Chapter 492 391: Killing Fudaimoku (Part 2)_2

"Boom!"

A burst of blood-red light exploded out of nowhere, revealing the early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, Zhe Ledai, whose loyal heart and sole strength had repulsed Li Wushao and Zhu Xian and even had strength to spare to turn back. Merging his two swords, he aimed a full-powered stab at the heart of Li Yuanjiao from behind.

Li Yuanjiao, seizing the rare opportunity, was not about to relent. The "Six-Stone Cloud Array Plate" materialized behind him, and its earthy yellow light circulated as the "Mysterious Pattern Bottle" was superimposed on it, activating the spiritual mist of mysterious patterns to block before the twin swords.

"Clang!"

The Green Ruler Sword effortlessly penetrated through the dharma shield, the green-white sword light raging furiously towards the face of Fu Daimu.

"Pfft!"

Fu Daimu caught the Green Ruler Sword by force with his hand, the sword qi razor-sharp, piercing right through the back of his hand and making a hole clean through, while the old Shanyue grew red-eyed with rage, his spellwork having been broken.

It was no easier for Li Yuanjiao. His whole body's mana and True Yuan were focused on the Green Ruler Sword. The "Six-Stone Cloud Array Plate" and "Mysterious Pattern Bottle" were but casually activated, and Zhe Ledai's twin-sword mana came piercing through, shaking him to the point he spat out a mouthful of fresh blood.

Fu Daimu, with rage swelling in his heart, was delayed by this, and Yuan Chengdun, who had turned the tide at "Human Head Mountain," was already upon him, murderous and furious, swinging his golden staff overhead in a relentless onslaught.

'The situation has been decided.'

Li Yuanjiao retreated with the wind, swallowed a healing pill, and watched silently.

Zhe Ledai, under the siege of Li Wushao and Zhu Xian, was already struggling to fend off attacks from both sides, while Fu Daimu was being forced back step by step under Yuan Chengdun's increasingly savage blows. While defending against Fei Luoya, his defeat was becoming apparent.

'One must still be wary of their dying counterattack.'

Li Yuanjiao advanced with his sword, the spiritual mist of mysterious patterns bolstering him, he moved nimbly on the perimeter, threatening Zhe Ledai with his sword, silently waiting for the two to exhaust their strength.

Zhe Ledai had already resorted to a secret technique, and his breath was falling rapidly. After being besieged by three, it didn't take long for his body to be covered in wounds and bloodied holes. Depleted and weak, Li Wushao reverted to his true form, his tail shattering Zhe Ledai's lower body, while Zhu Xian, with a pull of his vine whip, tore off his head as he gritted his teeth in anger.

"Junior brother!!"

With a hundred years of friendship between them, Fu Daimu's eyes overflowed with tears, and he appeared nearly mad, his spells and Immortal Foundation channeling desperately, but he could not break free.

Yuan Chengdun was becoming even more formidable, every strike amplifying the destruction force of "Fu Qingshan's" Immortal Foundation. Fu Daimu, unable to cast a spell, displayed an expression of both despair and madness.

Li Yuanjiao, seeing Fu Daimu's face undergo several changes, as if he were ready to fight to the death, stood far away in the sky, only hoping that the old Shanyue would not break the formation in his frenzy, as he couldn't afford to reimburse the damage.

The "Array Plate" from Kong Tingyun was quite resilient, belonging to the Jade True Sect. Whether in water or fire, in heaven or earth, it maintained a middle-stage Foundation Establishment level very well. After a battle, it only consumed five or six spirit stones and a dozen jade stones. Li Yuanjiao treasured it in his heart, coveting it greatly.

'I wonder how many spirit stones it would take to buy such an array plate. If I were to damage this thing, it'd bankrupt me.'

While he was lost in thought, Fu Daimu had already begun a blood-fueled fight to the death. Li Yuanjiao kept his distance, concealed within the spiritual mist of mysterious patterns, and waited hazily. After a gale of blood swept through, the old Shanyue's head had been smashed to pieces.

"Is Brother Jiao doing well?"

Yuan Chengdun, having expended a great deal of True Yuan after the battle, still approached with concern, riding the wind. Li Yuanjiao shook his head slightly, expressed his thanks, and put away the array plate.

The moment the Great Formation that separated the inside from the outside was withdrawn, the entire mountain outside was filled with white worms, densely covering the ground with no room to step. Fei Luoya nodded and said:

"Indeed he is dead. Such a phenomenon, it's the scene when 'Soul Descending Melody' is damaged."

Li Yuanjiao drew his sword, and spoke in a deep voice:

"We must eradicate evil completely. We've been fighting here for a while, there are remnants of the Great Jue Court left. Let's move quickly to eliminate them, lest they hear of this and seek revenge."

Fei Luoya nodded, tossed out Fu Daimu's storage bag, and Li Yuanjiao took it, speaking solemnly:

"Once this matter is resolved, we will divide the spoils."

