Rising Fame, White Clad Startling Swan

The mountains rose and fell, and the breeze stirred the forest, creating gentle waves of green.

Beside a mountain stream, Fang Hanyu leaned against a large rock while Zhou Xue tended to his wounds. Zhou Xingshi stood not far away, keeping watch on their surroundings.

"Two hours have passed, why hasn't he caught up? Did something happen to him?"

Zhou Xingshi couldn't help but look back and ask. His own life was tied to Fang Wang's, and he feared most for Fang Wang's safety.

As Zhou Xue bandaged Fang Hanyu's wounds, she calmly replied, "Don't worry, he's not dead."

"How can you be so sure?"

"I have my ways of knowing, just like I knew this kid wasn't dead before."

Zhou Xue's answer stunned Zhou Xingshi. He recalled that before they found Fang Hanyu, Zhou Xue had been certain he was still alive.

Could this woman have tampered with Fang Wang and Fang Hanyu?

Although Fang Wang was stronger in Zhou Xingshi's mind, he felt Zhou Xue was more dangerous and unfathomable.

After a while, Zhou Xue stood up and looked down at Fang Hanyu. "Your body is ruined. I have a way to let you be reborn, even stronger than before, but it will involve great suffering. Are you willing?"

Hearing this, Fang Hanyu immediately looked up, gritting his teeth. "I am! I don't want to be a cripple for the rest of my life! I fear no amount of pain!"

"Good. When Fang Wang returns, I'll take you somewhere to treat you."

After speaking, Zhou Xue walked to the stream and crouched down to wash her hands.

Zhou Xingshi was secretly curious. Could Fang Hanyu truly be reborn even after such severe injuries?

He was even more curious about Zhou Xue's origins. It was clear that before joining the Taiyuan Sect, Zhou Xue already had a profound cultivation background.

Afterward, the three of them waited by the mountain stream for Fang Wang's return.

About half an hour later, they finally heard a sound of breaking through the air. Zhou Xue and Zhou Xingshi immediately turned their heads, and then both breathed a sigh of relief, their faces breaking into smiles.

The arrival was none other than Fang Wang.

Fang Wang arrived on a Flying Sword, holding the Qing Jun sword in his hand. The blade was stained with blood. Not only that, but his white robes had turned into blood-soaked garments, and his waist was adorned with blood-red pouches, all of which were Storage Bags.

His appearance was terrifying, but Zhou Xue and Zhou Xingshi weren't worried. As long as he could still fly his sword, it meant he wasn't dead.

Fang Wang landed, and his Flying Sword disappeared into his Storage Bag. Zhou Xingshi quickly walked up, asking with concern, "Are you alright?"

For some reason, Fang Wang felt a bit awkward. Shouldn't Zhou Xue have been the first to rush over and check on him?

Why was it a man who came to show concern first?

"I'm fine, not injured. But my Spiritual Energy is almost depleted," Fang Wang replied.

Even the Grand Perfection Mysterious Sun Scripture was nearing its end after more than two hours of intense combat, especially since his opponents were all cultivators.

Zhou Xingshi nodded and then stepped aside.

Zhou Xue walked over, examined his body, and asked with a smile, "How was Li Hongshuang's strength? Fighting him should have broadened your horizons, right?"

Seeing Fang Wang return safely, she felt a surge of pride. After all, she had taught Fang Wang his cultivation methods, and in her heart, she already considered Fang Wang her disciple.

To escape from the Green Cicada Valley's top genius in less than a year of cultivation was an absolutely formidable achievement!

"He was very strong. It truly broadened my horizons," Fang Wang nodded.

Zhou Xingshi was secretly astonished. As someone from a noble family, he understood Li Hongshuang better. Li Hongshuang was not of the same generation as them. Fang Wang had only recently reached the Spirit Sculpting Realm, yet Li Hongshuang, with his monstrous talent and longer cultivation time, couldn't defeat Fang Wang. This made him admire Fang Wang even more.

Zhou Xue examined his body, and after confirming he wasn't poisoned, she finally relaxed.

