Though Ye Wen's Dao Sword Qi was formidable and swift, the man in black managed to intercept it, affording Xiao Ming the precious moment needed to defend himself. Seeing the arc of sword energy aiming directly for his temple, Xiao Ming immediately recoiled to avoid the strike.

However, this evasion inadvertently exposed Shen Yuqing. By the time Ye Wen's sword energy reached her location, it was already at the end of its power, but it still possessed enough residual force to wound her.

Shen Yuqing remained motionless, clapping her hand out; the sword qi, already significantly weakened, was scattered by the single blow—a feat that truly astonished Ye Wen.

He had always known this woman's skill was considerable, but now he realized he had underestimated the veiled woman. From what the monk Huixin had said earlier, he learned she was the Saintess of some sect. Just based on this title, which people had tossed around for countless years, it was clear her standing was high.

More significantly, sects in the martial world that maintained a title like "Saintess" generally housed members who were far from virtuous.

To put it plainly, they were practitioners of the evil path, deserving of eradication by all righteous individuals. Thus, when Xiao Ming dodged his earlier strike of Purple Cloud Dragon Qi Sword, Ye Wen had considered taking the opportunity to wound Shen Yuqing, thinking it a small gain.

He never expected that she wouldn't even bother to move her body, merely swatting his sword qi into dissipation with an offhand gesture. Although the qi was already fading, this display was still impossible to ignore.

Looking at Shen Yuqing, she merely gazed toward the distant forest and asked, "What benefit does doing this bring you?"

Lin Hai’s face was ashen, tinged with an abnormal flush. Everyone present knew that the Gang Leader Lin was experiencing the final surge before death; even attempting to treat him now was too late. Yet, they remained utterly baffled by the suddenness of his actions. When Shen Yuqing asked her question, no one interjected; all eyes turned toward Lin Hai.

"Since childhood, I have practiced martial arts and can be considered exceptionally talented! My sole desire was to be a great hero dedicated to eradicating demons and upholding righteousness, admired and celebrated by the heroes of the martial world. Then, I would find a like-minded soulmate and live out my days freely!"

Here, Lin Hai suddenly let out a wry laugh. "I never imagined I would meet you, Madam... I remember it was over twenty years ago. Even then, Madam looked just as you do now, captivating anyone who saw you to the point of utter infatuation. I thought then that Madam was the beauty I had been searching for my entire life!"

At this point, Shen Yuqing should have felt supremely triumphant.

She hadn't intentionally seduced Lin Hai twenty years ago, yet the then-young and promising Lin Hai had become devoted to her. Later, recognizing the young man's potential, she fostered him into becoming the leader of the Tianle Gang, believing everything was under control. She never foresaw the events of today, making triumph an impossibility now.

With this thought, she couldn't help but press the matter: "If you were so devoted to me, why commit these acts? Moreover, by revealing everything now, all your reputation will be destroyed!"

Lin Hai offered a bitter smile. "Reputation... It's been twenty years; can I still be so attached to it? My heart was set on upholding righteousness, but because of my obsession with you, I ended up doing many things for your demonic cult. For these past two decades, I have existed in perpetual torment. Initially, I hoped you might change your mind and retreat with me deep into the mountains, to live out the rest of our days where no one knew us. But now I finally understand; that was entirely my own wishful thinking. And Madam Shen... you probably never even took me seriously!"

Shen Yuqing offered no reply. Indeed, she had never taken Lin Hai seriously. No matter how high his martial arts rose, in her eyes, he was merely a pawn who followed her heels, ready to be deployed at her command.

"So you exposed everything? Are you trying to drag me down with you?"

Lin Hai laughed heartily at the accusation. "Drag you down together? If I wanted to die with you, Madam, I wouldn't have allowed you to shatter my collarbone without lifting a hand in return! Though I took a blow from Sect Leader Ye, it certainly hasn't left me instantly powerless!"

He spoke, his face etched with profound sorrow. "I still can't bring myself to be cruel, unable to strike against you! Suffering this blow that broke my collarbone today is the retribution I deserve!"

As he spoke, his words became increasingly disjointed, drifting between "Ten years ago, I was practicing by the sea, and you stayed with me; those months were the happiest of my life..." and "Remember that time you tried to absorb Nan Yu's power, but he managed to escape? In truth, I let him go!"

