The chilling blade-shadows twisted, soaring straight into the heavens. In an instant, they climbed hundreds of zhang, catching up to the middle-aged Spirit Master and hacking down with immense blade energy!

A Zhanmadao, over ten zhang long, cleaved the already severely wounded, snow-surnamed middle-aged man cleanly in two; blood sprayed outward.

Then, Zong Lan roared again, "Zhenshan Pass is breached! Surrender today, or die!"

His Gang Jin surged forth, his aura fierce, his voice resounding across dozens of li.

Not only were the armored archers on the ramparts momentarily silenced, but even the soldiers emerging in formation from the barracks, some already setting foot on the walls, halted their advance. Their eyes filled with confusion and helplessness; for a moment, they didn't know how to react. Though thousands were gathered here, not a single person dared to draw a weapon against the three figures standing on or below the walls.

Hu Zhongyuan and Tan Tao followed close behind, stepping into the city gate. The former merely scanned the interior and knew the victory was sealed today. He couldn't help but laugh heartily once more: "Following the Heir Apparent is truly exhilarating! I knew it! The Heir Apparent is indeed wise and mighty, invincible in battle; how could he fail to take this small Zhenshan Pass!"

Zong Shou stood on the battlements, somewhat regretfully sheathing the Yunyan Flying Dagger in his hand. These Zong Yuan and Zong Lan were simply too good at stealing the spotlight. He had originally intended to unleash his might and slay the remaining two himself, creating a spectacle: 'Heir Apparent Zong Captures the Pass in Moonlight, Divine Blade Executes the Three Black Tortoises'—a feat to rival Zong Yuan’s 'Breaking Through a Thousand Armies at Ruohai Strait.' To have this chance ruined by these two taking action first was truly vexing.

However, upon hearing Hu Zhongyuan’s words, he couldn't help but let out a chuckle. This fellow was flattering him again.

Invincible? He wasn't that formidable. As for wise and mighty, he certainly didn't think those titles applied to him.

He looked thoughtfully at his own hand, his eyes flickering with a strange light. The Talisman of Fate Sealing, paired with his Six Spirits Blade Control Technique, was indeed powerful enough to make even him feel a sense of dread. A peak martial arts manual, combined with that tiny sliver of luck, had boosted the accuracy and lethality of his Yunyan Flying Dagger by at least double!

If it were the old him, managing to only lightly wound the middle-aged Spirit Master would have been an accomplishment, maintaining his reputation for never missing a shot.

But just now, not only were the two Black Tortoise Grandmasters slain by a single strike, but even that Yang Return stage Spirit Master couldn't escape being grievously injured.

"If I recall correctly, the final stage of this Six Spirits Blade Control Technique used to only reach the Earth Penetration level of secret martial arts. But if I add the Fate Sealing Art, perhaps even confronting Heaven Shaking level martial arts might become possible someday. Below the Immortal Realm, is it blade strikes that guarantee death?"

Just as this thought crossed his mind, Zong Shou was abruptly awakened. He felt Li Luo and Shi Dan arrive behind him.

After carefully observing the blood-soaked Li Luo, Zong Shou saw that although his injuries were severe, none were fatal. Zong Shou then broke into a smile: "Thank you! I owe you a great debt for what happened just now!"

With a casual gesture towards the corpse of You Wusheng, he summoned several medicine bottles into his hand. After a brief scan with his mind, his lips curled into a cold smile.

This You Wusheng was likely risking his life for these items on behalf of Grandmaster Yuan; that person was certainly willing to spend fortunes.

Not caring in the slightest, he flicked a golden medicine bottle towards Li Luo.

The latter took it, initially surprised, then bewildered when he opened it: "This is the Dragon Blood Earth Extreme Pill!"

His expression wavered uncertainly for a moment, then he let out a long sigh: "Li Luo cannot accept this! The reward for escorting the Heir Apparent was already paid when we were in Jiefu City!"

Zong Shou merely waved his sleeve and said, "No matter." Then he walked towards the corpse of the distant middle-aged Spirit Master.

Li Luo hesitated briefly before giving up his resistance, placing the bottle into his robes.

Shi Dan, watching from the side, felt her heart deeply moved. Extreme Pills were sacred items for Earth Wheel martial artists, and the Dragon Blood Earth Extreme Pill was the holiest of holies among them. It was a variant derived from the Earth Extreme Pill, possessing incredibly potent medicinal power.

Not only could it guarantee a one-rank promotion for Black Tortoise Grandmasters above the seventh meridian of the Earth Wheel, but when consumed with certain spiritual herbs, it could also yield a trace of dragon blood, altering one's aptitude and granting a massive boost in strength by channeling the might of the divine dragon.

Zong Shou gave this away to Li Luo without a second glance; such bearing truly made him worthy of being a ruler.

Previously, after the battle at Ruohai Strait, Shi Dan had thought Zong Shou was overly stingy, haggling over small sums of money. Now, however, she had an epiphany: when generosity was required, this Heir Apparent showed absolutely no hesitation.

Judging by Li Luo's expression, he was clearly filled with both respect and reverence. She suspected that even if Zong Shou never joined the Dao of All Sentient Beings, Li Luo would likely serve under this Heir Apparent's banner from now on.

Although several thousand armored soldiers remained nearby, Zong Shou paid them no mind, walking upon the rampart as if they didn't exist.

With the two martial powerhouses, Zong Yuan and Li Luo, guarding him, there was indeed no need to tread carefully.

