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Chapter 331 Immortal Sects Gather
Yongzhou borders Liangzhou, surrounded by high mountains and forests on all sides.

The howling air currents stirred up a gale, carrying rolling, turbid waves that spread outwards, accompanied by a heavy stench of blood and a deafening roar, shaking all directions.

On the eastern side of Nanhua Mountain, in a river valley, the entire river surface was stained a vivid and eerie red with blood.

The disciples of Shan Hai Ge and the powerful families from Yongzhou tore open the northern border, retreating at a heavy cost.

Meanwhile, on the southwestern border of Qingzhou, the Daowen Sect group also changed course eastward amidst the ambush, tearing open the only weak point in the horde of corpses that resembled black mist, and panting heavily as they made an arc-shaped detour to the northwest.

Then came the Xuan Yuan Immortal Mansion and the Chen Clan Immortal Clan.

Both major immortal sects are located on the western side of the Azure Cloud Continent, and their directions of travel are similar.

During the ambush, the two factions broke through the encirclements from adjacent directions and used each other's strength to head towards the same destination.

Then came Spirit Sword Mountain, where the howling sword energy, like a sky full of bright moonlight, rushed northward, then circled around to the west, dragging its many wounds, and went upstream along the banks of the Misty River.

They were all ambushed when the Heavenly Academy was besieged, and several high-level elders who were considered the foundation of the academy perished.

As for the powerful families that came with them, the smaller ones were wiped out, while the larger ones were torn apart.

This was a situation they had never anticipated. They suddenly realized that their opponent was far more formidable than they had imagined. Their arrogant attitude crumbled instantly, and their solemn expressions remained unchanged.

In their first encounter, before they even got close to the ruins, they saw countless evil beings with the power of divine travel appear. They dared not predict what would happen next.

"Where is Elder Qi?"

"Elder Qi has fallen..."

"Those damned monsters..."

The original plan was for the six major immortal sects to converge on the seven ruins from all directions, but they were scattered and forced to detour in a panic.

At this moment, on Lotus Mountain on the south side of the Great Wilderness Forest, a dark figure rolled up a letter, tied it to the leg of a black bird, and released it into the air.

Just as the bird suddenly spread its wings and flew deep into Liangzhou, dozens of figures came treading the mountain.

Some of them were already injured, but their injuries were not serious. They stood on the ridge and looked around.

Tonight's ambush was planned in advance, but some things took a little unexpected turn.

Simply put, the opponents came too quickly and too in unison.

From the moment they began planning this, all their movements were kept extremely secret.

They killed everyone who needed to be killed, and used the zombie horde to wipe away all traces before setting off. Logically speaking, no one should know what they were going to do.

In particular, the Qingyun Immortal Sect has always operated independently, and the aristocratic families are outwardly friendly but inwardly at odds, with no talk of unity. Their reaction should not have been so swift and coordinated.

But no one expected that the six major immortal sects and the Qingyun family would set off together in a large-scale and planned manner, so that although they killed countless people tonight, a large number of people still managed to escape in different directions.

This situation truly exceeded their expectations.

As they pondered, they couldn't help but recall the angry shouts they had heard during the earlier siege of the Chen Clan.

The Chu, Li, Zhuang, Du, Li... all you noble families have lured the Immortal Sect to open the ancient ruins, disrupting the Heavenly Way and bringing disaster to the world. You have already caused a great calamity. Why don't you surrender and be captured, or you may be treated leniently?

The list being recited was not exhaustive, but it was all perfectly accurate.

The problem is that they had never even met each other before the plan began, yet the Immortal Sect knew so much about it.

Without a doubt, the Immortal Sect had long been aware of their actions and vaguely realized what they were planning to do.

But whether they were testing drugs or killing people, all their actions were carried out at the very bottom of Qingyun.

Given the lofty and superior attitude of the Immortal Sect, which is deaf and blind to the lower classes, they should not have been able to grasp the clear situation so quickly.

"The group from the Heavenly Academy just left, and it seems that Bai Zhengze's eldest son was among them, which is quite unexpected."

As soon as the words were spoken, everyone's brows furrowed in concern.

Not long after, another figure appeared on the mountainside, accompanied by two crows, and spoke in a deep voice.

