Whoosh! Whoosh!
In a remote and perilous mountain shrouded in mist, several sword shadows suddenly emerged from the fog.
“Roar! Roar!”
A flying sword appeared, brimming with intense metal Qi, transforming into the illusory form of a white tiger, snarling and roaring.
“It’s indeed the remnants of the Four Symbols Sect!”
Two Taoist priests wielding black banners, upon witnessing this, were not alarmed but delighted instead: “Your Four Symbols Immortal has perished, and your sect leader has been severely wounded, no longer possessing the might of a terrestrial immortal. Why resist still? Quickly hand over your treasures, and we brothers might spare your soul and allow it to reincarnate!”
While verbally undermining their opponent, they simultaneously chanted incantations, casting several spells onto the black banners.
Wailing sounds arose!
The black banners summoned gray mist, from which several ghosts emerged—green-faced, fanged, with horns atop their heads, their thick arms covered in scales. They clashed fiercely with the white tiger sword spirit without showing any disadvantage.
Moreover, amidst the mist, a rustling sound signaled the arrival of more than a dozen black pythons charging forward.
“White Tiger Sword Qi!”
Their opponent was a young Taoist clad in a robe, bearing a sword mark on his forehead. Upon seeing this, he gritted his teeth and released more than ten golden sword Qi.
Plop! Plop!
The black snakes were struck down, pinned to the ground, and dissolved into wisps of black vapor.
“Hehehe!”
Seeing this, the two black-robed priests were not alarmed but delighted instead: “Haha… Our yin energy is inexhaustible, but you, in contrast, must expend much of your cultivation to release these painstakingly nurtured sword Qi. How many times can you sustain this?”
The young man with the sword mark remained expressionless, clearly struck at his weakest point.
Seeing this, the black-robed priests howled with laughter and transformed their yin energy into forms such as black crows, giant rats, and venomous snakes, forcing the young man to continuously activate his sword Qi for self-defense.
After several rounds, the young man had already turned pale, clearly drained of energy.
“Hahaha… Jian Yuanzi, you refused the easy path and chose the hard one. We brothers can only capture your soul and turn it into a demon head on our banner!”
The two priests were overjoyed.
“Hey! Brazen fiends!”
Just as the sword-marked youth was in mortal danger, several clear voices rang out, accompanied by the sound of flying swords cutting through the air!
“Oh no, how could they arrive so quickly?”
The black-robed brothers exchanged glances, filled with alarm, and immediately considered retreating.
“Jiu jiu!”
But it was already too late. A flash of crimson light appeared from afar, and a flying sword pierced through the air, taking the form of a Vermilion Bird.
“Roar!”
Then, the illusory forms of a Green Dragon and a Black Tortoise abruptly emerged.
“Master Zhong, Junior Brother Ji, Master Gongsun, you’ve arrived!”
Upon seeing this, Jian Yuanzi was overjoyed, guiding his White Tiger sword to merge with the three mystical beasts.
Buzz!
With flashes of blue, red, yellow, and green lights, an intricate and profound formation was instantly formed. Empowered by this formation, the White Tiger sword immediately regained its former brilliance and sharpness.
“The Four Symbols Sword Formation!”
Amidst the screams of the black-robed priests, countless sword beams rained down, instantly reducing the horned evil ghosts to dust. Then, the sword Qi intensified, piercing through the black banners like a thousand arrows, leaving only a mess of blood and gore.
“Thank you all for coming to my rescue…”
Jian Yuanzi retrieved his sword and exhaled deeply: “Otherwise, I would have been in grave danger…”
“We came immediately upon receiving your message… Never did we expect those two insignificant Black Ghost Twin Fiends to dare attack our Four Symbols Sect… Hmm? Where is Junior Brother Wang?”
The girl surnamed Zhong asked.
“Sigh… Junior Brother Wang was ambushed and had to abandon his physical body. I have already sent his soul to reincarnate…”
A trace of sorrow appeared on Jian Yuanzi’s face.
“Cursed!”
The other disciples were filled with anger and grief, staring at the mess on the ground but unable to vent their fury, only cursing: “Those two villains got off too easily! If we had encountered them earlier, for daring to kill our sect’s disciples, we would have burned their souls, torturing them for centuries until they were completely destroyed!”
“Sigh… There’s no need to dwell on this. With our Grandmaster gone, our Four Symbols Sect can only barely survive…”
Jian Yuanzi smiled bitterly.
The other disciples immediately fell silent.
They were all disciples of the Four Symbols Sect. After the death of the Four Symbols Immortal and the collapse of their sacred realm, their sect leader had used the Bodhi Void Ship to rescue the elite disciples, hoping to develop in the Great Zhou world.
However, a fallen phoenix is no better than a chicken. Without the protection of the Immortal and the sacred realm, they only now realized the hardships of the mundane world.
Moreover, to other cultivators and sects, the current Four Symbols Sect was like a big fish—vulnerable and ripe for the taking!
Their sect’s hidden plans either failed or were turned against them, and their leader was lured into a trap and severely injured. Now, they were practically at their wits’ end.
With heavy hearts, the group arrived at a valley.
The valley was surrounded by thick mist, almost pitch-black, but after Jian Yuanzi cast a spell, a path was revealed.
Inside were several connected buildings. Although the materials were simple, they shimmered with powerful formations and restrictions.
“Senior Brother Jian Yuanzi, the Master is expecting you!”
As they approached the entrance, a young Taoist apprentice came out to greet them.
“Alright, I was just about to go and plead guilty!”
Jian Yuanzi agreed, following the apprentice into the depths of the compound. After several turns, they arrived at a quiet chamber.
