Chang Tianque was shocked by what happened.

Buzz!

The broken sword fell into Cheng Jianxin's hand, but emitted a sword cry, the rust and dust on it falling off, as if cheering in joy.

Cheng Jianxin chuckled silently, drew the sword out, and walked towards the center of the plaza where the white vortex was.

His steps were initially somewhat staggering, but after a few steps, became steadier and his posture more upright.

Clang!

The rusty sword in his hand sounded like a dragon's roar, shedding all its rust and dust, revealing a cold glint, with two characters inscribed on the blade:

Red Dust!

Looking at his back, people around involuntarily felt a sense of piercing pain in their foreheads, as if facing a sharp blade.

Swish!

Everyone's eyes stung, and in a blink, the tall figure ahead had vanished.

A huge gap appeared in the central white fog vortex, as if it had been directly torn open by a sharp blade.

Sha Lifei wiped the cold sweat off his forehead.

"Goodness, is this old Sword Immortal... feigning illness?"

Wang Daoxuan shook his head slightly, saying nothing.

Beside him, Chang Tianque was even more tearful.

Sha Lifei did not understand, but many people knew in their hearts that this Cheng Jianxin was overdrawing all his strength.

He was already at the end of his rope.

After this battle, there would be no chance of survival.

Clang!

In the dense fog, sparks flew from the clash of blade and blood.

Li Yan exerted force underfoot, completely ignoring the open guard, the blade following the blood edge, directly stabbing at Ba Dazha's throat.

However, Ba Dazha quickly withdrew his blade to dodge.

Li Yan saw it, immediately gnashing his teeth in anger.

Just as Wang Daoxuan said, this vortex was a fluctuation caused by the Nine Tripods, pure Astral Bane Energy, any spells would be dispersed, even Divine Skills were hard to perform.

To withstand its impact, one's Dao must be at the fifth layer, and can only use martial arts against the enemy.

This put him at a disadvantage.

The blood shaman Ba Dazha, was a long-renowned old demon in the Southwest Evil Dao, Li Yan could suppress him earlier only due to having Divine Skills, Soul Hook, plus "Divine Transformation Technique," temporarily boosting his strength.

Now, both sides could only rely on Martial Arts.

Ba Dazha was also at the peak of Force Transformation, though not as young and strong, his experience was extremely rich, and his blade technique even more proficient.

The troublesome part was, this guy was very cunning.

He never engaged Li Yan head-on, only harassing on the side, withdrawing upon contact, preventing Li Yan from approaching the Nine Tripods.

Li Yan wanted to leverage the power of the Daluo Dharma Body, swapping injuries, luring the opponent to strike, then kill this old ghost.

Unfortunately, the opponent wouldn't fall for the bait.

Thinking of this, Li Yan couldn't help but feel anxious, turning to look in the direction of the Nine Tripods.

He saw Lu Sheng and Li Wenyuan approaching the Nine Tripods earlier.

Though these two were unfathomable, under the power of the Nine Tripods, were also affected, unable to use spells.

However, the beast skin in their hands was extraordinary.

The beast skin was thumb-thick, one side covered in brown fur, the other shining with black luster, engraved with landscape Fengshui diagrams, vaguely resembling ancient Jiuzhou.

These two knew the might of the Nine Tripods and were well prepared.

No matter the previous Zhao Jie, or the formless gentleman, touching the Nine Tripods with flesh would only cause the body to collapse, the Divine Soul to dissipate.

Now, the two were shrouded in white fog, only the elusive golden light emitted by the Nine Tripods could be seen, flickering uncertainly.

Li Yan had a suspicion in his heart.

The formless gentleman's Dao was insufficient, did not completely extract the Nine Tripods, and turned to dust, leaving the Nine Tripods still indistinct.

But time was running out.

Once the Nine Tripods completely broke free from the Dragon Palace, disaster would befall.

"Hahaha, watching the tripod is no match for watching the blade!"

Seeing Li Yan distracted, Ba Dazha laughed madly, attacking again.

In his hand, the blood-colored curved blade slashed diagonally, as Li Yan swung his blade to block, he suddenly let go, then twisted his wrist.

Buzz buzz buzz!

The blood-colored curved blade spun, bypassing the Duan Chen Blade, just to slice towards Li Yan's fingers.

Li Yan raised his blade to block, the opponent then smoothly reclaimed the blood-colored curved blade, lowering his body to spin, bypassing Li Yan, then backhandedly slashing towards the knee.

These moves were both fast and eerie.

Li Yan had heard before, that the Tu Clan had a powerful skill called Throwing Knife Skill, a performance in the shaman's play.

Unexpectedly, this old ghost could integrate it into his technique.

The knife flying with the hand, leaving no defense.

A thought arose in Li Yan's mind, pretending to dodge, retreating again, as Ba Dazha advanced upon him, he suddenly wiped his left hand.

In that instant, the blade light burst forth.

