This was the first time Situ Mo confronted her head-on, and he felt an impending headache.
I've heard that the Profound Peak Gate is filled with iron turtles... It seems like it's true—they excel at defense. Kong Tingyun holds an extraordinary status, and her dharma artifacts are more powerful than others. This will be a tough battle!
Sure enough, Kong Tingyun swung her sleeves, unleashing a pair of black hooks that flew toward him like crescent moons, circling and dancing as they hissed with turquoise smoke.
Situ Mo glanced at the hooks and recognized them as ordinary dharma artifacts. He summoned three golden shields and easily blocked the attack.
Meanwhile, the golden saber spell on the other side broke through the protective barrier of the jade pearl, its speed increasing as it darted forward.
Kong Tingyun appeared to be in danger, yet she showed no fear, which secretly shocked Situ Mo.
At that moment, two streams of light appeared in the distance—one purple and one brown. Situ Mo's expression shifted, and golden light flared beneath his feet. However, a chill suddenly crept down his spine. With a sweep of his spiritual sense, he detected a green-white sword light approaching.
Li Yuanjiao! They've really joined forces!
He broke out in a cold sweat, unable to determine how Li Yuanjiao had managed to evade the Buddhist cultivator's detection. With the golden shield resisting Kong Tingyun's dharma artifact, he had no choice but to quickly perform a hand seal and cast a spell, darting out of the impending attack's way, albeit narrowly.
CLANG!
Qingche's sword light sliced through the air, grazing his feathered robe instead of his neck and producing a piercing sound of mana being consumed. Situ Mo's face paled as he coughed up a smooth, round red pill.
The pill spun in the air before dissolving into smoke.
Not this trick again!
It must be some sort of displacement technique, specifically designed to counter sword and mana light.
Just as Situ Mo evaded the attack, he shouted hastily, "Retreat quickly!"
Li Yuanjiao's sword did not wait for him. It split into three sword lights as it turned back, attacking him from above, the middle, and below. Situ Mo, having suffered a setback earlier, was well prepared. Demonstrating the confidence of an immortal sect disciple, he threw out three talismans with a flick of his hand, each bouncing off into three white circles to intercept the sword lights one by one.
Clearly, Situ Mo had come prepared. The white circles released by these three Foundation Establishment Realm talismans were smooth and agile. Though their strength was not great, they were designed to effectively counter Threefold Moonlight.
With this delay, Li Qinghong and Kongheng finally arrived on the scene. Although Situ Mo did not recognize the heroic-looking female cultivator, he identified Kongheng and guessed that she was Li Qinghong. The purple light in her eyes and the purple lightning dancing across her jade armor caught his attention.
Situ Mo barely had time to retreat before Li Qinghong parted her vermillion lips slightly and released a speck of purple light that almost instantly swelled to the size of a fist, glowing with a brilliant white light.
A sense of numbness washed over Situ Mo as he realized the power of the impending attack. He quickly deactivated his three golden shields, ignoring the double hooks that Kong Tingyun had launched. He also swiftly withdrew the golden saber and disengaged with her.
Kong Tingyun hurriedly urged the jade pearl to give chase. The monk below watched on in shock and terror, bewildered by how Li Yuanjiao managed to evade his calculation. Unable to voice his confusion, he could only muster his strength to try and push the golden mountain off of him.
Kong Tingyun had to lower her head and look at the situation below her as she retrieved a golden talisman from her sleeve. With a simple flick of her fingers, she sent it flying toward the golden mountain.
Mutuo was unfortunate; despite having an arsenal of spells and techniques, he had been suppressed by the golden mountain from the start. Crafted from an unknown material, the mountain had slowed him down, also causing his lips and teeth to disappear. Just as he finally managed to push it up a little, Kong Tingyun's talisman landed on the mountain.
The talisman shimmered with golden light, its yellow-brown surface adorned with vermilion characters in one large line that read— 1,006,580,000 jin.
