True Dragon

Two years later.

"Now that this last person is on the right track, I can return to the Dao of Qi Refining."

Above a wealthy family's house, Fang Yu watched as a young girl secretly collected moonlight. Then, riding on auspicious clouds, she headed towards the nearest deep mountain forest, intending to find a secluded place to return to the Dao of Qi Refining.

"Hurry, hurry, hurry..."

"Keep a close eye on them..."

Suddenly, a series of hurried footsteps came from below. He instinctively looked in the direction of the sound and saw hundreds of people heading towards a fortress under the moonlight.

Upon closer inspection, Fang Yu saw that these people were all extremely strong and agile, and they all appeared to be martial artists. They carried long spears, had sharp blades at their waists, and longbows on their backs, and were likely elite Martial Foot Soldier from the mortal realm.

"It looks like they're planning a surprise attack on the fortress guarded by soldiers!"

Fang Yu's gaze then fell upon the fortress, where he saw strong and capable men gathered in various parts of the manor, silently guarding the various gates without making a sound.

"It seems like they were prepared for this from the start!"

Fang Yu withdrew his gaze and continued on his way, showing little interest in the matter. He had seen far too many similar situations in the past two years.

Although Emperor Wude unified the country, his foundation was not stable. Although he destroyed Safe Village, it also led to local powerful families regaining control over the local people.

Although this was much less of a threat than during the Safe Village period, it still led to rampant private feuds among local powerful clans.

Soon, the sounds of fighting came from behind, and as Fang Yu moved further away, the sounds became increasingly faint.

Suddenly, a beam of light shone from behind. Fang Yu stopped abruptly and turned around. He saw a golden light weaving among the soldiers at the location of the fortress in the distance. Wherever it passed, the soldiers fell like straws, each with a horrific wound on their neck.

"Sword cultivator!"

Fang Yu murmured to himself, suddenly feeling a surge of inspiration. He immediately calculated with his fingers, and as the Yuanchen Pearl rotated, he instantly discerned the sword cultivator's identity.

"What a small world!"

A fierce glint flashed in Fang Yu's eyes as he looked at the distant fortress.

The master of this sword light was Tie Feng, a member of the Tie Household who had given him the "Flowing Flame True Fire Scripture" from the Goldstone Sect.

Unexpectedly, Tie Feng also went down the mountain to travel, and even came to Jingzhou.

Fang Yu and this person have a great karmic connection. If it weren't for the Yuanchen Pearl, he would have been guided by this person to become a sacrifice for forging the Flowing Flame True Fire Sword back in the Goldstone Sect.

If he were still Goldstone Sect, Fang Yu would have no way to deal with him. Now that he has left the Goldstone Sect, he naturally wants to find out the cause and effect.

At this moment, the soldiers who originally intended to launch a sneak attack suffered heavy casualties under the onslaught of sword light and the surging out of the fortress. In just a short time, the hundreds-strong force was reduced to only a little over a hundred.

In just a few more moments, they will all be wiped out.

Sparks appeared in Fang Yu's eyes, and the wondrous ' Phoenix Sets the Plains Ablaze ' manifested. The sparks emerged from the eyes of the soldiers, instantly transforming into flames that enveloped their entire bodies, combining with their armor to form a suit of fiery battle armor.

"Ahhhh..."

These soldiers were enraged, and their weapons were ignited, some becoming muskets and others fire knives. Their speed, defense, and reaction time increased several times over, allowing them to react and block the incoming golden light.

At the same time, they crushed the other strongmen in the fortresses, cutting them down one by one amidst the raging flames, and in just a moment, the situation on the battlefield was reversed.

"Who is this fellow cultivator who made the move? Please come out and show yourself!"

Tie Feng's voice spread to the surrounding area through his Divine Thought, while he was also probing the cultivator who had made the move in secret.

Unfortunately, Fang Yu was concealed by the Yuanchen Pearl, so even if Purple Mansion True Person, it might be possible to discover him. However, Tie Feng was only at the same Dao Foundation as him. Although he was a powerful sword cultivator, it would be extremely difficult for him to find out.

Fang Yu did not rush to attack. Instead, he used the miraculous power of ' Phoenix Sets the Plains Ablaze ' to buff the Martial Foot Soldier, allowing them to deal with the flying swords for a short time. At the same time, he ignited their rage, making them lose all fear and only want to kill all the enemies.

Soon, the able-bodied men sent by the fortress were all slaughtered, and the Martial Foot Soldier poured into the castle.

