Huang Rong from The Return of the Condor Heroes: Guo'er, calm down.

The skinny man wielded the Emei dagger with incredible speed, employing unorthodox techniques, each strike aimed precisely at Yang Guo's ribs. This type of weapon is short and sharp, extremely deadly; a single stab would cause profuse bleeding.

Yang Guo followed the footwork from the Nine Yin Manual, his body as light as a willow catkin, seemingly about to fall, but in reality as steady as a rock.

The withered branch in his hand traced mysterious lines.

"ban!"

Yang Guo silently recited this word in his heart.

The word "forbidden" in the name of the Quanzhen Forbidden Land was carved by Wang Chongyang when he remembered fighting Lin Chaoying to prevent her from entering the ancient tomb. The words convey a sense of resolute determination that "this path is blocked."

The withered branch trembled slightly, not attempting to block the steel-forged Emei dagger head-on, but instead drawing a semicircle in front of it. This semicircle was drawn extremely slowly.

The skinny man felt a blur before his eyes, and the Emei dagger in his hand seemed to pierce into a ball of cotton, its force instantly dissipated, causing his body to involuntarily lean forward.

"What a brilliant 'forbidden' technique!" Yang Guo thought to himself.

But then he frowned slightly. Although his move had blocked the attack, it hadn't fully unleashed its "decisive" intent. Wang Chongyang's "ban" was awe-inspiring, making people dare not cross the line; while his own "ban" had merely stuck to the opponent's weapon, lacking some of its domineering power.

"Again!"

Yang Guo flicked his wrist, and the force on the withered branch suddenly changed.

The originally viscous force instantly became fierce and unstoppable. Before the skinny man could regain his balance, he felt a sharp pain in his wrist, and the two Emei daggers slipped from his grasp and fell to the ground.

The burly man with a thick beard standing next to him nearly popped his eyes out when he saw this.

"This is a tough one! Third brother, let's go together!"

With a roar, the bearded man unleashed his nine-ringed broadsword, creating a gust of wind as it slashed down towards Yang Guo's crown. At the same time, the short, fat man who had been thrown aside got up and whipped his soft whip towards Yang Guo's legs.

The three of them were now fighting with their lives on the line.

Yang Guo's eyes showed no fear, but rather excitement. This kind of life-or-death struggle was the best crucible for honing his sword intent. Although he could comprehend it by practicing in front of the stone tablet, he ultimately lacked the sense of urgency of facing an enemy.

"Well done!"

Yang Guo let out a long roar and advanced instead of retreating.

He suddenly thrust out the withered branch in his hand, aiming straight for the man with the bushy beard's throat.

This move uses the "entry" technique.

Unauthorized intruders will be killed. The word "in" was originally a warning to outsiders not to trespass, but in Yang Guo's hands, it became a deadly move of "driving straight in".

The sword's momentum was like a rainbow, striking first even though it was attacked later.

Even as the bearded man's broadsword was still in mid-air, a chilling sensation ran down his throat. The seemingly fragile withered branch was now a deadly weapon.

If he were to strike with that blade, he would probably have a hole pierced in his own throat before he even touched Yang Guo's clothes.

"Withdraw your weapon!"

The bearded man was terrified and forcibly withdrew his attack, twisting his body to the side to dodge the blow in a sorry state.

But his dodge instantly exposed numerous flaws in the previously tight combined attack formation.

With a smile playing on his lips, Yang Guo lightly touched the ground and instantly appeared behind the short, fat man.

"die!"

The last move of Yang Guo's Double Ninth Sword Technique at the beginning of the year.

The withered branch in his hand carried a chilling aura as he pointed it at the short, fat man's acupoint on the back.

If this move lands squarely, even without using the power of the One-Finger Divine Skill, the sharp sword intent alone can shatter the opponent's heart meridian.

Just as the withered branch was about to touch the short, fat man's clothes, Yang Guo slightly shifted his wrist.

"puff!"

A withered branch landed on the short, stout man's shoulder.

"ah--!"

