"Senior Brother Feng. Someone is calling you out to battle!" Venerable Xu Wan offered a slight smile, pointing toward the sky outside the city walls, where a crimson cloud hung suspended in mid-air.

Feng Zikang looked out. The horizon was a blaze of scarlet, and within it, a Daoist figure sat cross-legged atop a banshū tree—a tree rooted unnaturally in the empty air, distinct from the rest.

"Is that the Red Leaf Daoist?"

Feng Zikang observed him for a long moment. He had seen many masters of the Core Condensation stage; fear was not his primary emotion. Instead, he noted the Red Leaf Daoist’s grave majesty, his bearing as profound and steadfast as a mountain. Truly, this was no ordinary individual.

"Since he has issued the challenge, I suppose I must oblige him then!"

Feng Zikang smiled openly, summoned his sword light, and descended swiftly.

"Martial Uncle, go get him! Be careful!" Luo Kedi clenched his fists, cheering him on.

As Feng Zikang flew out past the city gates, the armies below erupted in a unified roar. The Red Leaf Daoist suddenly opened his eyes, fixing a stern gaze upon him.

He was clad in scarlet robes, his eyes sharp as lightning, three strands of long beard flowing beneath his jaw—a true master’s bearing. Though only a practitioner in the initial stage of Core Condensation, he was the head of an entire sect, and moreover, Qixia Mountain belonged to the Seventy-Two Great Sects; his innate bearing was entirely different.

Feng Zikang approached with utmost courtesy, cupping his hands in salute.

"Senior, I am Feng Zikang, a disciple of the Military School’s Small Bamboo Grove from Dragon Tiger Mountain. Are you perhaps the Qixia Mountain Sect Master, the Red Leaf Daoist, Hong Kang’s master?"

The Red Leaf Daoist slowly blinked, his tone icy. "You are Feng Zikang? You are the one who killed Kang’er?"

His voice was hoarse and deep, yet it carried an inherent dignity.

Feng Zikang nodded. "In the heat of battle, weapons have no eyes. That Fellow Daoist Hong Kang perished by my hand; it was fate, and no one can be blamed for it!"

Though his manner was gentle and his tone amicable, the core of his message was unyieldingly firm: I merely acted in accordance with Heaven's will. If your disciple chose to defy Heaven, his death was meaningless, and you have no one to fault but him!

"Nonsense!"

The Red Leaf Daoist’s face paled with fury. How could the will of Heaven be decided by the words of one man? Hong Kang was an orphan he had taken in since childhood, treating him like a son. Later, the disciple experienced a fortuitous encounter, obtaining the Eight-Nine Arcane Art and various transformation techniques. The Red Leaf Daoist was overjoyed and personally guided his studies, sparing no effort, even sacrificing his own cultivation to temper his disciple's body. Only then did he ensure that Hong Kang successfully reached the third transformation of the Eight-Nine Arcane Art before this great universal catastrophe.

With the third transformation complete, even a master of the Core Condensation stage would find it difficult to take his life. Only then did the Red Leaf Daoist feel at ease letting him venture into the world, believing that even minor setbacks would be inconsequential.

Furthermore, he had consulted with venerable Daoist masters. All their divinations indicated that Hong Kang possessed extraordinary destiny. Having acquired the Eight-Nine Arcane Art, even if he were not the central figure of this great calamity, he was destined to be important; though he might face trials, his life would not be in danger.

Who could have imagined that three days prior, while meditating on the Heavenly Dao in the mountains, a sudden premonition struck him? As he calculated with his fingers, the golden bell they used to maintain spiritual contact shattered—Hong Kang was dead!

His rage was immense. Upon receiving the message from the bell, he learned that Feng Zikang of the Military School’s Small Bamboo Grove at Dragon Tiger Mountain had engaged his disciple in a duel and slain him. He immediately sent out the Red Leaf transmission, traveling day and night to seek vengeance for his student.

"My apprentice was diligently protecting the foundations of the Great Tang Dynasty and suppressing rebels. What transgression against Heaven did he commit? You, a so-called righteous cultivator from the Three Teachings and Nine Schools, have acted with such ruthlessness. Then do not blame this old Daoist for returning the favor!"

His face was ashen, radiating ferocity. It was clear how important his disciple was to him.

