Ten Thousand Sword Masters

Early in the morning, the group set off. The Lin family was generous and managed to gather hundreds of horses from somewhere, giving each person a horse.

They galloped away on horseback and soon arrived at the foot of Dianyun Mountain.

At first glance, the mountain peaks rise high into the clouds, lush and verdant, surrounded by mist.

However, the excited crowd quieted down, and looking at Dianyun Mountain, the group felt a sense of oppression. Under the bright sunshine, Dianyun Mountain gave off a cold and gloomy feeling.

"There are many monsters on Dianyun Mountain that eat human flesh. Few ordinary people go there, and even if they do, they usually go in groups. It's best not to go alone." Nie Da'er's words were pointed, intended to make Zhong Yang back down.

Unexpectedly, as soon as he spoke, some of the younger disciples had second thoughts and started discussing among themselves.

"Damn it, if anyone dares to say anything about going back again, I'll cut out their tongue right now!" Nie Da'er roared in a frenzy.

The Lin family had previously sent many people up the mountain to search for Lin Weizhen, but they failed to find her. Only the underground palace remained to be explored, so the group's purpose was clear: to head straight for the underground palace.

A few people were left to guard the horses, while the rest of the men dismounted and, led by Lin Youzhi, headed towards the entrance of the underground palace.

The mountain path was rugged, and after walking only a few steps, the group suddenly stopped in complete silence. A large snake had appeared ahead, crossing the road. No one dared to kill the snake, not wanting to introduce any complications, and the group simply watched it depart.

The further we went, the colder it became, even though the sun was shining brightly.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Everyone drew their weapons, their expressions turning serious. Zhong Yang was no exception; he was even more cautious than the others, given Guo Yang's serious injuries.

"Mr. Lin, could you describe the scene when your daughter was taken away?" Zhong Yang suddenly asked.

Because Dianyun Mountain was too strange, and Guo Yang was inexplicably seriously injured, he had no choice but to ask again.

Lin Youzhi recalled, "After my family climbed to the top of the mountain and saw the cross-shaped monument, we turned back home. We hadn't gone more than a hundred meters when we were attacked by a monster. Many of our guards died. I managed to escape down the mountain with the protection of several powerful guards, but my daughter was captured by a fox." Lin Youzhi said, his face filled with grief.

After considering the situation, Zhong Yang realized that these monsters must have been trying to capture Lin Weizhen with a specific purpose; otherwise, Lin Youzhi and the others would have had no chance of escaping while being chased by the monsters.

I'm afraid the whole thing isn't that simple.

Huhuhu~

The wind picked up and grew stronger, making the surrounding trees sway. Dark clouds gradually gathered, the sky darkened, and it looked like a downpour was imminent.

"Sect Leader, I see that heavy rain is coming today. Should we come again tomorrow?" asked one of Nie Da'er's disciples.

Upon hearing this, Nie Da'er hesitated for a moment, then, noticing everyone staring at him, he shouted, "You insolent fool! We accepted Master Lin's commission, so naturally we must complete it diligently, no matter what difficulties we encounter, we must never back down. Have you forgotten what your master has taught you?"

The disciple was terrified by Nie Da'er's reprimand, but everyone could see that Nie Da'er was just bluffing. After this commotion, everyone relaxed a bit.

Just then, several birds were startled from the forest, flapping their wings haphazardly as they flew away into the distance. Against the backdrop of the silent mountains, everyone's hearts tightened again.

Zhong Yang gripped his long sword tightly, his gaze sweeping across the surroundings. "This matter is probably not simple. We may face great danger." Zhong Yang did not mention Guo Yang's serious injury, as he still had some face to save. He guessed that Lin Youzhi had not told these people either, otherwise, there would probably be half as many people here.

Nie Da'er took a deep breath, wanting to say something sarcastic to Zhong Yang, but the strange atmosphere forced him to give up. "Everyone, focus your attention."

Finally, the entrance to the underground palace appeared in front of them, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Snapped!

However, at that moment, a strong gust of wind snapped several trees in half.

A chill ran through everyone as they looked at the broken tree.

call out!

Suddenly, a white light enveloped the entrance to the underground palace, the wind intensified, and dark clouds surged.

Whoosh!

A bolt of lightning ripped through the sky, illuminating the dark clouds.

"Welcome to Dianyun Mountain."

The white light dissipated, and at the same time, a voice rang out. Zhong Yang looked over and saw a large, two-faced white bull. The bull was kneeling on one knee, with a long axe behind it.

