A Sword Shattering the Firmament

Lin Ye carried Shui Linglong on his back like a blood-bathed demon god, every step he took leaving a trail of gore as he carved a bloody path through the crowd.

He did not pause for even a second, sprinting desperately toward the gap in the barrier on the side of the camp!

"Stop him! Don't let him get away!"

"It's that brat who killed several of our brothers! Catch him, the Vice Hall Master has promised a heavy reward!"

More disciples from Blood Fiend Hall swarmed in from all directions, throwing themselves at Lin Ye without fear of death.

Blade light, sword shadows, palm winds, and even poisoned hidden weapons poured down upon him like a torrential rain.

Lin Ye's eyes were icy cold. The mysterious seed within his body spun at high speed, and an invisible force field condensed into a tangible form, deflecting the majority of the attacks. He dodged the rest with ghostly footwork or took the hits head-on with his body.

The Star-Shattering Sword in his hand transformed into streaks of lethal, frigid light, each strike precisely targeting a vital point.

Wherever he passed, corpses littered the ground and blood flowed like a river.

But there were simply too many enemies! Among them were many experts at the late stage, or even the peak, of the True Qi Realm.

Although Lin Ye was valiant, carrying a person while maintaining his force field consumed a massive amount of energy. Even more troublesome, the terrifying auras of several Hua Yuan Realm experts at the center of the camp were closing in rapidly!

I cannot get bogged down in this fight!

Lin Ye forced a peak True Qi Realm sub-leader of Blood Fiend Hall back with a single strike, then pushed off the ground, his figure lunging toward the perimeter wall of the camp!

The gap in the barrier he had previously broken was beginning to repair itself, but it had not yet fully closed.

"Stop him! He's trying to escape through there!"

"Activate the Trapping Kill Formation!"

Several blood-red pillars of light shot into the sky, instantly weaving into a massive crimson net that descended upon Lin Ye's head!

Dozens of blood-red runes lit up on the ground near the wall gap, erupting with a powerful suction force in an attempt to trap Lin Ye in place.

Lin Ye's pupils constricted, and alarm bells rang in his heart.

"Break for me—!!"

He poured every last bit of True Qi remaining in his body into the Star-Shattering Sword!

"Hum—!!"

The Star-Shattering Sword let out a resonant cry! A sword intent that seemed to devour everything erupted with a roar!

"Star Fall—Shattering the Firmament!!"

The dark golden sword light, carrying the terrifying power to suppress all things, slashed fiercely against the crimson net!

"Boom—!!!"

A deafening explosion rang out! The dark golden sword light and the crimson net erupted in a blinding radiance. The surrounding ground was instantly torn apart by the energy storm.

The crimson net was forcibly ripped open, creating a massive gap! The binding runes on the ground also dimmed.

He forced himself to draw in a breath of True Qi, and like a ghost, he surged through the torn gap, cleared the camp wall, and vanished into the shadows of the hills.

"Trash! A bunch of trash!!"

A roar of fury exploded. A withered old man at the mid-stage of the Hua Yuan Realm appeared at the center of the explosion like a phantom, his face livid as he looked at the chaotic scene and the scattered corpses.

It was none other than Xue Li, the Vice Hall Master of Blood Fiend Hall in this region.

Two other figures at the early stage of the Hua Yuan Realm arrived quickly, their expressions turning ugly as they looked at the scene before them.

"Vice Hall Master, that brat escaped," a one-eyed man at the early stage of the Hua Yuan Realm said hoarsely.

"He won't get far!" A cruel light flickered in Xue Li's eyes. "He forced himself to use that sword technique; he must be severely injured and cannot run far! Besides, he is carrying that bitch, Shui Linglong."

"Pass on my order: seal all paths leading toward the Blood Pool and Tongtian Tower. All squads are to move out and search! Dig three feet into the ground within a fifty-mile radius if you have to, but find him! I want to see him alive, or his corpse if he's dead! The Shuiyue Token must be obtained!"

"Yes!"

