Gu Xu looked at Mei Qing trapped within the拂尘, a faint smile flickering across his ruddy face before quickly vanishing. His large eyes flared as he bellowed toward the pile of shattered corpses, “This youth and I had a fair duel. Why did you interfere? You’ve broken the rules and tarnished my reputation!”
“Cut the act, Master Huang,” a hoarse, sullen voice replied. “I helped you capture this kid and lost three wooden corpses in the process. Are you really so dissatisfied? Don’t pretend to be so righteous.”
A sudden gust of cold wind swept through, gathering the scattered corpse fragments into a pile before they vanished entirely, revealing a gaunt figure. His sparse hair and black-gleaming eyes, clad in coarse hemp robes, identified him as Duan Chaoyong—the same man who had once visited Liu Fu’s mansion and retreated after battling with Master Bai and Liu Xing.
Duan’s black eyes flickered as he coldly addressed Huang Gu Xu, “Brother Huang, one must be fair. I’ve helped you capture Mei Qing, completing a great feat. Please hand him over to me.”
Huang blinked a few times and replied gruffly, “That’s inconvenient. I came out of seclusion at my senior brother’s invitation. Before the battle, my senior explicitly stated that capturing this youth would be a major achievement for Geyao Sect. Now, Brother Duan, you’re trying to snatch credit—it’s rather unfair.”
Duan laughed, “Brother Huang, where are you going? My brother and I are both disciples of Mei Hua Sect. What difference is there between us? My second senior brother is occupied commanding the formation, so I’ve come to take this boy. Brother Huang, don’t be suspicious.”
Huang sneered, “Mei Hua Sect, Brother Duan? Let me speak plainly. Although your brothers aim to elevate Mei Hua Sect to prominence among Daoist sects, even surpassing Longhu Sect to become the Daoist leader, you particularly covet this Mei Qing. If I’m not mistaken, this youth must possess a secret technique exclusive to your sect. Don’t rush, Brother Duan. I have no intention of meddling in your sect’s affairs, but since I captured Mei Qing, I must claim this favor.”
“Rest assured, Brother Huang,” a clear voice suddenly interrupted. Tao Zhongwen, smiling broadly, appeared between them. “Once you hand Mei Qing over to me, I’ll certainly not hesitate to grant you the title of Celestial Master.”
“Master Tao, your reputation for miraculous abilities is well-known,” Huang replied. “However, this matter concerns the rise and fall of our sect, not merely my personal affair. For now, the Geyao Sect will detain him. Once the imperial decree is issued, I will deliver Mei Qing to you.”
Tao’s smile widened as he glanced at Duan. “Fourth Brother, it seems Brother Huang still doubts our Mei Hua Sect. We can’t delay this matter. What do you think?”
Duan’s eyes dimmed momentarily before he sighed, “You’re the senior brother; naturally, you have the final say.”
Huang was greatly surprised. He had assumed these brothers were at odds and thus dared to be firm with both. Unexpectedly, they now seemed to unite. Startled, he didn’t have time to think further. His figure blurred, and a scroll suddenly appeared above his head.
The scroll resembled yellow silk, yet its material was indistinct. It was of moderate size, only partially unfurled, and bore a massive ancient seal. Unlike Zhuo Wanchun’s Xianyu Seal or Huang’s拂尘, this scroll emitted no spiritual energy and appeared quite ordinary, like a common book.
However, Tao and Duan exchanged glances, refraining from rash action. Geyao Sect’s seal and scroll were renowned. Huang’s sudden deployment of the scroll indicated confidence in its power.
Tao smiled faintly, “Brother Huang, what are you doing? Do you think my brothers would resort to force? Since you insist on keeping the boy as a hostage, we’ll comply. Fourth Brother, I’ll return to the capital immediately to arrange for Geyao Sect’s leadership and Huang’s Celestial Master title. You stay here with Brother Huang to maintain the formation.”
Without waiting for their response, Tao spread his sleeves and soared into the sky, streaking toward the formation’s edge like a shooting star.
Duan snorted coldly at Huang, then vanished in a swirl of black wind, silently retreating.
