In but a moment, Ye Wen saw a streak of golden light flying from the distance. Though this light faintly carried a solemn and majestic Buddhist power, it still conveyed a sense of immense force, quite unlike the peaceful solemnity generally associated with Buddhism. It seemed that even if this person genuinely cultivated Buddhist divine abilities, they practiced techniques geared toward combat.

Just as he formed this thought, Qiu Yuanlong exclaimed in surprise, "It's Master Dihong Chan of the Emei Sect?" He apparently hadn't expected the Emei Sect to take this matter so seriously, dispatching one of their pillar elders, Master Dihong Chan!

Although he knew that once he spread the news, the major sects would react, the scale of Emei's mobilization seemed excessive.

He was unaware that the Emei Sect was so thoroughly enraged solely because Ye Wen had slain Ren Tuse, one of their three elders. Now, having incurred the deep enmity of the Emei Sect, they would not let him go, even setting aside the matter of the Jiuzhou Ding.

Dihong Chan arrived not far from Ye Wen and immediately dispersed his light of flight, frowning deeply as he fiercely scrutinized Ye Wen: "You are that Ye Wen?"

"Indeed!"

"Did you kill my junior brother?"

At these words, before Ye Wen could react, Qiu Yuanlong beside him was startled.

Who was Dihong Chan's junior brother? Everyone in the cultivation world knew it was Ren Tuse of the Emei Sect. Though he ranked last among the three elders and possessed the weakest cultivation of the three, he was an exceedingly overbearing individual who would resort to violence at the slightest disagreement. Most people chose forbearance out of fear of the Emei Sect, and his own strength was not insignificant; ordinary cultivators dared not provoke him.

Yet, such a master had been killed by that Ye Wen?

"Oh dear, I didn't think Ye Wen had stirred up such a hornet's nest. The Emei Sect will surely pursue this to the death now!" However, upon a second thought, this situation might actually benefit him. He suddenly spoke to Ye Wen, "Sect Master Ye, have you considered my proposal? If you agree, this old ancestor will lend you a hand today!"

His interruption drew Dihong Chan's gaze to him. After appraising him up and down, Dihong Chan expressed surprise, "You are the Blood Jade Old Ancestor, Qiu Yuanlong?" After speaking, he dismissed the Blood Jade Old Ancestor, for in his mind, although this old ancestor possessed considerable strength and was tricky to deal with, he was not a true threat.

His impression was that this fellow was difficult to capture due to his elusive escape technique, but his actual fighting strength was limited. His signature treasure, the Emerald Light Divine Needle, was strange and unpredictable, but Dihong Chan didn't hold it in high regard. Moreover, many of Dihong Chan's arts were perfect counters to the Emerald Light Divine Needle. He was confident that facing the Blood Jade Old Ancestor posed no danger to him, so he naturally paid him no mind.

Qiu Yuanlong could clearly perceive Dihong Chan's disdain. However, he was confident that he still held trump cards, so he felt no fear. Furthermore, if he could actually join forces with Ye Wen to eliminate Dihong Chan, it would greatly aid his grand scheme...

Ye Wen glanced at Dihong Chan, then at Qiu Yuanlong who was constantly calculating beside him. He knew these two were dangerous to the extreme: one wanted him dead immediately, and the other, despite offering alliance, harbored unknown intentions. If he were careless, he could easily be done in by either of them. Thus, although his expression remained unchanged, his inner zhenqi was already mobilized. The moment things turned unfavorable, he could launch an attack instantly.

"The one who killed your junior brother is indeed I, Ye Wen. Who told him to threaten my sect disciples and my wife? Does such a person deserve to be called a righteous figure of the cultivation world?"

Ye Wen spoke with undisguised mockery. In Dihong Chan's eyes, this was blatant provocation. He thought to himself: If I don't teach this brat a lesson, will he really think my Emei Sect is easily bullied?

He immediately roared, "Stop your nonsense! What is the status of the Emei Sect in the cultivation world? Do you think you can smear our name with baseless talk?"

"Does your Emei Sect even need me, Ye Wen, to smear it? You think too highly of your sect!" Upon hearing this, Ye Wen realized this man was just as unreasonable and saw no point in further debate. He activated his divine sense to probe the surroundings, ascertaining that within a radius of several dozen li, there were only the three of them—himself, Qiu Yuanlong, and Dihong Chan—and no one else was rushing over. He didn't need to worry about being surrounded and overwhelmed.