Inside the chamber, there was little furniture except for a pale yellow cushion. Sitting on it was an elderly Taoist priest with white hair and beard, deep wrinkles, looking much older than the last time they met. It was none other than the current leader of the Four Symbols Sect!
“Master…”
Seeing his once noble and refined teacher in such a state, Jian Yuanzi’s eyes reddened, and he immediately knelt down: “This disciple has failed you. Not only did I not accomplish the mission, but I also lost Junior Brother Wang…”
“Just a temporary fleshly shell, no need to dwell too much… Besides, this path also failed… It seems that in the Great Zhou world, there is hardly any place left for our Four Symbols Sect to survive…”
The sect leader sighed deeply.
“Master, are you considering retreating to the outer regions?”
Jian Yuanzi was somewhat surprised. At this time, the Great Zhou was still the world’s ruler, while the other four regions were considered as toxic and barbaric lands in the minds of the Central Plains people, places no one would willingly go to.
“Previously, I cultivated for 150 years to barely reach the level of a terrestrial immortal, but without great blessings, I could not establish a blessed land…”
The Four Symbols Sect leader murmured: “Earlier, I was injured by that villain, causing my cultivation to decline, and now I only have the cultivation level of a Celestial Master… Retreating to the outer regions might be a way to survive, but our sect’s teachings will inevitably be assimilated by foreign influences. Hmph! I would rather die than allow our teachings to be tainted!”
“Fortunately, now a great opportunity has been bestowed by heaven. If we want to develop our sect, there is still hope…”
Jian Yuanzi was startled: “Master, do you mean participating in the struggle for the Dragon Throne? This is a matter of great success or failure!”
“We have already reached a dead end; only by doing this can we survive!”
The Four Symbols Sect leader gritted his teeth, his face showing a determined expression.
This struggle for the Dragon Throne was naturally an excellent opportunity to seize the heavenly mandate and develop the sect, but shallow-rooted sects dared not get involved.
Previously, with a Celestial Immortal guarding the sect and a sacred realm as a final retreat, the Four Symbols Sect could calmly sit back and observe, even if they failed, they could simply abandon their external branches without any loss. But now, the situation was extremely dangerous.
“Then, Master, do you have a candidate in mind?”
“I have already reviewed the information on the feudal lords of various provinces. Although there are a few suitable ones, they are either already backed by other sects or have complicated relationships, making it unsuitable for us to intervene…”
The old Taoist priest’s mouth curled with bitterness.
Of course, those established feudal lords had already received investments. Even if not, their networks were complicated, not the kind of choice that a fugitive sect like theirs could make.
“There is, however, a newly risen feudal lord who seems quite extraordinary, which makes me hesitate!”
The Four Symbols Sect leader spoke slowly.
“A newly emerged feudal lord?”
Jian Yuanzi, a man of exceptional talent, immediately realized after a moment’s thought: “Master, could you be referring to the one in Dingzhou?”
“Exactly! Although Dingzhou ranks in the middle among the nineteen provinces of the Great Zhou, it does possess heavenly mandate. Our sect has thoroughly investigated and confirmed it to be a ‘Phoenix Twin Flight’ situation, where the heavenly mandate is concentrated on a woman, indicating no hope of seizing the Dragon Throne, and thus few have invested in it. However, Wu Zhen’s unexpected rise was a great surprise to me!”
The Four Symbols Sect leader said slowly: “This is the variable factor! Our sect has suffered a great loss in heavenly mandate. To survive in this desperate situation, we can only rely on the power of this variable!”
“If we are to find a feudal lord with a clean background and no complicated ties, there are indeed few better than Wu Zhen…”
Jian Yuanzi hesitated slightly on his face: “But first, since ancient times, no woman has ever ascended to the position of the True Dragon Emperor! Secondly, Wu Zhen’s defiance of fate suggests that there may already be cultivators assisting her. Our lack of information might only mean that the other party is hiding very well…”
“Hmph… Defying fate is nothing much. If the timing is right and the heavenly mandate is bestowed, even a Cultivation Master can do it!”
The Four Symbols Sect leader said: “The person behind her is likely just a wandering cultivator, not worth fearing!”
After all, they were still from a prestigious sect. Even a broken boat has three nails; they looked down on solitary wandering cultivators.
“As for seizing the Dragon Throne?”
A strange expression appeared on the Four Symbols Sect leader’s face: “Who said I plan to support her in establishing the imperial court?”
“Then what is Master’s intention?”
Jian Yuanzi had already caught a hint of the idea: “Temporarily gain protection while drawing on the heavenly mandate for cultivation?”
“Exactly! This girl Wu Zhi has indeed chosen a good time. Observing the overall situation under heaven, with chaos in various provinces, it will be difficult for others to interfere for a while. It won’t be a problem for her to unify her province…”
The Four Symbols Sect leader smiled: “Among the nineteen provinces under heaven, controlling one is enough to claim kingship, gathering the energies of heaven, earth, and humanity! If I can gain some of this fortune, I can repair our foundation and return to the level of a terrestrial immortal… If I can advance further and establish a blessed land, it is not impossible for our sect to reestablish its roots!”
Jian Yuanzi was deeply impressed. This was not merely supporting an imperial court but rather a demonic method of deceiving the heavenly mandate in times of chaos to gain fortune.
“Master, are you not afraid of the backlash?”
“Hmph! This girl will not last long. When she perishes along with her clan and her foundation is destroyed, where will the backlash come from?”
The Four Symbols Sect leader snorted coldly: “It is precisely for this reason that few are willing to invest now… This is exactly where we can benefit!”
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