"I have arrived!"
In the blink of an eye, Xuanlong Daozhang charged into the battle zone and immediately joined the fray. With a single shake of his horsetail whisk held high, thousands upon thousands of its bristles suddenly stiffened into needle-sharp points, resembling countless long spears that thrust forward. Instantly, the space before him was pierced full of holes.
"It's you, Xuanlong Daozhang!"
The Grand Elder of Tianliang Sacred Land immediately felt a surge of pressure and recognized the figure's identity.
"Indeed, I am Xuanlong Daozhang!" Xuanlong Daozhang declared with a loud laugh, brandishing his whisk and forcing the Grand Elder into retreat with a swift series of attacks.
"Xuanlong Daozhang, what grudge does our Tianliang Sacred Land hold against you? Why must you come against us?" the Grand Elder asked, his face darkening.
He had already been struggling more and more during his long battle with the Nether King. Now, with Xuanlong Daozhang joining the fight, he found himself in an even tougher spot.
"Hahaha... How dare you speak of there being no grudge! From the moment I made my appearance in this world, your Tianliang Sacred Land has consistently participated in the pursuit and attempts to hunt me down. Moreover, capturing Cai Feng to threaten me is a deed your holy land also has a hand in. You have been opposing me all this time. Do you still have the nerve to claim there is no grudge? I believe that should be my question to your Tianliang Sacred Land!"
The Grand Elder listened to Xuanlong Daozhang's words, his mouth opening and closing as he struggled to find a retort.
"Surrender your life!"
Xuanlong Daozhang grew more ferocious with every move. His whisk became like a rod of iron, each bristle rapidly enlarging and transforming into thick, giant spears that effortlessly shattered the surrounding space. Cooperating with the Nether King, who wielded the Netherworld Yin Blade, they drove the Grand Elder into a sorry state.
Boom...
As the battle reached its peak of intensity, Xuanlong Daozhang suddenly opened his mouth and spat out ninety-nine white longswords. They erupted into ninety-nine white dragon apparitions, roaring furiously as they surged towards the Grand Elder. This was a formidable Sword Formation!
The white Sword Formation tore through the void, instantly obliterating the space ahead and transforming it into fragments of time and space.
"Hahaha... You can't hold on much longer!" Xuanlong Daozhang roared with laughter.
The battle between three Heavenly Boundary Realm experts was terrifying. The destructive energies unleashed nearly obliterated a swath of heaven and earth, with the vast majority of forest viewers unable to perceive the specific details of the fight.
Moments later.
"Ahhh!"
Everyone heard a single cry of anguish.
"Someone was injured? Who could it be?"
All onlookers felt their hearts tighten, though they already vaguely suspected the answer.
Sure enough, in the next instant, they saw a figure flung out from the center of the clash. Its body was a broken, shattered wreck, crisscrossed with bloody fissures like a statue carved of flesh and bone on the verge of total fragmentation.
It was none other than the Grand Elder of Tianliang Sacred Land!
"The Grand Elder is defeated!"
The members of Tianliang Sacred Land grew even more desperate.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Xuanlong Daozhang and the Nether King simultaneously closed in on the injured Grand Elder, launching a fierce joint assault.
"I'll fight you with my life!" the Grand Elder bellowed in rage.
Boom...
Another monumental clash erupted between the three Heavenly Boundary Realm masters, the heavens quaking and the earth tearing asunder.
"Ahhh..."
Soon after, the Grand Elder cried out once more. His body was hurled away again, this time with half his torso obliterated, akin to a torn hemp sack. Blood sprayed wildly.
Xuanlong Daozhang and the Nether King pressed forward with ever-increasing momentum. They closed the distance to the Grand Elder, and with just a few moves, shattered his remaining half into dust.
Ye Yunfei gave a mental command, and his Blood Clan Clone dashed forward to begin devouring the Grand Elder's source essence blood.
"Ahhh!... You destroyed my physical body, damaged my foundational essence, and have ruined our Tianliang Sacred Land's legacy! This blood feud is mortal enmity! Just you wait, sooner or later, I will return for vengeance!"
Suddenly, the Grand Elder's Soul Body materialized some distance away, mounted atop a large golden bell. Letting out one last furious cry, he and the bell tore open a rift in the space beside them with incredible speed and disappeared within, fleeing beyond the battlefield.
