Chapter 85

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Chapter 85: The Crying Dragon

In both the East and West Continents, demon cultivators were causing trouble. Many sects sent people to support and train their own inexperienced disciples.

Especially in the East Continent, there were many demon cultivators roaming around. Despite this, Jiang Si, the head of the Jiang family, fearlessly rushed to the frontline at sea with his knife.

"Jiang Si is quite brave, knowing to charge ahead with his knife. How can we sword cultivators lose to those knife cultivators?"

Zhu Erchong pointed his sword at Middle Island and said to Bao Pilong with joy, "Hey, look, we’ve reached Middle Island!"

However, the tense atmosphere expected on Middle Island did not exist. The heroic scenes that the two of them imagined before arriving, such as "Jiang Si facing off against the demon cultivator, ultimately losing, only to be saved at the last moment by two flying swords. He cried out in praise, ‘It turns out it was the sword cultivators who saved my life,’" did not happen.

The skies above Middle Island were empty, and behind the city walls, there were only some rudimentary stone houses and wooden sheds built. Instead of people stationed for patrols, they were all retreating towards the Four Continents?

Zhu Erchong and Bao Pilong hesitated in their hearts. As they entered the house with noises coming from it, they saw Jiang Si and Qian Lishen facing each other, seemingly in a heated argument.

Seeing these two sword cultivators come in, they both spoke hoarsely and looked strangely at the two men, "What are you two doing here?"

Used to a life of poverty, Zhu Erchong and Bao Pilong did not mind the simplicity of the house. They familiarly found a place to sit down beside them.

"We came to help you kill the demon cultivator. We sword cultivators have a strong sense of justice. We draw our swords when it’s time to do so." Zhu Erchong said as he looked around. "But I heard rumors that a large number of demon cultivators have invaded Middle Island… Where are the demon cultivators?"

Qian Lishen moved expressionlessly to the side, distancing himself from Zhu Erchong, and said apathetically, "They were all killed by Sect Leader Ye and Martial Sister Wen."

Hearing this answer, even though Zhu Erchong and Bao Pilong were already used to Wen Yun’s cruelty, they were almost speechless and asked in disbelief, "All of them were killed?"

"Yes," replied Qian Lishen softly. "She ordered us all to retreat and is preparing to stay behind to kill the immortals herself."

The more I listen, the more unbelievable it gets, how come even immortals are involved now?

Bao Pilong laughed and asked, "What messy things are you all talking about? By the way, where did Martial Sister Wen and the other person go? Before coming here, I thought there wouldn’t be any good food on Middle Island, so I specially bought a table of delicious food from the restaurant. Hurry up and call them back to eat and drink."

As he spoke, he took out food and drinks from the space bag.

"Martial Sister Wen found out that the reason why the demon cultivators are acting so recklessly is because they have the help of an immortal," Jiang Si tapped the knife handle without looking up, his voice low, "She wants to go with Sect Leader Ye to kill that immortal, and she has been setting up arrays outside for three days."

He recounted the events of three days ago in detail. Bao Pilong and Zhu Erchong were initially listening with indifference, but their faces gradually turned serious.

The atmosphere in the room became heavy and tense at some point.

Suddenly, the plate of colorful braised pork in Bao Pilong’s hand slipped quietly, almost falling onto the dusty ground.

Just then, a red lightning bolt swiftly flew by, skillfully catching the falling plate of pork with a "whew" sound before it could drop.

Sadly, it was caught with the mouth.

However, no one paid attention to the elbow, as everyone in the room looked up to the cheerful girl who was walking quickly towards them. They saw her smiling, as she casually greeted them, "Hey, you two brothers brought such a big table of good stuff, and I didn’t come out to welcome you. It’s my fault this time."

Wen Yun casually moved a chair over to sit down, poured a cup of tea for Ye Shubai first, then poured herself a cup, finished it with a smile, and said to everyone, "I’ve set up my formation. I saw them leaving outside just now, so it’s about time for you all to leave too."

Just as Zhu Erchong was about to invite her to eat meat, he suddenly looked up but hesitated to speak.

In the end, it was Qian Lishen who spoke first, "Jiang Si and I plan to stay here and fight alongside you all."

He sat upright, but his eyes secretly glanced over to where Wen Yun was, waiting for her response.

Wen Yun didn’t speak, but Ye Shubai calmly said, "You should go, things are chaotic in both continents now. You might as well go there to fight evil."

Both he and Wen Yun were people with warm hearts and cold minds. Even at such times, they still carefully considered their pride and never directly said, "You are too weak, not the opponent of the Immortal ascenders."

But how could they not be aware of their own strengths?

They were not aware of Ye Shubai’s true strength, but they knew exactly how terrifying Wen Yun was. Their peers knew it best, knowing how astounding it was to form a Nascent Soul at the age of sixteen.