"A message has been sent from Chu City that a disciple dressed in the robes of the Heavenly Academy has been wandering around the city for several days for some unknown reason."

"News also came from Fengzhou that someone ordered a thorough investigation of the missing immortal estates on the ground, and that someone had visited their original residences."

After the plan was implemented, a zombie horde broke out first, purging Kyushu, making communication extremely difficult and inefficient.

They only received news from many remote areas tonight.

Upon hearing the report, the eyes of everyone on the mountain instantly turned gloomy.

The Heavenly Academy, Bai Rulong, and Fengzhou—these points easily made them realize who it was, and they began to vaguely understand where the six great immortal sects' knowledge of them came from.

No one in the world cares about the poor. Fengzhou is a remote and impoverished place where no one cares what you do, except for one person.

"boom!!!!"

A series of booming punches quietly rang out in the night.

As everyone turned to look, they saw someone smashing the right-hand cliff face with a fist in the darkness, their face filled with fury amidst the menacing aura.

He was one of the people who besieged the Heavenly Academy, and his appearance with sword marks all over his body had already attracted the attention of those around him.

Even in the Immortal Sect, those at the Divine Ascension Realm are few and far between, and rarely get injured. Yet, the longest wound on his body was already showing bone, and his wrist, which had almost been severed, had tough flesh turned outwards, with murderous energy surging outwards.

The Heavenly Academy is not a celestial sect like Spirit Sword Mountain that reveres the way of the sword. There is only one person who wears the Heavenly Academy's celestial robes but uses the sword way of Spirit Sword Mountain. At this moment, he coincides with the figure that everyone had previously thought of.

A disciple of the Heavenly Academy's inner court, he came from a rural private cultivation background, had no family connections, and was not favored by the immortal sects. He once entered the academy with Chu He and was regarded as a supporting character. Later, he entered the inner court to reduce taxes for the Immortal Manor and was sent as an envoy to the Snow Region to win the top spot on the Heavenly Dao Ranking.

Tonight, the sword will slay the wandering spirit.

After a brief silence, the menacing figures on the mountain once again strode away.

In the blink of an eye, a surging tide of corpses once again swept across Liangzhou and Qingzhou, howling like venom as it relentlessly pursued the direction from which the Immortal Sect had dispersed.

Looking from a distance, one can see the evil creatures that were originally rampaging in various parts of Qingyun constantly converging towards the Central Plains, just like a black bowl slowly taking shape, devouring the sky and the earth.

At this moment in Shengjing City, the city gate guard who was watching the great formation on the city wall slowly opened his eyes wide, and then immediately rushed down the city wall with his sword.

Before long, the people from the Imperial Academy, Prince Chong, the noble families who stayed in the capital, and many disciples of the Heavenly Academy climbed the city wall and looked out along the wall with solemn expressions.

The massive horde of corpses had left Shengjing, and as if guided by something, they surged southward in dense, overwhelming numbers.

They knew perfectly well that the direction was where the Heavenly Academy and the major families were headed.

In fact, their mentality was the same as that of the aristocratic families who set off with the Heavenly Academy when they first left the city. They felt that since the six major immortal sects had joined forces to punish the villains who were causing chaos in the world, they would surely be brought to justice.

But looking at this surging tide of corpses flowing against the current, they vaguely felt that this was a trap to ensnare them.

At this time, the group from Tianshu Academy was traveling south and stopped briefly when they passed the border of Liangzhou.

The disciples who still had the strength continued to eliminate the evil spirits from all directions, while the elders were taking the time to take medicine and heal their wounds.

It is true that the Dan Sect has closed its mountain, but all the major immortal sects and aristocratic families have stored up medicines for injuries beforehand.

At this moment, by activating spiritual energy, the injury can be stabilized and the wound can be healed more quickly.

Shi Junhao, He Lingxiu, and Chai Ze were also injured, but thanks to the protection of various magical techniques, their injuries were not fundamental, and the pain was relieved after taking a few pills.

After the healing was over, He Lingxiu raised her head and looked at Yu Shiliu and Wang Gaocen under the tree opposite.

"How is Elder Wang?"

"His spiritual energy was almost shattered, and he is now seriously injured and unconscious, with a very weak aura."