He spilled forth various secrets in a chaotic stream. When the others looked at Lin Hai again, his eyes were vacant, as if he couldn't see anything. After a few more moments, his voice grew fainter until it ceased entirely. The crowd waited silently for a time, then checked again—he was gone.

"Amitabha..."

The monk Huixin intended to say something more, but only this exclamation came out. Finally, Tianyi Zhenren spoke, "Gang Leader Lin was unfortunately deluded by Madam and strayed onto the wrong path. That he has now awakened can be counted as a fortunate event!"

Unexpectedly, Shen Yuqing scoffed, "Old Daoist, don't speak nonsense. I never deluded him. Everything he did was of his own free will. Now that you know Gang Leader Lin was a great villain who has been accumulating wealth for years to fund our Holy Sect's grand cause, he was essentially one of us. By the standards of you so-called righteous people, wasn't he a great evildoer?"

"What an arrogant girl!"

Among those present, only Nine Sword Immortal Hu Shuwen was of truly advanced age. Even though he addressed Huixin as "Little Monk," Huixin would still greet him respectfully with a smile. While Shen Yuqing's age was unclear, Lin Hai just stated she looked the same twenty years ago, meaning she must be at least over forty. Calling her a "girl" might be inappropriate for others, but the Nine Sword Immortal felt no such reservation: "...You have used Lin Hai to accumulate wealth for your demonic sect for twenty years. It seems your cult has regained its vitality!"

The Nine Sword Immortal's deduction held merit. If the demonic sect behind Shen Yuqing hadn't recovered its strength, she wouldn't have brazenly jumped out to take Lin Hai’s life the moment Ye Wen struck him down to the brink of death (a maneuver the true masters could tell Lin Hai had deliberately held back to achieve).

Normally, even if Lin Hai died, as long as the Tianle Gang remained intact, Shen Yuqing could continue to profit under the gang's banner, channeling continuous funds to the demonic sect. As for the leadership, whether she took over herself or simply installed Xiao Ming, it would at most cause some internal dissent, which two experts of their caliber could easily suppress.

But Shen Yuqing chose to strike directly, intending to kill Lin Hai in front of all the martial world heroes. Setting aside her demonic background, by acting this way, Shen Yuqing forfeited any claim to acceptance by the Tianle Gang or the Righteous Martial World.

Therefore, the Nine Sword Immortal deduced that Shen Yuqing believed the Tianle Gang no longer held much utility, and she decided to seize this chance to quickly return to her sect, hence her utter recklessness in exposing her identity without hesitation.

The reality was close, but there was one aspect the Nine Sword Immortal missed: Shen Yuqing always considered Lin Hai her loyal subordinate. Faced with such sudden treachery, the indignation she felt was beyond comprehension. Acting purely on rage, she struck out without considering the broader strategy.

It was only later, when Xiao Ming also moved to kill Pei Wei, that Shen Yuqing seemed slightly surprised. It appeared some message had arrived from the sect, emboldening Xiao Ming to act without restraint as well.

At this juncture, further debate was pointless. The situation was becoming clear: the Tianle Gang was effectively controlled by the nemesis of the righteous path, the Demonic Cult. Shen Yuqing was the Cult's Saintess, and Xiao Ming was one of its Five Elements Envoys—both high-ranking figures. Now that their identities were revealed before the righteous heroes, letting them escape was unthinkable.

Just as they prepared to strike, several of the black-clad men who had stepped forward from the crowd suddenly charged onto the arena. One targeted an old master and rushed straight toward him. The others moved toward the various factions, ignoring the onlooking rabble.

Tianyi Zhenren sneered upon seeing this. "It seems I haven't acted in too long, causing these people to forget the extent of my power! They truly do not fear death!"

The monk Huixin quietly chanted a scripture, then suddenly roared, "Today, this poor monk shall emulate the ancients and subdue demons!"

As soon as the words left his mouth, a black shadow flashed behind him, a long saber cleaving down toward Huixin's lower back. The attacker sneered, "Old monk, bragging won't save you! Go subdue demons on the road to the Yellow Springs!" This man was certain his blow would slice the old monk cleanly in half, but the moment the saber connected, it felt like striking hard iron. The recoil force alone ripped the long saber from his grasp.

