First South, Then North

Sword Light; someone was actually using a flying sword.

Li Fan stood on the clouds, gazing at the distant mountains where flames filled the sky and sword energy soared into the heavens, unable to discern the situation there.

He had naturally seen the earth-shattering battle far away long ago, but since there were no sect resource points of Ink Bamboo Mountain in that direction, Li Fan didn't rush over immediately. He only used his Divine Sense to investigate from afar. Unexpectedly, this sweep of his Divine Sense revealed a large group of hidden experts nearby, and also exposed his location. Naturally, he had no room to safely use his Divine Sense to spy.

Withdrawing his gaze, Li Fan looked before him and saw five figures of light and shadow approaching. They radiated true qi and were dazzling with divine light. They were all Nascent Soul Realm cultivators holding magical treasures and talismans, ready for battle. They had even formed a formation, surrounding him.

These five people were detected the moment Li Fan's Divine Sense swept over them, and a moment later, they immediately and without hesitation fled over. Each of them used props and magical treasures to conceal their faces and not reveal their true forms, which probably meant that they had a purpose and came prepared.

Sure enough, the people who came to cause trouble at Ink Bamboo Mountain tonight were definitely well-prepared. How could Qingyue, a living, breathing person, the renowned true disciple of Ink Bamboo Mountain, who had so many connections outside, possibly be outmaneuvered?

Li Fan smiled, bowed, and asked, "May I ask how you all are addressed, and what brings you to my Ink Bamboo Mountain?"

Actually, he was pretending to be stupid, because his mental discernment technique had already identified all five of them; he had met them all not long ago.

Yan Benjing of Hotong Mountain, Cai Zhun of Magu Mountain, Pei Shiqing of Song Mountain, and that tall guy from the Shenxiao Sect whose name I don't know—I'd only met these four once before. Tian Xiren of Danxia Mountain was seriously injured, so they replaced him with someone else. Although his strength was much weaker, he was still barely enough. Yes, it was that fox spirit Jiyue.

So these people were all originally subordinates of the Grand Tutor?

Pei Shiqing from Songshan said, "Li Daoyou, who we are is not important. You only need to know that we are entrusted to protect you. Please do not put yourself in danger tonight and make things difficult for us."

Li Fan couldn't help but roll his eyes. "Really? Should I thank you?"

Pei Shiqing ignored Li Fan's sarcasm and said calmly, "Fellow Daoist, there's no need to be so polite. As long as you stay in the formation for one night, your life will be safe."

Li Fan narrowed his eyes and chuckled coldly, "If I don't agree, you're going to take action, right?"

Pei Shiqing remained silent, and the situation became somewhat tense. At this moment, Jiyue spoke softly and gently...

"Real Person Li, you defeated Crown Prince Wushuang with three swords, so you are certainly no ordinary person. However, we have also heard that some people are even more wary of you because of this, and have gathered a group of experts to assassinate you."

We were entrusted to come and help. We originally intended to protect you secretly, but we saw that the master had scattered a lot of written documents outside, which would be very easy for someone with a keen eye to calculate the location. Therefore, we thought it would be better to stand up and explain it openly, so that you could be prepared.

"This is all well-intentioned, please don't misunderstand and fall into a trap set by a villain."

Hearing her say that, Li Fan frowned.

Are you referring to those people from the North Star Guard...? So their target tonight wasn't Ink Bamboo Mountain, but rather to assassinate him?

"Since you all have such good intentions, could you please tell me who exactly wants to take my life?"

Jiyue glanced at Pei Shiqing, who nodded.

So she continued, "These people are the guards of the North Chen Palace in the Ziwei Enclosure. You may not know this, but the North Chen Palace is the residence of the Immortal Emperors throughout history. The North Star Guard are the close bodyguards of the Immortal Emperors, the trusted guards and secret assassins trained in secret, who are used to carry out assassinations and eliminate dissidents."

Back then, when the Immortal Palace compiled the Celestial Register, it was precisely these people who were responsible for hunting down and eliminating those unruly and undisciplined rogue cultivators, heretics, and people with supernatural abilities. Therefore, this guard committed countless blood debts with our Xuanmen. Later, after the Profound Maiden assassinated the Celestial Emperor, they were all wiped out by the Xuanmen."

A secret assassin of the Celestial Emperor? Like the Embroidered Uniform Guard or something similar?

Li Fan asked curiously, "Didn't you just say you killed them all? Are there still some who escaped? And are the North Star Guard really that strong? As for the Immortal Palace's abilities... I don't mean to look down on them, but they seem really not that great, right?"

