Appearance

Far beyond the forest, the White-robed Scholar, who had been keeping his eyes tightly shut, suddenly snapped them open, a streak of cold light erupting from his gaze.

He grabbed the Jade Token beside him and stared at it, his expression darkening instantly.

"Something has happened." The White-robed Scholar spoke abruptly, his eyes unable to conceal his killing intent.

The Red-robed Woman beside him turned her head sharply at these words. Upon seeing the Jade Token in his hand, she pulled out her own to investigate, only to nearly scream in shock.

"How is this possible?" she exclaimed. The original 4,000 Immortal Qi, instead of increasing, had dropped back to 3,000—which meant that two people on their side had died.

This exclamation startled the Yellow-Robed Woman and the two others, drawing their suspicious gazes.

The White-robed Scholar carefully observed the expressions of the three, frowned slightly, stood up from the ground, and walked toward the Yellow-Robed Woman.

He leaned down, bringing his face close to hers. The Yellow-Robed Woman clearly disliked this behavior, her expression turning slightly cold.

After staring at her for several moments, the White-robed Scholar narrowed his eyes and asked, "Among the six of you, there is one at Qi Refining Layer 4?"

"Yes. If you want to kill us, then do it; don't waste time here," the Yellow-Robed Woman said coldly.

"Of course we want to finish this quickly, but it seems you are the ones playing games..." The White-robed Scholar's smile vanished. His tone shifted as he stared coldly at the three of them. "Qi Refining Layer 4? Hmph, look at your Jade Tokens yourselves. Is this something a Qi Refining Layer 4 cultivator could do? I hope you will be honest, lest you suffer needlessly later."

He watched the three of them with calm composure, seemingly interested only in the truth, while their abilities were far from enough to cause any other emotional fluctuations in him.

"What do you mean?" The Yellow-Robed Woman and the Male Cultivator were both stunned. They looked down at the Jade Tokens at their waists and were immediately filled with disbelief.

"This... how is this possible?" the Male Cultivator exclaimed. Their red number of 2,000 Immortal Qi had now become 3,000.

"Do you think a Qi Refining Layer 4 cultivator could kill two Qi Refining Seventh Layer cultivators at the same time?" The White-robed Scholar laughed coldly after speaking, as if he found the very notion ridiculous.

The Green-robed Woman beside them stirred at these words, her dull expression softening slightly. A brat at Qi Refining Layer 4 killed two Qi Refining Seventh Layer experts?

She looked up at her own Jade Token, her small mouth agape in astonishment. This was impossible...

"We have no reason to lie to you. Aside from the Qi Refining Seventh Layer and Sixth Layer cultivators you killed, there is only that Qi Refining Layer 4 brat left. We entered before him, and his appearance shocked us too, otherwise we wouldn't have decided to scatter and flee," the Male Cultivator said calmly. Yet, in his heart, a glimmer of hope ignited. There was still one day left; as long as that brat wasn't caught, they would win.

But was this possible? A mere Qi Refining Layer 4 cultivator—what exactly had happened?

He was filled with doubts and burning with anxiety.

"It seems you don't know my methods. Hong Yu, bring me the Soul-Devouring Pill." A cold light flashed in the White-robed Scholar's eyes as he spoke coldly.

Hong Yu, the Red-robed Woman, immediately pulled a medicine bottle from her robes and handed it to him.

The expressions of the Yellow-Robed Woman and the Male Cultivator changed instantly. The Soul-Devouring Pill was a vicious poison; those who consumed it would have their Divine Soul eroded bit by bit, as if being bitten by thousands of ants. That pain was far more terrifying than any physical agony.

"Everything we said is true; we aren't lying. The remaining brat is indeed at Qi Refining Layer 4," the Male Cultivator said, his voice trembling with tension. He did not fear death, but the thought of being tortured by such a pill before dying filled him with genuine terror.

The Yellow-Robed Woman's eyes flickered, and she spoke, "Aren't you all fellow disciples? You could simply have one person withdraw from the Heavenly Court and ask the two who died what exactly happened."

"We are merely disciples of the same sect within the Heavenly Court. In the Cultivation World, we are separated by tens of thousands of miles; how are we to ask? I advise you to tell the truth. I believe you have heard of the taste of this Soul-Devouring Pill," Hong Yu said, staring coldly at the Yellow-Robed Woman. She disliked her intensely; why was it that, despite both being women, this one possessed such peerless beauty and a graceful figure?

Sensing the hostility in Hong Yu's eyes, the Yellow-Robed Woman shook her head slightly. She had seen such jealous, hostile gazes too many times. Yet, in her heart, the scene of meeting Chen Fan yesterday flashed by: his bizarre movement technique! His terrifying sword art! A Qi Refining Layer 4 cultivation base, yet he had killed the White-Haired Lone Wolf across levels!

That cold flash of his sword now surged into the Yellow-Robed Woman's mind!

"Senior Brother, could it be that they encountered a powerful Monster Beast and were killed by it?" Hong Yu leaned toward the White-robed Scholar and whispered, "And then that Qi Refining Layer 4 brat just happened to pass by and took their Jade Tokens."

The White-robed Scholar had been observing the others' expressions and eyes, and he found they did not seem to be lying. Hong Yu's words made him feel this was a possibility; there was no shortage of high-level Monster Beasts in this wilderness, and this conjecture was at least more convincing than the idea of a Qi Refining Layer 4 cultivator killing two Qi Refining Seventh Layer experts.