"By the way, is there any way to prevent a head from decaying? I'm waiting to bring it back to the Taiyuan Sect to earn contribution points," Fang Wang suddenly asked, then took down a cloth-wrapped bundle from behind his waist.

Zhou Xue frowned. "At a moment of life and death, you're still thinking about such things? Aren't you afraid Li Hongshuang will catch up to you?"

"Not afraid."

"Besides Li Hongshuang, there are no outstanding figures among the Green Cicada Valley disciples in this area. They are all under Li Hongshuang's command. The Green Cicada Valley probably intends to groom Li Hongshuang's faction. What use is the head of a subordinate? Throw it away."

Zhou Xue waved her hand, only then realizing that Fang Wang was only seventeen years old. His youthful nature was still a bit immature.

"Coincidentally, it is Li Hongshuang's head."

Fang Wang raised an eyebrow, his face calm, but inwardly he was ecstatic.

"What?"

Zhou Xue froze. Zhou Xingshi also turned to look at Fang Wang, his eyes wide.

Fang Wang flicked his right hand, and Li Hongshuang's head fell, landing neck-first on the ground. It stood upright, its eyes wide open in a death stare that was chilling.

"It really is Li Hongshuang... You..."

After clearly seeing Li Hongshuang's face, Zhou Xue looked up at Fang Wang, her eyes filled with unconcealed surprise.

Zhou Xingshi had the expression of someone who had seen a ghost.

Li Hongshuang, leading hundreds of Green Cicada Valley disciples, was actually beheaded by Fang Wang alone?

How was that possible!

Even after seeing Li Hongshuang's face, Zhou Xingshi still found it unbelievable.

"When you fought him, what was his strength like? Did he use his natal treasure spirit? His natal treasure spirit is a large banner..." Zhou Xue asked, frowning.

Fang Wang rolled his eyes and said irritably, "Of course. Did you think I killed a fake? It wasn't easy to kill him. I fought with almost all my strength."

Zhou Xue took a deep breath and stopped talking. She crouched down, took out a medicine bottle from her storage bag, and sprinkled powder on Li Hongshuang's head.

Fang Wang turned his head to look at Fang Hanyu not far away and asked, "Hanyu, I avenged you. I killed at least three hundred cultivators from Green Cicada Valley along the way. What do you think, brother, am I being a good friend?"

Fang Hanyu didn't know what to say. He had already understood how strong Li Hongshuang was. To think that such a powerful existence was killed by Fang Wang, he felt that thanking him would be pretentious and praising him would be hollow. He could only nod slightly.

Fang Wang watched Zhou Xue, Zhou Xingshi, and Fang Hanyu all fall silent, and he couldn't help but pout.

Their reactions aren't big enough!

Shouldn't they be exclaiming in shock, calling him terrifyingly powerful?

"Right, before I left, I burned Li Hongshuang's body. He shouldn't be able to revive, right? After all, cultivators can possess bodies. I was worried about some kind of resurrection method." Fang Wang asked as he saw Zhou Xue stand up.

As he spoke, he squatted down and rewrapped the spoils of war.

Zhou Xue replied, "His head is with you. If his body was truly burned to ashes, then he definitely cannot be reborn."

The True Mysterious Sun Fire from the Mysterious Sun Scripture...

Zhou Xue sighed inwardly. Being engulfed by the True Mysterious Sun Fire would surely leave no trace of bones.

Who would have thought that the future Valley Master of Green Cicada Valley would die like this...

She suddenly felt that Fang Wang's existence would cause tremendous changes in the future. Coupled with the fact that she herself had reincarnated, the future would undoubtedly be shaped by them.

Afterward, Fang Wang went down to the river to take a bath. After changing into clean robes, they continued on their journey. Zhou Xue said she wanted to take them to a place with a significant opportunity and also to treat Fang Hanyu's injuries there.

On the road ahead, the atmosphere was very subtle.

Zhou Xue and Zhou Xingshi kept looking at Fang Wang but didn't speak, which made him a little unbearable.

