Chapter 380 Fighting Side by Side

Song Qianxiang’s departure did not stir any waves within the sect.

Only when the time for her lecture arrived did the disciples of the Sword Sect learn that she had already left.

The Sword Sect disciples all felt extremely reluctant to part with her and continuously questioned Han Lang, Jiang Zhaoxia, and Shen Yue about when she would return.

Unfortunately, they received no precise answer.

Li Qingqiu also felt regret over Song Qianxiang’s departure.

After all, she was a combat force at the Ninth Layer of the Heaven-Connecting Radiance Realm, someone of immense strategic significance.

Fortunately, he still had the Sword Demon.

Unlike Song Qianxiang, he and the Sword Demon had no ten-year agreement.

He would absolutely not let the Sword Demon leave.

Days rapidly passed one after another.

After Song Qianxiang’s departure, Li Qingqiu increasingly desired for the Clear Sky Sect to possess an invincible combat force within the Heaven-Connecting Radiance Realm.

Thus, he once again shifted his focus toward Yuan Li.

He discovered that although Yuan Li had already grown considerably, without the investment of cultivation resources from him as Master, Yuan Li’s cultivation speed would still struggle to leave others completely behind.

During this process, Li Qingqiu also gathered Yuan Li and Yin Jingxing together.

When the two Ancient Sacred Bodies first met, the atmosphere indeed felt somewhat strange at the beginning.

Fortunately, after Li Qingqiu’s careful mediation, their relationship gradually became much closer after several months, greatly comforting Li Qingqiu.

With Yuan Li guiding him as a senior brother, Yin Jingxing’s progress advanced at astonishing speed.

Previously, Yin Jingxing had only heard rumors that Yuan Li was powerful.

Only after personally exchanging blows with him did he truly realize how terrifying Senior Brother Yuan Li was.

Yuan Li could actually withstand the Extreme Yang True Flame and forcefully approach him.

Watching Yuan Li’s flesh burn away and regenerate within the sea of fire left Yin Jingxing utterly shocked.

Dense mist filled the mountains and wilderness.

Li Qingqiu sat meditating atop a cliff cultivating, while Yuan Li, Yin Jingxing, and Xu Yuqiong meditated separately upon the hillside below, each maintaining some distance from the others.

This mountainous region was located east of Clear Sky Mountain.

Around it stood newly constructed Spirit Gathering Formations created by the Formation Hall, causing the Spiritual Energy here to become exceptionally abundant.

This was a cultivation ground specially created by Li Qingqiu.

The richness of Spiritual Energy here no longer lost to his own cave dwelling.

Li Qingqiu felt that cultivating amidst mountains and rivers gave greater insights into one’s state of mind than remaining within a sealed cave dwelling.

Xu Yuqiong opened his eyes and turned his head to look upward.

His Martial Grandmaster and two Martial Uncles were all still immersed in cultivation.

He secretly admired them, feeling that his temperament could not compare to that of his Martial Grandmaster and Martial Uncles.

Thus, he closed his eyes once more and worked hard to calm his mind.

After a while—

Li Qingqiu opened his eyes and took the Sect Master Token from the Storage Pouch at his waist.

Vital Energy flowed into it, and immediately afterward, a voice transmitted from within:

“Sect Master, Hall Master Yang and the others encountered an attack and have lost contact.”

The speaker was Xiao Wuqing.

Upon hearing this, Li Qingqiu frowned slightly.

Yang Jueding, Jiang Zhaoxia, and Xue Jin had represented the Clear Sky Sect in leading disciples to the Taiya Pavilion.

They had already been gone for quite some time.

Li Qingqiu had not been overly worried about this journey, yet unexpectedly, trouble had still occurred.

He summoned the Dao Lineage Panel while simultaneously asking, “What exactly happened?”

Yuan Li opened his eyes and looked toward Li Qingqiu.

He had already mentally prepared himself to descend the mountain.

Yin Jingxing, meanwhile, continued cultivating without paying much attention.

Xu Yuqiong, however, secretly pricked up his ears to listen.

“At the banquet, a group of cultivators of unknown origin attacked the Taiya Pavilion, forcing the banquet to end prematurely. The Taiya Pavilion suffered severe casualties, and Hall Master Yang’s group had no choice but to retreat early.”

“Before returning, they had already transmitted this intelligence back. However, afterward, contact through their Clear Sky Tokens was cut off, so we suspect they have encountered an ambush.”

Xiao Wuqing spoke rapidly.

He understood the importance of Yang Jueding, Jiang Zhaoxia, and Xue Jin.

If those three disappeared, the consequences would not be trivial.

Li Qingqiu discovered that the portraits of Jiang Zhaoxia’s group still remained upon the Dao Lineage Panel.

He continued asking for the names of the disciples who accompanied them.

After Xiao Wuqing listed the names he knew, Li Qingqiu discovered that all of them were still alive.

Only then did he relax slightly, guessing that Jiang Zhaoxia’s group had likely become trapped somewhere.

Jiang Zhaoxia’s 【Red Dust True Dragon】 Fate Trait had activated.

Xiao Wuqing’s voice sounded again:

“City Lord Lu has already dispatched people to search for them.”

City Lord Lu referred to Lu Qing from the Law Enforcement Hall, who currently served as the City Lord of Wangan Immortal City.

Wangan Immortal City was an immortal city established during recent years atop the Flowing Plains.

Located west of the Western Region Perilous Land, it served as the unified command city for all nearby strongholds.

The city possessed complete formations and gathered several thousand disciples.

In terms of strength, it could be considered the strongest immortal city.

Wangan Immortal City governed two hundred and twenty-three strongholds.

Naturally, Lu Qing had become one of the ten most influential figures within the Clear Sky Sect and was heavily courted by many aristocratic families.