Jiang Si tightly held onto the knife and stood up abruptly, gritting his teeth as he said, "I, Jiang Si, will never abandon my fellow Daoists just to survive…"

"This is not abandonment!"

Unexpectedly, it was Zhu Erchong who interrupted Jiang Si.

He solemnly held Jiang Si’s hand, about to draw his sword, and earnestly pointed out, "Friend Jiang, we are only at the Golden Core realm. Forcing ourselves to stay here not only won’t help them, but will only cause more chaos."

Hearing this, Bao Pilong looked at his close friend in surprise. He never expected that the other party would suggest leaving behind Martial Sister Wen and Martial Brother Ye voluntarily.

Wen Yun was actually very pleased with Zhu Erchong’s newfound wisdom. She raised a cup, filled it one by one, and smiled lightly, "Let’s go first this time, and next time we’ll all go together, for sure!"

She clinked glasses with the others, who all had unpleasant expressions.

"Consider this journey back as a practice for everyone. We will come looking for you all to reunite another day!"

…

Jiang Si stood at the edge of Middle Island, holding a knife, with Qian Lishen standing beside him, looking worried.

Zhu Erchong took a step forward and grabbed his wrist, "Brother Jiang, it’s time to go, don’t let Martial Sister Wen come to rush us."

After a long silence, Jiang Si finally exploded, swatting away Zhu Erchong’s hand, frowning angrily, and saying, "We are all much older than her! Why should we, the older ones, hide in the back while she, a young girl, risks her life? If a powerful enemy comes, none of us can escape. She is sacrificing herself to save us! How dare you take a step back!"

Qian Lishen stood still, silent, and even Bao Pilong, who was closest to Zhu Erchong, did not speak up for him at that moment, but looked at him with a complicated expression.

Zhu Erchong wiped the spit off his face, stayed silent for a moment, and instead of getting angry, he smiled.

He looked at the other three with great satisfaction on his face, laughed, and said, "You guys don’t understand anything!"

As danger approached, Zhu Erchong looked around, made sure Wen Yun and Ye Shubai were not there, then waved to the three, signaling them to come closer.

In their doubtful eyes, Zhu Erchong pointed to the east and whispered, "There is a very hidden rocky cave over there. Brother Bao and I accidentally fell in last time. Although it is usually covered by sea water, the cave inside remains dry and can hide about ten people… I assure you, Martial Sister Wen doesn’t know about it."

Do you guys even understand military tactics?

*

Wen Yun truly had no idea.

At this moment, she stood shoulder to shoulder with Ye Shubai on the high wall, watching Zhu Erchong and his group fly far away, letting out a sigh of relief.

She turned around and gazed towards the end of the sea, sighing, "Dongxuan World is still tracking Senior Su Yuan. He must conceal his aura and hide his tracks. Otherwise, if he is traced back here, the entire cultivation world may be wiped out by Dongxuan World."

A group of pigs who know they are going to be sent to the slaughterhouse are likely to revolt. To eliminate this threat, Dongxuan World may very well take action.

For those from the upper realms, getting rid of a declining lower realm is effortless.

"It’s okay. Don’t expect too much from others. The only thing you can rely on is the sword in your hand," said Ye Shubai calmly. After saying this, he noticed Wen Yun furrowing her brows slightly. He hesitated for a moment, then quickly realized, and added gently, "And you."

"And you."

His trust in her was deeper than his sword, so when faced with life and death challenges.

Wen Yun smiled and looked at him, saying, "You must be very careful when tempting Dao Jie into the battle this time. If you are not strong enough, remember not to force it, it’s important to escape for your life."

She needed to stay on the island to activate the countless formations, so she had to leave the task of luring the enemy to Ye Shubai.

The little fire dragon had already transformed, its meat wings flapping, causing waves and sand to fly. Its golden-red eyes shining like gems, it said, "Alright, with me protecting this silly sword cultivator, do you still worry that he won’t come back?"

Wen Yun didn’t argue with the little fire dragon as usual, instead, she looked up at Ye Shubai, pursed her lips, and said very seriously, "You must come back safely. I will be standing here waiting for you."

Her hands were hidden behind her back, fingers interlocked tightly, turning pale.

Wen Yun rarely spoke to him in such a serious tone, and this time Ye Shubai didn’t respond as seriously as before. He remained silent throughout.

The silent sword cultivator just looked at her quietly, then took a step forward, raised his hand, gently placed it on Black Shun’s head, and softly stroked it in her surprised eyes.

Finally, Ye Shubai took out a bag of pastries wrapped in oiled paper from his space bag, it was the last one he had kept.

He handed it to Wen Yun, calmly reminding her as usual, "It’s from that store you like, don’t eat too much at once."

