Shoulder to Shoulder

Li Fan has matured now and generally doesn't reveal his real name when traveling the martial world. After all, he has a lot of enemies, whether it's Ink Bamboo Mountain or Beichen Sword Sect. As for the disguise he used at Penglai Mountain, he avoids it as much as possible, lest he be exposed and the best outcome Li Fan could hope for is being imprisoned and keeping company with Xiantong Daojun.

But the Golden Boy and Jade Girl in front of them were different from Li Fan. They immediately shouted out the holy title of the Xuan Girl of the Nine Heavens and introduced themselves. This was not because they were careless, but on the contrary, they were extremely cautious.

After all, Gen Province is a lawless place where Demon Path and heretics run rampant, and the Xuanmen (Daoist sects) are full of hypocritical old schemers. Their cultivation levels are not high at present, and they possess valuable treasures, so they could be ambushed at any time. Therefore, they need to report their sects as soon as possible, so that those who are secretly spying on them will think twice about whether they have the confidence to offend the two major sects of Xuanmen Wangwu Mountain and Bi Xia Dao.

Although Li Fan wasn't very clear about the inner workings of the Xuanmen, he had inquired about it when he went to Yuntai Peak. He knew that Wangwu Mountain was one of the Nine Great Xuan Sects that were currently in charge, and it was located within Gen Province. It was a superior grotto-heaven where immortals gathered, with countless families of cultivators. It was said to have three thousand Real Immortal, which might be an exaggeration, but its strength was definitely among the top. Gen Province was their home ground.

As for the Bi Xia Dao, Li Fan wasn't very clear about it. It was probably an ancient sect of some Hidden Immortal Sect. There were really many old monsters in the Xuanmen who secluded themselves from the world and cultivated in seclusion. There were so many different branches of inheritance that it was impossible to count them all. Many of them not only had a single lineage, but also rarely appeared in the world. Even in the classics of aristocratic families, there were only a few words about them. But suddenly a successor would appear, just like a chosen one of heaven, so powerful that it was outrageous.

Li Fan thought for a moment and decided to stop thinking about it. He knew he couldn't possibly defeat the two major factions by himself. Ultimately, he was still too weak and powerless, so he had no choice but to continue pretending.

Since he had just shaved his head, Li Fan, referring to Fa Jue of Iron Buddha Temple, rubbed his face again and appeared, saying, "Namo Acalanatha Buddha, greetings to the two Daoists. This humble monk is Fake. I was attracted here by the evil energy, and had no intention of spying."

Sun Xizhen and Su Moran cautiously observed the young black-robed monk who had emerged from the ground. "So it's Master Fak. May I ask where you became a monk? Could you be a disciple of the nearby Tianlong Mountain?"

Tsk, as expected, the Central Plains tradition starts by asking about inheritance.

Li Fan narrowed his eyes. He knew he couldn't just pretend to Jue Ming a local like Jueming after asking about Tianlong Mountain. He wasn't familiar with the situation in the north, but these reincarnated old monsters were all highly experienced, and Sun Xizhen was also a cultivator from Wangwu Mountain. Since the other party could also mention Tianlong Mountain, he might have met every person with the surname Fa. If he answered incorrectly, he would expose his weakness, so he had to make sure his act was as convincing as possible.

"This humble monk is staying at Tiantai Mountain in Li Country, currently traveling the world to hone his spiritual resolve."

Sun Xizhen and Su Moran were completely bewildered. They exchanged glances and realized that neither of them had ever heard of such a remote and uncivilized place as Tiantai Mountain in Li Country. Besides, Tiantai Mountain had been destroyed several years ago, so there was no way to verify it.

Li Fan then flew into the air, pointed at the corpses, and changed the subject, saying, "This humble monk arrived first. After investigation, I found that someone is gathering evil spirits and refining corpses here. To do such a heaven-defying thing in broad daylight, one must be a powerful demon lord."

"Just now, this humble monk thought it was the demon who refines corpses returning, so I hid for a while. Only after seeing that you two are true disciples of the orthodox Xuanmen sect and used your methods to exorcise the demon did I dare to show myself. I wonder what you two Daoist disciples think is the best way to resolve this situation?"

What he said made sense, and Su Moran nodded, saying, "I see. We, like the master, were just passing through this place and were attracted by the evil energy. This place is teeming with so many evil corpses; it's truly heinous and must be eliminated. However, I'm afraid the three of us alone are insufficient..."

Sun Xizhen pointed to the northeast, at the valley exit blocked by Li Fan, and said, "If we open up the Gen position, this situation can be resolved."