The Zixiao Sword at his side seemed to sense Ye Wen's intention, trembling slightly while spewing out an inch of sword radiance. The entire long sword appeared coated in a layer of purple shell, pointing toward Dihong Chan from afar.

At this moment, Dihong Chan also casually reached behind his head and plucked the halo from there, taking it into his hand. Only then did Ye Wen realize that the halo was Dihong Chan's magic treasure.

Dihong Chan wasted no more words, roaring angrily, "Meet your death!"

Immediately following, he tossed the halo with his right hand. The circle burst forth with blinding radiance, leaving a long trail of golden flame in the sky as it lunged toward Ye Wen.

That was not all. Dihong Chan flipped the begging bowl held in his left hand, and golden light erupted from within, attempting to envelop Ye Wen.

As soon as he made this move, Qiu Yuanlong's voice cut in: "That bowl can fix a person's form; don't let its light touch you!"

Although Ye Wen was wary of Qiu Yuanlong, he knew that whatever scheme Qiu Yuanlong was weaving, he was certainly trying to curry favor at this moment. Besides, dodging wouldn't hurt him. He immediately soared into the air on his sword light, evading the light emanating from the begging bowl.

The moment he shifted his stance, he saw the light wheel suddenly expand significantly, circling as it emitted a sound of tearing air as it shot straight toward his lower abdomen. Ye Wen knew from the sharp cutting energy accompanying the circle that he could not meet this head-on; otherwise, he would surely be sliced in two. It seemed Dihong Chan intended to dismember him to avenge his junior brother.

Ye Wen intended to evade, but the light wheel proved incredibly agile. No matter how Ye Wen twisted and turned, he could not completely force it away. With grim resolve, he caught the Zixiao Sword in his hand, channeled strength through both arms, and a vigorous surge of qi suddenly erupted around Ye Wen, transforming the surrounding space into a river of stars shimmering with purple starlight, one end of which converged in the long sword in Ye Wen's hand.

At this moment, Ye Wen held the sword with one hand, sidestepping to face the light wheel. He raised his right arm high and brought it down fiercely. With this single sword strike, the river of stars descended like a waterfall. The surging qi it generated struck the light wheel with a thunderous boom, even from over ten meters away.

The scattered energy nearly formed a hurricane, affecting the sea surface beneath their feet, causing violent waves. It was unclear if this would trigger a tsunami miles away.

Ye Wen couldn't worry about that now. Besides, they were over the Atlantic; even if a tsunami occurred, it didn't matter. Moreover, since he was acting defensively, the majority of the blame for any disaster would fall on the fake monk.

"Can someone who attacks so ruthlessly really be called a monk?"

He had encountered many monks before, like Master Huixin Chan, with whom he had a good relationship and who had cared for him multiple times. Although Master Huixin Chan was perhaps a bit too worldly, it was for the sake of his own temple, and he was worthy of the title of a great master on matters of right and wrong.

As for the one before him... no matter how many years he had cultivated Buddhism, he was completely unworthy of Ye Wen's respect.

At this point, Ye Wen channeled the entirety of his Purple Star River jinqi to forcibly repel Dihong Chan's light wheel, only to find himself unintentionally trapped within several water dragons.

"Master Dihong Chan... Dihong..." Ye Wen pondered and immediately understood. Dihong Chan used "Dihong" as his name, suggesting he was quite adept in this path. "Hong" in Chinese often relates to water. These water dragons must have been summoned using some kind of sorcery.

Turning his head, he saw Dihong Chan standing atop the largest water dragon, forming hand seals and mumbling incantations. With a sudden shout, the seven water dragons, as if receiving a command, fiercely lunged at Ye Wen.

Each of these water dragons was a hundred meters long. An open maw could easily swallow Ye Wen whole. Moreover, seven giant dragons were charging simultaneously. Most people seeing such a terrifying sight would be paralyzed with fear and beg for mercy.

Ye Wen could sense the terror within these water dragons. Through his divine sense, he could even feel the powerful Kuishui (Dark Water) energy contained within them—Ye Wen knew of an art called the Kuishui Divine Thunder, and these water dragons might be a variation of it. If they swallowed him and then detonated, he wouldn't have enough lives to withstand the blast.

He was actually not far off the mark. Dihong Chan's Eight Divisions Kuishui Divine Dragon Art was indeed a variant of the Kuishui Divine Thunder, possessing formidable power, which he rarely used.

