Li Yundong purchased the fastest train ticket, and by the next day, he had arrived near Tianlong Mountain.

After disembarking, as Li Yundong made his way toward Tianlong Mountain, he noticed that cultivators, rarely seen normally, were beginning to appear in increasing numbers.

Some wore Taoist robes, but far more were dressed in ordinary civilian clothes, indistinguishable from tourists.

At the foot of Tianlong Mountain, Li Yundong still saw numerous tourists holding small red flags and banners belonging to various travel agencies, while guides shouted introductions about the local customs and scenery to the crowds through loudspeakers.

These tourists were busy taking pictures, laughing, and playing; the base of the mountain was bustling with activity.

Li Yundong stared, bewildered, thinking: This hardly resembles the scene of the Six Great Sects besieging the Fox Zen Gate. There’s not a trace of gunpowder in the air!

Li Yundong, carrying a large iron fan on his back and possessing an extraordinary bearing, stood out immediately, feeling like a crane among chickens. Everyone nearby began to turn and look at him.

Especially the cultivators who were concealing themselves within the crowd; they scrutinized Li Yundong with sharp, ill-intentioned gazes.

Li Yundong felt a chill, but he pretended to admire the surrounding scenery, looking left and right, while slowly inching his way toward the nearby woods.

Li Yundong gradually broke away from the crowds at the mountain's tourist base, finding himself surrounded by wild, dense forest. With a powerful push from his feet, he sprang up into a large tree, concealing his figure within the thick canopy. He stilled his breath, masking his entire aura. After a short while, two figures darted beneath the tree.

Both men were dressed as ordinary tourists. The slightly taller one asked, "Where is he?"

The shorter one surveyed the surroundings with a cold snort. "He couldn't have run far!"

The taller one hesitated. "Don't venture into the woods—we don't know if this person is friend or foe. Perhaps we shouldn't pursue?"

The shorter one sneered, "There are people from our Six Sects everywhere on Tianlong Mountain now. Are we still afraid of an ambush?"

The taller one advised, "This is still the Fox Zen Gate's territory. As the saying goes, a centipede dies without falling. If he’s an enemy, falling into a trap would be disastrous! Besides, aren't there people from other minor sects besides the Six Great Sects? We can’t be sure what their intentions are!"

The shorter one snorted and burst into curses. "These vultures just swarm over whenever there’s something profitable to pick up, like flies."

The taller one chuckled. "Ah, Senior Brother, do you think the rumors about the big prize are true?"

The shorter one looked at him. "What rumor?"

The taller one said with a smile, "Of course, the Fox Zen Gate's treasure! I heard from fellow practitioners in other sects that the Fox Zen Gate has accumulated countless magical artifacts and secret manuals over the centuries. Once we break through, won't we all get a share?"

The short man scoffed, "You dream too much! Forget it. The truly valuable stuff will never reach us, will it? It’ll all be divided up by the big shots first, and only scraps will be left for us? Didn't you see the True Unity Sect sent people this time? When the Six Sects hold events, when have those guys ever shown up? Hmph, the True Unity Sect always acted superior; now, haven't they also become greedy and hot-blooded?"

The taller one spat on the ground. "Damn it, these hypocrites! They put on a respectable facade, but underneath, they're all debauched scum!"

The shorter one made a gesture and hissed, "Shhh! Are you crazy? If the True Unity Sect people hear you saying that, no matter how big the world is, you won’t have a place to stand!"

The taller one grumbled, "The True Unity Sect may be strong, but our Southern Sect's Donghua School isn't weak either!"

The shorter one let out a dry laugh, about to speak again, when his expression suddenly sharpened. He grabbed the taller man, saying, "Movement. Listen!"

The taller one listened intently and indeed heard faint shouts echoing from a distance. His expression immediately tightened. "Someone’s there. Let's go check it out!"

The shorter one nodded. "Right! Let’s go!" With that, the two moved, bolting rapidly toward the source of the sound.

Li Yundong watched them leave. He listened intently for a moment. His cultivation was far superior to theirs, so he heard even more clearly: the sound of fighting.

Li Yundong hesitated briefly, then closely followed them.

However, while the two men raced along the ground, Li Yundong agilely swung through the trees like an ape.

His internal energy was already strong, and after passing his Heavenly Tribulation, he had absorbed some of the power of the Heavenly Lightning, boosting his strength even further. Thus, he trailed the two men like a shadow, remaining completely undetected.

After following them for about a thousand meters, Li Yundong suddenly saw several young men in Taoist robes surrounding a man who was bare-chested and exceptionally burly.

Li Yundong peered closer and instantly froze. The man’s upper body muscles bulged grotesquely, veins coiled like writhing snakes across his skin, emanating a terrifying sense of brute power. It was Lin You—the man who had crossed Li Yundong several times before!

"Him?" Li Yundong’s heart tightened.

The ones surrounding Lin You were four youths: three males and one female, all uniformly wielding finely crafted steel longswords, each adorned with a red sword tassel at the hilt.

Individually, none of these four young people could defeat Lin You, but they had formed a Sword Array, trapping him securely within their formation.

Li Yundong observed that when two attacked the front, the other two would swiftly circle behind Lin You or flank him, constantly harassing him. If Lin You used his tremendous strength to repel or break the offensive of the front two, the flanking pair would immediately press the attack, fiercely targeting Lin You’s vital points on his waist and back. This forced Lin You to shift from auxiliary defense to urgent offense, compelling him to turn and save himself rather than press the attack on the front pair.

This cycle repeated, and fresh scars appeared constantly on Lin You’s body. He was like a lion being attacked in rotation by four wolves, unable to focus his defense.

