Chapter 217 - 160: A Motley Crew

Chapter 217: Chapter 160: A Motley Crew

"You take her and go. I’ll cover the rear."

Zhao Zuo scanned his surroundings, his gaze falling on pair after pair of greedy eyes. He knew this day wouldn’t end peacefully. He chose the more difficult path: to hold off the surrounding greedy Loose Cultivators himself.

"Alright." Shen Yunjiao wasted no words. She immediately threw Chen Xiaorong onto her back, her eyes scanning the encirclement for a weak point to break through.

Chen Xiaorong first coughed up a mouthful of blood, then took out a healing Pill Medicine and swallowed it.

’She had been prepared to die, but she never expected this turn of events. She had specifically told Zhao Zuo not to get involved in this again.’

’But he still showed up...’

For some reason, a trace of joy bloomed in Chen Xiaorong’s heart.

’The world was cold, the road ahead fraught with peril, but she was no longer walking it alone. She had a fellow traveler she acknowledged: Zhao Zuo. This joy had nothing to do with romance. It was the joy of finding someone who shared her convictions, someone to walk beside in pursuit of absolute justice for all under heaven...’

Of course, Zhao Zuo had no idea what Chen Xiaorong was thinking right now. If he did, he would certainly have a few things to say in rebuttal—namely, that he had no desire to spend his life fighting for fairness in the world.

Then again, coerced by Chen Xiaorong’s strength, he might just say a few things he didn’t mean.

"Attack!" Meng Xudao bellowed. He screamed with such force that his voice became a distorted, grating shriek. All traces of the dignified sage had vanished from his face.

Greed. All that remained was greed. He was like a wild beast on the verge of losing all reason.

’Hardly what you’d call an immortal.’

Zhao Zuo shook his head in disappointment, but quickly resigned himself to the fact. ’People with a noble character like me... are few and far between in this world.’

As Chen Xiaorong was now completely weakened, the chilling air she had gathered began to dissipate. The ice-covered ground melted rapidly, leaving only twenty-one frozen corpses behind.

The encirclement tightened to prevent Shen Yunjiao’s escape, which, in a way, created the perfect environment for Zhao Zuo to use the Soul-Shaking Bell Magical Artifact.

"Go!" Zhao Zuo signaled to Shen Yunjiao. He then tossed the Soul-Shaking Bell, now infused with his Mana, high into the air. The azure bell swayed in the slight breeze, letting out a series of grating chimes—the telltale sign of the Magical Artifact’s impending activation.

"Attack that bell!"

A few clever Cultivators immediately launched their Magical Artifacts toward the Soul-Shaking Bell, but they were too slow. Zhao Zuo slapped the Sky-Breaking Saber at his waist. An azure streak of light shot out, deflecting the incoming Magical Artifacts and even slicing several of the Lower Grade ones clean in two.

DING, DING, DING, DING.

DONG.

The sound of a great temple bell tolled—a resonant, booming clang that was both solemn and majestic. Its impossibly deep tone lingered, refusing to fade.

Simultaneously, an invisible wave pulsed outward, shaking Souls to their core.

The Loose Cultivators with weaker Souls stiffened instantly. Zhao Zuo gripped his saber and charged into the crowd. Wielding the sharp Black Flame Saber, he cut a bloody path through them. The battlefield descended into tense chaos. Blood and flesh flew as the air filled with the stench of slaughter and death. His saber flashed, sweeping across the field... and the Loose Cultivators fell like stalks of wheat.

Meanwhile, the Sky-Breaking Saber, moving with incredible speed, killed at a rate far exceeding Zhao Zuo himself. In the first moment of its assault, four or five men had already fallen.

Even those with stronger Souls who managed to stay conscious under the influence of the Soul-Shaking Bell had their hands full just protecting themselves. Faced with such a brutal battle, they certainly weren’t about to risk their necks helping others. After all, this was just a loose alliance, forged out of mutual greed.

