What?
What is he doing?
Seeing Han Feng suddenly raise his head to look at the sky, his demeanor appearing transcendent and ethereal, adding even more charm to him than before, the woman could not help feeling a stir in her heart. Truly captivated by romantic thoughts, her body grew slightly warm, and her gaze became all the more alluring.
"Little brother! A night of love is worth a thousand pieces of gold, stop keeping this concubine hanging..." She lunged forward, opening a pair of fair, lotus-root-like arms as if to embrace Han Feng, and said in a sweet, cloying voice: "Come away with me! Later, when my Jile Palace annexes the Da Qian dynasty, you shall rule the realm!"
Han Feng's expression turned stern. This was his very first time using his own genuine skills to fight an enemy in this otherworldly realm.
Inside his Nirvana Palace, his Golden Core spun incessantly, executing none other than the Wenxin Sword Canon he had practiced on the spot earlier to guide Luan Jian. He was nurturing a sword Qi within his palace, using the spiritual nature of his Golden Core to hone it until it became razor-sharp and indestructible.
If he could not break the deadlock today with his own cultivation, he would end up like Tang Seng—abducted and reduced to a withered, emaciated dreg of medicine.
This seductress was easy to deal with, but the old monster behind her...
"Miss, watch out!" The elderly voice abruptly shifted to one of astonishment. Han Feng felt a blur before his eyes as an elder dressed in bizarre, colorful robes stepped in front of him, shock radiating from his gaze.
"Elder Yang, what are you doing?!" The woman protested from behind, looking thoroughly displeased.
"Miss, step aside for a moment." Facing Han Feng with a look of wonder, the elder said in a deep voice: "This old man never expected that besides that Luan Jian, the Jiushen Sect actually still has someone who harbors the Wenxin Sword Canon! To be able to nurture such terrifying sword intent while still in the Golden Core Stage—truly a talent favored by the heavens!"
"This old servant underestimated the foundation of the Jiushen Sect, thinking that ever since Han Sanbian passed away, the sect had fallen into terminal decline. Never did I imagine it was still hiding such an outstanding young man."
"Even you can't capture him?" The woman covered her mouth in a gasp, yet Han Feng's excellence only made her heart swell even more with amorous desires, urging her to pin him down right then and there—treating the sky as their quilt and the earth as their mat—to entangle with him to her heart's content.
"Miss, you jest."
The elder gazed at Han Feng and said calmly: "Young man, the Jiushen Sect has fallen and has no future to speak of. Come with us, and within ten years, the position of Sect Master's wife will undoubtedly be yours. By then, you will be beneath one person yet above tens of thousands—isn't that far better than wasting away in this dilapidated sect and squandering your innate talent?"
"Old Demon Yang, you truly grow more shameless the older you get!" A cold voice suddenly chimed in, sneering: "A Nascent Soul expert picking on a Golden Core cultivator, yet you still resort to lies and deception! The one you serve is at best merely one of the Jile seductresses, and at her advanced age, she has yet to form a Nascent Soul. What nonsense are you spouting about the position of Sect Master?"
Before her voice had even faded, a figure in white had appeared beside Han Feng like an peerless treasured sword, unleashing boundless sword might to protect Han Feng without reservation.
"Luan Jian!"
The old man's weathered face flushed red, while his pupils violently contracted. A moment later, he sighed: "With you in the Jiushen Sect, perhaps its fortune is truly not yet exhausted. You have actually managed to master the eighth level of the Wenxin Sword Canon... However, what this old man said just now was not entirely untrue. If this young man enters into a dual cultivation with my young lady, she will naturally be able to smoothly ascend to the position of Palace Master!"
"Fellow Daoist Luan, why don't you name your price? Hand this young man over to me, and whatever my Jile Palace can offer, you will certainly not be disappointed. He is merely a young disciple, so there is no need to damage the harmony between our two sides..."
"Old Demon Yang," Luan Jian coldly interrupted, "My Jiushen Sect acts with openness and integrity; no matter what, we will never associate with scum and villains like you! Sect Master, please guard my flank and watch as your disciple demonstrates the Wenxin Sword Canon she has comprehended over these past days, and see what bottlenecks and flaws still remain."
What?!
Yang Yan froze, staring in disbelief at Han Feng.
This imposing young man was actually the Sect Master of the Jiushen Sect?
It seemed, then, that there was no room for negotiation today.
Luan Jian, oh Luan Jian, though this old man is unwilling to fight you, it is not because I fear you!
Even if your Swordsmanship has reached astonishing new heights, as long as you have not stepped into the Nascent Soul realm, you are still ultimately of mortal flesh!
If you were a Nascent Soul expert, relying on this eighth level of the Wenxin Sword Canon, this old man would turn around and leave right now.
But as things stand...
Since there is nothing to discuss, force is the only option.
Swish!