"A two-faced white cow?"

Nie Da'er exclaimed in surprise, then jumped back a step, assuming a defensive stance.

"Ah, please call me Lord White Emperor, thank you!" said the white ox, sprang to his feet, and drew the long axe from his back. As soon as the axe was drawn, it struck a huge rock at the entrance, instantly shattering it and sending up clouds of dust.

"Hiss~"

Except for Zhong Yang, everyone else gasped.

"I, the White Emperor, was born to be fearsome, so strong that I have no friends," the White Emperor said smugly, then slung his great axe over his shoulder. He then pointed to the crowd with his left hand, "The underground palace has now been occupied by my lord, and no one is allowed to enter. You all must leave immediately."

Upon hearing Bai Di's words, Nie Da'er and the others instinctively took a step back, intending to leave.

Lin Youzhi immediately panicked and hurriedly said, "Venerable one, I have come to find my daughter. Please forgive me."

Then, Lin Youzhi said to Nie Da'er and the others, "Please help me. We've already reached the entrance to the underground palace, so we have to go in and search it."

Seeing that Nie Da'er and the others were having second thoughts, Zhong Yang looked up at the sky with a nonchalant air, which made Nie Da'er and the others feel that they were being looked down upon by Zhong Yang. So many people were actually being looked down upon by a mere kid!

"Don't worry, Master Lin. Cough cough, now that we've accepted the commission, of course we'll complete it," Nie Da'er said.

Zhu Guangqian, the leader of the Chiyu Sect, and Duan Chu, the leader of the Jinglei Sect in Huoyun County, echoed his sentiments, and the crowd was in high spirits.

boom!

The White Emperor suddenly raised his axe towards Nie Da'er, "It seems you want to fight me!"

"Oh! Fight! Fight! Fight!"

A group of young disciples were filled with excitement. Nie Da'er's words had already thrilled them, and now, seeing the White Emperor's axe pointed at Nie Da'er, they wished they were Nie Da'er so they could fight the White Emperor.

Nie Da'er's face flushed slightly. He was now in a dilemma. On the one hand, he was somewhat afraid of the White Emperor, and on the other hand, his disciples were full of enthusiasm. If he retreated at this time, it would undoubtedly greatly affect his prestige.

"So what if we fight? Do you think I'm afraid of you?"

boom!

As soon as Nie Da'er finished speaking, the White Emperor's Great Axe came crashing down.

Nie Da'er was surprised that the White Emperor would start a war so suddenly, and hurriedly dodged.

The axe slammed into the ground, kicking up dust. Zhong Yang quickly shielded Lin Youzhi and pulled him aside.

The White Emperor swung his great axe at Nie Da'er with fierce attacks, putting Nie Da'er at a disadvantage from the start and making it difficult for him to defend himself.

boom!

Bai Di kicked Nie Da'er in the chest, and Nie Da'er crashed to the ground with a thud.

The White Emperor leaped high into the air, raised his great axe with both hands, and swung it down at Nie Da'er.

At the critical moment, Nie Da'er unleashed an extraordinary leap, slamming his foot on the ground, flipping over, and spinning, miraculously dodging Bai Di's fatal blow.

"I concede defeat!" Nie Da'er said hastily as he landed on his back.

The White Emperor dusted himself off, glanced disdainfully at Nie Da'er, and then surveyed the crowd with an air of great power.

Nie Da'er slunk back into the crowd, and when his disciple came forward to help him, he shook him off.

At this moment, the White Emperor spoke again: "Is there anyone else who wants to exchange a few blows with me?"

Zhu Guangqian and Duan Chu both lowered their heads. Nie Da'er was still angry and didn't want to lose face by himself, so he looked at Zhong Yang and said, "Master Zhong, it's time for you to show your bravery."

"Yes, yes, Lord Zhong looks very dignified. Defeating this White Emperor should be a piece of cake for him."

"The Lord is someone who can occupy the Burial Sword Valley, so he must be extraordinary."

Zhu Guangqian and Duan Chu echoed Nie Da'er's words, partly because they didn't want to fight the White Emperor themselves, and partly because they wanted to see Zhong Yang make a fool of himself. They dared not mock Nie Da'er for his embarrassing performance, but Zhong Yang was different. Not only was he alone, but the Nanjiang Sect also lacked any real strength, making him a perfect target for ridicule.

Zhong Yang snorted lightly. If he was afraid before the battle even started, how could he lead the crowd?

