Fantasy, starting with a treasure bowl

"Brother Lu, what happened...?"

Seeing Lu Feng suddenly stop, Shen Tianzhong behind him also cast a questioning glance, seemingly unaware of the strangeness in the vicinity.

After all, he was currently severely injured, with all eight extraordinary meridians severed and even his internal dantian energy almost depleted, so he naturally couldn't detect Li Linyue and the others outside the valley entrance.

"It's alright, they're just a few noisy little sparrows..."

"Little, sparrow?"

Lu Feng grinned again, while Shen Tianzhong looked bewildered, seemingly not understanding the meaning behind the other's words.

"Senior Brother Li, look! There seems to be someone up ahead...!"

At that moment, a gasp of surprise came from the entrance to the valley.

The next moment, dozens of white-robed figures rushed in and scattered, surrounding Lu Feng and the others in the center of the open space. They were clearly disciples of the Taiji Sword Sect.

"Hmph, I've finally caught these demonic cult members...!"

As they spoke, Li Linyue slowly stepped forward. Upon seeing that only Lu Feng and Shen Tianzhong were opposite him, both covered in blood, he frowned slightly. "What happened? There are only two small fry in this valley..."

"Could it be that the guidance from the demon-finding instrument is incorrect?"

Li Linyue glanced at Lu Feng and the others opposite him again, a hint of doubt arising in his heart.

After all, the Wusheng Cult has always liked to act in groups. Even the worst branch, "Chen" Zi, has at least a hundred members under its command. Li Linyue had led teams to wipe out many Wusheng Cult branches in the past, so he was quite familiar with them.

However, the valley was now completely empty, with no sign of any Wusheng sect members. There were only two nameless rogue cultivators, Lu Feng and Shen Tianzhong, who were covered in injuries. Li Linyue was naturally very surprised.

"These guys are... disciples of the Tai Chi Sword Sect?"

Looking up at Li Linyue and the others opposite him, Shen Tianzhong frowned and became serious when he saw the white robes they wore and the spirit swords they carried.

As the third most notorious villain in the past, Shen Tianzhong was often hunted down by martial artists from the four kingdoms of Lingnan and a number of righteous forces before he joined Luoxing Academy. The Taiji Sword Sect, which dominated Lingtai Mountain in the southern barbarians, was no exception.

Therefore, Shen Tianzhong immediately recognized the origins of Li Linyue and the others.

"Fellow Daoist Shen, do you know these people?"

Noticing Shen Tianzhong's serious expression, Lu Feng turned around, still somewhat curious.

Although he was quite familiar with the major forces in the Lingnan Four Kingdoms, the Taiji Sword Sect was located in Lingtai Mountain in the Southern Barbarian Lands, and its disciples had always been few in number and rarely ventured out, so Lu Feng didn't know much about them.

"Although I am merely a martial artist, I dare not be unfamiliar with the renowned 'Four Kingdoms and One Sect'..."

Nodding slightly, Shen Tianzhong looked as if facing a formidable enemy, and said with a self-deprecating tone, "Brother Lu, it seems that I've dragged you into this again..."

He never expected that the "little sparrows" Lu Feng had just mentioned were actually Li Linyue and his group of Tai Chi Sword Sect disciples.

As for the so-called "Four Kingdoms and One Sect", it is the collective name of the five forces of the four kingdoms of Lingnan and the Taiji Sword Sect. Among them, the Taiji Sword Sect, with only the strength of one sect, is able to stand on equal footing with the four kingdoms of Lingnan, which is enough to show its strong foundation!

The reason why Shen Tianzhong looks so wary right now is because when he was on the run, quite a few Taiji Sword Sect disciples died at his hands.

"Back then, you were wanted by the Western Qin Kingdom and hunted down by various righteous forces. Your final act of killing was merely to protect yourself..."

Seemingly anticipating Shen Tianzhong's concerns, Lu Feng shook his head, saying nonchalantly, "As for those Taiji Sword Sect disciples who died at your hands, they were only after your heads for a reward. Both were driven by self-interest, and it had nothing to do with right or wrong..."

"Brother Lu, you...!"

"Don't worry, leave the rest to me."

Raising his hand to interrupt Shen Tianzhong, Lu Feng then looked at Li Linyue, who was leading the group, and clasped his hands in a fist salute. "I am Lu, a student of Falling Star Academy. May I ask your name and background?"

Although he vaguely sensed that Li Linyue and the others had ill intentions, the Taiji Sword Sect was, after all, one of the righteous forces, so Lu Feng did not take the initiative to act immediately, lest it spread to the outside world and cause gossip.

"You said you're a student at Falling Star Academy?"

Faced with Lu Feng's probing, Li Linyue also raised an eyebrow, a hint of doubt appearing on his face. "Heh, this doesn't seem right..."