He Lingxiu frowned slightly: "Yu Shiliu... why is that?"

Shi Junhao lowered his voice: "Elder Yu has perished. Just now, the three stewards said that the team he led had already met with disaster before reaching the border, and six elders among them died."

"It seems we underestimated the other side and almost caused a disaster."

“Last night, on our first encounter, a demon at the Divine Travel Realm made a move. It seems that Palace Master Zuoqiu and Palace Master Chai also went through a battle yesterday. Only those at the peak of the Upper Five Realms can fight against them.” After Shi Junhao finished speaking, a chill rose in his heart.

While they continued to discuss the matter, other prominent families were also whispering amongst themselves.

Their intention in coming here was to help the Immortal Sect quell the disaster, plunder the legacy of those aristocratic families after the calamity, redistribute the Nine Provinces, and thereby rise to power.

However, after the fierce battle last night, with countless members of the family killed or wounded and even the patriarch seriously injured, they couldn't help but feel a sense of fear.

This is not something that can be won by participating in a fierce battle; it is a fatal disaster.

However, they had already ventured deep into Liangzhou, and in this place where the zombie horde was constantly surging, it would be extremely difficult to turn back even if they wanted to. At this point, they could only follow the Immortal Sect.

Meanwhile, Ji You, who had already undergone some basic treatment, was eating deep in the dense forest.

His physique is indeed strong, but the energy expenditure is too great. If he doesn't replenish it soon, he won't be able to last much longer.

In the blink of an eye, he had devoured the mountain of dry rations in front of him all by himself, leaving Cao Jingsong dumbfounded. He couldn't help but move back a little, afraid that Cao Jingsong would eat him up first.

After a hearty meal, a sudden whistle blew, and the resting group immediately got up.

This was never a safe place to begin with. The reason why the Heavenly Academy chose to rest here was because after last night's battle, everyone had to seize the time to recuperate.

Therefore, those who did not intend to stay long quickly gathered together.

At this moment, the endless horde of corpses converged into an even larger wave, beginning to blot out the sky and rush towards them.

In an instant, everyone tensed up and immediately gripped their weapons, rushing back along the original route.

Ji You also got up from the secluded woods, calmed his breathing, gripped his sword again, and called to Cao Jingsong and the others to head south.

"This zombie horde is even stronger."

"Everyone is now on guard and will not be surrounded in a weakened state as they were yesterday. But the most important thing now is to seize the time to break into the ruins. The source of the disaster should be there. Time is running out."

Ji You responded with his sword, and then his sword strike crashed down.

Although the ruins were opened by a lurer, they had previously been in the hands of the Immortal Sect and were strictly guarded, with outsiders not allowed to enter.

It wasn't until the sudden surge of the zombie horde that the Immortal Sect lost control of the ruins.

This means that the Chu family and the Du family, among others, have not been in the ruins for long, and whatever they intend to do will take time.

Judging from the current movement of the zombie horde, they must be trying to prevent the Immortal Sect from getting close to the ruins.

This is a game where every second counts, and time is so precious that it can no longer be wasted.

Suddenly, a sharp shriek rang out.

The evil creature, brimming with immense power, charged forward, its entire body radiating a murderous aura; it was clearly a death servant like the Bu family.

Ji You suddenly swung his sword, severing half of one of the heads, and then smashed the other head into the surging horde of corpses with a powerful punch.

"Why are there more and more evil species heading our way?"

"Because there are more and more people here..."

Ban Yangshu answered Cao Jingsong's question while swinging his sword, which made Cao Jingsong and Ji You look back.

Behind them, countless disciples of the Heavenly Academy were subconsciously gathering in their direction, and even some aristocratic families were getting closer and closer to them, following closely behind.

The intense popularity constantly provoked those evil beings, causing the wave to gather ever larger.

Cao Jingsong's mouth twisted to the back of his ears: "These people really know how to change their tune depending on the wind!"

Ban Yangshu fought hard to kill the evil creature in front of him: "It must have been Junior Brother Ji's sword strike yesterday that showed them where it was best to live."

Ji You was at the very front when he saw Lu Hanyan rush forward a few steps, while Lu Qingqiu and Wen Zhengxin behind her were also eager to try. He reached out and pulled the girl back, and a magnificent sword aura slashed forward.

