Chapter 1230: The Filthy Rich "Eight Venerable An"

You're being way too fake!

At that moment, Xu Xiaoshou nearly lost it and wanted to punch this guy who was practically begging for it.

His act was full of holes; how was he keeping it up? But putting himself in her shoes, Xu Xiaoshou suddenly understood his junior sister's feelings.

No wonder every time he tried to pull off a disguise in front of her, he always ended up with an extra "cursed" effect.

From an outsider's perspective, it was all incredibly embarrassing, wasn't it? "This must be Xiao Kongdong!"

Xu Xiaoshou was ninety percent certain of this Ba Zun An's true identity.

After all, on Xukong Island, only a couple of people could convincingly imitate the old eighth. Once he calmed down, he also grasped why Xiao Kongdong was sticking with this humiliating performance. First off, he had already jumped to conclusions.

Shengnu had a hidden tenth seat, which Xu Xiaoshou had only found out about recently, let alone Shengshen Hall.

So, Xiao Kongdong absolutely couldn't afford to mess up in front of Number Two, not for anything. Even if he had already screwed up, he had to maintain the "shameful" facade to the bitter end.

Because revealing his real identity would be a complete disaster for Can Yue Xian City.

Well... anyway...

Xu Xiaoshou had used open schemes before.

But openly scheming against people? That was a first for him!

On the other side, Huang Quan reviewed the events and quickly deduced that this person wasn't the real Ba Zun An. But it didn't matter.

Whether he was Ba Zun An or not was irrelevant.

What mattered was that, right now, he had just enough power to hold Number Two in check. Even if he only displayed two major sword techniques and could only stall Number Two for a moment, that was already a success.

Without a doubt, he was a very powerful ancient sword cultivator!

In the current battle, as a supporter jumping in, he didn't need to be overwhelmingly strong—just effective.

"How about we cooperate?" Huang Quan's words came out almost instantly.

"Hand Number Two over to you two, and that one over there, I'll take care of," Ba Zun An said, pointing to Yan Wuse, who was in the process of reviving.

Under the influence of the Dao principles, the Illusion Sword Technique could no longer control the liberated state of Tianji Divine Envoy.

But as Number Two tried to advance, Huang Quan clearly agreed to the cooperation and stepped in at the right time. His time abilities, combined with the Wound Profound Sword, could restrain Number Two.

Moreover, if the fight reached a stalemate, the resurrected Tian Ren Wu Sui could provide all sorts of bizarre but useful effects from the rear.

His various weakening abilities could stack on the enemy without limit as time went on!

Number Two was utterly disgusted.

From being trapped in Mei Yiren's Falling Petals Realm, to being confined by Ba Zun An's Illusion Sword Technique, and now being restricted by Huang Quan's time reversal...

He possessed immense power, but in this battle, his enemies were all control masters, with their control skills maxed out.

Some of them were so ridiculous that midway through a fight, if they made a mistake, they could reverse time and start over.

How infuriating was that?

Only then did Number Two realize that the most comfortable fights for him were back when he was outsmarting Xu Xiaoshou.

Sure, it was annoying then too, but if he didn't want to play around anymore, he could just go all out and obliterate his opponent.

But now... they were like persistent flies, one after another!

The booming sounds of battle faded into the distance as Huang Quan and Tian Ren Wu Sui teamed up to drag Number Two to the other side of the battlefield.

Meanwhile, far off, Yan Wuse—still confused under the Holy Revival—was seemingly finding a way to restore his head.

From his neck to his chin...

His head began to slowly take shape, bit by bit.

Even Xu Xiaoshou felt a wave of anxiety watching this.

"You two." Ba Zun An glanced over calmly, his expression quite relaxed. "If Yan Wuse revives, even if I take you away right now, you won't escape the pursuit of the light."

As if you could actually escape!

Xu Xiaoshou knew from that line that this fake Ba Zun An had no real plan. Either he couldn't get anyone off Xukong Island, or even if he did, Yan Wuse and Number Two would mark them.

But if the real Ba Zun An showed up, how could he just run and still get chased? That would make him no different from a useless fool.

Xu Xiaoshou saw through it all but wasn't stupid enough to expose this guy's charade. He could tell the impostor still wanted to maintain the image of the eighth sword immortal in the eyes of all the spirit refiners on Xukong Island.

So, Xu Xiaoshou played along: "This is the best chance to eliminate them for good here, right?"

Ba Zun An's right eyelid twitched slightly. He stared at Xu Xiaoshou for a long moment before finally saying, "You're right."

"So, how do we kill them?" Xu Xiaoshou thought to himself that even his Passive Fist couldn't finish off Yan Wuse, so how could this Xiao Kongdong pull it off?

"Easy enough." This Ba Zun An was a master of meaningless chatter. After saying that, he didn't dare continue talking to Xu Xiaoshou and turned to Mei Yiren. "Can you still fight?"

"No." Mei Yiren shook his head firmly.

Ba Zun An's lips curved into a meaningful smile. "You can."

Mei Yiren froze, about to say something.

