Ye Wen’s palm strike had been delivered with everything he had. Not only was the technique of the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms inherently potent, but the sheer energy of the Bixue Bing (Azure Snow Ice) force was enough to overwhelm an ordinary person.

However, this time he faced Kong Xuan, heralded as the foremost Peacock between Heaven and Earth, whose very origin placed him leagues above cultivators who achieved immortality through sheer effort. Furthermore, there was the Five-Colored Divine Light, born with him, reputed to be the ultimate Dharma capable of brushing away anything in existence. If struck by that light, anyone would inevitably be trapped within it.

If these facts still failed to illustrate Kong Xuan’s sheer might, consider this: nearly every web novel that featured Kong Xuan had the protagonists recruit this formidable figure as their loyal subordinate and number one enforcer!

His popularity rivaled that of famed figures from the Three Kingdoms period like Guo Jia, Dian Wei, and Zhao Yun—a must-have character for transmigrationists, reincarnators, and other peculiar travelers.

Alas, Ye Wen did not have such an opportunity; instead, he was forced to trade blows with this very Kong Xuan! What frustrated Ye Wen even more was that his own cultivation was clearly inferior to Kong Xuan’s. After unleashing his full-power palm strike, Kong Xuan’s expression hadn't even shifted, as if sparring with a child. With a casual wave, a band of five-colored light flashed between his fingers, merely grazing Ye Wen’s palm and instantly neutralizing the Bixue Bing energy.

“The Five-Colored Divine Light is truly that miraculous?”

Unfortunately for Kong Xuan, Ye Wen had prepared for this contingency. Though the Bixue Bing energy was dispelled, the true force of Ye Wen’s strike had not entirely vanished.

It turned out that Ye Wen’s palm held a hidden, dual layer of power. The Bixue Bing was merely the superficial display, conspicuous but not the real killing move. It was the seemingly ordinary, unassuming kinetic force underneath that carried the true destructive potential.

This subtlety did indeed startle Kong Xuan. Ye Wen’s palm landed solidly against Kong Xuan’s side arm—but Kong Xuan reacted with blinding speed, shifting at the last moment to evade the vital points. As a result, Ye Wen’s strike landed only on the upper arm, failing to wound any critical area.

“A bit interesting!”

Kong Xuan’s face finally betrayed a more noticeable expression. The corner of his mouth curved into a beautiful arc, a radiant smile suggesting he had discovered something particularly delightful.

Yet, combined with the present situation, the smile was far from comforting. Even though Kong Xuan possessed peerless looks and his voice was melodious, Ye Wen felt a sudden chill, as if he’d been instantly flung, entirely unclothed, into the eternal frost of Changbai Mountain.

Before he could fully assess any changes, an immediate sense of danger prompted Ye Wen to dodge. Simultaneously, purple light flashed from his left hand, and the Zixiao Sword instantly materialized. With a single sweep, he unleashed nine successive strikes: four aimed at Kong Xuan’s throat, Tanzhong, heart, and Dantian, while the remaining five slashed wildly and without pattern.

These nine swords were cast with incredible speed, an unbroken sequence—the fastest swordplay Ye Wen had ever executed! Even Xu Xian watched in astonishment, realizing that his senior brother could indeed wield fast swordsmanship with significant mastery when he chose to. But now was no time for praise. There was a crisp clanging sound, followed by a sudden burst of purple light. Then, his senior brother and Kong Xuan were separated, confronting each other about five or six meters apart.

“Pfft…”

Kong Xuan showed no visible change, not even a disturbed breath. However, the moment Ye Wen stabilized, he spat out a mouthful of hot blood onto the ground.

Xu Xian also noticed that the Zixiao Sword materialized by Ye Wen’s left hand was gone, replaced only by wisps of purple energy swirling near his hand, slowly dissipating.

“Was my Senior Brother’s Zixiao Sword shattered in that instant?”

Xu Xian was deeply shocked. He had never imagined anyone could dismantle his senior brother’s Zixiao Sword so effortlessly. Ever since Ye Wen mastered that technique, he had been nearly invincible; even the strongest opponents suffered under that move.

