The seventh day of the second month was the early spring season. It was the time when the weather turned cold and warm.
Above the Great Longyan Lake, celestial music lingered. Smoke steamed the clouds, and spiritual lights gathered in the air. A female cultivator in white stood by the river with a zither in her arms. A black-robed boy rang the bell. This was the disciples of the islands sending off Huo, Zhong, and Luo to the sword competition.
After the three of them burned incense and prayed in front of the mountain gate, they suddenly heard a loud and clear call of wild geese in the sky. They all looked up.
Huo Xuan looked at the sky for a while and said, "The river ice has just melted, and wild geese are coming south. It is time for us to set off."
Zhong Muqing and Luo Qingyu nodded in agreement.
The three of them bid farewell to their fellow disciples and boarded their carriages. They left the mountain gate in a grandiose manner.
In front of them were three white dragons. Behind them were maids holding celestial lanterns, holding pearls, waving fans, and a Talisman. The rest of them were on cloud rafts. Hundreds of warriors with spears drove flying boats on both sides. The mist was dense, and the golden glow spread out for more than ten miles.
They did not go straight to the sword competition venue. They had to circle around the Donghua Continent and stop at many small sects for a few days. They would only go there after they had built up enough momentum.
The group first arrived at the Jade Blood Pool, which was occupied by the aristocratic families. After some polite conversation, they continued on their way.
After ten minutes, they arrived at the deep stream of the Surging Waves Lake.
At this point, Manor Master Miao Kun was waiting outside with a few Ming Qi disciples. He raised his cup in a toast and laughed. "I wish you all a pleasant journey."
Huo, Zhong, and Luo returned the greeting on the flying car.
Although Miao Kun was not one of the top ten disciples and his cultivation level was only at the Golden Core, he was a registered disciple of Leader Qin. They could not be rude.
The three of them did not stop there. After a while, they arrived in front of the Clear Serenity Lake.
At this moment, there were clouds and strong winds swirling in the pillar-like mountain. Huo Xuan stood up. After taking two steps forward, he looked ahead and saw Zhang Yan leading a group of disciples on the clouds, waiting there. He pointed at them and said, "Junior Brother Zhang, come out and send us off."
Luo Qingyu looked at the disciples standing behind him and said, "Junior Brother Zhang, these disciples are quite outstanding."
Only Zhong Muqing remained silent.
When they got closer, the three of them cupped their hands in greeting from afar. Zhang Yan returned the greeting with a smile.
Wei Zihong looked at the magnificent display of rolling clouds. He couldn't help but feel agitated and asked, "Master, the Spiritual Masters are already on their way. Why aren't we moving?"
Zhang Yan smiled faintly. He said, "Don't worry, disciple. We still have to wait for a few more days."
His group was a spy, if they went too early, the enemy would be on guard and lose their original intention.
After sending off the three of them, Zhang Yan led the group of disciples back to the underwater manor, where he continued to meditate behind closed doors, not caring about the outside world.
Five days later, two gusts of strong wind came from outside. It was Zhang Boyan and Taoist Xu. When they arrived at the front of the mountain gate, they had already been noticed by the mirror spirit. Because Zhang Yan had told them beforehand, the mirror spirit didn't ask anything and let them come.
The servant welcomed the two of them to the inner hall on the second floor and served them tea. After waiting for a while, Zhang Yan walked into the hall and glanced at them. He said, "Thank you for your hard work, fellow Daoists."
Zhang Boyan and Taoist Xu quickly got up. After greeting each other, the three of them sat down.
Zhang Boyan and Taoist Xu looked at each other. Taoist Xu coughed and said, "I'm here on the orders of the Residence Master. Along the way to Chengyuan Gorge, we found many spies from the Devil Doctrine and took care of them. Although there were some who slipped through the net, they weren't serious. It's only three to four days until the sword competition. It's impossible for me to get any more information. "
The Chengyuan Gorge was where the sword duel would take place. Previously, Zhang Yan had ordered Xu and Zhang to go check it out to see if there was anything amiss. At the same time, they would also find out who the Devil Sect disciples were and what methods they had.
After the incident with Helian Wei, Zhang Yan guessed that the Devil Doctrine disciples might have set up some traps along the way to investigate them. Therefore, he sent a letter and ordered Taoist Xu to find a way to get rid of them.
Taoist Xu had the help of the Invisible Yin Blade. His actions were silent and his cultivation was profound. It was easy for him to do this. In just a few months, he had found all the secret altars of the Devil Doctrine. However, he was meticulous and didn't rush to make a move.
If he had gotten rid of these people early on, it was inevitable that the Devil Sect would send more people or send out Nascent Soul Daoist Masters to fight with him. So he waited patiently until yesterday, when he suddenly launched an attack. In one night, he had already wiped out all of them.
Taoist Xu said proudly, "Now that Manor Head is gone, I guarantee that no one will be able to find out anything."
Zhang Yan smiled and nodded. He praised him and turned to look at Zhang Boyan. He said, "Zhang Zhang, did you find anything?"
Because Zhang Boyan came from the Netherworld Spring Sect, he didn't force him to go with Taoist Xu. He only ordered him to continue to investigate the Devil Doctrine.
Zhang Boyan first cupped his hands and bowed. Then, he sighed and said, "When I returned to the mountain, there were many more talented disciples in the younger generation of the Devil Doctrine."
His words were filled with pride and sorrow. After he entered the small world, there was no news of him and he hadn't returned to the sect for dozens of years. The sect had already thought that he was dead.
He secretly asked around and found that even the cave that he used to cultivate in was taken away by a senior.
