Chapter 530 - 525: Standoff Between Two Armies

Li Mountain, everyone returned one after another.

Li Fan stood in front of the great hall waiting to greet them. When he saw Wen Ruyu and Mo Yang appear, he stepped forward, suspended in the air, and said, "How is Brother Mo?"

At this moment, Mo Yang’s blood and energy surged through him, somewhat unstable, and his vitality seemed to be waning.

"If it weren’t for Ruyu arriving in time, I fear I would have already fallen to Ye Changge," Mo Yang said. "Ye Changge has already touched the threshold of the Saint Realm, with Half-Saint cultivation, and his attacking power is extremely domineering. Do not underestimate him."

Li Fan knew that Brother Mo Yang was reminding him. After decades of cultivation overseas, he was very aware of Mo Yang’s current combat strength. Decades ago, he was already the Li Mountain Sword Master, and now he could battle a Half-Saint.

Yet, he almost perished at Ye Changge’s hands, which demonstrated the formidable power of Ye Changge.

"Decades ago, within the Great Li Capital City, when Xuanyuan entered the capital, Ye Changge dared to stand before Xuanyuan. There are countless geniuses in the Great Li World, but in my opinion, the most outstanding one, besides you, should be the Eldest Prince Ye Changge," said Shi Dao Ren on the side.

Back then, Li Fan invited the Xuanyuan Sword to the capital. The Xuanyuan Sword was already a Half-Saint.

Ye Changge repelled a Great Demon of the Demon Court with a single move and directly faced Xuanyuan.

"The Da Li Prince’s vitality is extremely vigorous; just looking from afar makes one feel uncomfortable. You indeed need to be cautious," even the Heavenly Fox Demon Saint came to remind.

Clearly, in their eyes, the opponent Li Fan would face next would be the Eldest Prince Ye Changge.

"Besides Ye Changge, the Taiping Temple and Ten Thousand Buddha Temple also have mysterious powerful figures appearing one after another. There is likely to be a bloody battle ahead. Everyone, please restore your Primordial Energy first," Shi Dao Ren said.

"This battle has slain many opponents and can be considered to have achieved its goal. I am grateful to the elders for their hard work," Li Fan said, bowing to everyone. This battle was a risky move to intercept and kill the opponent, striking a round of slaughter while they were unsettled, killing and severely wounding many of their cultivators.

Everyone returned to rest and prepare for the great battle they would face.

...

Outside the Chuzhou borders.

The court was also organizing its army, with cultivators from all sides stopping at the border. The top-tier forces of the three major factions gradually converged, heading towards the direction where Ye Changge was located.

In the high sky, Ye Changge was suspended, his vitality blazing like the scorching sun. Even from a distance, one could feel the emperor’s might emanating from him.

To his left and right appeared several Daoists and monks.

"The recent assault revealed that Li Mountain’s combat power is extremely strong, with several cultivators having touched the threshold of the Saint Realm. To destroy Li Mountain, there would need to be a bloody battle," a monk spoke.

Seeing Ye Changge remain silent, the monk continued, "Several Great Cultivators who entered Li Mountain were all killed by Li Fan alone. His combat power is difficult to gauge. Your Highness, do you have confidence?"

"The master said it is hard to gauge, who then can have confidence?" Ye Changge glanced and replied, his eyes seeming to contain a True Dragon, burning the onlooker’s gaze.

"I have heard Li Fan has achieved the Dao in his physical body. Whether it is his flesh or Sword Dao, both likely have the opportunity to attain sainthood. Such an opponent can only be dealt with by Your Highness," a Daoist next to him also spoke.

"He is mine to handle. As for the others, I hope the Taiping Temple and Ten Thousand Buddha Temple will not disappoint me," Ye Changge gazed towards Li Mountain, not in a hurry, as they were still waiting.

Behind him, the cultivator army continued arriving by air, vast and mighty, stretching for hundreds of miles.

...

As the army successively arrived outside the Chuzhou border, most of the territory of the Great Li Cultivation World was now gathered within Chuzhou.

The cities of Chuzhou were overcrowded, especially the areas surrounding Li Mountain. The inhabitants had never witnessed such a bustling scene, with Great Cultivators arriving by air every day.

In a restaurant in Lin’an County.

"I heard Jiang Taie has also arrived. The Jiang Family declined because of Li Fan, and the Lingxiao Pavilion also fell, yet Jiang Taie unexpectedly still lives."

"It’s said that Tai Xuzi burned himself, entrusting all hopes to Jiang Taie."

"Even if Jiang Taie is stronger than Tai Xuzi, who was second on the Sword Saint List back then, it’s likely useless. Li Fan now is invincible, with only one opponent."

"Li Fan’s battle killed many Great Cultivators, and the Eldest Prince has inherited his father’s teachings, his cultivation reaching Half-Saint. Their confrontation will be the most watched battle in this world today. Who is invincible below a Saint?"

The people discussed fervently.

"Boom..."

At this moment, the ground trembled, and the entire city quaked.

Many figures rose and headed outside. In the sky, an oppressive force descended, making it hard to breathe. Buildings around shook violently, a terrifying vitality from afar spreading here.

"The army is about to launch a formal attack."

Someone mumbled, as they looked towards the distant sky. There, a figure was suspended high, his vitality torrential as a blazing sun.

