Immortal-Exterminating Divine Venerable

'Such piercing Sword Qi! This sword... Oh no, I can't block it!'

This Sword Qi had appeared too abruptly, as if shooting forth from the void itself.

It caught Ye Taixuan completely by surprise.

At first, however, he hadn't thought much of it, confident that with his power, there was no Sword Qi he couldn't handle.

But the moment he made contact with the Sword Qi, his expression changed dramatically.

He instantly forgot about capturing Yang Xiao. With a flicker of his body, he tried to dodge and retreat.

But was this Sword Qi truly so easy to evade?

PFFT!

Just as Ye Taixuan tried to dodge, the Sword Qi—as if possessing foresight—suddenly accelerated and struck him right between the eyebrows.

In that instant, it annihilated Ye Taixuan's Divine Soul.

"Taixuan! No!"

Only then did Ye Donghuang finally manage to react, his hand shooting out to grab.

But he clutched only at empty air.

He watched as Ye Taixuan fell stiffly to the ground.

His eyes burned with fury.

A sharp pang of anguish shot through his heart.

Because this descendant, his most beloved grandson, the one with the greatest hope of becoming a Void Immortal and succeeding him, had actually...

Died!

"Come out! Show yourself! You dare kill my descendant? I don't care who you are—you will die for this!"

Ye Donghuang growled.

Only then, hearing his words, did the other Immortal Cultivators finally snap out of their stupor.

They stared at Ye Taixuan's corpse, its life force completely gone.

Each and every one of them wore a look of utter astonishment.

They had never, ever imagined that something like this could happen.

Who?

Who on earth could it be?

Who would dare kill Ye Taixuan—the City Lord of Immortal Dao City, Ye Donghuang's own grandson and heir, their second-in-command?

'Could it be that kid?'

Instinctively, many eyes turned toward Yang Xiao.

But all they saw was a face just as stunned as their own.

Evidently, Yang Xiao was just as surprised to see Ye Taixuan die so suddenly.

He couldn't quite process what had happened.

But soon, his expression shifted as if he'd thought of something.

'Could it be...'

A suspicion formed in Yang Xiao's mind.

"So, you refuse to show yourself? Too cowardly to take responsibility for what you've done? Fine! Your goal was to save this brat, wasn't it? In that case, I'll kill him with a single palm strike right now. Let's see if you can save him then!"

Ye Donghuang was furious. He was incandescent with rage.

With that, he raised his hand and unleashed a palm strike.

It shot toward Yang Xiao.

This time...

Compared to his previous, tentative strike, this one was a hundred times stronger.

One could say that Ye Donghuang was attacking with his full power.

If this strike truly landed on Yang Xiao, forget the current Yang Xiao—even his Fire God Clone would likely be blasted into nothingness.

He would be deader than dead.

Worse, Yang Xiao was completely immobilized.

He couldn't even dodge.

Just as the palm was about to descend and end Yang Xiao's life...

Suddenly...

A delicate fragrance wafted through the air.

A figure in white suddenly materialized in front of Yang Xiao, raising a slender, jade-like hand.

With a casual, almost dismissive gesture, she simply wiped the descending palm strike from existence.

This was Ye Donghuang's all-out attack, a strike fueled by his boundless rage.

And just like that...

It was stopped.

Everyone present...

...was stunned.

They couldn't believe it.

Especially Ye Donghuang.

'Others might not have known, but how could he not?'

To lure out his grandson's killer, he had used all his strength in that strike. It was an attack at his absolute Peak. After unleashing it, he had even felt a twinge of regret.

He was genuinely afraid the person wouldn't appear and he would actually kill Yang Xiao.

If that happened, obtaining the legacy of the Northern Wilderness Sword Mansion would become much more complicated.

But for the sake of his pride...

...he couldn't possibly have taken it back.

Now...

...that person had indeed appeared.

The attack had been blocked.

Yang Xiao was unharmed.

But Ye Donghuang's expression grew even uglier.

Because he was forced to acknowledge a fact.

Namely...

...this woman in white before him—with her cold gaze and frosty expression, who made no effort to conceal her killing intent from anyone present...

...was stronger than him.

And so, at this moment, seeing his grandson's killer appear right in front of him, Ye Donghuang did nothing but twitch his face a few times.

Because...

...he was afraid.

'Who in the world is this woman? Her aura doesn't seem particularly strong, and she probably hasn't even broken through to the Demigod Realm. Yet, she gives me an incredibly dangerous feeling, as if she could kill me with a single, casual strike.'

Terrifying.

Utterly terrifying.

Ye Donghuang faltered.

His eyes darted around; his mind was already planning an escape.

"Lingxi..."

At this moment, seeing the white figure, smelling the familiar fragrance, and feeling the True Greater Yang Fire stir restlessly within him, Yang Xiao called out her name softly.

The newcomer was, of course, Yue Lingxi.

But the Yue Lingxi before him now was completely different from the one he had parted with.

Gone was some of her spirited, playful charm.

In its place was a cold, noble air.

Moreover, Yang Xiao could feel that her aura was now incredibly powerful.

The difference from before was like that between heaven and earth.

'It looks like the Seal on her has been broken. With an aura and strength like this, her background must be extraordinary. To be able to train someone like her, Lingxi's master is likely even more powerful than I imagined... probably a Divine King Level expert at the very least.'

At this thought, Yang Xiao's heart tensed.

'A Divine King Level expert sent his own disciple to such a remote place, and even knew the location of Junior Brother Xuan Yang's Profound Sun Order.'

'He had her come and retrieve it.'

'And with it, she opened the Profound Sun Secret Realm.'

'So, is her master connected to my previous two lives?'

'And that connection...'

'Is it one of enmity?'

'Or friendship?'

A trace of wariness crept into Yang Xiao's heart.

He secretly resolved...

'...that until he could ascertain Yue Lingxi's true identity, he absolutely could not merge his Heart Spirit with hers.'

'If she was a friend, it would be one thing.'

'But if she was an enemy...'

The mere thought sent a shiver through Yang Xiao. With his current meager strength, even a Void Immortal could toy with him and kill him at will.

If he were facing a Divine King, an entity countless tiers more powerful than a Void Immortal...

...then no matter how many tricks he had up his sleeve, they would all be washed away. No matter how many schemes he devised, they would all come to nothing. The only path left would be death.

Just as Yang Xiao's thoughts were running wild...

...Yue Lingxi finally turned around.

She looked at Yang Xiao, her cold face—still plain and unremarkable in appearance—seemed to possess an extraordinary air.

But the moment she saw Yang Xiao, that air vanished.

"Lord Xiao, I'm so sorry. I came too late. I've made you suffer."

The once-frosty Fairy suddenly transformed into a little girl who had done something wrong, fidgeting nervously as she awaited her punishment.

Her slender, jade-white hands nervously twisted the corner of her robes.

She looked utterly ashamed.

At this scene, not only Yang Xiao, but even the surrounding Immortal Cultivators and the terrified Ye Donghuang who was plotting his escape, were all dumbstruck.

Their jaws dropped.

'How... how could this be?'

'That kid actually has enough charm to make a peerless expert like her turn into a shy little girl?'

'It's... it's simply unbelievable.'

'How did he do it?'