Because he had been wandering outside for many years, he had brought all his belongings with him. Moreover, he didn't have any disciples under him. Therefore, he didn't lose anything.
After sighing, Zhang Boyan collected his thoughts and said in a low voice, "Manor Head, there are a few people you have to be especially careful of."
Zhang Yan perked up and said, "Zhang Zhang, please speak."
Taoist Xu was also listening attentively. This time, he was going to follow Zhang Yan and they might bump into these people.
Zhang Boyan said slowly, "I think that Manor Head has to be careful of Jiuling Sect's disciple Yan Huixin. This person has many doppelgangers and his actions are mysterious. Even fellow disciples of the same sect don't know what his other true body is. Although this person is famous, no one knows the details."
Zhang Yan nodded slowly. He had crossed paths with Jiuling Sect's disciples a few times.
That day when he entered Mount Qing Cun with him, Dong Jinzi who took the Zoysia Ancestor in the end was one, and Cai Deyan who later stole the Wolf King's spring and body was another. These two people came from this sect, their cultivation base was unfathomable, it was difficult to estimate.
Zhang Boyan continued, "There is another person. That is Blood Soul Sect's Gao Ruowang. He is also a difficult person to deal with. I once fought with him. Because I hadn't mastered the Yellow Springs Escape Technique, I was at a disadvantage. However, a hundred years have passed and he must have improved. If we meet again, I probably won't be able to match up to him. "
He didn't hide the fact that he had lost and even said it bluntly. He seemed very calm.
Zhang Yan had seen Zhang Boyan fight with Old Ancestor Tai Heng. He knew that although Zhang Boyan's demonic technique wasn't very strong, his experience in fighting techniques was rare. Since this person could win against Zhang Boyan, he had to be very careful.
Zhang Boyan stood up and cupped his hands, "The disciple from Huncheng Sect this time is called Lu Muqiu. I have never heard of him before. He must be a disciple who recently formed his Nascent Soul. As for the other three sects, they hid it well. Forgive Daoren for not being able to find out about it."
Zhang Yan smiled and said, "It's fine. It's already Fellow Daoist's merit to know about these three people."
At this moment, Priest Xu interrupted and asked a few questions. He realized that even though Zhang Boyan was from the demonic sect, he didn't know much about these people.
This wasn't because he was deliberately hiding it. It was because demonic sect disciples hid their strength very well. No one knew what they were really capable of. Usually, they could only infer from their sect's techniques and divine abilities.
However, with the demonic tribulation, the spiritual energy in the demonic cave increased greatly. Many powerful demonic techniques that were passed down in secret tens of thousands of years ago could be practiced. Therefore, this method wasn't very useful.
Priest Xu thought about it a few more times and said to Zhang Boyan with a faint smile, "Why didn't Zhang mention your Netherspring Sect? Could it be that you have some misgivings and don't want to say it? "
Zhang Boyan sneered and said, "Xu Daoren, don't try to slander me. There is nothing difficult to say. Although I haven't found out who from the Netherspring Sect is going to the sword competition, it is most likely Feng Haiyang. According to seniority, he is my martial nephew. His cultivation is much higher than mine. I don't know what level his cultivation is now."
Priest Xu didn't believe him. He pointed at Zhang Boyan and smiled. "I have seen Zhang's abilities, but you are flattering him."
Zhang Boyan didn't seem to bother to refute him. He said indifferently, "I will only say one thing. Do you know Ban Shaoming from the Shaoqing Sect?"
Priest Xu frowned. Then, he seemed to remember something and said solemnly, "How can I not know such a person? This person is Qing Chenzi's junior. I heard that during the sword competition between the 16 sects, if it wasn't for the fact that he disappeared for no reason, he should have gone to the sword competition. Later on, Qi Yuntian and Qing Chenzi had a good fight, which helped to make their names known. "
Zhang Boyan laughed and said, "What do you mean disappeared? I will tell you now. He fought with my martial nephew, Feng Haiyang. After fighting for a day and a night, he was killed by my martial nephew at the foot of the Five Ultimate Peaks. His flesh and blood were devoured, and even his spirit couldn't escape. That's why he didn't go to the sword competition. I was afraid that the Shaoqing Sect would go crazy and cause trouble for my Netherspring Sect, so I covered it up. Even the cultivators in my sect don't know about it."
Daoist Xu sucked in a breath of cold air and said, "Really?"
Ban Shaoming was a famous person back then. He reached the Yuanying Realm after cultivating for 160 years. Moreover, he cultivated the Sword Transformation Realm of the three branches of Shaoqing. When he fought with his enemies, he could unleash thousands of sword lights that covered the sky and earth. He was unstoppable. He was proud and aloof, and he was the number one among the disciples of the 16 sects. No one expected him to die in the hands of Feng Haiyang.
Priest Xu wiped the cold sweat off his forehead. He seemed to have thought of something and asked, "Old Demon Zhang, why didn't I see such a powerful person in the sword competition?"
Although he wasn't a cultivator from the Donghua Continent, he knew that the 16 sects would always send out the most powerful disciples of their generation in the sword competition.
Zhang Boyan sneered and didn't say anything.
Zhang Yan smiled and said, "The six demonic sects must have planned for today since hundreds of years ago. That's why they hid their strength and didn't send out their elites."
The demonic sects had been suppressed by the Xuanmen for thousands of years. If they exposed their strength too early, those disciples might be eliminated by the Xuanmen first.
Zhang Yan's eyes flickered. He knew very well that this sword competition was different from the past. It was the first head-on battle between the Xuanmen and the demonic sects since the Devil's Calamity. The people he wanted to meet were probably the powerful figures that the six demonic sects had hidden for hundreds of years.
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