Mutuo felt a powerful force emanating from his hand. He had only time to let out a mournful cry as the light turquoise waters around him parted. The golden mountain fell, rumbling ominously, causing the waves to surge to heights of a hundred chi before slowly settling down again.
Boom!
The spectacle in the sky was equally breathtaking. A white light erupted from above, accompanied by the roar of thunder that was like a landslide. The white lightning transformed into dense purple bolts that cascaded down like a waterfall, suppressing all that was below.
Situ Mo's golden shields were on their way back to assist him, but they were intercepted by Li Yuanjiao's swift sword. To his dismay, his golden saber was also stalled by Kongheng's spell. A golden light silently bloomed on his chest.
Rumble!
Amidst the raging thunder, Situ Mo was propelled backward, enveloped in golden light and dust, leaving only a thin layer of golden shield around him, almost resembling an eggshell.
Riding the wind, he noticed five or six streams of light approaching from the two islands, preparing for confrontation.
Situ Mo's golden shield did not reach him in time, so he was struck by the thunder spell. His feathered robe was scorched gray, and his chest was bloody. Several Foundation Establishment Realm cultivators behind him caught him. Gasping, he commanded, "Let's go!"
Situ Mo silently thanked himself for being cautious, though he feared that more people would soon emerge from the market and annihilate his group. He did not dare linger and hurriedly retreated, enveloped in golden light.
His companions quickly followed suit without hesitation, fearful of being pursued. The guest cultivators of Profound Peak Gate approached to greet Kong Tingyun.
"Good... good! He wasted his life-saving trump card and is quite seriously injured; this trip wasn't in vain!" she remarked with a smile.
She glanced at Li Qinghong, who appeared slightly pale, and praised, "I didn't expect you to possess such a powerful thunder spell... Truly impressive!"
Although the profound thunder had been condensed in advance in the thunder pool, it was still a draining spell for Li Qinghong to cast. She smiled modestly and replied softly, "It's nothing compared to fellow Daoist's golden mountain."
Situ Mo was a direct disciple highly valued by the Golden Tang Gate, making it unlikely to kill him so easily in one fell swoop. With the right combination of timing and circumstances, this encounter was enough to prevent him from making any progress for many years to come.
Li Yuanjiao nodded approvingly but was more concerned about the monk and asked, "What about the monk?"
Kong Tingyun replied with a shrug, "He is no better off than Situ Mo."
The group dove deeper, navigating through the pale turquoise waters until they discovered the golden mountain resting on the seabed. Kong Tingyun stowed away the dharma artifact and examined the bloody remnants with care. After casting a few spells, she glanced at Kongheng with some uncertainty.
Kongheng understood her concern. He stepped forward, closed his eyes to sense the surroundings, and said in a deep voice, "He went back to the north."
Kong Tingyun sighed regretfully.
"It's a pity he was in the sea, not on land. He touched the earth vein too late, and managed to escape."
"He had indeed escaped but his body is ruined. He may have a backup at a temple in the north, perhaps another monk's body to take over, but his cultivation has pretty much been devastated. He won't be able to compare to Situ Mo any longer; it will take him at least decades to recover."
Buddhist cultivators were notoriously difficult to kill, and Kong Tingyun never truly believed she could eliminate him. She extended her slender hand, summoning the golden mountain.
With a hint of resentment, she said, "The ancestor entrusted me with this dharma artifact and talisman specifically to deal with these cultivators from Zhao State... He's just the first! Sooner or later, they will be driven back to their original forms, one by one!"
Li Yuanjiao breathed a sigh of relief, feeling his spirits lifting as he said, "Good, good! With this monk gone, we no longer need to worry about the enemy lurking in the shadows while we're out in the open. The threat from Situ Mo is significantly reduced!"
Kongheng, who had contributed little throughout the encounter, looked guilty. He rubbed his bald head nervously, silently glancing at the others.