Standing among the clouds, Yellow Dragon concealed his aura, plucked a spirit melon from the Mysterious Yellow World, broke it into several pieces, and leisurely ate it while watching events unfold below.
Opposite Taiyi, more than a dozen figures stood in midair.
Their appearances varied wildly. Some radiated impure immortal light, while others had hideous faces. They were disciples of the Interception Sect.
Their leader had a lion's nose, a broad mouth, and a vicious gleam in his eyes. He was Qiu Shouxian, one of Saint Tongtian's Seven Attendants.
With more than a dozen Jie Sect Disciples behind him, Qiu Shouxian thought nothing of the lone Taiyi. "Taiyi! How can you occupy all these spirit mountains by yourself? Give them to us fellow disciples and find another spirit mountain for yourself."
Taiyi glared furiously at Qiu Shouxian. "Not a chance!"
Seeing that Taiyi refused to budge, Qiu Shouxian threatened him.
"These mountains have no owner. You merely discovered them first; you haven't occupied them yet. In the Primordial World, the strong have always ruled! If you can defeat us, why shouldn't we let you have them?"
"Hahaha! Exactly! Senior Brother Qiu Shouxian is right!"
The Jie Sect Disciples all burst into laughter at Qiu Shouxian's words!
Behind Qiu Shouxian, Lingya Xian stepped forward. He was rotund, with two enormous tusks protruding beside his lips and gleaming a ghastly white. In a booming voice, he said, "Exactly! Who says you discovered these spirit mountains, Taiyi? We clearly found them first. You're the one trying to steal our spirit mountains."
"Shameless sophistry!" Taiyi said coldly. "You want to steal the spirit mountains, yet you still make all these excuses!"
"So what if we steal them?" Qiu Shouxian sneered viciously. "In the Primordial World, the victor rules! If you object, settle it with your fists! Let's see whether the immortal arts you learned from the Sect of Elucidation are stronger than the wondrous arts and divine abilities our sect master taught us!"
Before he finished speaking, Qiu Shouxian had already unleashed several magical treasures. Black winds rose around them, poisonous miasma filled the sky, and enormous claws gleaming with cold light descended on Taiyi from every direction!
"As expected of creatures born from dampness and hatched from eggs—you have no shame! How dare you launch a sneak attack!" Taiyi roared angrily. With a flick of his fly whisk, countless silver strands lengthened explosively, forming a barrier around him.
Taiyi's cultivation was formidable, and the power of his Daoist arts and divine abilities surpassed that of all the newly admitted disciples. Facing Qiu Shouxian, whose cultivation realm was close to his own, he effortlessly blocked both the ambush and the attacks that followed.
While the barrier formed by Taiyi True Person's fly whisk protected him, he hurled out a cover shaped like a small bowl. In midair, it abruptly manifested nine circling fire dragons that enclosed Qiu Shouxian. All nine dragon heads spewed divine fire capable of melting mountains and boiling seas at him.
Seeing Qiu Shouxian screaming as the divine fire burned him, the other Jie Sect Disciples hurriedly unleashed their divine abilities and spells, sending magical treasures hurtling toward Taiyi.
Under the torrential barrage of divine abilities and spells from the Jie Sect Disciples, the barrier formed by Taiyi's fly whisk shook violently, its silver strands gradually dimming. Unable to fend them all off, he faltered for an instant, and a sinister blast of black baleful energy struck his shoulder. He screamed and staggered backward, forced to recall the Nine-Dragon Divine Fire Cover.
"Taiyi, die!"
The moment Qiu Shouxian escaped, the agonizing pain from his scorched body sent him into a savage frenzy. He opened his mouth and spat out a pillar of eerie green wind that swept straight toward Taiyi's face.
The other Jie Sect Disciples' divine abilities, spells, and the spirit light of their magical treasures followed close behind, engulfing Taiyi.
A streak of spirit light flew over at tremendous speed and hovered above Taiyi's head, casting down a thick shield that protected him and blocked every attack.
Looking at the pagoda radiating five-element spirit light as it firmly protected Taiyi,
"Which senior brother is here? Qiu Shouxian of the Interception Sect offers his greetings."
