When these three entered the territory of Jiangyin Prefecture, their intelligence was already in the hands of Ye Yangrong, one of the Six Immortal Swordsmen of the Northern Peak. After all, Ye Yangrong was in charge of intelligence for the Northern Peak. In the eyes of a Ninth-Generation Sword Immortal like Ye Yangrong, the Three Great Swordsmen of Xizhou were merely three small ants; since they had done nothing upon entering Jiangyin Prefecture, he hadn't bothered with them yet.

As it turned out, the Three Great Swordsmen of Xizhou, the Jiang brothers, who had been quiescent, suddenly made a huge disturbance the moment they acted. All three of them simultaneously attacked Lu Yuan, the Sixth True Disciple of the Tenth Generation of Huashan Immortal Sect's Northern Peak. When this intelligence reached Ye Yangrong, he was thoroughly shocked.

Ye Yangrong jumped up immediately.

True Disciples were the vital wealth of a sect.

And True Disciples like Lu Yuan were of paramount importance.

Such True Disciples could not afford to be lost.

However, ensuring such True Disciples remained safe was not easy. Although the Three Great Swordsmen of Xizhou were nothing more than ants in the eyes of a Ninth-Generation Sword Immortal like Ye Yangrong, they could cause considerable harm to a Tenth-Generation True Disciple who had not yet fully matured. The three Jiang brothers—two at the Eighth Level of Qi Refining and one at the Seventh Level—if they joined forces, none of the Northern Peak’s Ten Great True Disciples could withstand them; even the Eldest Disciple, Yun Yi, or the Second Disciple, Yun Ping, likely could not hold them off.

Ye Yangrong was beginning to lose his composure.

He immediately notified Chu Fei and Li Yuanbai.

Chu Fei was notified because among the Ninth-Generation Sword Immortals of Huashan, Chu Fei was the fastest; his sword-riding speed was ranked first among the Ninth Generation. If he went, he should be able to reach Jiangyin County very quickly. Li Yuanbai was notified because he was Lu Yuan’s master, and it was best to inform him sooner.

Of course, Ye Yangrong himself also moved. His portly frame moved with surprising agility; the speed achieved through the unity of man and sword was by no means slow.

——————

Jiangyin County Town.

Outside the Letian Wine House.

Lu Yuan alone was fighting the Three Great Swordsmen of Xizhou, the Jiang brothers. At first, the Jiang brothers were quite fierce, their sword techniques savage. But now, Lu Yuan had encircled them within his own sword formations, trapping them so they couldn't break out, completely ensnared by his intricate moves, as if caught in a cloud. They roared in frustration, but to no avail.

Just then, a streak of light suddenly appeared. This light arrived in an instant, and as the snow-white sword light dissipated, a slender figure was revealed—it was Chu Fei, the Flying Sword, who had arrived. Chu Fei had been startled by the intelligence received from Ye Yangrong. He held Lu Yuan in high regard, so he immediately achieved man-sword unity and rode his sword a hundred li, rushing to this location at top speed.

During his experience in Donglu County, the Flying Sword Chu Fei had already become familiar with Lu Yuan’s swordsmanship, so he wasn't surprised by the technique itself. However, he was somewhat perplexed by the speed of Lu Yuan's magical power advancement. During the recent trial in Donglu County, Lu Yuan was at the Sixth Level of Qi Refining; how could he have reached the Seventh Level in just a few days? This rate of increase was exceptionally fast. But then he reconsidered: Lu Yuan had won ninety low-grade spirit stones in that trial, and he possessed three Cloud-type spiritual beings, the Cloud Cats. Coupled with the Cloud-type spiritual being, another Cloud Cat, he obtained previously in the Cloud Mist Valley, he now had four Cloud Cats in hand. The output of Cloud-type elemental energy from four Cloud Cats was considerable, so reaching the Seventh Level of Qi Refining was understandable.

It seemed he had come for nothing. With Lu Yuan’s swordsmanship and the magical power of the Seventh Level of Qi Refining, dealing with these three opponents, even though the Three Great Swordsmen of Xizhou were well-known figures, they still shouldn't be a match for Lu Yuan.

Still, it wasn't entirely in vain; he could watch Lu Yuan’s sword art.

Chu Fei stood with his hands clasped behind his back, observing Lu Yuan’s swordsmanship, which truly possessed a profound aesthetic quality.

