The black-robed Spirit Master neither dodged nor retreated, instead letting out a wild, booming laugh. Soul power trembled and boiled around him, shockingly manifesting a layer of brilliant gold. Then, in an instant, the man vanished without a sound, completely annihilated, allowing the two Sixth-Tier Soul Beasts to tear his body to shreds.

Meanwhile, the handful of figures who had lunged forward all accelerated dramatically, their auras blazing hotter. A distance of twenty zhang was covered in mere moments.

Xuan Yunlan frowned slightly, and in the next second, she drew the Dragon String Zither, flicking a string with her finger. A ripple immediately shimmered through the air, followed by a celestial, light tone.

The five rushing figures mostly shuddered, their eyes briefly glazed over. Only the foremost one gave a cold chuckle. His longsword suddenly vibrated, humming loudly, as layers of icy, chilling vapor began to spill out, turning the ten-zhang radius into a frigid prison. Instantly, the four surrounding figures snapped back to their senses.

In Xuan Yunlan's eyes, astonishment flared: "The Cloud-Gazing Sword—you are Yue Guanyun!"

Yue Guanyun burst into laughter. "Little girl, your knowledge of the zither arts is quite impressive! A pity, why assist this cripple? This is an old grudge between my Taoyun City and the Qiantian Mountain. I advise you, young lady, not to interfere!"

As he spoke, he drew his sword again. When the blade emerged, the intensity of the cold power nearly froze the entire pavilion. A single sweep of dazzling white light sent Li Luo tumbling away, spitting blood.

Shi Danxue, standing nearby, paled and waved her hand again. A humanoid sword puppet materialized from thin air. It thrust out a sudden strike, successfully blocking the relentless pursuit of another Martial Xuan Grandmaster, thus saving Li Luo’s life.

However, before Yue Guanyun, only Zong Shou, Chu Xue, and the severely wounded Ruoshui remained. Yue Guanyun paid no heed to the first two, but the listless Ruoshui gave him a slight moment of apprehension.

Believing victory assured, Yue Guanyun’s demeanor instantly reverted to its former leisurely elegance. He strode toward Zong Shou. "City Lord Zong, this time, your strategy was indeed divine, playing me, Yue Guanyun, like a toy in your palm. My one thousand seven hundred Cloud Ships, all lost beneath the Sea of Clouds. It truly caused me agonizing heartache and turmoil. But City Lord Zong, did you never consider that with your useless body, I, Yue Guanyun, could end you with a single sword strike? No matter your grand ambitions, no matter your demonic intellect, beneath my blade, you are nothing more than a puff of smoke."

Seeing Yue Guanyun, accompanied by two other Xuanwu powerhouses, slowly closing in, Zong Shou felt a surge of helplessness. He had indeed been careless this time. Believing the spiritual energy of Tongling Island, guarded by the various sects, provided a safe haven, he had let his guard down. He had never imagined Yue Guanyun would possess the audacity to confront him directly here.

At this moment, he could only look toward Zhao Yanran. She was perhaps the only one present who possessed the means to turn the tide—perhaps she had some trick to force these men back. If it truly required him to act personally here, the situation would become quite troublesome.

He saw her simply turn her head away. A rare hint of helplessness touched her devastatingly beautiful face, signaling that Zhao Yanran, too, was at a loss; he would have to manage as he saw fit.

Conversely, Qiao Han, whom Zong Shou least wished to see stand up, rose to his feet, his face cold as he spoke: "To strike a blow on the ground belonging to my Kongqi Pavilion—Yue Guanyun, how bold are you! Do you not know the covenant among the sects and factions forbidding mutual slaughter near Tongling Island? And are you aware of the consequences?"

Yue Guanyun responded with a cold, mocking sneer. "If I didn't have the tacit approval of half the Eastern Lin sects, do you think I would dare? Today’s actions may offend your sect. However, tomorrow, my master, the Sect Master of the Demonic Cloud Sect, will pay a visit and surely satisfy your esteemed sect. As for the consequences, I, Yue Guanyun, am well aware. But if I do not stake my life on this today, should I truly wait for Zong Shou to devour all the foundation my Taoyun City has built over decades?"

At this point, Yue Guanyun had reached Zong Shou, his gaze flickering as his tone shifted. "To speak plainly, after this is over, who will truly investigate today's events? Even if Miss Yanran and Miss Xuan are willing to help, I, Yue Guanyun, have not appeared here from beginning to end. Today’s affair is merely the reckless behavior of my subordinates. I don’t know what price Zong Shou offered you two to follow him. But my Taoyun City can certainly match that offer!"

Hearing this, Zhao Yanran let out a derisive snort, her tone laced with bizarre mockery. "You intend to assassinate him? That monster? I think you, Yue Guanyun, truly do not know how to fear death!"

Yue Guanyun frowned briefly, then dismissed it. Without delay, he slashed his sword toward Zong Shou's neck.

Qiao Han's face was already deathly pale; now he dared not watch. With a quiet sigh, he closed his eyes, thinking that this rising prodigy whom he held in such high regard was perhaps about to perish here. What a pity. It seems his lack of martial arts or spiritual techniques is his greatest flaw. At this moment, forget a peak Xuanwu expert like Yue Guanyun—even a casual martial practitioner could easily take Zong Shou's life.

