So, members of North Peak, could any of you tell me the current status of North Peak's XXX? He has been trapped in the Ten Thousand Poisons Cave for half a year, and we know absolutely nothing about North Peak's current situation.

Those five or six cultivators from North Peak were utterly stunned beyond measure.

They had long heard of Lu Yuan's name, knowing he was the foremost figure among the tenth generation. But Tong Bainian, though boasted as the weakest of the Longevity Ninth Layer, was still firmly in the Longevity Ninth Layer. Now, to think he was actually dealt with by Lu Yuan—this was truly inconceivable, unimaginable. Their minds were sluggish; they couldn't fathom how things had escalated to this point, and for a moment, they even forgot the need to flee.

It was only when Lu Yuan questioned them that they snapped back to reality. One of the cultivators spoke up, "Lu Yuan, if you let us go, we will tell you North Peak's current situation." He was calculating—most people in the immortal path generally kept their promises, unlike those of North Peak Mountain.

Lu Yuan couldn't help but laugh wryly: "All six of you carry extremely strong killing intent. Those who died by your hands must be numerous. People like you, if allowed to live, would inevitably condone villains to harm more good people. Usually, I wouldn't kill, at most, I would drag you to the North Peak Heavenly Prison. However, given the accident that might have befallen North Peak, taking you to the Heavenly Prison is likely no longer an option. You think you can exchange this piece of information you can easily acquire for your escape? Truly laughable." Amidst his banter, he swiftly executed the six.

Killing was done for the sake of justice.

To save more people, evil must be purged.

This is the very essence—slaying demons and eradicating devils!

After dispatching the six, he rode his sword, and soon encountered another cultivator on the path, from whom he inquired about the recent state of North Peak.

From this inquiry, he learned that half a year ago—the same period when he encountered Tong Bainian's assassination attempt—the Lord of North Peak, Venerable Yuan Yuan, had mysteriously vanished. Allegedly, no strange phenomena occurred that night, and then the Lord simply disappeared. Following this, North Peak experienced no unusual incidents either.

And so, half a year passed by, tranquil and uneventful.

But as the half-year calm ended, North Peak had recently become lively again.

A nation cannot remain without a sovereign for a day; North Peak had been without its master for half a year.

Although it was currently a time of great peace and prosperity, the Sword Qi Sect was still being severely suppressed by the Sword Sect, which even intended to absorb the Sword Qi Sect entirely. With a master in place, the Sword Qi Sect could offer some resistance, but now, in this leaderless state, the situation was extremely delicate. Consequently, not long ago, the eighth-generation elders within the Cloud Ethereal Realm of the Sword Qi Sect finally made a decision: they would select a new Lord for North Peak.

Of course, they would be choosing a temporary Lord of North Peak.

If Venerable Yuan Yuan did not return within three years, the descriptor "temporary" could then be dropped.

The selection for the Lord of North Peak would naturally come from the ninth generation, as the eighth generation, in principle, no longer managed affairs and thus could not become the Lord of North Peak.

It was rumored that the grand selection ceremony for the Lord of North Peak was imminent.

Indeed, a conspiracy. Lu Yuan's heart jolted. His current strength had basically reached the Sword Immortal level, and he understood the capabilities of that rank. Among North Peak's Sword Immortals, the Gentleman Sword Immortal Fang Ru should be the strongest, likely possessing the cultivation of Longevity Tenth Layer. Next in line would be Sima Changbai and Ye Yangrong, both at Longevity Ninth Layer. Comparatively, Dugu Ye and Chu Fei were somewhat weaker.

And if Sima Changbai and Ye Yangrong were to compete, Sima Changbai would have the greater edge.

Selecting a new, temporary Lord of North Peak now, Fang Ru was undeniably the strongest contender.

However, Lu Yuan instinctively felt that a scheme was afoot.

By the time of the selection, the new Lord of North Peak would almost certainly be Sima Changbai.

Venerable Yuan Ling employed the most effective method to deal with North Peak.

North Peak was not easy to handle, as it was part of Mount Hua, which still housed some ancient figures. Truly destroying North Peak was impossible. What Yuan Ling chose was to control North Peak through the appointment of a new Lord. And Sima Changbai was a crucial piece in his design.

Once one thread was grasped, everything became clear. Lu Yuan was profoundly shaken; he had to return to North Peak immediately.

He absolutely could not allow Sima Changbai to become the new Lord of North Peak.

Lu Yuan bid farewell to the cultivator who had informed him of North Peak's situation, summoned a streak of sword light, and sped directly toward North Peak. This caused the cultivator to secretly envy him; commanding a flying sword was something only achievable at the eighth layer of the Body Refining stage. He never imagined this young man could command a sword at such a tender age.

Thus, Lu Yuan, riding his white sword light, shot into the soaring clouds.

However, Taihu Lake was still some distance from North Peak—a distance that was neither too long nor too short, requiring several days of travel.

In the process of flying, Lu Yuan noticed he was being trailed. His sword control speed was decent, especially when briefly employing the White Emperor Sword Dao, which was faster, though the White Emperor Sword Dao couldn't be maintained indefinitely as it consumed too much magical power. Having been targeted, he needed to shake off the pursuers. Lu Yuan tried to break free several times, only to discover that those tailing him were not just one group, but multiple.

