Facing the Foundation Building Realm!

"Whether he can come back alive is still a question." Fang Yuan was unimpressed.

To become a Council Elder of the Fang Family, one's cultivation had to be at least at the Seventh Layer of Foundation Establishment—figures comparable to the patriarchs of ordinary noble houses.

"You go down too, and keep your good big brother company!"

Fang Yuan couldn't be bothered to waste words. True qi surged beneath his feet as he shot into the sky, his sword finger aimed at the Fourth Chief on the mountaintop.

"I accept your terms!"

Also at the Xiantian Ninth Layer, the Fourth Chief didn't even have the courage to fight back. He turned his head and shouted.

No choice.

He had just witnessed the power of that sword technique. The Second Chief's body wasn't even cold yet.

"It's too late now."

Fang Yuan's eyes were cold. He didn't stop his movement. Sword Qi swept through the air, cleaving the Fourth Chief of Green Ridge Stronghold from top to bottom in one stroke.

Fourth Chief, fallen!

"Most of Green Ridge Stronghold's leaders have already died by my hand."

Fang Yuan did a quick tally and found that the stronghold's leaders had been quite compatible with him.

He had slaughtered a string of bandits in succession, but not much time had passed.

The Fang Family clansmen below were still struggling within the great formation, yet to break out.

"I beg the Fifth Chief for mercy! We'll remove the formation immediately and make no further moves."

Inside Green Ridge Stronghold, the lower-ranked leaders couldn't even muster the thought of crossing blows with Fang Yuan.

Too brutal!

Fang Yuan folded his arms, silently watching the bandits scramble, saying nothing.

"Alright. Now you can descend to the Yellow Springs and properly repent for your sins in this life."

Fang Yuan had no intention of letting these bandits go.

They had committed countless evils in their daily lives, their hands stained with the blood of the innocent—they already had death coming to them.

Boom... Boom... Boom...

With so many live targets, Fang Yuan decisively began cultivating the Myriad Star Fist. It was definitely not because his true qi was insufficient.

Fang Yuan stepped with Phantom Step, his footwork so fast that ordinary human eyes could barely track it. With every raised fist, another man fell dead.

He was like an Asura from a sea of blood, reaping the lives of the wicked.

"What's going on here?"

The Fang Family members who had just emerged from the formation stared in shock at the scene before them.

Blood had soaked vast stretches of ground. Corpses and remains littered the mountain, causing many inexperienced disciples to retch.

"Did Green Ridge Stronghold have an internal conflict?"

A sharp-eyed steward caught sight of Fang Yuan's rapidly moving figure and spoke uncertainly.

"It's not an internal conflict!"

"It's the Young Master!"

Words that stunned everyone. Fang Hai's gaze locked onto Fang Yuan, a flicker of excitement rising on his face.

"What? The Young Master?!"

"Look, that person is using the clan's ultimate martial art, the Myriad Star Fist. No mistake."

One after another, voices of shock and disbelief rose among the stewards.

"The bodies lying here include Xiantian realm experts!"

"Look over there—isn't that the Second Chief of Green Ridge Stronghold..." A steward pointed at a head, his tone horrified.

"The Young Master truly has the bearing of a celestial!"

Gazing at the corpses scattered across the mountain, no one doubted Fang Hai's earlier words any longer. Their minds buzzed.

"So that's why the formation suddenly shattered just now."

The Fang Family stewards were stronger in cultivation. The clansmen behind them hadn't even caught up yet before they had already joined the fray.

The Xiantian experts of Green Ridge Stronghold were nearly wiped out. The Fang Family stewards faced no pressure dealing with a group of Houtian realm cultivators, let alone mere martial artists.

"It's already over?"

Many Fang Family clansmen who came up later stood frozen, staring at the wreckage.

Some of the disciples had come for training experience, but now there were hardly any living bandits left to be seen.

"Greetings, Young Master!"

