98: Chapter 98 Anyone who dares to harm a Kunlun disciple will be killed without mercy!

Great Elder Liu Qianqiu had underestimated Dynasty Lord Zhou Shanhe's combat prowess.

He had thought he could at least entangle the other party for a moment, enough for Second Elder Li Wuxie to suppress and take away Lu Jinghan and the other two.

After exchanging blows for only a few breaths, he realized he was terribly mistaken.

Dynasty Lord Zhou Shanhe's palm technique was fierce and overbearing. Every strike carried the surging spiritual energy of the Mahayana Stage Peak, like a collapsing mountain or a raging sea.

Great Elder Liu Qianqiu was forced to retreat step by step, his face turning livid, his arms numb, and the Qi and blood within his body churning like boiling water.

"Scram!"

Dynasty Lord Zhou Shanhe let out a low shout and repelled Great Elder Liu Qianqiu with a palm strike. His figure turned in mid-air, and with a wave of his hand, a sharp blade of light slashed toward Second Elder Li Wuxie, who was pouncing on Lu Jinghan.

Second Elder Li Wuxie's expression changed drastically. He hurriedly withdrew his momentum and struck out with both palms to meet the blade.

"Boom—!"

Second Elder Li Wuxie was sent flying backward again by the impact.

Dynasty Lord Zhou Shanhe stood with his hands behind his back, his robes fluttering in the night wind. His gaze was like a blade as he swept over Great Elder Liu Qianqiu and Second Elder Li Wuxie, his voice steady as a mountain:

"I have said it before; they are honored guests of the Zhouwu Dynasty. With me here, no one shall touch a hair on them."

Great Elder Liu Qianqiu's face was as gloomy as water. He exchanged a glance with Second Elder Li Wuxie, and both nodded simultaneously.

"Attack together."

Great Elder Liu Qianqiu gave a low shout, and together with Second Elder Li Wuxie, they flanked Dynasty Lord Zhou Shanhe from the left and right.

Both were Elders of the Liuli Sect; having fought side by side for thousands of years, their coordination was as seamless as one person.

Great Elder Liu Qianqiu's palm technique was yin-soft and treacherous, while Second Elder Li Wuxie's blade technique was fierce and sharp. One yin, one yang; one soft, one hard—they complemented each other, doubling their power.

Dynasty Lord Zhou Shanhe's expression remained unchanged. He struck out with both palms, fighting two opponents at once without falling into any disadvantage.

For a time, Divine Abilities and Dao techniques flashed constantly above the hillside. Three figures intertwined and flickered in the Void Realm, locked in an intense battle.

On the other side of the hillside, Elder Yin Buer, Li Tianxiong, and Zhuge Yun also moved.

Their target was Lu Jinghan and the other two.

However, the few Imperial Dynasty retainers brought by Dynasty Lord Zhou Shanhe were no pushovers. Three Body Integration Stage retainers attacked simultaneously, blocking Elder Yin Buer and the other two.

Six figures fought in close quarters on the hillside, leaving the entire slope riddled with holes.

Lu Jinghan stood at the entrance of the ruins, his gaze sweeping across the battlefields on the hillside, his brows slightly furrowed.

Battles at the Mahayana Stage and Body Integration Stage were not something he could interfere with.

Even though he had reached Nascent Soul Perfection, he was nothing more than an ant in a battle of this level.

Qin Muchuan and Su Fuguang guarded his sides, their expressions grave.

"Senior Brother, what should we do now?" Qin Muchuan asked in a low voice.

Lu Jinghan did not answer immediately.

His gaze fell upon the half-section of heart-cleansing bamboo. Carrying the heart-cleansing bamboo on him was a disaster he could not shake off.

Only by handing the heart-cleansing bamboo to Revered Master and placing it within Kunlun could he thoroughly sever the tracking of the Liuli Sect.

Lu Jinghan hesitated no longer and took out a teleportation jade talisman from his bosom.

He looked at Qin Muchuan and Su Fuguang and whispered, "Get ready, we're returning to Kunlun."

The two were slightly stunned, then nodded in acknowledgment.

Just then, an aura so vast it was suffocating descended from the sky.

That pressure was like an abyss or a prison, as if the might of Heaven had descended; the air on the entire hillside froze in that instant.

Everyone, whether it was Dynasty Lord Zhou Shanhe, Great Elder Liu Qianqiu, Second Elder Li Wuxie, or those Body Integration Stage retainers, froze in that instant.

Great Elder Liu Qianqiu's pupils contracted sharply, his body stiffened in mid-air, unable to move even a single finger.

Second Elder Li Wuxie's face turned pale; the long blade in his hand hung in mid-air, unable to fall any further.

Elder Yin Buer, Li Tianxiong, and Zhuge Yun were even worse off; they were forced to their knees by the pressure, their faces ashen.

Dynasty Lord Zhou Shanhe also stopped his movements, his figure slightly stiff.

But there was no fear on his face; instead, he showed an expression of relief.