Huang was astonished. Why were these brothers so agreeable today, fleeing as if escaping? Realizing the word “escape,” he suddenly understood. He quickly activated his spiritual energy and flew outward.
Suddenly, a deafening roar erupted, shaking heaven and earth. Spiritual energies from all directions surged chaotically, manifesting as water beams, golden winds, and earth stones, wildly intertwining. Even someone as skilled as Huang felt his inner energy destabilized, his protective barrier strained by the onslaught of elemental winds.
The formation was broken! Huang inwardly cursed Tao and Duan’s treachery, sensing the same monks and dozens of cultivators forcefully breaching from outside.
Tao had originally set up this formation incompletely, unable to sustain it for long. His intention was to surprise and capture Lu Bing and Mei Qing in one fell swoop. Unexpectedly, Mei Qing’s allies proved formidable, with Zhang Yuchong and Master Ku arriving successively, overwhelming Tao’s supposedly foolproof arrangements.
Although Tao’s deception temporarily misled Lu Bing and Master Ku, the array at Yao Mansion was merely set up by a few evil cultivators. Once Master Ku and others launched a full assault, it couldn’t withstand for long. Meanwhile, Mei Qing’s extraordinary performance against Zhuo Xiaoxian worsened the situation. Thus, Tao reluctantly deployed the Heaven Net Formation, aiming solely to capture Mei Qing and retreat.
Finally succeeding, Tao ambushed Liu Xing and subdued Zhang Yuchong, while Huang and Duan captured Mei Qing. However, Huang’s greed led him to blackmail Tao.
As the master of the formation, Tao sensed the monks’ approach and decided to abandon other cultivators, aiming to deceive Huang and escape with Mei Qing, leaving Huang to face certain doom.
But Huang’s interference, coupled with his display of the scroll, left Tao helpless. If they resorted to force, even combined, they might not breach the scroll quickly. Besides, Duan might not cooperate wholeheartedly. After careful consideration, Tao opted to ensure his own safety first.
Although Huang didn’t grasp Tao’s full intentions, he knew he’d been betrayed, seething inwardly while accelerating his escape. The sounds of Tao’s summoned allies being killed intensified his fury.
Huang activated his spiritual energy, scattering talismans to disrupt his pursuers. Just as he felt relief nearing escape, a chilling sensation abruptly pierced his heart. Startled, he chanted a spell, “Chi!”
The scroll responded to Huang’s incantation, unfolding suddenly. Unfortunately, it was slightly delayed. Huang’s body stiffened as his spiritual energy froze. He desperately chanted to break free.
At the same time, Tao descended from above while Duan ascended from below, both launching attacks with their magical treasures.
Tao’s magical treasure was a jade ruler, glowing with five luminous orbs swirling around it. With each flick of his fingers, an orb detached, tracing mysterious arcs toward Huang.
Duan, empty-handed, conjured a strange black bone between his palms. The bone, riddled with holes, emitted mournful cries as skeletons emerged from them.
Confronted by Tao’s orbs above and Duan’s skeletons below, Huang was ambushed by Tao’s secret attack. However, the scroll above displayed its magical treasure power.
The scroll trembled, extending to ten feet like a massive curtain. Several unassuming runes detached, targeting the encroaching orbs and skeletons.
A crackling sound erupted as the orbs and skeletons disintegrated into ash, enveloping the area in smoke.
Tao and Duan were secretly astonished, realizing that the magical artifact could retaliate on its own, even when its master was distracted.
However, Tao and Duan, long conspirators with hidden intentions, weren’t finished. Exchanging glances, they attacked again.
Duan gently tapped the black bone, his fingers moving as if plucking the strings of a *se*. Chanting an eerie incantation, he released successive waves of black mist from the holes in the bone. Amidst howling winds and ghostly wails, the mist gathered beneath the scroll.
The scroll, lacking its master’s guidance, instinctively attacked the mist, unfurling downward.
Duan, maintaining his concentration, continuously emitted mist while retreating gradually.
