The Heroine of Mount Hua Was Gravely Wounded

Li Hao had just tossed Yi Lin up when Fei Bin swung his sword at him.

Liu Zhengfeng and Qu Yang were the literary sort, with a mastery of poetry and music that would likely rank among the top ten in the combined martial world. As for martial arts... They spent all their spare time playing music. When would they have time to practice?

Even fighting together, the two of them were being beaten back by the Nine-Bend Sword, Jian Zhongzhen, and the Tiger-Faced Hero, Li Bi.

As for Li Hao, if he hadn't killed Zhang Cheng earlier, the pressure on him would have been even greater.

Fei Bin was far stronger with a sword than with his palms. Although Li Hao was only at the Postnatal Mid-stage, his lightness skill was good enough to let him roam the world with ease.

On top of that, his swordplay was sharp and strange, making it impossible to guard against. Fei Bin, Ding Yi, and the others were having a miserable time.

But the Thirteen Sword Strikes of Life-Taking was a top-tier sword art. Its power was astonishing, but it consumed a great deal of energy. With forty years of inner force, Li Hao could face ten opponents at once, but if he didn't keep moving, they could wear him down to the point of death.

Of course, if he wanted to flee, neither Invincible East nor Zuo Lengchan could stop him.

"Steward Fan, this young man has such astonishing cultivation at his age. I wonder which sect's rising star he is!"

"I don't know either. He must have powerful backing. Oh, he can use Quanzhen Sect sword techniques, and he's mastered them quite well. I'll have to make note of that." Steward Fan swiftly scribbled in a small notebook with a silver judge's pen.

Tianji Pavilion's intelligence network spanned the entire martial world. As long as he sent Li Hao's portrait and the techniques he was skilled in to headquarters, they could gather all the information about him and determine his true identity.

Steward Fan quickly finished his sketch. Every member of Tianji Pavilion was an expert at shorthand, skilled at both writing and drawing.

He beckoned, and a magnificent eagle landed on his hand. Steward Fan slipped the note into the metal tube on its leg, then fed the eagle a piece of meat.

He patted its wing, and the eagle swiftly took off. Beside him, Gang Leader Liu clearly saw the words written on the note: "The Amorous Swordsman, Li Hao. Identity unknown."

Li Hao's fight was proceeding steadily, and he wasn't trying to kill anyone. It wasn't easy to find so many enthusiastic sparring partners. He ought to use the opportunity to hone his swordplay.

Meanwhile, the battle inside was raging.

The experts of the Five Peaks Sword Sect, along with the famous figures in Hengyang City, had joined forces to attack Invincible East. She was completely unharmed, while her opponents were being slaughtered until rivers of blood flowed.

"Junior Sister, watch out!" Yue Buqun shouted, rushing over with his sword to help.

With a bang, the Heroine of Mount Hua, Ning Zhongze, was struck in the chest by Invincible East's palm. It was as if she'd been hit head-on by a heavy truck, and she flew backward like a cannonball.

Of course, Yue Buqun had also been struck by Invincible East from behind while he was attacking her.

Ning Zhongze had been hit and her life hung in the balance. After that initial warning, Yue Buqun didn't even think to go check on her. Just as he'd said earlier: "Watch out for yourself. I can't look after you."

Seeing Ning Zhongze fly toward him, Li Hao panicked. He wasn't the sort to turn his back on a woman after having his way with her. With Ning Zhongze's life in danger, he naturally wanted to rush over and save her.

He pushed Treading Snow Without a Trace to its limit and finally reached Ning Zhongze. He wrapped an arm around her, then kicked through the air with both feet, dissipating the force in her body.

Invincible East was a late-stage Grandmaster, and the force of her palm strike had been at least ten thousand pounds. As soon as Li Hao landed, he quickly put two Lesser Rejuvenation Pills into Ning Zhongze's mouth.

Her injuries were severe, and he was worried that one pill wouldn't be enough.

"I'm done for. Don't worry about me. Hurry and leave. Neither Zuo Lengchan nor Invincible East will let you go," Ning Zhongze said between spurts of blood.

