Quickly conquer the martial arts world, and let your fists dominate the heavens!

"Oh!"

The third punch missed, creating a nearly ten-foot-wide crater on the spot, with soil and rocks flying everywhere.

The energy field was activated again, the old monk's arms broke, and he appeared several feet away.

Gu Yu naturally wouldn't let him go. With a flap of its wings, it caught up instantly, and the old monk had no choice but to teleport again.

Although the old monk's martial arts skills were not bad, his body was nearing the end of its life and his speed was not fast, so he could only rely on his internal energy to forcibly move.

The two flew through the dilapidated hall, and Gu Yu predicted their direction every time they moved.

"Die!"

Gu Yu roared angrily and punched the old monk in the back.

"boom--!"

The crimson blood and qi exploded violently, and the old monk was smashed into the ground like a puppet with its strings cut, creating a crater several meters deep, with billowing dust obscuring the view.

Still not satisfied, she flapped her wings violently, countless blue feathers wrapped in scalding blood and qi bombarding the pit.

The deafening roar shook the ground until the bottom of the pit was completely lifeless before they stopped.

His chest rose and fell slightly, and the anger in his eyes gradually subsided.

Li Qiushui, watching from the sidelines, was utterly terrified and lost all will to fight. Taking advantage of the moment when Gu Yu killed the old monk, she turned around and ran wildly out of the hall.

She only wanted to escape this evil spirit as soon as possible. But she had only taken half a step out of the palace when Gu Yu arrived first, his figure like a ghost blocking her way. His wings suddenly folded, and his powerful blood energy condensed into a palm strike, which slammed hard into Li Qiushui's chest.

With no way to avoid it, Li Qiushui could only grit her teeth and raise her hand to take the blow. With a crisp "crack," her metacarpal bone shattered instantly.

A mouthful of blood spurted out, and his body flew out like a kite with a broken string, crashing heavily into the group of soldiers outside the hall, where he immediately lost consciousness.

The soldiers scattered in alarm, only to be forced to gather again by their commander. Fear filled their faces, and no one dared to step forward to help.

Gu Yu swayed and landed beside Li Qiushui, nudging her shoulder with her toe and saying coldly, "Playing dead? Playing dead won't work!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he kicked Li Qiushui back into the dilapidated Chengtian Palace. Li Qiushui rolled several times on the ground, vomiting several mouthfuls of black blood again. Her breath became increasingly weak, and she didn't even have the strength to open her eyes.

The two were already of similar skill level. Now, Gu Yu, with the help of the Blood Red Relic, forced his body to be transformed by the bloodline of the Bifang Divine Bird, causing his divine power to increase several times over.

Even a top-tier expert at the Transcendent Realm in their prime might not be able to withstand a single blow from her.

It is estimated that the Transcendent Realm, with its fused Blood Serpent spirit, can barely suppress her with its Transcendent Heaven Domain.

As the rain fell to the ground, the wings with their blue feathers and red stripes gradually retracted, and the crimson light on their bodies dimmed.

However, her breathing remained disordered, and the restless blood and qi clashed in her meridians, leaving her with a hint of fatigue between her brows.

Chen Zhan leaped from a distant rooftop, his toes lightly touching the gravel, his body steadily pressing down on the surrounding turbulence.

"Master, we did it!"

Gu Yu stepped forward quickly, her voice filled with excitement mixed with regret. "This Qi and Blood Martial Art is too terrifying. I can't activate it on my own yet. Using the Qi and Blood of the relic consumes too much of the relic. That fierce attack just now consumed nearly 30% of the pure Qi and Blood in the relic."

Chen Zhan nodded slightly, his tone calm and even: "It's alright. My qi and blood can still be replenished by finding an opportunity. We shouldn't stay here any longer. Let's leave first."

His gaze swept over the hesitant soldiers outside the hall, then seemed to glance at a certain spot in the void, a strange light flashing in his eyes, too quick to be detected.

At this moment, among the Western Xia soldiers outside the palace, someone mustered their courage and roared, "Go! Don't let them leave! We absolutely cannot let them leave Xingqing Prefecture!"

