Heaven rewards diligence, but there are always fairies plotting against me.

"Xiaoxiao, don't speak yet, we'll take you away."

Gu Ling Shuang's eyes were slightly red as she gently helped the limp Yu Xiao Xiao to her feet.

Beside her, Lin Ruohan had a cold expression, her ice-blue longsword pointing diagonally at the ground, emitting wisps of cold air that froze the surrounding humid and foul-smelling air into fine ice shards.

"Don't worry, the guards outside have been dealt with." Lin Ruohan's voice was cold, but it carried a reassuring quality.

"No...no, that won't do!" Yu Xiaoxiao gripped Gu Ling Shuang's sleeve tightly.

Excitement and weakness caused her delicate body to tremble violently, her eyes filled with terror and despair.

"It was Xiao He! He deceived me! A few days ago, he suddenly approached me, saying he had a highly secret sect mission for me to handle. I didn't suspect anything at the time, but who knew that as soon as I followed him to the back hall of this luxurious restaurant, he attacked me from behind and knocked me unconscious!"

At this point, Yu Xiaoxiao's voice trembled with tears as she pointed to the blank-faced women in the surrounding cells: "Most of the thirty-odd female cultivators imprisoned here are like me, lured here under various pretexts, or secretly abducted from the outside world! This is his lair, filled with formations and ambushes. You must leave now! It will be too late if you don't leave now!"

"You beast!" Gu Ling Shuang gritted her teeth, clenched her fists, and her knuckles turned slightly white from the force.

As a true disciple of the Divine Sword Sect, Xiao He should have been a role model for the disciples, but he secretly committed such heinous and despicable acts!

"Don't worry, I'm here."

Lin Ruohan said in a deep voice, not loud, but resolute.

Her eyes, as cold as a deep pool, swept over the other women in the cell, and she had already made up her mind.

With a flick of her fingertips, several streams of pure ice-elemental true energy shot out, precisely shattering the iron locks of the cell where the women were imprisoned.

"Sister Ruohan, you..." Gu Ling Shuang exclaimed in surprise.

"Take as many as you can; we can't just watch them stay here to die." Lin Ruohan sheathed her sword, casually supporting Yu Xiaoxiao on the other side, and coldly shouted to the female cultivators behind her, "Disciples of the Divine Sword Sect are here. Those who don't want to die, stay close to us!"

Those women, who had been utterly despondent and numb, saw a glimmer of hope for survival rekindle in their lifeless eyes upon hearing the words "Divine Sword Sect." Supporting each other, they followed Lin Ruohan and Gu Ling Shuang, trembling, as they began their retreat upwards through the tunnel.

…………

…………

…………

Meanwhile, in the main hall of Fugui Building.

The air was so heavy it felt like it was about to drip water.

Chu Chang stood and Xiao He sat, while Xiao He sat upright. In the void between them, dark golden true essence and purplish-black true energy collided continuously, emitting a piercing "hissing" sound, and plowing out scorched grooves in the floor tiles.

Just as tensions were about to rise, a black-clad guard covered in blood rushed out of the back room, looking terrified.

He disregarded the terrifying pressure in the main hall and collapsed at Xiao He's feet, wailing, "Young...Young Master! Something terrible has happened! The tunnel under the artificial hill in the backyard has been forcibly broken open, all the guards have been killed, and the female cultivators in the dungeon...are going to be kidnapped!"

"What?!"

Xiao He suddenly stood up from the jade chair, his face instantly turning extremely gloomy.

He had painstakingly managed this luxurious building for many years, using his beauty and resources to win over various forces, and even secretly trading with the demonic cultivators of the Blood Fiend Sect. This underground dungeon was his most important hub.

Once exposed, not only will he be disgraced, but he will also face ruthless suppression from the Divine Sword Sect's Enforcement Hall!

"waste!"

Xiao He kicked the guard who brought the message away, and his purplish-black true essence surged instantly. His figure transformed into a stream of light and headed towards the back hall.

However, just as he set off, a tall and imposing figure appeared out of nowhere, blocking his path as if by teleportation.

It was Chu Chang.

Chu Chang crossed his arms, a mocking sneer playing on his lips, and looked at Xiao He, whose face was ashen: "Senior Brother Xiao, the show isn't over yet, where are you in such a hurry to go?"

Seeing Chu Chang standing in front of him, and recalling the sudden attack in the back hall, a thought flashed through Xiao He's mind, and he instantly understood. He stared intently at Chu Chang, his eyes filled with venomous resentment.

"So that's how it is... From the moment you walked in, pretending to be drunk and causing trouble in my lobby, it was all to stall for time! You did it!"

"That's right." Chu Chang raised his chin slightly and generously admitted, "Senior Brother Xiao, you have committed many evil deeds in the past. Today, let's settle all the old and new scores together."

"Hahahaha! You think you can do this?" Xiao He laughed angrily, his face contorted. "Chu Chang, I admit you have some strength, but do you think you, a mere outer sect peasant, can turn the world upside down? You've ruined my plans! Today, neither you nor those two idiots behind you will leave alive! You're courting death!"

boom!

At this moment, Xiao He's true energy erupted completely.

The pressure of a late-stage Foundation Condensation Realm cultivator was unleashed without reservation, and the crimson robe behind him fluttered and rustled without any wind.

"Purple Demon Eye, kill!"

Xiao He's eyes instantly turned a strange deep purple, and two beams of purple light, formed from a mixture of pure divine sense and demonic energy, tore through the air and headed straight for Chu Chang's brow. This move was extremely insidious, specifically designed to sever a person's soul.