Without saying another word, he gracefully flew onto the back of the little dragon, leaving her with only a distant silhouette.

Master once said that being a sword cultivator is a dangerous profession, so before heading out each time, one must leave a letter to their closest person in case they are killed, to ensure their belongings are distributed properly.

He did not leave one.

Because someone was waiting for him, he would definitely come back.

*

The oppressive atmosphere of the distant sky and earth drew closer, causing the small dragon’s wing flapping speed to gradually slow down. It muttered a curse under its breath, breathing out a small cluster of flames from its nostrils, continuing towards the dark Demon Realm.

There was a beam of light, resembling the golden light the day Dao Jie descended.

The small dragon’s wings felt as heavy as a mountain, each flap seeming like it was supporting an enormous weight, making it difficult to move. It finally sensed something amiss, nervously warning, "He has noticed us!"

Ye Shubai patted its wings to reassure it, remaining calm as if not preparing for a fight, "Then let’s fight."

Dao Jie really did find Ye Shubai.

The powerful pressure from the heavens suddenly focused on Ye Shubai, becoming stronger by the moment. It was so overwhelming that it made people feel a sense of fear and a desire to kneel down.

A thunderous voice echoed through the heavens and earth—

"How dare a lowly commoner like you defy me! Kneel and beg for mercy, offer up your power of rules, and I may spare your life!"

Ye Shubai remained silent, the wooden sword in his hand starting to emit a faint golden light, a hot aura suddenly emanating from him.

Accompanied by the clear cry of a phoenix, the sword intent carrying the power of life and death transformed into a magnificent Fire Phoenix soaring through the sky, charging towards the golden light.

However, after the golden light passed, the phoenix instantly extinguished, turning into ash scattered in the world, completely powerless in the fight.

Dao Jie took a step forward, the seemingly distant golden light shrinking and suddenly appearing in front of Ye Shubai.

"Hmph, how dare you confront me, you have no idea what the world is like after ascension!"

Little Dragon was scared when it saw that Ye Shubai and Wen Yun’s plan was known to Dao Jie. It knew that Ye Shubai needed to fight Dao Jie and then escape to lure Dao Jie to Middle Island to kill him. But now it seemed that the gap between them was too big, whether to ascend or not, it was a huge difference between them!

Ye Shubai did not panic in his eyes, as if he had already predicted that his sword intent could not harm Dao Jie. He swung his wooden sword again, this time three sword intents in a row!

At first, Dao Jie seemed amused as if watching ants struggle, watching Ye Shubai with interest, then looking slightly surprised.

"Why does your peasant sword intent vaguely contain the breath of the power from the top-level world? By the way… I heard that girl is also from this world, how did you both cultivate the power of the world?"

Ye Shubai did not answer, one sword strike after another!

When one of the sword intents fell on Dao Jie and left a shallow blood mark on the back of his hand, his brows slowly furrowed, his eyes became icy and merciless.

Watching ants struggle was interesting, but when the ant dared to bite him, he was not so polite.

A golden light emanated from Dao Jie’s hand, shining like the burning sun, he casually pressed his palm towards Ye Shubai.

The sweat on Little Dragon’s forehead stood on end, its chubby body quickly twisted and it fled backwards with Ye Shubai. The overwhelming killing intent behind them was getting closer and closer, at this moment it regretted eating too much, as if it couldn’t fly as fast as before.

At that moment, Ye Shubai said coldly, "Little Hong, I’m coming."

Without hesitation, he threw a wooden sword, and the small fire dragon quickly transformed into a pig. Ye Shubai flew up with his sword and quickly embraced the small fire dragon in his arms.

Like a gust of wind, they flew swiftly towards Middle Island.

He was the fastest sword cultivator in the world, no one could match his speed with a sword!

Dao Jie followed behind at a steady pace. At first, he seemed playful, but after Ye Shubai dodged the two palm strikes, Dao Jie began to show impatience in his eyes.

"How dare you, mere livestock, try to escape!"

A supreme force of nature emerged from his palm, turning into an immense pressure that rushed towards Ye Shubai’s back!

The figure of the sword cultivator on the sword trembled violently, blood splattering in the sky. Despite teetering on the sword, he did not fall off, his speed increasing as he was about to fly towards the island ahead.

This time, Dao Jie was truly not in the mood to play any more cat and mouse games. He unleashed his full cultivation power and after several strikes towards the white figure ahead, he reached out his hand to grab –

"Don’t run away, come back to me!"

The hand holding the little fire dragon slowly let go, and the sword cultivator forcefully threw it towards Middle Island at the last moment.

After a brief daze, it finally regained consciousness and desperately flapped its wings to fly back. However, the pressure from the Ascender immobilized it, no matter how hard it struggled, it was futile.

The dragon cried out in despair, "Little Bai!"