His family also had Sleeve Knife.

Slash!

The blade was very secretive; even though Ba Dazha dodged quickly, he was still cut, and the side of his clothes quickly seeped blood.

"Boy, you're dead meat!"

Ba Dazha's expression was grim, yet he didn't rush forward.

He was cunning and wily, knowing it was a critical moment; waiting for Lu Sheng to obtain the Nine Tripod, the broken path could then be renewed, he could not be careless.

Li Yan's myriad skills truly made him wary.

But just then, he suddenly felt a tightness in his back.

He could sense that he was being locked onto by a gaze, as if a hidden blade was pressing against his occipital bone, slowly piercing in.

For a moment, even his Divine Soul felt a sting.

This was pure Sword Intent!

To injure with Sword Intent, in this life he had only seen one person do it.

"Impossible!"

Ba Dazha hurriedly turned around, eyes full of incredulity.

In the thick fog, a figure approached with a sword.

White hair fluttering defiantly, with sharp eyes and a gleaming blade.

Cheng Jianxin... Impossible!

Ba Dazha's mind went blank, fear surfaced in his heart.

Years ago, he practiced Evil Skills, destroying several Tu Clan villages in a row, even killing several Mystic Sect disciples, earning a notorious reputation in the pugilistic world.

But at the height of his arrogance, Cheng Jianxin descended the mountain, chasing him into a pitiful escape; he even jumped into a cesspit to conceal his aura. Only because Cheng Jianxin had other urgent matters did he manage to escape, hide his identity, and join King Shu's ranks.

It was the greatest shame and fear of his life.

That's why he pursued the elderly Chen Jianxin without regards to anything earlier.

He thought he was just an old man nearing his end.

And now, the fear surged once again.

Poof!

At this moment, Ba Dazha felt pain in his chest; looking down, he saw a Crossed Blade had pierced through his chest, right through his heart.

It was Li Yan, seizing the opportunity and using a blade technique akin to military assassination techniques; Shrinking Ground into Inches, he struck his enemy with a single blow.

"You..."

Before Ba Dazha could speak, Li Yan quickly drew the blade, cutting off his head with a reverse hand strike.

And Cheng Jianxin also strode forward at this moment.

Li Yan's expression was complicated; he finally witnessed the demeanor of a Sword Immortal, yet he knew this elder was burning his final twilight.

Nevertheless, there was no time for idle talk now.

"Senior, assist me!"

Li Yan simply raised his blade and cupped his fists before rushing towards the center of the vortex.

The golden light ahead gradually blazed, penetrating the thick fog, seemingly dyeing the surroundings golden, making it dreamlike.

But Li Yan couldn't afford to admire the view.

This Nine Tripod Divine Artifact had become something beyond understanding.

The closer he got, the more uncomfortable Li Yan felt.

It was as if a heavy mountain was pressing from all sides, squeezing his Divine Soul; his steps became sluggish, even his breathing became labored.

This was the genuine reaction of a normal person.

Unlike those like Mr. Wuxiang, who were cursed without realizing, whose greed blinds the heart, making them unable to discern pain, leading to the body shattering.

At a distance of ten steps, Li Yan stopped.

Here, he could no longer advance, and he finally saw the Nine Tripod clearly.

There were too many legends about this object; historical records indicate it was forged from the spiritual materials of Jiuzhou, not merely a bronze heavy object.

Now it was a brilliant golden light, the material indiscernible.

The body was engraved with sun, moon, stars, flowers, birds, fish, insects, and a map of Jiuzhou, with the area near Ezhou particularly prominent, and the carved Nine-headed Bird seemed ready to fly out.

It's the Jingzhou Tripod!

Li Yan realized in his heart.

Ancient Jingzhou covers today's Ezhou, Xiangzhou and southern Yu State; the Nine-headed Phoenix Vein naturally is its Fengshui major vein.

In the past, Zhou Gong secretly suppressed the Phoenix Vein, making heroic figures emerge in the Chu Territory, yet always falling short of the critical step, with lingering issues to this day.

These troubles are not confined to one place.

Back then, Emperor tossed the Nine Tripod into the Earth Vein, flowing along three major Dragon Veins of Divine State, precisely to address these troubles.

Until today, the Nine Tripod has become the Divine Artifact of Divine State.

Li Yan couldn't think much more, he looked towards the opposite side of the Nine Tripod.

There, Lu Sheng and Li Wenyuan were also grimacing, struggling as they approached the Nine Tripod.

Evidently, the power of the Nine Tripod also exceeded their estimates.

But the two were only less than ten meters from the Nine Tripod; the peculiar beast skins in their hands might be the treasure to shield the Nine Tripod Divine Might.

Without hesitation, Li Yan immediately gripped the Hook Paper.

He had never feared confronting these two.

One yin criminal,

one Heavenly Court fugitive.

Just summon yin soldiers or Thunder Department...

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