But in the next instant, he heard Zong Shou let out a sigh, sounding deeply resigned. Instantly, the spiritual energy fluctuations within the pavilion surged several times over! Countless bolts of lightning exploded forth!

Qiao Han hastily opened his eyes and immediately beheld an utterly incredible sight. Yue Guanyun’s full-force strike was halted in mid-air. More accurately, it was firmly blocked by a slender, delicate hand, unable to advance or retreat!

The owner of the hand was Zong Shou himself. A massive thunder serpent was coiled around his right arm, seemingly supplying him with tremendous strength, allowing him to meet the sword’s momentum without yielding even an inch.

Countless purple lightning bolts flashed, radiating in all directions, bathing the entire pavilion in a purple sheen.

And Yue Guanyun, who moments before had been composed, now had a face like ashen iron. The sword in his hand churned with surging icy clouds within a confined space, struggling ceaselessly. Yet, he could not advance at all. Streaks of lightning wrapped around the sword, blasting all the vapor into dust. He felt an immense, vast pressure enveloping everything, threatening to crush the very pavilion.

The two Xuanwu Grandmasters behind him, who had just begun to consider assisting, were forced back several steps by this overwhelming aura.

"It’s a Sixth-Tier Thunder-Winged Yang Serpent—a natural guard!"

Qiao Han’s eyes snapped open, his expression filled with envy. But then he immediately realized that this new City Lord of Qiantian Mountain should neither practice martial arts nor spiritual techniques. And relying solely on this Thunder-Winged Yang Serpent, it seemed impossible for it to suppress a powerhouse at the Ninth Stage of Xuanwu, nor could Zong Shou block Yue Guanyun’s blade empty-handed!

Then, in the next moment, watching the two forced-back Xuanwu Grandmasters, Qiao Han understood.

"Is this a Royal Path Secret Art?"

His tone held a trace of uncertainty. Xuan Yunlan, however, having just witnessed his recent righteous defense, felt a good impression of him and nodded with a slight smile. "Indeed, it is a Royal Path Martial Art, borrowing the might of a nation to empower the body!"

Qiao Han’s heart immediately stirred with excitement again, unsure how to react. Suddenly, he thought of the bizarre rumors that had circulated from Qiantian Mountain a few months ago. Could those tales, which sounded absurd, exaggerated, and like fictional epics, actually be true?

As Qiao Han’s mind raced, Zong Shou felt a quiet sense of gratification within. Although he had been forced to act out of necessity, the combined power of Little Gold and the Thunder-Winged Yang Serpent’s guardianship was surprisingly delightful to him. Blocking Yue Guanyun’s sword momentum bare-handed, truly, without sustaining any injury! His recent assumptions were proving viable. This Inner Observation Profound Thunder Body Tempering Art was indeed frighteningly powerful.

Of course, it wasn't without cost; his internal vitality surged slightly, and his arm felt a bit numb.

Just as Zong Shou felt his left hand finally regaining a little sensation, he heard Yue Guanyun let out an angry roar, mixed with shock: "You know martial arts?"

As the words left his mouth, Yue Guanyun almost bellowed as he violently ripped the Cloud-Gazing Sword back. Then, he thrust out strike after strike, frantically. Three sharp clangs sounded in rapid succession. On the final strike, the Cloud-Gazing Sword was firmly grasped by Zong Shou. Yue Guanyun yanked hard, driving his ninety-nine-thousand jin of raw force into the pull, but the sword would not budge. Only when he saw the chilling killing intent in Zong Shou’s eyes did he suddenly awaken. Decisively abandoning his sword, his body shot backward like swift lightning, intending to retreat rapidly.

Zong Shou raised an eyebrow, then smiled faintly. The newly acquired Sixth-Tier Thunder-Winged Sword at his waist suddenly unsheathed.

"It’s only polite to return what is given. Let’s test my sword stroke..."

As the sword light flared, the Thunder-Winged Yang Serpent on Zong Shou’s arm plunged directly into the blade, completely merging with the inherent Thunder Serpent Beast Soul within! To the onlookers, it seemed as if a vast beam of purple lightning suddenly shot straight out more than ten zhang. It even pierced the roof of the pavilion. The blinding radiance caused nearly everyone inside the structure to have their vision overwhelmed, making it almost impossible to see.

Yue Guanyun let out a furious, almost despairing roar as he saw the sword light coming. He could barely react before he felt the explosion of thunderous light thoroughly disintegrating the surging vital energy behind him! His entire body was instantly severed by the sweep of that purple glow!

Meanwhile, Zong Yuan finally broke free from the entanglement of the blood mist. He turned back, thrusting his spear out again with the force of a thousand mountains. Just as the purple lightning was at its zenith, his spear struck heavily, shattering the throat of the other Xuanwu Grandmaster!

Moments later, the dazzling light gradually subsided, and as vision returned to normal, they saw Yue Guanyun, the Lord of Taoyun City, collapsed four feet in front of Zong Shou, his body cut in two. His entire form was covered in burn marks from the lightning, his entrails spilling out—a death so gruesome it defied description. Before Zong Yuan stood another Xuanwu Grandmaster, his head and torso violently separated!