"Let's head up first and take a look."
Sima Xuan shot a glance at Ye Yunfei before transmitting a sound message to the other young powerhouses of the Sima Family around him, then strode upward.
The cave mansion above was likely the one where the Yangming King had secluded himself for cultivation—a treasure of astonishing value—so everyone wanted to go up first and investigate.
"Right. Let's go explore the Yangming King's cultivation cave first, then deal with that brat later to demand the Three-Legged Golden Crow's inner elixir," the other young Sima Family powerhouses near Sima Xuan transmitted among themselves, glaring at Ye Yunfei with their eyes.
"Let's continue upward as well," Ye Yunfei said to Lu Shi.
"Brother Lu, here are some pills for you. Take them while you climb; they'll offer some assistance."
Ye Yunfei took out several jade bottles and handed them to Lu Shi. The Divine Pills inside had just been refined by Ye Yunfei's avatar within the Phantom Tower. They could temporarily enhance physical strength and Divine Power energy, providing some relief against the pressure exerted by this mountain.
"Alright then, Brother Ye. Any pills you give are bound to be good stuff," Lu Shi said excitedly, immediately accepting the jade bottles.
Last time, after refining the Divine Pills Ye Yunfei had gifted him, Lu Shi had broken through to become a Senior Void God. Naturally, he wouldn't refuse these pills now. He started ingesting them right away.
Lu Shi was also a body cultivator, with exceptionally robust physical constitution, so there weren't many rules about how he consumed the pills. He swallowed over a dozen in one go.
"They're truly effective! Brother Ye, after taking these Divine Pills you gave me, both my physical strength and Divine Power energy have significantly increased. The pressure from this mountain has lessened somewhat too. Brother Ye, your pills are truly incredible!" Lu Shi exclaimed in pleasant surprise.
Afterward, Ye Yunfei and Lu Shi picked up their pace, continuing their ascent up the mountain. The higher they climbed, the greater the pressure became.
Gradually, many others could no longer bear the increasingly terrifying pressure and had to stop. Some took out various cultivation resources to replenish themselves and rest on the spot; others, realizing they genuinely couldn't climb any higher, gave up directly and began descending.
"It's you, kid. Not bad! You actually made it this far."
Suddenly, a voice rang out from above. Ye Yunfei and Lu Shi looked up to see Sima Jie of the Sima Family.
Having climbed to this point, Sima Jie seemed utterly exhausted. He was seated cross-legged, swallowing pills. Two other young Sima Family powerhouses were also seated cross-legged beside him. Sima Xuan, Sima Hao, and the other young Sima Family powerholders were nowhere to be seen, likely having continued their climb upward.
"Brother Jie, did the Three-Legged Golden Crow's inner elixir really end up in that kid's hands?" one of the Sima Family youths asked.
"Of course. We saw with our own eyes him take it," Sima Jie said as he stood up, sneering coldly at Ye Yunfei. The other two Sima Family youths also rose to their feet.
"What? You Sima Family brats want to make a move? The three of you aren't even worthy of Brother Ye making a move. Let me deal with you instead," Lu Shi declared loudly, stepping forward.
"Lu Shi, have you thought about the consequences of mixing with this fellow of unknown origins? The rumors were right—you truly are brainless," Sima Jie sneered, glancing at Lu Shi.
"What? You dare call me brainless? Take this first!" Lu Shi flew into a rage. He took a step forward, brandishing the stone club in his hand and fiercely smashing it toward Sima Jie.
Boom!
The stone club in Lu Shi's hand continuously enlarged, its terrifying energy pressure making space tremble. However, a dreadfully powerful invisible pressure existed on this mountain. No matter who fought here, the power they could exert would be drastically diminished.
Clang! Sima Jie actually blocked the stone club with his fist.
"How is this possible? How can your fist be so hard? It can actually withstand a collision with my stone club?" Lu Shi exclaimed in shock and disbelief.
"Brother Lu, look—both his fists are wearing gauntlets. They should be a decent set of magical artifacts," Ye Yunfei spoke up.
"Oh, I see," Lu Shi said, immediately looking at Sima Jie's hands and indeed seeing gauntlets on both fists.
"So what? Eat a few more strikes then!" Lu Shi shouted, continuously swinging his stone club.
In the past, Lu Shi might not have been Sima Jie's match, but not long ago, Lu Shi had broken through to become a Senior Void God, greatly boosting his overall strength.
For a while, Lu Shi and Sima Jie fought to a deadlock.
"Hahaha… You can't even beat me, yet you dare to challenge Brother Ye? Are you tired of living!" Lu Shi roared with laughter.
"Kid, hand over the Three-Legged Golden Crow's inner elixir in your possession! Otherwise, don't blame us for being impolite!"
By now, the other two Sima Family youths had moved to surround Ye Yunfei.
"Get lost! Go roll back down!" Ye Yunfei swept a glance at them, then slapped out with his palm, employing a bodily divine ability. His palm continuously enlarged, and with two loud bangs, he slapped the two young Sima Family powerhouses flying on the spot.
