Meeting Lei Dong Again, the Prince

Although Xu Yang felt somewhat surprised, he did not strike up a conversation with Lei Dong and the others. Back then, they had abandoned him without a moment's hesitation, which showed that they had never held him in any regard. Why should he bother associating with them now? Moreover, he had already stepped into the world of cultivation; he was no longer on the same level as them.

However, he would not let Yin Shihong and his men off the hook. Xu Yang had always believed in repaying both debts of gratitude and grudges. Thinking of this, Xu Yang immediately walked toward Yin Shihong and his group.

Seeing Xu Yang walking toward him, Yin Shihong immediately looked at him with a guarded expression and said, "Kid, I didn't expect you to still be alive. You certainly have a lucky life. I should have struck you down with a palm back then and finished you off completely."

Hearing this, Xu Yang's face darkened instantly. He said to Yin Shihong, "You are at death's door, yet you still don't know how to repent. To dare spout such wild words at me—you truly have a death wish. I will send you on your way right now." As he said this, Xu Yang raised his hand and pointed, and a golden Flying Sword flew out, piercing toward Yin Shihong at high speed.

When Yin Shihong heard Xu Yang's words, he had initially been full of disdain and was just about to offer a sarcastic retort when he saw the Flying Sword stabbing toward him. His expression changed drastically, and just as he was about to dodge, the sword pierced straight through him, and he fell to the ground, dead.

The subordinates behind Yin Shihong were thrown into an uproar. Some attacked Xu Yang, some turned and fled, and others knelt to beg for mercy. For a moment, it was a true display of the various states of human nature. Watching this, Xu Yang was stunned for a moment, and a realization dawned on him. The boiling intent to kill in his heart gradually calmed down.

When he regained his senses, he was pleasantly surprised to discover that his state of mind had actually improved. One had to know that while increasing one's cultivation level was easy, improving one's state of mind was extremely difficult. Those with a low state of mind would not only hit bottlenecks and be unable to progress, but they were also prone to becoming possessed by inner demons, losing their humanity entirely and killing indiscriminately.

Now that Xu Yang's state of mind had improved, it was truly an unexpected joy; no wonder he was so pleasantly surprised. Xu Yang looked up at Yin Shihong's subordinates and waved his hand at them, saying, "You may leave. My grudge is only with Yin Shihong; I will not implicate you."

Hearing Xu Yang's words, Yin Shihong's subordinates immediately turned and fled in all directions, leaving only two people standing in place. Xu Yang looked at the two and asked, "Why aren't you two leaving? Are you looking to take revenge?"

When the two heard Xu Yang's question, they looked at each other, braced themselves, and said to Xu Yang, "We would not dare to attack an immortal master. We only wish to collect the body of Hall Master Yin. We wonder if the immortal master would allow it?"

Hearing this, Xu Yang was taken aback. Then, with an appreciative look, he said to the two, "I didn't expect Yin Shihong to have such loyal subordinates. He wasn't a total failure as a person. You two are quite good; I admire you. Take his body away!"

Hearing Xu Yang's consent, the two immediately bowed to him, hoisted Yin Shihong's body onto their backs, and turned to leave quickly. Once all of Yin Shihong's subordinates had fled, Xu Yang finally turned his head to look at Lei Dong and the others.

Lei Dong and the others had witnessed Xu Yang's great display of power, killing Yin Shihong with a single sword strike, and they were all filled with shock. They had never expected that after not seeing him for just over a year, Xu Yang's strength would have skyrocketed to the point of becoming an immortal master.

At this moment, seeing Xu Yang looking at them, they felt a complex mix of emotions, and their faces turned extremely bitter. Zhao Qiankun, who was most familiar with Xu Yang, received a signal from Lei Dong and braced himself to walk toward Xu Yang, forcing a smile as he said, "I didn't expect that since we parted that day, my nephew has become a dignified immortal master. It makes us truly envious!"

Hearing Zhao Qiankun's words, Xu Yang replied with a smile, "It was merely luck. Master Li saved the life of a cultivator before he passed away, and he instructed me that if I could break through to the innate realm, I should go and seek him as a teacher."

After hearing this, Zhao Qiankun felt a wave of regret. If he had known about this earlier, he would have definitely snatched the opportunity for himself. Now that it was too late to say anything, he could only try his best to bridge the gap between himself and Xu Yang.

Thinking of this, Zhao Qiankun immediately said with a smile, "So that's how it is. Now that you have stepped onto the path of immortality, your future will surely be limitless. I must congratulate you, nephew." As he spoke, he cupped his hands and bowed to Xu Yang.

Afterward, Zhao Qiankun continued to ask Xu Yang, "May I ask why you have come to this place, nephew? Is there anything we can do for you?" Xu Yang waved his hand and said, "I am merely passing through. I am on my way to Haicheng Prefecture."

Hearing this, Zhao Qiankun was overjoyed. He hurriedly said to Xu Yang, "What a coincidence! We are also heading to Haicheng Prefecture. If you don't mind our slow pace, you could travel with us."

After hearing this, Xu Yang asked Zhao Qiankun, "What urgent business do you have in Haicheng Prefecture? I am in a hurry to return to my sect. If you have nothing urgent, I will not travel with you."

"Sigh! I don't fear being laughed at by you, nephew, but we are fleeing for our lives. A few days ago, the Emperor was killed by that rebel Prince Fu. We are acting under the Emperor's orders to protect his only heir and flee to Haicheng Prefecture. According to the Emperor, there is an immortal sect there that can protect our safety," Zhao Qiankun said with a sorrowful face.