Having mastered the Eight-Nine Arcane Art, the Red Leaf Daoist had already designated Hong Kang as his successor. This entire lifetime of effort was now shattered, and his pent-up frustration had nowhere to go. He disregarded the fact that Feng Zikang belonged to the orthodox schools and intended to vent his rage by killing him! In the midst of this universal calamity, the two opposing sides were free to kill without consequence!

Feng Zikang smiled faintly. "Since you are so willfully mistaken, Senior, I have no more to say. Please display your divine abilities and see if you can take my life!"

His composed attitude infuriated the Red Leaf Daoist further. How dare a mere Foundation Establishment disciple look down upon his Core Condensation cultivation! The old Daoist felt a surge of suffocating anger and showed no mercy!

This was precisely what Feng Zikang intended. He had no desire to engage in a protracted struggle with the Red Leaf Daoist; he only hoped the master would use his full power so that he could discern the true situation, quickly escape, and perhaps find a suitable counter for the old man later.

"Insolent junior seeking death!"

The Red Leaf Daoist struck in a rage, bringing his hands together. Crimson leaves began to descend from the sky, each one imbued with a life-threatening power. Feng Zikang dared not be negligent; he wielded his sword light, tightly guarding his immediate vicinity.

Where the leaves struck the sword light, they were naturally sliced in half and could advance no further!

The Red Leaf Daoist praised him. "The junior certainly has some skill, but alas, you are fated to perish here today!"

As soon as the words left his mouth, the fallen leaves began to spin wildly. Feng Zikang felt an immense, tearing force that made it impossible to maintain his footing. He was dragged into a vortex formed by the swirling leaves!

He felt as though the storm was endless, rendering all efforts to stand firm useless. He could only be tossed about by the gale, while the razor-sharp leaves lashed across his body, drawing line after line of crimson wounds!

"Good!"

Feng Zikang exclaimed, praising the boundless power of this storm technique that left him utterly unable to anchor himself. Truly worthy of a Core Condensation master's technique!

The Red Leaf Daoist sneered. "Facing death, and you still mouth off!"

He moved his hands, and the storm intensified. The leaves grazed Feng Zikang’s body, leaving deeper and deeper gashes!

Feng Zikang took a deep breath. He knew that with his current cultivation, he could never truly resist the power of this storm. So, he relaxed his body entirely, allowing himself to become like willow fluff in the wind, swaying with the tempest. In doing so, he achieved a state of relative stillness against the swirling leaves. Although some wild leaves still struck him, the resulting injuries were minimal!

The Red Leaf Daoist was inwardly startled. He had not expected this brat, even in such peril, to immediately discern the weakness within the Red Leaf Storm technique. If his physical body could withstand it, the damage dealt by the vortex would be extremely small!

"Brat, you truly are a rare, transcendent genius!"

After several exchanges, the Red Leaf Daoist finally regarded him with new respect. "However, you murdered my disciple, and for that, you deserve death! You only have yourself to blame for your actions. When you are dead, do not blame me!"

He bit his finger and drew a strange symbol on his forehead, muttering an incantation.

Feng Zikang’s expression shifted; he knew the old man was preparing some formidable divine ability!

The Red Leaf Daoist slowly shifted his position on the fēngshù tree, stepping in arcane patterns, his fingers weaving complex shapes in the air, his eyes blazing with fierce light!

Within the Red Leaf Barrier, the leaves outside the storm began to adhere to one another, solidifying into a giant, writhing python-like rope—horrifying and distinctly malevolent!

"Bind!"

"Not good!" Feng Zikang cried inwardly. The pressure radiating from this rope of leaves was immense. No matter how he dodged, it seemed impossible to evade its capture. If this rope bound him, the savage storm would surely tear his life away in less than a quarter of an hour!

He gritted his teeth and pulled the Kūteng Technique from his robe, raising it high! Innumerable vines surged forth, intending to wrap around the rope!

The Red Leaf Daoist’s face changed. "Heh, you brat actually possess something as fine as Innate Yimu? Pity your refinement is poor; let me use it instead!"

He swept his hands, and the rope of red leaves fiercely entwined with the azure vines, yet they continued to grow. They extended for dozens of feet, spinning rapidly until they completely ensnared Feng Zikang!

As the Red Leaf Storm began to rip at Feng Zikang’s limbs, the Red Leaf Daoist erupted into a peal of savage, hideous laughter!