The Yan Family Competition Arena.
On the viewing platform, Yan Fengjun sat in the center, with Yan Fengqing seated in a wheelchair beside him. Both were Level Seven Celestial Masters. Two other stewards had recently broken through to Level Seven, and the remaining one, a Level Six, held little presence.
The appointed time had arrived. Yan Fengjun issued the command: "Let the competition begin."
He had already received news that several disciples from the collateral branches had just broken through to Level Six. In this competition, the main family might be at a disadvantage.
He instinctively glanced at Yan Huai below the stage.
Yan Huai still wore his usual cold and stern demeanor, as if nothing weighed on his mind.
Was he truly unconcerned, or did he have a well-laid plan?
Since catching a glimpse of the shrewdness hidden beneath Yan Huai's exterior, Yan Fengjun had begun trying to interpret him from a different angle.
After news spread of the collateral branch disciples' breakthroughs to Level Six, the main family disciples participating in the competition, aside from a few with firm resolve, all sat listlessly in the main family's waiting area like frost-bitten eggplants.
Hearing the competition begin, they forced themselves to muster their spirits, waiting to enter the arena.
The competition was presided over by Yan Huai.
He leapt onto the referee's platform and announced the list of the first contestants.
To save time, the arena was divided into six sections, each enveloped by a formation. Whoever was forced out of their formation first would lose.
The formation also served another purpose: to promptly protect the safety of the competing disciples. If an opponent used a lethal move judged as such by the formation, the formation would first eject the opponent from the arena, preventing anyone from losing control in the heat of battle and causing unnecessary casualties.
Twelve contestants entered the arena simultaneously.
The order of appearance and the match pairings were determined by lot drawn by the participants themselves, with no distinction made for cultivation level.
Within the family, any disciple aged eighteen or above but under thirty, with a cultivation level above Level Four but below Level Seven, could register for the competition.
Of course, those who had participated in previous sessions were not allowed to compete again.
Even if a Level Four drew a match against a Level Six, they had to grit their teeth and face it.
In a family competition, a Level Four inherently stood little chance of winning. Unless they could defeat a higher-level opponent, it was better to seize the opportunity to spar with a high-level Celestial Master, as they might gain significant insights.
The competition was in full swing.
All electronic devices were blocked within the arena to prevent leaks of the family's internal matches, which could lead to targeting by other families at next year's Grand Assembly of the Mystic Arts.
Longlin City Investigation Division.
Qi Quan had already taken her seat before the formation.
On the night the live stream ended, she had secretly come to the Longlin City Investigation Division and personally set up this formation.
Although both Longlin City and Longtang City possessed Level Nine formations, Qi Quan had a vague intuition that the person she wanted to uncover would be in Longlin City.
The spiritual energy and fortune of Hengfeng Sect far surpassed other places.
She had noticed this the first time she came to Longlin City.
But at the time, she hadn't seen anything particularly unusual, merely assuming the location of Hengfeng Sect had exceptionally good feng shui.
Who could have guessed that such an excellent place concealed such horrifying and shocking crimes?
Qi Quan placed the Level Nine Composite Sword Talisman into the formation's core.
[Ahhhh! It's about to start!] The system shouted, both excited and anxious.
Once the various formations were broken, the Cultivator organization would undoubtedly dispatch their most powerful forces to obstruct the Investigation Division and the Mystic Arts community from entering the mountains for the purge.
A major confrontation was imminent.
Simultaneously, all Celestial Masters who had participated in watching the live stream received notifications from their local Investigation Divisions.
[Greetings, Celestial Master XXX. Recently, a Cultivator organization has been running rampant, acting recklessly, harming countless civilians, and committing heinous crimes! The authorities have decided to organize a large-scale purge operation and call upon individuals of conscience to join this battle to defend justice! If you are willing... to participate, please proceed immediately to XXXX location to accept command from the Investigation Division.]
The Celestial Masters: ???
Was this the opportunity to obtain an invitation card that the Investigation Division mentioned before?
What are we waiting for? Hurry up and go!
If you're late, there might not be a spot left!
Almost the instant the messages were sent, across the nation, all Investigation Divisions involved in the case simultaneously unleashed a blazing sword light.
The sword lights streaked across the azure sky, flying like meteors towards various strongholds, striking the protective formations of the Cultivator bases almost at the same time.
The Celestial Masters hastily rushing to their destinations were stunned.
Heavens! It's the light from a Composite Talisman Sword!
If one could look down upon the earth from high above, an extremely magnificent and grand scene would unfold.
Thirty sword lights instantly shattered the protective formations of the Cultivator strongholds.
