"Nobody expected that Zhuge Jingwo would dare to come alone to the gates of Seven Absolute Palace with a letter in hand."

"This was clearly a provocation!"

"Disciples of the Demon Palace, one and all filled with righteous indignation, could hardly wait to release a Divine Demon to tear Zhuge Jingwo to pieces and cut him into ten thousand fragments!"

"However, Zhuge Jingwo's Invisible Sword Energy from the Taicing Mysterious Sect had already reached Great Success, and even if they released their Divine Demons, they couldn't do anything to Zhuge Jingwo; in fact, several demons were injured by the Invisible Sword Energy, flew back and backfired on their masters, causing them major embarrassment and difficulty in containing the demons."

"By this time, Shi Feiyang had already sensed something and sent a Nine Child Mother Sky Demon transformed into a beautiful woman to invite Zhuge Jingwo inside."

"The disciples of the Demon Cult loudly objected, 'He is from Emei Sect! It's one thing for those surnamed Shi to take refuge with us, but how can we allow our sworn enemy to enter freely?'"

"Two fools, ignorant of their imminent doom, secretly used magic in an attempt to ambush the Nine Child Mother Sky Demon in a corner. The demon only glanced back once and scared her attackers into retreat, causing another backlash."

"The two immediately began crying and laughing, dancing and rolling about on the ground in disarray."

"The female demon paid them no heed and simply said to Zhuge Jingwo, 'The master is already inside waiting for you, fellow Daoist. Please follow me.'"

"Zhuge Jingwo could see that this woman was a formidable demon. Having heard that Shi Feiyang had mastered the Nine Child Mother Sky Demon, he dared not display the slightest disrespect, remaining as calm and as indifferent as possible as he followed her to the palace where Shi Feiyang resided."

"Shi Feiyang and Zhuge Jingwo were old acquaintances. Back in the days when he was still a Black Dragon and had just left Central Earth to reach the East Sea, he encountered the thousand-year-old Purple River Grass, which was later called Mo Ying. It just so happened that Zhuge Jingwo was also there to gather herbs, and a series of events had unfolded..."

"Nowadays, as both had their own fates, they remembered the past as if it were another lifetime."

"The purpose of Zhuge Jingwo's visit this time was to bring the second personal letter from Qi Shuming to Shi Feiyang."

"As soon as Shi Feiyang opened the letter, he realized that the Sect Leader of the Emei Sect was indeed worthy of his title."

"In the letter, Qi Shuming first mentioned the generosity afforded by Shi Feiyang and his disciples on the Outer Heaven Divine Mountain, expressing gratitude."

"Then he talked about the impending catastrophe for the world, stating that it was not only a natural disaster but also man-made and extremely perilous. All the immortals would shed blood with everything hanging in the balance. Only by working together could maybe two or three in ten be saved."

"Segueing from a future resolution, he mentioned how Chi You would descend upon the Human World once more and then stated that the Taiyin Hunyuan Ancestor, walking the path of the Demon, would be the chief culprit in summoning Chi You and bringing disaster."

"Finally, he mentioned Jile Perfected, Li Jingxu, and invited Shi Feiyang to attend the third swordfight between good and evil. He would sweep the Emei Mountain clean to welcome him and was ready to receive him at any moment."

"As Shi Feiyang read the letter, he was speechless for a long time. What was written were facts; after the third swordfight, Taiyin Hunyuan Ancestor would indeed summon Chi You and trigger a catastrophe in the Human World."

"However, that was the outcome; the reason leading to this outcome also involved Emei Sect to some degree. Removing their own responsibility and pointing all the blame at Taiyin Hunyuan Ancestor was clever manipulation of words."

"After some thought, Shi Feiyang wrote a brief reply to Qi Shuming, without any pleasantries, simply telling him that avoiding the upcoming disaster was easy. Just concede defeat on behalf of Emei Sect, and the resulting peace would bring great merit. There was no need to cling to that stubborn pride; the catastrophe to come would also involve Emei Sect, and everyone would praise you."

