A sudden voice, like a bolt from the blue, resounded through the forest.
As the words fell, a figure, like a phantom, instantly weaved its way out of the forest.
The newcomer had flowing long hair, wore a white robe, and a wine gourd hung from his waist, exuding an ethereal and transcendent aura.
Daoist Sect's Senior Disciple, Shen Zui!
Swish, swish, swish, swish…
With the arrival of the newcomer, Qin Xiaozhi, Xing Tian, Dongfang Xiaoyao, and Huangfu Weixia all changed color.
Previously, when the Evil Spirit Knight appeared, their hearts were tense—with their strength, they were utterly incapable of dealing with the Evil Spirit Knight, who possessed the power of a Five-Star War God, let alone escaping from his grasp.
Later, when Jiang Wuming informed them not to worry, they were puzzled, but out of trust in Jiang Wuming, they set aside their concerns.
However—
Even so, upon seeing Shen Zui appear, they were still shocked!
Whoosh!
Not only them, but the Evil Spirit Knight's expression also shifted slightly.
As he approached Jiang Wuming and the others, he had sensed another presence in the distant forest, and through that sensing, he judged it to be an ordinary person.
For this reason, he had not paid much attention to that presence, intending to casually eliminate the ordinary person in the forest after killing Jiang Wuming and the others.
As it turned out, that ordinary person had transformed into Shen Zui of the Daoist Sect!
How could this not surprise him?!
The only one not surprised was Jiang Wuming.
Jiang Wuming had also sensed Shen Zui's presence earlier.
Although Shen Zui had concealed his martial artist's strength through the Daoist Sect's mysterious inner energy techniques, Jiang Wuming was very familiar with Shen Zui's aura.
Because of Shen Zui's presence, Jiang Wuming had let go of his worries, assured Qin Xiaozhi and the other three, and even used this opportunity to trick the Evil Spirit Knight into revealing information and capturing evidence of Gu Tianlong's collusion with Anthony Roman.
"Senior Disciple Brother."
Jiang Wuming greeted Shen Zui first.
"Benefactor."
Dongfang Xiaoyao also spoke, but instead of calling him Senior Disciple Brother, she addressed Shen Zui as Benefactor.
This was because Shen Zui was the one who had saved her from the demons years ago.
"Junior Sister, what did you call me? I know Master has already acknowledged you as his disciple, so you should call me Senior Disciple Brother, just like Junior Brother."
Shen Zui looked at Dongfang Xiaoyao first.
Dongfang Xiaoyao's heart warmed: "Sen… Senior Disciple Brother."
"That's more like it."
Shen Zui smiled slightly, then said to Jiang Wuming, "Junior Brother, you say you ran all this way with great effort, making me chase after you. Wouldn't it have been better to stop earlier and let this old dog come here to die?"
"—"
Jiang Wuming was speechless. How could he have known that Shen Zui had been secretly protecting him?
"Hahahaha, Shen Zui, you are only a Four-Star War God Stage Ten, yet you dare to say I've come to die. Who gave you the courage and the backing?!"
Immediately, before Jiang Wuming could speak again, the Evil Spirit Knight recovered from his surprise and laughed in anger.
"My Junior Brother's cross-realm battles are like cutting melons and vegetables. Although I'm not as awesome as my Junior Brother, as the Senior Disciple Brother, killing you, this dog, across three minor realms should not be a big problem, right?"
Shen Zui said with a smile.
Although he was only a Four-Star War God Stage Ten, he felt as if the Evil Spirit Knight, with his Five-Star War God Stage Three strength, could be slaughtered by him at will.
"Courting death!"
Upon hearing this, the Evil Spirit Knight was instantly enraged. He let out a loud roar, swung his right hand violently, turning his hand into a sword, and thrust it towards Shen Zui.
Boom!
With a thrust of his sword, a sword light whistled out, containing terrifying sword intent and immense power.
However—
Facing the whistling sword light, Shen Zui calmly spat out a breath of internal energy, manifesting a wine gourd.
Whoosh!
The Qi wine gourd appeared and instantly shot out, proactively meeting the sword light.
The next moment.
Under the shocked gazes of Jiang Wuming and the others, the Qi wine gourd, like a whale in the sea, suddenly inhaled, drawing the sword light into itself, and then silently neutralized the sword light's power.
Swish!
Ahead, the Evil Spirit Knight's expression changed upon witnessing this scene!
Even though he was a Five-Star War God Stage Three and worked for Anthony Roman, knowing various exquisite martial arts, Shen Zui's method was unheard of, reaching a state of perfection.