Tao’s smile faded as he observed Huang’s pained expression gradually recovering from his stealthy attack. Clasping his hands, he shouted and released all five azure light spheres simultaneously toward Huang.
Fifth Volume: Breaking the Three Realms
Huang, with his treasure deployed and spiritual energy exhausted, glared fiercely as Tao continued his relentless assault, his heart burning with fury. Clenching his teeth, he did not dodge, but instead used his flywhisk to intercept Tao’s cyan light, sending Mei Qing along with the whisk’s threads straight toward the cyan glow.
Tao had not expected Huang’s decisiveness, resorting to such a desperate strategy. He had invested heavily to capture Mei Qing, only for Huang, that sly old fox, to repeatedly foil his plans. It was too late to regret when the five streaks of cyan light shot across the sky, colliding head-on with Huang’s whisk, igniting a dazzling spectacle.
A rustling sound persisted as the拂尘’s threads snapped, the青light erupting into dazzling sparks, striking Mei Qing one by one.
Tao gritted his teeth. Even a Daoist immortal would suffer severe injuries from such an unprotected blow. Mei Qing, restrained by Huang, endured Tao’s full-force strike with his physical body—certainly reduced to ashes. Tao’s efforts were in vain; he gained nothing.
His usual smiling face hardened with frost, rage surging from his heart. Just as he prepared to vent his anger, a colossal fluctuation shook the area, destabilizing his stance and disrupting his protective energy. Looking closely, he was astonished.
A gigantic golden fist suddenly emerged from the void, unleashing a flurry of fist shadows accompanied by a whistling golden wind, clashing with a sound like ringing blades and spears, striking the handle of Huang’s flywhisk, shattering it into pieces, and scattering jade fragments amidst the howling gales.
As the wind subsided, Tao was amazed to see a colossal bronze figure standing in the sky.
The bronze figure, adorned with ancient talismanic patterns and emitting golden light, stood over ten zhang tall, clad in armor and wearing a battle crown, wielding a massive sword. It resembled a descending immortal, majestic and awe-inspiring, exuding a powerful, murderous aura.
As the bronze figure stabilized, it let out a long, mournful howl toward the sky, emitting a悲怆至极的 roar.
Despite Tao’s profound cultivation, the sudden roar caused his head to buzz, his legs to weaken, and his spiritual energy to surge chaotically, forcing him to retreat dozens of zhang. Glancing at Huang and Duan, who had also retreated, they all wore astonished expressions.
After the roar, the bronze figure slowly turned its massive head, expressionless, toward the three. With a ringing sound, the giant sword was raised high, blocking out the sunlight and casting a shadow over the three figures, exuding unparalleled might.
“That’s not good!” Tao shouted. “Join forces!”
Understanding Tao’s intent, Huang and Duan realized the bronze figure must be connected to Mei Qing. Clearly viewing them as enemies, only combined efforts offered a fighting chance. Internal strife would doom them.
Realizing this, Huang and Duan simultaneously roared, deploying their magical treasures, unleashing runes, and instinctively employing their strongest defenses.
Huang summoned the scroll once more, this time fully activating it. The scroll unfurled across the sky, emitting a golden light, revealing a vivid crimson rune. The red symbol gradually condensed into a beam of red light, dripping with a nectar-like liquid that flowed down gently, forming a golden halo around Huang, glowing as if he were a radiant golden figure.
Compared to Huang’s radiant yellow light, Tao’s approach was simpler.
He tossed the jade ruler upward, his left hand sweeping over it, five orbs of light reappearing on the ruler. Tao’s figure became translucent, resembling a ghostly shadow clinging to the ruler, flickering and unstable.
Duan shouted, conjuring a mass of black mist, from which several skeletons emerged, forming a grim white bone array that emitted阵阵black smoke to conceal his figure.
Though each acted independently, their expertise was evident. Huang advanced, Tao ascended, and Duan guarded below, forming a Heaven-Earth-Man array, their energy interconnected, steady as Mount Tai.
The bronze figure appeared slow but moved swiftly. As the trio deployed, a deafening metallic clang resounded, dark shadows loomed overhead, the giant sword emitted strange and dazzling blade light, accompanied by a chilling, eerie sound, and slashed down with the might of cleaving Mount Hua in two.