But when the soldiers saw the corpses scattered all over the ground and the ruined palace, and then looked at the lingering aura of Gu Yu's blood and qi, their legs went weak.

Even when urged on, they just kept moving in place; no one dared to actually step forward and risk their lives.

Chen Zhan ignored the rabble, his blood and qi surged, and blood-red wings suddenly sprouted from his back. The wings were ten feet wide when spread out, with ferocious patterns like living creatures, and they were wrapped in a terrifying aura.

He bent down and lifted the unconscious Li Qiushui and Wu Xingyun with one hand, then reached out and put his arm around Gu Yu's waist. With a sudden flap of his wings, the airflow exploded.

His figure shot into the sky like an arrow released from a bow, and disappeared into the deep night in an instant.

Only after Chen Zhan and his apprentice had completely disappeared from sight did the Western Xia soldiers dare to swarm forward.

Chaos reigned. On the ruins of Chengtian Hall, only a mess, a strong smell of blood, and stones blackened by the burning blood remained.

High in the sky, Wu Xingyun barely opened his eyes, looking at the blood-red wings flapping behind Chen Zhan, and then glancing at Gu Yu beside him, whose breath was unsteady and whose face was flushed. His eyes were full of complicated emotions.

Her life was in Chen Zhan's hands. She was filled with resentment, but she also knew that if it weren't for Chen Zhan and his apprentice's intervention, she would have died at Chengtian Temple and become a victim of Li Qiushui's blade.

Chen Zhan led the three of them, flapping their wings and flying swiftly. In a short while, they flew out of Xingqing Prefecture and sped towards the northern border of the Great Song Dynasty.

Wu Xingyun took a moment to recover his strength and said in a low voice, "I had the people from Lingjiu Palace meet us outside the mass grave thirty miles north of the city. They didn't enter the city; they are all female disciples with decent lightness skills, so they won't be a hindrance."

She always protected the women under her command, knowing full well that Xingqing Prefecture was now a den of dragons and tigers.

Most of the Lingjiu Palace disciples were not as skilled as the Yipintang masters, and entering the city rashly would only lead to their deaths. Therefore, they were sent a message early on to wait outside the city.

Upon hearing this, Gu Yu raised an eyebrow, remained silent, and closed her eyes to circulate her internal energy to regulate her disordered qi and blood.

The group flew swiftly through the night, crossing two mountain ridges. As they drew closer to the mass grave, Wu Xingyun could vaguely glimpse the distinctive blue-veiled figures of Lingjiu Palace disciples on the ground.

Chen Zhan suddenly froze, his blood-red wings abruptly changing direction, and flew towards the depths of the Helan Mountains in the west.

"Where are you going?"

Wu Xingyun's heart tightened, and he struggled to speak, "The people from Lingjiu Palace are to the north, and to the west is the forbidden area of ​​Helan Mountain, the hunting ground of the Western Xia royal family, which is guarded by experts all year round!"

She couldn't understand why Chen Zhan had suddenly changed his mind. The Helan Mountain Forbidden Area was a complex place with Western Xia experts entrenched there, making it no safe place.

Chen Zhan didn't turn around, his tone indifferent: "Someone is following us."

The flapping speed increased even more, and the blood-red wings tore through the night sky, carrying the three of them towards the dense forest deep in the Helan Mountains. The figures of the Lingjiu Palace disciples on the ground were gradually left far behind, with only the heavy mountain wind howling past.

Wu Xingyun's expression changed slightly, but he understood Chen Zhan's concerns.

The night was deep, and the outline of Helan Mountain appeared even more sinister under the moonlight. The birds and beasts in the forest had long since gone into hibernation, and only the sound of Chen Zhan's wings flapping could be heard. A moment later, Chen Zhan led the three of them to a flat clearing in the mountains. Ancient trees towered around them, their branches gnarled and twisted, and the ground was covered with a thick layer of decaying leaves.

As soon as he landed, he reached out and knocked Wu Xingyun unconscious.

