"The tide of battle is finally turning."
Xiao Baigui's expression stiffened slightly as he watched the chaotic melee between the Baigui Corps and the Plum Blossom Swordsmen that had just unfolded.
The Plum Blossom Swordsmen were nothing but young brats, and there were only five of them.
Compared to the fifty Baigui Corps members he had brought with him, there was a tenfold difference in numbers.
Yet, surprisingly, they maintained an even match.
"Were the Plum Blossom Swordsmen this strong?"
Xiao Baigui's brow furrowed.
'They seem to be the ones who recently became Plum Blossom Swordsmen, but to think they're holding their own against the Baigui Corps to this extent.'
The Baigui Castle constantly updated and collected information on the Huashan Sect.
However, the level of the Plum Blossom Swordsmen was more outstanding than he had thought.
Of course, if he stepped in himself, he could quickly wrap up the situation regardless of such things...
"Your opponent is this humble one."
Hao Wujin, who was frowning right in front of him, was keeping his guard up against him.
"Did you say Feiyan Jianjun?"
Xiao Baigui twisted one side of his lip.
"He was someone I've been wanting to meet someday."
The corners of Hao Wujin's eyes turned up sharply.
Right now, he was desperately suppressing the anger surging up to his throat.
The deeds these people had committed were horrific.
Not to mention the sudden attack, they had recklessly set fire to the Bifeng Trading Company.
Because of that, he couldn't even begin to guess how many had lost their lives.
"...You must pay for your crimes."
"Puhahahaha!"
Xiao Baigui, whose eyes momentarily widened at Hao Wujin's shout, burst into laughter.
However, unlike the laughter bursting from his mouth, his eyes were not smiling.
A moment later, the laughter stopped abruptly.
"Pay for my crimes? Isn't that something you bastards should pay, not me?"
Xiao Baigui shot back.
From his perspective, the ones who had to pay for their crimes were them, who had killed the Sahun Corps.
Thwack!
Instantly, ten Baigui Corps members surrounded Hao Wujin and unleashed their hidden weapon techniques.
As if he had known they would ambush him, Hao Wujin raised the sword in his hand and drew a circle.
Clang clang clang!
A sharp sound rang out, and the flying hidden weapons scattered in all directions.
It was then.
Fwiiish—
A sharp hidden weapon, distinct in sound from the previous ones, targeted his left shoulder.
Flash!
He hurriedly took a large step forward and twisted his head to the side, but he couldn't completely avoid the surprise attack.
"Ugh!"
His uniform on the left shoulder tore, leaving a long bloodstain. Drops of blood welled up and trickled down to his wrist.
Biting his lip, he raised his head.
Xiao Baigui was glaring at him, holding a dagger and iron plates between his fingers.
"But this is unexpected. I heard the Zhongnan Sect and the Huashan Sect have been on hostile terms lately, but who would have thought you two would move together."
"...No matter how strained the relationship between our sect and the Huashan Sect may be, isn't it natural if the Baigui Castle is the enemy?"
"Hoh. I suppose so."
Smiling chillingly, Xiao Baigui waved his hand and threw the remaining daggers and iron plates.
Whirr—
As Hao Wujin was deflecting the daggers and iron plates cutting through the wind with his sword...
Ssss—
Xiao Baigui's pitch-black pupils began to turn pure white, as if snow had fallen in them.
It was a phenomenon that manifested when he unleashed the internal energy of the Siyin Guixian Shengong.
Then, he stamped his foot heavily.
Snap!
Loading his internal energy into the Baigui Yexing, his movements only grew more bizarre.
His figure stretched out long, and before he knew it, it connected from where he stood all the way to Hao Wujin.
Startled by the utterly bizarre sight, Hao Wujin swung his sword as if shooing something away.
Slash— Slash—
Xiao Baigui avoided all the swung sword strikes just by tilting his head.
His movements were agile.
However, that was not all.
Swish!
A gust of wind arose. Before he knew it, he had unleashed a kick technique with his left foot as the pivot.
Hao Wujin raised his forearm and blocked the fierce kick technique aimed at his ribs.
"Ugh!"
A dull pain shook his entire body.
It was a violent force that would have made him vomit a bowl of blood if he hadn't blocked it.
Knocked back a step by the impact, Hao Wujin readjusted his grip on his sword and thrust it forward.
It was the sword art pride of the Zhongnan Sect, the Tianxia Sanshiliu Jian (Thirty-Six Swords of the World).
"Ha!"
At the sharp sword form, Xiao Baigui gasped and leapt backward.
Flutter—
The clothes torn by the Tianxia Sanshiliu Jian fluttered in the wind and flew away. And soon, they caught fire and disappeared into ashes.
A probing battle that took place in just a single breath.
That alone was enough for both of them to realize that the opponent was, at the very least, not beneath them.
"The Tianxia Sanshiliu Jian, huh."
Xiao Baigui, who had grasped Hao Wujin's sword technique in an instant, vanished.
"Where!"
Hao Wujin swung his sword horizontally at Xiao Baigui, who appeared right in front of him.
Swish!
Instantly, Xiao Baigui ducked his head.
Because of that, his pitch-black hair billowed as if suspended in the air, and just then...
Whoosh!