The rhythm, the cadence, the feeling—it was far superior to watching his own disciple, Ye Fei, practice his sword.

Comparing people really could be maddening.

As Chu Fei observed, he suddenly noticed some new variations in Lu Yuan’s technique that hadn't been there before: sword energy. Logically, Lu Yuan should have only recently reached the Seventh Level of Qi Refining and just mastered sword energy. Yet, judging by his moves, he had already completely mastered sword energy.

To master sword energy so quickly—such high talent in the Way of the Sword!

Moments later, a dark light and a yellow light arrived simultaneously.

The dark light landed, revealing a white-robed, white-clothed old man. The yellow light turned out to be a stout, fleshy man.

It was none other than Li Yuanbai and Ye Yangrong. Although these two Ninth-Generation Sword Immortals had arrived extremely quickly, they were still slightly slower than Chu Fei.

In truth, Li Yuanbai had a basic understanding of Lu Yuan's sword skill and cultivation level, knowing that with his disciple's strength, dealing with the three renowned rogue cultivators of the Three Great Swordsmen of Xizhou would likely not be much trouble. However, knowing this in his heart was one thing; when the actual event unfolded, worry still set in, compelling him to rush over on his sword.

And Ye Yangrong? He was now slack-jawed. What was he witnessing?

Lu Yuan, a disciple of a younger generation, was actually, single-handedly, with one sword, suppressing the Three Great Swordsmen of Xizhou, three well-known rogue cultivators. Ye Yangrong, whose intelligence network was excellent, knew these three famous rogue cultivators comprised two at the Eighth Level of Qi Refining and one at the Seventh. To fight three against one and achieve this result!

Although Ye Yangrong appeared corpulent on the surface, he was exceedingly shrewd; otherwise, he wouldn't be managing the Northern Peak's intelligence system. He immediately discerned that Lu Yuan’s magical power had already reached the Seventh Level of Qi Refining. He hadn't expected Lu Yuan's cultivation to reach this level; even Yun Yi and Yun Ping hadn't achieved this level of magical power by the age of twenty. Furthermore, Lu Yuan should only be seventeen now. Reaching the Seventh Level of Qi Refining at seventeen was quite remarkable.

However, Ye Yangrong quickly realized his discovery was trivial compared to what followed. What was even more astonishing was Lu Yuan’s mastery of the sword way.

With a casual thrust, this move targeted the opponent’s flaw—this suggested an understanding of the intermediate stage of Sword Intent.

As he continued to observe, it became even stranger: the three brothers of the Three Great Swordsmen of Xizhou seemed to be controlled by Lu Yuan’s long sword, completely subdued beneath its sway. This implied having mastered the sword in hand and completely controlling the opponent—could this mean he had fully comprehended Sword Intent? To fully grasp Sword Intent at the age of seventeen?

Ye Yangrong managed the intelligence system and was certainly knowledgeable, yet even he couldn't help but marvel.

To fully grasp Sword Intent at seventeen, while perhaps not strictly unprecedented, was close enough.

A moment later, Chu Fei, Li Yuanbai, and Ye Yangrong, the three Ninth-Generation Sword Immortals, all stood with their hands clasped behind their backs. All three had been worried that Lu Yuan would be annihilated by the Three Great Swordsmen of Xizhou, the Jiang brothers. Who would have thought that Lu Yuan, by himself, had already gained an absolute advantage, requiring none of them to intervene? They were merely watching from the sidelines.

"Junior Brother Li has truly taken on a fine disciple," Ye Yangrong sighed in admiration.

"Indeed, indeed," Chu Fei nodded profusely.

Li Yuanbai smiled, stroked his beard, feeling a measure of pride.

"Withdraw sword." With a diagonal sweep of the Yangwu Sword technique, the giant swords of all three Jiang brothers were knocked away. A thin blood mark appeared on each of their wrists, while the tip of Lu Yuan's Yangwu Sword hovered just short of piercing the throats of the three Jiang brothers. Lu Yuan stood there calmly: "Greetings, Master, Martial Uncle Ye, Martial Uncle Chu."

He certainly would not rush to kill the Three Great Swordsmen of Xizhou. Their sudden attack upon seeing him clearly indicated premeditation. Who was behind them? This was worth considering, and whether he could use this opportunity to expose the power behind them—though difficult—it was certainly worth the attempt.

Therefore, he would spare the three brothers for the time being.

(The power went out, so the update is late. My apologies.)