Su Moran's eyes lit up. "I see. Senior brother is right. That's the best way to do it."

Li Fan was taken aback, and quickly said, "Ah? Wait, this humble monk is dull-witted and does not understand what you two mean?"

It was not unexpected that a monk would not understand the Xuanmen formations. Su Moran then explained, "This valley has a treacherous terrain, filled with malevolent energy, and surrounded by mountains on three sides. It is a forbidden place for refining corpses. In just a few years, one can refine a demon god like the Drought Demon Corpse King. However, if the formation is destroyed directly, the horde of corpses will roam in all directions and cause disaster."

However, as long as the mountain path blocked by the Gen position is broken, the situation of the Kun-Gen Gate of Life and Death can be formed. With such abundant evil energy, the flying corpse that is about to become a demon can generate a connection between heaven and man and walk out from the Gen position on its own.

Although flying corpses are difficult to deal with, they are still easier to handle than those that have become demon gods. We can break through this formation and go directly to the nearby Xuanmen sects to inform them of the situation. They can then arrange for their disciples to regularly patrol this area and eliminate any newly formed flying corpses. Over time, this will gradually eliminate the sea of corpses accumulated here."

"Nearby are Kongsang Mountain and Guyeshan, those two don't get along very well..." Sun Xizhen paused again, glanced at Li Fan, "But there's also Tianlong Mountain. We can visit all three in turn and ask them to negotiate. As long as someone takes turns suppressing this demonic lair, that will be fine."

Holy crap... we've come full circle again...

In an instant, Li Fan realized he had been too naive. What does it mean to set up a trap? Only when it's so that you have no way to break it can it be called a trap. This guy had set up this trap of life and death in broad daylight. Wasn't he afraid you'd report him?

Even if the Immortal Palace and the Mysterious Sect really send people to investigate, Kongsang Mountain, Guyeshan, and Tianlong Mountain can easily turn the tables and claim that Yellow Heaven Dao or some other demonic sect wants to summon a demon god, while they are the ones slowly annihilating the evil corpses in this place using the method of the Gate of Life and Death!

If Li Fan hadn't known that they were the culprits behind spreading corpse poison, harming the people, setting up formations to gather corpses, and secretly forging demonic weapons, he would have thought he had wronged good people!

This is truly ironic. Sun Xizhen and Su Moran are clearly just children in appearance, but in reality, they are old demons among the Xuanmen cultivators. They probably genuinely believe that this method can reliably eliminate all the evil corpses. If you were to tell them that these three families have colluded with the Divine Cult and harbor ill intentions, without any evidence, even Li Fan himself wouldn't believe it!

"What is Master Fak worried about? Does he perhaps disagree?"

Li Fan looked up and saw that the two men were actually looking at him with some wariness, and even seemed to be suspicious of him.

Li Fan had no choice but to say, "I'm thinking that things might get complicated if we let those evil corpses leave this place. They might harm the surrounding people. It would be better to take advantage of the fact that they are all trapped here and the Demon God has not yet been refined, gather the experts from various sects around, forcibly exterminate all the evil corpses, and forcibly suppress and seal this place."

Hearing him say that, Sun Xizhen laughed heartily.

"Ha! Master, you're being far too naive. There are so many evil corpses here, and the evil aura is so thick. If we were to forcibly exterminate them, we would destroy countless Ling Bao and lose countless cultivation levels among our disciples. What sect or school would be willing to do such a losing business? Even if you run all over the Nine Mountains of Xuanmen seeking help, no one would be willing to help exorcise the demons!"

Oh, if those idiots were still around, they probably would have intervened, but they've already lost everything! Hahaha! There aren't any idiots like them left in the world! Hahahaha!

Su Moran smiled wryly, "This kind of thankless task is indeed something that the Xuanmen sect will pass the buck to each other. If you are worried that there will be any escapees if you open the passage, I can set up a thunder array in the Gen position and leave some magic treasures to deal with the immediate problem and destroy the escaped evil corpses."

"This way, before we inform the nearby sects and devise a method to guard the area, no more evil corpses will escape and cause trouble."

Sun Xizhen laughed and said, "There's no need to worry about that. I just need to say that if they are short of manpower, Wangwu Mountain will send people to help them. They will naturally have other ideas and will not dare to refuse anymore, and will rush to agree."

"Setting up a lightning array is fine, though. Let's hurry and ruin his scheme before that wicked demon returns. Lately, these demonic cultivators have been left unchecked, and they've become increasingly arrogant..."

How could they not eagerly agree? People set up this situation to hone their skills. However, these two did propose a relatively better solution within their capabilities, so they probably didn't actually participate in the matter.

