Chapter 495 - 490: Thoughts

In every corner of the Capital, figures streaked through the sky, drawing countless streams of light across the skies above, heading straight out of the Capital.

Moreover, those leaving the Capital were all at least Condensed Core cultivators. Even at such a level, they quickly found themselves unable to keep up and had to stop.

The Fifth Realm didn’t even qualify to spectate.

The Sword Aura cut through the void, as Li Fan controlled his sword against the wind. The group stood on the flying sword, rapidly heading out of the Capital. In every direction behind them, tendrils of powerful auras spread out; they knew those people wouldn’t give up easily.

The Emperor of Da Li had promised not to touch Li Fan in the Capital, so Li Fan leaving seemed to give the Emperor a way out. Once he left the Capital, a great battle would be inevitable.

"Leaving the Capital? Courting death." Among the crowd, Ye Xiaochen led a group of cultivators, swiftly heading out of the Capital as well.

Ye Qinghuang thought that leaving the Capital would be safe? Yet they didn’t know that those who wanted Li Fan dead weren’t just within the Imperial Palace.

In the Capital, countless citizens looked up to the sky, only to see the winds and clouds roaring across the sky, and the pressure emanating from various places enveloped the Capital. They too understood that Li Fan leaving the Capital would trigger a battle that could possibly be the fiercest in decades in the Great Li World.

Beyond the Capital, Li Fan and his group soared through the sky without stopping.

"Get far away from the Capital," Ye Qinghuang said to Li Fan. In the Saint Realm, one could cover a thousand miles with a single thought; even leaving the Capital wasn’t truly safe.

Li Fan naturally understood too. Years ago, his master was far away on Li Mountain, yet he could pierce through the void to reach the Imperial City. That was such a grand feat. The powers of Saint Realm cultivators were beyond ordinary logic.

Even if a battle was destined, they had to try their best to escape the grasp of the Saint Realm cultivators. For them, the farther away, the better.

On the official road outside the Capital, many people looked up to the sky, hearing the sounds of air being torn from within the Capital. Some crushed the tokens in their hands, while others directly took to the sky to follow.

In a distant mountain range, a figure opened his eyes, revealing a pair of demon pupils.

"Finally out." He spoke in human tongue, and with a thought, demon energy enveloped the endless mountains, causing the crowd of demons to boil, their demonic energy soaring into the sky.

The flying sword tore through the clouds with a deafening roar. Li Fan sensed the immense figures behind him, his brows furrowing.

"Head southwest, towards the South Sea, come to my sword." A voice came from the shadows. Li Fan looked up to a certain direction in the high sky—it was Shi Dao Ren’s voice.

As the voice fell, Shi Dao Ren broke through the clouds with a gigantic sword, landing in front of them.

In the Great Li World, several major powers resided, with the Imperial City in the center. Tao State was northwest, and Shanzhou was southeast. In those two directions were the powers of Taiping Temple and the Ten Thousand Buddha Temple. The northern region had Great Demon Territory.

Meanwhile, the southwest direction was where Li Mountain was located. Previously, Shi Dao Ren had also been cultivating overseas in the South Sea, making this position evidently the best choice.

"Get on." Shi Dao Ren said.

"Thank you, Senior." Li Fan responded, and the group stepped onto the giant sword, speeding towards the southwest.

"It seems we still can’t shake them off." Liu Ji said quietly. Though the sword was extremely fast, the pressure behind them continued to loom—it was Wei Song and others. The other side had not yet acted but was closely following.

"Wei Song is one of Da Li’s strongest Seventh Realm individuals; of course, it’s not easy to shake him off." Shi Dao Ren replied. But for some Seventh Realm cultivators or lower, keeping up with them was impossible, and even a Seventh Realm cultivator would have to make considerable effort to catch up.

Several hundred miles behind them, Wei Song with his upright figure always kept his eyes on the front.

"It’s that Shi Dao Ren. Master, shall we not act?" A young man beside him asked.

"Him, I don’t fear. But do you think Li Mountain doesn’t have other tricks up their sleeve?" Wei Song replied: "No rush, there are plenty of others ready to strike."

He knew what Ye Qinghuang had in mind.

The Emperor had not personally ordered, only tacitly allowed all this to happen. But to slay Li Fan and the remnants of Li Mountain, how could the Emperor, as the Emperor of Da Li, personally step in?

This was a matter for subjects like them to resolve, to share the burdens of the Emperor.

Both Taiping Temple’s and Ten Thousand Buddha Temple’s top Great Cultivators had extraordinary means. Even tens of thousands of miles away would not seem too far for them. Give them some time, and they would naturally catch up.

Moreover, the Demon World had not succeeded before and would not miss this opportunity.

Toward the southwest from the Capital, terrifying auras swept across the high sky. Cultivators along the way felt the residual aura and broke into a cold sweat, looking up at the fleeting silhouettes in the high sky, saying: "What is that?"

Some demons hiding in the deep mountains and forests along the way were so terrified that they cowered to the ground, not daring to look up. Even some Great Demons, upon sensing that terrifying aura, trembled and thought to themselves, wondering if they had come to destroy them.

Rushing forward, cities swept past beneath their feet.

Yu Province, White Jade.

Today, White Jade had a discourse taking place, gathering many people in the Martial Arts Arena, where an elder stood on the steps.

