Estranged

ultivators had a similar reaction.

His exclamation was rhetorical, and no one answered him.

“No.
Someone has sealed streams of demonic qi in the iron chains.
They would move from a certain gesture so one can let others see it at an appropriate moment.”

Lin Wenyu could not hold back a question: “How do you know?”

Jiufang Changming seemed to not have sensed his suspicion: “Look at the north-eastern corner.”

That was the Xun position, the one where they had originally been staying at.
Lin Wenyu saw nothing out of the ordinary, but Li Muxing could vaguely feel that something was not right.

“Something seems to be fluctuating there?”

Jiufang Changming: “That is the weak point of the formation.
If you want to break it, you should start from there.”

Lin Wenyu was still doubtful: “Why would you want to break it?”

Jiufang Changming: “The creator left this weak point on purpose to lure somebody.”

Lin Wenyu still did not get it, but Li Muxing understood his words.

“Daoyou Sun, are you trying to say that clan master Jiang… That he has an accomplice that will come to his rescue? So Immortal Luomei chose this place on purpose to force that person to appear?”

“Daoyou Li is quick to catch on.”

Before Li Muxing could reach the next conclusion, the ground under their feet trembled, and a huge wave of spiritual power rushed from the north-eastern corner.
It headed towards the cultivators, so everyone took a step back subconsciously, while unsheathing their weapons.

But what came surging at them was an unprecedentedly dense and sinister qi!

Everyone’s faces betrayed their shock.

“My weapon!” someone shouted.

Everybody looked at the person who had shouted and saw that the weapon in that person’s hand had shattered suddenly like frost when the black qi struck, and even their hands were stained black.
This person was startled first, but quickly became angry and rushed towards the source of the black mist.

The thick black fog slowly scattered, revealing a person in black robes.

No one knew who that person was.

No one, except for Jiufang Changming and Immortal Luomei.

Yao Wangnian’s ghost qi made everyone pale, and as the crowd stepped away from him, those who moved forward to surround him looked terrified.

The faces of the masters who stood on the high platform turned more solemn.

“Where did this ghost cultivator come from?!”

“Preposterous! Is the Qianlin Assembly some kind of common gathering where anyone can come and leave as they wish!” said villa owner Liu, who was outraged.

At this moment, Ouyang heard Ren Yousu muttering.

“Why does this person seem familiar?”

Ouyang looked more closely and also felt that this cultivator felt like an old acquaintance of his.

But this individual’s robes covered most of their face, and only left out the chin, while their entire figure was wrapped in the netherworldly qi.
Ouyang could not recall ever making an acquaintance out of a ghost cultivator.

“Jiang Li was wronged.” The person was talking indistinctly, and his voice, like a ghost, reached everyone’s ears, chilling them to the bone.
“His only mistake was his limitless adoration towards his shizun.
He didn’t believe what his master really was and wound up where he stands today because he wanted to ask him in person.
Luomei, do you at least think of your two disciples in your dreams in the middle of the night?”

“I remember…” Ren Yousu gasped with astonishment, “He is Yao Wangnian!”

When the name was uttered, even Luomei who stood far away flinched slightly.

“Who is Yao Wangnian?”

“Luomei had two direct disciples: Yao Wangnian and Jiang Li.
The older one was even more powerful than Fu Dongyuan or Sun Wuxia who fought today, a truly gifted genius!”

“Didn’t he die under some strange circumstances? How could he have appeared here?”

“What does he mean? Did Immortal Luomei kill his own disciples?”

The crowd buzzed loudly, coming up with all kinds of explanations.

Immortal Luomei looked calm.

“So, you have come out.
Very well.
Your shidi fell to this state because of your schemes, so I, as your master, have no other choice but to eliminate evil and right the wrongs according to the Heavenly Dao.
Good and evil can surely trade places, but humans and demons are incompatible.
The Wanjian Immortal Clan will not tolerate a disciple who has colluded with demons!”

After he finished his speech, his expression changed abruptly.
With exceedingly high speed and force, he leaped up and rushed towards Yao Wangnian.

At the same moment, the Guyue Sword that had been hovering above Jiang Li’s head plunged down.
Jiang Li was unable to move, so he could only wait for his death.

If Yao Wangnian wanted to save Jiang Li, he would have to turn his back towards Luomei and die for sure.
However, if he wanted to reflect Immortal Luomei’s attack, he could not rescue Jiang Li who was in mortal danger.

