Si Yuanli’s sword essence was far stronger than the monk had expected. Most of the golden energy he had prepared to counter Li Xuanfeng was spent resisting the sword strikes, leaving him open to the arrow that had arrived.
Li Xuanfeng drew his bow again but saw that the Northern Master Monk’s body had melted like mud, his glow shifting until he became another spear-wielding monk. Si Yuanli furrowed his brow, but just then, a devil cultivator had raced ahead of the group and was nearly on them.
Clang!
The black-clad devil cultivator drew his spear in a flash of black light. The weapon surged like a dragon, striking fiercely at the Buddhist cultivator. Si Yuanli was momentarily stunned by the devil cultivator’s choice, but immediately seized the chance, raising another storm of white sword light.
"You—!"
The spear-wielding Buddhist cultivator was clearly shocked and had no choice but to raise his spear to parry. The two spears collided midair with a thunderous boom. Li Xuanfeng let out a slow breath, feeling his mana surge and ebb within him, and raised a crimson-gold arrow to his bow once again.
Buzz!
Four currents of mana intertwined in an instant. The spear-wielding Buddhist cultivator had just parried with his weapon and couldn’t react in time. He was struck head-on by the white mist and the crimson-gold arrow.
He let out a cry of pain. "Ah!"
His body was blasted to ashes, leaving only a head flying high into the air. The four-man encirclement collapsed at once, and the glow on the remaining three dimmed. Li Xuanfeng and Si Yuanli didn’t bother with a follow-up strike and rode the wind northward without hesitation.
After speeding half a kilometer away, Li Xuanfeng glanced back, only to see that the black-robed devil cultivator had been exceptionally devious. He had stabbed the severed head with his spear but deliberately kept it alive, parading it about as he dashed off southward with the bald head.
"Zhong Qian..."
This man was none other than Zhong Qian, who had been dispatched under Daoist Master Chang Yun’s command. He hadn’t exchanged a single word with Li Xuanfeng. He hadn’t even spared him a glance, and simply dashed southward with the head impaled on his spear.
The remaining three Buddhist cultivators were caught in a dilemma. Neither north nor south was ideal. After hesitating in the air for a breath, they ultimately chose to abandon their fallen companion and resumed chasing the two cultivators.
But Si Yuanli and Li Xuanfeng had already flown far ahead. The sword cultivator from the Si Family laughed loudly and hurled several streaks of sword light as he mockingly shouted, "Bald donkeys! Chase me again and I’ll string up the rest of your three heads too!"
As he roared with laughter, a sheet of red erupted in the northern sky. Blazing True Flame surged skyward, igniting the clouds above. A burly man in dark crimson robes, holding a cauldron under one arm, swaggered proudly as he laughed, "Murong, you old dog! You can’t even catch your granddaddy with just four of you!"
It was none other than Gao Fangjing, cultivator of True Flame. He had snatched away two great cauldrons and brazenly soared into the sky, drawing the gaze of many. A swarm of devil cultivators swarmed toward him, drastically reducing the pressure on the two of them.
Si Yuanli cheered, "Good man! I love this kind of unruly brute!"
Li Xuanfeng looked at the sky filled with blazing True Flame. The tension in his bowstring slowly eased as he observed silently, a doubt arising in his heart, Something's not right... The Monarch Calling Command Golden Talisman hasn’t even been used yet. This is far from over.
Just as Li Xuanfeng slowed, a murmur reached their ears, "Yuanli, give the Huai River Map to Xuanfeng."
The voice was aged and solemn; it was none other than Daoist Master Yuan Xiu. Li Xuanfeng paused slightly. Si Yuanli fended off an approaching devil cultivator with his sword and handed the scroll over without hesitation.
Li Xuanfeng accepted it in stride. The murmur of incantations once again sounded in his ear as Yuan Xiu transmitted the scroll’s spell. As he memorized it in silence, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth suddenly shifted.
Rumble!
Some kind of restriction was seemingly triggered at the cliff in the center of Great Ning Palace. A radiant column of iridescent light surged skyward, lighting up several kilometers. It was clearly visible from across the lake.
A faint circular arc appeared in the sky, and a rain of pale droplets began to fall. Li Xuanfeng’s eyes narrowed as he slowly recalled the appearance of Mirage Mirror Heaven at Green Pine Temple. At last, his lingering doubts were resolved, So this is where you were waiting for me.
A grotto heaven...
Everyone within Great Ning Palace looked up and listened before rushing toward the cliff in a frenzy.
Si Yuanli, however, seemed unsurprised as he turned to Li Xuanfeng, "Fellow Daoist Xuanfeng, shall we head in now?"
Li Xuanfeng was about to respond when he suddenly felt his instincts twinge. A strong sense of danger had suddenly surged in his heart. The talisman seeds that had lain dormant in his qi sea for years stirred slightly, causing his two Immortal Foundations to tremble faintly.
I shouldn’t enter?
Alarm bells rang in Li Xuanfeng’s mind. He quietly looked up and saw the semicircular grotto heaven in the sky gradually revealing its colors. A crystalline glow shimmered brilliantly in the center. It was perhaps some treasure.
I shouldn’t go in...
A chill rose in Li Xuanfeng's heart. But Yuan Xiu hadn’t just sent him here for the Great Ning Palace. There was no retreat now. He could only stall for time and said thoughtfully, "We have great treasures on us; we shouldn’t act rashly. There might be devil cultivators lying in wait near that light column... I’ve expended much mana fleeing from all those cultivators, might I rest briefly and regulate my qi?"
His words took Si Yuanli by surprise. The middle-aged man suddenly realized Li Xuanfeng hadn’t stopped drawing his bow for the entire chase, and had even stepped in to protect him earlier, so his mana might truly be low.
He quickly said, "Indeed, no need to rush. Let us pause for a moment and proceed slowly by windflight."
————
World within the mirror.
Nestled among grey-black peaks, a pale moon-colored palace atop a raised platform shimmered faintly. The clouds above had scattered, releasing beams of radiant light.
The light in the sky was dim, and the wisp of Bright Radiant Yang Imperial Union Essence hung there like a sun, illuminating the great void beyond. One could faintly glimpse various Mahas and Purple Mansion Realm cultivators seated in formation around Great Ning Palace.
Li Xuanfeng had been drawn into the conflict between Maha and Zipei, which involved multiple Mahas and Purple Mansion Realm cultivators. Lu Jiangxian had been quietly watching from the side. It was he who had forcibly sealed the talisman seeds in Li Xuanfeng’s body, rendering them unresponsive to the divine abilities of Mahas and Purple Mansion Realm cultivators. It had saved him much effort in concealment.
His gaze pierced through the veil, landing on the scene within the great void. Anhuai Heaven, resembling a translucent glass orb, was slowly approaching the mortal realm. The images within it were becoming clearer by the moment.