As the sword descended through the air,
The Heavenly Book reacted instantly, emitting a resonant sound, and golden light erupted as it unfurled.
The strange runes on the scroll emitted a thicker beam of light, its dripping nectar flowing like a rushing stream, forming undulating waves and shadows around.
The scroll’s lengthy卷轴 displayed various奇异图形与文字, emitting暴烈或温柔的气息, each like a生命, narrating its experiences.
When these breaths met the bronze sword,奇妙 changes occurred.
Like galloping horses racing across the plains, the Yangtze River surges forward, its waves crashing against the rocks. Violent as a volcanic eruption, yet gentle as a spring stream flowing quietly. Entwined and inseparable, the long sword and celestial scroll meet—without a thunderous clash, instead resembling friends engaging in philosophical discussion, displaying the confrontation between two armies, shifting rapidly in countless ways, unpredictable and beyond trace.
This stalemate lasted only briefly. The bronze sword behind was an ancient golden-armored bronze figure, while the Heaven Scroll behind Huang was weaker. Soon, the golden light of the Heaven Scroll began to dim, and it struggled.
At this moment, Tao’s Jade Ruler and Duan’s Black Mist simultaneously intervened.
The jade ruler trembled, and a glowing orb over a foot in size rose up, merging into the Heavenly Book. Each orb, like a drop of pure dew upon the hand, left no trace, yet the光芒 of the Heavenly Book clearly became brighter.
Duan’s black mist clung to the tip of the copper sword, fading slightly, only to be replenished again. It consumed three heartbeats before finally dissipating.
With the assistance of the Jade Ruler Light Ball and the black mist, the Celestial Book stabilized the situation.
The bronze figure grew impatient; sword pressure pressed down again and again, yet it couldn’t advance even an inch. His eyebrows shot up, his mouth wildly opened wide, and with a thunderous roar of “Jiang!” he stepped forward boldly, his left hand reaching empty-handed toward the heavenly scroll in the sky.
The giant hand was as large as a house, with fingers like mountain peaks. The three of them exerted all their strength to resist with their swords, entangled within the Heavenly Book’s power, leaving them no capacity to react, and they were seized by the colossal hand.
The bronze figure stands proudly like a mountain, drawing power from both sides, and simultaneously unleashing a stream of white misty gas.
Metal energy governs destruction, sharp and incisive. The bronze figure, filled with rage, surges forward, its oppressive and deadly aura forcing the crowd to retreat. How could the three of them withstand such power? They let out闷humming sounds, the jade ruler wavering as they fell back, the dark energy thinning and revealing their forms.
Huang Guxu was the first to be struck, his body falling like a withered leaf in autumn. He spat out a mouthful of blood, the golden light around him fading rapidly, his true essence nearly shattered. The Celestial Book, struck by the bronze figure’s sword and palm in quick succession, let out a mournful “crack” as it split apart. Fresh blood sprayed sideways like rain from a severed torso, burning and melting the ground into scorched craters.
Huang let out a loud cry, his insides burning with fury, his spiritual energy running amok. His body scattered like a dilapidated house blown apart by the wind. The celestial book was destroyed, his golden core exploded, and a surge of blood rushed to his heart, causing him to faint.
The Bronze figure, righteous and relentless, swung his great sword with the momentum of shattered books, aiming straight at Huang Guxu.
Tao and Duan, like the fox grieving the hare’s death, plotted meticulously to ensure absolute success, yet never anticipated such an outcome.
But the imagined scene of the sword falling and people dying did not occur. The bronze figure’s silhouette was ethereal; as a gentle breeze arose, accompanied by a metallic ringing sound, the bronze figure vanished just as suddenly as it had appeared. Only Mei Qing was left lying unconscious, with the small bronze figure beside her.
Tao and Duan were overjoyed, and after a moment of astonishment, they quickly took action, using their magical artifacts to seize Mei Qing.
The jade ruler and the black mist appear in the sky in the blink of an eye.
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