"Having finished the letter, he handed it to Zhuge Jingwo."

"Zhuge Jingwo took the envelope and thanked Shi Feiyang on the spot, mainly about the matter of Ling Yunfeng."

"When Shi Feiyang heard him mention Ling Yunfeng, he also told him of Han'er's whereabouts."

"Strictly speaking, Han'er was the daughter of Zhuge Jingwo's previous life, and having undergone another cycle of reincarnation, he had spent years cultivating in the East Sea with his master, rarely returning to Yellow Mountain to look after the Heavenly Fox sisters. In fact, there was little emotional bond between them."

"After Ziling became a disciple of Emei Sect and still addressed him as father, he regarded her in his heart as his equal and had already adjusted his mindset, cutting off the complications of his past life."

"Therefore, he felt even less for Han'er, learning that she was in the Grotto Heaven of the Red Lotus Old Demon, and did not appear anxious. He merely thanked Shi Feiyang politely, stating that he would return to consult with his master and follow the master's decisions."

"Thinking of Han'er, Shi Feiyang let out a soft sigh, with little else to say. He ordered the Demon Mother to escort him out to prevent those from the Demon Cult outside from causing further disruptions."

"As the third swordfight drew near, Shi Feiyang continued to wait, hoping that Wutai Sect would also send someone to invite him."

"If Wutai Sect sent an invitation, then he would act as a neutral mediator and a fair judge."

"Yet Wutai Sect did not come!"

"Instead, Deng Yin and his companions emerged from seclusion, all beaming with pleasure. This time, their cultivation and artifact refinement had been tremendously successful."

"Considering the impending swordfight, Deng Yin invited Shi Feiyang to join them."

Shi Feiyang had already calculated in advance that the impending disaster was unavoidable, whether he chose to attend or not—it had become an inescapable fate!

However, attending would bring its own cause and effect, as would abstention, each with their own advantages and disadvantages.

His original plan was: if he did not go, he would strong-arm Deng Yin and the other two to stay here as well, forbidding anyone from attending.

When the moment arrived, he decided to go, thinking that saving even one more person was worth it.

On the appointed day, Deng Yin donned a red robe, looking like a groom about to be wed, his hair also tied up with a red silk scarf. Naturally handsome, he now carried an air of casual defiance, appearing less like a demon and more like a carefree wanderer.

The Red Corpse God Monarch and the Jiulei God were dressed in black robes embroidered with various patterns in dark red silk, exuding a solemn and dignified presence.

Shi Feiyang remained in his usual ochre garments, holding the Nine Heavens Yuan Yang Ruler in hand.

This ruler was especially potent against all demons, harmless when inactive, but its mere presence caused unease among Deng Yin's disciples.

In particular, the demons they had cultivated all yearned to keep their distance.

Shi Feiyang then advised Deng Yin not to bring these disciples, suggesting that just the four of them should go.

Deng Yin agreed, and so the four of them left West Kunlun, heading straight for Jiuhua Mountain.

The first swordfight between the Emei Sect and the Wutai Sect took place on Emei Mountain; only the Qingcheng Sect and the Huashan Sect joined as allies besides the main combatants.

The second swordfight took place on Yellow Mountain. This time, there were more participants, with both the main battlefield at Yellow Mountain and a secondary battlefield at Guiyuan Temple, with members from both the Western and Eastern Demon Cults involved.

This was to be the third swordfight, with the venue set at Jiuhua Mountain, but the format was to be quite exceptional.

The Emei Sect had invited the Qingcheng Sect, Snow Mountain Sect, Wudang Sect, Kunlun Sect, Huangshan Sect, Shaolin Sect, and other Orthodox Sects.

However, these sects all maintained neutrality and did not come en masse; each sent a representative, or the Sect Leader came alone to watch the excitement, to bear witness, to remain impartial, taking no side.

