Chapter 580 Return to the Swordsmanship-seeking Sect
He remembered the scene when he saw Li Jianyi for the first time. At that time, he was still an unknown nominal disciple. Li Jianyi was dressed in cyan. Looking from the back, he seemed untainted by the mundane world. He wasn’t domineering, nor was he arrogant. Instead, he always had a smile on his face, as if he were an old friend. This great man on the list of Martial Arts Masters in the Snow Province was gentle and elegant. He was as modest as jade and was deeply admired.
Later on, on the road to his rise, this peaceful sect head fully supported him.
It was he who overrode all objections and placed himself before the bloodline disciples as the number one key candidate to be trained.
Li Jianyi, who controlled one of the most powerful sects in the Snow Province, seemed to have never considered himself. He almost devoted all his life and energy to the Swordsmanship-seeking Sect. His greatest wish was to make the Swordsmanship-seeking Sect the most influential one in the Snow Province, to pass it down generation after generation.
“He died before he accomplished his lifelong goal. How could heroes not weep, if tears could be found all over their sleeves!”
In addition, he was the father of Ding Hao’s best friend, Li Lan…
He could also recall the first time he saw Qi Qingshan vividly. If it weren’t for this senior who had been secretly helping him, he would have been crushed to death by Mu Tianyang in the wilderness like a stinky insect, let alone get the Three-year Agreement and the name “Saber and Sword Addict.”
His masters had left before he could repay them.
But then… Good heavens.
Thinking of this, Ding Hao could not suppress the boiling killing intent and hatred in his heart. Li Lan had been trapped in the eleventh section of the ancient westbound road, and his life was still uncertain. His father died for the sect. Why was fate so unfair to the Swordsmanship-seeking Sect?
Zhao Xingcheng and the others were filled with tears as they recalled the bloody battle.
“What? Senior Brother Tang is the traitor. How… how is this possible?” Ding Hao was stunned.
“At the beginning, we didn’t believe it either, but…” Li Yunqi gnashed his teeth and told Ding Hao in detail how Tang Folei plotted against Qi Qingshan, killed Li Jianyi and murdered countless loyal disciples and elders in the sect. “It was witnessed by all our brothers and sisters. It cannot be wrong. We are willing to swear on our lives and souls!”
Ding Hao was silent for a long time.
This shocked him as strongly as the deaths of Li Jianyi and Qi Qingshan.
Tang Folei, who had always been just and righteous, used to work diligently to assist the head with law enforcement. He had sowed discord to get rid of the dissidents and reversed the decline of the sect. He was the number two figure in the Swordsmanship-seeking Sect. Tang Folei was like a family member and also a teacher, why would he choose to betray them at such a time?
“It’s a complete disgrace.
“How could this happen?”
Ding Hao clenched his fists tightly and said, “So, the demon clan didn’t attack the mountain with all its might? It was the Deity Phoenix Great Sage who suddenly ordered to withdraw the great army of the demon clan? But the super sects of the Sword Province participated in the attack of the mountain gate?”
“Yes,” Li Yunqi nodded and said, “It was the Heaven-Splitting Swordsmanship Sect in the Sword Province. Four masters at the peak of the Martial King realm appeared and destroyed the defensive formation of the sect gate, which led to our defeat. Later, an elder at the Martial Royal realm appeared, with a strict and cruel attitude. He suppressed the resistance forces with tough means. There used to be tens of thousands of disciples in the sect, and now only about 8,000 remain. They are being forced to work in the mines located in the landfill area at the back mountain to dig mysterious crystal stones day and night!”
“Heaven-Splitting Swordsmanship Sect!”
Ding Hao nodded and gnashed his teeth.
The deadly feud between the Heaven-Splitting Swordsmanship Sect and him started on the Sage Battlefield when they captured Ximen Qianxue and he killed Ning Huxiao. Unexpectedly, when he returned to the Snow Province, the sect had started assaulting again. It seemed that they were destined to fight against each other.
But why did the landfill area at the back mountain suddenly change? Was it related to the purple Dragon Qi pillar, the endless mysterious crystal mine, and the cave at the bottom of the cliff?
Ding Hao controlled the killing intent and anger that were about to erupt from inside his body and tried to find a clue.
Since there were many things yet to be done, such as looking for Li Yiruo and Ximen Qianxue, finding out the whereabouts of Li Lan as well as other Swordsmanship-seeking Sect disciples who entered the Sage Battlefield…
However, it was impossible to accomplish all of them in a short period of time.
The first priority was to rush to the Swordsmanship-seeking Mountain Range.
Given the heavy workload, every minute and second delayed would mean more deaths of the Swordsmanship-seeking Sect disciples.
“Xiaoyao, you should be among the super masters in Snow Province with your present strength. Stay here to lead everyone to heal their wounds and inquire about the whereabouts of Li Lan, Yiruo, and other fellow brothers. Adorable and Yingqi will stay as well. I wish you the best,” Ding Hao patted the little fat man on the shoulder and said, “If you encounter any problem, ask Yingqi for help. Don’t be impulsive.”
Ren Xiaoyao nodded with tears in his eyes.