Zhong Yang slowly stepped forward, holding his sword horizontally.

The White Emperor looked at Zhong Yang and said, "You want to fight me? This time, I won't hold back."

"Life and death are irrelevant!"

"Life and death are irrelevant!"

Upon hearing this, the young people from all three factions were momentarily stunned. Youth is a time when even a spark of passion can ignite their passion. They hadn't initially shown much respect for Zhong Yang because of his youth, but since he held the title of the leader of the Nanjiang Sect, they dared not act rashly.

But now, facing the White Emperor who defeated Nie Da'er, Zhong Yang is fearless. Compared to Zhu Guangqian, the leader of the Chiyu Sect, and Duan Chuyi, the leader of the Jinglei Sect in Huoyun County, he is simply worlds apart.

Seeing the admiration in his subordinates' eyes as they looked at Zhong Yang, Nie Da'er sneered, "A mere brute's courage, unaware of when to advance or retreat. This time, the White Emperor will show no mercy."

"Zhong Yang became the leader of a sect at such a young age, so he is bound to be arrogant and ignorant of his own limitations. He will surely lose his life here this time," Zhu Guangqian said.

"I've heard that Burial Sword Valley is in a good location. Now that it's been renamed Opening Heaven Valley, I'd like to go and see for myself," Duan Chu said. His implication was that once Zhong Yang was dead, he would go and take over Opening Heaven Valley.

The three of them burst into laughter, looking as if they had everything under control.

Lin Youzhi has now realized that Nie Da'er and the other two are completely unreliable, with only Zhong Yang being somewhat dependable. But now, Zhong Yang is clearly no match for Bai Di, and he worries that Zhong Yang will die at Bai Di's hands, leaving the rest of them to scatter like birds and beasts.

Seeing no hope of a surprise attack, Bai Di pressed his legs down, raised his great axe with both hands, and held his breath.

Zhong Yang gripped the sword with both hands, raising it to his left front. At the same time, he slightly bent his left knee and took a step to the side with his right leg.

The wind rose again, howling and blowing countless leaves, which danced in the air.

The dark clouds rolled and collided.

Clang!

Zhong Yang and Bai Di leaped up to attack simultaneously, their swords and axes clashing in mid-air.

Whoosh!

A bolt of lightning struck from the sky, landing less than a meter away from where Zhong Yang and Bai Di were fighting. The dazzling light illuminated the seriousness on Zhong Yang's face and the ruthlessness in Bai Di's eyes.

blah blah blah!

Swords and axes clashed, each strike fierce and incredibly sharp.

Zhong Yang swiftly dodged, stepping on a rock to propel himself forward and thrust his sword at Bai Di.

Whoosh!

Another bolt of lightning struck the void above Zhong Yang's head, illuminating the sword he had thrust out.

Rumble!

Dark clouds collided, and thunder rumbled across the sky.

"Eeya!"

The White Emperor roared and rolled into the void, cleaving Zhong Yang's powerful sword strike with an axe.

boom!

Zhong Yang throws a punch, Bai Di kicks.

As their fists and legs collided, Zhong Yang flipped and flew backward, crashing into a tree.

"Hiss~" The onlookers gasped.

Zhong Yang coughed up blood, and before he could catch his breath, he struck the few remaining people with his palm, using the force to turn around and dodge the axe that Bai Di was swinging at.

boom!

The White Emperor cleaved a large tree with his axe, sending the branches flying.

Zhong Yang was drenched in sweat, his whole body soaked.

He didn't want to summon the Wind Eagle because the three factions were present, and these three factions would inevitably become enemies of the Nanjiang Sect in the future. The Nanjiang Sect's goal was to replace the Five Grains Divine Sect and become the controlling force in Dazu City. What they needed to do now was to devour these surrounding small forces, so they wanted to avoid being exposed as much as possible.

Seeing that he could not kill Zhong Yang for a long time, Bai Di became impatient. He saw Zhong Yang's head spin rapidly, then suddenly stop, and his body trembled.

"Ah~" Nie Da'er and the others exclaimed in surprise. It turned out that the White Emperor was about to split into two White Emperors, and the giant axe was about to be split in two as well.

"Zhong Yang is doomed."

However, at that moment, Zhong Yang's sword, reflecting the dark clouds in the sky, came riding the wind.

clap clap clap!

Heavy raindrops fell, pounding against the silent mountain forest. The sounds of rain, wind, and thunder instantly enlivened the world.

puff!