The righteous sword light obliterated every hidden darkness.
Although they could have continued using the sword lights to destroy the bases, considering there might still be living children and other hostages inside, the Investigation Division did not continue using the Composite Talismans.
Some smaller bases had weaker reserves. After their formations shattered, with no backup formations, the Cultivators had no time to react before being firmly subdued by the waiting investigators and the Celestial Masters who had rushed to the scene in time!
Large bases had ample resources.
For instance, at the Longlin City Cultivator stronghold, after the Level Nine protective formation was shattered, the Cultivators reacted swiftly, activating a backup Level Nine formation, once again blocking the personnel arriving for the purge.
Many personnel participated in the Longlin City purge operation.
Under the deterrence and allure of the "Human Emperor Realm Grandmaster" and the "Divine Physician," following Fu Jiuchong's lead, the leaders of many sects and families contacted Li Guoyan, showing signs of allegiance.
The large-scale live stream suddenly launched by the Investigation Division made them sense an unusual shift in the atmosphere.
High-level Celestial Masters possessed sharp intuition.
The authorities were about to make a major move!
If they didn't actively participate this time, they might lose all presence within the Mystic Arts community in the future.
Taking a step back, it was the authorities' inevitable duty to eradicate Cultivators, and as members of the Mystic Arts community, combating Cultivators was inherently part of their responsibility.
Moreover, the authorities' show of force this time was so grand, clearly indicating they had a well-laid plan.
If they missed this opportunity to show their face and earn merits, their standing within the Mystic Arts community would only become more difficult in the future.
Just the "Divine Physician" alone was enough to make her "hard to get an appointment with."
The leaders made decisive decisions, following the command of the Investigation Headquarters.
Outside the Longlin City Cultivator stronghold, Master Yin, Fu Jiuchong, and other Level Seven and Eight elders from sects and families were all standing ready.
Behind them were the young and vibrant investigators.
Further back were the multitude of Celestial Masters who had rushed to the scene.
Everyone shared a common hatred for the enemy.
"Such a grand gesture indeed!"
Witnessing another Level Nine formation light up, Di Meng said with a serious expression.
Longlin City was a key area, and the elite forces of the Investigation Headquarters had been deployed.
Ning Zhi's expression was grave: "A fierce battle is imminent."
As soon as the words fell, another earth-shattering sword light streaked across, accurately shattering the Level Nine formation.
The Cultivators inside the base were shocked.
What in the world were those two sword lights just now!
Inside Hengfeng Sect, Yu Lanzhi stood up in astonishment.
Two layers of Level Nine formations... just gone like that?
They had previously estimated that, whether from the authorities or the Mystic Arts community, there were only three ways to break a Level Nine formation.
Either a Human Emperor Realm cultivator expended most of their spiritual power in one strike to shatter it; or a formation master of the same level was dispatched to exhaust their mental energy unraveling the formation; or countless attack talismans were used to deplete the formation's spiritual energy.
None of these options seemed realistic.
Qi Quan was indeed powerful, capable of shattering a ninth-grade formation with a single strike, but that blow would absolutely consume an immense amount of her spiritual power. If another ninth-grade formation appeared, she would be hard-pressed to handle it. Even if she exhausted all her spiritual power to break it, once the formation vanished, just a few eighth or ninth-grade Celestial Masters could easily wear her down and finish her off.
A formation master of the same level could break one formation only to face another. If the formation in Longlin City was gone, what about the formations in other regions?
As for the last option, aside from wasting talismans, it held no meaning whatsoever.
But who could have imagined that just two sword beams could destroy a ninth-grade formation!
Yu Lanzhi suddenly felt a pang of panic.
He abruptly remembered the news he had heard before.
Yan Fengqing's residence in Longjing City had been destroyed remotely by two sword beams.
He hadn't paid it any mind at the time, assuming it was just Qi Quan using sword techniques to pierce the formation, and the "remote" part was merely a distorted rumor.
But now, the facts were laid bare before his eyes.
Just as he was at a loss, a figure drifted to his side.
"It's merely the shattering of a formation, no need to worry. The Venerable's cultivation is nearing completion. As long as the puppets hold off those ants outside, once the Venerable attains Human Immortality, what is there left to fear?"
Upon hearing this, Yu Lanzhi instantly felt reassured and said respectfully, "Elder Shi's words are most true."
This Elder Shi was a favorite in front of the Venerable, specializing in making those medicinal pills.
Thanks to these pills, the organization had developed rapidly over the years, obtaining considerable fortune for the Venerable, allowing him to be on the verge of breaking through to the Human Immortal realm recently!
