Chapter 352: Chapter 185: Encountering Li Yongfeng and Learning the Latest Intelligence

This was even more terrifying!

’Wait, how is he so fast?’

That speed just now was dozens of times faster than Li Yongfeng’s fastest Escape Technique.

’And I couldn’t even see a Tunneling Light. What kind of Escape Technique was that?’

’How could such a fast Escape Technique even exist?’

But he had no time to dwell on these questions. Three streaks of light had already landed around him, forming a Sword Array.

"Wait, Xiao, hold on!"

Li Yongfeng shouted while raising his Magic Shield, "We have no bad blood between us! Why are you coming after me today?"

"The Li Huo Sect is one of the Renowned and Righteous Sects. If you’re going to attack me out of the blue, you at least owe me a reason."

Huh?

The question took Xiao Chen aback.

This was the first time anyone had demanded a reason for his attack. He’d never run into that before.

’Then again, from Li Yongfeng’s perspective, he was just minding his own business when someone popped out of nowhere and attacked without any explanation. He must be pretty confused.’

"Well, since you asked so sincerely, I’ll be merciful and tell you."

Of course, Xiao Chen had a legitimate reason. "The Huidong Commerce Association is colluding with the Divine Fire Sect."

"As its president, you’ve been secretly helping the Divine Fire Sect gather sacrificial offerings. As a Demon-slaying Guard, I am here to bring you to justice. Is that reason enough?"

Li Yongfeng’s expression stiffened.

But he quickly retorted, "Xiao, do you have any proof that I’m colluding with the Divine Fire Sect?"

Huh?

Xiao Chen was amused. ’Is this guy trying to play word games with me?’

He wasn’t in the mood. "Enough of this nonsense! You know perfectly well whether you’ve been colluding with the Demon Sect!"

With that, he activated the Sword Array and began his assault.

"Xiao Chen, you’re trying to kill an innocent man without any proof! Can you live with yourself?"

Li Yongfeng tried to reason with him while parrying the Sword Qi. "Master Yusha has fallen and Master Fu Jian is gravely injured! This is a time when we need all the help we can get."

"Yet here you are, attacking one of your own. Are you trying to aid the enemy?"

This time, Xiao Chen was truly stunned.

He wasn’t some inflexible purist, so he couldn’t care less about Li Yongfeng’s accusations or this laughable attempt at moral blackmail.

’But could it be true that Master Yusha had fallen?’

He remembered hearing rumors like that back in Xianghe Market, but it was just gossip among Qi Refining Stage cultivators.

He hadn’t paid them any mind, considering how often rumors proved false.

But thinking back now, considering the strange situation at Seeking Plum Mountain, it seemed the Righteous Dao was indeed short-handed.

Even Thousand Bamboo True Man had to take action, and they were still one person short.

The fact that the Divine Fire Sect dared to assault a Tier Three Grand Array without fear of an ambush also seemed to confirm it.

’In that case, Li State is probably headed for turmoil.’

.

The Three Great Sects of Li State seemed harmonious, holding their Three-Sect Tournament from time to time.

But that harmony was limited to the Qi Refining Stage disciples; relations between the middle and upper echelons were actually quite poor.

After all, there were only so many Spirit Ores, Spirit Fields, and Spirit Veins in Li State.

If one sect took a little more, another would have to make do with less.

The only reason they hadn’t come to blows was their mutual restraint, each fearing that a war would leave them both crippled, allowing the third sect to reap all the benefits.

If Master Yusha had truly fallen, the safety of the other two masters was of critical importance.

This was especially true for Master Ming Yan. If he was unharmed, things might be stable, but if he was also injured, the Azure Flame Sect would be left as the sole dominant power.

’Whoosh... Better not get ahead of myself.’

Xiao Chen shook his head and focused on intensifying the Sword Array’s assault.

Luckily, the mindless White Bone Giant in the distance hadn’t followed him here.

So, once Li Yongfeng’s Defensive Spiritual Artifacts were exhausted, Xiao Chen easily captured him.

Eager to interrogate him, Xiao Chen immediately used the "Blood Worm" Secret Technique.

A Quarter Hour later, he had the latest intelligence.

The Huidong Commerce Association had multiple intelligence channels.

The Commerce Association’s own intelligence network had discovered that both Seeking Plum Mountain and Luoyan Mountain had fallen due to the lack of a Golden Core Daoist to defend them.

Wangyan Mountain was completely besieged; with the help of the Celestial Secret Pavilion and the Valley of Ten Thousand Flowers, they had pulled back their forces and were barely holding on.

East of Elemental Magnetic Peak, Demon Cultivators now roamed freely, causing countless casualties among Low Tier cultivators and mortals.

The latest intelligence from the Lingyuan Sect was that Master Yusha had unfortunately fallen and Master Fu Jian was injured, but the other Daoists were not seriously harmed.

However, the news from the Divine Fire Sect was different: Master Yusha had died of her grievous injuries, Master Fu Jian’s fate was unknown, and Master Ming Yan, Thunder Sound True Man, and Master Yaohua were all wounded.

Xiao Chen frowned as he processed the information. The situation had deteriorated rapidly.

’What exactly happened inside the Yellow Springs Traveling Palace that day?’

The situation wouldn’t have been so bad, but at the time, neither the Righteous Dao nor the Demon Dao knew that the inheritance and the Spiritual Object were already gone.

The Divine Fire Sect held a geographical advantage and was about to be the first to search the Earth Palace.

In a moment of desperation, Master Fu Jian charged right in, hoping to snatch the inheritance.

Seeing his chance, Master Nijie decisively unleashed his ultimate move—Nijie’s Hell!

Three "Nijie" mirrors materialized nearby, and from them emerged three avatars identical to Master Fu Jian.

Before this, the Righteous Dao had been unaware of Master Nijie’s Daoist title.

Even the Foundation Establishment cultivators within the Divine Fire Sect only knew him as their Sect Leader.

Furthermore, the spot where the Nijie mirrors appeared was conveniently obscured by Demonic Qi, hidden from the view of the Righteous Golden Core Daoists.

So when the Righteous Daoists outside suddenly sensed the appearance of three new Demon Dao Golden Cores, they assumed they had walked into an ambush.

Golden Mace True Man turned and fled, becoming the first to escape the Yellow Springs Traveling Palace.

Thunder Sound True Man, however, didn’t flee immediately, instead risking his life to aid Master Fu Jian.

The end result was that Master Fu Jian, a Sword Cultivator, managed to fight his way out, but only at the cost of his Lifebound Flying Sword.