No one expected him to strike so suddenly. The overbearing power of Star Rectitude Hall's Immortal Technique now revealed its ferocity as countless fire dragons coiled and roared, engulfing the entire beach in flames. Even hastily erected defenses were shattered in an instant.
Ji Tongzhou's sword struck the opponent's defensive barrier with a piercing clang, startling the dozen or so aggressive disciples who had come to seize the Demon Vermilion Fruit. Before they could react, a fiery lotus coalesced in his palm, and he slammed it onto the barrier. The Earth Defense crumbled into nothingness as several fire dragons shot forth, seizing one of Long Mingzuo's lackeys in their jaws. The man was hurled high into the air, his body consumed by flames, his agonized screams chilling to the bone.
This was bad—he truly intended to kill! Panic spread through both sides as disciples hastily erected ice walls or summoned Spring Rain Art. The lackey was quickly rescued, the rain dousing the flames, but his body was already half charred, his consciousness fading.
In the blink of an eye, one man lay grievously wounded. The dozen opposing disciples trembled with fear as Ji Tongzhou, wreathed in towering flames like a demonic Asura from hell, charged toward them. Shock and fury surged through the group—since their opponent had shown no mercy, neither would they. Scattered Earth Barriers rose in his path, while others unleashed countless water dragons, their coils suppressing the raging inferno on the beach.
"We can't let him kill anyone here!" Ye Ye shouted, releasing his own water dragons to clash with the enemy's. "Li Fei, protect Tongzhou—restrain him if he loses control!"
Though no one held any goodwill toward Long Mingzuo's faction, and Ye Ye's group bore the grudge of a ruined homeland, killing was another matter—especially here. Sparring among disciples was meant to be measured; how could they explain fatalities to the elders?
Two fiery lotuses whirled before Ji Tongzhou as he ignored the Earth Barriers. With a sudden spin, he unleashed a torrent of flaming rain. Where the embers landed on Bronze Wall Techniques, they transformed into countless fire serpents, forcing the opposing disciples to scatter once more under the scorching assault. In the next instant, Ji Tongzhou's sword flicked upward, impaling another of Long Mingzuo's followers. As his palm surged with another fiery lotus, golden light streaked above—Golden Arrow Rain rained down, yet he paid it no heed. The lotus struck, burning through the man's last defense, eliciting screams of agony.
Countless metallic clangs rang out as the golden arrows failed to pierce the Bronze Wall Technique surrounding Ji Tongzhou, scattering harmlessly at his feet. Consumed by bloodlust, he barely noticed. When Spring Rain Art doused the flames on the disciple he'd struck, the man—now barely alive—collapsed limply. Without a glance, Ji Tongzhou lunged toward the next target.
Some had already realized Li Fei's crucial role as the group's primary support, secretly reinforcing Ji Tongzhou's defenses. Capitalizing on their numbers, most disciples engaged Ji Tongzhou's group while others attempted to harass her. Li Fei dissolved into green smoke to evade, but her peripheral vision caught countless tiny leaves slicing from both sides, golden arrows descending from above, and flames surging beneath her feet. With no choice, she erected Bronze Wall Techniques on all sides, enduring the relentless barrage.Yet there were still golden lights she couldn't block in time. A sharp pain shot through Li Fei's left cheek as blood streamed down her neck, soaking her clothes. She couldn't even spare a moment to heal herself—their opponents outnumbered them by more than double, with four or five attackers focusing solely on her. She was completely overwhelmed.
Ye Ye and the others were entangled with over a dozen enemies and couldn't come to her aid. Wiping the blood from her face, Li Fei transformed into green smoke once more to evade the incoming Supreme Harmony Art. Suddenly, she noticed Ji Tongzhou still recklessly expending fire spells, his back covered in blood. The Bronze Wall Technique he had erected earlier must have already been shattered.
Li Fei immediately formed hand seals to reinforce his defenses when unexpectedly, her wrist was seized. Lei Xiuyuan's voice, laced with anger, whispered in her ear: "Worry about yourself first!"
Startled, she felt her body suddenly lifted as he scooped her up and flew dozens of feet away in an instant.
Lei Xiuyuan's expression was dark as he roughly pushed her aside and extended his palm. A dazzling, shrieking flying sword materialized with a piercing whistle like a bamboo flute. His gaze swept their surroundings—Ye Ye and the others were still pinned down, while the attackers who had been focusing on Li Fei now turned their attention to Ji Tongzhou. Behind them, a tall Long Mingzuo disciple lurked motionless behind a Mist Illusion, likely their support.
With a slight lift of his hand, the flying sword shot forth like a streak of golden light, vanishing from sight before instantly piercing through the Mist Illusion. The support disciple froze in shock as the sword cleanly severed his right arm. Strangely, he felt no pain—only unbearable heat radiating from the wound.
The next moment, blood suddenly gushed forth. Overwhelmed by terror, the excruciating pain finally hit him, and he let out a piercing scream. The Mist Illusion collapsed instantly, and even his hovering spell failed as the mist beneath his feet dissipated, sending him plummeting to the beach below.
The scream sent chills through the dozen remaining enemies. The golden light darted unpredictably, its sharp whistling sound fading in and out until it vanished from sight again. Then, with another scream, the last Long Mingzuo disciple had his leg pierced below the knee by the flying sword before he too crashed from the clouds.