"Putting aside the fact that our sect's demon-finding instrument has never made a mistake, the two of you are hiding suspiciously in this demonic sect's hideout, and you're covered in wounds and blood. It's hard not to be suspicious..."

"Does Your Excellency believe that the two of us are connected with the Wusheng Demonic Sect?" Lu Feng's eyes narrowed slightly.

"It's not impossible!"

Li Linyue gave another cold laugh.

"Brother Lu! Showing the Vast Expanse Token might make these people back down..."

Shen Tianzhong's weak voice reminded him again.

After all, the Cangmang Token is a student certificate of Falling Star Academy, and it is unlikely to be fake.

Moreover, in Shen Tianzhong's view, even a powerful sect like Taiji Sword Sect would never dare to offend Falling Star Academy, the number one academy in the Yuanfeng Realm of the Eastern Xuan Region, and would at least give it some face.

Faced with Shen Tianzhong's reminder, Lu Feng merely glanced at him indifferently, but did not refuse. He immediately took out his Cangmang Token from his pocket and tossed it to Li Linyue opposite him, "The Cangmang Token is here, you all take a good look!"

Snapped!

The token pierced the air and was about to hit Li Linyue's face when it was caught by the white-robed man beside him.

"This...it really is the Order of the Vast Expanse!"

Looking at the exquisite and ancient Cangmang Token in his hand, Wei Taiteng's eyes widened slightly, then his pupils shrank sharply, as if he had seen a ghost.

After all, Lu Feng and Shen Tianzhong in front of them looked ordinary, and their Yuan energy aura was very weak. They were almost no different from ordinary rogue cultivators and had nothing to do with the rumored students of Falling Star Academy!

"What's wrong with you now, kid?"

Seeing Wei Taiteng standing there in a daze, Li Linyue also frowned slightly, as if he thought the other party was a bit spineless, always making a fuss over everything.

"Li, Senior Brother Li!"

Turning back to look at Li Linyue, Wei Taiteng swallowed hard. His way of addressing Lu Feng and the others had changed; "These two guys... uh, these two fellow Daoists, they really do seem to be disciples of Falling Star Academy..."

"What did you say?"

Upon hearing this, Li Linyue immediately stepped forward and snatched the Vast Expanse Token from the other person's hand. "Damn it! Could these two guys really be from Falling Star Academy...?"

"But why would students from the prestigious Falling Star Academy travel such a long distance to the border region of Western Qin? Could it be that these two are hiding some kind of opportunity or secret?"

Thinking of this, a hint of greed and murderous intent flashed in Li Linyue's eyes, as if he had other plans.

"Senior Brother Li, what should we do next? Should we call it a day and return to Lingtai Mountain?"

Seeing Li Linyue standing still and silent, Wei Taiteng, who was standing to the side, also spoke up tentatively, his tone still respectful.

After all, he was just an outer disciple of the Taiji Sword Sect, and his cultivation was only at the tenth level of the Meridian Opening Realm. He was no match for Li Linyue, who was at the third level of the Spirit Soul Realm!

"Go back? Hmph! Why would I want to go back...!"

With another cold snort, Li Linyue suddenly exerted force in his palm, instantly crushing the Cangmang Token into dust. At the same time, a murderous and greedy glint appeared in his eyes. "The demonic cultists haven't been eliminated yet. If we, as righteous cultivators, return empty-handed, wouldn't we be utterly disgraced? How will we explain this to our senior brother and the elders when we return to the sect...!"

"Disciples, heed my command! Immediately form ranks and fight the enemy! Do not let a single member of the demonic sect escape!"

"Yes, Senior Brother Li!"

Faced with Li Linyue's order, Wei Taiteng and the others were puzzled, but they dared not disobey. They immediately surrounded the injured Lu Feng and his group again, and a murderous aura enveloped the entire valley.

"You, you actually dared to attack students from Falling Star Academy...!"

"Aren't you afraid of getting into trouble later and incurring retaliation from Falling Star Academy?!"

Seeing this, Shen Tianzhong's eyes widened in anger, his brows furrowed. He seemed to have never expected that Li Linyue and the others would be so ruthless, even after seeing him reveal the Cangmang Token, they still wanted to kill him.

"Fellow Daoist Shen, it seems these people are planning to use our heads to claim their reward..."

"Heh, so this is nothing more than killing innocent people and claiming credit for them..."

Compared to the furious Shen Tianzhong, Lu Feng was extremely calm and composed, as if he had expected this all along.

After all, in the eyes of Li Linyue and the others, whether he and Shen Tianzhong were really demonic cult members was not important; only their heads were the key.

Because without a headshot, there's no way to frame someone, let alone claim the reward.

Besides, Lu Feng and Shen Tianzhong are both injured and have lost more than one-tenth of their strength. They are also in a remote, nameless valley. Even if they die here, no one will notice.

This is also the source of Li Linyue's confidence to dare to kill people!