At this moment, however, they seemed to sense something, and one after another, rose to look in the direction of the distance.

"Sword Cultivator." Xiao Lv said. "No... there are many Great Cultivators as well."

He furrowed his brows, casting his Divine Sense outward, only to feel terrifying auras rushing in the air from various directions.

All were Great Cultivators!

"Li Fan."

He spotted a familiar face.

On the steps of White Jade, groups of people began to emerge from the palaces, astonishing all the disciples of White Jade. Those were senior figures who seldom appeared in usual times.

At this moment, they all looked up towards a distant place, their eyes revealing a peculiar light.

"So soon, Xiao Lv only recently broke through, and that boy has already entered the Seventh Realm." The Taibai Sword appeared on the steps, gazing afar, his eyes as sharp as a sword.

Upon hearing the Taibai Sword’s words, An Zhiyao, Li Dao Ya, Guan Shanyue, and others were all moved. Had that white-clothed Sword Cultivator who challenged the White Jade Palace already reached the Seventh Realm back then?

More than a year ago, they had also watched the battle in the Capital and felt ashamed that their combat strength was far left behind. Now, with Li Fan in the Seventh Realm, they even needed to look up to him.

What kind of cultivation speed is this?

"Boom..."

As the Sword Aura sliced through the air, afterimages streaked past from high above, followed by multiple auras crossing above the Jade City from different directions, without the slightest pause.

"It seems the Capital still refuses to let him go." The Taibai Sword sighed softly.

"Since we’ve come across it, let’s go have a look,"

A voice sounded from the highest point of the White Jade Palace, and the Taibai Sword said, "I have the same intention."

With those words, the Sword Aura rose into the air, and he too headed in that direction.

After him, people began to travel through the air one after another, even Xiao Lv stepped onto his sword, moving swiftly.

An Zhiyao glanced at the sky, a hint of despondency appeared in her eyes, she couldn’t possibly keep up...

On the giant sword.

"The flies are getting more and more numerous." The Old Daoist squinted and said.

"Why haven’t they taken action yet?"

Li Fan asked, Wei Song and others had been pursuing them all the way, and many Great Cultivators had joined, but none had taken action.

"Do you think they’re not wary of Li Mountain?"

The Old Daoist sneered, "You alone made quite a stir in the Capital back then, many Cultivators from Qiyun House stood by you, and with Li Mountain lurking in the dark, who would want to be the first to stand out?"

"I guess they’ve already notified Taiping Temple and Ten Thousand Buddha Temple, maybe even informed the Demon Race, it would be best if they struck first. Kid, too many people want your life."

"So what you’re saying is, the adversaries we face will only increase?" Li Fan asked.

"Aren’t you also calling for reinforcements?" The Old Daoist glared at Li Fan, "At least we’ve moved away from the Capital, there was always an uncomfortable feeling there."

The inexplicable pressure in the Capital always loomed overhead, if the one from the Imperial Palace were to act themselves, it would be a huge trouble.

Better to move away from the Capital and choose a battlefield instead.

"We’re still within the bounds of the Four Central States, too close to the Capital, can’t stay here." The Old Daoist continued, Yu Province is one of the Four Central States, surrounding Shengjing.

"Head towards Jiangzhou." Yue Qingqiu said.

Li Fan and the Old Daoist both looked at Yue Qingqiu, the Old Daoist smiled and said, "Can the girl persuade Yun Meng Swamp to act?"

"Lord Demon Saint doesn’t dislike humans that much, otherwise they wouldn’t have studied human methods, maybe Lord Demon Saint will help." Yue Qingqiu replied.

"Alright, if Yun Meng Swamp is willing to help, it would be a great assistance." The Old Daoist seemed to know Yun Meng Swamp well, and continued to speed towards it on the giant sword.

Li Fan knew some of Yun Meng Swamp’s strength, back then the Old Blind Man forced himself to the peak at the cost of expending his life to repel ’Demon Saint’. Besides the Demon Saint, Yun Meng Swamp had several top-tier Great Demons.

However, it’s quite far from Jiangzhou, uncertain if they will act on the way.

Jiangzhou Sacred Land, Bai Lu Academy.

In the small courtyard, a pair of man and woman arrived, the man was handsome and extraordinary, the woman noble and graceful, making a very fitting pair.

Qu Qingfeng was sipping tea, looked up at the arriving couple, and a gentle smile appeared on his face.

"Teacher." Ji Xue bowed in salute.

"Ji Xue, you have already reached the Condensed Core, what are your plans for the future?" Qu Qingfeng asked.

The man beside her replied, "Sir, Ji Xue and I plan to return and get married, and then travel and train together."

Qu Qingfeng glanced at Ji Xue, the man’s name was Su Luobai, an heir of a noble family in Jiangzhou, exceptionally gifted, like Ji Xue, he had also reached the Condensed Core, definitely among the top geniuses in Jiangzhou.

Ji Xue with him indeed made a fitting match.

"Very well." Qu Qingfeng responded with a smile, but he noticed that Ji Xue’s beautiful eyes did not show any joy, appearing calm and unruffled.

Qu Qingfeng naturally understood the reason, having seen stunningly talented favored children of heaven in his youth, it was hard to look back.

Perhaps for Ji Xue, this was merely an arranged marriage by noble families.

So be it.