No Victory

"You bastards!" Fire Dragon Daoist cursed angrily at Kang Dabao and the others who rushed past him, and then used the Mystic Seal Six Wood Shield to block the red-faced Foundation Establishment's beast bone club.

Fortunately, the red-faced Foundation Establishment's handy Spirit Artifact had already been shattered by Sect Leader Kang Da's Star-Shooting Crossbow, which also severed his left forearm.

Although the Fire Dragon Daoist's injuries were more severe, it wouldn't be an easy task for this Red-Faced Foundation Establishment to defeat him.

"Damn it! Trying to run away!" The Fire Dragon Daoist was unwilling to be a meat shield for Kang Dabao and the others, so he mustered his strength and fled halfway through the battle.

The red-faced Foundation Establishment cultivator wore a strange expression. He had only heard from the Lin Household cultivators who had escaped that this group of remaining enemies was extremely ferocious and had left Lin Yuanfeng of the Lin Household with a mangled corpse.

With Lin Yuanfeng dead, it's a great thing that no one is competing with me for credit anymore!

Upon hearing of the death of his fellow cultivator, the red-faced Foundation Establishment felt a sense of fear, but he was even more reluctant to give up the opportunity to curry favor with the Two Instruments Sect.

Those who cultivate themselves are going against the natural order; if one step is slow, every step will be slow! Sometimes, as long as you risk your life and gamble, if you win, you can be reborn!

Fearing he would arrive too late and lose the prize he was about to seize, the red-faced Foundation Establishment deliberately left behind several late-stage disciples who had come with him and pursued the enemy alone.

Before they arrived, I thought we were in for a tough fight, but what I saw was...

"There's something fishy going on here!" The red-faced Foundation Establishment was worried that Kang Dabao and the others were colluding with the Fire Dragon Daoist to feign weakness. He became more vigilant, and the lotus leaf Law Artifact under his feet slowed down, keeping a distance of only a hundred feet from the Fire Dragon Daoist, not daring to advance rashly.

"Old thief! Not bad, you're still alive!" Sect Leader Kang Da, piloting Ye Zhengwen's flying boat, cursed as he looked at the approaching Fire Dragon Daoist.

Jiang Qing stood on the deck, about to draw his sword, when the Fire Dragon Daoist shouted, "Wait!"

The Fire Dragon Daoist looked at the handsome swordsman with apprehension. If he were at his peak, he wouldn't be afraid of one Jiang Qing, or even five or ten.

However, his injuries would take at least a decade to heal, and his current strength was less than one-tenth of what it used to be.

Taking a direct hit from Jiang Qing's flying sword is not a big deal, but with a powerful enemy close behind, wasting energy here for no reason would be a huge disadvantage.

Jiang Qing ignored the Fire Dragon Daoist's nonsense and was about to strike with his sword when he was stopped by the helmsman, Sect Leader Kang Da: "What nonsense are you spouting, you old thief?!"

"Hehe, Sect Leader Kang, that Foundation Establishment from the True Spirit Gate behind us has no idea about the grudges and entanglements between us. In his eyes, all he knows is that our heads can be taken back to prove our loyalty to the Two Instruments Sect."

"Let's cooperate! Let's join forces and kill him first. We can settle our scores later. If we fight each other now, wouldn't that just let that bastard behind us get away with it?"

The Fire Dragon Daoist's tone softened considerably, and there was no trace of his previous arrogance or haughtiness.

"Heh, you old thief, you've got a good plan. Your Foundation Establishment head is so valuable, that True Spirit Gate senior behind you won't care about us worthless Qi Refinement! Why should I risk my life for you?"

Hearing what the Fire Dragon Daoist said, Sect Leader Kang Da feigned indifference. He reached into the cabin and replaced the stone with a brand new mid-grade Spirit Stone, instantly increasing the speed of the flying boat and leaving the Fire Dragon Daoist, whose speed was already decreasing, far behind.

"Cough cough, you bastard, don't try to act tough in front of our ancestors! Don't you know how valuable your head, the legitimate son-in-law of the Fei Household, is? Back in the day, a Yue Household, even after Foundation Establishment, had to travel over mountains and rivers to find your head and claim credit!"

Fire Dragon Daoist's face was purple, showing that his injuries were quite serious. Even the rapid escape by maneuvering his weapon was an extremely strenuous task for him.

But after all, the old Fire Dragon Daoist was incredibly cunning, and even the Sect Leader Kang Da couldn't tell if he was faking it. Even though he had hit a nerve, he still didn't respond.