"Clang clang clang..."

Suddenly, a sword cry like a dragon's roar rang out, and a black dragon soared into the sky, circling several times before pouncing on the fire soldiers. In just a moment, a fire soldier was pierced through the chest, and the flames on his body were instantly frozen, like an ice sculpture.

'This is?'

Fang Yu frowned and saw that two figures had appeared in mid-air above the fortress. One was Tie Feng, and the other was a young man dressed in black robes.

Fang Yu only glanced at the young man from afar before his eyelids began to twitch.

The Yuanchen Pearl in his sea of consciousness also began to spin wildly, and his Primordial Qi was being rapidly consumed.

Fang Yu's hand moved rapidly within his sleeve, calculating a vague sequence of information:

[Qiu Xuanlong, Destiny: Winnowing Basket Water, Ji Constellation Approaching the Abyss, Hidden Dragon, Dragon's Roar, Sword Transforms into Scales, Black Water Sharpness, *****, Heavenly Mandate Dominates Water Virtue, Imperial Knocks on the Heavenly Gate.]

"His surname is Qiu, so he's a core disciple of Mount Longmen. Judging from his destiny, he's destined to contend with Emperor Wude Embroidered Tiger, Xiuhu, for the throne. No, Embroidered Tiger's ambition was prepared for this person. This is the Dragon-Tiger Great Elixir Ritual of Mount Longmen. If he succeeds, he can advance to the Purple Mansion and become a rare Water Virtue Sword Immortal."

"We can't calculate any further; our Primordial Qi is about to be completely depleted."

Fang Yu's fingers froze for a moment, then he turned and left, quickly moving away from the place.

There will be plenty of opportunities to understand the cause and effect with Tie Feng, so there's no need to rush. If he were to forcibly kill Tie Feng, with that person by his side, it would definitely attract the attention of the Purple Mansion True Person, and he certainly doesn't want to meet the Purple Mansion True Person again.

Fang Yu fled, but the more than one hundred fire soldiers continued their frenzied attack on everything inside the fortress, setting the buildings ablaze wherever they went, causing a raging inferno.

In the air, Qiu Xuanlong and Tie Feng wielded their respective flying swords, chasing down the fire soldiers while guarding against the hidden Dao Foundation cultivator's attack. By the time the cultivator had annihilated all the fire soldiers, the entire fortress had been transformed into a sea of fire.

"Brother Qiu, let me put out the fire!"

As Tie Feng spoke, he flipped his hand, took out a water talisman, and threw it into the air. It turned into a streak of green light, and a torrential rain began to fall from the sky, with its range limited to the fortress area.

The heavy rain fell and came into contact with the flames, causing them to ignite explosively, as if they had been doused with flammable oil.

"Ah! What kind of fire is this?" Tie Feng was startled when he saw this, realizing that he might have done something stupid. He quickly put away the rain talisman and stopped the heavy rain.

Qiu Xuanlong, standing to the side, flipped his hand, and the black dragon circling in the sky swooped down, transforming into a mysterious sword that landed in his palm. He touched the blade and said:

"This should be the Fire of Ten Thousand Households, not just any ordinary fire, but the fire in people's hearts. To pour ordinary water on it is like adding oil to a fire!"

"Fire of Ten Thousand Households!" Tie Feng frowned and asked, "Whose lineage is this?"

Qiu Xuanlong said in a deep voice, "It should be the lineage of the High Antiquity Phoenix Mountain. I'm not very clear on the specifics, but I've heard that a few years ago, there was a Safe Village in the An Kingdom that was specifically created to collect this fire. Now it seems that the person who made the move in secret just now must have used it to establish the foundation of the ' Phoenix Sets the Plains Ablaze ' Dao Foundation."

"I see!" Tie Feng nodded and said, "So, the person who inherited the Phoenix Mountain lineage has sided with Embroidered Tiger, which is why he's making things difficult for Brother Qiu!"

Qiu Xuanlong nodded and said, "Water Virtue and Fire Virtue are incompatible. This person and Embroidered Tiger both belong to the Fire Virtue lineage, so naturally he must fight for Embroidered Tiger's chance of survival."

He suddenly laughed and said, "That's good. The stronger the Embroidered Tiger faction is, the more imposing their presence will be. Once I lead my army to conquer the Anjing, I will surely achieve the Purple Mansion."

Tie Feng immediately chimed in, "What you say is absolutely right, fellow practitioner!"