Those Celestial Masters outside, at most seventh-grade, wouldn't even withstand a single major technique from a ninth-grade Celestial Master.
With two layers of formations broken, the Cultivator base had no choice but to dispatch several high-grade Celestial Masters and numerous mid to low-grade ones.
The highest among them was eighth-grade, the same as the official side.
But the Cultivators held Bloodburst Pills, allowing them to temporarily elevate their grade by one at any moment.
On the official side, the leaders were an eighth-grade elder from the Guiyuan Sect and an eighth-grade elder from the Fu family.
They each held a Unity Talisman.
Behind them, investigators and Celestial Masters all gripped a Unity Talisman, distributed by the Investigation Department.
At the command, everyone unhesitatingly channeled spiritual power into their Unity Talismans and dripped in a drop of blood from their fingertips.
Although the later-joining Celestial Masters didn't know the exact use of this talisman, they knew it was the very one Grandmaster Qi had taught them to draw during the half-month live stream!
The commander for this battle was Di Meng.
He divided the forces into Group A and Group B, leading one group himself while Ning Zhi led the other.
The official eighth-grade elders and the Cultivator eighth-grade Celestial Masters faced off in mid-air, neither side making the first move.
Seeing the Unity Talismans in the officials' hands, the Cultivators had no idea what they were, simply assuming the officials were so destitute they'd use any shabby talisman, and couldn't help but sneer contemptuously.
"With just these third-rate Celestial Masters, you think you can breach the base?" one Cultivator mocked.
Another chimed in, "Where on earth did you get the courage?"
They had been stationed at the base for so many years without a proper fight and had long wanted to kill a few high-grade Celestial Masters for fun.
Today, they were delivered right to their doorstep.
A third Cultivator said steadily, "Today is not the day for a major conflict."
The other Cultivators all tensed up.
The Venerable had reached a critical moment; the base truly couldn't afford any further complications.
If it weren't for the fact that all the ninth-grade Celestial Masters were protecting the ritual, they wouldn't have had to come out. Sending a ninth-grade Celestial Master would have blasted these intruders back home with a single technique...
But the official and orthodox forces were poised for a purge, and now with the formations broken, even if they wanted to avoid a major conflict, they had no choice but to grit their teeth and hold the line, keeping them outside.
"Regardless, we must repel them first," one Cultivator said with a grim expression, pulling out a Bloodburst Pill.
If it weren't for the recent years being critical for the Venerable's advancement to Human Immortality, why would they have needed to hide? With their grades, they could have dominated the orthodox world long ago.
But the Venerable had said that before their strength was enough to look down on everyone, they couldn't take steps too large, or they would easily attract the attention of the authorities.
This attention wasn't just about the establishment of the Investigation Department, but could provoke suppression with the authorities' heavy weaponry.
The organization hid deep, revealing little of its power, so the authorities wouldn't deploy those weapons, buying him time to advance to the Human Immortal realm.
Once he became a Human Immortal, with life as eternal as the heavens, he could roam freely between heaven and earth.
Now it seemed the Venerable was right.
This time, the authorities only sent some small fry.
The others also took out their Bloodburst Pills.
"Attack!" Di Meng didn't give them a chance to upgrade, directly giving the order.
The two eighth-grade elders instantly brandished their peach wood swords.
Eighth-grade sword beams shot towards several Cultivators simultaneously, forcing them to abandon taking the pills and raise their magical instruments to meet the attack.
With the big shots engaged, everyone else charged forward.
However, the Cultivators lacked organization. Like the orthodox sects of the past, they were a scattered mess. The official side, commanded by Di Meng, had well-trained investigators leading the newly joined Celestial Masters in an assault on the Cultivator organization's enforcers.
Group A attacked first, with Group B behind them replenishing spiritual power.
In mid-air, the Cultivator organization's eighth-grade Celestial Masters felt something increasingly wrong as the fight progressed.
They were indeed eighth-grade, but according to strict grade subdivisions, they were actually a minor stage higher than those two eighth-graders. How was it that their own spiritual power was nearly half depleted, while these two were still outputting so fiercely?
Impossible!
The Fu family's eighth-grade elder was a female Celestial Master.
Sensing their thoughts, the female Celestial Master couldn't help but sneer, "You upgraded using pills soaked in human blood. Did you never consider that your realms might be utterly hollow?"
"..."
A sword beam from the female Celestial Master shot forth, its spiritual power incredibly dense. Striking one of the Cultivators, he cried out in pain, his spiritual power destabilizing, and actually fell from mid-air.
