Chapter 570: Uninvited Guest

Flying swords soared through the air, relentlessly assaulting Tan Sheng one after another. Tan Sheng, with his long spear, parried the incoming swords, creating a continuous clang of steel. As expected of a ninth-level Cloud River Realm cultivator, he defended flawlessly against the fierce and dense onslaught, even having enough energy to counterattack. Enduring the barrage of flying swords, he steadily advanced towards Li Baxian.

Li Baxian was a sword cultivator, and one of the purest kind. Facing such an enemy, Tan Sheng knew he absolutely couldn't keep his distance; otherwise, the relentless flying swords would leave him no room to breathe. Dealing with sword cultivators was, in fact, somewhat similar to dealing with spell cultivators: one had to close the distance, denying the sword cultivator space to control their swords.

However, even closing the distance for close-quarters combat was more dangerous than fighting a spell cultivator, because sword cultivators were also weapon cultivators, and close-quarters combat was second nature to them.

Li Baxian grabbed his wine gourd again and took a deep swig, letting out a satisfied burp. Behind him, swords hummed, and more flying swords spread out. With a thought, numerous swords shot out like shooting stars, preventing Tan Sheng from advancing even an inch for a moment.

While the battle raged fiercely on one side, Lu Ye and Xia Liang simultaneously surged forward on the other.

Both were weapon cultivators who used sabers, and one of them hailed from the Mad Saber Sect, making him a most orthodox saber master.

Compared to sword cultivators, saber masters possessed no less killing intent, but also an unyielding, forward-charging spirit.

So, even though Xia Liang was severely wounded and his face was pale, he showed no intention of retreating when facing an opponent several levels below him.

Neither of them considered using their weapons for a preliminary probe; the hundred-foot distance rapidly closed, and they collided with a resounding crash.

With a tremendous clang, spiritual energy flared violently. Their two long sabers met, and they stared at each other from point-blank range.

The ground beneath their feet instantly fractured into a vast spiderweb of cracks from this collision, and a furious wave of energy swept outwards, making the surrounding trees sway.

After a brief stalemate, both suddenly exerted force. Their two long sabers crossed; Lu Ye's saber slashed towards Xia Liang's neck, while Xia Liang's saber thrust towards Lu Ye's chest.

Their first clash was a life-for-life stance—this was the collision between saber masters, devoid of any embellishment, only ruthless ferocity.

The Guardian Spirit Pattern on Lu Ye's chest shattered, and blood splattered. A thin, crimson line appeared on Xia Liang's neck, with beads of blood oozing out. In that instant, both men had stared death in the face.

Their retreating figures almost simultaneously pressed forward again. The two long sabers cut through the air with a sharp arc, clanged, separated instantly, and then sought another opportunity to strike.

Their forms shifted and danced, their long sabers clashing incessantly with continuous clanging sounds. Each engagement was a fierce collision of spiritual energy.

Since cultivating, Lu Ye had fought countless enemies. The foes who had fallen to his Mountain-Crushing Saber were innumerable, ranging from weak opponents he could cleave with a single strike to powerful ones he could barely match. Yet, no battle had ever been as perilous as this one.

His struggle with Xia Liang made him truly understand what it meant to constantly walk the line between life and death.

Both men wielded their sabers with the intent of killing their opponent while preserving themselves, but after only a few moments of combat, they realized this was simply impossible.

Because if one truly committed to slaying the enemy, they would undoubtedly be slain by the opponent as well; the most likely outcome was mutual annihilation.

This was unacceptable to either of them.

The sabers flashed with increasing speed, and the sound of clashing blades grew more frequent. Lu Ye keenly noticed that Xia Liang's vital energy was concentrating in his saber-wielding right arm, clearly indicating he had used a Blood-Shifting technique.

In terms of cultivation, Lu Ye was inferior to Xia Liang, with a difference of five minor levels, a gap that was fundamentally difficult to bridge.

However, at this moment, he could fight Xia Liang to a standstill, the sole reason being that his opponent was severely wounded and unable to exert his full strength.

This was undoubtedly very advantageous for him.

As time passed, Xia Liang's condition would progressively worsen, while Lu Ye, constantly integrating with Amber's vital energy, would grow increasingly powerful.

If he could truly activate his beast transformation, Xia Liang would surely die.

However, this required an accumulation of time and momentum. Since acquiring the Beast Transformation secret technique, he had only activated it once, during his battle with He Bing.

Nevertheless, Lu Ye struck without any hesitation.

Xia Liang evidently knew that prolonging the fight was disadvantageous for him, so he put almost all his strength into every strike. Even as blood flowed from his body, his attacks grew increasingly formidable.

Another clash of their long sabers, the recoil making both men pause. Yet, in that instant, a sudden warning surged within Lu Ye.

Looking up, he saw Xia Liang holding his saber horizontally before him, one hand on the hilt, the other pressing against the blade. A violent surge of spiritual energy erupted, and a stunning blade light suddenly slashed out.

The saber strike was so fast that Lu Ye had no time to react. Fortunately, he had already begun to drift backward the moment he sensed something was wrong.

Even so, a sharp pain flared in his chest.