"Why are you in such a hurry to die, you old dog? I still want to chat with Junior Brother and Junior Sister for a while longer!"
Just as everyone was astonished, Shen Zui spoke again, "Junior Brother, Junior Sister, wait for me, I'll kill this old dog soon!"
Whoosh!
As the words fell, Shen Zui took a step, as if shrinking the ground, and proactively approached the Evil Spirit Knight.
"Die for me!"
Hearing Shen Zui's words again, the Evil Spirit Knight felt his dignity as a Five-Star War God being trampled upon and instantly went berserk.
Swish!
At this moment, he was like a awakened demon, his aura surging, and his internal energy surged out of his body.
A scripture evolved from Qi floated above his head, giving him a sacred appearance at first glance, yet he exuded an evil aura, much like a knight who had fallen into darkness.
With the Qi scripture appearing, the Evil Spirit Knight clasped his hands together, as if holding a giant sword, and slashed down at Shen Zui!
Holy Cross Slash!
A forbidden art of the European Papacy.
It signified the divine walking the earth to punish evildoers.
"Retreat!"
Jiang Wuming knew about the Holy Cross Slash and its terrifying power.
Therefore, even though he believed Shen Zui could defeat the Evil Spirit Knight, he immediately led Qin Xiaozhi and the others to retreat, to avoid being affected by the battle.
Swish, swish, swish…
Ahead, as the Evil Spirit Knight once again swung a sword-hand strike with his hand as a sword, Shen Zui quickly waved his hands, unleashing streams of internal energy.
Boom!
The next moment.
A cross-shaped sword light whistled out, carrying a world-destroying aura, slashing towards Shen Zui. Wherever it passed, the air exploded, creating a terrifying spectacle.
However—
Shen Zui stood there, unmoving.
In front of him, a Yin-Yang Bagua diagram evolved from Qi floated in the air, blocking the cross-shaped sword light.
Shen Zui also knew that the Holy Cross Slash was no ordinary attack, so he directly used the Daoist Sect's strongest defensive technique to block it.
Boom!!
With a loud explosion, the cross-shaped sword light struck the Yin-Yang Bagua diagram and shattered.
However, the Yin-Yang Bagua diagram only dimmed slightly and did not disappear. Instead, it spun like a vortex, absorbing the energy waves generated by the explosion.
"Xiaoyao, you and Brother Wuming's Senior Disciple Brother are amazing! You're not at a disadvantage at all in a cross-realm battle."
Huangfu Weixia, only a One-Star War God, couldn't see the exchange of blows, but she could see Shen Zui standing unharmed behind the Yin-Yang Bagua diagram, calm and elegant, and couldn't help but praise him.
Dongfang Xiaoyao nodded subconsciously, unsure of what to say.
Jiang Wuming, however, understood clearly that his Senior Disciple Brother had also comprehended the True Meaning of Yin and Yang.
The True Meaning of Yin and Yang was almost the most powerful true meaning in the world, transcending all other meanings.
Shen Zui had cultivated to the peak of the Four-Star War God Stage Ten, manifesting the Yin-Yang Bagua diagram with the True Meaning of Yin and Yang. This allowed him to maximize the defensive power of the diagram and block the Evil Spirit Knight's Holy Cross Slash, which was not unexpected.
"Old dog, your damned Cross Slash is no good. Let me show you Master Shen's Yin-Yang Sword Array."
After easily blocking the Evil Spirit Knight's Holy Cross Slash, Shen Zui let out a low shout, his figure flashed, and he once again lunged at the Evil Spirit Knight.
He no longer passively defended but chose to attack.
As Shen Zui's voice fell, fierce Qi surged from his body, forming a Yin-Yang Bagua diagram that enveloped him.
He himself was at the intersection of Yin and Yang, serving as the core of the Yin-Yang Great Array.
Simultaneously, Qi evolved into two divine swords, which Shen Zui held in his hands.
Clad in the Yin-Yang Bagua diagram and wielding the Yin-Yang Swords, Shen Zui closed the distance during the Evil Spirit Knight's momentary daze and then began a flurry of slashes.
Caught off guard and allowing Shen Zui to get close, the Evil Spirit Knight shifted from offense to defense, only to discover that Shen Zui's swordsmanship was chaotic and had no discernible pattern. Yet, under the augmentation of the Yin-Yang Great Array, its power was astonishing, forcing him to evade its edge.
During this time, he attempted to create distance from Shen Zui several times, but Shen Zui clung to him like a plaster, making it impossible for him to succeed.