The swordsman did not hold back his strength at this moment, in order to seize every second.

Under the intense sword energy, a road littered with corpses was cut open, and the surrounding area was also affected.

The horde of corpses, layer upon layer, pulling and stepping on each other, collapsed towards the center in an instant, their attempt to slam down and engulf everything in one fell swoop was immediately interrupted.

On the west side, Chai Ze, having found an opening, suddenly formed a hand seal. Intense immortal light, like lightning falling from the sky, instantly cleared the path ahead.

The He family and the Zuoqiu family were on the east side, while the other aristocratic families were on the south side. In the middle were the elders and three stewards whose injuries had just subsided, followed by a large number of disciples from the academy. The vast crowd took this opportunity to cross the tide of corpses.

After catching their breath, they kept breathing heavily, and at the same time, they couldn't help but look to the east.

Amidst the howling evil creatures, the endless sword energy continued to rise, relentlessly cutting down countless hordes of corpses, causing their eyelids to twitch wildly.

"He's a monster..."

He Lingxiu turned to look at Steward Qin, who had a sigh on his face: "Didn't we already know about this yesterday?"

Manager Qin turned to look at her: "I'm not talking about combat strength, I'm talking about physical strength."

"?"

"No, to be more precise, it should be his injuries."

As soon as he finished speaking, the three disciples of the palace master were slightly taken aback, and then looked at Ji You again with a start.

Meanwhile, the heads of the other aristocratic families were also stunned, staring intently at the figure with its ever-flowing sword energy.

If I remember correctly, Ji You was seriously injured after the great battle last night. He was already struggling halfway there and had to be pulled onto the flying sword by the three managers, where he fell into a deep sleep.

But at this moment, he showed no signs of injury whatsoever; he was like a roaring, ferocious beast.

When he swings his sword, his arm is very tense, and his wrist is exposed from his sleeve. The wrist that was clearly torn yesterday has now healed to the point that only a scab remains.

Some elders at the Heavenly Academy have also been comprehending the so-called art of life-giving, and their healing speed is astonishing, but it is far from being as terrifying as this.

In fact, the three sect leaders were shocked much earlier than they were. After all, they had carried Ji You all the way here on their flying swords, and they had already noticed that Ji You's wounds were healing rapidly not long after leaving the canyon.

What's equally astonishing is not only the speed at which Ji You's body heals, but also the amount of his spiritual energy...

After departing from Shengjing, Ji You, in order to conserve resources, passed through the gaps in the evil tide and did not travel with them.

Only now, to avoid another ambush, did they realize that Ji You had unleashed several fierce sword strikes, yet his aura remained at its peak.

"Do not change direction easily, continue along the route."

"These sorcerers are using a strategy of defeating them one by one. Don't let fear lead you astray."

"Other immortal sects are also detouring around here, so we need to try to join them as soon as possible."

The group of over a thousand people from Lingjian Mountain moved at a rapid pace, bringing with them several aristocratic families from Lingzhou, and arrived at a cluster of mountains.

This place is the Wanshi Mountain Range in the southwesternmost part of Liangzhou, where the layered peaks appear vast and boundless.

The Dao Asking Sect, the Mountain and Sea Pavilion, and the Chen Clan Immortals had already met here during their detour and were now fighting against the howling tide of corpses covering the mountain.

The horde of corpses followed them, and their dense mass had already submerged the valley floor between the mountains, stretching as far as the eye could see.

Ding Yao and Zhuo Wanqiu followed behind Yan Shujing, standing shoulder to shoulder with Gongshu Chou and the others. Their swords trembled continuously, and their fierce sword techniques, like a rushing river, tore through the dense horde of corpses.

They suffered considerable losses along the way.

Many disciples died at both Tianjian Peak and Xuanjian Peak, and several elders also perished.

Fortunately, their Lingjian Mountain swordsmanship was the strongest killing technique in the world, which allowed them to reach this place. However, their expressions did not relax.

At the very top of the cliff, several terrifying auras, carrying immense killing intent, appeared. The condensed malevolent energy was like a towering black fog, instantly putting everyone on edge.

They were acutely aware of the presence of those who had surrounded and attacked them yesterday.

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(End of this chapter)