Chapter 516: A Trace of Excitement

On the Cloud River Battlefield, many people wear masks. They are inexpensive and come in various styles, offering a degree of anonymity in situations where one prefers not to show their true face.

This He Bing, for some reason, clearly disliked masks. At this moment, he was powerful and intent on asserting his dominance.

"I’ll count to three. Take off your masks."

He Bing's voice was as cold as ice. If not for the inconvenient terrain, he would have already attacked the moment he identified their faction. Three people traveling together clearly wouldn't have very high cultivation. He had killed several such cultivators these past few days, and none of them could put up a fight.

"One!"

"Two!"

A faint sigh escaped as Li Baxian raised a hand to touch his mask.

He recalled how he had been a force to be reckoned with on the Spirit Creek Battlefield; when Li Baxian of Danxin Sect was mentioned, who wasn't wary? But since entering the Cloud River Battlefield, he once again felt weak and helpless.

Just as Li Baxian was about to remove his mask, Lu Ye suddenly stepped out from behind him, raising his hand and sending a crescent-shaped blade glow forward.

"How dare you!"

He Bing roared, lifting his long spear and lightly parrying, shattering the crescent blade glow.

He was furious. In this situation, he hadn't made the first move, yet these hidden figures had attacked. They truly didn't take him seriously.

The attacker was now rapidly approaching him, their spiritual power fluctuations revealing their weak cultivation of Cloud River Third-Order. He Bing bared his teeth in a sneer.

A Third-Order cultivator... He wondered if they had eaten the guts of a bear and a leopard. Such a person could be extinguished with a single spear thrust.

Just then, faint spiritual power fluctuations suddenly rippled behind him.

Someone was behind him! He Bing was startled.

However, all his attention was focused on Lu Ye. By the time he reacted, it was too late. Something seemed to descend over him, blurring his vision. When he regained his senses, he was in a rocky forest.

He Bing's expression was a mixture of shock and uncertainty. He clearly didn't understand what had happened or why he had suddenly appeared in this place from the underground cave.

Inside the cave, Yi Yi appeared where He Bing had stood. The Nine-Formation Diagram unfurled in her hand. The diagram showed a rocky forest with a small figure holding a long spear, warily surveying its surroundings. From the figure's silhouette, it was remarkably similar to He Bing.

Being cornered here by a Seventh-Order strong cultivator, with the teleportation array unable to connect to other points, there was no retreat. They had no choice but to fight. Lu Ye, Li Baxian, and Feng Yuechan all understood this.

The opponent hadn't attacked immediately because he was unsure of their specific cultivation levels. If he knew they were all Third or Fourth-Order, he would have attacked directly, without so much wasted talk.

Since this battle was inevitable, it was natural to plan ahead.

When Li Baxian had moved to block Lu Ye, Lu Ye had raised a hand and patted Amber. Although no words were exchanged, their long companionship meant he and Yi Yi already shared a deep understanding.

Yi Yi had then stealthily moved to He Bing’s rear.

The rest was simple: Lu Ye attacked to distract He Bing's attention, and Yi Yi burst forth, activating the Nine-Formation Diagram to trap him within.

The Nine-Formation Diagram was a Spirit Treasure-grade artifact, a tier higher than magical tools. As Yi Yi's cultivation increased, the power it could unleash also improved. Trapping a Seventh-Order cultivator when they were unprepared was achievable.

Fighting absolutely could not happen in this underground cave. Firstly, to avoid the cave collapsing, which would mean total annihilation. Secondly, to prevent the commotion from attracting Wei Que or other powerful cultivators from the Myriad Demon Ridge.

Inside the Nine-Formation Diagram, there were fewer concerns about fighting, assuming Yi Yi could hold on!

With He Bing trapped in the Nine-Formation Diagram, Lu Ye rushed forward. Although Li Baxian and Feng Yuechan didn't fully understand what had happened, their reactions were incredibly swift, and they immediately followed Lu Ye.

Yi Yi unfurled the Nine-Formation Diagram and met the three of them.

*Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh,* the three entered the diagram. Instantly, three more figures appeared on the diagram's illustration.

In the rocky forest, Lu Ye and the other two appeared in sequence, forming a triangular formation to surround He Bing. At this moment, He Bing had also reacted, exclaiming in surprise, "A formation diagram?"

At his level of cultivation, he possessed some insight and discernment. His previous experience and current environment all indicated that he had been pulled into a formation diagram.

His enemies were not three, but four! One had been hidden in the shadows, presumably the one controlling the diagram now.

He Bing felt a chill in his heart, yet also a surge of excitement.

A formation diagram—this was a rare treasure. He wondered about the origin of these three; despite their low cultivation, they possessed such an extraordinary artifact. If he could kill them, this treasure would be his.

With that thought, he no longer hesitated. He shifted his feet and charged fiercely towards Lu Ye.

He chose Lu Ye because Lu Ye had previously exposed his cultivation level: a mere Third-Order, four full orders below his own. He was confident he could kill him with one spear thrust!

His speed was incredibly fast, covering over ten *zhang* in just two steps, instantly appearing before Lu Ye and thrusting his spear.