"How is this possible?!" the other Cultivators exclaimed in shock.
Having fought until now, everyone's spiritual power was nearly spent. How could these two still unleash major techniques?
It wasn't just the eighth-grade Celestial Masters' battle; the same was true for the mixed combat involving seventh-grade and sixth-grade Celestial Masters.
On the ground, Yin Yi, Fu Jiuchong, and others were locked in fierce combat with seventh-grade Cultivators. Even when the Cultivators' spiritual power was nearly exhausted and they swallowed Bloodburst Pills, temporarily rising to eighth-grade, they couldn't withstand the relentless attacks from the seventh-grade Celestial Masters.
Was their spiritual power a bottomless pit?!
Fu Jiuchong's sword pierced a Cultivator's dantian, his domineering spiritual power viciously churning inside. The Cultivator screamed as his spiritual power scattered everywhere, quickly becoming a cripple. He was instantly slain by other lower-grade Celestial Masters, his soul not even spared.
The man showed no mercy.
Thinking of the suffering his sister and brother-in-law had endured, he couldn't bring himself to be lenient.
These demons had harmed so many innocent lives; death ten thousand times over wouldn't be enough to atone for their crimes!
On another front, Yin Yi also slew many Cultivators.
The orthodox world had suffered humiliation for so many years, losing so many elites. In today's battle, they were determined to settle accounts with the Cultivators thoroughly!
After a long fight, fatigue began to show on everyone's faces...
Di Meng seized the moment and commanded, "Group A, retreat! Group B, advance!"
The situation on the battlefield shifted instantly.
Ning Zhi led Group B in a charge.
The Cultivators were exhausted one by one. Though they had pills and talismans to replenish spiritual power, in terms of stamina, they were completely no match for Group B, who had been holding back until now.
The eighth-grade Cultivators in mid-air finally realized something was wrong.
The authorities were actually using a rotation tactic!
But that doesn't make sense either. Even if they're using a war of attrition strategy, why hasn't the opponent's spiritual power been exhausted yet?
They haven't even used spirit talismans to replenish their energy up to now!
The demonic cultivators had no way of knowing, this was all thanks to the Unity Talisman.
Before Qi Quan created the Unity Talisman, Li Guoyan wasn't very confident about destroying the demonic cultivator organization, given the vast disparity in strength between the two sides.
The official side had only one top-tier expert, Qi Quan. The number of other Level 8 and Level 7 Celestial Masters paled in comparison to the demonic cultivator organization.
Although most of the demonic cultivators had boosted their levels using pills, a gap in cultivation realm was still a gap. Moreover, they also had Bloodburst Pills.
The appearance of the Unity Talisman undoubtedly greatly increased the official side's chances of victory.
Both the Composite Sword Talisman and the Unity Talisman were achievements credited to Qi Quan.
The investigators and Celestial Masters of Team B were fiercely engaged in battle, while Team A rested and replenished their spiritual power within the protective formation at the rear.
The protective formation was also a composite talisman provided by Qi Quan. After she taught Xie Lanzhou, it was Xie Lanzhou who supplied them to the Investigation Department.
During the fifteen days of the live broadcast, the Investigation Department had made countless preparations.
They would either not strike at all, or they would completely eradicate the demonic cultivator organization!
With the aid of the Composite Sword Talismans and Unity Talismans, the battles at the lower-level bases in other regions concluded swiftly. Local Investigation Departments, leading the participating Celestial Masters, successively destroyed one demonic cultivator base after another, capturing dozens or hundreds of demonic cultivators and rescuing numerous children and other victims.
Reports of victories kept streaming into the Dragon Capital headquarters. Li Guoyan's grave expression gradually softened, but the biggest stone had yet to fall.
Dragon Rain City.
Inside the largest base of the Tianqi Organization, three Level 9 Celestial Masters stood guard outside the cave abode, protecting the Venerable One within.
The base producing the pills was hidden beneath a mountain valley pool, but the Venerable One's cultivation site was built into a cliff face.
They had carved a cave abode into the cliff and constructed a resplendent, golden palace inside it.
Isolated by a Level 9 formation, no one knew of its existence.
Outside the cliffside cave abode, the three Level 9 Celestial Masters looked down at the fierce battle below. Their initial confidence had turned to doubt and unease.
"How can this be?" one Celestial Master, with arrogant red hair, spoke, his expression no longer arrogant.
In their view, the official and orthodox sects' battle plan was simple: one group gets tired, another group takes over.
But something just felt off.
Why was those people's spiritual endurance so long?
They had never seen those people replenish their energy during combat, only using spirit talismans after being rotated out.
