Chapter 177 – Violence!

Han Tiange’s aura was faint. He hovered mid-air, suspended in the night sky, his eyes brimming with both fury and disbelief. He hadn’t expected Lu Kangnian to launch a surprise assault on the very same night. However, he could sense that a surge of powerful vital force was approaching...

“Hurry! Raise the protective barrier! Everyone, get up and fight!” Han Tiange roared, his mind in disarray, thoughts flying.

Nevertheless, it was too late. The Daxia Sword Sect had brought out six hundred rune cannons, emptying the sect’s coffers for one assault. They fired in unison, and six hundred pillars of light shot toward the Purple Sun Pavilion.

Boom! Boom boom!

The first volley annihilated the entire fleet of the Purple Sun Pavilion’s cloud boats. Amid the deafening blasts, the light beams surged onward toward the sect itself.

Boom!

For a second, the sky was so bright that it looked like daytime.

The outermost layer of the Purple Sun Pavilion’s already weakened barrier shattered on impact. It had barely lasted a second against the storm of light.

These various light pillars engulfed countless purple-robed figures before they could react.

“Ahh!”

“Ahhh!”

Screams of terror rang out in a constant chorus.

Han Tiange’s eyes burned with rage. He lunged at Lu Kangnian, sword raised high. But Ling Daoyan had been lying in wait. He charged at Han Tiange with his flaming sword. Han Tiange’s eyes flashed coldly. He took out several jade slips and crushed them into pieces.

Lu Kangnian’s face fell slightly, but he still raised his sword and roared, “Kill!”

𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

Whoosh whoosh whoosh!

Countless Daxia Sword Sect disciples roared and surged forward, flooding toward the Purple Sun Pavilion’s grounds.

However, they had only managed to break the outermost layer of the Purple Sun Pavilion’s barrier. A second, more formidable barrier began rapidly spreading over the entire sect.

War drums thundered as the Daxia Sword Sect disciples kept their eyes fixed on the battlefield, gauging every shift and movement.

Though locked in battle with Ling Daoyan, Han Tiange cast frequent glances at his sect below. He inwardly sighed in relief, as the enemy was still too far off. The Purple Sun Pavilion had managed to raise the entire protective barrier.

Confidence returned to Han Tiange.

With the barrier up, their disciples could both attack and defend. The Daxia Sword Sect couldn’t break through.

Whoosh whoosh whoosh!

Several figures shot out from the Purple Sun Pavilion—four elders in the late Nascent Soul Realm who had remained hidden until now.

They glared coldly at Lu Kangnian before charging toward him at once. Their goal was simple: stall the wounded Lu Kangnian. If they could keep him occupied for just an hour, the tide of battle would turn.

Then, the sound of the war drums in the sky dulled. Some people hidden in the crowd quietly descended to the ground. Li Guanqi and the others changed into black clothing, blending into the darkness as they darted through the mountains. There were eight squads, making a total of twenty-four Golden Core Realm heading in eight different directions.

The original plan was to send teams of five, but Li Guanqi pointed out that this was too conspicuous and risky. As such, they opted for teams of three instead.

Xu Zhengjie led his trio, silently rushing toward the mountains at the back of the Purple Sun Pavilion.

Li Guanqi glanced up at the battle raging overhead. He tamped down the urge to join the fight, lowered his head, and ran alongside Xu Zhengjie.

The air rang with the sound of explosions and violent clashes.

The Purple Sun Pavilion had erected a massive protective barrier spanning a thousand zhang above the sect grounds. The barrier was dense and strong, its surface rippling with flowing purple light. Despite the countless stray attacks and spells that struck it, not even the slightest tremor disturbed its surface.

Amidst a flurry of spells and lights flying in all directions, numerous people tumbled into the mountains.

One purple-robed figure came crashing down, crashing through branches and landing just a hundred zhang in front of the trio.

He was just about to take flight again when he glanced around and froze. Upon spotting the three black-clad figures, his pupils dilated in alarm. He reached for his purple jade slip, his mouth opening to shout.

But before he could, there was a flash of purple light beneath Xu Zhengjie’s feet. He sped up, and a gust of wind blew next to him. Yet, Li Guanqi darted ahead of him like a bolt of purple lightning, using the Thunderbolt technique.

All his companions saw was a brief flash of an eerie red sword light. Then, the Purple Sun Pavilion disciple’s arm and head both flew in the air. Blood sprayed everywhere, and his jade slip exploded. He did not manage to warn the others.

Xu Zhengjie kicked the corpse away and said in a low voice, “Carry on!”

Li Guanqi and the other disciple nodded, charging for the predetermined location while keeping themselves hidden.

Above, the battle had only grown fiercer. When enemies with grudges clashed, the fights became especially violent. Both sides had suffered numerous casualties at this point in the war, and these casualties often included their good friends. With these grudges, both sides started to fight even more fiercely than before.

This was the third clash since daybreak, counting the Daxia Sword Sect’s counterattack. Words and insults no longer mattered. Now all they craved was to sink their blades deep into their enemies.

Lu Kangnian, surrounded high above, was under immense pressure. Though he had stepped into the Divine Transformation Realm, he was still gravely weakened after invoking the Immortal Ancestor. Now, forced to face four late Nascent Soul Realm cultivators in peak form, he was barely holding on, dodging several close calls by the thinnest margin.

He held a purple-red pill in his mouth, hesitating to swallow. Lu Kangnian’s vital force was weak, and even though he was quickly absorbing spirit qi from his surroundings, he had no time to refine it in his body. He was so weak that he could not maintain his vital force domain.

His fight entered a stalemate, but the battle below raged on.

The Purple Sun Pavilion had more Golden Core Realm cultivators, and they were better trained and had better resources. In theory, they should have held a decisive edge. Yet, hesitation haunted their eyes. Though they fought with apparent ferocity, their confidence was waning.

They had failed to crush the Daxia Sword Sect in the previous two battles. And now, they were being attacked at their very own doorstep.

In the eyes of the Purple Sun Pavilion disciples, the Daxia Sword Sect disciples were as ferocious as tigers. Faced with such terrifying opponents, the Purple Sun Pavilion disciples could no longer muster their usual pride and arrogance.

Compared to them, the Daxia Sword Sect disciples were butchers out for blood. Even when heavily injured, they were determined to drag their opponents down with them.

This scene played out again and again across the battlefield.