This unadorned thrust gave Lu Ye an immense sense of crisis. His skin tightened and tingled in that instant. The Mountain-Cleaving Blade erupted from its sheath, spiritual power surging into the long blade. He swept it upward at an angle, striking the opponent's long spear.

The moment blade met spear, Lu Ye's eyes narrowed. The opponent's spear thrust was incredibly powerful and heavy, making his counter-slash feel like striking a solid rock.

The spear, originally aimed at his chest, was deflected by only an inch.

In their very first clash, he was already in a life-or-death situation. This was the oppressive power of a Seventh-Order cultivator, and the opponent clearly wasn't using their full strength.

In the Spirit Creek Realm, the Fourth-Order and Seventh-Order were two significant dividing lines; crossing them brought substantial increases in strength. The Cloud River Realm was no different.

Therefore, in this hunting ground, only cultivators above the Seventh-Order had the capital to venture alone. Of course, nothing was absolute; cultivators had varying personalities. It wasn't unheard of for some bold Sixth-Order cultivators, confident in their skill, to avoid traveling with others, like the spellcaster Lu Ye and Yi Yi had previously teamed up to kill...

A small protective spiritual紋 appeared before Lu Ye, and at the same time, he leaned back as far as possible.

The spear thrust past, shattering the protection. Lu Ye felt a scorching pain at his neck.

Before he could get up, the opponent's spear, which had missed, came down like a club.

With a thud, Lu Ye was smashed to the ground, feeling numb from his shoulder blade to his lower abdomen.

A surprised look flashed in He Bing's eyes. He clearly hadn't expected a Third-Order cultivator to withstand his spear. But that was all it was. Lu Ye was pinned to the ground, spiritual power agitated, unable to move for a moment, a living target.

He was about to withdraw his spear and thrust again when the sound of swords rang out, and sharp killing intent assailed him from behind.

"Sword cultivator!"

He Bing made an immediate judgment. Even though he was sure the cultivation of these three Myriad Demon Ridge cultivators was lower than his, he dared not ignore the lethality of a sword cultivator.

He hastily turned. A large stream of flying swords' light filled his vision. He immediately shook his long spear, and spear blossoms bloomed.

A series of dense clangs, accompanied by flashing sparks, resounded as all the incoming flying swords were parried.

Amidst the flying swords, a large number of spells were mixed in. Flying swords and spells were perfectly integrated at this moment, continuous and unending, truly a vibrant display of one after another.

Li Baxian and Feng Yuechan had grown up and cultivated together since childhood, true childhood sweethearts. Feng Yuechan had even willingly stayed in the Spirit Creek Realm for over ten years without advancing for Li Baxian. Their bond was far deeper than that between Lu Ye and Yi Yi.

Their cooperation was naturally flawless, without any openings.

He Bing's expression became solemn because something felt off.

The sword cultivator and spellcaster were one order higher in cultivation than the blade cultivator, appearing to be Fourth-Order. But these three, no matter who they were, possessed profound foundations far exceeding their own cultivation.

These three were definitely the most elite disciples from top-tier sects!

Along with his caution, there was a hint of excitement.

His background wasn't particularly distinguished; he came from a Fourth-Rank sect. Although he had advanced to Cloud River with three hundred and sixty acupoints, he was still far inferior to true geniuses. He hadn't even made it onto the Spirit Creek Rankings back then.

If everyone had been at Spirit Creek Realm cultivation, any of these three would have been someone he needed to look up to and revere. But now, he could fight one against three by virtue of the cultivation gap.

What did it matter if they had a good background, or exceptional talent? In the face of an absolute cultivation gap, they would still die!

He didn't know why, but he suddenly felt that the sword cultivator and spellcaster looked familiar, as if he had seen them somewhere before...

While Li Baxian and Feng Yuechan tangled with He Bing, Lu Ye quickly got up, increasing the distance between himself and He Bing. He wiped his neck with a hand, finding it covered in blood.

He was secretly alarmed. If he hadn't reacted quickly just now, his neck might have been shattered by the enemy's spear. Fighting a Seventh-Order cultivator with Third-Order cultivation was too risky; any mistake or error could lead to eternal damnation.

"Go!"

He Bing suddenly let out a low cry. Several streaks of light from his controlled artifacts appeared out of thin air, breaking through the barrage of flying swords and spells, splitting to attack Li Baxian and Feng Yuechan.

How could Li Baxian and Feng Yuechan dare to directly confront a Seventh-Order blade cultivator's controlled artifacts?

The umbrella-like magical artifact was summoned, its surface unfurling to shield them.

A series of *thudding* sounds emanated, and the umbrella's spiritual light flickered wildly. With each sound, Feng Yuechan took a step back.

After finally blocking all the controlled artifacts, He Bing had already broken through the flying swords' blockade and rushed closer.

Li Baxian shook the long sword in his hand. Numerous flying swords swirled around him, forming a sword dragon, and charged towards He Bing.

When the two figures collided, the sword dragon disintegrated, and Li Baxian's body flew back like a broken sack.