While astonished, he suddenly saw a fist rushing toward him, growing larger and larger, before his vision went black, and he knew nothing more.

Tianyi Zhenren observed this and casually remarked, "Master, your Arhat Body has become even more subtle!" Meanwhile, his hand moved swiftly, deflecting the long sword before him with a flick. The sword instantly shattered into fragments, and the attacker's hand split open at the tiger's mouth, bleeding profusely.

Clutching his wounded hand in terror, the man tried to retreat hastily. But after just two steps, the old Daoist's voice boomed behind him: "Trying to leave?" Before he could turn, a shockwave struck his back, and he collapsed to the ground.

"Amitabha, True Master, I haven't seen your Heart Shattering Palm in many years; it remains as potent as ever."

Tianyi Zhenren smiled faintly. "This technique is too vicious. Were it not for dealing with these demonic cult agents, I would rather not use it!" He glanced at the corpse, though he couldn't see inside, he knew the man's heart had been pulverized by his palm force.

These two masters dispatched the black-clad attackers lunging at them with simple gestures. The others were no less capable.

The Nine Sword Immortal made no outward movement; two long swords moved on their own, leaving the black-clad man with no chance to fight back. However, he refrained from a killing blow, so the man was still struggling against the two swords, held in check but alive.

Ye Wen was not ignored either, but his attacker looked down on him. He casually swung a single saber, intending to depart and attack someone else, but when he swung, the saber refused to move.

Looking down, he saw the saber tightly entangled by a web of purple energy. No matter how much force he applied, he couldn't pull it free, which greatly alarmed him.

Just as he was about to abandon his weapon, Ye Wen’s voice cut through the air: "To engage me with such disrespect—you must be tired of living!" He flicked his right hand into a sword finger and sent a beam of Purple Cloud Dragon Qi Sword energy out, slicing across the black-clad man's neck. A spray of blood splattered.

Fortunately, Ye Wen had been prepared; he diffused his Purple Qi Heavenly Net energy into a thin wall of force, completely concealing the blood. He then turned toward Xiao Ming, who was preparing to slip away, and stated, "And you think you can leave?"

Looking over at Shen Yuqing, she saw that these old monsters had killed all the disciples summoned by Xiao Ming with casual gestures. Realizing that staying meant capture, she immediately leaped down from the arena.

The crowd assumed she was fleeing, but surprisingly, she darted directly toward the Tianle Gang's seating area, causing great astonishment among those few remaining there.

"What is she doing?"

Xiao Ming had no idea why she had run in that direction. The exit route wasn't that way. He was about to call out to ask when Ye Wen intercepted him. "You have the nerve to worry about others?" Ye Wen struck out with a palm, which Xiao Ming nimbly dodged. However, Ye Wen abruptly shifted the move mid-trajectory, transforming it into a Tiger Claw aimed precisely at Xiao Ming's waist.

Alarmed, Xiao Ming leaped sideways to evade the vicious grab, simultaneously flicking his wrist to unleash three flashes of golden light—he had somehow produced three more golden beads.

Ye Wen neither dodged nor blocked. The purple mist swirling around his body suddenly agitated, transforming into three extremely thin strands of sword energy that intercepted the beads.

This maneuver was a tactic he had just conceived, inspired by the recent actions of Sect Leader Li Xuan of the Tianshan Sect.

"If Li Xuan can surround himself with chilling air, making him impervious to intrusion! Why can't I surround myself with sword energy to keep others away?"

This brief engagement was an experiment. He found that if he truly willed it, such a feat was achievable. However, maintaining this posture consumed an enormous amount of internal energy. Merely commanding the surrounding purple mist to transform into sword energy nearly depleted half of his inner reserves.

Furthermore, after intercepting the three small projectiles, the fine sword energies lost their momentum and vanished.

"This method isn't viable for sustained use yet!"

Relying on the rapid recovery speed of his Innate Purple Qi, Ye Wen regained considerable inner energy within a few breaths. While the recent expenditure was large, it hadn't incapacitated him. He immediately pressed forward again, his right palm unleashing the Iron Palm technique, aimed at Xiao Ming's shoulder, while his left palm followed closely, ready to shift the attack at any moment.