A Celestial Master with a goatee said, "Could it be due to the influence of the pills?"
They had all taken Enlightenment Pills. Enlightenment Pills could increase cultivation speed, allowing them to advance to Level 9 in a short time.
Although Enlightenment Pills were useless for advancing from Level 9 to Human Sovereign Realm, Level 9 was already enough for them. Their lifespans were already much longer than ordinary people's.
With such a long lifespan, why worry about not advancing to Human Sovereign Realm?
Perhaps it was precisely because their cultivation speed was too fast, leading to unstable foundations and poor spiritual power endurance?
The Red-haired Celestial Master frowned, "Impossible. It's not like we haven't encountered properly cultivated Celestial Masters before. They weren't this formidable."
The last Celestial Master had a scar on his face and a fierce glare. "What's there to fear? Kill one if they come, kill two if a pair arrives."
No matter what, they had to ensure the Venerable One's advancement.
Suddenly, a light chuckle reached their ears.
"Who's there?!" The Red-haired Celestial Master sharply looked up, his sinister gaze sweeping the surroundings.
The Goatee Celestial Master was puzzled, "What are you doing? Seeing ghosts."
"Didn't you hear that?" The Red-haired Celestial Master's thick brows knitted tightly.
The Scarred Celestial Master was displeased, "Don't disrupt morale."
The Red-haired Celestial Master: "..."
He really did hear laughter, a woman's laughter!
But the other two simply didn't believe him.
He curled his lip and continued focusing on his guard duty.
Before he could steady his mind, another soft sigh landed by his ear.
"Who is it?!" he shouted again, "Who's playing tricks! Get the hell out here!"
The Goatee Celestial Master said impatiently, "Will you stop already? Now is not the time for your jokes!"
The Scarred Celestial Master glared coldly, already extremely displeased.
"I'm not joking!" The Red-haired Celestial Master was utterly exasperated, "Why would I? Why won't you believe me?"
"Then tell us, you're only Level 9, First Tier. We're both Level 9, Second Tier. Why can you hear it and we can't? Are you looking down on us?"
The Red-haired Celestial Master: "What if the other party intentionally only let me hear?"
The Scarred Celestial Master snorted coldly, "What nonsense are you spouting? Besides the Venerable One, who else in the orthodox sects could do that?"
They were all Level 9 Celestial Masters!
The highest among those orthodox sect elders was only Level 8.
The Red-haired Celestial Master rolled his eyes, "Didn't you listen to what Yu Lanzhi said? The orthodox sects have produced a powerful expert. Last time in Dragon Lake City, they killed three Level 7 and one Level 8 with a single move."
"We could do that too," the Goatee Celestial Master said disdainfully.
In this world, besides the Venerable One, could there be another Human Sovereign Realm expert?
Moreover, the Venerable One had cultivated for so many years and used so much fortune energy to achieve the current peak of the Human Sovereign Realm. If the orthodox sects had a Human Sovereign Realm expert, could they have been so passive all these years?
The three had long resided deep in the mountains and had no idea about the earth-shaking changes that had occurred outside over the past two months.
Ever since Qi Quan returned to her rightful place, the orthodox sects had gained another Human Sovereign Realm expert, though very few knew about it.
Even the orthodox sects only speculated; the demonic cultivator organization would be even less likely to believe such "nonsense."
But the Red-haired Celestial Master said, "Don't forget, just now two sword beams shattered our Level 9 formation."
"Those two sword beams were at most Level 9," the Goatee Celestial Master said dismissively, "The orthodox sects have many Level 8 Celestial Masters. It's not strange if someone suddenly advanced to Level 9."
He added contemptuously, "Besides, those two sword beams probably already consumed most of that person's cultivation. Even if they came personally, are the three of us afraid we can't handle them?"
The Red-haired Celestial Master: "..."
The Scarred Celestial Master: "Enough talk. The situation below isn't right."
As time passed, the demonic cultivators' spiritual power was becoming unsustainable. The prolonged battle had nearly exhausted their energy.
Looking at the official team, everyone was still fighting fervently, their momentum overwhelming.
The Goatee Celestial Master also grew uneasy.
"We've already deployed most of our combat power. Should we send more people out?" the Red-haired Celestial Master asked.
The Scarred Celestial Master shook his head, "No, we must keep people to guard the base under the pool."
"How about we make a move ourselves, repel them with one strike and then return?" the Goatee Celestial Master suggested, "It really wouldn't take much effort or time, and it would save us from letting those people charge into the base."
The Scarred one pondered for a moment. Seeing the battle situation was indeed unfavorable for their side, he said to the Red-haired Celestial Master, "You go."
