Despite being a considerable distance away, Guan Xuejiang could still vaguely sense the conflict happening at the foot of the mountain.
This was not only due to the keen intuition of a top-tier martial artist, but also because of the deep bond fostered between him and his fellow disciples over the years.
Yet at this moment, stationed at the Azure Dragon Temple, he was unable to descend the mountain.
With anxiety burning in his heart, Guan Xuejiang suddenly stood up and strode quickly to the outside of the hall.
At this moment, apart from the elders and disciples who were left to guard, the Azure Dragon Temple was almost deserted.
"Where is Ya?" Guan Xuejiang asked.
An elder next to him replied, "Ya has also gone down the mountain."
Hearing this, Guan Xuejiang became furious, "Foolish! Didn’t I say he should stay at the temple, and if the situation turns dire, to leave immediately? Who let him go down the mountain?"
This elder, slightly aggrieved, said, "No one let him go; he insisted on going himself. You know, with his skills, we couldn’t stop him even if we wanted to."
Guan Xuejiang’s anger had not yet subsided.
But he also knew that this matter couldn’t really be blamed on these people.
He just couldn’t understand what Zhao Ya was trying to do.
Such an intelligent and sensible person, he and Guo Luming had repeatedly instructed him in the past.
Why did he insist on going down the mountain despite the great danger?
"What’s the situation at the foot of the mountain now?"
"Elder, the people of North Canglong have been blocked on the outskirts. Only Jingping Saint has penetrated alone to within seven or eight miles of the mountain, and Elder Guo and Elder Shen have already intercepted him and are currently engaged in a fierce battle."
As Guan Xuejiang expected, the situation inevitably became severe.
Although the people of North Canglong were blocked, Guan Xuejiang was very clear that this was just a minor nuisance.
The real threat came entirely from Jingping Saint.
So, Guan Xuejiang sighed quietly, his gaze falling toward the foot of the mountain, secretly prepared for the worst.
And what was Zhao Ya doing at this moment?
He wasn’t on Guo Luming’s side, because he knew that with his current strength, he couldn’t be of much help even if he went.
As soon as the battle commenced, he arrived at the outskirts of the woods and then began to silently harvest the lives of the three allied armies.
With his ghostly body technique and deadly precise swordsmanship, his strikes were lethal and never missed.
But this was still not Zhao Ya’s intention.
After all, he came here, risking great danger, in the final moments before the battle broke out, not to deal with these people.
He had only one target, and that was Ye Xunhuan.
The night in the abandoned temple, he let Ye Xunhuan escape because the weapon in his hand was truly formidable.
But at this moment, Zhao Ya was certain that Ye Xunhuan would not easily use that weapon.
After all, this kind of life-saving trick wouldn’t be used in front of everyone.
And this was Zhao Ya’s chance.
As long as he succeeded in the surprise attack amidst the chaos, he could get his hands on that weapon.
Regarding the weapon in Ye Xunhuan’s hands, Zhao Ya was determined to obtain it, even if it meant paying a certain price, and he would try everything possible to acquire it.
Because it was highly likely that it concealed the secrets of this world.
At this time, Ye Xunhuan was not engaging in any action but was stationed at the rear to command.
This moment vividly highlighted the differences among the three allied armies.
The people of the Wilderness Divine Sect often charged at the forefront, followed by the people of North Canglong.
As for the people of the Separation Tower, they always hid at the very end.
However, Ye Xunhuan paid no heed to these differences; he appeared calm and confident, chatting leisurely with Liu Ming beside him, looking filled with confidence regarding the upcoming battle.
Liu Ming, on the other hand, was somewhat restless, his gaze actively searching through the battlefield for Wu Bao’Er’s figure, silently praying in his heart that she remained safe.
Just then, Zhao Ya circled around in a wide arc and silently appeared at the back of the battlefield.
At this moment, he was only about fifty steps away from Ye Xunhuan in a straight line.
Zhao Ya could even clearly see the slightly thinning hair at the back of Ye Xunhuan’s head.
Next, Zhao Ya landed atop a large tree, raised his wrist, and pointed the hand crossbow hidden in his sleeve at Ye Xunhuan, pulling the trigger sharply.
Accompanied by a slight vibration, the crossbow arrow flew at a rapid speed straight towards Ye Xunhuan’s back.
Zhao Ya’s hand crossbow had maximum lethality at this fifty-step range.
In almost an instant, the crossbow arrow was mere steps behind Ye Xunhuan.
But just at that moment, Ye Xunhuan seemed to sense something, suddenly sidestepping to narrowly avoid the arrow.
The crossbow arrow grazed past him, directly pinning a Separation Tower assassin ahead of him to a tree.
But before Ye Xunhuan could breathe a sigh of relief, a flash of blade light exploded in front of him.
After pulling the trigger, Zhao Ya had immediately charged in.
Because he knew it was very difficult to kill an expert of Ye Xunhuan’s level with just a hand crossbow.
For their sense of danger was sharper than the keenest beasts.
Indeed.
Ye Xunhuan managed to narrowly dodge the arrow.
But this also created an opportunity for Zhao Ya to get closer.
Almost in the moment he sidestepped, Zhao Ya’s Cold Iron Saber was already slashing over.
In truth, with the increase in his strength, Zhao Ya’s once strongest skill—his blade technique—had diminished in its effectiveness.
In top-tier martial artist duels, the difference between being unarmed and wielding a weapon had become negligible.
In fact, because of the many limitations of weapons, in some aspects, they weren’t as powerful as bare hands.
Yet at this moment, Zhao Ya still chose to use his blade tactics against the enemy.
The reason, simply to confuse the opponent.