Jiang Li was very important to Yao Wangnian.
Not only was he a childhood friend, but he was also a piece of evidence that attested to Yao Wangnian’s unjust sufferings as his fate was almost the same!

The only difference was that Jiang Li’s tragic ending was unfolding now and could still be prevented.
On the contrary, when Yao Wangnian encountered difficulties and his master plotted to kill him, no one had come to his rescue.

As long as Jiang Li was alive, Yao Wangnian was not fighting the war against Luomei alone.
And if Jiang Li died, Yao Wangnian would once again stand alone against the entire world.

And most important of all, Yao Wangnian had already fallen to the point that his appearance was ruined, his body had been turned into that of a ghost, and he was all alone with nothing left to lose.
In contrast, Jiang Li still had hope, a slim chance to survive, and avoid turning into that neither human nor ghost-like creature that Yao Wangnian had become.

In the blink of an eye, Yao Wangnian made a decision.

Overwhelming ghost qi gathered around him and suddenly launched itself towards the Guyue Sword!

After Yao Wangnian died, Jiang Li would be next.

After these two hindrances were gone, there would be no more hidden variables.

The spiritual powers surged forward in waves, almost blotting out the sky in endless torrents, making everyone’s heart fall.

This kind of power was the very definition of earth-shattering and sky-splitting.

Spiritual powers blended with ghost qi, dancing in the violent wind.
The sand and the stones rose into the air in a hazy mess that obstructed their view.
Everybody was forced to quickly retreat from the storm.

This was Luomei’s true power!

Ren Yousu and Ouyang looked at each other, both pale.
The latter wanted to stop Luomei.
No matter what one thought, the whole matter was suspicious.
It was no longer an internal affair of the Wanjian Immortal Clan, but a larger issue that concerned an invasion of demons.
Ouyang could not stand aside and watch Luomei kill them.

But as soon as he raised his hand, master Liu Zhengling of the Zhengrong Mountain Villa moved too, ordering his sword to obstruct Ouyang’s path forward.

“Master Ouyang, what do you intend to do?”

“Master Liu, please step aside!” Ouyang frowned.

“The Immortal is enough to deal with this matter.
Master, lest you risk endangering innocent people, sit by and watch, and don’t rush into the conflict.”

“Master Liu, you have no right to interfere with my decisions.”

“This is an internal conflict of the Wanjian Immortal Clan!”

Ouyang was not in the mood to talk nonsense with him, so he just shook his sleeves.
Of course, Liu Zhengling did not dare stop him by attacking, but even this little delay was enough for Luomei to reach Yao Wangnian’s back!

There was no doubt that Yao Wangnian was to die here and now!

Jiang Li raised his head abruptly to look at Yao Wangnian.
His face was distorted from the excruciating pain and his body was shaking.
He seemed to be struggling to break free from the chains, but no matter how hard he tried, in the end, he could only stand and watch his shixiong die.

No, there’s another person who can help.

Luomei suddenly felt a stark gust of spiritual power rush at him from behind.
The cultivation base of his new opponent was, unexpectedly, not inferior to Luomei’s.
He was forced to turn around to deal with the sneak attack first.

A figure descended from above, and their spiritual powers clashed.
The two of them had to jump backwards from the shockwave, and as they landed on the tiles, the stones under their feet broke into countless pieces that flew in all directions.

Luomei squinted.

He felt that such tremendous pressure that assaulted him could only belong to one formidable enemy he had previously encountered.

Yet the one standing in front of him was “Sun Wuxia”, the one who took the first place in the Qianlin Assembly.

“Who.
Are.
You?” Luomei put stress on every word.

He was reminded of his battle against Jiufang Changming in Hongluo, but at that time, his opponent did not demonstrate such unadulterated power.

“My humble self is called Jiufang Changming.”

He raised his hand to his face, and it changed immediately, his black hair turning white near his waist.
This was indeed Jiufang Changming.

“Impossible.” Luomei whispered.
It was not that he felt fooled, but rather could not believe that his opponent could have reached such a breakthrough in the short time since their last meeting.

If the Jiufang Changming from Hongluo was an opponent Luomei would only bestow a single glance, the Jiufang Changming in front of his eyes was a powerful enemy that even Luomei was not sure if he could win against!