Wan Zhang was missing an arm, his body covered in blood, looking horrifyingly mutilated. Sun Xian casually fed him two elixir pills and asked in a grave tone, "Zhang Sixth Master, who exactly hurt you?"
"Zhang Yan, it’s Zhang Yan! He’s already killed Jiulang and the others. Everyone, he killed everyone... killed them all..." Truly believing that Zhang Yan would strike him down with his sword, Wan Zhang had long been scared out of his wits, tears and snot streaming down his face as he fled for his life. At this moment, he was already rambling incoherently.
"Zhang Yan?" Sun Xian’s heart jolted. Jiulang was also a member of her Sun family. Hearing this news of his death, she was undoubtedly grieved, but she was even more astonished and suspicious of something else: wasn’t Zhang Yan supposed to have already fallen out of power? How could he still act so audaciously, killing people and then barging in here? This was utterly reckless, brazenly defying all norms.
At that moment, seeing a streak of blue tunneling light charging toward them, Sun Xian, who was a decisive person, set aside irrelevant thoughts. She handed Wan Zhang to her subordinates for safekeeping and shouted as she activated her tunneling light to intercept, "Zhang Yan, you..."
After Zhang Yan resolved himself to enter a dead array, in the eyes of everyone, he became a man destined for death. But who would have thought that as long as the deadly formation remained unbroken, no matter how outrageous his actions were, the sect leader would surely protect him. Right now was when he was utterly unrestrained, his ferocity blazing to the heavens. For the Six Rivers and Four Islands to come provoke him at this moment was truly meeting their misfortune.
Seeing Sun Xian now, Zhang Yan had no intention to waste words with her. He raised his hand, and a streak of sword light slashed down upon her.
Sun Xian, who usually prided herself on her status, had intended to put on airs, but to her surprise, Zhang Yan didn’t say a single word and attacked immediately, treating her no differently than a mere passerby. Enraged, she sneered, "Ignorant wretch!"
With a flick of her wrist, she summoned a piece of White Silk into the air, merging it with the Xuan Guang from her body. In an instant, it expanded to a hundred zhang long and ten zhang wide, transforming into a floating ribbon resembling white waves.
This "Resentment-breaking Life-terminating Belt" was perfectly compatible with her cultivation technique and had been sacrificially refined for over a decade. It excelled at entangling weapons and capturing dharma treasures. Any flying sword magical artifact that dared attack her would, once caught by the ribbon and dyed by the White Mirage Essence Qi within, sever its connection to its owner’s heart and spirit.
If cultivators were caught within it, it would take mere moments before the White Mirage Water Qi severed their spiritual breath, extinguished their divine sense, and turned them into a soulless puppet shell.
During the battle at Surging Wave Lake, Sun Xian had used this dharma treasure to annihilate several demon generals and over a thousand demon soldiers in one stroke. Even fellow cultivators avoided her, so her pride soared. With this treasure in her grasp, she considered herself unmatched among her peers. Naturally, she didn’t regard Zhang Yan as worthy of notice, expecting to subdue him with a single move and take him back for proper punishment.
But before she could fully deploy her formation, Zhang Yan let out a long howl, his body lunging forward. A flash of light enveloped him as he merged with his sword. A streak of sword light, more ferocious and intense than before, tore through the air, within the blink of an eye, reaching her front.
Sun Xian’s eyes flickered with a hint of panic. Although her dharma treasure was immensely powerful, it required elaborate maneuvering to wield effectively.
During the engagements at the Three Pools, she had always fought alongside others, surrounded by fellow disciples supporting her from all sides. She had never worried about anyone reaching her directly, allowing her plenty of time to calmly deploy her treasure. But now, without assistance and faced with Zhang Yan’s astonishingly fast sword escape light, she had no time for preparation. The overwhelming killing intent emanating from his sword light pressed upon her, and the image of Wan Zhang’s bloodied figure flashed in her mind, instilling fear that had already seized three parts of her heart.
"How is Zhang Yan so brutal? He’s already a dying man, I don’t need to clash with him to the death. I’ll avoid his edge for now," thought Sun Xian as she tossed the White Handkerchief forward, twisting her waist urgently to prepare her tunneling light for escape.
The White Handkerchief also contained a portion of her refined dharma treasure, infused with a drop of White Mirage Essence Water. She assumed it would at least buy her some time. Yet, as the sword light seemed poised to be enveloped by the cloth, it suddenly quivered and split apart into two beams, darting past the White Handkerchief in the blink of an eye and streaking toward her again.
Most of Sun Xian’s Xuan Guang had been imbued into the "Resentment-breaking Life-terminating Belt." Unable to reclaim it in time, she had no means left to block the attack. Her face turned pale as panic overtook her. In desperation, she raised her hand to guard herself, but the sword qi flashed, severing her palm clean off.
With a scream of anguish, she realized that Zhang Yan truly dared to fight to kill. She no longer cared for anything else and turned to flee frantically.
Zhang Yan’s eyes gleamed with icy indifference. With a flick of his hand, he unleashed a black water droplet, which struck Sun Xian square in the back with a resounding "Bang!" She spat out blood and immediately fell unconscious, plummeting into the tumultuous white waves below.
During the duel, Wan Zhang had been watching in terrified silence. As soon as he saw signs of Sun Xian’s inability to hold her ground, he didn’t stay to see the outcome. Pushing aside those nearby, he activated his tunneling light and bolted out of Bai Zhuo River, heading straight for the Second River, Jinyang River, within the Six Rivers.
Seeing the red glow fleeing across the sky, the corner of Zhang Yan’s lips curled slightly in a cold sneer. This was precisely what he intended. Otherwise, how could he penetrate the prohibitions of the Six Rivers and Four Islands once they sealed off their defenses? Today, he would trail Wan Zhang’s heels, storming through these mountain gates one by one!
Since entering the sect, he had treaded cautiously. Even when he struck, he had been forced to limit his actions within tolerable bounds due to sect rules. It was akin to a giant cramped within a tiny room, perpetually bound and unable to stretch freely. But the battle just now had been a cathartic release, sweeping away the pent-up frustration in his chest. Unaware of himself, he tilted his face to the heavens, releasing a long howl, akin to the roar of a dragon and the bellow of a tiger, resonating throughout the skies. His voice carried far and wide, not only reaching Bai Zhuo River but even faintly echoing across the other locations of the Six Rivers and Four Islands.
...(To be continued. If you enjoy this work, please visit Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation votes and monthly votes. Your support is my greatest motivation.)