"Fine, fine, then you just wait and see if the Foundation Establishment of the True Spirit Gate will still be willing to come and take your valuable head after I die." The Fire Dragon Daoist was so angry that he used a secret technique to change the direction of the flying boat beneath his feet, no longer traveling alongside Kang Dabao and the others.

"Ahem, Junior Brother Chu, come here." Kang Dabao wasn't as tough as he had appeared before; he showed his fear as soon as the Fire Dragon Daoist left.

The wound inflicted by the short blade had not yet healed, and cold sweat broke out on the face of Sect Leader Kang Da. Chu Huer and Jiang Qing rushed over anxiously. "Junior Brother Chu, your injuries are not serious. First, take the flying boat and bring Old Ye back to the sect."

Before returning, send a message to Green Lotus Courtyard, requesting them to send a highly skilled Alchemist to save this bastard's life!

After boarding the flying boat, Ye Zhengwen could no longer open his eyes.

His injuries are too severe, and even Sect Leader Kang Da is unsure of the situation. If a skilled Alchemist isn't consulted, his life or death is uncertain.

"Senior Brother Sect Leader, what about you?" Chu Huer was about to agree immediately, but then asked instead.

"That old Fire Dragon is right. That Foundation Establishment from the True Spirit Gate won't let either of us go. Rather than being defeated one by one, it's better for me to take the Third and try to fight Fire Dragon Daoist together."

A resolute look appeared on Kang Dabao's face. Jiang Qing frowned, holding his sword, and said, "Senior Brother is also injured. I'll go!"

"Relax! I know! Just do as I say. In all these years, when have I ever held you back?" Sect Leader Kang Da waved his hand in refusal. Jiang and Chu were about to persuade him further, but he stopped them with a gesture.

"No need for further words. I am the senior brother, I am the sect leader. Just listen to me!"

Since Kang Dabao had said so, Chu Huer had no choice but to comply and take over the helm.

Jiang Qing changed the dressing on Sect Leader Kang Da's wounds again. When Jiang Qing leaned closer, Kang Dabao asked in a barely audible voice, "How confident are you?"

"Five out of ten! Senior Brother, trust me this once, go back with Junior Brother Chu first, and I'll make sure you get out unscathed."

"I'm fine. My eye technique still works; it should be able to intimidate those two old thieves somewhat!"

"Alright," Jiang Qing Kang Dabao said, no longer trying to persuade him, and immediately asked, "When are we going to join forces with Fire Dragon Daoist?!"

"No rush, let him suffer a bit more before we talk!"

Seeing the enemy split into two groups, the red-faced Foundation Establishment assumed they were about to flee separately and instantly became somewhat impatient.

But if hesitating now, he might end up with nothing. The red-faced Foundation Establishment understood this principle. After thinking for a while, he decided to step on the lotus leaf Law Artifact and head towards the Fire Dragon Daoist.

He thought to himself, "It's always better to start with the difficult part and then move on to the easy one; it's safer to proceed cautiously."

The red-faced Foundation Establishment was confident that after defeating the Fire Dragon Daoist, who was of the same level, he could easily catch up with Kang Dabao and the other Qi Refining Qi Refinement.

Conversely, even if they manage to take the head of the Fei Household's son-in-law, the Fire Dragon Daoist, a Foundation Establishment, will most likely escape, which would be somewhat undesirable.

He was a gambler, and even now, he still clung to the idea of succeeding completely.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have had to gamble on whether his whisk could catch the twenty-second crossbow bolt after connecting twenty-one, resulting in the loss of his Spirit Artifact and half an arm.

Otherwise, he wouldn't dare leave his juniors behind and try to earn this credit alone.

The words that Fire Dragon Daoist said to Sect Leader Kang Da earlier Jiuzhen, but only part of them were false. The truth was that he was truly powerless to fight anymore. If he were to face the red-faced Foundation Establishment alone, he would probably be killed on the spot in no time.

The part that's fake is that he never intended to join forces with Sect Leader Kang Da to fight the enemy.

He still harbored the plan to let Kang Dabao and his fellow disciples fight to the death with the red-faced Foundation Establishment cultivator, while he sat back and watched, reaping the benefits in the process.

But no one expected that Kang Dabao would turn out to be such a stubborn, dull-witted fool.

"That fool who can't even assess the situation won't even consider my brilliant plan!"

Fire Dragon Daoist spat out a curse, and suddenly a chill ran down his spine. This feeling was all too familiar to the old thief who was used to fighting; it was even more acute than his Divine Sense.

"Trash!" Fire Dragon Daoist knew that even if he begged for mercy, this red-faced Foundation Establishment who was clearly after his reward would not be spared, so he simply saved his energy and cursed loudly.

