Congyun Mountains, an unnamed stream.
A full moon hung high in the sky, and the dense vegetation in the Congyun Mountains swayed in the breeze, scattering specks of fluorescent light.
The Congyun Mountains were undoubtedly more dangerous at night than during the day.
Except for those with absolute confidence in their own strength, most herb gatherers or hunters basically did not venture out at night.
Beside the stream, several capable-looking men quickly darted past.
Hiss—
A completely black poisonous snake on an ancient tree to the side suddenly shot out like a sharp arrow, heading straight for one of the men.
But before it could get close, a cold glint flashed, and the black poisonous snake was instantly cut into several pieces and fell to the ground.
"Night is when these black-scaled snakes are active. Be careful, don't get caught."
The man holding the short dagger glanced at the snake's corpse on the ground and spoke indifferently.
"Don't worry, we're not greenhorns. We've been making a living in the Congyun Mountains for so many years, we won't make these low-level mistakes." A man with a headscarf responded with a smile.
"Being careful is never wrong." The man with the short dagger shook his head slightly. His gaze fell upon the dark mountain forest around them.
"We've been walking in the outer and central areas for several days now, and still haven't found anything. Could the intelligence be wrong? Are those people from the Seven Forms Sect not in this area at all?"
"That's hard to say, but since we've already walked for so many days, it doesn't hurt to keep going. Let's walk along this area for another three days. If we still can't find any clues, we'll move towards the central region."
The man with the headscarf paused and spoke softly.
"Then we'll do as you say."
Soon, the men quickly and agilely searched the forest again. Although their movements were fast, they made almost no sound, indicating that their movement techniques were quite impressive.
More than an hour passed, and the men had walked over ten li. The man with the headscarf suddenly stopped.
"Wait."
"What's wrong?"
The other men immediately stopped and looked over with some confusion.
"Something seems off about this area. Since a cup of tea's time ago, we haven't found a single venomous insect or fierce beast in this mountain forest." The man with the headscarf scanned the surroundings with his gaze.
The other men also realized it at this moment.
"It does seem to be the case. There are two reasons for this situation: one is that there's a powerful Spirit Beast nearby, and the other is that someone has cleared the area in advance."
As they spoke, their eyes met, and they all saw a hint of joy in each other's eyes.
"The possibility of a powerful Spirit Beast appearing in this area is not high, so..."
The man with the headscarf didn't finish his sentence, but his meaning was clearly expressed.
"Keep your spirits up. Maybe we can really find those people from the Seven Forms Sect."
The man with the short dagger flipped his wrist, and the sharp dagger appeared in his hand. He tapped his toes on the ground and agilely landed on an ancient tree, as if confirming something.
Soon, he landed back on the ground.
"Head east. There's a mountain hollow there. If cleared out, it would definitely be a natural barrier. If choosing a place to stay, that should be the first choice."
Soon, the men stealthily moved towards the mountain hollow.
Half an hour passed, and the men appeared on the cliff face to the side of the mountain hollow.
Looking below the cliff face, although there was no trace of firelight below, with their eyesight, they could clearly see rows of buildings and figures appearing from time to time.
"They really are here."
Seeing this scene, the men were ecstatic.
Swish, swish, swish...
Just as they were about to leave, a series of strong winds suddenly attacked from the side.
"Not good, it's an ambush!"
The man with the headscarf was the first to react, giving a low shout to warn them.
The men were all strong and reacted extremely quickly, immediately scattering to barely avoid the darts shooting towards them.
Just as they were about to scatter and flee, a figure had already closed in.
"Azure Bird, Star Chase!"
With a light shout, several streams of azure Bone Strength surged out, attacking the men, causing them to pause and forcing them to choose to defend themselves. Just then, another figure rapidly attacked, bringing with him a powerful and overbearing offensive.
"Leopard Transformation Seven Slashes!"
The golden Bone Strength, significantly stronger than the azure light, immediately sent one man flying backward, tumbling down the cliff.
Wei Yun and other direct Disciples who had entered the Bone Transformation Realm also quickly rushed to reinforce, blocking the black-clothed men who were trying to escape.
The short-armed black-clothed man had the fastest movement technique. After forcing Wei Yun back with a single strike, he darted into the mountain forest without hesitation. However, he hadn't gone far before darts shot over, forcing him to change direction.
But at the same time, a thick vine net suddenly rose from the ground. This caught him completely off guard, and he was covered by the net. Although the short dagger in his hand quickly flashed and cut through the net, Yuan Zhongfei had already arrived.