He had been struck. Lu Ye's heart sank. He didn't know what kind of technique Xia Liang's strike was, but it was certainly a secret art, as it was far more powerful than all the previous attacks.

The moment he was hit, Lu Ye's figure, instead of retreating, advanced. Under Xia Liang's astonished gaze, he brought his saber down.

Flash!

Blood splattered.

Consecutive Slash!

However, the second strike was already parried by Xia Liang. The wild force sent Lu Ye flying, and his figure stumbled.

With Wind Swiftness augmenting his legs, Lu Ye pressed his advantage relentlessly, charging at Xia Liang with terrifying pressure. His saber blade churned, making it difficult for Xia Liang to parry, and several more wounds appeared on his body.

Although his secret saber technique had wounded Lu Ye, using a secret art while severely injured placed an immense burden on himself.

Normally, if Lu Ye were wounded by him, he would surely retreat, giving Xia Liang a chance to catch his breath and prepare his next offensive.

However, the outcome exceeded his expectations. After being wounded, Lu Ye not only didn't retreat but instead counterattacked and pressed forward, worsening Xia Liang's predicament.

What made it even harder for him was that his opponent seemed to grow stronger with each clash. At the beginning of their engagement, they were evenly matched, but now, the speed and power of Lu Ye's saber strikes were faster and fiercer than before. With the balance broken, all Xia Liang could do was defend against Lu Ye's onslaught.

Despite being pushed back steadily, Xia Liang did not give up resisting. He managed a quick glance at the other battlefield and felt a chill run through him.

This was because Tan Sheng's situation there was even worse than his own.

After all, that was Li Baxian, a legend who had spent over a decade cultivating in the Spirit Creek Realm. Though his current cultivation was only at the fifth level, the strength he could display was far beyond that.

Tan Sheng's injuries were no lighter than his, yet his strength was inferior. Under such circumstances, fighting Li Baxian would not end well.

He couldn't even get close to Li Baxian, and despite his best efforts, he could only block the incoming flying swords, constantly accumulating new wounds.

How had things come to this?

Three ninth-level cultivators, full of youthful vigor, had come to Taomang Mountain to seek revenge on Lu Yiye. They found him, but one died first, and the remaining two were pursued here, clearly not long for this world.

Before setting out, they had considered countless possibilities, including Lu Yiye escaping via a teleportation array, calling for a Heavenly Secret Pillar to escape, or using other means to flee... The outcome, however, was that *they* were the ones fleeing, and they had been caught.

This was the end!

Xia Liang knew in his heart that this time he was likely beyond escape.

Losing the will to live, a hint of determination appeared in his expression. Lu Ye, who was launching a furious assault, immediately noticed this change and held back a portion of his strength as a precaution.

As expected, in the next moment, Xia Liang completely abandoned his defense. His spiritual energy surged wildly, and he adopted a life-for-life stance, counterattacking Lu Ye. Various exquisite saber techniques were unleashed one after another, momentarily showing signs of turning the tide of the desperate situation.

However, at this moment, Lu Ye's integration with Amber's vital energy had reached a profound level. With every saber strike, he could draw strength from Amber, and he even had hope of activating his Beast Transformation secret technique soon. Thus, no matter what Xia Liang did, it was ultimately just the struggle of a cornered beast.

Just then, however, Lu Ye suddenly noticed some unusual movements, causing him to frown.

The next moment, a series of whooshing sounds rapidly approached from not far away. Then, streaks of light entered their field of vision.

The streaks of light dispersed, revealing numerous figures who had completely surrounded the battlefield where the fighters were located.

How could there be so many people deep within Taomang Mountain? Doubt filled Lu Ye's mind.

Most importantly, he didn't know the origin of these individuals.

There was a significant number of newcomers, over a dozen of them. Judging by the spiritual energy fluctuations from their bodies, several were clearly at the ninth level, and most of the rest were above the sixth level.

Such a group of uninvited guests certainly didn't have low cultivation levels.

The fierce battle instantly subsided. Not only did Lu Ye and Xia Liang cease their engagement, but Li Baxian and Tan Sheng also stopped fighting. They separated, regrouped into pairs, and stood alert.

When fighting for their lives, with such a group suddenly appearing and the situation unclear, who would dare to act rashly?

Even though Lu Ye and Li Baxian were unwilling, they had no choice.

Tan Sheng and Xia Liang, on the other hand, both breathed a sigh of relief. Regardless of which faction these newcomers belonged to, at least their lives were temporarily out of danger.

Every moment they lived was a bonus... What if these were people from the Ten Thousand Demon Ridge?

Beside Li Baxian, Lu Ye stood with his Mountain-Crushing Saber, spiritual energy surging and vital energy churning. He turned and glanced at Li Baxian.

Li Baxian slowly shook his head, indicating he didn't recognize any of the newcomers.

Although he had extensive connections, having stayed in the Spirit Creek Battlefield for over a decade and seeing off wave after wave of Spirit Creek Realm cultivators, he mostly remained at the Danxin Sect's stronghold during his time there, rarely venturing out. Those he interacted with were primarily powerful figures on the Spirit Creek Rankings. He didn't know many outside of those rankings, so even though there were many people, he had indeed never seen them before.