Li Qingshan remained utterly calm as he dodged, searching for an opening.
He noticed that Uncle Feng seemed a little overconfident and wasn't defending with all his might.
Maybe this is my chance!
A flash of light glinted in Li Qingshan's eyes.
Now!
He abruptly activated Flying Rainbow Technique, his figure making a sudden turn like a phantom. He narrowly dodged a deadly sword slash and instantly closed the distance to Uncle Feng!
Uncle Feng clearly hadn't expected his opponent's movement technique to be so strange. He paused for a moment.
In that split second, Li Qingshan brought his fingers together like a sword, and the vast Longevity True Essence within him surged wildly!
"Fire Arrow Technique: Hundred Arrows!"
In an instant, hundreds of densely packed, dazzlingly bright, searing green flame arrows appeared out of thin air and shot toward Uncle Feng like a torrential downpour!
Enhanced by the Wish-Fulfilling Gourd, the Fire Arrow Technique was already a top-grade first-tier spell. Its power was no less than a Foundation Establishment cultivator's spell, and now, driven by Foundation Establishment true essence, its might was truly terrifying!
Uncle Feng's expression changed drastically. In his haste, he raised a shield of spiritual power and recalled his flying sword to block the arrows.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The flaming arrows slammed relentlessly into the shield and the flying sword, unleashing a continuous barrage of thunderous explosions!
The shield twisted violently, on the verge of shattering!
Seizing the opportunity, Li Qingshan gathered every bit of the immense true essence he had gained upon breaking through—far beyond that of an ordinary early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator—into his right hand!
His palm instantly turned jade-green, brimming with terrifying vitality and destructive power!
It was the sign of Longevity Technique true essence condensed to its utmost!
"Die!"
Li Qingshan gave a low shout, darted forward like lightning, and struck with his palm!
Uncle Feng had just blocked all the fire arrows. His strength had been spent, and he hadn't yet gathered new power; his shield had also shattered. He could only watch as the jade-green palm rapidly grew larger before his eyes, his gaze filled with shock and disbelief!
"No—!"
Squish!
The palm, infused with immense Longevity True Essence, smashed his head with ease, as if crushing a watermelon!
Red and white matter splattered everywhere!
The early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator was dead!
It all happened in the blink of an eye. Zhang Hongxiu's smug smile hadn't even faded before it froze completely!
She stared blankly as the headless corpse crumpled to the ground, then looked toward the cloaked figure as he slowly lowered his hand. The icy gaze beneath his hood turned toward her, and she felt as if she'd fallen into an ice cavern, terror stealing her very soul!
"You... you... you actually killed Uncle Feng?!" Zhang Hongxiu shrieked, her voice sharp with boundless fear. "My great-grandmaster is Zhang Yuzhen, a Golden Core elder of the Spring Autumn Sect! If you dare lay a finger on me, she'll extract your soul and refine it, ensuring you never reincarnate! Kneel and beg for mercy now, and offer up your treasures. Perhaps I can still ask her to spare your life!"
As she spoke, she instinctively backed away, secretly gripping a jade emergency talisman in her hand.
Looking at the woman before him, still arrogant and oblivious to the situation, Li Qingshan felt a century of endurance, the wasted years in Peach Blossom Village, the hardship in the Hall of Discarded Treasures, and the fury from the ambush moments ago twist together in an instant, turning into a towering killing intent!
He knew he couldn't let her leave. If he did, she'd become a threat down the road!
Without another word, Li Qingshan moved again!
"How dare you!" Zhang Hongxiu cried in terror. She crushed the emergency talisman and brought out a small shield artifact at the same time!
But before absolute strength and killing intent, it was all futile!
The Crimson Dragon Sword was damaged, but it was still sharp! A streak of crimson light flashed by, slipped precisely around the shield, and pierced Zhang Hongxiu's throat in an instant!
