As if Heaven Were Helping Them

More than two thousand Grandmasters, and over twenty Great Grandmasters.

This was already the vast majority of the foundations of the two Martial Arts Holy Lands, Heavenly Star Valley and Ice Frost City. Aside from a few aged Grandmaster Realm experts who could breathe their last at any moment, left behind at the mountain gate with Xiantian Realm Martial Artists to stand guard, all their other experts were here.

They were going all out, determined to settle everything in a single battle tonight.

They would strangle Lin Heng, an unparalleled existence destined to be invincible beneath the heavens, in the cradle, and knock Cloud Sword Palace—a Martial Arts Holy Land that had stood alongside them for centuries—down into the Dust.

Then, using this victory, they would raise their Sects to an even higher level.

"Martial Uncle Feng."

A Great Grandmaster who appeared middle-aged, calm and confident greeted Feng Yue, who had been keeping watch here for over a month.

He was An Nian, the Sect Master of Heavenly Star Valley. To ensure tonight's operation went smoothly, he had come personally.

"Greetings, Sect Master."

"Everything is proceeding according to plan. Those Demonic Heretics from the Kill Heng Society have already reached the vicinity of the Cloud Sword Palace Mountain Gate and are preparing to make their move."

Feng Yue spoke, reporting the current situation.

According to their plan, the first step had been to cause trouble in various places and draw away the experts guarding the Cloud Sword Palace Mountain Gate.

Then, tonight, the people of the Kill Heng Society would lead the charge, storming into the Cloud Sword Palace Mountain Gate to wear down the inner force of the Cloud Sword Palace Experts.

The experts of their two Martial Arts Holy Lands would follow behind, staging a show of the snipe and clam battling while the fisherman reaped the reward. At the appropriate moment, they would strike, sweep up those Demonic Heretics along with the entire Cloud Sword Palace in one net, and seize the greatest benefits.

Everything had gone smoothly. Cloud Sword Palace had been utterly unprepared, the experts guarding the mountain gate had been drawn away, Lin Heng—the primary target—had not fled, and the Demonic Heretics of the Kill Heng Society had reached the vicinity of the mountain gate and were ready to strike.

As the fishermen, they too had arrived at the battlefield and could cast their nets at any moment.

It was practically as if Heaven were helping them. It seemed even the heavens did not wish to see an overly invincible powerhouse born and intended to strangle him in advance.

"Then let's go."

An Nian, the Sect Master of Heavenly Star Valley, glanced at Shui Wenzhao, the Ice Frost City Sect Master standing not far away. Her hair was silver-white, yet her face remained ageless. The cold, beautiful woman said nothing.

The two had interacted often enough that An Nian knew this was simply her nature. She was not fond of speaking.

Since she had voiced no objection, it meant she agreed with everything happening now.

With that, An Nian directly gave the order and declared the operation underway.

Immediately, more than two thousand people deployed their Movement Arts, their figures seeming to melt into the wind as they silently made their way toward the Cloud Sword Palace Mountain Gate.

A distance of a hundred kilometers was nothing to Martial Artists at the Grandmaster Realm or above, but silently making their way over while conserving inner force still required some time.

Setting out now, they might arrive at precisely the most fitting moment.

Cloud Sword Palace Mountain Gate on New Year's Eve was somewhat desolate, with many disciples and sect members having left.

Viewed from above, there was not much light within the mountain gate. Unlike previous New Years, when the entire mountain gate had shone as bright as day, only the area around the Cloud Sword Palace Main Hall now glowed with lantern light.

Even so, the festive atmosphere remained strong.

Spring couplets had been pasted before the Cloud Sword Palace Main Hall, lanterns hung, and bonfires lit.

The Cloud Sword Palace experts who had remained at the mountain gate had gathered there, eating sliced meat dipped in steaming hot broth.

They chatted and laughed, raising cups and exchanging drinks as they celebrated the holiday.

Since only Martial Artists at the Grandmaster Realm and above remained to guard the mountain gate, they had ample confidence in their own strength. They had not even arranged for disciples to patrol, appearing utterly devoid of any sense of danger.

It was at this moment that a group from the Kill Heng Society concealed themselves and infiltrated the area before the Cloud Sword Palace Mountain Gate.

They were all dressed in black and wore masks, making it impossible for others to identify them.

Though they traveled together, they could clearly be divided into twelve groups. They were experts from the twelve major powers that formed the Kill Heng Society, along with experts they had invited to lend them a hand.

There were two thousand seven hundred and thirty-two people in total. Although the weakest Martial Artists were only at the Xiantian Fifteenth Level, the strongest among them were already Great Grandmasters.

Their strength varied greatly, but their auras were linked as they formed the Three Talents Formation. They could unleash Combat Power far greater than when fighting alone, and were absolutely not to be underestimated.

At this moment, the higher-ups of the Kill Heng Society were giving their subordinates a final mobilization.

They spoke through Sound Transmission into Secrecy:

"The people of Cloud Sword Palace are completely unprepared. Our move today is a once-in-a-thousand-years opportunity. Once we charge in, follow the plan. Head for the Cloud Sword Palace Main Hall immediately. Lin Heng is there, and so is the Treasure Vault."

"After killing Lin Heng, we will immediately rush into the Treasure Vault. Take the treasures and secret manuals, then flee. That way, all our long preparations will not have been in vain."

The higher-ups of the Kill Heng Society could see the threat Lin Heng would pose once he grew stronger, but telling that to the mid-level members and the Martial Artists who had come to lend aid was useless. They needed tangible benefits.

Thus, before the battle, they had granted many rewards and used the numerous treasures within the Cloud Sword Palace Mountain Gate as bait to motivate everyone.

"Yes."

At this moment, everyone silently nodded, wordlessly responding to their leaders.

At the thought of the treasures within the Cloud Sword Palace Mountain Gate, everyone's hearts surged with excitement.

A Martial Arts Holy Land! Normally, they dreamed of coming here, yet had never been given the chance. But now, led by many Peerless Experts, they had an opportunity to storm the mountain gate and seize its treasures.

If they could obtain some divine martial arts manual, Heaven and Earth Treasure, Spirit Pill or Miraculous Medicine, they too might become Peerless Experts in the future.

The opportunity to change their fate had arrived!

"Move."

Seeing that morale was high, the many higher-ups of the Kill Heng Society nodded in satisfaction and gave the order.

They immediately deployed their Movement Arts and slipped toward the core area of the Cloud Sword Palace Mountain Gate.

The more than two thousand people present were all Martial Artists. Though their hearts were filled with excitement, they still obeyed orders with absolute discipline, silently following behind.

They passed through the Cloud Sword Palace Mountain Gate, crossed the Disciple Residence of the front mountain, and arrived at the Training Ground in the mountain gate's core area. Across the broad Training Ground, they saw the relaxed Martial Artists celebrating the New Year.

They saw Lin Heng, the target they had come to kill today, seated in the main seat within the hall, eating the Reunion Dinner with everyone else.

The Kill Heng Society Members silently surrounded them, then struck without warning.

Throwing knives, darts, flying needles, and flying stones.

Countless concealed weapons swept toward Lin Heng like a canopy blotting out the sky. Empowered by powerful inner force, the projectiles shrieked through the air, their friction igniting the atmosphere as they fell like streaks of fire.

The more than two thousand experts no longer concealed themselves. After throwing out their concealed weapons to seal off Lin Heng's room to evade, they sprang into motion.

Weapons in hand, they all pounced toward Lin Heng to kill him.