"Don't be foolish. Focus on absorbing the medicine. I'll take you out to get treatment right away," Li Hao said gently.

Ning Zhongze's heart trembled. Brother Qun had never spoken to her so gently.

"Still trying to escape? You'll die here!" Seeing Li Hao holding someone in his arms, Ding Yi immediately lunged at him from the side, taking advantage of the fact that he couldn't use his full strength.

As for whether Ning Zhongze lived or died, what did he care?

"You're asking for death!" Li Hao roared with fury. If Ding Yi's sword struck, Ning Zhongze would die on the spot, and Li Hao would be gravely wounded.

Li Hao would never spare someone so vicious. He held Ning Zhongze with his left arm and gripped his sword in his right. The Thirteenth Sword Strike of Life-Taking—one thrust, and his opponent died.

Seeing Ding Yi clutch his throat and fall, Fei Bin and the others immediately closed in to attack.

Ning Zhongze was gravely wounded, so Li Hao naturally wouldn't waste time fighting them. With a casual flick of his hand, Le Hou, Sun Feng, Sun Shen, He Ying, and Hu Wanyuan collapsed on the spot, dead.

Fei Bin was overcome with grief. Of the Song Shan Thirteen Protectors, seven had died in this battle: Zhang Cheng, Ding Yi, Le Hou, Sun Feng, Sun Shen, He Ying, and Hu Wanyuan.

The six who remained were Fei Bin, Lu Bai, Tang Ying'e, Ouyang Zhi Pi, Jian Zhongzhen, and Li Bi. The Song Shan Thirteen Protectors existed in name only now.

"Senior Brother Fei, should we... go after them?" Watching Li Hao fly up to the pavilion and reunite with Yi Lin, Lu Bai felt utterly helpless.

"Forget him. We'll kill Qu Yang and Liu Zhengfeng first." Chase him? They'd have to risk their lives to do that! Fei Bin gave a bitter smile.

"Yi Lin, let's go. Little girl, this place is dangerous. Will you come with us?" With Ning Zhongze in one arm and Yi Lin in the other, Li Hao turned to ask Qu Feifei.

"Big Brother, I'll go with you." Qu Feifei glanced down at her grandfather, Qu Yang, who was already showing signs of fatigue, then turned to answer.

Before they came, her grandfather had told her to leave Hengyang City immediately if anything went wrong, change her name, and never seek revenge for him.

As for her grandfather, he intended to die alongside Liu Zhengfeng.

A kindred spirit was hard to find!

"Come on up." Li Hao flicked his head to signal Qu Feifei to climb onto his back.

Qu Feifei climbed onto him, her face turning red.

He didn't have a free hand, after all!

Li Hao kicked open the beam and soared outside. Carrying three people didn't slow him down at all.

"Master's wife!" Linghu Chong cried out.

Li Hao looked back and saw Linghu Chong's eyes filled with murderous intent.

It turned out the boy hadn't fled. He'd been outside fighting the Sun Moon Holy Cult's followers.

When Ning Zhongze heard Linghu Chong call out to her, a trace of color returned to her pale face.

But when she looked toward Linghu Chong, she saw a member of the Demon Cult cut off his head. Linghu Chong didn't react at all.

Ning Zhongze closed her eyes. She no longer had the strength to grieve or cry.

Linghu Chong: Deceased.

[Congratulations, Host, on successfully causing Linghu Chong's death. Long-term main quest completed: Eliminate the Chosen One. Calculating rewards...]

[Congratulations, Host, you have received Attribute-less Inner Force ×10, Hundred Herb Pills ×999, and 2,000 Villain Points.]

[Congratulations, Host, you have received the martial skill Stars Shift and the secret technique Sunflower Acupuncture Hand.]

As Linghu Chong's head hit the ground, Li Hao also received his reward notification from the system. There was no doubt about it: Linghu Chong had died because of Li Hao. As the great villain, Li Hao would never let his opponent grow stronger.