Simultaneously traversing: the pinnacle of all realms

As night fell, Happy Forest was shrouded in a thin layer of twilight.

Rainbow Cat sat alone on the roof of the inn, his long sword resting across his lap, gazing absently at the distant mountain path. The night wind ruffled his robes, causing them to flutter in the twilight.

Blue Rabbit lightly leaped onto the roof and sat down beside him.

"What are you thinking about?" she asked.

Rainbow Cat took out a cloth bundle from his pocket and unfolded it layer by layer. It was the broken White Arc Sword, with the cloth strips at the hilt fluttering in the wind.

"I'm thinking about Dad," Rainbow Cat said softly. "What would he do if he were here?"

Blue Rabbit remained silent for a while.

"The master of the Rainbow Sword is a true hero," she said. "He has passed the Rainbow Sword to Young Hero Rainbow Cat, and you, Young Hero, are now the master of the Rainbow Sword."

The two sat on the roof for a long time without saying a word.

In the courtyard, Da Ben was saying goodbye to his sixth sister-in-law.

"Godmother, are you really coming with us?" Da Ben's voice was choked with emotion. "Why don't you leave first? I heard that the people from Blue Rabbit Palace's Jade Toad Palace have already found a place to stay—"

"Silly child." Sixth Sister-in-law reached out and patted his head, then shoved the old water-and-fire stick that Da Ben had been using into the ground.

"Your martial arts were taught by your godmother. You let her hide alone, waiting for you to come back? Is she still your godmother then?"

Da Ben sniffed and didn't try to persuade him any further.

DouDou squatted in the corner, taking things out of the medicine box and putting them back in, then taking them out again, checking them over and over again.

"DouDou, what are you doing?" Sally came over and asked.

"I...I'm checking if we have enough medicine." Dou Dou's voice trembled slightly. "What if someone gets hurt? What if they're seriously injured? What if—"

"DouDou." Sally squatted down, looking into his eyes, "You're a divine healer, you're the master of the Rain Flower Sword, what's this little scene to you?"

DouDou paused for a moment, then took a deep breath and closed the medicine box.

"You're right." He stood up, dusting himself off. "I'm a divine healer, one of the Seven Heroes! What do I have to fear?"

Sally smiled, not noticing the tremor in his voice.

Lu Ze stood in the backyard, with the ice bird perched beside him, its huge wings folded, like a blue and white statue.

"Brother Bird, thank you for helping us with this," Lu Ze asked.

Icebird has no relation to the others, at most having some connection with DouDou's predecessor—the previous generation's YuHua Sword Master.

Being able to serve as the final boss in DouDou's challenge and protect the "Medical Canon of Saving the World" for so long already shows deep affection.

But this time, the willingness to risk their lives to help these people is truly a great act of kindness.

The ice bird tilted its head and let out a low cry.

"Aren't you afraid?" Lu Ze laughed. "Of course, you're a spirit beast, you've lived for countless years, what haven't you seen?"

The ice bird gently pecked at his shoulder with its beak.

Lu Ze reached out and touched its cold feathers, then took a deep breath.

-

Half an hour later, a dark mass of people surged in like a tide on the mountain path outside Happy Forest.

More than a hundred members of the Demonic Cult arrived in unison, accompanied by horses, making for a truly impressive display of power.

That's how evil cults always are; they want their grand displays to be as impressive as possible.

On the roof of Happy Forest, Lu Ze and his companions squatted on the tiles, looking down at the mountain path.

The demonic cult's ranks resembled a long, black serpent, winding along the mountain path, poised to devour Happy Forest.

The leader was a tall young man wearing a cloak, with a stern face and a fierce appearance; he was undoubtedly Black Tiger.

Behind him followed thirteen knights dressed in heavy armor and wearing helmets, who looked more like border guards than martial arts practitioners.

Moreover, each of them exuded a profound aura, clearly indicating that they were all experts.

Further on were several strange masked men, dressed in brightly colored clothes and wielding all sorts of bizarre weapons.

Everyone else rode horses, while they followed behind Black Tiger using their light-footed skills, their steps unpredictable and silent.