At this moment, Pei Shiqing said, "The power of these people is beyond doubt. It is said that they have been practicing the art of killing since the time of the Immortal Venerables."

However, a traitor emerged from the North Star Guard back then. Originally ordered to hunt down the Profound Maiden, he instead protected Profound Maiden and joined our Xuan Sect. He not only provided the training methods for the North Star Guard assassins but also trained the Profound Maiden's personal guards. Later, they played an indispensable role in overthrowing the Immortal Palace and successfully assassinating the Immortal Emperor.

However, the reputation of North Star Guard was so bad back then, with many blood feuds with fellow cultivators in the Xuanmen sect. His bad reputation kept him hidden in the shadows, and even Yuntai Peak could hardly find him. But his lineage has never been broken; on the contrary, it has been passed down and is now very famous..."

Hearing this, Li Fan was completely dumbfounded, because he understood.

"Holy crap? The Beichen Sword Sect?!"

Pei Shiqing nodded.

Li Fan was truly speechless.

Damn it!

So the Beichen Sword Sect is this powerful! Even Xuan Tian didn't know about it back then. The secret of the Beichen Sword Sect's main sect is really this ridiculous! They are the most powerful in both the Xuanmen and the Immortal Palace! The claim of being the most powerful in one lineage is just too exaggerated!

However, upon closer reflection, it does seem to make some sense...

No wonder they inexplicably put a monkey as the sect leader between Profound Maiden and the third generation of Yuan Gong! Look at the death training of those sword children, sword embryos, and dead swords! Does that look like a cultivation method that a monkey could come up with?!

So it turns out that the Beichen Sword Sect has been so unpopular all these years, with no one helping them even after their massacre. I used to think it was all Xuan Tian's fault, but now I realize that it's probably only half Xuan Tian's fault...

Okay, okay, if it were the Immortal Palace version of the Beichen Sword Sect coming to assassinate us, then that would be a completely different story.

Li Fan wasn't so arrogant as to think he was invincible even when surrounded by a group of Beichen Sword Immortal.

In reality, even if all these people rushed at him at once, it wasn't impossible for him to be injured. Besides, someone had already launched flying swords not far away, and there were quite a few people in that direction. If they were all Beichen assassins, and a rain of flying swords suddenly appeared in his face, he might suffer serious consequences.

Moreover, it's true that the tofu ticket could roughly calculate his location. Not only Cangsong like Cangsong, but also those at the True Person Realm, whose arithmetic skills are not bad, had already calculated and found the vicinity just now. It's just that Li Fan was hiding, so he was naturally discovered by a scan of his Divine Sense.

And these people did seem to be telling the truth. When they and Li Fan clearly revealed their positions and released their divine light in the darkness, they had already exposed themselves to the assassin.

Soon, two beams of light, one blue and one purple, pierced the night sky and appeared.

A man in a green robe with disheveled hair, wearing a skull mask.

A woman in a purple satin fairy dress, her face veiled with a thin gauze.

Both were at the Divine Lord realm, clearly old ghosts of the Xuanmen sect, and each wielded a sword radiating divine light and Lingyun. Judging from their appearance, they were probably swords of the Divine Transformation realm!

I see, one Divine Transformation cultivator couldn't take him down, so they used two... Who the hell is messing with him? They're really giving him face...

"Sigh..." Li Fan exhaled a breath of stale air, glancing at his mood, which was almost full (maximum 6.6k), all three flowers were present, and his stats were at their maximum. Although he had used all his magic weapons for repairs, he could still put up a fight, but...

"Fate brings us together from a thousand miles away. Tonight's gathering is also a matter of fate. How about we start with a bloodbath?"

Unfortunately, the couple ignored Li Fan's suggestion and got straight to work! One on the left and one on the right, they made hand seals and unleashed their Sword Light in perfect synchronization. Dozens of sword Sword Light slashed out, rolling like thunder and fire, weaving into a net of swords that crackled and exploded as they hurtled straight toward Li Fan's head!

"I'm outta here!"

Li Fan dodged the sword fire, but the moment he landed, a flash of lightning appeared, and the Shenxiao Sect suddenly appeared behind him, his right palm gathering lightning as he struck at Li Fan's back!

"I'll blanch it!"

Li Fan shouted and fled again in a hurry, narrowly avoiding the Shenxiao Sect's lightning strike. He then fled three times in quick succession, interspersed with a 'Glacier Escape' technique, using the flying ice shards to hinder the Shenxiao Sect's escape and create distance, thus dodging their assassination attack.

"Damn it! What happened to the North Star Guard?! What happened to protecting me?!"