After the time it takes for an incense stick to burn.
The sound of intense fighting on the cliff face subsided.
The bodies of the black-clothed men were quickly dragged away and dealt with.
"This is already the second wave of people in the past three days. This time, there were even several Bones Transformation experts. Fortunately, they were still within our ability to handle, but this cannot continue. We can deal with them once or twice, but if we accidentally miss someone, it will be troublesome."
Yuan Zhongfei calmed his breathing. Although he had killed all those people in the previous exchange, it had taken him some effort. He couldn't help but speak with some worry.
Hearing this, Xie Qingyun sighed.
"That's true, but in the current situation, where can truly be considered safe?"
"How about we go deeper into the Congyun Mountains?" Yuan Zhongfei thought for a moment and voiced his idea.
"Senior Brother Yuan, we are already at the critical point. If we enter the central area, although there will be fewer people, the various strange beasts and venomous insects inside are equally dangerous."
"But staying like this is not a solution either. If one day a master we cannot handle appears, and our location is exposed, we will have to face the Prefecture Yamen, Tianxiang Sword Sect, and Yuanyang Beast Sect. That would undoubtedly be even more dangerous."
Yuan Zhongfei spoke in a deep voice.
"Let's wait a few more days, until Sheng'er comes out of seclusion." Xie Qingyun's face showed hesitation, but she finally spoke slowly.
Meanwhile, a hundred zhang underground from the temporary station.
In a man-made cave, Lin Sheng sat cross-legged.
A bone-chilling cold covered the entire cave wall with a layer of frost.
He sat cross-legged, holding the lingxu ivory in his hands. It was emitting points of warm glow, dispelling all the coldness.
After a long time, he finally opened his eyes and heavily exhaled a breath of turbid air.
Before the frost in the cave could dissipate, he had already torn off another two flower leaves and thrown them into his mouth, falling back into cultivation.
It wasn't until the next day that he opened his eyes again.
At this moment, his eyes were filled with crimson bloodshot veins, as if he hadn't closed them for a week straight.
"Almost there..."
Looking at the youming soul grass next to him, which had more than five petals left, Lin Sheng murmured.
In three days, he had consumed a full seven flower leaves.
His entire being's spirit had significantly improved, but there was still some distance to the critical point of Breakthrough.
Maintaining such a high level of mental concentration and consumption for a long time, even with his mental fortitude, he felt an unspeakable fatigue at this moment. This was not physical, but directly affected the spiritual level.
Putting down the lingxu ivory, he got up and disappeared into the cave. In just a moment, he was already above ground.
He didn't make a sound, but came to the cliff face. Finally, he entered the high-perception strange beast form and began to investigate.
"Has someone else found it?"
Feeling the bloody aura on the cliff face on the other side, he already understood what had just happened. He couldn't help but frown.
It had only been three days, and including the people from the Oriole Sect and others he had dealt with before, three waves of people had already discovered the traces of the temporary station.
He was very clear that although the Congyun Mountains were vast, with so many people searching, the scope would inevitably become smaller and smaller.
The chance of the temporary station being discovered would also increase.
Originally, he had thought of nipping the danger in the bud by killing all the hunters or herb gatherers who discovered clues. After a long time of not finding any leads, these people's enthusiasm would fade, and this crisis would pass safely.
However, judging by this frequency, he had thought too simply.
There is nothing foolproof in the world. No matter how fully prepared he was, there might still be someone who slips through.
It wasn't that he hadn't thought about relocating, leaving the temporary station.
But this was also not an easy task. To relocate, they would undoubtedly have to go deep into the Tongyun Mountains. With so many people, they were very likely to be targeted by various Spirit Beasts. Although he was very strong, he might not be able to look after everyone.
Moreover, they might also encounter other people during the relocation.
"It seems I need to speed up..."
Lin Sheng's gaze fell upon the busy Disciples in the temporary station below. His eyes were distant, and he muttered silently to himself.
...
Congyun Mountains, atop a high peak.
Wan Yanbei's eyes were slightly closed. He was heard to let out a low shout.
"Swift..."
As his voice fell, the long sword behind him emitted a clear hum. Then, the long sword unsheathed and continuously circled three chi above his head, agile and nimble like a living creature.
"Divide..."
With another exhale, the long sword suddenly stopped, its body constantly shaking. The next moment, it actually split directly into dozens of long swords.