The red-faced Foundation Establishment seemed to have no intention of directly confronting the desperate Fire Dragon Daoist. With a gentle flick of his wrist, a giant bear, over two zhang tall, appeared from the spirit beast pouch at his waist. With a sudden leap, it landed on the deck of the Fire Dragon Daoist's flying boat.

The red-faced Foundation Establishment was an anomaly in the True Spirit Gate, where everyone had to raise spirit beasts. He had no talent to be a beast master, yet he still managed to achieve Foundation Establishment.

However, although his skill in beast taming was at the bottom among his fellow disciples, the giant bear that landed on the deck of the Fire Dragon Daoist was no ordinary beast. It was already First-Tier Superior-Grade Peak spirit beast, and for the Fire Dragon Daoist at this moment, it was a formidable opponent.

After only a few exchanges, the Fire Dragon Daoist was being chased around in a very sorry state by the giant bear on the deck of his own flying boat.

"You stupid beast!" Seeing his flying boat wrecked by the giant bear, the Fire Dragon Daoist dodged the flying debris and roared viciously, "Truly a tiger fallen into the plains! Once I recover, I'll chop off all four of your claws, you idiot, and stew them all!"

The red-faced, Foundation Establishment giant bear couldn't understand any of this. Still with its huge mouth agape and drool dripping, it leaped over the tattered deck of the flying boat and charged fiercely towards the Fire Dragon Daoist.

The Fire Dragon Daoist was least afraid of these Demon Beasts that didn't know any Technique Method and relied solely on brute force. With just a sweep of his magic eyes, he could easily find many flaws in these foolish creatures and deliver a fatal blow.

But now he could only desperately defend himself with the Mystic Seal Six Wood Shield. It wasn't that he had no trump cards left, but rather that the real culprit, the red-faced Foundation Establishment, was still standing in the sky, watching him intently.

If we were to use our trump cards on this stupid beast, it would truly fulfill the Red-Faced Foundation Establishment's intentions.

Seeing that the Fire Dragon Daoist was powerless to fight back, the giant bear's inherent brutality emerged. It attacked with its claws and teeth, scratching the Fire Dragon Daoist's protective Law Artifact until they were covered in wounds.

The red-faced Foundation Establishment was also very satisfied with what he saw. Just as he was thinking about whether to take advantage of the situation and settle the score with the Fire Dragon Daoist, two Golden Light shot towards the giant bear.

"How dare they turn back to save people!" The red-faced Foundation Establishment was both shocked and furious, thinking that these people were probably playing some old trick of deep affection and loyalty again.

With him here, how could he allow a mere Qi Refinement junior to harm his spirit beast?!

The lotus leaf Law Artifact beneath the red-faced Foundation Establishment's feet spun rapidly, its canopy and stem separating to block the two Golden Light beams of light from behind the giant bear.

After the loud bang, the golden energy dissipated, and the top-grade magic Law Artifact, the Red-Faced Foundation Establishment weapon, did not return to its feet. The leaf cover transformed into a shield, and the leaf stem became a sword.

The Fang Yi the Law Artifact was in hand, the red-faced Foundation Establishment felt a dense flame filling the surroundings, followed by a net of fiery sword energy rushing towards him.

The leaf-covered shield was scratched with several deep marks, causing even the red-faced Foundation Establishment to frown.

After the sword net passed, several more sword lights of fiery energy slashed down. The red-faced Foundation Establishment was somewhat surprised to find that, after being injured, he seemed unable to overwhelm the young sword cultivator opposite him.

This made him somewhat anxious; if the Fire Dragon Daoist joined forces with him, the outcome would be difficult to predict.

Thinking of this, the red-faced Foundation Establishment actually summoned a Second Tier sword talisman. The talisman spontaneously combusted, and a sharp cyan sword shadow stabbed fiercely towards Jiang Qing.

Jiang Qing could tell that this sword talisman was no ordinary item, but he wasn't afraid. He summoned a dozen or so top-grade golden shield talismans to protect himself.

At first, the cyan sword shadow slashed at the golden shield talisman as easily as cutting melons and vegetables, breaking through layer by layer. But in the end, it became a spent force and was easily parried by Jiang Qing with his sword.

The red-faced Foundation Establishment cultivator hadn't expected that a single sword talisman would be enough to defeat Jiang Qing. He simply took this opportunity to slip behind the Fire Dragon Daoist.

Although the Qi Refinement sword cultivator was troublesome, in the eyes of the red-faced Foundation Establishment, the Fire Dragon Daoist was still more daunting.