Li Qingqiu remained very confident in Lu Qing.

Lu Qing was a disciple born and raised entirely within the Clear Sky Sect.

He had once ranked among the top ten disciples of the Grand Dao Tournament, possessing outstanding aptitude, cultivation, and management abilities.

“Since he has already taken action, then let us wait for now,” Li Qingqiu said calmly.

“Yes.”

Xiao Wuqing acknowledged the order.

Only after waiting several breaths did he sever the connection between the Clear Sky Tokens.

When Yuan Li saw Li Qingqiu return the Sect Master Token to his Storage Pouch, he asked,

“Master, do you need me to make a trip there?”

Li Qingqiu rolled his eyes at him and said irritably,

“Sending you to fight is fine, but sending you to find people? Are you sure?”

Yuan Li laughed awkwardly, realizing his consideration had indeed been insufficient.

“Continue cultivating. At dusk, the three of you will join forces and attack me together. Whoever performs the worst will be punished.”

Li Qingqiu closed his eyes and spoke leisurely.

The moment these words were spoken, Yuan Li, Yin Jingxing, and Xu Yuqiong all shuddered simultaneously.

The first time Li Qingqiu allowed them to join forces, they had been extremely excited.

Yet after the battle began, reality proved completely different from their expectations.

Even Yuan Li had been unable to shake Li Qingqiu in the slightest.

Yuan Li would never forget the scene where he unleashed his strongest punch with full power—

Only for Li Qingqiu to block it with a single finger.

He indeed counted as the strongest Spirit Sense Realm disciple within the sect.

Yet now he also understood that he was still not strong enough.

At the very least, he was still far from capable of fighting side by side with his Master.

After Yuan Li’s group fully immersed themselves back into cultivation, Li Qingqiu opened his eyes and looked down upon them.

“I wonder whether there will ever come a day when I can truly fight side by side with you all.”

Li Qingqiu thought silently.

This was something Yuan Li often said—his wish to stand together with his Master against powerful enemies.

Li Qingqiu occasionally imagined scenes where he would lead his disciples against terrifying foes.

If such a day truly arrived, setting aside how dangerous the enemy might be, simply standing together with his disciples would already be deeply moving.

Just imagining it caused the corners of Li Qingqiu’s lips to rise uncontrollably.

……

Rumble——

Thunder flashed across the rainy night sky.

Torrential rain mercilessly washed over the mountains and earth.

Within the forest, Lin Xunfeng carried a young girl upon his back while rapidly sprinting through the woods, splashing muddy water along the way.

Rainwater covered Lin Xunfeng’s face, yet his eyes remained firm as he stared ahead intently.

Several wounds upon his body still bled continuously.

“Senior… I’m cold…”

A weak voice came from behind him, causing Lin Xunfeng to momentarily lose focus.

Back then, when he had carried Li Dongyue up the mountain, that girl had once said the exact same thing.

Silently, he circulated his Vital Energy to warm Wei Rong’s body and softly said,

“Hold on a little longer. I’ll let you rest soon.”

Wei Rong lay upon his back with her head lowered.

Even so, rainwater still flowed into her mouth, causing her to cough repeatedly.

Lin Xunfeng’s speed remained extremely fast, resembling a sharp arrow darting through the forest.

After a long while—

Lin Xunfeng finally discovered a cave.

He carried Wei Rong inside before walking alone toward the entrance to begin setting up formations.

Wei Rong leaned against the cave wall while hugging her knees.

She slowly raised her head and secretly glanced toward Lin Xunfeng, watching him busily working as her eyes flickered slightly.

Ever since she could remember, no one had ever treated her this kindly.

She had once remained wary of Lin Xunfeng as well.

But when she had fallen into despair, Lin Xunfeng’s appearance had completely earned her trust.

As she looked at Lin Xunfeng, her heart became filled with fear.

Not fear of dying here—

But fear of implicating Lin Xunfeng.

She stared at him unblinkingly, afraid he might suddenly disappear.

The rain outside gradually stopped.

A ray of moonlight shone downward, landing directly upon Lin Xunfeng.

Seeing the injuries covering his body, Wei Rong clenched her small hands tightly into fists.

After working for quite some time, Lin Xunfeng finally completed three layers of formations.

They could conceal the cave entrance, hide their aura, and isolate all sound.

He stood up and noticed Wei Rong’s gaze.

Immediately, he placed both hands upon his waist, puffed out his chest proudly, and smiled brightly.

“Alright, no one will discover us now. Before sleeping, would you like a bowl of hot porridge?”

“The kind with meat.”

Five-year-old Wei Rong stared at Lin Xunfeng’s smile and slowly raised her head.

A smile gradually appeared upon her own face as well.

Just as she was about to speak—

Puchi!

A blade suddenly pierced through Lin Xunfeng’s chest.

Blood splattered outward.

Immediately afterward, a hand landed upon his shoulder, firmly restraining his body.

Lin Xunfeng’s eyes widened in shock, clearly never expecting such an attack.

He discovered that the Vital Energy within his body had become sealed, leaving him completely unable to move.

Terror instantly filled him.

“You… who are you…”

Lin Xunfeng gritted his teeth and asked.

The other party’s aura felt incomparably sinister, unlike anything he had encountered before.

“You dared snatch away someone the Yuan Clan wanted.”

“You truly must be tired of living.”

A low voice filled with killing intent sounded from behind him.

The moment Lin Xunfeng heard those words, despair completely consumed him.

After being hunted for so long, he was already at the end of his strength.

Now, he possessed no ability whatsoever to resist.

He looked toward Wei Rong with an apologetic expression.

Yet Wei Rong showed no fear.

Instead, she stared fixedly at the person behind him, her eyes filled with hatred.