Her scream cut off. Her beautiful eyes widened, filled with disbelief and resentment. She seemed unable to believe that he had actually dared to kill her. Her body crumpled limply to the ground, lifeless.
Li Qingshan remained expressionless. He swiftly collected their two storage bags and the low-grade spiritual sword, then sent out a fireball to reduce both corpses to ash and carefully erased every trace of the scene.
When he was done, he didn't dare linger another moment. His figure became a faint gray shadow as he used Five Elements Escape Technique: Earth Chapter, sank into the ground in an instant, and sped away from the Spring Autumn Sect.
Deep among the mist-shrouded immortal mountains of the Spring Autumn Sect, in a cave dwelling overflowing with spiritual energy, Golden Core elder Zhang Yuzhen sat with her eyes closed, meditating. A hazy aura of spiritual light swirled around her, and her presence was as unfathomable as the sea.
Suddenly, the blood-red jade pendant at her waist, which she had been nurturing, engraved with the character "Sleeve," cracked without warning. In an instant, fractures spread across it, then it dimmed completely and shattered!
"Hmm?!"
Zhang Yuzhen's eyes flew open, a sharp glint flashing within them. An indescribable dread and panic seized her!
This bloodline Soul Jade was bound to the life of her only direct descendant, Zhang Hongxiu. Its shattering meant...
"Hongxiu!!!"
A shrill cry of shock, which then turned into boundless fury, erupted from the cave dwelling like thunder from the ninth heaven, instantly spreading across half the Spring Autumn Sect!
Boom!
A violent surge of spiritual power blasted open the cave's stone gate!
Zhang Yuzhen shot into the sky like a golden rainbow, releasing her terrifying Golden Core pressure without restraint and blanketing the surrounding area!
Gone was her usual grace and refinement. Her face twisted with unbearable rage and grief, and flames that could burn everything to nothing blazed in her eyes!
"Who?! Who dares kill my descendant?!!"
Her voice was colder than ten thousand years of ice and brimmed with boundless killing intent. Countless disciples below, caught in the pressure, turned pale and trembled as they stared up at the sky in terror.
"It's Grand-Aunt Zhang!"
"What happened? Why is Grand-Aunt Zhang so furious?"
"It seems... it seems Senior Sister Zhang Hongxiu is in trouble?"
"What? Who would dare harm Senior Sister Zhang?!"
Several equally powerful divine senses swept over from within the sect, carrying surprise and questions.
"Junior Sister Zhang, what has made you so furious?" an elderly voice asked. It belonged to another Golden Core elder.
"My descendant's Soul Jade has shattered! She died outside the sect! This hatred cannot be shared under heaven!" Zhang Yuzhen's voice was icy, seething with murderous intent. "Whoever the culprit is, wherever he flees, I'll extract and refine his soul, then grind his bones to dust!"
Before her words had even faded, she didn't wait for a reply. Her hands formed incantation seals in rapid succession as she murmured something, seemingly casting some kind of tracking secret art.
A moment later, she abruptly raised her head, her gaze shooting like a sword toward the Black Wind Mountain Range in the north!
"I've found you! You little thief, prepare to die!"
Golden light blazed around her as she tore through the sky, speeding toward the direction she'd sensed at a pace that seemed almost to rip through space. She left behind a sect full of bewildered disciples and elders, buzzing with anxious speculation.
"Hiss... Zhang Hongxiu actually died?"
"Who could be so bold as to kill a Golden Core elder's direct descendant?!"
"Looking at Grand-Aunt Zhang's direction, did she head to the Black Wind Mountain Range in the north? Has anything unusual happened there lately?"
"I heard there were astonishing signs in the heavens a few days ago. Could they be related to this?"
"This is bad, this is bad! In her fury, Grand-Aunt Zhang may unleash a storm of bloodshed!"
The entire Spring Autumn Sect was shaken by Zhang Yuzhen's fury and Zhang Hongxiu's death. The news spread like the wind, leaving everyone on edge even as curiosity and speculation swirled.
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