"If I don't use it now, I'll really die!" The Fire Dragon Daoist sensed the approaching killing intent, so even though he knew that Sect Leader Kang Da was waiting for him to fight the red-faced Foundation Establishment cultivator to the death before taking advantage of the situation, he had no choice but to use his hidden trump card.

"Ah!" The Fire Dragon Daoist was still a step too slow, or rather, the Red-Faced Foundation Establishment's movements were far faster than ordinary people.

Three more sword talismans were used, and the Fire Dragon Daoist's Mystic Seal Six Wood Shield was cut into six wooden tablets. Before he could even reveal his trump card, the giant bear in front of him bit through his head, letting out a miserable howl.

As soon as the scream rang out, the red-faced Foundation Establishment thrust his flying sword forward, intending to pierce the Fire Dragon Daoist's heart, but was stopped by Jiang Qing with his sword. Taking advantage of the giant bear's ferocity, Sect Leader Kang Da also unleashed another attack, striking the giant bear's broad back, which enraged the beast, causing it to increase the force of its bite.

The Fire Dragon Daoist was trapped in the bear's mouth and struggled haphazardly for a while. Kang Dabao felt his breath growing weaker and weaker and became somewhat anxious.

Ironically, the Fire Dragon Daoist almost killed Sect Leader Kang Da; then they served as ministers in the same court; later they came to this Little Wu Mountain, Jiazi Xu Mountain, and fought side by side; just now, after breaking the ice, the two fought to the death; and now, Kang Dabao actually comes to save his life.

Is every sip and bite truly a matter of fate?

Ignoring all these emotions, Kang Dabao endured the excruciating pain in his chest and swung the Spirit-Striking Chain like a silver dragon, smashing the powerful lock head down hard on the giant bear's head.

Despite suffering such injuries, the beast only let out a muffled groan, appearing somewhat dizzy. Even its skull was only slightly dented, demonstrating a Hardness comparable to that of an ordinary high-grade defensive Law Artifact.

Seeing that Jiang Qing was temporarily unharmed, Sect Leader Kang Da became even more ruthless and smashed the object again.

His initial strike wasn't entirely ineffective; it seemed to have made the fool even dumber, unable to dodge, and just kept biting the Fire Dragon Daoist's head and neck without letting go.

Sect Leader Kang Da could see the Fire Dragon Daoist's head protruding from the giant bear's mouth, so he knew that the Daoist was definitely not going to survive.

Realizing he had lost another ally, Kang Dabao became anxious. Finally, he managed to crack open the giant bear's skull, splattering yellow and white matter all over the ground, and settled the score on the spot.

On the other side, Jiang Qing was locked in fierce combat with the red-faced Foundation Establishment.

The former possessed skillful Swordsmanship and was full of sharpness; the latter had Law Power and a vicious face.

For a time, Jiang Qing was locked in a fierce battle with a Foundation Establishment cultivator who was barely alive.

But since the Red-Faced Foundation Establishment had lived for over a hundred years, how could he not have some hidden skills? Ye Gai's shield suddenly flew out of his hand, like a flying wheel, about to cut into Jiang Qing's neck and split him in two.

Jiang Qing narrowly dodged the attack and, seeing that the red-faced Foundation Establishment had no more obstacles in front of him, he made a decisive move, spinning his flying sword and thrusting it fiercely towards the red-faced Foundation Establishment.

The red-faced Foundation Establishment remained calm, his hands concealed in his sleeves, and his hand gestures changed simultaneously.

A patch of green spiritual liquid oozed from the leaf-handled flying sword. When Jiang Qing slashed at it, the sword was actually stuck to the liquid.

Jiang Qing was shocked and repeatedly used his Technique Method. Even though the flying sword with the leaf handle had been scorched black by the flames of the Seven Luminaries Heart-Slaying Sword, the Seven Luminaries Heart-Slaying Sword was still stuck to it and could not be removed.

The red-faced Foundation Establishment suddenly felt a surge of pride and laughed heartily. After so long of fighting, this seemed to be the first time he had managed to make Jiang Qing suffer a setback!

"What's so scary about a sword cultivator without a flying sword?!" The red-faced Foundation Establishment suddenly became excited and summoned his beast bone club again, intending to smash Jiang Qing's head.

But he failed; a familiar gust of wind struck, causing the wound on his left arm to ache again.

Without a second thought, he immediately dodged!

A streak of silver light flew past a foot in front of the red-faced Foundation Establishment, tearing a hole in his long robe.