"Why me?" The Red-haired Celestial Master felt uneasy, "I won't go. What if there's a hidden expert outside and I get killed as soon as I step out?"
He hadn't forgotten the voice he heard earlier.
It was definitely not his imagination!
"You're the lowest level. Even if the Venerable One needs spiritual assistance during the advancement process, you're the least useful," the Scarred Celestial Master said bluntly.
The Red-haired Celestial Master felt a sharp sting in his pride.
He felt indignant, but what Scarred said was the truth.
Goatee and Scarred were sticking together, ganging up on him alone. If he didn't go out, and the situation outside became irreparable, if something happened to the base, the responsibility would definitely fall on him.
These two were just cunning cowards.
The Red-haired Celestial Master got up reluctantly.
He was now standing on a platform on the cliff face. The platform was enveloped by a ninth-grade formation. Inside the formation, he was protected by it. Once he stepped out, he would lose a layer of security.
The higher the grade of a Celestial Master, the more they cherished their lives, because there was a long lifespan waiting for them to enjoy. To lose their life before enjoying it was truly unacceptable.
Especially for greedy and cruel evil cultivators.
They stripped others of their vitality and fortune precisely to achieve their own cultivation.
Asking them to go to their deaths was harder than ascending to heaven.
The Red-haired Celestial Master dawdled, unwilling to move out of the formation.
Goatee Celestial Master said, "If you don't go out now to salvage the battle, Scarred is going to push you off."
The Red-haired Celestial Master glared at him, grabbed his peach wood sword, gritted his teeth, and flew out of the formation.
He really hoped what he heard earlier was just an illusion!
He instantly flashed before an official eighth-grade Celestial Master, just about to swing his sword for the kill, when an extremely powerful blade light suddenly assaulted him from behind. He wanted to dodge, but under the suppression of the overwhelming spiritual power, he simply couldn't move!
The long blade accurately struck his back.
Vast and domineering spiritual power instantly rushed into his meridians and dantian, a tearing agony sweeping through his entire body. Gurgling, he spat blood and turned around.
A slender, tall figure hovered in mid-air.
Bathed in golden sunlight, her hair danced wildly in the surging spiritual energy. Her eyes were deep and calm, a faint smile playing on her lips, as if she hadn't been the one who unleashed that blade light moments ago, but merely a passing bystander.
The Red-haired Celestial Master spat another mouthful of blood.
He was a ninth-grade Celestial Master!
So, what level of cultivation must she, who crippled his cultivation with one move, possess?
Had the Mystic Sect truly produced a Human Emperor realm cultivator?
In the instant he fell from the sky, his greatest regret was not sticking to his guns earlier.
Those two idiots would join him down here sooner or later, ah ah ah!
Qi Quan had no intention of leaving his corpse or soul intact. Another blade light swept over. Before the Red-haired Celestial Master even hit the ground, his flesh, blood, and soul were utterly annihilated.
The official forces in the midst of the melee felt their spirits soar.
Senior Qi is here, ah ah ah ah!
When the Red-haired Celestial Master appeared earlier, Fu Jiuchong and the others had sensed something amiss and were already resolved to die, but fortunately, Senior Qi appeared in time and killed him with one strike.
This action undoubtedly boosted morale even higher.
On the cliff platform, a heavy silence fell.
Goatee Celestial Master witnessed the Red-haired Celestial Master's death firsthand, and a wave of fear suddenly rose in his heart.
That woman was too strong!
Red-haired's worries were indeed not without reason.
...
The Mystic Sect really had produced a Human Emperor realm cultivator!
Not some ninth-grade Celestial Master, but a Human Emperor realm Celestial Master!
His voice trembling lightly, he said, "Scarred, what should we do? The voice Red-haired heard earlier must have been hers, right?"
Scarred clenched his fists, glaring fiercely at Qi Quan not far away, his voice hoarse as he said, "The Venerable is at a critical moment. We cannot engage lightly."
Don't be fooled by the organization having Enlightenment Pills in abundance; there actually weren't many Celestial Masters who could rapidly reach high grades relying on them.
Ninth-grade Celestial Masters were only the three of them.
The rest, the eighth and seventh grades, merely outnumbered those of the Mystic Sect, enough to hold back those lower-grade Celestial Masters outside.
If the officials truly possessed a Human Emperor realm Celestial Master, it would absolutely be a massive obstacle for the organization.
Goatee suddenly said, "The Venerable once divined that there would be a great obstacle on his path to immortality. It's just that this person's fortune is extremely strong, and they cannot be easily eliminated, otherwise it would incur heaven's wrath and affect his advancement."