He threw the unconscious Li Qiushui and Wu Xingyun to the ground, his movements not gentle, but not deadly. He then turned to Gu Yu and said:
"Keep an eye on them, don't let them die."

Gu Yu nodded and stood beside the two of them, her remaining blood and qi surging slightly as she warily scanned the surrounding dense forest.

Chen Zhan walked slowly to the center of the open space, looked up at the void, and said loudly, "Since you can't bear to part with your disciple, then show yourself. Why bother just following along without daring to make a move, being so timid and hesitant?"

The forest was quiet, with only the rustling of leaves in the wind.

A moment later, a figure dressed in black slowly emerged from the depths of the dense forest.

He was not masked, his long beard and hair were all black, and although his face bore the marks of time, he was tall and straight, and his aura was as pure as an immortal. He had an air of transcendence and was none other than Xiaoyaozi, the founder of the Xiaoyao Sect.

Although he looked quite old, his hair and beard showed no signs of graying, exuding an eerie vitality.

Chen Zhan smiled and said, "You've finally decided to come out? You're quite carefree, Xiaoyaozi, living eternally in this world while watching your disciples kill each other, not caring whether they live or die."

Xiaoyaozi slowly shook his head, took a few steps forward, his gaze sweeping over the unconscious Wu Xingyun and Li Qiushui on the ground, his tone calm:

"Their feud stems from their obsessions, which I cannot interfere with. You have repeatedly and deliberately lured me out; what exactly do you want?"

Chen Zhan's smile faded, and he cut to the chase: "Still haven't found a way to break through to the Profound Realm?"

This was not the first time he had fought Xiaoyaozi. More than ten years ago, when he ascended Lingjiu Palace, the black-clad man who suddenly appeared to save the day was Xiaoyaozi. Xiaoyaozi's martial arts were extremely high. At that time, Chen Zhan had not yet mastered the Qi and Blood Martial Arts, and he suffered a slight loss due to his Blood Armor.

Upon hearing this, Xiaoyaozi's eyes flashed with a hint of melancholy. He sighed and said, "There is no way. Tongxuan Heaven Domain has already been able to control a region and has reached the pinnacle in the realm of true qi. When I fought with you more than ten years ago, I discovered that you were taking a different path, using blood qi instead of true qi. At the time, I found it very amazing, but after thinking about it for the years, I realized that there is no difference in essence."

He paused, looked up at the night sky, and said with a touch of emotion, "Whether it's true qi or blood qi, the ultimate goal of martial arts is to break through the limits of 'humanity' in order to obtain greater power."

"Even so, the physical body has its limits. You can internalize your blood and qi and transform into a ferocious beast, while I can control heaven and earth with my true qi. We can't escape the shackles of this physical body. The next step is 'spiritual transformation,' which requires abandoning the physical body and existing in the world as a spirit. But if you take this wrong step, you will die and your soul will perish. Who would dare to try it lightly?"

The two talked like old friends catching up, with no trace of their previous confrontation.

After listening, Chen Zhan chuckled and said, "That makes sense. However, I have a deal. Tell me the location of the Valley of Immortality, and I'll let you take these two disciples with you."

Xiaoyaozi's expression changed slightly, and a look of surprise and doubt flashed in his eyes: "How did you know about the Valley of Immortality and Longevity?"

This secret place is extremely well hidden. Apart from him, no one else knows its exact location. Even Wu Xingyun and Li Qiushui have only heard rumors about it.

“You are indeed very talented, but there is a problem that I have never been able to figure out.”

"Why do you cultivate the Eight Desolations and Six Harmonies Supreme Technique without any side effects? Wu Xingyun was ambushed by Li Qiushui in his early years and has been trapped in the body of an eight or nine-year-old for many years. Even without the ambush, this technique would cause the power to decline once every thirty years and it would take eighty-one days to recover to its peak. But on you, there is no effect at all."

"The secret must lie in the Valley of Immortality, right? The origin of the Free and Unfettered Sect's martial arts should also be inextricably linked to this valley."

Upon hearing this, Xiaoyaozi stared intently at Chen Zhan for a long time before finally letting out a sigh of relief.