Upon landing and looking back, Li Fan realized that the others had already started fighting amongst themselves!

Pei Shiqing of Mount Song was being attacked from both sides by Yan Benjing and Cai Zhun. The battle was fierce, and it was unclear who was on whose side. The fox was also useless; it was unclear who had struck him, but he had already been knocked to the ground, coughing up blood.

"Damn it..."

Li Fan was speechless, but now was not the time to be speechless, as the two Divine Transformation old ghosts, a man and a woman, had already charged forward with their divine swords!

"I'm Tai Sha Sword Rainbow!"

Li Fan said he couldn't hide it anymore.

"Purple Radiance Sword Rainbow!" "Return to Dust Sword Rainbow!"

The enemy team unleashed their ultimate skill too!

In an instant, black, purple, and cyan sword rainbows soared into the sky, piercing through the clouds and chasing and fighting among them!

Under the moonlight, the dazzling light clashed, the Sword Light clashed, and in an instant, the three sword rainbows turned and collided, attacking each other a hundred times!

Li Fan's Tai Sha Sword Rainbow can suppress evil energy and is incredibly powerful. In addition, he recently broke through the threshold of 'Refining Emptiness and Dao Integration', so in terms of both physical and spiritual realm, he is slightly superior to the Transformation Stage. Therefore, although he is fighting two against one, he is not at a disadvantage!

The two divine lords, the green-robed man and the purple-robed woman, were equally formidable. Wearing only masks, they practically had the words "Mysterious Sect" written on their faces, clearly indicating they were ancient divine lords who had attained enlightenment for countless years. Furthermore, with the assistance of two sword lords at the Divine Transformation stage, their solid cultivation and profound expertise were truly breathtaking! They actually managed to clash head-on with the Tai Chi sword force against the Tai Sha sword force! It was incredibly dangerous!

The three fought fiercely, soaring through the sky and plunging into the earth, their battle as fast as lightning. They flew from Bamboo Mountain to Moshan, and then fought their way back to Bamboo Mountain. Their domineering sword power left the sky filled with sword marks!

The last three sword rainbows were forced together and exploded with a bang. Only then did the two sides temporarily stop fighting and land on the two lonely mountain peaks to recover!

Li Fan was actually in relatively good shape. With the False Moon in the Sky, the Dao Fire protecting his heart, and the Blood Infant Three Flowers guarding his Divine Court, his sword power and Dao power were inexhaustible. However, he was still a beginner and hadn't had enough time to cultivate and refine his Dao body. He had released too many sword rainbows in a short time, and his physical body was indeed starting to feel the strain. His skin and flesh had been scorched to a crisp by the True Yang Dao power, and a golden light was almost bursting out of his meridians and blood vessels, as if a sun was burning beneath his skin.

The two opposite him stood back to back, swords in hand, panting heavily as they regulated their breathing. Purple and blue Qi flowed from their mouths and noses, mingling and complementing each other. They were simultaneously cultivating Qi and expelling the evil Qi from their bodies and swords. They had even started taking drugs!

But Li Fan didn't have the chance to rest and catch his breath like his opponent! Because this wasn't a sword fight!

The moment he landed, Li Fan felt a chill run down his spine. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of a hidden sword in the dark forest below, which suddenly lunged forward, its blade aimed right in front of him!

"Escape! Avoid the metal!"

Li Fan immediately dodged and created distance while simultaneously deflecting the flying sword that was hurtling towards him!

The good news is that only one flying sword launched a sneak attack; the bad news is that this person was hiding in the shadows to assassinate. Even if it was just harassment, it would be enough to support the two Divine Transformation cultivators to return to their Qi and transform into sword rainbows to fight again!

Damn it! A bunch of people ganging up on me, a mere Nascent Soul Realm! Could they be any more shameless?!

"Nine Heavens Responding to the Origin of Thunder, Universal Transformation Heavenly Venerable, Taiyi Heaven-Shaking Thunder!"

Li Fan was completely numb; he really was numb from the lightning.

A series of lightning flashes followed as the Shenxiao Sect caught up! Taking advantage of Li Fan's flurry of sword rainbows and dodges of flying swords, leaving him unable to connect his qi, he transformed into a streak of white lightning, merging with the lightning itself, and unleashed a palm strike. The lightning palm, flashing white light, shattered Li Fan's protective aura and struck him squarely in the left rib!

Moreover, if Li Fan hadn't been in a hurry and quickly abandoned his Dao technique to deflect the attack with his fist, this thunder palm strike would probably have pierced straight into his lungs and blasted through his heart!