And yet, Kong Xuan had broken it so easily?

Turning his gaze, Xu Xian saw that Kong Xuan wasn't even looking at Ye Wen. Instead, he was raising his right hand, closely examining a single feather held between his fingers. Only then did Xu Xian notice that the feather held by Kong Xuan’s fingers was visibly damaged in several places, and the Vajra Pestle he held in his palm also showed obvious wear.

“That last move… was powerful!”

With a rotation of light in his right hand, the feather and the Vajra Pestle vanished—presumably stored away. Kong Xuan then scrutinized Ye Wen carefully: “I have yet to ask your esteemed name, sir, and which sect you hail from?”

If Kong Xuan’s prior restraint stemmed only from minimal courtesy toward an Eastern cultivator, now he was genuinely taking seriously a man who had exchanged blows with him without being significantly disadvantaged—even the blood Ye Wen coughed up. Kong Xuan could see that Ye Wen used that expulsion of blood to neutralize the internal force Kong Xuan had managed to send in. Though the bloody spray looked alarming, spitting it out meant Ye Wen avoided any lingering internal injuries.

Achieving this suggested either profound internal cultivation or a specialized method of energy manipulation. Either way, it commanded attention.

“Ye Wen, Palm Master of Mount Shu!”

“Mount Shu Sect?” Kong Xuan pondered for a long time, failing to recall the name. He finally assumed it must be a recently established sect. “You say you are the Palm Master of this sect? Did you found it?”

Ye Wen considered it. The truth was difficult to explain, so admitting it seemed simpler, saving a lot of verbal sparring.

“This person has some grievances with my Buddhist Realm. Must you, Palm Master Ye, insist on intervening on her behalf?”

For some reason, Kong Xuan seemed disinclined to continue fighting and began conversing calmly with Ye Wen. But now that he wanted to talk, Ye Wen was in no mood for diplomacy.

“You strike when you wish, and you speak when you wish? Everything according to your mood?”

He threw his hands out, smoothly circulating his true essence to dispel the faint numbness lingering in his palms. Then, hands clasped behind his back, he hovered in the air, looking down at Kong Xuan from above. “As the Bright King just heard, this is my disciple undergoing reincarnation; naturally, I cannot abandon her!”

If nothing had been certain at the start, and if Kong Xuan hadn't attacked then, Mount Shu Sect could have maintained a distance from the Buddhist Realm, leaving much more room for de-escalation.

But now? They had already fought! What was there to fear? Even if that girl was the reincarnation of Wu Zhen, even if she weren't, he could not show weakness after this exchange!

Moreover, although Kong Xuan presented an air of negotiation, his arrogance had not diminished in the slightest—it was the clear demeanor of someone saying, I deign to speak with you; do not mistake my generosity for weakness.

Ye Wen, however, was the type who yielded to softness but stood firm against hardness. If met with brute force, he was ready to fight to the death—he sometimes possessed just such stubbornness, and now was precisely the moment it surfaced.

Kong Xuan did not know Ye Wen’s temperament, or perhaps he wouldn’t have cared even if he did. Given his high status in the Buddhist Realm and immense personal strength, even figures from other major powers treated him with utmost respect; few dared to confront him directly. Today, however, he encountered one who seemed intent on challenging him—this so-called Palm Master of Mount Shu clearly intended to establish dominance.

“What does this man rely on? Could it be that long sword condensed from his own power?”

After some consideration, this seemed the only plausible explanation. Perhaps the man was overly confident in that technique.

“While your technique was good, challenging this Bright King… Hmph!”

Kong Xuan’s tone grew colder. When that final ‘Hmph’ escaped his lips, the surrounding temperature seemed to drop sharply, causing listeners’ bodies and minds to tremor violently.

Ye Wen felt a tremor in his heart but immediately realized Kong Xuan was employing a Buddhist divine ability; the sound carried an effect similar to the Great Thunder Sound Art, designed to shock the spirit. Fortunately, possessing the Glazed Pupils granted him considerable immunity to such Buddhist powers, so he wasn't afraid—though he worried for his junior brother.

