This single move hurtled forward with unparalleled momentum, bearing some resemblance to the Raging Wind passage from the Hundred and Eight Swords of Wind and Cloud, or perhaps the Howling Gale from the Sea of the South Immortal Sect's Raging Sword Tornado. Yet, it hinted at the Scorching Heat Wave borne of the Desert Raging Sword technique from the Great Yuan Nation's Three Great Sacred Grounds, Ten Thousand Serpent Manor. Which one was it? There were too few lingering traces now to tell. As for the spell-breaking techniques carved above, there was no corresponding match among any known move. If it were an independent move, the marks on the stone wall made that possibility unlikely.

The gaze shifted to another set of traces. Observing this mark, it felt somewhat akin to the Vast Righteous Purple Qi from the Wudang Immortal Sect, or perhaps Wu resembled the Purple Qi Coming from the East of the Huashan Qi Sect. It must lie somewhere between those two, but the method for breaking the move was completely indecipherable.

Lu Yuan looked further, spotting yet another trace.

Lu Yuan let out a long, slow breath. During this observation, he had been oscillating between profound understanding and confusion. He seemed to grasp something vaguely, but because the carvings were so heavily worn down, many techniques could not be fully reconstructed. In the end, all he could do was sigh in resignation.

“Junior Martial Nephew Lu, wake up.” Lu Yuan had been deep in contemplation of the swordsmanship. Though these ruined sword techniques were incredibly difficult to decipher, he was on the cusp of some breakthrough when a sharp clap on his back jolted him fully awake. Turning, he saw Ye Qingshun gently patting his shoulder.

“Martial Uncle Ye,” Lu Yuan greeted, cupping his hands.

“Time’s up,” Ye Qingshun said. Seeing Lu Yuan’s bewildered look, he explained, “You can only spend one day within the Five-Color Cave. Exceed that, and you must exit; otherwise, the cave seals for another ten years.”

Hearing this, Lu Yuan reluctantly let go of his contemplation. If a hundred complete sword manuals had been here, spending ten years immersed in the Way of the Sword would have been a delight—provided, of course, he had stocked enough fine wine. A fellow could certainly endure that.

But as it stood, inside the Five-Color Cave were only incomplete, untraceable sword techniques, and without enough wine to last a decade inside. Forget it; he absolutely could not stay.

Over there, Ximen Luan and the others were already stirring. The five of them flew out of the Five-Color Cave and emerged into the domain of the Five-Color Tribulation Clouds. Each displayed their divine abilities, passing through the clouds and descending toward Repentance Peak. Lu Yuan flew straight down toward the peak, only to notice that the expressions of the people gathered there were exceedingly strange.

Every face was somehow… how to describe it? Pale.

Yes, deathly pale.

The only exception was Lian Nian of the Serpent Sword, whose face held a chilling smile. However, for some reason, Lu Yuan sensed that the Lian Nian before him was fundamentally different from the Lian Nian he knew, seemingly far more terrifying. A tremor ran through him as Lian Nian smiled and walked over.

The surrounding cultivators, all with deathly pale faces, were shouting curses: “Yuan Ling, damn you.”

“Yuan Ling, how dare you show yourself here.”

“Yuan Ling, if you have the guts, fight me without poison!” Amidst the torrent of curses, Lian Nian stopped not far in front of Lu Yuan: “Perhaps you are all surprised. Let me explain a little. I should be called Yuan Ling now.”

“Lian Nian, that pitiable wretch who swore revenge upon me, the one whose life I ruined halfway—he probably doesn't know that I implemented a special technique upon him long ago. This technique allows me to possess his body at a critical moment. If not for that poor creature Lian Nian, I truly could not have entered Repentance Peak, surrounded by layers of restrictive formations, accessible only via the Path of Repentance.”

“Truly a pathetic worm, constantly seeking vengeance, even daring to break Huashan’s rules by practicing the forbidden arts I left behind. But alas, from the very beginning, he was nothing more than a puppet manipulated by me.”

“Of course, entering Repentance Peak still presented some trouble. After all, within this peak reside one or two figures at the Grand Dao Realm, individuals whose strength is no less than mine. Senior Brother Jian Zhen, Junior Brother Hao Fa, you two are correct, aren’t you?” the "Lian Nian" with the bizarre expression said with a grin.

“But I had preparations made before entering, combined with the unique terrain here, which allowed me to concoct the Earth Cloud Mixed Toxin. Of course, if the battle over the Elixir hadn't consumed a few days, perhaps this toxin wouldn't have managed to infect all of you so easily. Naturally, you five—Ximen Luan, Lu Yuan—who entered the Five-Color Cave were the exception.”

“Now, everyone here, save for you few like Ximen Luan, has been poisoned by me,” Yuan Ling smiled, his eyes narrowing into slits.

The white-haired elder beside them, the Grand Dao Realm cultivator True Lord Jian Zhen, could not help but flare with anger: “Yuan Ling, why are you targeting the people of our Repentance Peak? What threat do we, who are confined here, pose to you?”