The entire Blood Fiend Camp instantly boiled over.

Dozens of squads composed of experts at the mid-to-late stages of the True Qi Realm launched a carpet search of the dark red hills outside the camp.

In the sky, several tamed monster birds let out sharp cries as they circled to scout.

Lin Ye carried Shui Linglong on his back, struggling to traverse the dark red gullies of the hills.

He dodged the gaze of the vultures in the sky and the tracks of the search squads on the ground, moving closer to their agreed-upon hiding spot.

However, misfortune never comes alone.

Just as he turned a corner of a hill, less than two miles from their hiding spot—

A Blood Fiend Hall search squad happened to emerge from around the bend of the hill ahead, colliding with him head-on!

"He's here! We found him!"

"Catch him! The Vice Hall Master has a heavy reward!"

The five Blood Fiend Hall disciples were both shocked and delighted, greedy light erupting in their eyes. They drew their weapons and surrounded him in a fan formation.

These five were not weak: one at the peak of the True Qi Realm, two at the late stage, and two at the mid-stage.

"Put me down... go on your own..." Shui Linglong's weak voice came from his back. She seemed to have regained a sliver of consciousness and sensed Lin Ye's predicament.

"Shut up." Lin Ye let out a low shout, his eyes cold as he watched the five men surrounding him, his right hand slowly tightening around the hilt of his sword.

There was no way back.

"Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh—!"

Several biting sword auras suddenly erupted from the shadows of the hill to the side, striking directly at the five Blood Fiend Hall disciples!

It was Su Muxue!

She had been keeping watch in the shadows, and seeing Lin Ye in danger, she struck immediately.

"Senior Sister Su!" Chen Feng also rushed out from the other side, roaring as he lunged at the True Qi Realm peak-stage leader, pinning him down.

"Go!" Su Muxue rushed to Lin Ye's side, grabbing his swaying body to support him.

At the same time, her longsword flickered, forcing back two Blood Fiend Hall disciples who were trying to pounce on them.

Leaning on Su Muxue for support, Lin Ye forced himself to gather his strength and charged toward their hiding spot. Chen Feng also feinted with his blade, forced his opponent back, and turned to run.

"Don't let them get away! Chase them!" The leader was both shocked and furious, leading the remaining three in hot pursuit.

Su Muxue fought while retreating, her sword aura crisscrossing to significantly slow down the pursuers.

In the blink of an eye, the three of them rushed back behind the giant boulder where they had previously hidden.

"This way!" Su Muxue supported Lin Ye as they dove into a narrow, highly concealed rock crevice behind the boulder. Chen Feng followed closely behind.

The moment the three of them squeezed into the depths of the crevice, the pursuers arrived outside the rock.

"Where are they? Where did they go?"

"They must be hiding nearby! Search!"

Inside the crevice, the sound of the four people's breathing was suppressed to the extreme. Lin Ye leaned his back against the cold rock wall, unable to hold on any longer, and slid to the ground, losing consciousness.

Su Muxue hurriedly supported him and checked on Shui Linglong's condition; it was equally grim.

Chen Feng gripped his blade tightly, guarding the inner entrance of the crevice, staring fixedly at the flickering shadows outside, cold sweat streaming down his forehead.

The sounds of the search continued for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, but they seemed not to have discovered the crevice, and the voices gradually faded into the distance.

For now, they were safe.

But the hearts of Su Muxue and Chen Feng sank to the bottom of the abyss.

Lin Ye was severely wounded and unconscious, Shui Linglong was on the verge of death, and outside was the dragnet of the Blood Fiend Hall. They were trapped in this narrow rock crevice, isolated and without help...

How much longer could they hold on?

Inside the crevice, there was a deathly silence.

There were only the occasional shouts from outside and the faint humming coming from the direction of the Blood Fiend Camp.

Was that the roar of the Blood Pool activating?

The day of the blood sacrifice was already upon them.

The world written by Linfeng Shengze is all in High Martial Arts: Starting from Deducting Martial Arts.