He turned around, looked in the direction the pressure came from, and bowed deeply.

"Junior Zhou Shanhe respectfully welcomes Senior." His voice was respectful and solemn, exceptionally clear on the deathly silent hillside.

A white light lit up from the Void Realm.

Within the white light, a figure slowly emerged.

Dressed in a green robe, carrying a long sword on his back, with a lean face and eyes that seemed to hold the vicissitudes of time.

He stood with his hands behind his back, his sleeves fluttering slightly in the night wind. There was no fluctuation of aura around him, yet it made everyone present feel a shudder from the depths of their Souls. It was a cultivator Undergoing Tribulation.

Great Elder Liu Qianqiu and Second Elder Li Wuxie's expressions sank in an instant.

Elder Ling Xu's gaze swept across the hillside, lingered on Lu Jinghan and the other two for a moment, and nodded slightly.

"Disciples Jinghan (Muchuan, Fuguang) pay respects to Elder Ling Xu!"

Lu Jinghan and the other two walked quickly out from the entrance of the ruins, stood before Elder Ling Xu, and bowed together.

Elder Ling Xu nodded slightly, raised his hand to gesture for them to rise, and said in a gentle tone, "Rise."

Elder Ling Xu's gaze slowly shifted to Great Elder Liu Qianqiu and Second Elder Li Wuxie. There was no emotional fluctuation in those deep eyes, as if he were looking at two walking corpses.

"Liuli Sect?"

Elder Ling Xu spoke; his voice was not loud, but it exploded in their ears like a thunderclap.

Great Elder Liu Qianqiu trembled all over, his face pale. His lips moved several times, and he finally squeezed out a complete sentence: "Sen... Senior, Junior... Junior is..."

"Say no more." Elder Ling Xu raised his hand to interrupt him, his tone indifferent.

"I do not wish to know who you are, nor do I wish to know why you have come."

He paused, swept his gaze over the Liuli Sect members on the hillside, and said calmly, "I will say only this: Dare to touch my Kunlun Disciple, death without mercy!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Elder Ling Xu raised his right hand, pressed his two fingers together like a sword, and slashed gently in the Void Realm.

A Sword Qi, condensed to the extreme, surged from his fingertips and slashed silently toward the Liuli Sect members.

Great Elder Liu Qianqiu and Second Elder Li Wuxie instantly sensed a chill of death, unlike anything they had ever felt before, rising from the bottom of their hearts.

"Run!"

At the cost of a backlash, both simultaneously unleashed escape Divine Abilities and secret techniques, preparing to flee the scene.

Elder Yin Buer, Li Tianxiong, and Zhuge Yun also wanted to escape, but their cultivation was far inferior to that of Great Elder Liu Qianqiu and Second Elder Li Wuxie.

"Boom—!"

When the Sword Qi dissipated, the hillside was already scarred and ravaged.

At the spot where Elder Yin Buer, Li Tianxiong, and Zhuge Yun had been, only a terrifying sword mark remained; not even their bones were left.

In the direction where Great Elder Liu Qianqiu and Second Elder Li Wuxie had fled, two faint auras were rapidly moving away, but they were like candles in the wind, flickering and unstable.

Elder Ling Xu's sword strike, although it had not taken their lives on the spot, had allowed his Sword Intent to invade their internal organs and erode their Meridians, like maggots on a bone.

That Sword Intent contained a trace of Elder Ling Xu's unique Dao of the sword; once it entered the body, it intertwined with their flesh and blood and could not be dispelled at all.

With their cultivation, they might be able to linger on for three to five days by forcibly suppressing it, but when the Sword Intent erupted, it would be the moment their body and Soul were annihilated.

Dynasty Lord Zhou Shanhe stood where he was with his hands behind his back, his gaze fixed on the sword mark, silent for a long time.

He was a powerhouse at the Mahayana Stage Peak, having seen countless brilliant Sword Cultivators and witnessed many extremely sharp sword techniques.

But Elder Ling Xu's sword strike just now had exceeded his understanding of the Dao of the sword.

Dynasty Lord Zhou Shanhe took a deep breath, suppressed the shock in his heart, and turned to walk toward Elder Ling Xu.

He stood before Elder Ling Xu and bowed deeply, his posture even more respectful than before: "Shanhe pays respects to Senior."

Elder Ling Xu's gaze fell upon Dynasty Lord Zhou Shanhe. Those deep eyes were still as calm as water, but they held a hint of faint approval:

"Dynasty Lord Zhou, for stepping in to protect my Kunlun Disciple, I, on behalf of the Sect Master, thank you, Dynasty Lord."

Dynasty Lord Zhou Shanhe was shocked and hurriedly bowed, his voice even trembling slightly: "Senior, you are too kind!"

"Senior Brother Lu and his two companions are honored guests of the Zhouwu Dynasty. Protecting them is the duty of this Junior; it is not worthy of such praise from Senior."

Elder Ling Xu nodded slightly and said no more.