A Sense of Belonging

The tense and stalemate was instantly broken by the sudden appearance of this 'thief'.

Everyone immediately sprang into action. After all, their ultimate goal in dealing with the Xuanxiao Sect was to obtain the final Three Yuan Purple Gold. Therefore, they would never do anything that would benefit someone else.

This is precisely why Ji Xueruo felt something was amiss; this was not the best time for You Su to make his move.

He had been hiding for so long; he should have quietly sought an opportunity to break through when these people were fighting most fiercely, instead of waiting until their conflict erupted.

His sudden appearance at this moment would only draw everyone's attention to him, making him the true target of public criticism.

But given You Su's reserved yet shrewd personality, she would never fail to understand this.

Unless... he's trying to draw fire for the Xuanxiao Sect!

Ji Xueruo bit her lower lip, muttered "acting on impulse" under her breath, and then immediately caught up with the group chasing You Su.

"Quick! Grab him!" someone shouted, their voice filled with intense anger and anxiety.

You Su's figure moved like lightning, appearing at the forefront of the chaotic crowd in the blink of an eye.

Everyone wanted to catch the thief who had taken the opportunity to escape, which caused the previously seemingly harmonious and orderly relationships among them to collapse.

Before the fastest person from each faction could even get close to You Su, they were already scrambling to compete for 'second place'.

A barrage of dangerous attacks rained down on You Su, who was leading the charge, but to everyone's surprise, even under such immense pressure, the black-clad youth remained as agile as a fish in the rain.

Seeing this, Tong Hui from the Southern Yang Continent's eyes flashed with a sinister glint, and he roared angrily:

"Let's take him down together! Don't fucking push!"

At his command, the men at the forefront understood immediately, spreading out in an orderly fashion, their hands constantly condensing Mystic Qi, their swords clanging.

The group of more than twenty people resembled a raging torrent, chasing after You Su's retreating figure.

The Three Yuan Purple Gold Restriction was no ordinary object; once past the halfway point, movement became increasingly difficult.

You Su gritted his teeth and exerted all his strength to barely dodge the attacks. In fact, he, being at the forefront, felt the power of the restriction more deeply than anyone else.

He could clearly sense that this resistance did not come from any external objects such as Formation Technique, but was genuinely emanating from the body of the Three Yuan Purple Gold.

The further they went, the more their feet sank into the mud, and even their breathing became suffocating, as if the Three Yuan Purple Gold was some kind of legendary sacred artifact, possessing a powerful pressure that could make people bow down and submit.

You Su couldn't help but curse inwardly, wondering how a pile of stones could be so mystically lifelike.

Suddenly, a long chain came hurtling towards them!

At the last second, You Su barely managed to duck. The sides of the chain were covered with blades that gleamed eerily in the rain, causing a barely perceptible tear to appear in the clothes on You Su's forearm in the blink of an eye, from which bright red blood seeped out.

You Su felt secretly fortunate; in fact, the fact that he was caught up here was already beyond his expectations.

To win the Three Yuan Purple Gold, it's impossible to simply rely on speed to surpass everyone else, so You Su never fantasized about always being ahead of everyone else.

The pursuers had already arrived on horseback, the chain was suddenly pulled back, and You Su dodged it with a light spin while sitting cross-legged.

The owner of the Chain Blade was none other than Long Chiyu from the Northern Ao Continent!

Her weapon was far more ruthless than she was; it was a Chain Blade strung together like a complete dragon spine.

In this brief exchange, You Su could feel the formidable strength of the Chain Blade's owner. He couldn't help but marvel inwardly that while there were many mediocre talents on the island, none of those who could stand here were ordinary.

Others followed suit with their own tactics, including a giant golden gong that descended from the sky, intending to smash You Su to pieces on the spot.

You Su's heart tightened. At his current speed, he couldn't possibly dodge the golden gong with his feet. So he had no choice but to leap to the side without hesitation, using the force to push off the ground. His body shot out like an arrow, narrowly avoiding the fatal blow.

"Even a coward like you dares to try and take shortcuts?"

