Chapter 2324: Strong Royal River

Spring turned to autumn, and a hundred years passed quickly.

In the northwest corner of the Xuanling Continent lay a boundless expanse of azure sea.

The sea was calm and still, with gentle sea breezes and scattered white clouds.

On a deserted island, a hundred miles in circumference, a group of Silver-Horned Rock Turtles were leisurely basking in the sun on the beach.

A moment later, a tremendous roar echoed from the sky, and a massive crimson fire cloud suddenly appeared overhead.

The Silver-Horned Rock Turtles were startled; their bodies glowed yellow as they quickly burrowed underground.

Three enormous crimson fire crows flew in from a distance. Their bodies were covered in blood, and many of their feathers had fallen off, indicating they were injured.

The sea churned violently, raising a colossal wave over a thousand feet high. After a blur, it transformed into a blue giant sword several thousand feet long. The sword was hazy with mist, clearly formed from blue seawater.

The blue giant sword slashed towards the three crimson fire crows. As it moved, the void vibrated and distorted, its power astonishing.

The three crimson fire crows immediately opened their mouths and each spewed a thick crimson flame, meeting the attack.

After a thunderous crash, the blue giant sword collided with the three crimson flames and instantly shattered. Countless sprays of seawater blurred, transforming into numerous blue flying swords that flew directly towards the three crimson fire crows.

Two mournful bird cries rang out as two of the crimson fire crows were pierced by the dense blue flying swords and plummeted from the sky. The other fire crow reacted quickly, fiercely flapping its wings and transforming into a crimson fiery light before vanishing.

Two hundred miles away, a red light flared, revealing a heavily wounded crimson fire crow.

A blue rainbow and a green rainbow flew from the distant horizon. Soon, the two streaks of light halted, revealing a sturdy young man in a blue shirt and a graceful young woman in a green dress.

The blue-shirted young man had sharp eyebrows and bright eyes. He carried a blue sword box on his back, adorned with a wave pattern. This was Wang Lihe, currently at the Mid-Spirit Transformation stage.

The green-skirted young woman had delicate lips and a refined nose, with skin as fair as snow. Her brows hinted at a rare heroic spirit for a woman. She carried three sheathed flying swords on her back. This was Wang Lijiao, also at the Mid-Spirit Transformation stage.

They were the Wang family's new generation of sword cultivators. Wang Qingshan often guided them, and their mastery of the sword arts was second only to his. They, in turn, frequently guided other family members, leading to a continuous increase in the number of sword cultivators within the family.

Wang Lihe flicked his sleeve, and a blue glow swept forth, collecting the corpses of the two crimson fire crows.

The two transformed into streaks of light and pursued the remaining crimson fire crow.

The Wang family's development had entered a stable phase, advancing steadily, which was a good sign. They had been tasked with clearing out a flock of crimson fire crows, as these creatures had been repeatedly harassing several newly developed islands of the Wang family. With as many as five fifth-tier fire crows, it was natural to dispatch someone to eliminate them.

The crimson fire crow was incredibly fast, but if caught, it would certainly die.

A blue light illuminated Wang Lihe's right hand. He slashed at the void, and a hazy blue sword energy swept out, speeding directly towards the crimson fire crow.

Wang Lijiao's right hand flared with green light. She also slashed at the void, and a hazy green sword energy swept out, striking towards the crimson fire crow.

The crimson fire crow hastily flapped its wings, releasing hundreds of crimson fireballs to meet the attack.

After a series of thunderous roars, the hundreds of crimson fireballs were shattered by the two immense sword energies, scattering flames everywhere.

As the void rippled, a hazy blue giant hand materialized out of thin air and struck the crimson fire crow. The fire crow let out a miserable screech and plummeted from the sky.

A strange beast roar echoed, and a thick water-wave tornado surged skyward, piercing through the crimson fire crow's body.

Wang Lihe and Wang Lijiao stopped, their faces filled with vigilance.

The sea churned violently, and a hundred-foot-long blue whale emerged from the water. The whale's body was adorned with golden spirit patterns. A tall, thin young man in a blue robe stood atop the whale. His clothes bore a bamboo pattern, the emblem of the Liu family from Thousand Bamboo Island.

Three streaks of light flew in from a distance. Soon, they stopped, revealing a pot-bellied red-robed Taoist priest leading the group, who was clearly a late-stage Spirit Transformation cultivator.

"The crimson fire crow is our prey! Fellow Daoist Liu, please return it to us."

Wang Lijiao's tone was earnest. A conflict between the Wang and Liu families was inevitable, a matter of time. However, the leaders of both families were relatively restrained. Without exceptionally important cultivation resources at stake, neither family would engage in a bitter struggle over trivial matters, as the alien races were their true formidable enemies.

Being neighbors, the two families inevitably encountered disputes, and situations like today's were not uncommon.

"What a joke. You say it's yours, and it is? It belongs to whoever kills it."

The blue-robed young man sneered, his face full of disdain.

The Liu family was vast and influential, and no force dared to openly clash with them. But after the Wang family arrived, everything changed.

"Exactly. It belongs to whoever kills it."

Wang Lihe nodded, shrugging his right shoulder. Amidst a piercing sword cry, three hazy blue flying swords flew out from their sheaths, each splitting into ten, then each ten into a hundred.

Soon, tens of thousands of hazy blue flying swords floated in the sky.

Seeing Wang Lihe turn hostile without a word, the blue-robed young man's face darkened, and he was about to summon his treasure for battle.

The red-robed Taoist priest spoke: "Fellow Daoist Wang, are you trying to oppose our Liu family?"

"I didn't say that. You can hunt crimson fire crows; I can hunt other demonic beasts."

Wang Lihe's gaze shifted to the blue whale. The tens of thousands of hazy blue flying swords gently swayed, emitting resonant sword cries.

"Hunt my spirit beast? Do you think I'm not here?"

The blue-robed young man's gaze grew gloomy. The seawater churned violently, raising a colossal wave.

"I have long heard of Fellow Daoist Wang's renown. I would like to seek guidance from you. I wonder if Fellow Daoist Wang would be willing to enlighten me?"

The red-robed Taoist priest's tone was gentle and restrained.

"No problem. I also wish to experience Fellow Daoist Liu's divine abilities."

Wang Lihe agreed. He also wanted to see how formidable the Liu family's Spirit Transformation cultivators truly were.

The red-robed Taoist priest waved his hand, and the others dispersed. Wang Lijiao also retreated to a distance, ready to provide support at any moment.

Though it was called a sparring match, it could very well turn into a battle to the death.

The red-robed Taoist priest flipped his right hand, and with a flash of red light, a small, shimmering crimson flag appeared in his grasp. The flag was embroidered with a crimson fire hawk, clearly a low-grade Sky-Reaching Spirit Treasure.

He gently shook the crimson flag, and a scarlet light barrier materialized, shielding his entire body. The void vibrated and distorted, giving rise to countless crimson fire lights, which suddenly transformed into a massive crimson fire cloud, supporting the red-robed Taoist priest in mid-air.

He flicked his sleeve, and a red light merged into the crimson fire cloud. The fire cloud churned violently like boiling water, and a crimson fire dragon over a hundred feet long flew out from it, carrying an astonishing heatwave as it lunged forward.

This was no mere manifestation of spiritual energy; treating it as such would undoubtedly lead to a disadvantage.