“Because you are members of the Huashan Immortal Sect. You are different from me. I have long dedicated myself to destroying Huashan. Even though you are imprisoned on Repentance Peak, you are ultimately Huashan personnel. To destroy Huashan, it is only natural to eliminate a portion of its strength first. However, Huashan is too formidable right now. Therefore, you gentlemen on the isolated and sealed-off Repentance Peak are the most convenient targets. Furthermore, since nothing untoward has happened here in thousands of years, your preventative measures were lax. Coupled with the Five-Color Tribulation Cloud Elixir as bait, deceiving you to administer the poison was not difficult at all,” Yuan Ling stated casually.

“Now, all of you, die for me.”

Yuan Ling moved instantly. Since he was using Lian Nian’s body, Lian Nian’s serpent sword was drawn. But this serpent sword now emanated an aura of absolute dominance as it sliced toward True Lord Jian Zhen. Every True Lord is an immensely formidable figure; if True Lord Jian Zhen had not been tricked, he would not be easy to handle, which is why Yuan Ling targeted him first.

Smack. A burst of energy shot forth, a single finger strike hitting the serpent sword. Yuan Ling’s body shuddered, appearing as if a mere stream of energy had inflicted a grave injury.

“Little Junior Martial Nephew Yuan Ling, have you caused enough trouble?” A clear, elderly male voice rang out.

Yuan Ling’s expression flickered slightly: “Martial Uncle Zhou, you are indeed still alive.”

“When Senior Brother Yan was alive, you dared not venture three thousand feet into the Hidden Earth. Now that Senior Brother Yan has ascended, you dare to emerge? Do you truly believe my Clear Breeze Immortal Sword is so inferior to Senior Brother Yan’s Flying Swallow Immortal Sword that it cannot kill you?”

“Martial Uncle Zhou, you are currently Huashan’s foremost master, perhaps even the foremost Grandmaster. Firstly, I presumed you might have passed away, and secondly, I assumed that even if you were alive, due to the past emotional trauma and the oaths you took, you would never leave Repentance Peak. That’s why I was so audacious. But since Martial Uncle Zhou is alive, my plan has naturally failed.”

Lian Nian’s figure was flickering incessantly. Finally, although his eyes remained narrowed, the intensely malevolent aura vanished completely. It seemed Yuan Ling had departed, no longer possessing Lian Nian’s body. Furthermore, a surge of spiritual power seemed to wash over Lian Nian’s body, instantly purging the restrictions Yuan Ling had placed within him.

At that moment, on the ground, regardless of whether they were poisoned or not, everyone cupped their hands: “Greetings to Martial Uncle Zhou.”

Lu Yuan’s mind reeled. This hidden master was incredibly powerful; he had forced Yuan Ling to suffer injury and abandon his puppet with just a single finger strike. He recalled Martial Uncle Yuan Yuan mentioning that Huashan’s true foremost master resided on Repentance Peak. Could this be Huashan’s genuine foremost Grandmaster, Zhou Qingxuan, ranked second among the Eighth Generation, surpassed only by Yan Cangtian?

The current Sect Master of Huashan was merely the fourth-ranked among the Eighth Generation.

At the same time, judging by Yuan Ling’s tone, this Martial Uncle Zhou ancestor might even be the foremost Grandmaster in the current Great Jin Dynasty. What terrifying power.

Those on Repentance Peak bowed in unison to greet Martial Uncle Zhou, but there was no reply. Everyone understood; Martial Uncle Zhou was likely still preoccupied with the past emotional turmoil and the affairs of that time, seeing no need to show himself to everyone. Although Martial Uncle Zhou was still Huashan’s foremost Grandmaster, due to past events, he essentially never concerned himself with Huashan’s affairs, remaining sequestered on Repentance Peak. Over the years, many hadn't even known if he lived or died. He had only emerged just now because the situation was dire. Since the crisis had passed, his silence was understandable.

In an unnamed mountain range with beautiful scenery near Huashan.

“What a marvelous scheme. To test whether Great Sword Saint Zhou is still living in the mortal realm, such a grand game was played, using the lives of everyone on Repentance Peak as leverage. Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant.” The hideously ugly Old Man Tian Can clapped his hands, applauding Yuan Ling’s move.

“What a nuisance,” Yuan Ling frowned. His complexion was somewhat pale; his second primordial spirit had been injured by Zhou Qingxuan, which had also inflicted some damage upon his main body. However, he clearly wasn't dwelling on this injury. “With him still alive, the difficulty of subverting Huashan has increased tenfold.”

“Emperor Qi Tian said that if Great Sword Saint Zhou were still alive, he would deal with Zhou Qingxuan,” Old Man Tian Can said. “So, you don't need to worry.”

“Emperor Qi Tian is that confident?” Yuan Ling frowned again, his slender brows creasing with a touch of playful curiosity.

Those within the Heaven-Defying Alliance knew that its Alliance Leader was Emperor Qi Tian.

Yuan Ling had not expected Emperor Qi Tian to possess such self-assurance, claiming he could withstand the former Second Sword of Huashan, Zhou Qingxuan, who was now the First Sword.

Yuan Ling smiled. Who was Emperor Qi Tian’s true identity? In this world, a person capable of blocking Huashan’s First Sword, Zhou Qingxuan, could not emerge easily.

“What a pity. In the effort to test whether Zhou Qingxuan was alive, the opportunity to plant a seed of possession within Lu Yuan’s body was missed. Such a rare genius—but we shall wait for him to mature a little more. A fruit should be picked when it is ripest,” Yuan Ling said with a smile, his silver hair whipping in the strong wind, his robes fluttering loudly.

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