Highlight Moment

Li Mu, unaware that he was being kept in mind, was currently launching his final push for a breakthrough. Li Mu finally understood the true difficulty of martial arts cultivation.

With the limited use of external aids, it had taken him over half a year of bitter practice to break through a single minor realm, a stark contrast to his previous rapid progress.

This was merely the beginning; as his martial arts realm continued to rise, the time required for later cultivation would only grow longer and longer.

He circulated his internal energy with all his might. His inner force felt like rolling droplets of water, traversing his body in one Great Circulation after another before splitting apart.

"Broken through," Li Mu felt no great surprise. Only when the droplets in his Dantian transformed into a continuous, flowing stream would it truly be considered a great mastery of martial arts.

Of course, this was merely an ideal state. The idea of internal energy being "continuous and endless" was an exaggeration; if one were to constantly unleash powerful techniques, there would always come a time when it was exhausted. Even the legendary Innate experts had their limits.

Just as he finished washing up, a familiar voice rang in Li Mu's ears.

"Senior Brother Li, you have finally come out of seclusion."

"Junior Brother Xu, you are smiling so happily. Has some joyous event occurred within the sect?"

Seeing the beaming Xu Buwei, Li Mu asked with confusion.

Xu Buwei replied excitedly, "Senior Brother, you were in seclusion, so you don't know. News has come from down the mountain that Uncle-Master Feng has killed the eight elders of the Demonic Cult and is currently bringing their heads back. The sect is going to hold a grand ceremony."

Hearing this expected answer, Li Mu finally understood. Adding the two unlucky souls he had dealt with earlier, the Ten Elders of the Demonic Cult had been neatly rounded up.

He wondered if it was a clash of attributes; the remains of the previous generation of the Ten Elders were still lying in the Cliff of Repentance, and now this batch had been wiped out as well.

How the Demonic Cult elders met their end was not important.

For the Mount Hua Sect, this was indeed tremendous news.

It not only wiped away the shadow of the Demonic Cult's previous sneak attack on the mountain gate but also elevated the Mount Hua Sect's reputation in the pugilistic world to an unparalleled level.

From this moment on, "The Sword Emerges from Mount Hua" could truly be considered a title well-earned.

"Oh, do you know how Uncle-Master Feng killed those Demonic Cult thieves?"

Li Mu pressed for details.

Everyone had curiosity, and Li Mu was no exception. He estimated that all the major figures in the pugilistic world were currently studying this very question.

Especially those factions with grudges against the Mount Hua Sect; if they didn't figure out the details, they probably wouldn't be able to sleep soundly.

Xu Buwei spoke with great animation, making Li Mu wonder if he had walked into the wrong scene. Things like "the sword descending from the heavens" and "a cold light flashing for dozens of feet"... it was a full-blown xianxia theater.

If that were the truth, Li Mu was certain that it wouldn't just be the Ten Elders of the Demonic Cult who were dead. If he hadn't charged into the Demonic Cult's lair to raze Black Wood Cliff, how could he have vented his hatred?

The current Sword Saint was in the prime of his youth, a stage of life defined by swift vengeance and righteous indignation. He was not the white-haired old man who had seen through the secular world in the novels; his killing intent was heavy!

Rumors in the pugilistic world were lethal. It was clear that this Junior Brother Xu before him had been led astray by some unknown source of gossip.

Of course, while the content of the rumors was exaggerated, one thing was certain—Feng Qingyang was indeed formidable.

He might not be a one-man army capable of toppling a nation, but holding his own against a top-tier sect was not a problem.

For the major powers of the pugilistic world, they would likely rather face an entire sect than provoke such a freak.

Li Mu knew without thinking that Feng Qingyang's return to the mountain, bolstered by the prestige of this great victory, would inevitably stir up trouble within the sect.

The most direct issue was the "imbalance of power between the Sword and Qi Sects." The strength of the Sword Sect now surpassed that of the Qi Sect, and this advantage would only continue to expand over time.

After the failure of the eastward expansion strategy, Ning Qingyu's prestige had been weakened, and some in the Sword Sect had wanted to stir up trouble, only to be outplayed by the wily Ning Qingyu with a "diversion of attention" tactic.

With Feng Qingyang's powerful return, these people would likely be unable to restrain themselves again. Now, it remained to be seen how Ning Qingyu would respond.

Gazing at the clouds in the distance, Li Mu suddenly felt he should do something; he could not keep retreating like this.

Avoiding the conflict between the Sword and Qi Sects was far too passive. It had not been easy for Mount Hua to accumulate its current foundation; if a real internecine struggle were to occur, it would be difficult to recover for thirty or forty years.

How many thirty or forty-year periods were there in a person's life? How could it withstand such squandering?

Able to stand at the peak of the martial arts world and view the scenery, Li Mu did not want to swallow his pride or live a miserable life by keeping his head down.

Since the butterfly's wings had already flapped, he might as well make them flap even more violently.

Unlike the laughter and joy on Mount Hua, the calm pugilistic world was shattered by this "thunderbolt." Just as everyone was stunned by the news, the Sun Moon Divine Cult had already begun to move.

Black Wood Cliff.

When the news of the total annihilation of the Ten Elders arrived, Dugu Qingyun merely let out a cold sneer; neither joy nor anger could be discerned from his expression.

However, the cult members below were trembling like cicadas in winter. Especially those who belonged to the faction of the Ten Elders, each of them felt as if they were standing on the edge of an abyss.

"Eight elders, along with fifty elite cult members, actually died under the sword of a single man. It truly brings glory to our Divine Cult!"

"A bunch of trash!"

Having been scolded, the previously terrified cult members actually felt a sense of relief.

Everyone knew Dugu Qingyun's character; this Cult Leader never liked to waste words, especially with the dead.

Being able to be scolded here meant they still had value and did not need to die just yet.

Perhaps having vented enough, Dugu Qingyun swept his gaze over the cult members below and said coldly, "The majesty of the Divine Cult cannot be profaned. No one can act without paying the price."

Since that bunch of hypocrites from the righteous path dares to provoke us, we shall show them what we are made of.

The positions of the Ten Elders are currently all vacant; whoever takes the head of Feng Qingyang shall be the head of the Ten Elders of our Divine Cult.

The remaining nine spots will also be filled by those who distinguish themselves in the coming great war. Any member of the Divine Cult, regardless of their current rank, is eligible to compete.

Everyone knew that a new round of the war between the righteous and the evil had begun, yet no one voiced any objection.

This was not only due to being awed by the majesty of Dugu Qingyun, but also because of the tradition of the Sun Moon Divine Cult, where every new leader initiates a war between the righteous and the evil upon taking power.

If not for internal power struggles, this war would have erupted years ago. Now that the Ten Elders were completely wiped out and the forces that once checked Dugu Qingyun no longer existed, this war was naturally bound to commence.

After a brief pause, Dugu Qingyun asked solemnly, "Where are the Left and Right Envoys?"

Two elderly men dressed in purple robes stepped out from the crowd, respectfully performed a full kowtow, and replied in unison, "We await the Cult Leader's command!"

Dugu Qingyun nodded, "I order you two to lead the direct subordinates of the Ten Elders, join forces with the disciples of the Five Northern Branches, and incorporate the martial arts factions along the way as we advance toward the Central Plains."