Opening Move Shakes Kunlun!
Hum!
A five-foot-long slash of blood-red saber Qi whistled through the air, cleaving straight toward Song Mo's back.
A chill ran down Song Mo's back. He cursed inwardly, forced to pull his sword back to defend.
He twisted at the waist and flicked his wrist, sending out a seven-foot-long slash of white Sword Qi.
Crack!
The five-foot slash of saber Qi shattered at once.
The white Sword Qi dimmed a little but continued unabated toward Lin Yuan's chest.
Lin Yuan turned sideways. The Sword Qi skimmed past the hem of his robe and slammed into the ground.
Shattered stones flew as a furrow was plowed into the earth.
Shen Qing tapped her toes against the ground, her figure flashing repeatedly as she retreated to Lin Yuan's side.
She panted heavily, her delicate brows slightly knitted, cold sweat pouring down her skin.
"Thank you."
Lin Yuan thanked her sincerely. Had Shen Qing not risked her life to hold Song Mo back, he could never have killed Zhao Yan so cleanly.
Shen Qing waved a hand dismissively.
"We're even."
Lin Yuan understood what she meant.
Neither said anything more. Together, they turned their gazes toward Song Mo.
An expert at the second rank late stage really was somewhat troublesome.
Song Mo glanced indifferently at Lin Yuan. A mere first rank early stage cultivator, an ant of a thing.
He tilted his head and looked toward the steps of the Lin residence, where Zhao Yan's corpse lay in a pool of blood.
Not a ripple crossed his face. She was just a woman, one he had long since tired of playing with.
What concerned him more now was what Lin Yuan had said earlier.
Zhao Meng was dead, and the Zhao Clan's plans had been completely exposed.
Now that the Zhao Clan had been destroyed and there were no insiders left in the city, the Heaven-Pacifying Army would likely have to pay a devastating price to take Ping'an County.
If this assault on the city suffered heavy losses, those above would certainly demand accountability.
When that happened, as the leader responsible for coordinating from within the city, he would be the first to bear the brunt.
At that thought, a vicious fire rose in Song Mo's chest, and he fixed a deadly stare on the two opposite him.
It was all because these two little bastards had meddled and ruined the Heaven-Pacifying Army's great undertaking!
"Die, both of you!"
With a furious roar, Song Mo charged forward, sword in hand.
Lin Yuan and Shen Qing exchanged a glance.
"Buy me an opening."
Lin Yuan lowered his voice, his right hand slowly settling on his saber's hilt.
Shen Qing immediately understood, knowing that Lin Yuan possessed an extremely powerful saber technique.
Without another word, she drew a deep breath and advanced to meet him, saber raised.
Seeing Shen Qing charging toward him, Song Mo's face took on a mocking look.
Even at her peak, this little bitch had been suppressed by him. Now that her right arm was wounded, she was simply courting death.
He could have ended this woman's life with a single stroke.
But looking at Shen Qing's youthful face and stunning figure, he began to reconsider.
Such an exquisite beauty, and a lofty Dragon Guard commandant at that-playing with her would surely be more exciting than playing with Zhao Yan.
As the thought turned in his mind, Song Mo unconsciously held back some of his strength, his sword moves shifting from killing blows to entangling exchanges.
Clang, clang, clang!
Saber and sword collided rapidly in midair.
The wound on Shen Qing's right arm tore open. After holding out for only a few exchanges, she exposed an opening.
Song Mo seized the gap and thrust out his left palm, carrying a powerful surge of force as he struck Shen Qing heavily on the left shoulder.
Bang!
Shen Qing grunted. Her embroidered spring saber flew from her grasp, and her entire body was sent flying backward.
Overjoyed, Song Mo stamped his foot and lunged after Shen Qing's airborne figure.
In midair, he caught sight of Lin Yuan standing motionless out of the corner of his eye and curled his lip in disdain.
An ant is an ant. He doesn't even qualify to intervene, just like a useless husband.
Song Mo moved extremely fast, catching up with Shen Qing in the blink of an eye.
He reached out with his left hand, grabbing for Shen Qing's slender waist.
Just as his fingertips were about to touch her black robe, several figures suddenly darted in from the side.
They were the Dragon Guard cavalrymen. All six drew their sabers and attacked.
Song Mo sneered, turned his wrist, and struck a heavy palm toward them.
The six men's long sabers instantly shattered beneath his palm, and the terrifying force sent them flying several meters away.
Song Mo was about to sneer aloud when he suddenly felt a bone-piercing chill beneath his ribs.
