Boom!
Purple lightning rumbled and exploded in the clouds. Li Qinghong, clad in a long green feathered robe, gathered lightning on her spear and descended on a pitch-black mountain peak, casting a heavy gaze northward.
Few dared to confront her directly as she fought her way through. Most merely tested her strength. The devil cultivators were mostly cautious. A few greedy ones attacked for a few moves before retreating. Therefore, her mana consumption remained low.
The worry on the woman’s face was not due to the demonic smoke but because of the overall situation between the south and the north.
Chaos... thought Li Qinghong.
Li Qinghong had felt this deeply as she came along. Xu State had fallen into utter chaos. Though the demonic clouds still roiled, the situation was completely different from before.
Previously, though it was chaotic, there was order within the chaos. You could faintly see traces of the choices of Purple Mansion Realm cultivators. At least the northern devil cultivators still followed some rules... thought Li Qinghong.
Now the chaos among the devil cultivators had reached the level of headless flies. Whether it was in the east, west, south, or north, one could see devil cultivators from various sects and families flitting around. Some were even led by Purple Mansion and Golden Core Dao cultivators, all fighting for themselves.
Outside of Xu State, devil cultivators and Buddhist cultivators were still gathering rapidly. Where she stood near Lake Xian, she could even see many cultivators from the Eastern Sea swarming ashore and surging southward, hinting at a strange and ominous new tide.
Now Jiangnan is the Upper Evil Spirit Storage, where all evil and corruption emerge. When the devil cultivators reach the river’s edge, their strength grows even stronger. Why would they stop there and not continue to sweep downward...
Li Qinghong kept worrying as she withdrew the lightning from her spear. Suddenly, she felt a violent surge of devil wind rushing in from the east, whipping the ground smoke into a frenzy.
She frowned lightly, raised her spear, and pointed it diagonally at the ground. Purple lightning flickered to life with a thunderous roar. She snapped her spear up and it flared with blazing lightning that shone brightly in the sky.
Boom!
A gray flame shot out from the demonic smoke and was struck squarely by the spear in midair. The flame exploded with several bursts of light that clung stubbornly to her spear. But the surging lightning shattered it within moments, and it fell to the ground with sizzling sounds.
Crash...
Li Qinghong drew her spear back and took up a defensive stance. The blazing purple lightning danced along the spear and up her hand. Her apricot eyes glowed faintly purple as she looked into the gray smoke.
A tall, thin man in a red robe descended from within the devil winds. His brown boots struck the ground, sending up a wave of gray fire. A command token, gray with red patterns, floated beside him.
He crossed his arms over his chest and looked at Li Qinghong with some curiosity, his gaze somewhat cold, and said, “Fellow Daoist, what an impressive bearing.”
Li Qinghong swept her spiritual sense lightly over him and sensed this man’s overwhelming cultivation. His Dharma robe was especially luxurious. She realized he was no ordinary figure. She silently examined him while estimating the distance in her heart, This place is no more than two hundred and fifty kilometers from the Lake Xian stronghold. I still have three Profound Thunder talismans. If things go awry... retreating wouldn’t be difficult...
As she considered her escape route, the man’s red robe began to float in the demonic smoke. His voice was a bit stiff and sharp as he said, “Fellow Daoist...thunder cultivators are rare these days... and even rarer are female cultivators. It just so happens I’ve heard your name.”
Li Qinghong maintained her impassive stare, but her spiritual sense quickly searched around to see if he had others nearby. Meanwhile, the cultivator before her continued to speak, “My younger sister went to Jiangnan but was stopped by you. She couldn’t save that person and even lost the Merging Fire Token. She has been banished from the island and cannot return...”
The man in the red robe’s face darkened. “And I haven’t yet settled the score with you!”
Li Qinghong immediately understood he came with ill intent. She spun her spear with a flourish and laughed lightly, “Oh? So that foolish woman is your sister. No wonder she had such an aggressive air. She was so arrogant, trying to seize my sword and kill my family. Granting her one Profound Thunder was already merciful!”
It was clear that he was Guo Hongyao’s elder brother, the one who had come for Xu Xiao back then. Li Qinghong instantly understood that he was no friend. She didn’t hesitate as she thrust her spear forward, lightning coursing through it.
Boom!
A swirl of gray fire rose around the man in the red robe. He made a spell gesture and the fire clung to the command token and shot forth. It collided with the lightning in midair and exploded into a sky full of thunder and fire.
His tone was grim as he shouted, “How could I not know about my own sister? Would she target your family without reason? If you had just let them leave peacefully, would things have come to this?”
Li Qinghong danced with the lightning, smothering the rushing gray fire. Her black hair floated lightly in the wind. She couldn’t be bothered to argue and only replied coldly, “What’s the point of talking now? I’d like to see the might of the Crimson Reef Merging Fire!”
Bright purple light gathered on her feathered robe. The man in the red robe laughed out of sheer rage. He pressed two fingers together and the command token leapt up, sending out a stream of gray fire that twisted the air as it burned.
He spat out in a low, hateful voice, “Such bold words! You’ve killed too many devil cultivators and think everyone’s mana will scatter when they face lightning!”