The clouds slowly parted, and a figure descended, landing beside Taiyi and revealing a Daoist in yellow robes. His features were handsome, his aura immense. Fixing his gaze on the Jie Sect Disciples led by Qiu Shouxian, he said evenly, "We are all disciples of the Three Pure Ones. Why strike so ruthlessly?"
Yellow Dragon had concealed himself among the clouds when the quarrel began, watching everything unfold below. He had not intended to intervene, but when Qiu Shouxian and the others began attacking to kill, he had no choice but to step in and protect Taiyi before his foundation was damaged.
Recognizing Yellow Dragon, Qiu Shouxian gave him a sidelong look and sneered. "I wondered who it was. So it's Senior Brother Yellow Dragon. What, do you intend to lecture us just because you joined a few days earlier and have a higher cultivation?"
Yellow Dragon swept his gaze across the scene. Seeing that Taiyi looked disheveled but was otherwise unharmed, he said calmly, "Senior Brother Duobao oversees the Interception Sect's affairs. I won't overstep my bounds. But here on Kunlun Mountain, under the Sages' very eyes, you seize a fellow disciple's possessions and gang up on him. Unless you give me a satisfactory explanation, I will go to the Upper Pure Palace and ask Martial Uncle Tongtian to settle this."
Qiu Shouxian returned to human form and snorted. "Senior Brother Yellow Dragon, you arrived late and don't know what happened. Taiyi wanted to monopolize the spirit peaks, and he insulted us first, disparaging the origins of our sect's disciples!"
"During our sparring, he even used a magical treasure that nearly burned me to ashes! Had my junior brothers not rescued me, I would have died and my Dao would have perished. Now that he can't defeat us, you come out to mediate? How can he get off so easily?"
A chorus of agreement immediately rose from the Interception Sect disciples, their indignation mounting.
Seeing Qiu Shouxian and the others still spouting lies, Yellow Dragon shook his head. "I arrived before any of you."
Hearing that Yellow Dragon had been here all along, Qiu Shouxian exchanged glances with the other Jie Sect Disciples, their savagery gradually rising.
Yellow Dragon was merely a member of the Dragon Race who had become a Sage's disciple a thousand years before them. He had little reputation on Kunlun Mountain, so he was probably just an ordinary Golden Immortal. With numbers on their side, wasn't this the perfect chance to test his strength?
"If you insist on interfering, Senior Brother..."
A crafty, vicious gleam flashed through Qiu Shouxian's eyes. "Words alone won't convince us!"
Yellow Dragon looked at Qiu Shouxian, Lingya Xian, and the dozen or so eager Jie Sect Disciples behind them. Every one of them brimmed with malice and baleful energy.
He fell silent for a moment, then suddenly gave a faint smile. "You junior brothers truly have no idea what's good for you!" An inscrutable chill lurked in that smile.
"Very well."
Yellow Dragon spoke again. "Since you junior brothers are so keen, I'll exchange a few moves with you."
He paused, then continued evenly beneath Qiu Shouxian and the others' ferocious gazes. "I won't take advantage of your shallow cultivation as new disciples. Attack together. I'll give you three moves!"
At those words, silence fell over the entire gathering.
Beside him, Taiyi stared blankly at Yellow Dragon. What incredible boldness, Senior Brother.
"Arrogant!" After a moment of stunned silence, Qiu Shouxian erupted in fury, feeling more belittled than ever before. "Senior Brother Yellow Dragon! How dare you look down on me!" He was a green-maned lion who had attained the Dao, savage by nature, and now he was utterly enraged.
He puffed out a breath of white vapor. "Senior Brother! Be careful you don't choke on your own boasting!"
Qiu Shouxian roared, baleful energy surging skyward around him. He revealed his original form, manifesting as the spectral image of an enormous lion, and opened his mouth to unleash a gale.
The wind was greenish-black, its howling gusts eroding bone and dissolving souls. This was his innate divine ability, refined from the baleful yin winds he had gathered from the earth, and it swept straight toward Yellow Dragon!
The other Jie Sect Disciples unleashed their own attacks, some deploying poison banners, others releasing flying needles or chanting spells. In an instant, their dazzling, deadly attacks converged into a devastating torrent of divine power that completely engulfed Yellow Dragon!
Taiyi could not help crying out, "Senior Brother, be careful!"
Before you continue