Fang Yuan punched a Houtian Ninth Layer bandit into a mist of blood. Behind him, a crowd surged forward, bowing respectfully.

Seeing Fang Hai's figure, Fang Yuan was not particularly surprised that these people had recognized his identity.

"Station some people at every exit. The rest push deeper and root out the remnants." Fang Yuan gave the order.

The many stewards, having witnessed Fang Yuan's overwhelming display of power, genuinely admired his strength—not out of deference to his status—and naturally obeyed.

"The Young Master already fought his way into Green Ridge Stronghold? Unbelievable!"

The late-arriving clansmen only caught up belatedly; it wasn't until they saw Fang Yuan remove his disguise that their faces showed shock.

Fang Yuan hadn't forgotten the purpose of this trip. Fang Man was still being held captive by Green Ridge Stronghold. He needed to locate him quickly and get him out.

But the moment Fang Yuan took a step, he suddenly felt as if someone had locked onto him. A chill spread through his entire body.

"Not good—the First Chief of Green Ridge Stronghold is back!"

Fang Yuan had just turned his head when he heard a steward cry out in alarm, his voice trembling.

At the same time, the ripples of battle in the distance came to an abrupt halt.

In the sky, a long rainbow streaked toward them, as if half the heavens had been dyed blood-red—a truly terrifying sight.

"You are Fang Yuan?"

Only after the blood-colored figure landed did everyone get a clear look at him. He wore a black-and-crimson robe, had a sharply pointed nose, and his face was cold and expressionless.

He made no move at all. He simply stood there, blood-colored true qi swirling around him, and many people felt an immense pressure.

Especially when his gaze swept around—wherever it fell, it felt as though one could barely breathe.

Foundation Building Realm!

Facing a Foundation Building cultivator head-on, the pressure went without saying.

"So you're the bandit chieftain who consolidated resources and stirred up trouble on Falling Mist Mountain?"

Fang Yuan deliberately stressed the words "bandit chieftain."

For a dignified Foundation Building cultivator to sink to such depths was truly laughable.

As for his aura, it couldn't intimidate Fang Yuan at all.

Back during the Azure Cloud Sect trial, he had even seen a Golden Core True Lord, whose released presence was like a small sun hanging high in the sky.

Compared to that, the First Chief of Green Ridge Stronghold was like the light of a firefly trying to rival the bright moon.

"His strength should be inferior to Eleventh Elder. Looks like he used some method to temporarily break free."

Although Fang Yuan hadn't yet condensed his divine sense, his spiritual power had grown considerably. He could faintly sense this and made a guess.

"I hope your mouth stays this hard when you're dead."

The blood-colored figure moved. With one step, the ground directly caved in, and blood-colored true qi surged forward like a sky-covering tide.

"I am known as the Mad Blood Daoist. Remember that name, so you can repent properly in hell!"

With that, he mobilized the blood-colored true qi within his body, gradually gathering it together, then transformed it into a palm seal that came crashing down heavily.

Boom...

Wherever the palm seal passed, the air was compressed and exploded with sharp reports, forming a vast vacuum zone as the streak of light tore across the sky.

"Break!"

Fang Yuan braced himself against the enormous pressure, holding nothing back as he drew the long sword from his waist with all his strength.

Whoosh...

A sword cry rang out. Sword light flashed, and a long streak of Sword Qi swept forth, as if several sword shadows had merged into one.

Gale Nine Swords!

"A perfected-level martial art. Too bad your strength is too weak."

The Mad Blood Daoist licked his crimson lips, a cold smile spreading across his face.

The boundless Sword Qi only held the blood-colored palm seal at bay for a moment in the air before shattering abruptly, dissipating into specks of light.

Fang Yuan's pupils contracted. He immediately stepped into Phantom Step, twisted his wrist, and unleashed three consecutive sword strikes in quick succession, stacking twenty-seven sword shadows!

At that moment.

The blood-colored palm seal barely shattered and scattered, but the blood mist hanging overhead only grew heavier and more oppressive...