Little did they know, while they appeared calm on the surface, their hearts were still in turmoil.

Zhou Xue thought to herself that because of her, a monstrous figure who never appeared in her previous life had suddenly emerged.

Zhou Xingshi was simply stunned. They both reached the Spirit Sculpting Realm on the same day, so why was the gap so huge?

In an inn, Gu Li sat at a table with three fellow disciples, drinking tea. Every table on the first floor was occupied.

"There are really a lot of people. The legacy of the Jihao Sect has completely spread. That's good, the more people there are, the easier it will be for us to complete the rescue mission," Zhou Bo sighed.

They were all disciples of the Third Meridian and had formed a team.

Gu Li, after being politely refused by Fang Wang, was still worried and followed Zhou Bo and the other two who were forming a team at the time.

She wore a bamboo hat and a yellow dress, looking very much like a wandering swordswoman. With her head slightly lowered, her face was hidden.

Just then, a man in plain clothes rushed in and shouted, "Something big has happened! Something big has happened! Li Hongshuang, a Personal Disciple of Green Cicada Valley, known as the strongest genius among the current disciples of Green Cicada Valley, has been killed by a disciple of Taiyuan Sect!"

The entire inn erupted at this announcement.

The diners here were not ordinary people; they were all cultivators. Most of them were rogue cultivators, or perhaps disciples of the Nine Great Sects disguised as rogue cultivators.

"That Li Hongshuang is at the ninth level of the Spirit Sculpting Realm. Many Personal Disciples of Taiyuan Sect might not be his match, and killing him is equivalent to declaring war on Green Cicada Valley!"

"Li Hongshuang is dead, this is a huge deal."

"Tsk tsk, Li Hongshuang doesn't just have Green Cicada Valley behind him, but also the Li family. A thousand years ago, the dynasty of this land was established by their Li family."

"Hmph, dead is dead. Just a Demonic Cultivator."

The rogue cultivators in the inn discussed animatedly, and then someone asked the man who delivered the news, "Waiter, who exactly killed Li Hongshuang? Do you have any more information?"

It turned out the man delivering the news was the inn's waiter. He put his hands on his hips and chuckled, "I do. It is said that the Taiyuan Sect disciple who killed Li Hongshuang used the Startling Swan Divine Sword Art. Do you know the origin of the Startling Swan Divine Sword Art?"

Upon hearing this, someone immediately stood up and said, "I know. This is the unique skill of Yang Yuanzi, the Peak Master of the Third Meridian of Taiyuan Sect. A hundred years ago, he used this sword art to forcefully enter Green Cicada Valley and retreat unharmed. Could it be Yang Yuanzi who made the move? The Startling Swan Divine Sword Art is exclusively mastered by Yang Yuanzi, and I've never heard of any Taiyuan Sect disciple mastering this sword art."

"Half right, half wrong. The person who killed Li Hongshuang did use the Startling Swan Divine Sword Art, but he was very young, definitely not Yang Yuanzi. According to the surviving disciples of Green Cicada Valley, the person was dressed in white and executed the Startling Swan Divine Sword Art to the level of thirty-two swords. He is definitely an unknown genius of Taiyuan Sect. Now, those Green Cicada Valley disciples call that person the White Clad Startling Swan. Green Cicada Valley has already dispatched great cultivators of the Spirit Pill Realm to investigate the whereabouts of the White Clad Startling Swan."

The waiter shook his head, his words causing the rogue cultivators in the inn to start discussing again.

Zhou Bo turned back and asked in a low voice, "White Clad Startling Swan? Who in the Third Meridian inherited this?"

He had been in the Third Meridian for over ten years and had never heard of anyone receiving Yang Yuanzi's true inheritance. Even the eldest disciple, Li Yu, had not obtained the Startling Swan Divine Sword Art.

The two Third Meridian disciples shook their heads. Although Gu Li remained silent, for some reason, she inexplicably thought of someone.

Could it be him?

It's impossible...

How long has he been in the Spirit Sculpting Realm?