Chapter 2024: Immortal Lord

“Do you dare to make a bet?”

Zhang Xuan said, “If you don’t dare, then fine. Just capture me now; I can’t resist anyway! But… for a formidable Immortal Lord level expert from the esteemed Divine Hall to be afraid of a junior like me, a mere early True Immortal, it seems the so-called Divine Hall isn’t all that impressive!”

“Early True Immortal stage?”

Elder Qiu Huo, who was immobilized, only then noticed Zhang Xuan’s cultivation level upon hearing his words, and was stunned again. The battle had been raging fiercely, with death imminent at any moment, so he hadn’t given it much thought. But now, it seemed Zhang Xuan had made yet another breakthrough…

When he first arrived at Lingyun Sword Sect, he was only at the early Void Shattering stage. In just over a day, he had broken through to mid, late, and peak stages, then to Void Immortal, and now directly to True Immortal…

Brother, it seems to me you do nothing but stir up trouble and cause chaos every day, without any actual cultivation… How exactly does your cultivation grow?

Most importantly… are you serious about trying to smash your opponent to death with a book? He had lived for one or two hundred years and had seen hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of books… yet he had never seen one that could smash a person to death.

“Reverse psychology won’t work on me!” The black-robed Immortal Lord’s face remained largely expressionless.

“I know it won’t work, but… don’t underestimate my resolve. If you don’t agree to the bet… at worst, I’ll kill myself rather than go with you!” Zhang Xuan said.

“Kill yourself? Do you think you’d have a chance to do that in front of me?” The black-robed Immortal Lord chuckled.

“Whether I have a chance isn’t for you to decide!” Zhang Xuan nodded. “Didn’t those Immortal Lord level longswords disappear just now without your permission?”

Upon hearing this, the black-robed Immortal Lord’s eyes immediately narrowed. In truth, given his power, he didn’t need to waste words; he could have directly annihilated or even captured them. The reason he hadn’t acted was precisely because the disappearance of those longswords earlier had been too bizarre! Even with his strength, he hadn’t been able to discern what exactly happened! Thus, he had constantly suspected a stronger power was hidden nearby and had been carefully on guard. That was why he had merely watched as many of his subordinates were killed without making a move.

“I can make a bet with you, but I’ll only face your own strength. If any other expert appears, don’t blame me for being impolite…” the Immortal Lord expert snorted coldly and spoke.

The opponent’s strength was evident; even if he had some trump card, killing him would be almost impossible. His only apprehension now was the ‘expert’ who had taken the longswords. As long as that fellow didn’t appear, there would be no problem.

Of course, even if that person did appear, they might not be his match! After all, within this space, he was the master. Unless someone’s cultivation truly reached the Pseudo-God realm… anyone who came would die! He wouldn’t even be afraid if Sect Leader Han of Lingyun Sword Sect came in person.

“Agreed!” Zhang Xuan nodded. What he intended to use, naturally, was the Tome of Heaven’s Path. The reason for his excessive chatter was that the Heavenly Secrets here were being blocked. If the Tome didn't have its usual power or missed its target, he would truly be stuck here!

Moreover, the opponent was so powerful, he surely had many life-saving techniques and moved too quickly to be seen clearly. If he discovered the terrifying nature of the Tome of Heaven's Path in advance and escaped, Zhang Xuan wouldn't be able to catch him! After all, he only had this one trump card in his hand. And it was single-use, so failure was not an option. First, he needed to stabilize him with words, then… target him precisely!

“Alright, I’ll stand right here and see what you’ve got!” The black-robed Immortal Lord stood motionless, watching him indifferently. Although he made no move, the immortal energy within his body was constantly circulating, as if ready to counterattack the moment the hidden expert appeared.

“Here it comes…”

Relieved, Zhang Xuan’s spirit stirred. The Tome of Heaven’s Path, which had just formed from receiving Bai Ruanqing, floated out from his mind and appeared above the black-robed man’s head in the blink of an eye.

“A book, really?” The black-robed man was startled. He had thought the other party was joking, saying “book” but actually referring to some other weapon. He never expected it to truly be a book. He looked closely, trying to discern its material and level, but found that even with his keen eyesight, he couldn’t see through it. The book in the air seemed to possess no power, yet it exuded an intense pressure. He wanted to resist, but found himself utterly unable to do so.

“Damn it, I’ve fallen for a trick. This book is not simple…” His pupils contracted, and he understood. Although this book wasn’t a Pseudo-God realm weapon, its level was likely by no means low. If it truly smashed down, with his current cultivation, he might not be able to block it.

“Break!” His eyebrows rose, a longsword appeared in his hand, and his body transformed into a sword beam, piercing straight upwards with great speed! No matter the opponent’s level, striking first was best!

*Rip!* His power was too immense; the previously stable space instantly cracked, as if heaven and earth were collapsing.

“Fall!” With raised eyebrows, Zhang Xuan’s spirit stirred. The Tome of Heaven’s Path in the air shot straight towards it.

*Crack!* It landed on the black-robed Immortal Lord’s head. In an instant, the latter’s head exploded.

*Thud!* The body fell to the ground.

Elder Qiu Huo’s body relaxed as the pressure on him vanished. At the same moment, his face turned pale, and he was too terrified to speak. This Immortal Lord expert, who was in no way weaker than the Sect Leader, had actually been smashed to death by a book… It was so decisive, with no room for resistance whatsoever… He looked at Zhang Xuan, who was not far away, with utter awe. If he had previously treated the other party merely as a disciple, a junior, now he regarded him entirely as an equal expert, even… someone more terrifying than himself!