Ba Zun An subtly glanced at the spirit refiners below on the island and said in a tone that sounded almost like an all-powerful creator: "I say you can, so you can."

Xu Xiaoshou's head started throbbing from this.

Did this guy have some misunderstanding about the real Ba Zun An? This was the kind of foolish behavior that even the actual Ba Zun An would want to step in and correct.

But seeing Ba Zun An's confident move, he reached into his robe as if to pull something out.

Soon, he paused, thought for a second, and with two fingers, he produced a beam of light, pointing it at Mei Yiren's forehead.

"This is..."

Standing on the Sword Dao Disk, Xu Xiaoshou easily saw through it—this light was just the Illusion Sword Technique in disguise.

In reality, Ba Zun An had pulled out a black token, similar to a "免死令" (Death Exemption Token), but with a crossed-out "逐" character on it.

An Exemption from Exile Token?

Meeting Xu Xiaoshou's puzzled gaze, Ba Zun An explained in a patient, instructive tone through a sound transmission:

"For those below Semi-Sage, getting marked starts a death countdown, and that's where the 'Death Exemption Token' comes in."

"For Semi-Sages and above, it's an exile countdown, banishing them to Xukong Island, so that's when you need the 'Exemption from Exile Token'."

Xu Xiaoshou raised his eyebrows high as he watched Mei Yiren accept this "gift" without resistance.

He took a deep breath.

Why go to such lengths?

Did he really need to maintain this image?

Just use the Exemption from Exile Token—why the pretense with the Illusion Sword Technique and light?

Would that make his Ba Zun An act more convincing?

"Now then?" Ba Zun An ignored Xu Xiaoshou's complicated look and smiled faintly at Mei Yiren.

Mei Yiren was clearly getting fed up with this guy's tone, a vein twitching at his temple.

But if he could put up with Xu Xiaoshou, what was one more like Ba Zun An? "I'm fine now."

Ba Zun An nodded in satisfaction: "I said you could, and you can."

Xu Xiaoshou: "..."

Mei Yiren: "..."

Murmurs of amazement rose from the island below, with comments like "As expected of the eighth sword immortal."

Xu Xiaoshou was surprised that Ba Zun An had such fervent fans, even at the Severing Dao or Taixu levels.

What was so amazing about just one beam of light?

But hearing that only made Ba Zun An's smile grow wider.

He finally turned to Xu Xiaoshou, reaching into his robe again to pull out another "gift of light."

To outsiders, receiving this light meant you could act without restraint on Xukong Island—how powerful was that?

"No need!" Xu Xiaoshou saw right away that this was an outdated Death Exemption Token for him.

"Why not?" Ba Zun An's momentum faltered.

"I can already act without restraint!"

"And how's that?"

Xu Xiaoshou couldn't stand this guy anymore. He took a deep breath and lifted his chin arrogantly: "My status is above yours!"

Ba Zun An was speechless.

A spark of curiosity flashed in his eyes, but worrying it would lower his image, he swallowed his question after a hard gulp.

"Big talk." He snorted coldly and looked away.

"Ba Zun An, do you have any more Exemption from Exile Tokens?"

Tian Ren Wu Sui's voice came from the other side. Clearly, he had intercepted Ba Zun An's earlier sound transmission.

"No." Ba Zun An gave Tian Ren Wu Sui a cold glance.

From that indifferent expression, only Xu Xiaoshou could sense the subtext—he clearly thought Tian Ren Wu Sui wasn't worthy to directly address "Ba Zun An" by name.

In that regard, Xiao Kongdong's obsession with maintaining his teacher's image was almost fanatical; calling him the number one fan wouldn't be an exaggeration.

He was bold enough to stand up to a sealed saint like Tian Ren Wu Sui just for his teacher's reputation.

"Number Two has the Mysterious Box; he can act without fear of Xukong Island's rules, but we're running out of steam."

"Huang Quan and I can't keep fighting, or we'll get exiled. I doubt that's what you want."

"So, we need the Exemption from Exile Tokens."

Tian Ren Wu Sui held back his irritation and explained sincerely.

Ba Zun An narrowed his eyes.

Xu Xiaoshou saw he was getting backed into a corner and quickly chimed in: "We're all friends here."

Ba Zun An shot him a cold glare before pulling another beam of light from his robe. Tian Ren Wu Sui slapped the light apart, grabbed the token, and slapped it on his head, then asked, "Any more?"

Ba Zun An's eyelid twitched.

He didn't have time to add another beam of light for the spirit refiners on Xukong Island to see. The "gift of light" was just the essence of a token—if they saw it for what it was, it was over!

"None." His face turned frosty.

"Then Huang Quan will get exiled, and if it's just me left, I can't beat Number Two." Tian Ren Wu Sui said earnestly.

Xu Xiaoshou glanced at the two, hesitated, and added: "We're all friends..."

Ba Zun An glared at him again and pulled out yet another beam of light from his robe.

Mei Yiren, Xu Xiaoshou, and Tian Ren Wu Sui were all stunned.

No one expected this Ba Zun An to actually have three Exemption from Exile Tokens.

