"Hmph! Let's go!"
The middle-aged man who was the leader of the eight Confucian School snorted coldly and took the lead in using his lightness skill to fly towards the mountain peak. Li Haoran and the other six exchanged glances and quickly followed.
The other five Early Innate Realm experts pointed out by Wang Hao also appeared on the mountain peak, adding thirteen more figures to the summit in an instant.
"Are you Confucian School so bored that you want to get involved in this challenge? Or are you Confucian School secretly colluding with that scum of a foreign race like the Black Mountain Old Devil?"
Wang Hao's gaze first fell on Li Haoran and the other eight, and finally settled on the eight ancient swords in their hands.
These eight people should be the representatives of the new generation of Confucian School. They all have the cultivation level of the Early Innate of the Innate Realm, and they are also strangely integrated with the aura of the ancient swords in their hands.
Li Haoran, whom we haven't seen for some time, has actually broken through to the Innate Realm, and it seems that a powerful Divine Sense force is hidden within his body.
Seeing this, Wang Hao seemed to be deep in thought.
"It seems that Li Haoran's breakthrough is inseparable from the Zhanlu Sword in his hand, and the other seven should also have broken through with the help of their ancient swords."
Wang Hao had some guesses in his mind. After suffering losses to the ancient swords in the hands of Li Haoran and Qin Yan, he had discussed it with Xiao Mengmeng. They were roughly certain that the Confucian School school had used the Divine Sense of powerful people to refine the swords for thousands of years, which eventually gave them some divine power.
He just didn't expect that these ancient swords, besides greatly enhancing personal combat power, could also help people break through cultivation levels and strengthen their Divine Sense sense.
Looking at the ancient swords in the hands of Li Haoran and the other eight, Wang Hao felt a surge of greed.
He was just worried about the slow progress of his Divine Sense, but he never expected to encounter a powerful tool that could give him a cheat code in Divine Sense cultivation.
"It's not a good time to act this time, but I'll definitely find an opportunity to get my hands on all these ancient swords later!"
In an instant, he made up his mind that he would get his hands on all these ancient swords whenever he had the chance.
"Stop talking nonsense! How could we possibly collude with such evil forces? We've come here simply to eliminate you, this fiend who has wreaked havoc on the Central Plains!"
The middle-aged man in Confucian robes who was in the lead snorted coldly and, without any attempt to conceal it, directly stated the purpose of their trip.
Of course, taking down this troublemaker who was disrupting the martial arts world of the Central Plains was indeed one of the purposes of this trip, but it was only one of the purposes. Another more important purpose was to capture this person so that he could be forced to reveal the clues about the Literary Qi Nourishing Method.
After all, that was a unique skill created by Master Kong, the founder of Confucian School, and it might even be the most powerful skill that leads directly to the Shattering Realm.
They will not give up on this!
"You're after the Literary Qi Nourishing Method that Master Kong created, aren't you? It seems you haven't been able to find its inheritance in your own families. Did Master Kong not pass down that secret method? Or did he take it to his coffin?"
Wang Hao seemed to have seen through the true purpose of the Confucian School and others, muttering to himself, a hint of doubt appearing on his face at just the right moment.
Upon hearing this, the eight Confucian School' faces immediately turned ugly, especially one of Master Kong's direct descendants, whose face turned black as he glared at Wang Hao with gritted teeth.
This bastard not only revealed their true purpose, but also maliciously pointed the finger at their ancestors' tombs, meaning their ancestors' tombs will likely never find peace again.
Just as he had expected, the other seven members of the Confucian School all glanced at the descendant of Confucius with gleaming eyes, clearly each harboring their own schemes.
The legendary Literary Qi Nourishing Method is the only Confucian School technique that could potentially lead directly to the Shattering Realm, so they would never give it up, nor would they allow any one of the eight branches to monopolize it.
This supreme heritage should be shared by all, but before sharing it, the heritage must first be found.
They've searched through all the family's ancient books for the past few months, but haven't found a single clue. Now, that kid's idea is quite good; perhaps they can find clues from their deceased ancestors.