...

The Great Jue Court was an ancient city, majestic and spectacular. At its peak, it housed a population of a hundred thousand, but after decades of use by Fu Daimu, fewer than ten thousand remained, most of whom were women dedicated to breeding, creating an atmosphere of eerie silence.

The land of South River was fertile, capable of sprouting seeds the day after they were sown. A single acre could sustain a family, and as the population burgeoned with the land, Fu Daimu enjoyed many benefits throughout his years of cultivation.

The giant stones were polished smooth and flat, with just a few Shanyue soldiers standing scattered about, as cold and quiet as the rest. When a group of Foundation Establishment passed by riding the wind, not a single Qi Cultivator rose up, only a horde of mortals busy with their kowtows.

It was not until they reached the Royal Court of the Great Jue Court that they saw several hundred large copper pillars with people tied to them, most of which were desiccated corpses. A small number of them still breathed, all of whom were Fetal Breathing Cultivators.

Li Yuanjiao and the others charged straight into the hall, breaking the formation, searched several secret chambers one by one, and finally, in the deepest part, they found Fu Daimu's dao partner—an old woman. Fei Luoya stepped forward and twisted the head off the sitting woman.

Fu Daimu had been meticulous. The shielding formation inside the chamber was exquisitely intricate, so much so that the group did not realize they were in her presence until they were directly in front of her, the woman's face still wearing a smile, presumably at a critical point in her cultivation.

In front of the woman were an array of evil and bloodied items. Li Yuanjiao glanced over them indifferently, and they were quickly collected by Zhu Xian.

The group searched separately for a while, and since Fu Daimu had no intentions of establishing a Taoist Lineage, his witchcraft and secret techniques were all memorized in his head, which led to Fei Luoya cursing nonstop. Only a few spells were salvaged from the well-guarded secret chambers, better than nothing.

They unraveled two Storage Bags from the Shanyue, scattering a pile of Spiritual Objects on the floor. Despite Fu Daimu and his associate being from Shanyue, with no rarities to be found, there were still five Precious Medicines, and five Jade Boxes that shone brightly, tempting onlookers.

The group of Foundation Establishment regrouped, first copying a few minor secret techniques they had exchanged, laid out the spoils, and then collectively turned their gaze towards the wounded Human Head Mountain, which had reverted to the size of an actual head, densely packed and chilling to the bone.

Although Fu Daimu's talent for Artifact Refining was not particularly remarkable, he had devoted his entire cultivation to this item, sacrificing upwards of seventy to eighty thousand lives for it, worthy of the attention from all the Foundation Establishment Cultivators.

"Even when facing Fu Qingshan, which was the perfect counter, it managed to last for the duration of an incense stick... It truly is a sharp weapon," they thought.

Yuan Chengdun, without any hesitation, picked up the item and said,

"This object should not be used again, I will take it back to my clan for re-refinement."

Having attacked the most during this encirclement, Yuan Chengdun's priority in selecting items was naturally uncontested. Fei Luoya simply cupped his hands and said,

"After you, Brother Jiao!"

Li Yuanjiao did not stand on ceremony either, his eyes swept over the items before he spoke,

"I need to take a few of these Precious Medicines first, to establish good relations with the people of the Chen Feng peak within my sect. If the Peak Master needs Precious Medicines in the future, I will have to trouble the two Taoist Fellows."

"Of course," responded Zhu Xian and Fei Luoya, nodding. Yuan Chengdun seemed thoughtful. Li Yuanjiao took three Precious Medicines, indicating they were for building connections, and then took an additional[Qingyun Mi Fruit], capable of reinforcing True Yuan and regenerating severed limbs.

Watching Li Yuanjiao take this fruit, Li Wushao, who had been looking on with eagerness, finally let out a sigh of relief, knowing that he would be the last to choose and would likely not get any Precious Medicine. He consoled himself,

"As long as the master has the medicine, I at least have a chance to get it… Maybe I won't need to spend decades just to heal my tail hook…"

Fei Luoya, as expected, took the last Precious Medicine[Bi Shan Yuan Flower], which could aid cultivation and increase Mana. The remaining miscellaneous items were divided evenly between Li Wushao and Zhu Xian; their value was not high, but at least they did not come for nothing.

Besides these two, Yuan Chengdun acquired a Foundation Establishment Magical Instrument, while Fei Luoya's territory had effectively doubled in size; both were in a rather good mood.

As they rode the winds out, Yuan Chengdun left with a smile and a cupped-hand farewell, while Fei Luoya looked at the Great Jue Court's setting with satisfaction. Li Yuanjiao, worried he might emulate Fu Daimu, reminded him,

"Taoist Fellow… If you have intentions of cooperation, do not follow Fu Daimu's path. Our... that person... detests such practices the most, please be very cautious."

Fei Luoya paused briefly, then hastily said,

"Of course! Of course!"