"How do you have so many tokens?" Tian Ren Wu Sui clutched the lifesaving token, his eyes involuntarily drifting to Ba Zun An's chest.

Was this a treasure trove?

Or had he secretly taken all the treasures from Zhen Huang Hall?

But that didn't make sense—Zhen Huang Hall's battle happened without him, so when did he steal them?

"The countdown's lifted for you all. If you can't hold out, don't bother coming to see me—just let Number Two bury you." Ba Zun An snorted coldly, refusing to answer.

Tian Ren Wu Sui gave him a deep look and vanished in a flash.

"I've got it now—what you meant by 'dealing with these people doesn't require you to act personally.'" Xu Xiaoshou let out a long sigh.

Ba Zun An swept his gaze over him, still mindful of the spirit refiners on the island, and didn't respond.

He turned to Yan Wuse.

Under the Holy Revival's power, Yan Wuse's body was almost fully rebuilt. His lower body was no longer ethereal, and his head had formed up to the nose.

His mouth appeared, opening and closing, but no sound came out—just some "gurgling" and "roaring" low growls.

"His soul and spirit haven't fully returned yet, but it should be soon..."

Xu Xiaoshou stared at Yan Wuse, who was hunched over, clutching his head and roaring like he was doing standing sit-ups, his face serious.

The Passive Fist was no joke—it had even severely injured the Three Emperors.

But now, how to solve this? He had no idea and had to leave it to the two beside him.

"How do we fight?" Xu Xiaoshou asked.

"Let me handle it." Mei Yiren stepped forward with the Tai Cheng Sword.

This Ba Zun An might not be reliable, but he had brought the Exemption from Exile Token, giving Mei Yiren another chance.

At least, after using one sword, he probably wouldn't get exiled on the spot.

"Hold on a second."

As Ba Zun An reached out to stop Mei Yiren, he extravagantly pulled out another Exemption from Exile Token and tucked it into Mei Yiren's robe, saying:

"Xu Xiaoshou's punch couldn't finish Yan Wuse, so your sword might only severely injure him without ending it."

"But as long as he's not instantly killed, Yan Wuse has Holy Revival—he'll recover quickly."

"Number Two is different. If he suffers absolute damage that even Tianji Power can't fix, it could trigger a series of unknown changes, potentially shutting him down completely—man-made things can never match spirit refiners in that way."

"So, save your sword for Number Two."

Only then did Xu Xiaoshou finally see the value in this Ba Zun An—he was calm and analytical. He asked, "What about the headless Yan Wuse?"

Ba Zun An chuckled lightly: "In this state, I can suppress Yan Wuse, but I'll need your help."

"Aren't you sealing your sword?" Xu Xiaoshou couldn't help but jab.

Ba Zun An's face darkened as he turned and glared fiercely at Xu Xiaoshou.

"Cursed effect, Passive Points, +1."

Mei Yiren figured out what this Ba Zun An was planning.

First, stall Yan Wuse to keep him out of the fight, then turn their focus to Number Two.

With Mei Yiren still holding an Exemption from Exile Token and the saints present, they really could take down Number Two here!

Even if Yan Wuse recovered later, everyone could swing back and keep fighting—as long as Ba Zun An had more tokens...

"I do." Ba Zun An seemed to read Mei Yiren's thoughts, nodding and patting his chest with an air of wealth.

How do you even have them? Xu Xiaoshou was starting to regret exchanging ten thousand Xukong Crystals for Tianzu's blessing back then.

He should have gotten Exemption from Exile Tokens or Death Exemption Tokens instead and given them all to his teacher—that would have unleashed a top Semi-Sage's full power!

Turns out, these tokens were the real treasures!

But at the time, who could have predicted such an intense holy war and the shortage of tokens...

Luckily, this guy must have exchanged a bunch in advance, before Zhen Huang Hall turned to ruins.

"Can your God-Buddha imagery manifest externally?" Ba Zun An suddenly turned and asked.

"Externally?"

"I mean, instead of using it in the enemy's mental world, manifest it directly in the real world, like he does." Ba Zun An glanced at Mei Yiren.

In the form of a sword image?

But sword image is pure divine thought, which is fundamentally different from my All Demons imagery.

Xu Xiaoshou paused, then started to understand Ba Zun An's idea. "I'm not sure I can do that."

"Think about the Falling Petals Realm—the inversion and reset of the conscious and real worlds—you've already mastered that." Mei Yiren spoke up.

"But I don't have divine thought, so if it's not in sword image form, my All Demons won't have any combat power—it's just for show, maybe intimidating, whereas sword image..." Xu Xiaoshou stopped.

He currently had the ability to learn ancient sword techniques at a glance, but divine thought like "sword image" wasn't purely sword-related—in fact, most of it wasn't. He couldn't whip up a sword image anytime soon, so it wouldn't have real combat power.

"No need for combat power—just the presence will do." Mei Yiren smiled.

With that, he looked at Ba Zun An. "I get what you mean. It's your famous 'Three Talents Sword,' right?"

Ba Zun An nodded with a smile: "Exactly!"