From beneath Hao Wujin's chin, the sound of wind crushing down drew closer and closer.
He hurriedly lowered his head, and saw a palm containing a chilling yin energy that made one feel numb just by looking at it rising from below.
"Gasped!"
Horrified, Hao Wujin bent his waist far back and narrowly avoided the palm, but the impact was transmitted entirely.
Ugh—
A groan escaped his lips involuntarily.
Hao Wujin hastily grabbed his head and forced his staggering body upright.
"You dodged that?"
Xiao Baigui wore a look of surprise.
It was a surprise Guiyin Palm aimed at his chin, loaded with the internal energy of the Siyin Guixian Shengong.
It had reached right in front of his nose, and he had unhesitatingly believed it would hit.
Yet, it was narrowly dodged.
Slash— Slash—
Hao Wujin shook his head roughly.
Although it missed, his chin was numb, and because of that, his vision was completely messed up.
Like a rippling wave, Xiao Baigui and the surrounding scenery were melting away.
"To think it's this much even though I dodged. If I hadn't dodged..."
Drip—
Cold sweat formed on Hao Wujin's forehead.
He was by no means an easy opponent.
Huu—
He let out a deep breath that filled his lungs.
Xiao Baigui was not an opponent he could afford to face in his current tense state.
Soon, a soft and pure qi wafted from his entire body.
One of the divine arts pride of the Zhongnan Sect that earned him the moniker Feiyan Jianjun.
The Xuantian Jiangang Qi revealed itself through him.
* * *
"The early stage of the Wuji Realm?"
Tianhui rested his chin on his hand and watched the battles unfolding before his eyes.
His appearance was like that of an idler, but if anyone knew the true identity of what he was sitting on, they would have no choice but to quietly shut their mouths.
A mountain of brutally mangled corpses.
Tianhui was sitting straddled on top of it.
"They're about the same."
His eyes, which had been watching the bloody battle between Feiyan Jianjun and Xiao Baigui, held no sway.
An even match, a fierce struggle of dragon against tiger.
But soon he turned his head.
He had no interest in who would win between the two.
Well, they said he was a close friend of his master in the past, but what did it matter? He didn't even know who his master was.
Swipe—
Tianhui's gaze headed toward the brightly burning flames in the distance.
The storm-like flames soared into the sky as if a dragon was ascending to the heavens, brightly illuminating the dark night sky.
Due to the sweeping fire wind (Huofeng), even those who were drawing water nearby to suppress the flames couldn't easily approach and stood watching in a daze.
'It's taking longer than I thought?'
Tianhui's gaze pierced through the flames.
Inside the scorching flames, Xiandao and Shoucan Dujian were clashing their swords against each other.
"He's definitely improved his skills."
Tianhui's gaze captured Xiandao, who was deflecting and counterattacking Shoucan Dujian's sword.
Was it because the opponent was the Baigui Castle?
Or was it because he was showing off his skills in the murim after reaching the Tianwu Realm? Xiandao was flaunting his martial prowess to his heart's content.
A feast of the Meihua Jianfa unfolding without rest.
However, Shoucan Dujian was not to be trifled with either.
Despite the disadvantageous condition of having only one arm, Shoucan Dujian blocked, deflected, and even counterattacked Xiandao's sword forms.
That wasn't all.
As time passed, he exerted intense internal energy, and his sword forms poured out fiercely like a wind rising in the desert.
The two, having shared a brief clash, came to a halt.
Afterward, the two glared at each other and spread a chilling momentum in all directions as if the true life-and-death struggle was about to begin, and it even instantly swallowed the blazing flames.
Darkness blooming within the suddenly suppressed flames.
Through that gap, the two stared at each other.
But that was only for a moment.
Boom!
An explosive sound erupted between the two.
"Why is he so timid?"
Tianhui said with a displeased expression.
Xiandao was more cautious than he had thought.
As if he hadn't realized what level his realm was at.
'If he just realizes that his current realm is above his opponent's, it'll be over.'
He clicked his tongue with a 'Tsk' and turned his gaze.
The difference between the two was clear enough that he didn't need to watch anymore.
"Are these guys doing well?"
He turned his head with a swish.
Tianhui's gaze turned to the Plum Blossom Swordsmen and the Baigui Corps who were engaged in a chaotic melee.
"As expected, it's still too much for them."
At first, they were fighting better than expected, but the numerical disadvantage was bound to carry more weight as time went by.
The current situation alone was proof of that.
The five who had been relentlessly facing the Baigui Corps had unknowingly grown heavy.
Due to the continued melee, they might not feel it now, but the backlash would be severe.
"Still, they held out for a long time at this level."
Whispering, Tianhui raised his index finger.
Fwip—
Emitting a faint finger wind, he deflected the saber of a Baigui Corps member aiming for the back of Chibi's head.
The saber, greatly shaken by the impact, passed by Chibi and sliced through the air, and Chibi belatedly pivoted on his left foot, making a full rotation, and cleanly slashed the Baigui Corps member's waist.
"Now that we've gained enough of what we came for."
Tianhui slowly stood up.
Stepping on the mangled corpses as he rose, he took in the entire battlefield at a glance and spoke.
"I should start wrapping this up."