"However, if that is the case, it makes things much easier. I can kill you all, then catch that brat, and my 3,000 points of Immortal Qi will be complete." The White-robed Scholar turned his face slightly, revealing a cold, sharp smile as he looked at the three of them.

This sentence instantly extinguished the last glimmer of hope that had ignited in the Male Cultivator. He knew that if they died, even if Chen Fan succeeded alone, they would not be carried to victory; they would not be able to profit from the chaos.

"No, don't kill me! Please, let me see that brat die before my eyes! He is too arrogant; I want to see him torn to pieces!" the Male Cultivator urged. He felt that if he were to die, he had to see the Qi Refining Layer 4 brat die first, otherwise, they would be too pathetic—worse than even a Qi Refining Layer 4.

"Oh? I like your personality." The White-robed Scholar smiled slightly, looking at the Male Cultivator with interest. "As a reward, I will let you kill him yourself later, and then I will finish you off. How about that?"

"Good, good! Thank you! Thank you, Senior!" The Male Cultivator could not hide the joy in his eyes, thanking the White-robed Scholar repeatedly.

"Haha... 'Senior'? I like that title." The White-robed Scholar laughed loudly, walked to the base of a large tree, and sat down slowly!

"Then for now, we wait for that brat to be brought back." He sat under the tree with a smile, looking at the three of them as if they were pets he was keeping.

Although the three felt uncomfortable, they were helpless. Their lives were in the hands of others, and they had no choice but to endure this humiliation.

Just then, everyone's Jade Tokens flashed slightly once more. The White-robed Scholar raised an eyebrow, wondering if the brat had been killed.

He picked up the Jade Token, his pupils suddenly dilating, and his entire body jerked up from beneath the tree.

The Yellow-Robed Woman and the others naturally saw the change on their own tokens as well. They were all struck dumb, their hearts pounding wildly. What had happened? Could they have misread it, or were they dreaming?

The red 3,000 Immortal Qi on their tokens had now become 4,000. This meant that two more of the other side's six people had died. Added to the previous two, four had already fallen. Now, only the White-robed Scholar and the Red-robed Woman remained.

Could it be that the Qi Refining Layer 4 brat was hiding his cultivation? the three thought simultaneously.

"Are you looking for death?" Hong Yu was furious, feeling that they had been tricked and played for fools. She pulled out several Talismans, intending to strike the three, but was stopped by the White-robed Scholar's hand.

"Senior Brother?" Hong Yu looked at him in confusion.

"This makes things much more interesting," the White-robed Scholar said with a cold laugh, a look of madness erupting in his eyes. He stared toward the forest and sneered, "Kill them, then follow me into the forest to drag that little beast out."

"Hum—"

A sharp, piercing sound of a sword rang out from the forest, carrying a trace of cold chill and killing intent, washing over everyone's ears.

The Yellow-Robed Woman's expression changed; that sword hum was all too familiar to her...

The crowd turned their heads to stare at the forest, their expressions varying, while the White-robed Scholar revealed a cold sneer: "Delivering yourself to your own doorstep."

Hong Yu pinched a yellow Talisman, watching the forest coldly.

The Male Cultivator and the Green-robed Woman looked on in astonishment. As the sound of the sword hum grew closer, a figure gradually appeared in their eyes, gripping a long sword and moving with strange footwork as he rushed out from the depths of the forest.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

Every time that figure passed a tree, the leaves would shake violently, adding a chilling sound to the monotonous, icy hum of the sword.

Who on earth could kill four Qi Refining Seventh Layer experts in a row? Hong Yu watched the approaching figure, her hand clutching the Talisman trembling slightly.

"Hum!"

Amidst the piercing sword hum, the figure finally burst out of the forest, his sword radiance like crimson flames, pointing straight at the White-robed Scholar.

The crowd finally saw the appearance of this figure clearly!

"It really is him!" The Yellow-robed Woman's heart jolted violently; she stared at Chen Fan's cold expression, instantly dumbfounded.

The Male Cultivator and the Green-robed Woman widened their eyes, their pupils contracting sharply as they muttered, "How is this possible?"

Shua!

The White-robed Scholar waved his right hand, snapping his folding fan open. A mass of ghostly blue flames erupted from the fan, lunging toward the oncoming Chen Fan. The blue flames coalesced into a skeleton in mid-air, wielding a bone blade and wreathed in blue fire, shrieking with a shrill cry as it flew toward Chen Fan.

"This is... the Underworld Bone Fan?" Only now did the Yellow-robed Woman recognize the name of the fan. The Underworld Bone Fan was a Spirit Tool; its ribs were forged from the bones of cultivators, and the fan face was refined from human skin. It was an extremely yin and cold Spirit Tool with extraordinary power.

Chen Fan's gaze sharpened. He held his sharp sword horizontally before him, tapped his toes against the sand, and brought the blade—laden with dense Blazing Heaven Sword Qi—down upon the blue-fire skeleton in a single strike.

"Puff."

The blue skeleton instantly exploded, transforming back into a mass of ghostly blue flames that lunged at Chen Fan.

"Blazing Heaven Sword Qi!" True Qi surged within Chen Fan's dantian, gathering upon the blade. He wove a flash of sword light, blocking all the ghostly blue flames.

With a hiss, the ghostly blue flames met the Blazing Heaven Sword Qi like a trickle of water hitting a raging fire, and most of them were evaporated!

"Qi Refining Layer 6?" The White-robed Scholar stood his ground, his brows furrowed tightly.