These two pitiful Sima Family powerhouses were already suffering under quite terrifying invisible pressure at this altitude. Now, facing Ye Yunfei's fearsome physical strength, they didn't even have time to react. Once struck flying, they tumbled down the mountain like two cartwheels, rolling thunderously from the mountainside toward the base.
"You…!" Sima Jie watched this scene in both shock and fury.
"Brother Lu, let me handle this. Conserve your energy for the rest of the climb." Ye Yunfei stepped right beside Lu Shi with a smile. Even as he spoke, he threw a fist toward Sima Jie.
Boom!
An extremely terrifying amount of Divine Power energy erupted instantly, forming an overwhelming Imperial Dao pressure. The single punch sent Sima Jie flying, after which he also tumbled down like a wheel toward the mountain foot.
"How could this be? How can that kid's strength be this formidable?" Sima Jie roared in furious indignation, both shocked and outraged.
"Brother Ye, your strength is truly terrifying!" Lu Shi couldn't help but say with a wry smile.
"Brother Lu, if you find it hard to hold on, take more of the pills I just gave you," Ye Yunfei said with a smile before taking the lead in climbing upward.
"Alright, from now on, I'll take pills while climbing." Lu Shi took out the Divine Pills Ye Yunfei had given him earlier and indeed began climbing while popping pills. Gradually, Ye Yunfei and Lu Shi climbed higher and higher, starting to approach the location of the cave mansion on the mountain.
"Look! That kid is up there! He's the one who killed so many members of our Guardian Faction. This time, we absolutely must not let him escape!"
Right at this moment, an angry roar suddenly rang out from the mountain base.
"Are Guardian Faction people here again?" Ye Yunfei asked, his footsteps halting as he turned to look toward the base. Sure enough, he saw a large group of people surging over.
The Guardian Faction had set up a checkpoint outside the gate to the Yangming Secret Realm, charging exorbitant fees from anyone who wanted to enter except for the young disciples of major powers. However, the Guardian Faction itself had sent in massive numbers of its own people. It could be said that, among all forces that had entered the Yangming Secret Realm, the Guardian Faction unquestionably had the most people.
Thus, even though Ye Yunfei had killed so many Guardian Faction members before, there were still plenty more now.
"Surround this place! Under no circumstances allow that kid to escape. Also, aside from members of our Guardian Faction, anyone who helps us deal with that kid will be generously rewarded," a man at the head of the Guardian Faction group said coldly, his gaze fixed on Ye Yunfei, who was already midway up the mountainside.
Immediately, whether from the base or higher on the mountain, the vast majority of people's eyes fell upon Ye Yunfei.
"Conversely, starting now, anyone who dares associate with this kid will become an enemy of our Guardian Faction." The man's gaze then shifted to Lu Shi beside Ye Yunfei as he spoke slowly.
His voice, amplified by Divine Power energy, echoed across this stretch of heaven and earth, clearly reaching everyone's ears.
"Move out! Let's ascend now." After he finished speaking, the man waved a hand and led the large group of Guardian Faction members onto the mountain, beginning the climb from the base upward.
"What on earth did that kid do to offend the Guardian Faction so severely? Now the Guardian Faction is going all out against him. He's in deep trouble, and not just him—even his family, sect, and close friends might end up implicated," many people couldn't help but discuss via sound transmissions.
In the Sixth Void, the Guardian Faction's domineering ways were already deeply ingrained in people's hearts.
"Brother Ye, the Guardian Faction is targeting you, likely because you helped our Lingxiao Sect kill their members. Honestly, it's our Lingxiao Sect that dragged you into this," Ye Yunfei received a sound transmission from Ba Yizhou at this moment.
Ba Yizhou and some other young powerhouses of the Lingxiao Sect were also climbing the mountain, but they were ascending from another direction, so they hadn't encountered Ye Yunfei.
"Brother Ba, the Guardian Faction and I were already hostile. It has nothing to do with your Lingxiao Sect. Besides, even if the Guardian Faction didn't come looking for me, I would have sought them out," Ye Yunfei replied with a smile.
Just then, the Guardian Faction members below at the mountain base were chasing up toward Ye Yunfei's direction.
"Brother Ye, it looks like these Guardian Faction members are specifically coming up to deal with you," Lu Shi said to Ye Yunfei.
"Brother Lu, there's no need for you to worry about me. I think it'd be best if you put some distance between us. Otherwise, it might implicate your Lu Family," Ye Yunfei said after some thought.
Ye Yunfei himself certainly didn't fear the Guardian Faction, but if Lu Shi continued to stay with him, he could get dragged into trouble afterward.
"Don't worry, Brother Ye. I'm not afraid. Our Lu Family has long been quite dissatisfied with the Guardian Faction anyway—we don't fear them. If Guardian Faction members dare come, I, Old Lu, will just fight them to the bitter end," Lu Shi declared, brandishing the stone club in his hand.
"This guy doesn't think things through comprehensively, but he'd make a good friend," Hun Lao said with a laugh.