Li Fan was somewhat conflicted. He didn't care whether the valley in the Gen position was open or not. Even if the evil corpses in the valley were to truly become demon gods, they would only be a source of food for him. The evil corpses that were killed by setting up the lightning array according to Su Moran's plan were acceptable, as long as they weren't turned into demonic weapons to harm people.

But that's the problem. Even if the plan is temporarily disrupted, Kongsang, Gushe, and Tianlong Mountains are nearby, and they can reforge their weapons sooner or later. Even if the Gate of Life and Death can be suppressed, those three mountains have already accomplished such a great feat and have developed rebellious intentions. Sooner or later, they will use other means to achieve their goals. How can one guard against thieves for a thousand days? It seems that we can only feel at ease after eliminating all three mountains.

So Li Fan sighed, "Let's do as Master Su says. We'll do our best and leave the rest to fate."

Seeing that Li Fan did not stop them from destroying the formation, Sun Xizhen and Su Moran relaxed their guard slightly, but still held onto their magic weapons, made hand seals, and kept their distance from him.

Seeing that they had indeed set up a lightning array to block the valley entrance, Li Fan prepared to open the valley passage to confirm that they truly intended to exterminate the evil corpse.

But then, another unexpected change occurred. Li Fan Divine Sense sensed that Li Wugou had returned! And she wasn't alone! Two Nascent Soul Stage cultivators were chasing after her!

Well, this is going to cause trouble again. The two people chasing Li Wugou are not weak; they should be cultivators from the Xuanmen sect, either from Kongsang Mountain or Guyeshan. These locals know each other well and are of the same ilk. Once they meet and confront each other, he's seen how shrewd the Xuanmen people are. They'll start twisting the truth and making things up. In the end, he and Li Wugou will be the Demon Path, and in the end, they'll have to kill each other.

But Li Fan glanced at the two 'children', thought for a moment, and realized that they at least had the will to eliminate demons and protect the righteous path. He didn't want to take their lives, so he simply flew into the air, took out the golden skull from his sleeve, and held it in his hand.

Upon seeing his actions, Sun Xizhen and Su Moran immediately became alert, stopped their preparations, and took out their magical artifacts to prepare for defense.

"Enough! You two, get out! Now!"

Li Fan brandished the skull in his hand, and a flash of golden light slashed a sword mark on the cliff, causing a large amount of rock to collapse and block the valley again.

Su Moran was momentarily astonished, "Fellow Daoist, what is this...?"

Upon seeing the skull, Sun Xizhen's expression immediately changed. Without saying a word, she grabbed Su Moran and left.

Li Fan didn't pursue them. Instead, he used his internal energy to transmit his voice, which resounded for miles around, saying, "Considering you are legitimate disciples of the Xuanmen Sect, I, Fake, will spare your lives! Go back and tell those old ghosts of Wangwu Mountain that I, the Wu Lian Laozu of the Death Gate Dao, have taken a liking to this place and intend to establish a sect to revive the Holy Path! I invite all my old friends to come and support me!"

Sun Xizhen and Su Moran, intimidated by Li Fan's cultivation level, stopped their pursuit and immediately flew away on their swords, enveloped in a flash of Sword Light.

The shout was exceptionally loud, and the three people on the other side probably heard it through their Divine Sense. Li Wugou didn't hesitate and flew directly towards him. The other two pursuers also paused for a moment, clearly intimidated by Li Fan's cultivation level.

No sooner had the Golden Boy and Jade Girl been startled away than Li Wugou flew over with a strange howl.

Her transformation was actually detected; a sword slashed her face, severing half of her human skin, and damaging the ghost mask Magic Treasure as well. None of the demonic corpses were to be seen; it was unclear whether they had been destroyed in battle or stolen.

"How is Third Sister's injury?" Li Fan took out a Donghua Changchun Pill and tossed it to her.

Li Wugou was also somewhat surprised that Li Fan kept changing his appearance, but when he heard that Fak knew it was still him, he shook his head and said, "We encountered reinforcements halfway, but they were targeting the Sha Corpses. No one was paying attention to Yellow Heaven Dao, so they should all be able to escape."

The pursuers arrived shortly afterward, this time consisting of a monk and Guyeshan priest. The monk had a round head and a fat belly, while the Daoist priest had a horse-like face and wore black robes. They were likely cultivators from Tianlong Mountain and Gushou Mountain.

Li Fan coldly observed them. These two were both highly skilled, definitely true disciples of the Inner Sect. They were indeed not someone like Li Wugou, who had just broken through and had used a magic weapon for half a day, and whose cultivation was almost exhausted, could handle. So he stepped forward to block her.