"The Valley of Immortality is located deep in the mountains north of Dali Shanju County and south of Tubo. There is an Immortal Spring in the valley. The spring water can nourish the body and resolve the hidden dangers of cultivation techniques. Drinking the spring water can make cultivation twice as effective. However, the terrain in the valley is strange and the miasma is everywhere. Whether you can find it depends entirely on your luck."

Chen Zhan nodded slightly, his tone frank: "You can take them with you, but from now on, they are not allowed to appear in the martial arts world again, and they are not allowed to interfere in the war between Liaoxia and Song."

"can."

Xiaoyaozi agreed without hesitation, as he had no intention of getting involved in worldly disputes.

Chen Zhan stepped aside to make way, and Xiaoyaozi walked over slowly, squatted down to check on Wu Xingyun and Li Qiushui's injuries, and lightly touched their foreheads with his fingertips, sending in a wisp of true energy to stabilize their breathing.

The two remained unconscious, completely unaware of their master's arrival.

As Xiaoyaozi helped the two of them up and walked to Chen Zhan's side.

Chen Zhan's left arm suddenly surged with blood and qi, and a blood-red armor instantly formed. His fist, carrying the force of earth-shattering destruction, headed straight for Xiaoyaozi's face.

Xiaoyaozi was prepared, knowing that Chen Zhan was no saint, and was always on guard against him making a move.

Seeing the fist wind coming, he immediately gathered his true energy, pushed his palms forward, and the Tongxuan Heaven Domain instantly spread out, mobilizing all the spiritual energy of the surrounding world, which pressed down on Chen Zhan like Mount Tai.

"Bam—!"

The Bengquan (Crushing Fist) and Tongxuan Tianyu (Transcendent Heaven Domain) collided violently, and the shockwave exploded outwards from the two of them.

The surrounding ancient trees were all snapped in half, and rotten leaves and stones flew everywhere. Birds and beasts in the forest were unable to escape and were all killed by the shockwave, their bodies scattered all over the ground.

The two men each made only one move before simultaneously stopping, their figures standing steadily in place, though their auras fluctuated slightly.

"Hmm, as expected, he's still at the Profound Realm."

Chen Zhan removed the blood-stained armor from his arm, a satisfied smile appearing on his face.

Xiaoyaozi looked surprised, his tone tinged with disbelief: "How are you still improving? In just over ten years, could you really have broken through the shackles of the physical body?"
Chen Zhan slowly shook his head, his tone indifferent: "The path I take is different from yours. You seek immortality, but I do not."

"Heh, it's no use telling you."

Chen Zhan said no more, turned and called to Gu Yu, "Let's go."

Gu Yu immediately followed. The two of them swayed, and as their blood surged, Chen Zhan's blood-red wings unfolded again, carrying the mountain wind and soaring straight into the sky. In an instant, they disappeared into the deep night of Helan Mountain, leaving only the soft sound of air passing through the treetops.

Xiaoyaozi gazed in the direction the two had left, stood there for a long time, his brows furrowed, and finally let out a long sigh.

Having lived for over a hundred years, Chen Zhan's attitude of not seeking immortality was something he couldn't understand, and a sense of bewilderment arose in his heart.

Just then, a rustling sound came from deep in the forest, mixed with the clanging of armor and low shouts, clearly indicating that the Western Xia pursuers had come after them.

Although these people were not as skilled as the experts from Chengtian Temple, they were still elites of the Western Xia royal family, numerous in number, and familiar with the terrain of Helan Mountain.

Without further hesitation, Xiaoyaozi bent down and picked up the unconscious Wu Xingyun and Li Qiushui, one in each hand.

With a gentle exhale of true energy from his fingertips, he stabilized the injuries of the two men. He lightly touched the decaying leaves with his footsteps and his figure vanished into the depths of the dense forest like a ghost. As his clothes fluttered, he blended into the night and gradually disappeared from sight.

When the pursuers reached the clearing, they found only a scene of devastation and the carcasses of birds and beasts; they couldn't find a single human figure. Under the general's orders, they dispersed and began searching deeper into the mountains. (End of Chapter)