After being jilted by the saintess at the beginning, why is she crying?

"The cultivators who escaped also said that the Hehuan Sect somehow acquired a fourth-order sect-protecting formation."

Even if the adults came in person, it probably wouldn't be possible to break through in a short time! And..."

He swallowed hard, hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth and said it:

"Moreover, a cultivator named Lin Fengmian has emerged in the Hehuan Sect. Although he has just formed his core, his combat power is extraordinary. He can kill core cultivators in just a few moves. Moreover, he possesses a variety of supernatural abilities and secret techniques that seem to be of high quality!"

Some call him—the number one person below the Nascent Soul stage!

"The number one person below the Nascent Soul stage?!"

Yan Kui stopped abruptly, turned around, and his face turned frighteningly pale.

He stared intently at the guard, his voice so somber it was almost dripping with malice:

"Say that again? A cultivator who has just formed his core is called the number one person below the Nascent Soul stage?"

The guard felt a chill run down his spine from his gaze, but dared not remain silent:

"Yes, Your Majesty... It's already spread outside that Lin Fengmian is exceptionally talented, with combat strength far exceeding that of his peers, and can even hold his own against a fake Nascent Soul cultivator for several moves..."

"This is utterly ridiculous!" Yan Kui slammed his hand on the table, the sound echoing throughout the entire Golden Palace.

"A cultivator in the early stage of Core Formation dares to call himself the number one person below the Nascent Soul stage? My Great Yan Dynasty has nurtured so many geniuses, each one a prodigy! What kind of person is this?!"

He paced back and forth in the main hall, his expression shifting between anger and uncertainty, his mind a jumbled mess.

With a Nascent Soul Ancestor presiding over the Hehuan Sect and a fourth-order grand formation protecting it, the emergence of Lin Fengmian, whose combat power is beyond the heavens, has completely exceeded his expectations.

More importantly, this crushing defeat for the allied forces will undoubtedly affect Master's grand plans. If Master finds out that I have failed in my duties...

Yan Kui grew increasingly agitated, abruptly stopping in his tracks, a sinister glint flashing in his eyes.

He turned around and coldly addressed the guards below:

"Hmph, I remember Lin Fengmian has many enemies, doesn't he? Issue my order—immediately release the news that Lin Fengmian possesses the key to the Immortal Realm, and that the Hehuan Sect holds a secret node for ascension to the Immortal Realm!"

The guard abruptly raised his head, a look of shock flashing in his eyes: "Your Majesty? This…"

"What? You have an objection?" Yan Kui glanced at him coldly.

The guard immediately lowered his head:

"I wouldn't dare! But... once this news gets out, the entire cultivation world will probably be shaken, and then..."

"That'll be just in time!"

Yan Kui sneered, his eyes full of calculation.

"I want to see what those Nascent Soul stage monsters who usually hide in the deep mountains and forests and don't care about worldly affairs are like, and those arrogant fellows from the Array Transformation Sect."

Upon hearing the words "ascending to the immortal realm," how could anyone remain calm?! Let them be my scapegoats; I can simply sit back and watch the tigers fight!

As he spoke, he stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze turning cold as he looked out at the night sky: "The Joyous Union Sect... Lin Fengmian... I'd like to see how long you can hold out."

"Yes! I'll take care of it right away!" The guard accepted the order and scrambled out of the hall.

Inside the Golden Palace, the flickering lights illuminated Yan Kui's extremely gloomy face. He slowly sat back on the dragon throne, his fingers lightly tapping the broken armrests, his eyes surging with murderous intent.

He couldn't swallow this insult.

But we must never ruin Master's grand plan because of a momentary impulse.

Since the Hehuan Sect has become a tough nut to crack, let the rest of the world gnaw on it—he only needs to fan the flames from the shadows.

Meanwhile, thousands of miles away, on Luoyun Peak, the Hehuan Sect was peaceful and serene.

The morning sun pierced through the thin mist and sprinkled on the sea of ​​clouds at the summit, turning the entire mountain into a warm orange-gold color.

The forest is filled with the clear chirping of birds, and the air is so rich with spiritual energy that it almost condenses into dewdrops, which shimmer and sparkle on the blades of grass.

Lin Fengmian sat cross-legged on the bluestone in front of the main cave, slowly exhaling a breath of stale air.

He looked down at the small herb garden he had cultivated in front of the cave, where several medicinal herbs were growing vigorously, their leaves gleaming with a lustrous sheen.

These past few days, besides cultivating and instructing Xiao Ling'er in swordsmanship, he has been tending to this small herb garden, leading a fulfilling yet leisurely life.

Not far away, a white figure was practicing swordsmanship in the morning light.

Xiao Ling'er was dressed in white, her hair casually tied up with a jade hairpin, a few strands of hair fluttering in the morning breeze.

Holding a long sword, she moved swiftly and gracefully across the open ground like a flowing cloud. Each strike carried a sharp and precise sword intent, the sword light cutting through the air and emitting a clear, melodious hum.

Her swordsmanship talent was indeed astonishing. In just a few days, after receiving the Earth-rank sword technique from Lin Fengmian, her swordsmanship had clearly improved considerably.

The morning light shone on her, making her pure white figure appear even more ethereal and otherworldly, like a celestial sword immortal descended to earth.

Lin Fengmian leaned against the bluestone, crossed his legs, and enjoyed the beautiful scenery while cracking sunflower seeds.

Wow, what a feast for the eyes!

After Xiao Ling'er finished practicing her swordplay, she sheathed her sword and stood still, her breathing as steady as ever. She noticed Lin Fengmian's gaze, her ears turning slightly red, but her expression remained aloof. She turned around and bowed slightly to Lin Fengmian: "Young Master."

Her voice was cool and clear, but it lacked the biting aloofness she had when they first met.

Lin Fengmian smiled and waved his hand: "Not bad, not bad, you've made great progress. If you master the Scroll Sword Technique, you should be able to advance to the next level before you reach the Core Formation stage."

Xiao Ling'er lowered her eyes and said softly, "Thank you for bestowing this technique upon me, young master."

I said thank you, but I still couldn't quite describe the feeling in my heart.

Her feelings towards Lin Fengmian remained extremely complex—even though he was the one who killed her cousin and took her as his sword slave,

Yet he gave her so many resources, never humiliated her, and even offered her some pointers when she encountered bottlenecks in her sword practice.

What exactly is this person trying to do?

But no matter what she thought in her heart, she never dared to show the slightest disrespect on her face.

After all, her life force was in the other party's hands, and he could annihilate her with a single thought.

Lin Fengmian could naturally see through her little scheme, but he didn't expose it. Anyway, there was plenty of time in the future; he could slowly work things out.

Just then, a communication jade tube flew in from outside the mountain and landed steadily in Lin Fengmian's hand. He probed it with his divine sense and found a reply from his second uncle, Lu Yunpeng—he had received the array plate and resources, everything was fine, and he was currently in seclusion trying to break through the bottleneck of the Golden Core stage.

Lin Fengmian felt somewhat relieved.

He had been worried that the forces he had offended would implicate his family, so he specially sent someone to deliver a communication jade tube, a large amount of cultivation resources, and a level three defensive array plate to his third uncle.

Although that array was not as powerful as the Hehuan Sect's protective array, it was more than enough to withstand the attacks of Golden Core cultivators and was sufficient to hold out until he could return to provide assistance.