The longsword pierced the White Emperor's heart!

At this moment, the White Emperor was finally split in two, but both White Emperors had wounds on their chests, and blood was flowing freely.

"This is my first time creating a clone~"

Before Bai Di could finish speaking, he collapsed with a thud.

The dramatic change that occurred in an instant left Nie Da'er and the others dumbfounded.

"What...what happened? How did the White Emperor fall down?" Nie Da'er was shocked.

"Zhong Yang's sword strike was unexpectedly fast, but there was nothing particularly special about it. So how did Bai Di end up dead?" Zhu Guangqian was also puzzled.

Duan Chu kept shaking his head, speaking incoherently, clearly bewildered and dissatisfied that Zhong Yang had defeated Bai Di so easily.

However, although Duan Chu and the others were puzzled, the group of youths erupted in a thunderous shout.

The shouts drowned out the wind, the rain, and the thunder and lightning, seemingly becoming the only sound in the world.

No matter how noisy the world is, it can't stop Zhong Yang from becoming the protagonist.

It turned out that Zhong Yang, who was fighting against the White Emperor, had keenly noticed the weakening of the White Emperor's aura. The White Emperor was creating a clone, and his aura had become much weaker. Although the White Emperor's clone creation process was very fast, it was difficult for ordinary people to detect this instantaneous change in aura.

But Zhong Yang keenly noticed that this might be related to the changes brought to him by the Cosmic Seal.

Seizing the opportunity, Zhong Yang swiftly thrust his sword forward. As expected, Bai Di was unable to react, retaliate, or even dodge, and thus lost his life.

Bai Di never expected that Zhong Yang, whom he had just knocked away, would dare to attack him again. He just wanted to end the battle as soon as possible, but he didn't expect Zhong Yang to find a loophole.

Is it fate or destiny?

Zhong Yang wiped the rain and sweat from his face and returned to the crowd.

Lin Youzhi warmly grasped Zhong Yang's hand, showering him with praise, while Nie Da'er and the others turned their heads away, not wanting to see Zhong Yang's smug expression.

The young people around him were excited and surrounded Zhong Yang, wishing they could hug him. Zhong Yang waved his hand and said, "It's raining so hard, let's hurry up and enter the underground palace."

After Zhong Yang finished speaking, everyone realized that it was raining heavily, as they had been so engrossed in watching Zhong Yang and Bai Di fight.

The crowd escorted Zhong Yang into the underground palace, where they found two paths.

The group stopped, unsure of which path to take. Zhong Yang thought for a moment and said, "I think we should continue searching together without separating."

Zhong Yang, recalling the power of the White Emperor and the fact that Guo Yang was seriously injured, felt that the group should not separate but should work together.

However, Nie Da'er and the others were unwilling to listen to Zhong Yang's words. If it were one of the three of them who made the suggestion, they might agree, but if it was Zhong Yang who made the suggestion, the three of them would definitely oppose it.

They didn't want Zhong Yang to take the lead. Zhong Yang had just defeated Bai Di and was riding high for a time. Now that they had listened to Zhong Yang's words, wouldn't they seem inferior to Zhong Yang?

"Your Excellency is mistaken," Nie Da'er said. "As far as I know, there are countless forks in this underground palace. If we all search along the same path, we don't know how long we'll take. Therefore, I suggest that we split up and send people into each fork in the road to search."

"Absolutely, absolutely, I agree with Brother Nie's words." Duan Chu echoed Nie Da'er.

Zhu Guangqian nodded in agreement, echoing Nie Da'er's words.

Lin Youzhi had a vague feeling that something was wrong, but he didn't dare to stand up and object.

Zhong Yang smiled. Originally, he had suggested that everyone work together to complete the mission and not lose strength before it was finished, which was why he proposed that they join forces. However, Nie Da'er and the other two insisted on splitting up their forces. This was for the best, as it meant that these three factions would suffer heavy losses. Ideally, they would all stay here, so that the Nanjiang faction could unify the forces in these counties without lifting a finger.

However, these three factions were ultimately people with deep roots. Nie Da'er and others took out a paper crane and handed it to their disciples, saying that if they were injured, they should release the paper crane so that everyone could work together.

Lin Youzhi received a paper crane and asked Zhong Yang for one as well. The group then split into two groups and entered the underground palace.

At that moment, in a corner, a pair of eerie green eyes were staring at the crowd.

I like the Ten Thousand Swords Master.