A beam of sword light soared into the air, piercing through the heavens and causing even the red sun in the sky to dim its radiance for a brief moment.
Luan Jian primarily practiced Swordsmanship, which emphasized an indomitable momentum and the resolute determination to contend for the lead at every step. Since a fight was inevitable, she might as well strike first, pointing her Spirit Sword at the old demon. Invisible sword Qi gathered from all eight directions like billowing clouds, sweeping aggressively toward Yang Yan.
"Hehehehe..."
Yang Yan let out an ear-piercing, evil laugh. A magical artifact formed from the bones of an unknown demonic beast appeared in his hand. As he gently shook it, accompanied by an ethereal and eerie sound, boundless demonic charm and temptation emanated out of thin air, unsettling minds and shaking souls.
Whoosh!
Han Feng, whose cultivation was lower, immediately felt a terrifying might. In a split second, his consciousness was nearly stripped away, and he suddenly felt that the seductress opposite him was exquisite and lovely, while Luan Jian, who was wielding her sword right before him, was likewise breathtakingly peerless. He had the sudden urge to tear away their clothes and then...
In the blink of an eye, a glimmer of spiritual light manifested, and a mysterious, archaic book slowly opened before Han Feng's eyes. Countless profound principles shone with golden light upon the pages, instantly blocking the demonic sounds and evil arts, allowing Han Feng's spiritual platform to return to clarity—though it left him in a cold sweat of sheer fright.
What a formidable young man!
Even though Yang Yan was facing the brilliant sword might, when he shook the bone-string artifact just now, he had focused the brunt of his attack on Han Feng. Yet never in his wildest dreams did he expect that his proudest Blood-Pheasant Bone Beads, wielded at full power, would fail to take down this mere Golden Core cultivator?
"Go!"
Luan Jian's sword heart was pristine and clear. The Wenxin Sword Canon she had studied throughout her life was most adept at seeing through the illusions and realities of her opponents, before exploiting their weaknesses and delivering a fatal blow while avoiding their strengths. Although Old Demon Yang was currently a realm higher, Luan Jian had keenly seized upon that fleeting moment of mental distraction—how could she let it slip by?
With a single sword strike, she forcefully slashed away her own romantic stirrings, then guided her Spirit Sword to conjure a sky full of sword images. The sword Qi surged into the clouds, frantically slaughtering toward the old demon.
"Hmph!"
Although Yang Yan was in the Nascent Soul realm, he specialized only in evil bewitching arts. Facing such terrifying sword intent, unable to distinguish between illusion and reality, he could only rely on his raw cultivation to forcefully endure it, flicking his robe sleeves to block the flying swords filling the sky.
The exact moment the thousands of sword images made contact with the old demon's sleeves, all the sword images vanished into thin air. Only a single beam—transforming from illusion into reality and condensing Luan Jian's lifelong cultivation accumulated over years of bitter practice—shot directly toward his ribs. In a mere flash of thought, it pierced through the mountain-like sleeves to strike straight at the old demon's vital points.
Boom!
Caught off guard, Yang Yan's expression changed drastically. Evasion was no longer possible, so he could only sacrifice the bone-string artifact into the air. Instantly, countless shrill beast roars and bird screeches resounded, accompanied by seductive, licentious sounds full of primal desire. It was as if these lustful Blood-Pheasant beasts, even as they died, still could not forget to mate and vent their desires before perishing in ultimate pleasure, having been refined into this wicked magical artifact.
The sword light struck the bone-string artifact squarely, shattering it to pieces, yet its momentum was also blocked by the power contained within the beads, causing it to annihilate into the void.
What a terrifying sword cultivator!
Yang Yan winced in heartache, but he dared not be negligent, his divine sense firmly locking onto Luan Jian.
Years ago, the two of them had already fought once. At that time, Yang Yan was still in the Late Golden Core Stage, and facing Luan Jian—who was also in the Golden Core realm—he had been slightly outmatched and could only flee in a panic.
Now that he had condensed his Nascent Soul, he had thought he could easily suppress his opponent. Never did he expect that the Jiushen Sect's Wenxin Sword Canon would be cultivated by her to an unprecedented eighth level. Shaking a Nascent Soul expert with a Golden Core cultivation—from this exchange not only had he failed to gain any advantage, but he had actually destroyed a precious magical artifact?
Instantly, Yang Yan harbored thoughts of retreating.
Risking his life here was simply not worth it. This was, after all, the territory of the Jiushen Sect. No matter how fallen they were, they still possessed some combat strength. If he fought Luan Jian to mutual destruction, he might truly leave his life behind today.
Get out of here first!
Just as this thought arose in Yang Yan's mind, he heard a voice say indifferently: "Luan Jian, your comprehension of this sword canon is still wrong. Several days have already passed, why haven't you figured out the ninth level yet?"