On the chaotic battlefield, everyone was fighting for their own self-interest. There was no true unity among them. An alliance this loose, lacking any real coordination or trust, was bound to shatter.

Unfortunately, the stunning effect of the Soul-Shaking Bell didn’t last long. Even though Zhao Zuo, Shen Yunjiao, and the Sky-Breaking Saber killed with all their might, they only managed to eliminate a third of their enemies before the effect wore off. The remaining Loose Cultivators closed in, trapping the three of them in the center.

But the combat power Zhao Zuo and his allies unleashed was enough to strike terror into their hearts. Their formation faltered, leaving a clear opening. Shen Yunjiao, still carrying Chen Xiaorong, immediately fled through the gap.

"Quick, stop her!" Meng Xudao barked the order, but he quickly discovered no one moved. As they watched Shen Yunjiao escape, their eyes held a mixture of greed and an even greater amount of fear. They had come from all over in search of fortune, not to throw their lives away.

Most of them only had a Cultivation at the Middle Period of Qi Cultivation; they weren’t even qualified to use a Foundation Establishment Pill. To them, it was more like a hot potato.

’This bunch of short-sighted rabble...’ Meng Xudao cursed inwardly. His Cultivation had reached Qi Cultivation Perfection years ago; he was the only one here qualified to use the Foundation Establishment Pill. But he could see that the group’s morale had shattered. These people alone would never get the job done.

But he was hesitant to face Zhao Zuo in a life-or-death battle. Yet, when he thought of the opportunity for Foundation Establishment slipping through his fingers, his expression hardened, his eyes becoming resolute and vicious once more.

He casually flung seven or eight Talismans at Zhao Zuo. Most were One Tier, Lower Grade Talismans inscribed with the Clear Wind Spell, but mixed in were two or three Middle Grade Flame Talismans.

The two effects combined, the wind fanning the flames, and converged into a raging tornado of fire.

Zhao Zuo’s expression remained unchanged. He charged forward, swinging his saber. The Sky-Breaking Saber shot into the air, piercing straight through the Flame Storm from top to bottom, causing it to dissipate, and continued on, aimed straight for Meng Xudao’s chest.

As the Sky-Breaking Saber descended upon him, layers of overlapping Golden Light Barriers materialized around Meng Xudao’s body. He had likely activated a dozen or so Golden Light Talismans at once.

DING! DING! DING! DING!

The Sky-Breaking Saber pierced the Golden Light, one layer after another. With each shattered barrier, Meng Xudao’s face grew a shade paler. Finally, after piercing ten layers of the golden barrier, the Sky-Breaking Saber scattered the last of the Golden Light into dissipating specks. But before Meng Xudao could even relax, he watched in horror as the Sky-Breaking Saber shot up to a height of about thirty meters and then plunged down again!

Despite its small size, it descended with the sound of roaring thunder, whistling through the air.

"A Magical Treasure..." Meng Xudao croaked. He could only watch as Zhao Zuo’s saber tore his carefully layered Flame Storm—a combination of wind and fire Talismans—to shreds. He had seen the Sky-Breaking Saber descend again and again, piercing through his golden barriers one by one.

’Damn it, I can’t fight him head-on...’ Meng Xudao had spent most of his life drawing Talismans. He had always been confident that his mastery of Talisman combinations could wear down any opponent in the same Realm. Now, all of his grand ambitions had vanished.

He slapped on a Vajra Talisman to bolster his defenses and immediately began to retreat.

The ambition for Foundation Establishment, the dream of a life-extending breakthrough—all of it was utterly shattered by that azure streak of light, a veritable grim reaper.

Zhao Zuo waved his hand, recalling the Sky-Breaking Saber. He glanced at the Loose Cultivators, who were already scrambling to loot the Storage Bags from the frozen corpses, and shook his head silently. Then, he set off in the direction Shen Yunjiao had fled.

’He refused to believe that this was the extent of the Demon Path’s three sects’ methods...’

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