Mainly because the evildoers from the Wutai Sect had been slaughtered clean at the Star Constellations Sea, and it was Shi Feiyang who had rewritten the Dharma Collection and established the new religious disciplines.

Following this reformation, after the Taiyin Hunyuan Ancestor disappeared, Sikong Zhan retired to a quiet life on Dongting Mountain, leaving only Xu Feiniang to recruit new disciples and undertake a different path from before.

Therefore, in recent years, the Wutai Sect had shifted from malign to righteous. If not quite considered among the Mysterious Orthodox Sects, they were not far off, with far fewer enemies; even Fang Ying and Yuan

Hao took turns leading their junior brothers and sisters to accumulate experience through outer skills.

The Emei Sect only invited a few friendly Loose Cultivators, such as Luo Ziyuan from Heng Mountain, Xiao Shi's younger sister from the Independent Immortals, Yi Zhou from the Xuan Turtle Hall in the South Sea, Ning Yizi from the waters of Dianchi Lake in Kunming, and others.

On the other hand, the Wutai Sect did not invite many. Their close ally, the Huashan Sect, had been wiped out, the Fiery Fire Ancestor had defected to the Western Sect, leaving the modern Huashan Sect merely as one of the Martial Arts Sects.

Over the years, Xu Feiniang had been cultivating in seclusion and training hard within Wutai Mountain, patiently managing the sect, refraining from wandering around making frivolous friendships like a nine-country camel merchant.

Ultimately, it was just their own Wutai Sect; even some previously friendly Loose Cultivators had not been invited by the Taiyin Hunyuan Ancestor.

The Emei Sect had set up long tents on the western side of the mountain slope, hosting distinguished guests in abundance, while the Wutai Sect's side, with only a hundred or so disciples, seemed rather lonely and sparse by comparison.

On the northern mountainside, there were also tents set up in advance, prepared by Chen Taizhen of the Qingcheng Sect with his disciples.

Originally, for this swordfight, Zhu Mei returned to Qingcheng Mountain to find Jiang Shu, appealing to his emotions and reasoning with him to support the Emei Sect.

Jiang Shu adamantly refused, "Brother, I understand your feelings since you've joined the Emei Sect. However, the Qingcheng Sect has its own stance. When the time comes, I'll attend as a spectator and bear witness. Whichever side is just and reasonable, I'll support; I promise not to be biased or unfair. Or do you lack faith in the Emei Sect's conduct? Do you think they will certainly resort to cheating and dishonor, or that they're incapable and need my support to have a chance at winning?"

Zhu Mei, departing from his usual jovial mannerisms, sighed helplessly, "Younger brother, your prejudice against the Emei Sect runs too deep!"

Jiang Shu, still youthful in appearance, simply rolled his eyes at him, turned away, and continued toying with his Spirit Talismans, "My prejudice is only towards you, brother. I have none towards the Emei Sect. If there's any, it might just stem from the saying, 'an evil where evil thoughts arise.'"

Seeing his persuasion fail, Zhu Mei could only leave dejectedly.

After his departure, Jiang Shu thought it over and felt that since he had mentioned "impartiality," he had to live up to it.

So he sent disciples to set up the bamboo huts in advance, and to avoid suspicion, he didn't involve himself with either side's preparations, instead erecting numerous tents on the northern mountainside to accommodate those neutral guests acting as impartial witnesses.

By the time Shi Feiyang and his three companions arrived, there were already many people there.

When everyone saw a mass of blood-red clouds approaching from the northwest, staining half of the clear sky, they were all terrified, with both the righteously and sinisterly aligned nervously watching the scene unfold.

The news had already spread that the Taiyin Hunyuan Ancestor was refining the Sky Demon Exterminating Immortal Slaying Sword to summon the arrival of the Chi You Demon Emperor, prompting murmurs among the crowd, "Could Chi You be approaching? With this momentum… who could withstand it?"

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