In the corner of his eye, another dark figure rushed closer.
Gripping his saber in both hands with the resolve to stake his life, Lin Jiu drove it savagely toward Song Mo's right ribs!
Song Mo's brows knitted, and he instantly flew into a rage.
"A bunch of Body Tempering Realm ants! Will you ever stop?!"
He extended two fingers and clamped the saber firmly between them, then raised his sword, about to cleave Lin Jiu in two.
Just then, an extraordinarily terrifying presence erupted nearby.
Song Mo froze, then abruptly turned his head.
He saw the youth slowly raise his saber.
A tremor came from Lin Yuan's chest. Three internal organs exploded in an instant, and all that terrifying power poured into his long saber.
The blade trembled, instantly erupting with seven feet of saber radiance.
Gripping the saber in both hands, he brought it crashing down toward Song Mo!
Opening Move Shakes Kunlun!
A thirty-meter-long slash of blood-red saber Qi burst into existence, tearing through the long street as it swept forward with the might to destroy heaven and earth!
A terrifying pressure surged over everything, blotting out sky and earth.
Feeling that might, Song Mo's hair stood on end, and the shadow of death instantly enveloped his entire body.
Horror filled his face, his eyes blood-red.
"You little bastard, you're courting death!"
He abruptly held his sword across his chest and struck his own chest hard with his left palm.
Pfft!
A mouthful of essence blood sprayed onto the blade.
His face instantly turned deathly pale, and even his presence weakened at that moment.
Having absorbed the essence blood, the sword trembled violently, humming again and again.
Song Mo gripped the hilt tightly, channeling all the Qi and blood in his body into it, and unleashed a horizontal slash with every bit of power he had cultivated throughout his life!
A twenty-five-meter-long slash of Sword Qi whistled forth!
Boom!
The two terrifying forces collided thunderously in the middle of the long street, and blinding light instantly swallowed the entire street.
Violent shock waves swept madly in every direction, with the two men at their center.
The ground shattered layer by layer. Buildings within a hundred-meter radius shook violently beneath the terrifying impact, then collapsed in swathes!
Smoke and dust surged into the sky, obscuring all sight.
Lin Yuan was hurled backward by the violent shock wave rushing toward him.
He tumbled repeatedly through the air, his head swimming, his vision darkening in waves.
He was about to slam heavily into the ground.
A figure swept past just in time.
Shen Qing reached out and caught Lin Yuan by the shoulder, redirecting the force to bleed off his momentum before landing steadily with him.
The clouds of smoke and dust gradually dispersed.
Both held their breath and looked toward the center of the long street.
A massive crater had appeared there.
At its edge, Song Mo lay on his back in a pool of blood.
Only half of the sword in his hand remained. His scholar's robe was in tatters, and hundreds of wounds covered his entire body, blood bubbling freely from them.
Song Mo's eyelids trembled, and he raised his head with difficulty.
He stared fixedly at the unscathed Lin Yuan nearby, his lips quivering.
"How... how is that possible...?"
He simply could not understand how a boy at the first rank early stage could unleash such terrifying saber Qi.
Even using a secret art should not have made it possible.
This makes no sense!
Lin Yuan looked at him quietly and curled his lip.
"Song Mo, the Wind-Chasing Sword. Nothing special."
At those words, Song Mo shuddered all over and spat out a mouthful of black blood. His head slumped to one side, and he breathed his last.
Lin Yuan and Shen Qing exchanged a glance and let out deep breaths of relief.
Rumble, clatter.
From the nearby rubble, Lin Jiu and the cavalrymen all crawled out, covered in dust and grime.
Fortunately, Song Mo had blocked most of the impact head-on. They had only endured some of the aftershocks and suffered superficial wounds.
The men wiped the blood and filth from their faces and hurried over.
Lin Yuan nodded to Lin Jiu, then turned to look at the Lin residence before him.
After that earth-shaking clash, the Lin residence's front courtyard had completely collapsed, leaving broken timbers and shattered tiles everywhere.
The rear courtyard, however, was farther away, and its buildings remained largely intact.
At that moment, faint rustling came from within the courtyard, mixed with panicked footsteps.
Clearly, quite a few people were still hiding inside.
Lin Yuan's gaze turned cold, and he was about to charge inside with his saber.
Suddenly, a firework burst in the sky.
Immediately afterward, earth-shaking cries of battle rang out in the distance.
Everyone's expression changed drastically, and they all looked toward the city walls.
The thirty-thousand-strong army led by Zhao Wuya had finally arrived!