"Still..."
As the word 'Still' was exhaled, Wan Yanbei's eyes suddenly opened, and a sharp glint flashed in them, carrying an unspeakable sharpness that made people dare not meet his gaze.
And the dozens of long swords above his head, like a violent storm, fell onto the mountain body dozens of zhang away. In just the blink of an eye, they had already pierced through it countless times.
"Break!"
As the last word was exhaled, Wan Yanbei's face became a bit flushed, seemingly struggling. However, his eyes soon flashed with golden light, a layer of black and white fur appeared on his cheeks, and a 'King' character was faintly visible on his forehead. His flushed face instantly returned to normal.
The dozens of long swords suddenly shot out from the mountain body, converging with each other to form a giant sword body, which fiercely slashed down.
A huge Ravine was directly cut into the mountain body, over a hundred zhang deep.
"Congratulations, Young Master, on mastering the Sixth Sword Form. I believe that even Liu Tianci would absolutely not be your opponent now."
A short, thin figure emerged from the ground beside him. It was none other than Drilling Rat Pei Er.
"Although my cultivation has advanced significantly again, Liu Tianci might also have made progress during this time. Without a fight, the outcome is still unknown."
Wan Yanbei said this, but a faint smile appeared on his face.
"However, in a life-or-death battle, I have an eighty percent certainty of killing him with my sword."
"As expected, Young Master's talent is exceptional. Your age is actually a bit younger than Liu Tianci's. If another two years pass, you will definitely leave him far behind."
Pei Er's face was filled with joy, and his words were undisguised flattery.
"In your subordinate's opinion, Young Master can definitely master the Ninth Sword Form within ten years and successfully cultivate the Supreme Sword."
Hearing this, Wan Yanbei smiled and shook his head slightly.
"The Heavenly Profound Sword Scripture, the nine major sword forms, each one is harder than the last. How difficult is it to cultivate them within 10 years? Even I am not certain, let alone the final Supreme Sword."
"However, with the help of the sword shadow, it might not be impossible."
As he said this, his gaze looked into the distance, landing somewhere in the Congyun Mountains.
"How are things with the Seven Forms Sect?"
"Reporting to Young Master, the lingxu ivory is now in that kid's hands. The major forces in Linjiang Prefecture will obviously not let him go even more. Although I don't know what method he used to shield the ivory's detection, the monk can run, but the temple cannot."
Pei Er chuckled, seemingly finding it quite interesting.
"Besides the Situ Family, the Prefecture Yamen, Tianxiang, and Yuanyang, these three major powers have put out a sky-high bounty. Now, in Linjiang Prefecture, many forces have entered the Congyun Mountains to participate in the search. There are even traces of some small and medium-sized forces from Tiannan Prefecture. If this continues, those people from the Seven Forms Sect will not be able to hide for long."
"By then, that kid will have no other choice. There will be absolutely no other path for him except with us."
As he said this, Pei Er seemed a bit puzzled.
"But Young Master, that kid should already know how grim the situation is. Why don't we show up now? Perhaps without us even speaking, he will voluntarily want to join."
"Pei Er, what you said is indeed very possible. However, this child's talent is exceptional. Geniuses like him have worldly arrogance. I want to force him into a corner, make him beg to join, crush his self-esteem, and make him willingly become my shadow."
Wan Yanbei spoke indifferently, his words carrying an indescribable sense of confidence.
Hearing this, Pei Er felt a chill in his heart.
But soon he felt it was only natural. This was the demeanor of a sect leader.
"How are things with Elder Tong?"
"Reporting to Young Master, there is a high possibility that god seeds still exist in the Yunshui Mountains. Elder Tong has gone to investigate. If this is true, this time I will not only bring the shadow under my command but also have god seeds to assist your cultivation."
"Very good." The smile on Wan Yanbei's face deepened.
He stretched out his hand, and the long sword, as if sentient, landed in his palm. As he stroked the sword hilt, he seemed to become a little impatient.
Clang—
Lightly flicking the sword body, he looked at Pei Er.
Since things have reached this point, why not add fuel to the fire?
"You secretly leak the information about the Seven Forms Sect's station. The sooner it ends, the sooner we can leave here."
"As you command. Your subordinate will go and make the arrangements now."
Pei Er immediately responded respectfully. After bowing, his thin body flickered and disappeared into the ground.
Above the cliff, Wan Yanbei sheathed his sword, stood with his hands behind his back, and disappeared after a while.