Kui Hanyin spoke coldly and sternly, and with a wave of his hand, the golden gong that had smashed a small crater in the ground flew back into his hand on its own.

Simply hiding under such circumstances of impeded movement is not an effective strategy, You Su immediately drew his Ink Pine Sword to prepare for battle. The Ink Pine Sword was also humming, as if sensing its master's powerful fighting spirit.

Fortunately, the environmental limitations were not limited to You Su alone; in such a situation, the power of everyone's moves would be reduced.

You Su unleashed three consecutive sword strikes, their momentum overlapping, managing to block the attacks of the next two young prodigies.

Unable to get close, Tong Hui realized his opponent was only at the lower level of the Water Condensing Lower Realm, and a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes. He stared intently, clenched his fist, and said coldly:

"Your Xuanxiao Sect is really cunning!"

Kui Hanyin was Demon Race and clearly knew little about human affairs, so he asked, "Is this person from the Xuanxiao Sect?"

"Indeed, if I'm not mistaken, this person is You Su, the second disciple of the Lotus Sword Venerable." Tong Hui narrowed her gleaming eyes. "We agreed to settle the matter fairly, but your Xuanxiao Sect resorted to underhanded tactics? We almost got tricked by you."

"Fair?"

You Su curled her lip and sneered, really not wanting to waste any more words with Tong Hui.

Everyone was vying for the Three Yuan Purple Gold to exchange for the inheritance. If they had any tricks up their sleeves, You Su wouldn't mind using them openly. In the face of a struggle for interests, one couldn't simply judge others as good or bad. It was just that Tong Hui's hypocritical face, wanting both fortuitous opportunity and fame, really disgusted him.

Tong Hui seemed to sense You Su's disdain. He was about to teach this low-level youth a lesson when he suddenly frowned.

The group was now about a third of the way from the altar, which was the closest they had ever been to the Three Yuan Purple Gold. The rest of the group had finally caught up.

Tong Hui quickly realized that this was a golden opportunity. Instead of waiting for everyone to catch up and regroup, she should take advantage of the excuse of teaching You Su a lesson to seize the chance to storm the altar!

Looking at the Three Yuan Purple Gold not far away, his desire stirred within him. He was confident that he could reach the Three Yuan Purple Gold before the spearheads were aimed at him!

But the next moment, he suddenly sensed something was wrong, and he swung his hand sharply to slash at his own legs.

Two white snakes, radiating an eerie beauty, were coiled around his calves. The next instant, a clear female voice rang out:

"Tong Hui is the first one! He also wants to sneak away!"

Tong Hui's eyes widened in surprise as he looked at You Su, only to see that You Su had actually used a feint to advance. At this moment, he himself was actually the one standing at the very front of the twenty-odd people.

He knew very well that the reason these people were chasing him so recklessly was not because they hated You Su for running away, but because they hated that You Su was standing at the very front!

They weren't after You Su; they were after whoever was standing at the front!

For the first time Tong Hui felt a profound sense of unease, as if he were being watched closely. His idea of running away had barely formed in his mind and hadn't even been put into action yet, so how could someone have seen through his thoughts?

Someone deliberately framed me!

Tong Hui immediately understood the reason: someone had deliberately set fire to You Su in order to save him!

He spat and cursed, but unfortunately he didn't have time to carefully find the source of the sound. Not only the people chasing after him, but even Kui Hanyin and Long Chiyu, who were right next to him, cast suspicious glances at him.

Even more difficult to withstand than the oppressive aura was the siege of twenty people of the same realm. Tong Hui made a decisive move, immediately leaping into the air, her lips moving as if she was about to Hand Seals strike.

His mind worked incredibly fast. The only way to avoid being attacked by so many people was to turn the tables on someone else!

And You Su was the best person he could use to prove his innocence!

He suddenly conjured a cyan spear from his palm using his Mystic Qi, and with a sound like the air being torn apart, the spear tip pointed directly at You Su.

You Su never liked head-on combat, so he quickly dodged, but Qingming's spear followed closely behind, as if it had anticipated his movements and was coming straight at him.