A scream echoed through the forest. The short, fat man's right arm went limp, his shoulder blade cracked from the impact of the dead branch.

"This sword intent... needs to be restrained a bit more."

Yang Guo looked at the withered branch in his hand, which had already broken off a section, and pondered to himself. The killing intent of that move, the "Death" technique, was too strong, causing the force to leak out and break the tip of the branch.

The true meaning of the "death" sword intent should be extremely restrained, only to erupt the moment it touches the enemy, achieving a silent and swift severance of life.

My current skill level is at most "crazy," not "unparalleled."

"The One-Finger Divine Skill consumes too much internal energy and should only be used as a last resort. Once used, it will either kill the enemy or yourself. However, the Double Yang Sword Technique, if mastered, can be relied upon."

Yang Guo had made up his mind, and his gaze toward the remaining two became even more fervent.

The bearded man and the skinny man were terrified.

This isn't some young Taoist priest from the Quanzhen Sect; he's clearly a ruthless little devil in Taoist robes! A broken tree branch was enough to rout those three seasoned veterans. If it were a real sword, their heads would have been chopped off long ago.

"Stop fighting! Stop fighting!"

The bearded man threw his broadsword to the ground, knelt down with a thud, and kowtowed repeatedly, "Young Taoist master, spare our lives! We were blind and didn't recognize your greatness, we offended a true god, please just let us go like a fart!"

The skinny man quickly knelt down, trembling uncontrollably.

Yang Guo was in the middle of a heated fight and had just gained a new understanding of the word "death." He was about to find someone to verify it when his three sparring partners suddenly went on strike.

"You're already chickening out?"

Yang Guo, looking displeased, tapped the man with the remaining half of a tree branch on his forehead. "Where's that fierceness from before? Weren't you going to bleed me dry? Get up, keep hitting me!"

The bearded man, with a mournful face, said, "Young Taoist master, please stop messing with us. Your martial arts skills are enough to establish your own school. Using us few rotten garlic cloves as practice is just bullying us!"

"Stop talking nonsense!"

Yang Guo's eyes widened. "I haven't even used the full 'complete' technique yet. Pick up the knife right now, or I'll send you to meet the King of Hell right now!"

Looking at Yang Guo's ambiguous smile, the bearded man felt a chill run down his spine. Although this little devil was smiling, the murderous intent in his eyes was blatant and undisguised.

"I...I..." The bearded man trembled as he reached for the knife, but his hands shook so badly he couldn't even grip the handle.

Yang Guo sighed.

This kind of cowardly fool, even if he manages to make a move, will be full of flaws and will not serve any purpose in honing his sword intent.

"Get lost."

Yang Guo waved his hand listlessly, "Drag that fat bastard away, don't make a mess of this place."

The three men were overjoyed. The bearded man and the skinny man helped the short, fat man who had fainted from the pain, and they scrambled out of the woods without even looking back.

Yang Guo threw away the broken branch in his hand and dusted off his hands.

He looked around, his gaze sweeping across the depths of the woods.

He knew that there were quite a few people watching the battle just now.

The area surrounding this ancient tomb is now crowded with at least a hundred martial arts practitioners. Most of them are taking a wait-and-see approach, hoping to see if anyone will be the first to venture out and explore.

"Friends from the woods, now that you're all here, let's not hold back!"

Yang Guo focused his energy in his dantian, and his voice rang out clearly.

"I know you're all here for the treasures and beauties in the ancient tomb. Unfortunately, the tomb is guarded by a jade bee array. Without a way to hide, you won't even be able to touch the stone door."

These words immediately caused a commotion in the woods.

Clearly, many people have suffered losses due to jade bees.

Seeing this, Yang Guo's lips curled into a wicked smile, and he continued shouting:

"I'm a kind-hearted young master, and I can't bear to see heroes and warriors get stung by bees and end up with swollen faces. Today, I'll set up a challenge right here! Whoever can defeat this branch in my hand will be taught how to avoid those jade bees, and I'll also give him the secrets of the ancient tomb!"