Upon seeing this, Lu Ze couldn't help but marvel that this group of five—the Golden Leopard, the Wooden Rat, the Water Monkey, the Fire Rhinoceros, and the Earth Boar—were none other than the top experts of the Demonic Sect—the Five Elements Ninjas.

I have no idea where the Demonic Cult put together this Zoo team.

Lu Ze had a deep impression of them in his past life. After all, they were ninjas in a martial arts animation, and their moves were so strange that they were hard to forget.

Pig Wujie rode on his horse, his short and stout figure standing out in the procession, but his smile was as slick as ever.

"Young Master," Zhu Wujie urged his horse forward, pointing in the direction of Happy Forest, "Rainbow Cat and the others must be inside. I've already found out, and they also have a few helpers."

Hei Xiaohu didn't speak, but just gave Zhu Wujie a cold look.

"Last time you said you could take down Jade Toad Palace, but you ended up being badly injured and forced to flee."

His voice wasn't loud, but it was chilling: "I sent you to fetch medical books to treat your father, but you returned empty-handed."

"If something goes wrong again this time—"

"No, no!" Pigsy waved his hands repeatedly, his smile exceptionally obsequious. "With you personally leading the charge this time, Young Master, Rainbow Cat won't be able to escape!"

Black Tiger withdrew his gaze and looked towards Happy Forest.

"Send the order to surround Happy Forest and not let a single person escape."

"Yes!" the members of the Demonic Sect replied.

Black Tiger reined in his horse and glanced around. The doors and windows were tightly shut, as if no one was inside.

He chuckled coldly, channeled his inner energy, and roared, causing the surrounding leaves to rustle. The members of the Demonic Sect hurriedly used their internal energy to resist.

"The mighty Seven Heroes, how dare you act like cowards! Rainbow Cat! Come out here right now!"

The shouts rolled on in waves, but no one answered.

Then Hei Xiaohu raised his hand and ordered an attack, saying slowly and deliberately, "Rainbow Cat and the others, I want them alive."

"Men, charge!"

Pig Wujie led the demonic cult followers in a swarm, rushing towards Happy Forest.

The door was kicked open.

There was no one inside.

"Nobody's here!"

"There isn't one in the backyard either!"

Zhu Wujie stood at the door, his brows furrowed: "Something's not right. The spies clearly saw—"

No sooner had the words left his mouth than a sharp bird cry came from overhead.

An ice bird swooped down from the roof, its wings spread, bringing with them a gust of biting cold wind.

It opened its mouth, and a burst of icy blue air shot out, freezing the few demonic cult members at the forefront into ice sculptures.

"That bird!" Pigsy shouted, "Shoot it down!"

The members of the demonic cult raised their bows and crossbows, and arrows rained down on the ice bird.

With a flap of its wings, the ice bird stirred up a gale that scattered the arrows, then soared into the sky and disappeared into the clouds.

"Chase them!" Pigsy roared in exasperation. "Go after them!"

The Thirteen Protectors exchanged a glance, then flashed away and took the lead in giving chase.

We hadn't gone far.

"Something's not right." One of the Thirteen Protectors suddenly stopped. "It's too quiet."

No sooner had the words left his mouth than a long howl came from above.

Rainbow Cat leaped down from the roof, his Rainbow Sword drawing a crimson sword aura that slashed straight towards the center of the group.

"The sky is ablaze with fiery clouds!"

The sword energy exploded, and the scorching shockwave knocked more than a dozen members of the demonic sect to the ground.

At the same time, Lan Tu, Sally, Da Ben, and Lu Ze attacked from both sides.

The clash of swords and the shadows of spears intertwined to form a web of death.

"An ambush!" Pigsy's face turned deathly pale. "Retreat! Retreat now!"

"Retreat what?" The Thirteen Protectors drew their weapons, their eyes fixed on Rainbow Cat in front of them with a gloomy gaze. "Young Master sent us here, not to run away."

"And it's just these few people," he said, emphasizing each word, "the reward for capturing one of the Seven Swords is a thousand taels of silver. Brothers, let's go!"

The thirteen bodyguards drew their weapons in unison, unleashing their inner strength with astonishing force.