Today, he was enraged by the news of his junior brother's death, unleashing this ultimate technique in a fury, determined to kill Ye Wen on the spot.

Ye Wen considered for a moment, then lightly tapped his Yintang acupoint before pointing at the water dragon before him. A flash of seven-colored glazed light erupted from his brow, and the Glazed Fire spewed forth, tracing an arc like a rainbow before colliding squarely with one of the water dragons.

Normally, if a Kuishui Divine Dragon suffered a sudden impact, the Kuishui Divine Thunder energy contained within it would erupt, causing a massive explosion.

But under the burn of Ye Wen's Glazed Fire, the Kuishui energy could not detonate. The entire water dragon was cleanly incinerated by the Glazed Fire, not even a wisp of steam appearing.

"Seven-Colored Glazed Fire?"

Dihong Chan, a cultivator specializing in Buddhist divine arts, felt a warning alarm the moment he saw the stream of seven-colored light spray from Ye Wen's brow. When one water dragon was completely burned away, he immediately recognized it as the Buddhist divine fire, the Seven-Colored Glazed Fire.

"This man surnamed Ye can wield the Seven-Colored Glazed Fire?"

He had initially doubted the report that Ye Wen could kill Ren Tuse. But upon seeing Ye Wen so freely control the Glazed Fire, he felt the possibility was not entirely out of the question. Although Ren Tuse was powerful, he lacked the suitable means to counter the Glazed Fire. Perhaps Ye Wen had relied on possessing this divine fire to slay his junior brother.

He failed to realize that when Ye Wen dealt with Ren Tuse, the Glazed Fire was still tempering his body and completely unresponsive to his command. Ye Wen managed to kill Ren Tuse through his own adept maneuvering and considerable planning!

His thoughts raced, but his hands were quick. Dihong Chan formed a hand seal, and the remaining six water dragons sped up slightly, shooting toward Ye Wen. Although he was wary of the Glazed Fire, he assumed that even if Ye Wen could use it, it would only be a small amount. That bit of flame might handle one water dragon, but dealing with so many...

Thinking this, he shifted his hand seals again, and the water dragon beneath his feet became visibly more ferocious.

"Over this ocean, you are certainly doomed!"

He mused that the surging water energy of the ocean allowed him to exert his utmost power. If he still couldn't kill Ye Wen, he could only conclude he was useless.

Unexpectedly, Ye Wen merely snorted coldly. He spread both hands, and suddenly several more Zixiao Swords appeared beside him. Including the one already in his hand, there were now a full seven Zixiao Swords orbiting Ye Wen. Just as he prepared to strike, he frowned sharply, glanced into the distance, and instantly formed a plan.

Without making any visible movement, the six newly appeared Zixiao Swords each aimed at one water dragon, instantly plunging into the mouths of the dragons.

Seeing this sight, Dihong Chan laughed heartily, "Ignorant child, daring to use flying swords to directly confront my water dragons!"

Although flying sword treasures possess formidable power, they have various limitations. Ye Wen’s method of using them to break spells should involve attacking the weak points of the technique to shatter it, or simply unleashing all sword energy for a head-on clash. But no matter what, no one would throw their flying swords into the spell like Ye Wen, especially without activating their sword light.

If Dihong Chan detonated those water dragons now, Ye Wen's flying swords would instantly be severely damaged, and the person closely linked to the swords would also suffer injury.

Initially, Dihong Chan was greatly shocked to see Ye Wen possessed seven flying swords. While there were some matching sets of flying swords in the cultivation world, they were all exceptionally powerful artifacts, making Dihong Chan quite cautious. He never expected Ye Wen to act so unwisely.

"Hmph!"

He let out a triumphant snort and issued the command for the water dragons to self-detonate and destroy the flying swords. However, before his thought was even complete, before he could even form the hand seal, he felt the six water dragons suddenly writhe strangely. Looking up, he saw the six water dragons twisting back and forth in the sky as if in extreme pain. The azure dragon spirit formed by the Kuishui energy was cracking inch by inch, releasing purple light from within.

As the purple light grew stronger, the six water dragons slowly disintegrated into fragments, transforming back into their original Kuishui energy before vanishing into the air.

Following this, the six flying swords reappeared, each shining with a dazzling radiance that forced one to squint. Even Dihong Chan narrowed his eyes, secretly astonished, "What kind of flying swords are these? How can they be so powerful?"