"A trivial skill."

Chu Chang snorted coldly, neither dodging nor avoiding. At this moment, the unfathomable pure yang essence within his body suddenly boiled, and golden light shone through his skin, making him look like an Arhat descended to earth.

"Break it!"

Chu Changchen took a deep breath and unleashed a simple, unadorned punch.

This punch condensed the terrifying power of his peak Foundation Condensation Realm. The dark golden fist light transformed into a roaring, furious dragon, colliding head-on with the two purple beams of light.

boom--!

Amidst a deafening roar, the entire Fugui Building shook violently, and countless pieces of rubble and tiles fell down.

Those two seemingly powerful purple beams of light were as fragile as glass in the face of Chu Chang's domineering Pure Yang Fist Wind, and were instantly shattered.

The lingering force of the punch transformed into a heat wave, forcing Xiao He's expression to change, and he had to retreat several steps before regaining his footing.

"This is impossible!" A storm raged in Xiao He's heart as he stared intently at Chu Chang. "You...you're not at the early stage of the Foundation Establishment Realm! This power...is at the peak of the Foundation Establishment Realm?! You've been hiding your cultivation!"

"It's too late to find out now!"

Chu Chang's figure blurred, leaving a series of dark golden afterimages as he instantly approached Xiao He.

"Great Sun Pure Yang Palm!"

Chu Chang's palm turned dark gold, carrying an extremely high temperature, and slammed down.

Wherever the palm strike passed, the air was scorched and distorted.

Xiao He sensed a deadly threat, and at that moment he dared not hold back in the slightest. He bit his tongue, spitting out a mouthful of blood essence into his palm, while simultaneously his hands rapidly formed hand seals:

"Purple Celestial Shield!"

An octagonal shield burning with purplish-black flames instantly materialized in front of him.

Boom!

Chu Chang's palm struck the shield solidly. The terrifying aftershocks of energy spread out like a tide, causing large sections of the walls on the first floor of the Rich and Noble Building to collapse. Although Xiao He barely managed to block the attack, he was sent flying backward by the violent force, plowing a deep trench several meters long in the ground. He felt a sweet taste in his throat, and a trickle of blood spilled from the corner of his mouth.

"Damn it! How can this little beast be so strong!"

Xiao He was both shocked and furious. He knew he had met his match today. Not only would the secret in the inner chambers be lost, but if things dragged on any longer, he himself might perish here.

Thinking of this, a resolute glint flashed in Xiao He's eyes. Using the force of his backward flight, he suddenly pulled out a blood-red talisman from his robes and crushed it violently.

hum! ! !

A cloud of blood mist instantly enveloped him.

"Chu Chang! I will remember this grudge! One day I will grind you to dust!"

Before he finished speaking, Xiao He's figure transformed into a streak of blood light in the blood mist, smashing through the roof of the Fugui Building at an incredible speed and fleeing madly out of Qing Shi Town.

"Trying to run? Did you even ask me?"

Chu Chang narrowed his eyes, took a step, and transformed into a dark golden rainbow, chasing after it.

The streak of blood, carrying Xiao He, crashed into the dome of the Rich and Noble Building at an almost self-destructive speed, transforming into a meteor and fleeing towards the desolate mountains outside Qing Shi Town.

"Where do you think you're going?!"

Chu Chang let out a cold shout, and his dark golden true essence erupted like a volcano as he stomped his feet hard on the ground.

With a loud "boom", the entire jade-paved hall floor instantly shattered into pieces.

He shot off like a golden arrow, soaring into the sky, poised to give chase.

However, before he could rush out of the ruins of the Fugui Building, a shrill howl suddenly rang out from all around.

"Stop him! Buy time for the young master!!!"

"kill!"

More than a dozen black figures suddenly shot out from various dark corners of the Fu Gui Building.

These guards had bloodshot eyes, and faint black magic patterns appeared on their skin. Even their skin was strangely swollen, emanating a violent and extremely unstable aura of destruction.

"An assassin?!"

Chu Chang's pupils contracted.

These were clearly assassins secretly trained by Xiao He, and they had just been activated by some kind of demonic self-destruction technique. Each of them was fearless and clearly intended to use human lives to forcibly slow him down.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Three death warriors at the peak of the tenth level of the Qi Refining Realm were the first to rush forward. They didn't even brandish their weapons, but instead pounced on Chu Chang madly. Just as they were about to reach his body, his flesh exploded!

The raging crimson true essence and fragments of flesh transformed into a terrifying shockwave, instantly halting Chu Changqian's momentum.

Immediately afterwards, several more fearless assassins charged forward, their blades gleaming with a chilling, poisonous green light, blocking all of Chu Chang's escape routes.

"Get out of here!!!"

Chu Chang was getting impatient. Xiao He was a very shrewd man who knew too many of his secrets. If he were to escape today, it would be like releasing a tiger back into the mountains, which would cause endless trouble in the future.

His fist intent was like the sun shining brightly in the sky, and the pure yang essence in his body was boiling completely. Every punch he threw brought up a sky full of dark golden fist shadows.

Bang!Bang!

Two suicide bombers who attempted to self-destruct were instantly blasted into a bloody mist by his terrifying fist wind mid-air. However, these suicide bombers seemed to feel no pain or fear; as soon as one died, another would step on the flesh and blood of their comrade to make up for it. The thick, pungent smell of blood permeated the hall, making people want to vomit.