The Soul Body of a Heavenly Boundary Realm expert possessed immense Soul Power. Furthermore, that great golden bell was an exceedingly clever soul artifact. Even Xuanlong Daozhang and the Nether King, though they tried to intercept him, could no longer prevent his escape.
"It’s bad! The Grand Elder's body has been destroyed and his soul has fled!"
The Tianliang Sacred Land members who witnessed this scene felt their hearts sinking from head to toe.
"The Grand Elder of Tianliang Sacred Land was defeated! Only his soul remains, and it has escaped!"
The beings watching the spectacle from the outskirts of Tianliang Sacred Land headquarters all exclaimed in shock.
"It seems Tianliang Sacred Land faces a grave situation now!"
"Who could have thought that such a prestigious holy land would be pushed to this extent by a single up-and-coming youngster," someone could not help but lament.
"That was exhilarating! Such a fulfilling fight!" Xuanlong Daozhang returned to Ye Yunfei's side and declared with a hearty laugh.
"Venerable senior, you truly deserve to be known as the First of Tianxiong Domain. Your mighty vigor remains undiminished," Ye Yunfei chuckled.
"That's nothing to speak of. That fellow had only just broken through to the Heavenly Boundary Realm. I, on the other hand, am at the mid-stage Heavenly Boundary Realm. Furthermore, with the help of your magical implement... if I couldn't defeat him under those conditions, I might as well retire from life."
"Your artifact is far too incredible. It belongs to the Netherworld, doesn't it? To think it could exhibit power equal to an early-stage Heavenly Boundary Realm expert. An artifact like this truly incites envy!"
Xuanlong Daozhang looked as Ye Yunfei stored away the Netherworld Yin Blade, unable to suppress his admiration.
"I happened to acquire this magical implement by chance. Now, let's find a way into this ancestral shrine first and eliminate these fellows from Tianliang Sacred Land." Ye Yunfei smiled faintly as he spoke.
"Good! I could never have imagined it—a formidable and renowned Tianliang Sacred Land, being vanquished by the two of us joining hands today. What a supremely satisfying thing this is!"
Xuanlong Daozhang let out a boisterous laugh.
"Was it the two of you?"
Cai Feng, standing nearby, remarked coolly.
"Ah—no! It should be us three! That includes you, Cai Feng!"
Seeing her expression change, Xuanlong Daozhang corrected himself immediately.
This...
Watching this, Ye Yunfei felt a flash of surprise. It seemed that Xuanlong Daozhang followed Cai Feng's words quite obediently, not daring to go against her.
Zisheng Zhenjun had already entered the Phantom Tower for recovery. Ye Yunfei had given him a Divine Crystal to refine. Since Zisheng Zhenjun was merely a Clone, a single Divine Crystal was enough; providing more would be a waste.
"Hmph! The ancestral shrine's defensive Formations were passed down by the ancient founders of our Tianliang Sacred Land. Their grade is high and their power immense. Don't even think about breaking them!"
Inside the ancestral shrine, one of Tianliang Sacred Land's higher-ups couldn't refrain from speaking up defiantly.
The other Tianliang leaders each wore unsightly expressions as they stared fixedly at the three people outside.
"These formations handed down by our forebears are our final bulwark. I hope they can protect our safety," one high-ranking member let out a soft sigh.
"You're overthinking it. These Formations will not shield you."
At that very moment, Ye Yunfei suddenly raised his head and turned a cold smile upon the Tianliang Sacred Land speaker who had voiced those words. Then, he stepped forward, directly walking towards the shrine entrance.
Buzz...
When Ye Yunfei's body made contact with the layers of ancient Formations, ripples shimmered through the glowing light-curtains one after another. However, they provided no obstruction to Ye Yunfei whatsoever. Within a few steps, he had entered the shrine, stood with his hands clasped behind his back, a cold smile playing on his lips as he regarded the assembled figures of Tianliang Sacred Land.
"How can this be?"
All onlookers—inside and outside—stood utterly dumbstruck.
Although the Formations within the Tianliang Sacred Land headquarters were indeed of a high grade, they did not stump Ye Yunfei. After spending some time analyzing and studying them, he had thoroughly penetrated every last one of these ancient Formations and could now move in and out as he pleased.