It seemed that Lu Bi North Peak XXX within North Peak Mountain held significant influence. The network that Venerable Yuan Ling had cultivated over so many years... Lu Yuan was not skilled in tracking and counter-tracking; Li Yuanbai was mediocre in this area, and Yan Cangtian was even worse—Patriarch Yan had rarely needed to evade pursuit himself.

Lu Yuan vaguely recalled having some impressions regarding tracking and counter-tracking.

He slapped his forehead—he had almost forgotten. While in the Ten Thousand Poisons Cave, while perusing those forty-one books, one of them seemed to specifically detail tracking methods. He immediately found a relatively concealed spot among the white clouds, his white sword light completely merging with them, and began studying that book.

This book was titled Sword Hawk's Insights, being the collected wisdom of a seventh-generation member nicknamed 'Sword Hawk.' This individual was exceptionally skilled in tracking and counter-tracking and was a renowned master in that field during his era. He was extremely proud of his tracking techniques; he placed all his insights and the process of comprehending sword intent later in the book. The very first thing he detailed was the art of tracking and counter-tracking.

"Tracking and counter-tracking are one and the same," was the opening statement.

"The art of tracking is divided into five main methods: observing traces, smelling scent, long-range viewing, listening to the wind, and chasing the spirit."

"First, let's discuss observing traces. When a person flies a sword through the sky, there are turbulence patterns, piles of rubble, and clouds. Once a sword passes through, it leaves various traces. A skilled observer, with just one glance, can discern how long ago someone passed and in which direction they went."

"Next, discussing scent-smelling. The pores of a human body release various odors that linger in the wind for a long time. Unless a strong gust sweeps through, it is easily tracked by masters of this path."

"Then, there is long-range viewing. In the cultivation world, various secret arts exist that allow one to sense a connection. If they possess a strand of hair or a piece of clothing, as long as the distance isn't too great, they can observe your location using this method. This is the long-range viewing secret art." "Listening to the wind is only effective when close enough for pursuit. Among cultivation masters, there are those specializing in tracking via their ears; by listening to the wind currents, they can locate an opponent within dozens of miles." "Chasing the spirit is when, once you pass a location, you leave behind faint traces of your soul. If a master skilled in this art encounters them, they can use spirit to chase spirit, finding the direction you headed."

Lu Yuan, reading the tracking insights left by this senior Sword Hawk, was startled. It turned out tracking and counter-tracking involved so many intricate methods; it was a profound and vast field of study. Truly, there was specialization in skills; even Patriarch Yan probably knew nothing of these techniques.

Sensing that someone was pursuing him, he knew he had to employ these methods.

These tracking and counter-tracking arts could not be mastered overnight, but learning some techniques would be extremely beneficial for his journey to North Peak.

Lu Yuan's Nurturing Life Sword flashed, its light sharp and fierce. Under such relentless and terrifying sword light, the attacks from his pursuers seemed rather laughable. These elders from North Peak Mountain still tried to struggle, but Lu Yuan gave them no opportunity, slaying them straightforwardly.

"Die," Lu Yuan moved his hand, and five heads flew off with a single sword strike.

With another flick of his wrist, a flower of sword light bloomed and then retracted into the sheath.

During this time, he clearly felt the tracking efforts from the people of North Peak Mountain. But after learning the tracking and counter-tracking methods of Sword Hawk, Lu Yuan found that he had transformed from being unable to cope with the pursuit and unable to shake off the trackers, to being able to easily manipulate them, handling the situation with ample room to spare.

Simultaneously, after learning so many tracking methods, Lu Yuan clearly identified one thing: the organization of the opposition's tracking was somewhat chaotic.

Simply put, it was unprofessional and disorganized, indicating an issue.

Since the opposition was so unprofessional, and coincidentally, one group of trackers was not far ahead of him and hadn't spotted him yet, Lu Yuan naturally didn't mind performing an act of slaying evil for the righteous path of the cultivation world and the common people. Thus, he sought out the group of five.

This group of five clearly hadn't reacted. They were supposed to be tracking Lu Yuan from a distance, waiting for stronger pursuers to arrive, but instead, Lu Yuan appeared right before their eyes.

And so, they met their doom.

These five naturally perished under Lu Yuan's sword.

Lu Yuan was also puzzled at this point. Why would the opposition be so disorganized? If Venerable Yuan Ling were here, rumored to be a genius in all aspects, with his methods, things shouldn't be this messy. If he were organizing things, this chaos wouldn't occur. This only suggested one possibility: half a year ago, Venerable Yuan Yuan vanished, but Venerable Yuan Ling likely didn't fare well either—it was highly possible he had also disappeared, causing North Peak Mountain's organization to descend into chaos, even making their tracking efforts so messy.

The struggle between Venerable Yuan Yuan and Venerable Yuan Ling—it was unclear who gained the upper hand.

But, it didn't matter now.

The most important thing was to reach North Peak at top speed.