While he was utterly shocked, Qiu Yuanlong, who had been observing from afar, was drenched in cold sweat. He muttered, "That Ye Wen actually possesses such formidable magic treasures, capable of fighting Dihong Chan to a standstill. If Ye Wen were determined to settle scores with me, could his trump card, the Nine Heavens Demonic Blood Refining Sword, withstand these seven flying swords?"

After a moment's thought, feeling the situation was too uncertain, Qiu Yuanlong decided that the best course was to leave while the two were locked in combat. However, the moment he turned, he heard Ye Wen's voice beside him: "Old Ancestor, where are you going? Ye Wen has yet to repay the assistance Old Ancestor offered earlier. It's not too late to leave after I repay that debt, Old Ancestor!"

Turning around, Qiu Yuanlong saw that Ye Wen had apparently used some technique to instantly appear by his side. This was because Ye Wen's body had been tempered by the Glazed Fire, allowing him to integrate the Cloud Soaring Gait into his flying movement. While not as miraculous as certain divine escape arts, it allowed for rapid movement over short distances.

He had intended to settle accounts with Qiu Yuanlong all along, and with the change in circumstances, he made this move, using the Cloud Soaring Gait to instantly reach Qiu Yuanlong's side, ignoring Dihong Chan entirely.

Qiu Yuanlong turned back, smiling faintly, "Sect Master Ye remembers things quite clearly!"

"Of course, I remember clearly. Today's predicament is entirely thanks to Old Ancestor's efforts; how could I not remember it well?" As Ye Wen spoke, he already struck out with a palm. The Blood Jade Old Ancestor was greatly alarmed and immediately tried to activate the Thousand Mile Instantaneous Shadowless Escape to flee, but before he could deploy his escape technique, he saw Ye Wen's hand change, followed by a point of his fingers. A flash of purple light blinded him, and he instinctively turned his head, narrowly dodging the incoming sword energy.

Even so, the side of the Blood Jade Old Ancestor's forehead felt a searing, sharp pain, followed by something wet trickling down his cheek.

Qiu Yuanlong was furious. Although he had displayed a somewhat yielding attitude just now, it was largely rooted in the thought of cooperating with Ye Wen. But he was a renowned figure of many years; he could not tolerate being bullied to this extent!

He roared in anger and summoned the Nine Heavens Demonic Blood Refining Sword. As soon as this demonic sword manifested, the entire world around them abruptly changed. The previous clear sky was instantly shrouded by dark clouds, the heavens growing dim. Blood-red light flowed around the demonic sword, enveloped by black mist, faintly accompanied by cries and wails. A mere glance caused dizziness and nausea, and listening to the howling made one feel sick.

Dihong Chan had been astonished by the power of Ye Wen's divine swords, but in a flash, these new changes occurred. When he noticed Ye Wen had stealthily moved to Qiu Yuanlong's side and said something, followed by Qiu Yuanlong unleashing such a peerlessly ferocious weapon, Dihong Chan was startled: "Could these two have reached some sort of agreement?"

Furthermore, the sheer might of Qiu Yuanlong's demonic sword was terrifying, making Dihong Chan extremely cautious. He made a gesture with his hand, and the light circle instantly burst forth with golden light, attacking Qiu Yuanlong's demonic sword: "I didn't expect Qiu Yuanlong to actually succeed in forging the Nine Heavens Demonic Blood Refining Sword. This man cannot be allowed to live!"

At that very moment, several streaks of light suddenly flew in from the distance. Dihong Chan turned to look and immediately breathed a sigh of relief—it was a group of righteous heroes arriving. They came partly out of concern for Dihong Chan's safety and partly to ensure the integrity of the Jiuzhou Ding!

These people had sensed the anomaly from afar and were aghast at the terrifying power they witnessed: "What kind of demonic entity is this? It is so ferocious?"

Someone nearby remarked, "Could it be that Ye Wen? If so, this child's life must not be spared!"

A knowledgeable observer watched for a moment before crying out, "That is the Nine Heavens Demonic Blood Refining Sword! Could it be that fiend, the Blood Jade Old Ancestor?"

But just as everyone was still unable to see the specific situation clearly, Ye Wen suddenly said to Qiu Yuanlong, "Since Old Ancestor has summoned the divine sword, you should enjoy a good fight. Ye Wen will not be accompanying you; I take my leave!"

As he spoke, he vanished instantly. Qiu Yuanlong was momentarily stunned, and before he could recover, he saw several streaks of light charging over from the distance, and a group of righteous heroes stared at him menacingly.