Watching Lin You roar in frustration while being tormented by the four youths from the trees, Li Yundong’s heart grew grave. He had fought Lin You several times and was well aware of his terrifying strength in a head-on clash. One-on-one, Lin You could defeat any of them with just one hand.

Yet, these four youths, utilizing this synchronized Sword Array, had easily reduced Lin You to a caged beast. This fact startled Li Yundong.

"What would I do in this situation?" Li Yundong couldn't help but wonder inwardly.

Lin You roared fiercely amid their encirclement, "Despicable curs from the Golden Mountain Sect! If you have any honor, fight me one-on-one! What kind of skill is four against one?"

The female among the four sneered, "What were you doing sneaking around the back mountain? I warned you this area was forbidden, not to be trespassed upon, but you wouldn't listen. Are you asking to die?"

Lin You raged, "You bratty whelps are so unreasonable! Is this your family's land? Why can you come, but I cannot?"

The female sneered, "I think you’re just greedy for the Fox Zen Gate's treasure, hoping to take a share! Hmph, I’ve been tracking you for a while. When I saw you suddenly vanish in the back mountain and then reappear, tell me honestly—did you find the back entrance to the Fox Zen Gate's secret grounds?"

Lin You roared back, "If I had found it, would I be wasting my breath arguing with a bunch of little kids like you? Do you lack brains?"

The woman was momentarily stunned, but immediately turned furious. "You dare speak so wildly!"

A male standing nearby shouted, "Senior Sister, this guy looks untrustworthy. Let’s just take him down now!"

Another male added, "Exactly! A mere member of the Divine Fist School dares to cause trouble here. He must be tired of living!"

Lin You held considerable influence in Kowloon, Hong Kong, and as an older cultivator, he usually commanded great respect there. He never expected that after coming to the mainland, he would first be defeated by Li Yundong and then fall into such a humiliating situation, bullied by four younger generations.

He could not swallow this insult!

Lin You swiftly drew a golden needle from his trouser leg and pierced his Baihui acupoint, shouting loudly, "True God’s Divine Skill of the Maoshan Invocation! Eight Great Marshals, manifest your divine power!! By the command of the Edict, I summon the Northern Dipper's Left Echelon Commander-in-Chief Marshal Tian Peng Zhenjun to possess my body!"

Hearing this voice, Li Yundong immediately recognized the danger: This guy is going all out!

Indeed, Lin You’s already burly physique suddenly expanded even more, transforming into a two-meter-tall, Vajra-like tower. His skin turned pitch-black, and his already exaggerated muscles became even more terrifying, resembling an armored automaton.

This transformation caused the four youths to suck in a sharp breath, fear flashing in their eyes.

The three males looked toward the female, whispering, "Senior Sister, should we fight?"

The woman looked unwilling and was about to speak when a loud shout echoed from nearby: "Friends from the Golden Mountain Sect, do not panic! We friends from the Quanzhen Dragon Gate Sect are here. We will absolutely not allow a low-class faction like the Divine Fist School to fare well here!"

With that, the tall and short men who had been pursuing Li Yundong emerged from the dense woods, one holding a whisk and the other a longsword.

Upon seeing the tall and short men, the four disciples of the Golden Mountain Sect displayed immediate joy, shouting, "So it is fellow Daoists from the Quanzhen Dragon Gate Sect nearby! Excellent, quickly come and help us subdue this demon!"

Lin You laughed madly. "You ill-bred little beasts! Relying on being a righteous sect, relying on your sect’s immense power to act without restraint. Anyone who opposes you is an evil demon, a fiend, right? Good! Today, I shall test your abilities!"

Saying this, he threw a devastating punch toward the leading woman.

As an inner disciple of a prestigious orthodox sect, the woman’s cultivation was not weak. The moment Lin You attacked, she sensed something amiss and instinctively dodged aside. A violent gust of wind swept past, grazing her cheek and leaving a bloody gash.

As a Daoist cultivator, this woman was quite beautiful and normally cherished her appearance. Seeing the injury, she exploded in rage, letting out a fierce roar as she lunged forward.

As she moved, the other three disciples also rushed in.

Lin You was initially holding his own against the four, but soon the tall and short disciples from the Quanzhen Dragon Gate Sect joined the fray. One wielded a whisk, his attacks soft and pervasive; the end of the whisk seemed limp, but each strike on Lin You tore a patch of skin, eliciting a roar of fury.

The other, the short man with the sword, employed a broad and aggressive swordsmanship, never letting his attacks stray from Lin You’s vital points. In essence, Lin You was now facing the direct primary assault from the four Golden Mountain disciples, while the tall Quanzhen disciple with the whisk provided auxiliary attacks from the side.

Although Lin You’s strength increased after summoning Marshal Tian Peng, his speed had somewhat decreased. While his resilience became immense, under the combined siege of six opponents, he was steadily forced back.

Li Yundong watched the melee, musing, Lin You has immense brute strength, but he can’t land effective blows against these opponents. Under the siege of six, he will inevitably bleed out slowly, like being cut by a dull knife.

"Although this old man has had conflict with me, these so-called orthodox sects are too shameless, ganging up six against one!" While thinking this, Li Yundong involuntarily let out a cold snort of disdain through his nose.

At that moment, the tall disciple from the Quanzhen Dragon Gate Sect, intensely engaged in the battle, suddenly leaped clear of the fight. His gaze, sharp as lightning, swept toward Li Yundong's location. He roared, "Who?!"

============================================= My head aches; writing until my brain is starved of oxygen. Tragic. (45278941954)H