"The Eldest Prince, Ye Changge." Many saw his face for the first time, his momentum overpowering all surrounding cultivators.

Behind him followed a large number of top-tier cultivators, with the top figures from the Taiping Temple and Ten Thousand Buddha Temple on either side.

Yet everyone took Ye Changge as their leader, marching towards Li Mountain.

"It is about to begin."

Above a restaurant, Xiao Lv murmured as he gazed into the distance.

"Senior Brother Xiao, who do you think will win?" asked Guan Shanyue next to him.

"I do not know, but this confrontation will not decide victory or defeat," Xiao Lv replied. The person next to him also understood this.

The ultimate showdown, a battle of Saints.

...

Li Mountain.

Though separated by a great distance, Li Mountain already felt the oppressive aura spreading, and from afar, one could see the large army appearing on the horizon.

At this moment, atop Li Mountain, a chilling atmosphere prevailed, as batches of cultivators congregated on each peak in a grand display, truly a cultivator army.

Li Mountain’s sword returns, countless cultivators who once practiced at Li Mountain have come back.

Additionally, the army of cultivators from the seven dynasties of the Divine Country have all been dispatched here.

Even so, despite the mobilization, Da Li also deployed numerous sect forces, suppressing Li Mountain’s army in number.

The army marched, stretching over hundreds of miles, under the pressure of bloodlust, all flying beasts and creatures lay prostrate on the ground.

It was silent atop Li Mountain, as the army extended, covering the entire mountain range.

"Boom, boom..."

Li Mountain trembled, the sound of demons marching could be heard, causing mountains to shake.

From faraway cities, countless people looked towards the direction of Li Mountain.

"This battle, with most cultivators above Condensed Core from all over Great Li converging, is a catastrophe comparable to the demon turmoil of the past." someone sighed.

"Why isn’t the Demon Court here? Will the demon army take advantage of this battle?" someone asked with curiosity.

"I’ve heard some rumors, that the demon army that once troubled the world in the endless Northern Wilderness of Da Li’s north, is being held back by a single person."

"One person holding back the Demon Court? How is that possible." someone doubted.

"What if it’s a Saint?"

"Are there other Saints in the world? Do we know who?"

"I don’t know, maybe there are."

"The army has reached outside Li Mountain." someone gazed into the distance, although they appeared curious, their hearts were conflicted.

This battle will be one for the history books.

...

The roaring sound continued, the tremors of Li Mountain became more intense, rocks cascaded down from the peaks.

Above Li Mountain, the atmosphere became extremely oppressive.

At this moment, looking up, one could see the grand procession, and at the forefront, was the Eldest Prince Ye Changge, with each of his followers being the top cultivators of Da Li.

Li Fan saw National Master Wei Song, who had visited Li Mountain years ago, Demon Suppression Army Commander Dan Tai Ming, saw the Alien King, King Liyang, and Da Li’s once greatest Sword Cultivator Jiang Taie.

Jiang Taie stood alone at a location, now seeming like the sword itself, without a hint of emotional upheaval, only calmness.

Furthermore, top cultivators from noble families and great cultivators from major sects were present, many faces Li Fan had never seen before.

On both sides, the armies of Taiping Temple and Ten Thousand Buddha Temple were present, with Taiping Temple’s four Great True Masters, and the four heads of Ten Thousand Buddha Temple, except for the deceased, all were present.

Yet, they were not even leading the army.

Behind and below them, stretches of cultivator armies beyond vision.

Li Fan hovered in the air, behind him, top sword cultivators lined up, below was a grand procession of sword cultivators.

Before Li Mountain’s front peak, the three emperors of the Divine Country led the troops into formation.

Among them was a demon army, led by the Heavenly Fox ’Demon Saint’.

The armies faced off from a distance, a suffocating pressure enveloped Li Mountain entirely.

"Boom!"

Only a deep, resonant sound was heard, from the court’s side, came a fierce figure, dragon-headed, human-bodied, scale armor as flesh.

This figure floated forward, arriving at the center of the two armies, its twin pupils emanating dark purple light, strands of demon energy spread as it spoke aloud, "I am Ao Ting, an enshrined demon of the Da Li Court, once worshiped by a city’s populace, protector of peace, later entering the Da Li Imperial Palace as a Guardian Demon. For a thousand years, Li Mountain has claimed to slay demons, but where have these demons come from?"

He spoke with a rich, majestic voice, a terrifying demon aura oppressing the Yun Meng Swamp demon army, causing fear among many demons, this was demon bloodline suppression.

Bailong attempted to advance, but was stopped by the Heavenly Fox ’Demon Saint’.

The demon from the Da Li Imperial Palace, and a True Dragon at that, Bailong, despite being a Demon Dragon, might not be able to handle it.

Li Fan also looked at the demon dragon, it being a great demon bred within the lake of the Holy Empress Dowager’s Palace?

"In the contest for the Great Li world, a battle for morale, in this first battle, let sister fight for you." A charming voice transmitted through space and reached Li Fan’s ears, it was the Yun Meng Swamp ’Demon Saint’ stepping forth.

She understood, this battle not only concerns the life and death of Li Mountain but also determines the fate of countless demons in Yun Meng Swamp.

She aimed to secure a future for the demons of Yun Meng Swamp.