" Li Haoran, Qin Yan, I heard that you two ambushed and killed our sect's leader Wang Hao and Holy Master Dugu Jian. You two really have some nerve!"
Wang Hao focused his gaze on Qin Yan and Li Haoran, feigning interest.
"Hmph! Those heretics from beyond the realm should be killed by everyone in the Central Plains martial arts world. It's just a pity that those two were too slippery and managed to escape in the end. Are you bringing this up today to stand up for them?"
Qin Yan let out a cold snort, his chilling gaze fixed on Wang Hao, while Li Haoran placed his hand on the hilt of his ancient sword.
"No! No! No! I don't have that kind of interest. I'm just genuinely impressed by how you two are so fearless, actually provoking those two guys."
Don't worry, those two's elders won't interfere in our affairs. But you'd better be careful, those two will definitely come after your Confucian School school soon."
Wang Hao chuckled, his laughter filled with schadenfreude, which made Li Haoran and Qin Yan's faces darken once again, and they almost couldn't resist drawing their swords to fight.
However, they were also quite worried. After all, these were people who had been personally selected by the legendary Shattering Realm expert, the Great Heavenly Demon, and were expected to advance to the Shattering Realm. The fact that they hadn't been able to kill them last time had bothered them for a long time.
Hearing this guy's words now only made them more upset.
Fortunately, the clan still had their ancestor in charge, a Peak Xiantian Grandmaster- level expert. With the clan's resources and strength, they were not afraid of those two monstrous juniors. At least in the short term, they would not be in any danger.
As long as they can find Literary Qi Nourishing Method as soon as possible, allowing their ancestor to break through his cultivation and advance to the Celestial Person Realm, they will have nothing to worry about.
"You've probably heard about those two before; they're powerful figures of the same generation as our ancestor. You can go and have a chat with them."
Wang Hao pointed towards Zhang Wuji and his wife, and then gave instructions to Zhu Yijun and her brother.
"Ruoxue, you and your two older brothers and sisters go stay with those two grandparents for a while. After we've dealt with these scumbags, your godfather will take you down the mountain!"
Wang Hao knelt down and gently stroked Zhu Ruoxue's delicate nose. He then prepared to have the little girl go with Zhu Yijun and Princess Shaoyang to Zhang Wuji's place for a while.
After all, the number of enemies this time was somewhat beyond his expectations, and he was temporarily unable to protect Zhu Ruoxue and the other two, so he could only leave them to Zhang Wuji to look after.
Although Zhang Wuji was tricked by Zhu Yuanzhang and lost his position as leader of the Ming Cult, the events of that time were very complicated.
According to intelligence records within the Da Ming Dynasty's imperial court, the main reason for this was that Zhang Wuji broke through to the Innate Realm and was warned and restricted by Confucian School experts. In addition, he was devoted to martial arts and had little interest in power or influence.
More importantly, his marriage to Zhao Min was rejected by too many people. After all, Zhao Min was a princess of the Yuan Dynasty and had schemed against many martial arts forces, even tricking Shaolin and Wudang Sect several times.
Unable to withstand the pressure, he and Zhao Min went into seclusion on Ice Fire Island overseas. Only then did Zhu Yuanzhang truly rise to power, taking over as the leader of the Ming Cult and establishing the Great Ming Dynasty on this foundation.
Although Zhu Yuanzhang had many schemes involved, they were not the main reason. Moreover, Zhu Yuanzhang had cooperated with Zhou Zhiruo before, and the Eighteen Dragon-Subduing Palms was his reward.
Otherwise, how could Zhu Yuanzhang have obtained most of the inheritance of the Eighteen Dragon-Subduing Palms?
Therefore, it shouldn't be a problem for Zhang Wuji and his wife to watch over the three of them. With these two Late-stage Innate Realm experts in charge, none of the people present could harm Ruoxue and the other two.
Upon hearing this, Zhu Yijun and her brother were both moved and had some ideas. Zhu Ruoxue also obediently remained silent and walked straight towards Zhang Wuji.
"That kid really knows how to order people around!"
Seeing this, Zhang Wuji gave a helpless bitter smile, but he did not refuse.