This elusive flying sword had severed limbs from two disciples in an instant, leaving no room for defense. With their support injured and no Earth-element disciples to reinforce their barriers, picking them off one by one wouldn't take long. The group surrounding Ji Tongzhou scattered in panic as the sword turned toward them, while those restraining Ye Ye and the others hastily retreated. The enemies regrouped, staring down at the beach where four Long Mingzuo disciples lay writhing in agony, their screams unending. Fear gripped them all.
The flying sword returned to Lei Xiuyuan, circling him several times before dissolving into golden light. Seeing Ji Tongzhou covered in blood yet still charging forward like a man possessed, Lei Xiuyuan shot toward him and kicked him off balance, then followed up with a punch to the face that left Ji Tongzhou dazed.
"If nightmares haunt you, go hide and cry," Lei Xiuyuan said coldly, staring at his bleeding face and the ghost-fire-like fury in his eyes. "Your inability to distinguish reality from delusion is your own stupidity."Ji Tongzhou's face darkened as he met the other's gaze without flinching. He suddenly stood up, raising his fist to strike back, but Ye Ye, who had been behind him, quickly stepped forward to hold him back. "Tongzhou! Calm down!"
Before the words could fully leave his mouth, Lei Xiuyuan struck Ji Tongzhou's neck with a swift chop. Having already expended much of his spiritual energy and sustained numerous injuries, the blow finally proved too much—Ji Tongzhou collapsed, unconscious, onto Ye Ye.
The fierce magical combat came to an abrupt halt. The disciples from both sides stood in tense silence, neither knowing how to bring an end to the standoff.
Lei Xiuyuan stepped forward and said coldly, "This was a personal grudge between us and Long Mingzuo. Now that it's settled, if you still wish to fight, we’re more than happy to oblige."
The dozen or so disciples glanced at Long Mingzuo's four injured companions, who were battered beyond recognition. More importantly, two of them were support disciples—without their Earth Defense, and with the enemy still wielding flying swords, the odds were heavily against them. They had originally intended to rely on their numbers to seize the Demon Vermilion Fruit, but instead of claiming the prize, they had bitten into something far harder, leaving their teeth broken. Retreat now seemed the wisest choice. Since the other side had given them an excuse to back down under the pretense of a personal feud, it was best to take the opportunity gracefully.
Some of them quickly went to retrieve the four injured Long Mingzuo disciples, setting up a healing net to carry them back. One of them spoke up, "Let’s pretend today never happened. Your Immortal Techniques are formidable—we wish you success in completing your trials."
With that, the group swiftly took flight, not forgetting to drag along the stunned Sea Sect disciple who had been watching in shock. Their greed remained unshaken—no doubt they still hoped to snatch someone else’s Demon Vermilion Fruit.
The raging flames that had engulfed the beach gradually burned out. Li Fei and the others exchanged glances, then looked at the unconscious, blood-soaked Ji Tongzhou, momentarily at a loss for words.
Ye Ye hoisted Ji Tongzhou onto his back and sighed. "This isn’t a safe place. Let’s move elsewhere."
Though no lives had been lost, the four Long Mingzuo disciples were severely injured, and Lei Xiuyuan had even severed their limbs. With the severed limbs preserved, they wouldn’t be permanently crippled, but recovery would likely take days. The feud had escalated far beyond what they had anticipated.
The group found another secluded island, only to discover it was thick with demonic energy, shrouded in dark mist and ominous clouds. The only advantage was its rugged terrain, which made it easier to hide.
Ye Ye found a shaded hollow and laid Ji Tongzhou down, carefully examining his injuries. "He’s overexerted his spiritual energy, but otherwise, he’ll be fine. Let him sleep. This place is teeming with demonic energy—there might be monstrous creatures lurking. Li Fei, you stay here and watch over Tongzhou. The rest of us will scout the area."
Ji Tongzhou hadn’t slept for a full day and night, his emotions had been in turmoil, and he had drained his spiritual energy. His wounds were deep and numerous—this ordeal would likely take a toll on him. Li Fei set up a healing net and began channeling spiritual energy into it, only to wince as a sharp pain shot through her left cheek. She had forgotten about her own injury—on her face, no less. Without the healing net, it could have been a disfiguring disaster.
Gritting her teeth, Li Fei gingerly touched the wound. Just as she was about to adjust the healing net, she noticed Ji Tongzhou, who had been lying unconscious, suddenly stir awake. The moment he regained consciousness, he sprang up like a caged beast set free and immediately tried to storm off.
Li Fei hastily grabbed his arm. "Ji Tongzhou! Enough already! They’re long gone! Lie back down and let your wounds heal first!"Ji Tongzhou didn't even glance at her, forcefully shaking off her hand. Li Fei hadn't expected his strength to be so great and stumbled back several steps. Seeing him stride forward again, her temper flared. With a wave of her hand, she summoned vine traps. Caught off guard, Ji Tongzhou's legs became entangled in the vines, sending him crashing face-first to the ground. In an instant, the vines coiled tightly around him, dragging him back to her feet.
But then flames erupted from his body, withering the vines instantly—he still had the strength to use Immortal Technique!
Panicked, she pressed him down, straddling him, and swung her fist in anger. "Idiot! Stop it!"
Ji Tongzhou instinctively grabbed both her wrists and suddenly yanked them downward. Li Fei's chin slammed into his chest, the pain making stars burst in her vision. Then she felt one hand grip the back of her neck while the other tilted her chin up.
He glared down at her coldly, his face smeared with blood, eyes bloodshot. That ghostly fire in his gaze sent another chill down her spine, and she instinctively shrank back.
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