"I'll do it!"

Li Fan grabbed the opponent's right arm, which was piercing his ribs, with his left hand, and raised his right palm to kill the Shenxiao Sect with one blow. Suddenly, another bone-chilling coldness struck, and a Sword Light appeared! Another Sword Light appeared!

"Avoid gold!"

Li Fan reacted swiftly! With a quick hand seal, he deflected the flying sword that was aimed at his head again. With a swift left claw, he nearly crushed the Shenxiao Sect's right arm into a bloody pulp. But the opponent fought back desperately, roaring wildly, "Shenxiao Ten Thousand Zhang!"

In an instant, the tall man flashed like an incandescent light bulb, and a bolt of white lightning as thick as a python crackled and pierced through Li Fan's ribs, creating a bloody hole!

And that's not all!

The two Divine Transformation cultivators made their move! Although this short time wasn't enough for Jian Hong to finish, how could these old Xuanmen sects miss such a golden opportunity!

A woman in green went first, followed by a woman in purple, and a pair of divine swords flashed from the opposite mountain peak to deliver the finishing blow!

Amidst the excruciating pain and rage coursing through his body, Li Fan roared, "Crimson Vein Child Sword!"

The Sword Light shooting from the left pupil was filled with true yang power! The golden light instantly pierced through the Shenxiao Sect disciple, half of his body disintegrated, and he died instantly!

Then Li Fan turned his head and swept his gaze! A second Sword Light shot out from his right eye! It slashed straight at the two Divine Lords who were already rushing towards him at lightning speed. One after the other, the Sword Qi almost pierced through Li Fan's protective true energy and was about to kill him!

"Screech!!" "Ha!!"

However, the opponent truly lived up to his reputation as a master of the Xuanmen!

The woman in the purple dress managed to dodge the deadly attack with a quick movement! At that moment, even the Azure-Clad Divine Lord, who was already close at hand, once again used his Qi to dodge the Sword Light, and in the instant he turned around, he slashed back with his sword! It slashed diagonally across Li Fan's left arm, and with just this one sword, it almost severed half of Li Fan's shoulder!

Yes! Almost!

At the critical moment! A beam of light burst forth from the ground! It transformed into a fiery hand, grabbing the blue-robed deity in one swift motion! Whoosh! A flash of fire! And the deity was reduced to ashes! He died on the spot!

"Ah--!"

The goddess in the purple dress screamed in terror, like a demoness, and turned to flee. She transformed into a streak of sword light and flew into the sky in a moment.

But Li Fan was already in a killing frenzy. He tore off the severed limbs of the Shenxiao Sect from his ribs and threw them away. With his eyes wide open like two blood-filled holes, he looked at the purple sword rainbow, then gathered his Qi, transformed into a sword rainbow, and soared into the sky!

"The Tai Sha Sword Rainbow!"

Zi Hong fled in front, with Hei Jian chasing behind. They streaked across the nine peaks of Bamboo Mountain like shooting stars, rushing all the way to the banks of the Li River. The purple-skirted deity had exhausted her sword power and even used up her protective true qi. She descended from the clouds and leaped into the water to escape.

But Li Fan had already arrived with his sword, and with Sword Light, he cut her in two. One half of her body fell into the north bank of the river, while the other half fell to the south bank. His divine sword, along with his blood, flesh, and other debris, spilled into the river, staining it crimson.

He's not dead yet.

Li Fan wanted to rush down and finish off the enemy, but four beams of azure light instantly descended from the opposite bank of the river, blocking his path. However, even though Li Fan was blind at this moment, he could still see the soaring Shangqing True Qi!

What a load of rubbish, the 'North Star Guard'! They're all experts from the Xuanmen sect, True Lords of Hengshan!

Then he turned his head and 'looked' at the Lou Guan Tower in the distance.

Beneath Lou Guan Tower, a bright light shone and a patch of blue clouds appeared. Although the False Moon in the sky, at least at this moment, the True Breath of the two Dao Lords still filled the clouds, isolating heaven and earth and making the north bank of the Li River as bright as day.

Just now, the abbot probably only narrowly won by half a point, thus saving Li Fan's life.

Li Fan glanced at the four Hengshan True Man on the opposite bank of the river, who were carrying swords and forming hand seals to protect the half of the purple-robed Divine Lord. He memorized their Divine Sense and then immediately unleashed a palm strike, blasting the remaining half of the body on the south bank into mangled flesh.

Then Li Fan didn't linger any longer, flicked his sleeves and flew straight towards the beacon-stricken Bamboo Mountain.

Okay, south first, then north.