Although he had many conflicts with Zhu Yuanzhang, Old Zhu inherited his will, completely overthrowing the Yuan Dynasty and re-establishing a dynasty unique to Huaxia.
Based on this alone, he wouldn't deliberately target that old fellow Zhu Yuanzhang, let alone scheme against his descendants.
Zhang Wuji wouldn't refuse, and Zhou Zhiruo even less likely to refuse. After all, if it weren't for Zhu Yuanzhang's help, how could she have had the chance to win over Brother Wuji?
"The little girl is quite cute, but her cold expression is really unattractive!"
Zhou Zhiruo knelt down and pinched Zhu Ruoxue's little face, her smile as bright as a flower, clearly showing her great affection for the little girl.
"Master Chen... Miss Chen, those eight Confucian School scholars are in your care. Be careful; the ancient swords they wield have been refined with Divine Sense by generations of Confucian School masters for over a thousand years, possessing considerable power. They only need to cultivate Acquired Spirituality to transform into true divine weapons."
After glancing at Li Haoran and his group of eight, Wang Hao casually gave instructions to Chen Yushuang and the others behind him, while also specifically reminding the eight of the ancient swords in their hands.
He suffered considerable losses from this ancient sword in those two encounters, especially with Qin Yan, who nearly killed him and ultimately had to escape by using the turbulent Yellow River.
Therefore, he would not underestimate those eight ancient swords in the slightest!
However, his opponents today are not those eight people; he can leave them to Eunuch Chen ten men to deal with.
"Your Highness, rest assured, we are most adept at dealing with opponents wielding divine weapons."
With a giggle, Eunuch Chen group of ten turned their gazes toward Li Haoran and his eight companions, showing no fear whatsoever.
Although their opponents wielded divine weapons, they were not afraid in the slightest.
Those who have cultivated the Sunflower Manual excel at movement speed, especially after advancing to the Innate and completing the Celestial Person Transformation, their speed has undergone a qualitative leap.
In addition, their combined attack formation, honed over many years, was more than enough to deal with these eight Confucian School.
"Those who came to watch may step aside; those who remain will become my enemies!"
After glancing over the other five Half-step Innate experts, Wang Hao's gaze finally settled on a middle-aged man with a high nose bridge.
The other person's general appearance was similar to that of people from the Central Plains, but his light blue eyes and high nose bridge revealed that he was from the Western Regions.
This person is his main opponent today, and the other protagonist of the challenge!
" Black Mountain Old Devil, I never expected you to break through to the Innate Realm. It truly exceeds my expectations!"
Wang Hao looked at the Black Mountain Old Devil with slight surprise. The demon's cultivation technique and aura were exactly the same as those of the Fragrant Jade Fan, so it was clearly the Black Mountain Old Devil.
He just hadn't expected that this person would also break through to the Innate Realm, instead of the Half-step Innate he had previously predicted.
Logically speaking, this guy should have no chance of breaking through by practicing that secret method of replenishing yang with yin energy. Could it be...?
As if he understood something, Wang Hao glanced discreetly at the Western Regions watching from the sidelines.
It seems that the reason why the Black Mountain Old Devil was able to break through was due to this person's doing.
The five Early Innate Realm experts who came up with the Black Mountain Old Devil exchanged glances, and three of them immediately retreated to a distance, clearly having come only to watch the battle.
The remaining person then flashed behind Wang Hao, forming a pincer movement with the Black Mountain Old Devil, trapping Wang Hao in the middle. Clearly, this person was in league with the Black Mountain Old Devil.
"You're quite strong, kid, and the Heavenly Demon Sacred Cult behind you is terrifying, but you shouldn't have killed my son. But it doesn't matter, using you as a furnace for cultivation is the same."
The Black Mountain Old Devil grinned maliciously, brimming with confidence for this battle.
After all, no matter how strong this kid is, he's only at the Grandmaster Realm. And the opponent isn't that freakish Sword Faction Wuming, who possesses techniques like Sword Control Technique and Heavenly Punishment Swordsmanship, making him much easier to deal with.
Not to mention that he has invited his senior brother to help him today, and with his master supporting him from the side, he is more than capable of taking down this kid!