You Su's eyebrows furrowed. In order to maintain a constant threat to the altar, he couldn't really retreat too far. It seemed that within the limited area, he had no choice but to take this attack head-on.

Just as You Su was about to offer his sword as a parting gift, a talisman suddenly flew over, and a powerful Gang Qi burst forth from it, preventing the Void-Shattering Spear from advancing an inch.

You Su quickly guessed who it was— Fu Heng!

Several talismans shimmered with an enduring light even in the rain, and a figure blocked You Su's path.

Tong Hui gritted her teeth and roared, "Kill the people from the Xuanxiao Sect first!!"

Upon hearing his command, the cultivators of the Southern Yang Continent did not hesitate any longer and immediately launched an attack.

The pursuing crowd quickly descended into chaos, and the conflicts between the various forces intensified completely. Under the immense pressure, the battles between cultivators lost much of the graceful back-and-forth combat, and instead saw more intense, brutal clashes.

A vast, river-like gust of wind sliced through the crowd, and Duanmu Jin's domineering blade was finally drawn. He looked lean, but he was almost the most excited about the current situation among everyone present.

Swords have their own sword intent, and sabers have their own Blade Intent. Duanmu Jin felt as if his entire body's Essence Blood was burning. He had already touched the threshold of his own Blade Intent. And this time, he was determined to cross that threshold!

Clearly, in Tong Hui's eyes, the threat posed by You Su was far less than that posed by Fu Heng. His eyes never left Fu Heng, and his aura continued to rise.

You Su couldn't stay under someone else's protection, but Fu Heng seemed unwilling to give him a chance to make a move. Despite being a talisman master, he charged towards Tong Hui like a suicide bomber, covered in talismans.

You Su was slightly taken aback. He was certain that Fu Heng had turned back before rushing out. Although he couldn't see the other man's eyes, Fu Heng was definitely looking at him!

In the Unseen, he seemed to sense that some kind of mission had been passed down to him.

In fact, Fu Heng understood You Su's intention the moment You Su appeared. He had been secretly observing the movements of all the Xuanxiao Sect disciples. In terms of age, he was the senior brother of all the Xuanxiao Sect members who entered the island, and he had been fulfilling his responsibilities as a senior brother since entering the island.

He understood that You Su could have waited until no one was paying attention to him before making his move, but You Su exposed himself prematurely in order to draw the attention of the Xuanxiao Sect.

The Xuanxiao Sect became the target of everyone's criticism, which brought great threats, but it also made the members of the Xuanxiao Sect more united. With their strength, they shouldn't have fallen behind Tong Hui and the others for too long, but the reason they arrived a step late was that they were secretly confirming a consensus!

Let's hold everyone back so that You Su can seize the opportunity to obtain the Three Yuan Purple Gold!

Each and every one of them is a renowned prodigy. Their sense of collective honor cannot outweigh their personal pride, and everyone wants to be the most dazzling one.

The people of the Xuanxiao Sect are different. The enormous external threat has united them as one, and they are content to leave their legacy in the Xuanxiao Sect. They are completely unlike the other factions whose members are driven by selfish motives.

Hearing the roars of the Xuanxiao Sect disciples, You Su felt a surge of emotion. He had always been an invisible figure in the Xuanxiao Sect. Rather than calling himself a disciple of the Xuanxiao Sect, he felt more like a disciple of Lotus Peak. But at this moment, he truly felt a sense of belonging to the Xuanxiao Sect.

"What are you standing there for! Let's go!"

That familiar female voice rang out again. You Su suddenly turned around and saw Ji Xueruo, her hair disheveled by the rain, her eyes filled with urgency.

The voice that immediately shifted the firepower to him earlier was also from Ji Xueruo, who had always been at the forefront of the team. Her identity as Demon Race attracted many enemies, but the girl continued to fight and advance, all to protect You Su's progress.

In the pouring rain, You Su could barely see the outside scenery through his sunglasses, but he could see those who wanted to help him very clearly.

Without further hesitation, he gripped the Ink Pine Sword tightly in his hand and charged toward the Three Yuan Purple Gold that was within reach!