Sword Light Under the Black Mist

The women and children guarding the small town were still kowtowing, begging the Immortal Lords for mercy.

But even if they all kowtowed until their heads were broken, none of the passing cultivators cared.

At this moment, Ji the Fierce Bandit, carrying his sword, walked towards them and picked up two pieces of silver from the ground, tucking them into his embrace.

Seeing this, the women and children with dull eyes immediately widened theirs, then knelt and kowtowed. The stone bricks trembled from their impacts, but they shivered, daring not to speak.

They didn't know if the Immortal Lord before them would spend the money or if he genuinely intended to use it to save people, but they dared not ask, only continuing to kowtow.

"Stop kowtowing, I'm here to make money."

"I've never seen people pay to hire someone and then kowtow..."

"But you're really lucky to have run into a poor devil like me."

An old woman, kneeling at the very front, stared blankly when she heard his words.

This was because the Immortal Lord before them had only taken two pieces of silver, leaving most of it on the ground.

She was somewhat panicked and couldn't help but push the silver forward, hoping he would take it all, as long as he could save her son.

The other women and children, like her, kept pushing the silver on the ground forward, then continued to kowtow.

"No need, what I took just now is enough."

"Don't immortals always say our mortal lives are cheap? Then we won't need this much silver..."

Ji You muttered and walked forward along the thick malevolent energy, discovering that the desolate wild land was filled with Evil Seeds wandering everywhere.

Especially in the direction of the foothills, they were packed densely, stretching all the way to the wild path leading into the mountain.

These Evil Seeds should have been confined to the mountain, unable to leave due to distance restrictions, but they had slowly begun to move outwards.

On the other side of the wild path was a high slope, leading in another direction, which was the Hongshan Mine.

Perhaps sensing the presence of living people, the Evil Seeds wandering towards that area became even more numerous.

Ji You slowly approached the edge of the foothills and saw other Immortal Sect disciples gathered there, also hacking at Evil Seeds.

However, they were only killing those heading towards the mountain. Since they weren't interested in the mine, they were here because the malevolent energy restricted the circulation of Spirit Cores, making aerial travel inconvenient. They were clearing obstacles for entering the mountain tomorrow.

"There are too many, it's impossible to kill them all."

"But carving out a bloody path is still somewhat possible..."

"But if we only carve out a bloody path, it's still unknown if we can save the people."

Ji You stepped through the black mist, simultaneously summoning his sword. With leisurely grace, he pierced the hearts of two Evil Seeds.

Seeing this, the Immortal Sect disciples who were clearing the path were all stunned.

Then, they saw waves of whistling sword energy flashing continuously within the black mist, having already carved out thirty feet in the wilderness surrounded by Evil Seeds.

"Who is that person?"

"The attire is from the Celestial Academy."

"Why would someone from the Celestial Academy possess such powerful sword intent?"

Ji You didn't hear the discussions behind him; instead, he continuously swung his sword.

With a few rustling sounds, the Evil Seeds wandering on the periphery fell to the ground. He stepped over their charcoal-black corpses and continued towards the Hongshan Mine.

Further in, the Evil Seeds here had begun to become dense. Ji You didn't dare to be careless and waved his hand, summoning two more swords.

Just like that day at Wanzhuo Mountain, Ji You used sword waves to clear the path but never recalled his swords. Each time, he would pluck the fruits of victory while omitting unnecessary sword forms.

Then he moved in an arc, cutting down the Evil Seeds on both sides.

From the perspective of the Immortal Sect disciples on the periphery, they saw a hedgehog covered in swords, constantly thrusting forward, which was astonishing.

"It has the feel of a pig demon chopping trees."

"But it's a shame... this won't help with realm advancement."

"If it were a thousand-strike technique, maybe I could be Sect Master tomorrow..."

After several rounds, Ji You gradually began to grasp the consumption and replenishment speed of spiritual energy under this black mist.

Then, spiritual energy surged beneath his feet, and he shot out like lightning. The previously silent black mist was suddenly filled with surging sword waves, like splashing rosy light.

It was indeed terrifying that malevolent energy could suppress a cultivator's Spirit Core.

But what was even more terrifying was that he had no Spirit Core, only fragments.

After traveling a hundred meters with his sword, Ji You thrust his sword through the last Evil Seed. Panting slightly, he used his qi to land on a small tree and looked towards the distant mine.

The Hongshan Mine had a high wall built earlier, and the Evil Seeds were gathered outside the wall, unable to enter.

But below the high wall was a row of shacks, which were now mostly torn apart.

Upon closer inspection, scattered pieces of flesh could be seen on the ground in front of the shacks, mixed with bright red.

On the night of New Year's Day, many miners must have been celebrating inside the shacks, hoping for better days ahead, only to die there in the end.

"There are too many Evil Seeds. If these were released, the people of the Central Continent would be wiped out."

"However, these Evil Seeds seem different from those at Wanzhuo Mountain; there's no sign of them being controlled by someone."

"The Celestial Academy claims they came to investigate the Evil Seed, but they're fixated on entering the mountain. Other sects have followed for reasons unknown, which means there must be something else going on in there..."

"Once this job is done, I'll find a way to leave. This place isn't safe for long stays."

Ji You muttered to himself for a while before suddenly spotting another group of cultivators fighting their way through the Evil Seed horde. They seemed to be quite numerous.

They had clearly fought their way in from the outskirts, but by this point, they were stuck and couldn't advance an inch.

Even more interesting, there was a young man mixed in with these cultivators, looking about his own age. He was cowering with his head in his hands, constantly dodging, appearing utterly panicked.

The other cultivators were shielding him, seemingly intending to retreat the way they came.

But unfortunately, these Evil Seeds weren't static targets. The path they had carved out on their way in was now completely blocked by the charging horde.

Amidst the roars and collisions, the entire group was scattered. Two were even swarmed by Evil Seeds, pinned to the ground and being torn apart.

The young man was in a state of helpless panic, his face deathly pale. He was about to be pounced on by the Evil Seeds behind him, his life hanging by a thread.

Seeing this, Ji You took out his bow and arrows from the Green Jade Gourd, drew the string taut, and fired.

Swish! The Evil Seed was shot through the head, the arrow flying past the young man's neck.

Saved, the young man was shaken for a long time. He immediately turned to look at Ji You, blinked in surprise, and then bowed.

He's quite polite. Otherwise, I would have charged him a hundred taels for the rescue.

Ji You muttered, but in less than a moment, his expression suddenly changed.

He had cleared the area earlier; there was an open space in front of him with no Evil Seeds. Now, he saw that clever young man sprinting towards him, attracting a swarm of Evil Seeds behind him.

"Damn it, he's trying to lure them to me?"