such humiliation.
Chapter 1634