Xiao Ming, who had been concealed within the crowd for days and was clearly different from the later-arriving black-clad men, knew that Ye Wen possessed not only divine sword energy skills but also formidable palm arts.

Seeing Ye Wen's palm strikes coming one after another, he dared not relax. He brought his golden abacus horizontally to block Ye Wen's initial strike, then swiftly thrust the abacus forward, intending to use its unique structure to lock onto Ye Wen's right arm before delivering a killing blow.

Unexpectedly, Ye Wen's first palm strike was a feint. His right palm flickered past, subtly changing course mid-air, while his left palm suddenly accelerated, landing squarely on Xiao Ming's right shoulder.

The force of this blow was overwhelmingly fierce. Struck, Xiao Ming felt a searing, intense pain in his shoulder. He couldn't tell if bone was injured, but his entire right shoulder, along with the right half of his arm, went completely numb.

Panicked, he spun the abacus with his left hand. The edge of the abacus suddenly sprang out a row of golden blades. Yet, within the gold, a faint, bluish-black sheen hinted at a potent poison coating them.

This move startled Ye Wen, causing him to leap backward immediately to avoid the strike. Simultaneously, he brought his right sword finger to bear and unleashed a bolt of sword energy.

"Playing with poison? Fine, I'll stick to a long-range turret build!"

Ye Wen's recovery speed was excellent now, and using the Purple Cloud Dragon Qi Sword was less constrained than in the past. He glanced around and saw that all the black-clad men who had ascended the stage were dead. The one near the Nine Sword Immortal, though alive, couldn't move, held hostage by two long swords circling his neck—any movement meant certain death. Thus, the man stood frozen.

Noticing that everyone else had dealt with their opponents, Ye Wen pressed his advantage, sending out several strands of sword energy. He didn't bother aiming for vital points; as long as he targeted the area where Xiao Ming stood, the barrage made it impossible for Xiao Ming to defend.

It was only thanks to Xiao Ming's swift reaction—a sudden roll backward—that he tumbled off the stage, causing all of Ye Wen's consecutive sword energies to miss, whistling harmlessly over his head.

"I'd like to see how long you can keep dodging!"

Ye Wen leaped up, soaring high into the air, intending to use the aerial advantage to finish Xiao Ming. But just as he ascended, a delicate laugh drifted from nearby: "Please, Sect Leader Ye, spare this small plaything! Consider it my thank-you gift!"

With that, a white shadow flew toward him. Ye Wen was startled and prepared to strike it away, but as the object neared, it flipped over, revealing its front: it was none other than Hua Yi.

"Huh?"

If Hua Yi had lunged to attack him, Ye Wen wouldn't have found it strange; after all, Hua Yi's master was from the Demonic Cult, meaning the woman should be aligned with his own master's faction. But Hua Yi's current state—clearly being thrown—left Ye Wen utterly perplexed.

Especially Hua Yi's dazed expression, which made Ye Wen feel something was wrong. He instantly altered his incoming palm strike, shaping it into a Purple Qi Heavenly Net, and smoothly tossed Hua Yi toward the arena. He noticed that although she had been thrown, her vital points weren't sealed. He figured that once she landed on the stage, her Qinggong skills would prevent any serious trouble.

Moreover, with so many masters present on the stage, she couldn't cause much chaos. He could simply pick her up as a captive later! However, as he threw her, Hua Yi seemed utterly unskilled, crashing onto the stage with a dull thud. Before Ye Wen could process what was happening, the voice that had laughed—Shen Yuqing—dissolved into a wisp of smoke, snatching Xiao Ming and sweeping past Ye Wen. She managed to utter, "Sect Leader Ye, how ruthless! And to think my foolish disciple was so devoted to you!"

But before her words finished, she heard a sharp scream from Xiao Ming in her grasp. Turning, she saw that Ye Wen's surrounding purple energy had entirely transformed into encircling sword energy. As she passed by him, the sword energy had cleanly sliced Xiao Ming in half at the waist, leaving countless gashes besides. Shocked, she watched as the limp corpse she clutched instantly lost all vitality within a blink of an eye.