A quick glance confirmed that while Xu Xian’s complexion had paled, he showed no other adverse effects, suggesting he had withstood the shock without major harm.

Seeing Ye Wen unharmed intensified the surprise on Kong Xuan’s face!

The day’s events had thrown him many curveballs. Upon hearing of the incident, he had assumed it was a trivial matter that his personal intervention would swiftly resolve. Instead, after searching three to five days, just as he was about to eliminate the target, two other cultivators appeared from nowhere.

“Though this area is within the Eastern Immortal Continent’s territory, it should still be in the buffer zone! Could they just be passing travelers?”

Kong Xuan began seriously contemplating the origins of Ye Wen and his companion, but no reliable conclusion came to mind.

As he pondered, he suddenly heard Ye Wen speak: “The Bright King just remarked that my technique was good. But I wonder, if that technique were employed a thousand or ten thousand times over, could the Bright King still withstand it?”

Kong Xuan was taken aback, instinctively asking, “What do you mean?” As the words left his mouth, a sudden, profound sense of danger washed over him—it felt like today was going to be exceptionally disastrous.

Puzzled by the sudden premonition, he even thought, Baffling. Has my intuition grown dull from inactivity? But before the thought finished, he saw Ye Wen’s entire body enveloped in a purple radiance, vaporizing around him like a field of violet flames.

Then, Ye Wen’s eyes snapped open, their pupils shimmering with seven-colored light. His eyes became utterly crystalline, breathtakingly beautiful.

“Glazed Pupils?” This time, Kong Xuan was truly stunned. He had never expected to encounter someone bearing the Glazed Pupils here!

What followed next shocked him even more. As Ye Wen spread his arms, countless rows of purple longswords materialized beside him. Every single one was identical to the one he had just clashed with, but unlike the hurried, slightly intangible first sword, each of these was impossibly solid and condensed.

He was so mesmerized that he forgot to attack, simply staring as the longswords accumulated around Ye Wen, reaching hundreds in mere moments. It was then that he recalled Ye Wen’s earlier words.

“If employed a thousand or ten thousand times…”

Seeing this spectacle and the still-growing number of swords, Kong Xuan instantly understood the implication of Ye Wen’s statement.

“I wouldn't worry about a single one of these swords, but facing so many simultaneously, even I could not easily withstand the onslaught!”

Kong Xuan felt a faint bead of cold sweat forming on his forehead. Only now did he realize he had unwittingly provoked a madman—yes, a lunatic. In his estimation, Ye Wen wasn't quite a reclusive master, and with his current cultivation level, he didn't merit that title either.

But for a Earth Immortal to devise such a terrifyingly pure offensive spell (or martial art?), this man was either a belligerent, aggressive fighter or an outright maniac. Kong Xuan now leaned toward the latter. After all, everyone in the Immortal Realm knew that provoking the Peacock Bright King meant making an enemy of the entire Western Buddhist Realm. Did this Ye Wen not grasp such basic common sense? Kong Xuan doubted anyone was ignorant of such a fact. Yet, under these premises, anyone daring to array themselves for a fight to the death must be insane.

Furthermore, if Ye Wen unleashed this technique, the outcome would likely be mutual destruction—challenging the esteemed Bright King of Buddhism to an exchange where both perish!

“Are Eastern cultivators not the most averse to death? Have things changed so much after all these years?”

Kong Xuan failed to realize that Ye Wen bore no comparison to current cultivators and rarely interacted with them. Therefore, standard assumptions did not apply. He could only stare dumbfounded as the flying swords multiplied, covering the entire expanse of heaven and earth.

Even Kong Xuan himself was now encircled by purple longswords; under these circumstances, even an avenue of retreat seemed completely blocked.

“Now… how does the Bright King feel? Can you still so easily withstand it?”

The dense clusters of purple longswords parted slightly, revealing Ye Wen still hovering in the air. He floated calmly, purple haze gently swirling around him, his hands held slightly open, his chin tilted up, adopting a posture that viewed Kong Xuan with the disdain of someone looking down their nose—much like Kong Xuan’s own earlier attitude.