Seeing this, Sect Leader Kang Da was somewhat frustrated. The Star-Shooting Crossbow in the Pingrong County Armory were indeed defective and worthless, as they had missed so many targets!

Just as the red-faced Foundation Establishment cultivator was celebrating his narrow escape, a pure white jade-like flying sword slashed down, shattering the leaf-covered shield in his hand.

The powerful Sword Qi continued unabated, carving a horrific wound into the chest of the red-faced Foundation Establishment.

"Spirit Artifact flying sword!?" The red-faced Foundation Establishment exclaimed in shock. Firstly, this item was extremely precious, and even Foundation Establishment from an ordinary small sect might not be able to afford it; secondly, he was astonished that Jiang Qing could actually wield Spirit Artifact.

It should be understood that the most important thing about the protective artifacts in the hands of cultivators is their suitability and usability, rather than the higher the grade, the better.

Even if an ordinary Qi Refinement cultivator wields Spirit Artifact, its effectiveness is far inferior to that of Pseudo Spirit Artifact or a top-grade magic Law Artifact.

Those who can wield Spirit Artifact skillfully during the Qi Refinement stage are considered extremely outstanding among Qi Refinement cultivators.

For example, Tie Xishui, the cousin of Commander Tie, made a name for himself in Cloud Horn Prefecture before he even reached the Foundation Establishment, thanks to a Spirit Artifact- level artifact called the Heaven Overturning Seal.

Before achieving the Red Face Foundation Establishment, he never imagined that he would encounter one like this on his way out today.

With a calculated attack on the unsuspecting, the red-faced Foundation Establishment's injuries worsened, while Jiang Qing's momentum remained unstoppable.

The White Dew Sword, a wedding gift from the Earl of Nan'an to the Sect Leader Kang Da, was indeed no ordinary item. It slayed the Foundation Establishment, leaving them red-faced and purple-faced, barely able to catch their breath!

"Spare my life, True Spirit Gate will surely reward you handsomely!"

"You young man, leave yourself some leeway in your actions, cultivate good relationships, and we might just become like-minded friends in the future!"

"Take all the Storage Bag here, just spare my life!"

The red-faced Foundation Establishment pleaded desperately, while Jiang Qing relentlessly pressed him. In the end, a dazzling sword light cleaved through the beast bone staff, the magical Law Artifact the red-faced Foundation Establishment relied on for his struggle, and a trace of madness flashed across the latter's deep purple face.

"Yah yah yah, die!" A crimson-gold lightning bolt shot out from the red-faced Foundation Establishment's body. This was far superior to the Heavenly Thunder Seed that even Qi Refinement cultivators could acquire.

This is the Geng Metal Divine Thunder that the red-faced Foundation Establishment master found in a False Core cave abode in his early years.

His master used only three of them to ambush a Foundation Establishment Late Stage cultivator, blasting him to pieces.

After his master passed away, the red-faced Foundation Establishment only received one of these items, which he kept as a treasure. However, Jiang Qing was relentless and there was no way out for him, so this precious item could not possibly remain.

"Die! Die!" The wounds of the red-faced Foundation Establishment were attacked by Sword Qi, and now they had spread from his chest to his back. He was almost split in two. Since he couldn't live, he naturally wanted to take someone down with him!

"Boom!" The Sect Leader Kang Da had never heard such a deafening thunderclap before. Compared to Heavenly Thunder Seed and earth.

As the lightning and fire dissipated, a pure white jade-like flying sword, still carrying a hint of smoke and fire, pierced the earth.

At the epicenter of the explosion, the red-faced Foundation Establishment, Yixin to die, had been scattered everywhere. Kang Dabao, clutching his wounds, was filled with fear and panic. He stepped over the red-faced Foundation Establishment without even glancing at them, searching for Jiang Qing's whereabouts.

"Little Sanzi!"

After an unknown amount of time, Sect Leader Kang Da finally dug Jiang Qing out of the scorching, sparking earth.

At this moment, large tears rolled down his chubby face, as if the scene before him had ripped his spine out, leaving him feeling utterly powerless.

"Little Sanzi!!"

Thank you to Brother Miaoming Qingzhenyao for the 100 coins.

Thanks to Zdeli for the Extended Net Moon.

Thank you to the following readers for their monthly tickets: 20230703225137813, 20221130190838571, Feihua Si Meng D, Lu Lai, Zhen Xiang, Shuo Shuren Yu Meng, 20190627081112356, Mo Mo Dao Huo Huo, Qi Zhe Cai Hong Fang Feng Zheng, and 20190728233927000.

Thank you all for reading, subscribing, voting, and commenting!