"Enough!!"
Finally, the Evil Spirit Knight could no longer tolerate it. With a furious roar, his internal energy became completely violent, and a terrifying monster materialized behind him.
Huh?
In an instant, both Jiang Wuming and Shen Zui's pupils contracted.
This was because they both recognized that the monster was not from Earth but belonged to the outer realms—an enemy from the outer realms had once manifested such a monster with their Qi.
This was a forbidden art from the outer realms!
"Senior Disciple Brother, be careful!"
Jiang Wuming immediately warned.
"How unlucky, you actually know an outer realm forbidden art, forcing me to use my ultimate skill."
Shen Zui quickly regained his roguish demeanor, sighing regretfully, and intentionally created distance from the Evil Spirit Knight.
As his words fell, he fiercely pulled the stopper from his waist gourd and infused it with Qi.
Huh?
Shen Zui's action caused Jiang Wuming to freeze slightly.
Back then, when Jiang Wuming was protected by Shen Zui in South Port, Shen Zui had uncorked his gourd, taken a sip of wine, and then spat out a mouthful of wine imbued with Qi, killing the enemy!
Today, Shen Zui was pouring Qi into the wine gourd, for what purpose?
Swish, swish, swish, swish…
Soon, the answer was revealed.
Accompanied by piercing sounds, a series of specially made small swords shot out from the wine gourd, wrapped in Qi, forming a sword net that rained down on the Evil Spirit Knight.
"Roar~"
At the same time, a Qi monster appeared in front of the Evil Spirit Knight, emitting terrifying energy fluctuations and roaring as it lunged at Shen Zui.
However—
Soon, the Qi monster was enveloped by the sword net, instantly shredded, and vanished into nothingness.
Swish!
This outcome caused the Evil Spirit Knight's expression to change drastically again. Then, with a push of his foot, he attempted to flee.
He was scared.
After he used an outer realm forbidden art, which was effortlessly countered by Shen Zui, he no longer had any confidence in defeating Shen Zui. Instead, his reason told him that if he continued fighting, he would die at Shen Zui's hands.
As if to confirm the Evil Spirit Knight's judgment, several special small swords, transformed into a sword net, suddenly accelerated, like a fishing net, trapping the fleeing Evil Spirit Knight.
"Pfft—"
Then, blood splattered, and the Evil Spirit Knight was shredded!
Swish, swish, swish…
Subsequently, several special small swords returned the way they came, re-entering the wine gourd.
Shen Zui screwed the stopper back onto the wine gourd and turned to walk towards Jiang Wuming and the others.
In the morning light.
Qin Xiaozhi, Dongfang Xiaoyao, Xing Tian, and Huangfu Weixia stared, dumbfounded, seemingly having not expected the battle to end so quickly.
Jiang Wuming, however, was deep in thought. Seeing Shen Zui approach, he said, "Senior Disciple Brother, what martial art did you just use? It's so powerful!"
"Powerful my foot, compared to the Yin-Yang Grinding Mill, it's mere trash. Alas… speaking of which, I want to complain. Master is biased! He passed down the Yin-Yang Grinding Mill to you but not to me. Otherwise, I would have instantly killed that old dog just now!"
Shen Zui said with a look of resentment.
"???"
Qin Xiaozhi, Xing Tian, Dongfang Xiaoyao, and Huangfu Weixia, having snapped out of their daze, looked at Shen Zui strangely: Wasn't that already an instant kill?!
Jiang Wuming said without hesitation, "Senior Disciple Brother, I'll tell you the cultivation method for the Yin-Yang Grinding Mill."
Huh?
Shen Zui's eyes lit up upon hearing this, and he was very tempted, but he ultimately restrained himself and gently shook his head, "Although I really want to learn it, I cannot."
"Why?"
Jiang Wuming was stunned.
"Master not passing it to me has his reasons. Just like he asked me to come to the Mount Everest battlefield and follow you secretly."
Shen Zui gave a wry smile.
"Master asked you to come and protect me?" Jiang Wuming's heart stirred.
Although he had guessed this earlier, he was still somewhat surprised to hear Shen Zui say it directly.
How did Master guess that he would leave the Martial Department and be ambushed?
"Junior Brother, don't be surprised. What in this world can escape Master's calculations?"
Shen Zui smiled slightly, recalling the old man's words before he left Longhu Mountain.
"I use the world as a chessboard and have laid out a world-shattering game for Wuming. Apart from him, all beings are chess pieces; you are, and so am I!"
...