Ye Xiu felt only a vast openness above the sky. He turned and casually swept Hengchen, unleashing a sudden gale that actually blew away several streaks of sword energy relentlessly pursuing him. "It seems your red light, green light, and rosy glow are of no use against me." "Rise!" Jian Hongchen showed no hesitation, urging forth several more streaks of sword energy that soared towards the heavens, merging with the preceding ones.

"Since that's the case, let's try the Endless Sword Sea!" "Oh!" Ye Xiu’s spirit immediately lifted. Just as Jian Hongchen finished speaking, his entire form transformed into a crimson streak of sword light. Beams of brilliance in various colors suddenly descended from the zenith, gathering around Jian Hongchen.

As Jian Hongchen let out a sharp cry, the originally massive cluster of five-colored sword energy scattered outwards, enveloping the entire sky in a dazzling spectacle. "Hah!" Ye Xiu’s heart tightened. He immediately activated the latent internal energy of his meridian, and in a flash of inspiration, seized Hengchen and merged it with the four directional air currents to unleash the Myriad Swords in All Directions!

"I see." Beneath the cliff face, by the edge of the lake, Wan Jian Qinglin let out a soft chuckle. "Your Myriad Sword Art has progressed quite quickly." Above and below, no one could describe the scene when the Myriad Swords in All Directions clashed with the radiant, colorful sword aura. Everything ended in an instant; victory or defeat was no longer important at this moment, yet the two figures gracefully descended towards the lakeside.

Jian Hongchen was sweating profusely, breathing heavily. The previous scene felt almost like a nightmare to him. "How could this be?

Did that sword disappear just now?" "Since that is the case, I shall take my leave now!" Ye Xiu steadily sheathed Hengchen. Hengchen Sword's power had increased yet again after mixing with the Mad Sand Sword; that dreamlike swiftness had already shocked Jian Hongchen, one of the foremost swordsmen among the Three Swords. After bidding farewell to the Hidden Water of the Mountain Gorge, Ye Xiu headed south only to find corpses strewn everywhere.

Since the kill order from the Myriad Sword Black Tiger was issued, martial artists among the Human Race had ventured into the territories of the other races to slaughter innocent civilians. Due to the promised rewards, those who were killed even had their heads severed, creating a truly gruesome sight. "Kill him!" At that moment, a group of people—men, women, old, and young—burst from the forest, surrounding Ye Xiu.

"He's clearly a Human Race swordsman; he's here to kill us!" An old woman even brandished a staff aimed at Ye Xiu. Ye Xiu understood the reason with just one glance. This group was composed of civilians from the Water Race.

The recent incursions by Human Race martial artists had instilled panic in them. Everyone knew that a Human Race member appearing in the territory of the other three races meant they were there to kill. Rather than being picked off one by one, they had spontaneously united.

"Wait, wait a moment, uncles and aunties." Ye Xiu knew his identity was a liability, and nothing he said would help. Fortunately, he had wings that he could use to bluff. "I am not Human Race; I am actually from the Winged Race." "You say you are Winged Race?

Then where are your wings?" Even the children refused to believe him. "Unless you show us your wings, we will still beat you to death." Ye Xiu had no recourse with them, so he summoned all his internal energy and fully spread his bat-like wings. To prevent them from getting a clear look, he deliberately stirred up gusts of wind and sand: "Do you want me to fly another circle for you to see!" "No need, stop it, stop it now." These civilians were not entirely unreasonable; as long as one wasn't Human Race, the other races were fine.

"We believe you." Ye Xiu smiled and walked up to an old man, asking, "Are you all this nervous because of the kill order from Myriad Sword City? Has someone from the Human Race already come to cause trouble?" "Alas, brother, you do not know the situation." The old man sighed mournfully. "Our Water Race has always lived peacefully by the sea, remaining uninvolved in worldly affairs.

But once the kill order was issued, people from the Human Race, driven by money and power, began attacking our village in groups of three or five. Now, only these dozen or so people remain in the entire village." "Aren't your Water Race people able to submerge in water? You should be able to evade attacks from the Human Race." Truthfully, Ye Xiu wasn't worried that the Human Race could kill the people of the Water or Winged Races; one belonged to the sea and the other to the sky.

Unless they were supreme martial arts masters, they shouldn't be able to do much to them. The old man shook his head and wept, "Brother, you don't know. The Human Race has nets for fish and bows for birds.

For ordinary people like us, our racial specialties are neglected in cultivation. Even if we dive into the water, we cannot stay long. In the end, we are surrounded and killed." Hearing this, everyone around lowered their heads, unsure of what to do.

"What about your Water Race soldiers? The Royal Family should have countermeasures in place, right?" Ye Xiu knew that Lang Taotian and A'jiao had already returned to the Water Race territory, likely to arrange defenses. "The Azure Mountain Sea Royal Family has already ordered all civilians to gather around the Water Palace Imperial City, as that is the only place properly fortified.

We were on our way there when we encountered you." The old man seemed to find a sliver of hope when mentioning the Imperial City. "I see. I am also heading to the Imperial City, so perhaps I can travel with you," Ye Xiu said confidently, gesturing with his sword.

"If anything unexpected happens, I can lend a small measure of strength." "Yay, that's wonderful! With big brother along, we'll be safe." The child who spoke earlier chirped happily and immediately ran over to take Ye Xiu's hand. "It's getting late; we should hurry on our way." The old man didn't speak much more but led the group, pushing their carts, continuing south, while Ye Xiu mounted his horse and positioned himself in the center of the group, escorting them.

After several more hours of travel, the sky had turned gloomy, casting a bleak shadow over the firmament. Perhaps only in the other three races' territories was the scene as desolate as this, outside of Myriad Sword City. The old man called for everyone to stop.

They would make camp for the night. A few of the men began laying out the scattered grass from the carts to prepare their sleeping spots, while the women, led by the old woman, busied themselves cooking and washing vegetables for a simple evening meal. "Big brother, can I ride your horse for a bit?" The child was curious about animals.

Since the adults were busy with their tasks, he approached Ye Xiu. "I want to sit up there and look." This was Ye Xiu's first time interacting with a child. The child’s innocent gaze and round, rosy face gave him no reason to refuse.

He easily lifted the child onto the horse's back. "Hahaha, it’s so high! This is fun!" A child is simply a child, always filled with interest for novel things.

"Big brother, can you take me for a couple of laps around?" Ye Xiu smiled and stroked the child's head. "Did your mom and dad allow you to go out? If they allow it, I'll take you." "They are both gone.

No one is watching me now." The child's smile stiffened. He only knew that one night, his parents never reappeared. People told him his parents had gone out to play and would be back after a long time.

Ye Xiu’s expression grew somber. Just then, the old man walked over, looking at the child with great pity, and smiled. "If he wants to play, please trouble you, brother, to take him for a spin.

This child's parents were killed by those people."