“It worked…” Unlike Qiu Huo’s shock, Zhang Xuan breathed a sigh of relief. He had deliberately said so much nonsense for fear that the opponent would escape. Now, it seemed the Tome of Heaven’s Path was still just as effective! No matter the level or strength of the expert, one book… and they were instantly finished!

His body swayed, and he appeared before the opponent, lightly sweeping his hand over the corpse. The corpse was collected into his storage ring. He then moved to the remaining three True Immortal experts and sequentially collected their bodies as well. Experts of this level were treasures from head to toe; if properly utilized, his life-saving methods would increase once more. He hadn't thought much of it before, but now that the Divine Hall had sent people to capture him... he couldn't afford to be careless.

*Crack!* With the Immortal Lord expert dead and his body collected, the folded space could no longer be sustained and promptly collapsed. A moment later, Zhang Xuan felt the previously vanished sounds of the bustling street return to his ears. He quickly looked and found himself back on the street outside the merchant guild. Elder Qiu Huo was standing nearby, looking completely dazed.

“Elder Zhang, let’s return to the sect first…” Having recovered, Elder Qiu Huo said in a hurry. “That was too dangerous!” He had always believed himself to be very strong, but facing that black-robed man just now had filled him with a profound sense of powerlessness. Even both being at the peak of the Immortal Lord realm, the difference was immeasurable.

Zhang Xuan nodded. Indeed, with only one Tome of Heaven’s Path left, he truly dared not be reckless. Otherwise, if a few more experts of that caliber appeared, he wouldn’t even know how he died.

Seeing his agreement, Elder Qiu Huo said no more. With a grab of his hand, he enveloped Zhang Xuan in his power, and the two instantly vanished from their spot, flying rapidly towards Lingyun Sword Sect.

“Elder Qiu Huo, what did you mean earlier when you said the Divine Hall’s experts are always indifferent?” Swallowing a few high-grade Immortal Essence Pills, Zhang Xuan asked.

“I don’t know much about the Divine Hall. I once heard the Sect Leader mention that their warriors are like Gu insects; those who survive must undergo countless battles and baptisms of blood! So, in their eyes, there is only the mission; human emotions have long vanished. Whether their companions live or die is irrelevant!” Elder Qiu Huo was filled with reverence. He hadn't felt anything before, not having interacted with them, but after fighting them personally, he truly understood how terrifying they were! Just like the one he had fought who Zhang Xuan had literally stabbed in the backside until dead; if it had been anyone else, they would have lost all fighting capability after the first stab. Yet, that opponent grew braver with each blow, as if feeling no pain. And the one who had his arm severed earlier, despite losing an arm, his fighting strength didn't weaken at all; instead, he became even fiercer… All of this indicated that they had undergone brutal elimination processes and training.

“Because I comprehended the Sword Intent of the Gods, they feared I would challenge the Divine Hall’s authority if I grew stronger, so they decided to kill me preemptively?” Zhang Xuan was puzzled. When he first heard of the Divine Hall, he imagined it to be lofty and detached from worldly affairs… for them to know about him and send people to kill him seemed beneath their stature!

“That… I don’t know, but there should be some connection! Otherwise, the Sect Leader wouldn’t have been so nervous and insisted I come along to protect you at all times!” Elder Qiu Huo replied.

“The only ones who knew I comprehended the Sword Intent of the Gods were the people in the Elder Hall. How did they know, and how did they know I was in Wu Hai City, coming here to hunt me down?” Zhang Xuan continued. This was also his question; he simply couldn't understand it. He had investigated the few elders of Lingyun Sword Sect with the Library, and they were absolutely trustworthy. His trip to Wu Hai City had also been an impromptu decision, with no prior arrangements… How did the other party know, and track him so precisely to kill him?

“Let’s talk about this when we get back and see the Sect Leader!” Elder Qiu Huo thought for a moment, also feeling completely bewildered, and could only shake his head.

“Oh, right, Bai Ruanqing is still cultivating in the quiet room of the Spirit Passage Hall. Could you please tell her to return on her own…” Seeing that the other party couldn’t answer, Zhang Xuan stopped asking questions, swallowed two more Immortal Essence Pills, and instructed.

Elder Qiu Huo acknowledged and sped up. More than ten minutes later, they returned to the Elder Hall.

“You mean… the Divine Hall has already sent people to hunt down Elder Zhang Xuan?” Soon, Han Jianqiu came forward, and upon hearing Elder Qiu Huo’s report, his expression changed.

“Yes!” Elder Qiu Huo nodded. “They sent an… Immortal Lord expert and three peak True Immortal experts, acting together!”

“Immortal Lord? Peak True Immortals?” His face twitched, and Han Jianqiu was startled. He looked at the two in front of him again, full of disbelief. “Such a powerful lineup from them… how did just the two of you manage to escape?”

“It’s shameful to admit, I didn’t help much. It was Elder Zhang Xuan who, in critical danger, broke through to the early True Immortal stage, and using the Paulownia Robe Sword you gave him, he slew three peak True Immortal Divine Hall warriors, then, then…” Elder Qiu Huo explained, but halfway through, he looked at the young man not far away and suddenly froze, his eyes almost popping out. “You, you… when did you reach the peak True Immortal stage?”