Li Wugou whispered, "The Daoist priest arrived shortly after. Be careful of that monk; he possesses Invisible Sword Qi and will suddenly attack upon meeting you. He probably already harbored the intention to ambush his fellow Daoists and steal the Corpse-Controlling Tiger Tally..."

The round-headed monk smiled and bowed to Li Fan with his palms together, asking, "How should I address this senior brother?"

Li Fan narrowed his eyes, holding the golden skull in one hand and making a sword incantation with the other, saying, "Are you deaf? Death Gate Dao, fuck!"

The horse-faced Daoist priest's brows furrowed into a deep frown. "The Death Gate Dao... The Death Gate Dao? How come the Death Gate Dao suddenly reappeared..."

"Master, that Ghost-Faced Witch is nothing to worry about. This Death Gate Dao is an ancient demonic sect, we must be careful. Let's join forces and first eliminate the demonic path!"

Li Fan chuckled coldly, "You've put on such a heinous show, and you still have the nerve to call me a demon? I've only killed a few people so far, but that's more than you've done in one go! If you dare to do it, then admit it! You're trying to pin your own actions on others! Bah! You're a disgrace to my Death Gate Dao!"

The round-headed monk smiled and clasped his hands together, looking at the Daoist priest and saying, "Brother is right. I will make the first move, and you can provide support from the sidelines."

The Daoist priest stared warily at the skull in Li Fan's hand, nodding repeatedly. "A formidable enemy is at hand! Master, let's fight side by side!"

So the monk took the lead by unleashing a magical staff, while the horse-faced Daoist threw out a pair of Golden Chopsticks, both trash at the Nascent Soul...

Li Wugou was shocked. "Watch out for the magic weapon! Quick! Use the Thunder Seal to deal with it!"

Li Fan sighed, then casually raised the golden skull in his hand. A Sword Light flashed, severing the pair of Golden Chopsticks that were thrusting towards his head.

The staff, a magical weapon, turned and landed on the Daoist's head, striking his forehead with a resounding thud, like the sound of a morning bell and evening drum. The Daoist immediately bled from all seven orifices, spitting blood from his mouth and nose. He clutched his throat with one hand and his abdomen with the other, blood gushing from between his fingers, staring in disbelief at the Dharma Master beside him.

Yes, he was severely injured the moment he threw out his magic weapon. Not only was his throat and abdomen slit by the Invisible Sword Qi, but his head was also shattered by the monk's staff.

Li Fan didn't hold back either, unleashing another attack on the Golden Skull. With a flash of Sword Light, he beheaded the Daoist priest in one strike, snatching the head.

Li Wugou was clearly not prepared for this turn of events and was momentarily stunned.

Then Li Fan glanced at the monk.

Fajing remained calm and did not flee. He clasped his hands in a deep bow and said, "Senior Brother, your divine skills are unparalleled! Your swordsmanship is exquisite! Fajing almost injured your concubine; it is all my fault! Please punish me, Senior Brother!"

Li Fan coldly stared at him, "How do you know the Sword Sect's <Shadowless, Formless, Traceless, and Shapeless Sword Qi>?"

The legal expert honestly replied, "Senior brother's skills are unparalleled! Your insight is like a torch! This technique was obtained by our master when he ambushed the enemies of Nine Yin Mountain. There are still many more secret techniques in the Scripture Pavilion that were seized from the Sword Sect. If senior brother is interested, why don't we return to the main academy of Tianlong Mountain together?"

Li Fan was silent for a moment, then put the skull back into his sleeve. Suddenly, he sneered, "Alright, let's go then. Let's go to Tianlong Mountain together and pay our respects to Dao Ci Zuozhu."

In that short while, Fa Ding's forehead was also covered in cold sweat. After passing through the gate, he breathed a sigh of relief and forced a smile, saying, "Thank you for sparing my life, Senior Brother... Would you like your concubines to come along...?"

Li Fan narrowed his eyes, looking at Li Wugou who stood frozen behind him. "You heard that? The Death Gate Dao, an ancient demonic sect, no less powerful than the Xuanmen. Are you coming or not? Come and become my concubine, or get out."

Li Wugou's face was hidden behind the ghost mask. She stared at Li Fan with a complicated expression for a long while before whispering, "I... I yearn for the righteous path... I don't want to submit to the demonic path anymore, hiding and running away..."

After Li Wugou finished speaking, she bowed to Li Fan, returned the Tiger Tally and Thunder Seal, and flew away.