Xu Yang was overjoyed to hear this. He hadn't expected such a turn of events. Their mission this time had already failed, and he had been worrying about how to explain it to Qing Yuanzi—though, of course, it wasn't his fault, as the opposition had two Foundation Establishment Realm cultivators.

However, if he could bring Wu Ming's heir back to the sect, surely Qing Yuanzi would be very satisfied with him! Thinking of this, Xu Yang immediately asked Zhao Qiankun, "Where is Wu Ming's heir now? Take me to him at once!"

Hearing this, Zhao Qiankun looked at Xu Yang with a surprised expression, but he dared not refuse him and could only lead Xu Yang toward Lei Dong and the others. Xu Yang exchanged a few hurried words with Lei Dong and the others before urging them to take him to see Wu Ming's heir.

Although Lei Dong and the others were surprised and confused, they had no choice but to take Xu Yang to see the prince, not daring to show the slightest defiance. Inside a hidden depression, Xu Yang saw the five or six-year-old prince. He was currently asleep, but seeing his tightly furrowed brows, it was clear that the little prince was not sleeping peacefully.

Xu Yang glanced at the little prince, walked out of the tent, and said to Lei Dong, Zhao Qiankun, and the others, "You are lucky to have met me. This place is no longer safe. We must leave immediately. I will tell you the details of this matter on the way."

Subsequently, under Xu Yang's urging, Lei Dong and the others immediately took action, and the group quickly left the area. Not long after they had departed, a streak of sword light flew over at high speed. After checking the vicinity and finding nothing, the person could only leave with a disgruntled expression.

It is said that after Lei Dong, Zhao Qiankun, and the others left, Xu Yang immediately used some low-level spells to destroy their tracks and traces. Afterward, Xu Yang flew on his sword to catch up with them and told Lei Dong and the others the details of the situation.

Upon hearing this, Lei Dong, Zhao Qiankun, and the others turned pale, cold sweat the size of beans rolling down their faces. They were filled with lingering fear and thanked Xu Yang repeatedly.

Xu Yang waved his hand at the two and said, "Right now, this little prince is a burden to you. If you didn't have the prince, you could escape this whirlpool and get away safely; after all, cultivators wouldn't specifically come looking for trouble with you."

Lei Dong and the other nodded repeatedly. They had the heart to abandon the little prince, but they found it difficult to speak up; after all, the two of them were still somewhat loyal to Wu Ming, otherwise, Wu Ming would not have entrusted this matter to them.

Seeing the expressions on their faces, Xu Yang understood everything. He immediately said to the two, "This little prince is Wu Ming's only heir. Although my mission failed this time, it was not due to a lack of effort in battle, yet it is still difficult to explain. Why not hand the little prince over to me? I will definitely protect his safety and deliver him to my master."

"In this way, you can consider yourselves to have fulfilled Wu Ming's final request. What do you think?" Hearing this, Lei Dong and the other were immediately overjoyed and said to Xu Yang, "Then we shall trouble you, nephew Xu. We will not have failed the Emperor's trust."

Seeing that the two had agreed to his suggestion, Xu Yang was happy. He said to them, "After all, you and I have some history. My meeting the little prince this time could not have happened without your efforts. I have some martial arts manuals here; I will give them to you! After all, who knows when we will meet again after we part this time!" As he said this, Xu Yang felt a sense of melancholy.

Subsequently, Xu Yang waved his hand, and a pile of martial arts manuals landed in front of the two. Lei Dong and Zhao Qiankun immediately picked them up with excitement. Looking at the titles of these manuals, the two became even more agitated; these manuals were all legendary martial arts that had been lost to the world for a long time. They were about to strike it rich.

Seeing the two looking intoxicated, Xu Yang coughed dryly to wake them up. He raised his left hand and said, "The three manuals in my hand are the most important. They are the divine techniques and secret methods created by Old Man Tianjue himself, including the secret technique for breaking through to the innate realm. You must keep them safe."

After hearing this, Lei Dong and Zhao Qiankun immediately stepped forward with excitement to receive them. In the end, Zhao Qiankun obtained the Tianjue Finger and Zhentian Palm, while Lei Dong obtained the secret method for breaking through to the innate realm.

Once the two had recovered from their excitement, Xu Yang walked into the little prince's tent, picked him up gently, and then nodded to Lei Dong and Zhao Qiankun behind him. Xu Yang used his light-body technique to leap into the air and quickly left the area.

Seeing Xu Yang leave, Lei Dong and Zhao Qiankun looked at each other, a flash of wariness in their eyes. They both took two steps back, putting a wide distance between each other.

Seeing this, both of them laughed awkwardly. Carefully guarding against one another, they divided the martial arts manuals Xu Yang had left behind into two, each taking their own share. Afterward, the two called their respective confidants to pack their luggage, and they parted ways.

It is said that Xu Yang carried the little prince, resting during the day and traveling at night, being extremely cautious along the way. Three days later, he finally managed to leave the borders of Wu Prefecture safely. It wasn't that he didn't want to fly on his sword, but his cultivation was simply too low to carry anyone while flying. To carry someone while flying, one must have at least Foundation Establishment Realm cultivation.

Fortunately, nothing happened along the way, and Xu Yang safely entered the territory of Haicheng Prefecture. After all, a small child posed no threat, and the demonic cultivators of the Blood Refining Sect didn't care about him at all; it was only that rebel Prince Fu who would have cared so much.