Just as he reached the other side of the wall, thunderous rumbling sounds echoed again from the iron bridge. One thousand Black Fox Iron Cavalry and one thousand Black Armored Wind Dragon Riders surged forward, led by two Black Tortoise Grandmasters.

Upon seeing the city gate already thrown wide open, almost everyone’s eyes held disbelief.

This formidable stronghold, reputed to be impregnable even against the combined might of tens of thousands, had been breached by these few individuals with speed as swift as lightning.

If one spoke of miracles, this feat was likely no less astonishing than the thousand riders charging at Ruohai Strait.

However, these two thousand soldiers were all highly trained. After a brief moment of stupefaction, they snapped back to reality.

They poured in from the city gate, two thousand-plus riders thundering into the city, their gazes icy, radiating murderous intent towards the flanks.

"Those who do not surrender, die!"

Several thousand roars instantly drowned out Zong Lan’s earlier cry. The echoes reverberated, emphasizing their sharp resolve.

But in the next instant, only dozens of clanging sounds were heard. Dozens of men sequentially dropped their weapons. Following this, it was as if an infection had spread; the twenty-five thousand troops inside the pass also discarded their arms.

Zong Shou grinned, looking down from the high battlements, particularly at the corpse of the middle-aged Spirit Master.

At this moment, Tan Tao was searching the body. A moment later, his expression shifted slightly.

"Heir Apparent, this person possesses a Heavenly Fox Demon Physique; he seems to be someone from the Eight-Tailed Heavenly Fox Xue Clan!"

Having said that, he picked up several other items and ascended swiftly to the battlements. Zong Lan and Hu Zhongyuan also changed expression, following closely behind to reach the wall.

The belongings of the middle-aged Spirit Master were merely a few talismans and elixirs used for Spirit Master cultivation.

Zong Shou took them and naturally tucked the spoils into his sleeve.

Finally, there was a book, upon which were embossed four gilt characters: 'Xue Washes the World.'

"'Xue Washes the World'? So he really was a clansman of the Xue family." Zong Shou recognized the item. This cultivation method was the great art that would later allow the Eight-Tailed Heavenly Fox Xue Clan to dominate the Cloud Realm—a rare spiritual and martial dual cultivation technique. He flipped through it casually but found it to be an incomplete copy, containing only the methods usable before the Day Roaming stage, and the content was clearly redacted.

After a brief look, losing all interest, he tossed it to Zong Lan. The book was useless to him, but it held considerable reference material for Zong Lan and Ruoshui, who also practiced dual cultivation of spirit and martial arts.

When Zong Lan carefully flipped through it, his expression turned extremely grim.

Tan Tao also took a deep breath and chuckled darkly: "Heir Apparent, it seems that Grandmaster Yuan’s backer is most likely the Eight-Tailed Heavenly Fox Xue Clan. It seems our Qiantian Mountain must be even more vigilant in the future. These royal demon clans fled to this realm long ago to escape calamity.

Now they wish to return and reclaim the throne, demanding that we return to their governance. There’s no such good fortune in the world!"

Xuan Mountain City was inhabited by both humans and demons, but it housed more half-demons. Tan Tao was also of mixed human and demon blood, hence his hateful words!

"Hmph! That Grandmaster Yuan truly deserved to die."

Hu Zhongyuan echoed the sentiment with genuine feeling: "They don't understand the principle of leading a wolf into the house? Truly idiotic."

He and Tan Tao had always been somewhat at odds, but in today’s battle, everyone had fought desperately, and their coordination was surprisingly seamless.

A stronghold guarded by three Black Tortoise Grandmasters and one Yang Return stage Spirit Master had been broken by their single force. The excitement and pride had not diminished, and his impression of Tan Tao had improved somewhat.

It turned out this fellow wasn't just about conspiracy and calculation; he was also someone willing to shed hot blood and risk his life.

Hearing this, Hu Zhongyuan suddenly found Tan Tao much more agreeable.

Zong Yuan, however, was thoughtful: "I know the forces behind Zong Yang; they are the fifteenth of the Nineteen Spirit Prefectures, the Xuansu Sect. As for Zong Shi, I can also guess some things; barring surprise, it should be the second of the Nineteen Spirit Prefectures, the Daoming Sect. Coupled with the Eight-Tailed Heavenly Fox Xue Clan, Duke Baguo and Qiu Tingzhu’s positions, while perhaps not immediately precarious, will certainly face immense pressure."

The Duke Baguo he mentioned was Hu Qianqiu. In the Qiantian Mountain City structure, Zong Weiran had installed elites from various clans using different noble ranks.

The patriarch of the Iron Tiger Clan held the hereditary title of Duke Baguo.

Tan Tao’s eyes immediately showed appreciation. Among Zong Shou's subordinates, he only thought highly of Zong Yuan.

"Indeed, we cannot linger here. If possible, we should rush to Qiantian Mountain City as soon as we can. If we are fast enough to contain the news, we might even achieve the effect of a surprise attack!"

Saying this, he hesitated for a moment, then suddenly bowed slightly towards Zong Shou: "Heir Apparent! The three thousand soldiers on the rampart just now, I request their execution!"

Zong Lan and the others were startled, then fell silent again.

The elite soldiers within Zhenshan Pass were largely trained by Zong Weiran himself and were far from being close confidants of You Wusheng. In a sense, they could be considered Zong Weiran’s direct lineage.

Everyone had seen just now that if You Wusheng hadn't forced them, those archers would never have loosed an arrow at Zong Shou.

To execute them all felt somewhat unbearable.

But upon careful consideration, if betrayers faced no consequences, what would happen next time someone dared to aim an arrow at the Heir Apparent?