Whether it was this stance that intimidated Kong Xuan, or the deterrence provided by nearly ten thousand surrounding swords, Ye Wen waited a considerable time after his question before the other party spoke.

“Does the Bright King choose to take the blow?”

Seeing Kong Xuan remain silent, Ye Wen pressed on: “If you wish to take it, I shall accompany you to the end. If not, then the Bright King is free to go as he pleases!”

Perhaps Kong Xuan was waiting for this exact phrase. Upon hearing it, he glanced at the woman lying on the ground, then his killing intent vanished. He bowed with a full, cheerful smile: “Since that is the case, let Palm Master Ye accept this exchange on behalf of this young lady!”

Ye Wen was utterly perplexed by the meaning of those words, but he dared not drop his facade of dominance, maintaining his imposing posture without speaking, appearing like someone moments from unleashing absolute doom.

Kong Xuan didn't necessarily require an answer. After speaking, he turned and departed directly! Ye Wen’s longswords did not impede him, allowing Kong Xuan to weave through the gaps between the blades before transforming into a five-colored ray of light and fleeing into the distance.

Ye Wen did not immediately retract his technique, watching Kong Xuan’s departure for a long while. Only when the figure was gone did he recall the Ten Thousand Sword Art—regrettably, most of the swords could not be reabsorbed into his body, forcing him to simply wave his hand, letting them disperse into the world.

The moment he finished, Ye Wen’s legs weakened, and he nearly collapsed. Xu Xian rushed to support him. “Senior Brother, why didn’t you strike? That doesn’t seem like your style.”

Reflecting, in any previous situation like this, Ye Wen would have attacked immediately, caring little if Kong Xuan was some Bright King of the Buddhist Realm! He would have eliminated the threat first for trespassing on Mount Shu territory and acting like a bully.

This time, however, Ye Wen only put on a show and then let Kong Xuan leave. Did he perhaps not wish to completely sever ties with the Buddhist Realm? That was somewhat understandable.

Then Ye Wen replied, “It wasn't that I didn't want to strike; it was that I was powerless to do so!”

Hearing this, Xu Xian immediately understood. To create such an impressive display, Ye Wen had poured nearly all his power into condensing the Zixiao Swords. This time, Ye Wen had summoned more Zixiao Swords than ever before, and every single one was substantial—certainly not like the flawed imitations of the past, which mixed mere sword energy or were simply empty forms.

It could be said that nearly ten thousand blades were all perfectly genuine Zixiao Swords. If launched, their combined force would be earth-shattering—perhaps enough to level this entire mountain range.

The pity was that Ye Wen had exhausted his entire cultivation on their creation. Although he could barely conjure so many Zixiao Swords, he lacked the power to propel them. Thus, the display was merely a bluff to intimidate.

Since Kong Xuan had already witnessed the approximate power of a single Zixiao Sword, the sight of so many aimed at him—a rational person would never choose to endure that.

“So, if Kong Xuan had acted rashly, Senior Brother wouldn't even have the strength to fight back?”

Ye Wen shook his head. He would never be so reckless.

“If he truly intended to attack, then these nearly ten thousand Zixiao Swords would detonate instantly. The resulting shockwave from the explosion of almost ten thousand swords, along with the endless torrent of sword energy, would certainly give Kong Xuan something substantial to deal with… Even if it didn't kill him, it would severely wound him, giving you an opening to act…”

Xu Xian fell silent, understanding that with his Senior Brother’s control, he could specifically cordon off a space to avoid harming him. But doing so would leave his Senior Brother in mortal peril. If Kong Xuan had truly attacked, the ultimate outcome would likely be mutual destruction.

Kong Xuan dies, Ye Wen does not live.

Therefore, the current outcome was the most ideal, even if it meant incurring some conflict with the Western Buddhist Realm. Whether that was good or bad remained to be seen.

“Never mind that for now. Take the girl who might be the monk’s reincarnation, and let’s return to the mountain first!”