"What's the use of saying that now?!" Scarred Celestial Master snapped impatiently.
Goatee Celestial Master: "Could it be... her?"
"Earlier, the Venerable sent out three seventh-grades and one eighth-grade. Was it also to control or kill her?"
Scarred said, puzzled, "If that's the case, why didn't they just plant a puppet talisman on her back then?"
A low, slow laugh suddenly fell beside their ears, startling them, their hair standing on end.
He stared in shock at the woman outside the formation.
"I'd like to know why too." Qi Quan, holding a long sword formed from spiritual power, poked at the formation shield covering the platform and said leisurely, "Why not invite me in so I can ask your Venerable myself."
The two: "..."
This was a ninth-grade formation, capable of blocking the prying of Celestial Masters below the ninth grade.
And she was just chatting with them through the formation like this?
Human Emperor realm, confirmed!
Goatee was completely at a loss.
Their fear of the Venerable wasn't just because of the puppet talismans, but also because of his Human Emperor realm strength.
By the same logic, they would also feel fear towards Qi Quan.
Qi Quan hovered outside the formation shield. Her powerful, matchless spiritual sense pierced through the formation, swept across the platform, and pressed straight towards the evil cultivator leader's cave dwelling!
The cave dwelling's gate was hidden deep within the cliff, constructed with imposing grandeur.
But so what?
No matter how luxurious the cave dwelling, it could only hide on a sheer cliff face, living as a rat scurrying in the shadows for decades.
That gate, inlaid with gold and jade, was bought with the bones of countless people.
Qi Quan's expression turned cold. She retreated some distance, the blade in her palm suddenly lengthening. Spiritual power poured into her hands as she slowly raised them.
The golden sun hung in the sky, the heavens vast and boundless.
The long blade, with earth-shattering, sky-propping force, struck the ninth-grade formation fiercely. The moment the pale-white blade edge collided with the formation shield, the formation crumbled with a roar, and the platform protected by it also turned to dust, scattering down the cliff.
Goatee Celestial Master and Scarred Celestial Master had no time to escape before they were severely wounded by Qi Quan's single blade strike.
Taking advantage of the collapsing rocks, they hastily swallowed several pills, downing both spirit-replenishing and blood-boosting pills together.
As soon as the blood-boosting pills entered their stomachs, their entire spiritual power began to boil.
Their eyes turned red, their auras climbing level by level, actually directly advancing from ninth-grade second tier to Human Emperor realm first tier.
They hovered before the cave dwelling, blocking Qi Quan's path.
As long as the Venerable succeeded in his advancement, they wouldn't have to hide anymore in the future!
[Big Boss, they're at Human Emperor realm now? Two Human Emperors, can you handle them?] The system was extremely worried.
Before Qi Quan could answer, another group of people suddenly appeared not far away!
It was Hengfeng Sect's Yu Lanzhi and several eighth-grade elders.
Yin Yi couldn't help but roar, "Yu Lanzhi, what are you doing?!"
Yu Lanzhi ignored his angry shout and immediately joined the evil cultivator forces fighting against the officials.
The Celestial Masters still in the thick of battle were shocked.
The third major sect of the Mystic Sect was actually colluding with evil cultivators!
But upon closer thought, this place wasn't far from Hengfeng Sect indeed.
The evil cultivator organization's largest base relied on and was shielded by a major sect, hiding right under the Mystic Sect's nose for so many years. How could this not provoke fury?!
There were even Hengfeng Sect disciples among the fighting Celestial Masters.
They simply couldn't believe that their sect's leader and elders were actually evil cultivators.
Their faith crumbled, morale plummeting.
This was precisely the effect Yu Lanzhi wanted. He seized the moment to strike at the group of lower-grade Celestial Masters, thinking he could kill a few to dampen their spirits. Who would have thought the lower-grade Celestial Masters didn't die?
His immense spiritual power had only left minor wounds on them?!
Could it be that every single one of them was wearing a high-grade defensive talisman?
Defensive talismans, of course, they had.
But the greatest credit still goes to the Unity Talisman.
Spiritual power shared, damage distributed equally.
The damage inflicted by Yu Lanzhi would be severe on a single person, but when spread across everyone, it was merely a drizzle.
He refused to believe it and attacked the low-level Celestial Master again.
A peachwood hammer suddenly smashed towards his face.
"How shameless." Di Meng brandished the peachwood hammer, sneering, "A dignified sect leader, yet you only target low-level Celestial Masters? Utterly disgraceful!"