Ding Hao smiled again and said to Ji Yingqi, “It seems that I have to trouble you, Little Genius.”
“Brother Ding, don’t be a stranger…” Ji Yingqi couldn’t help but reach out and hold Ding Hao’s hand. She whispered, “Brother Ding, don’t be too sad.”
Ding Hao nodded.
The next moment.
“Evil Moon, come to the Swordsmanship-seeking Mountain Range with me.”
Ding Hao turned into a flowing light and rose into the sky with Evil Moon. Like a golden rainbow, he disappeared in the blink of an eye. However, his breath, which was like that of a deity, lingered in the air for a long time, leaving a golden trail in the sky.
At that moment, others could only look up to the sky.
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Somewhere in the Swordsmanship-seeking Mountain Range…
It was already early spring.
Winter in the Snow Province was exceptionally long. Layers of snow could still be faintly seen on the mountain at this time. The ice on the sunny side of the mountain had melted, revealing the black soil. Green buds broke through the coldness of winter, poking their heads out, and curiously looking at the world.
Vaguely, wet corpses could be seen, exposed in the partially melted snow.
Those were the warriors who had died in the attack to the Swordsmanship-seeking Sect. There were bodies from both sides and all of them had been buried in the snow. Their bodies would only be revealed when the snow melted.
Flocks of ravens and vultures hovered in the sky. They landed on withered trees like black leaves growing out of the branches.
Looking up from the Sword-cleansing Pond, there were still traces of the bloody battle.
There were collapsed mountains and towers, damaged stone stairs, as well as cracks and holes on the ground left by the Powerful Divines. The destruction caused by the explosion of the inscription formation turned this once beautiful martial arts center into ruins.
Ding Hao appeared in such a dilapidated foothill.
He looked up at the familiar and strange mountain range, and then at the blue sky.
It was as if he could still faintly see the smiling faces that had passed away.
He walked up step by step along the ruined mountain path.
Strange mist pervaded his whole body. He took a small step forward and flashed across hundreds of meters.
It had only been three years since the first morning after the time travel. More than a thousand days and nights had passed since he sat by the Sword-cleansing Pond to practice his swordplay, but it felt as if it were just the day before. The green gem-like Sword-cleansing Pond was still there, embedded between the mountains, flashing with a charming brilliance.
The old days flashed in front of Ding Hao’s eyes. The closer he got to the gate, the more fearful he felt.
Of course, he wasn’t fearful of the enemies dwelling in the Mountain.
Instead, it was the thought that behind the mountain gate there would be no Li Jianyi, Qi Qingshan, friends, and seniors whom he had been so close to. It was heartbreaking.
Ding Hao had an illusion that if he had not returned, he wouldn’t have to face such a cruel reality.
Unknowingly, he had already arrived in front of the mountain gate.
Someone shouted. It was a young warrior in Tranquility Academy’s clothes, “Stop! Who are you? How dare you intrude into the Swordsmanship-seeking Sect?”
As one of the disciples temporarily assigned to guard the mountain gate, Du Haitao was the first one to discover this cyan-robed young man who seemed to be in a state of despondency.
This young man didn’t look like a Tranquility Academy disciple or a disciple of other sects that occupied the mountain. The way he appeared was extremely unusual. In the first moment, there wasn’t a single person in front of him, but in the next moment, this young man suddenly appeared. Du Haitao was startled, but he didn’t think too much about it. He sent a signal towards his companions and immediately stopped the intruder.
Du Haitao stretched out his hand, trying to grab and stop the young man.
However, just as his hand was about to touch the young man’s shoulder, his vision blurred. The young man in cyan disappeared in front of him like a ghost.
“Eh? What’s going on? Don’t tell me I’m hallucinating?” Du Haitao was shocked.
Another Tranquility Academy disciple said thoughtfully, “No, he seemed to be wearing the clothes of the Swordsmanship-seeking Sect.”
“It couldn’t be that a master of the Swordsmanship-seeking Sect has returned to the mountain, could it?” another disciple said, looking serious.
Du Haitao’s heart skipped a beat. He was about to ring the alarm and report it to his seniors…
Right at that moment, he saw something that he would never forget for as long as he lived—
Five or six of his companions suddenly froze on the spot. Their heads shot up to the sky as if they had been lopped off by invisible blades. Streams of blood gushed out from their necks, and then he saw a very strange scene—
An extremely familiar figure stood on his spot, but the head was missing.
“This is? No, it’s my body, but how can I only see my back…”
With that last thought in his mind, he suddenly understood something. Inexplicable fear rose in his heart. Horror flooded him like tides. He had been decapitated, but he didn’t even notice it. Was it…?
The cyan-robed young man…
Plop!
The guards fell to the ground in unison, their heads separated from their bodies.
The glamorous first, second, and third step areas were at the moment filled with bleakness.
There was the smell of death in the air.
On the side of the road, they could also see the dead bodies of the Swordsmanship-seeking Sect disciples. Wild dogs had appeared, and they were chewing on them. Fortunately, the air was still very cold; they weren’t badly decayed…
No one was around.
Three young people suddenly appeared in the distance.