Yu Lanzhi easily countered his technique, scoffing disdainfully, "You're merely a level five... You've advanced?!"
He revealed a look of astonishment.
"Yan Huai is already level seven, how could I possibly still be stuck at level five?" Di Meng retorted sharply, "Unlike you, old man, who only reached level seven after all these years. Your talent is truly worrying!"
Yu Lanzhi's face twisted with rage as he raised his sword to stab at him.
Di Meng showed not a trace of fear.
He was inherently a powerhouse capable of challenging those above his level. After training with the Investigation Department, his combat skills and experience were far beyond anything Yu Lanzhi could match.
Level six versus level seven sounded unbelievable, but for Di Meng, it was far from impossible.
Back during the Profound Sect Grand Competition, he fought Yan Huai, who was at level six, with his own level five cultivation. He lost, yes, but he held out for a long time. Moreover, Yan Huai's innate talent far surpassed Yu Lanzhi's; the two were simply incomparable.
On another front, an eighth-level elder from the Hengfeng Sect joined the fray, putting immense pressure on Fu Jiuchong, Yin Yi, and the others.
The Hengfeng Sect had chosen their moment to strike perfectly.
Had they appeared before Qi Quan broke the cliff-face formation, she could have wiped them out with a single major technique.
But now, after Qi Quan destroyed the formation, she was forced to face two Human Sovereign realm cultivators who had taken Bloodburst Pills.
With the Human Sovereign realm experts keeping her occupied, she had no spare attention to manage this side.
They were sure to win!
By the cliff, Goatee and Scar stood facing Qi Quan.
Neither side made the first move.
Qi Quan's spiritual sense enveloped the entire mountain range, yet it couldn't pierce through the cave abode's entrance.
The person inside was also at the Human Sovereign realm, likely even at its peak. It made sense that their spiritual sense could block hers.
She had never fought a Human Sovereign realm Celestial Master before. However, she had destroyed Ghost Generals, whose rank among ghosts was equivalent to the Human Sovereign realm among cultivators, so she wasn't entirely without experience.
The Ghost General from her past life had reached the third tier, not too different from the peak of the Human Sovereign realm.
...
Qi Quan raised her long blade, her fighting spirit blazing like a raging fire, growing fiercer and fiercer.
The terrifying aura she emitted not only made the two before her tremble but even affected the Celestial Masters below the cliff.
Everyone involuntarily ceased fighting, looking up at the immensely powerful figure hovering in mid-air.
Someone couldn't help but ask, "Wasn't it said that Senior Qi was proficient in the sword path? Why does she prefer using a blade?"
"At her level, the weapon probably doesn't matter anymore."
There was no difference between a blade and a sword.
An investigator worried, "Senior Qi is using her major technique already. When the leader of the evil cultivators emerges, won't she be..."
"She won't." Ning Zhi stated firmly.
"Why not?" someone asked. "They're both Human Sovereign realm, and that villain might even be at a higher level than Senior Qi."
Ning Zhi smiled. "Look at Di Meng fighting Yu Lanzhi. Is he at a disadvantage?"
"No!"
Their eyes lit up.
That's right. Geniuses capable of cross-level challenges weren't unique to Di Meng in this world.
In mid-air, the long blade transformed into a gigantic blade shadow. With a force that could crush everything in its path, it struck with overwhelming dominance towards the two drug-enhanced Human Sovereign realm cultivators.
Bathed in sunlight, the pale white spiritual power took on a golden halo, like a blade of virtue carrying justice, cleaving towards the utterly wicked fiends.
Goatee and Scar wore expressions of terror.
At this moment, only one thought remained in their minds—
Run! Run fast! Get away now!
Their Human Sovereign realm potential erupted. Disregarding everything else, they fled in panic in opposite directions.
The pale golden blade shadow descended.
The long blade spanned half the sky. No matter how fast they fled, they couldn't escape the range of the blade shadow in an instant.
BOOM—
In an instant, the earth shook and the mountains trembled. The cliff face was split open by a massive gash from the long blade. Rubble flew in all directions, dust filled the air, and the cave abode hidden behind the layered rock walls was finally revealed before everyone.
Not far away, the two Human Sovereign realm cultivators turned to dust, their forms and spirits utterly annihilated.
Silence.
Boundless silence.
Everyone held their breath, not daring to disturb the figure in mid-air, majestic as a mountain peak.
In their hearts, they were screaming wildly, shrieking wildly, doing all the things they didn't dare to do in that moment.
Someone couldn't hold back, overwhelmed by the scene, tears streaming down their face as they sobbed,
"Wuwuwu... I've truly seen a deity."
