"Yang Xiao, you're out... Huh, where's Ziling? Why is it that woman from the Profound Celestial Sect?"
Just as he exited the Northern Wilderness Sword Mansion, an aged and puzzled voice reached him.
Yang Xiao looked up.
It was the ancestor of the Pure Yang Sword Sect, the Pure Yang Ancestor.
At the moment, however, his expression was a bit grim. This was because Yang Xiao was holding Xue Yi's hand, and Xue Yi had, until now, always been on the side of the Profound Celestial Sect.
Meanwhile, his own grand-disciple, Yang Ziling, was nowhere to be seen.
Naturally, the Pure Yang Ancestor was both puzzled and suspicious.
But at this moment, Yang Xiao had no time to explain much to him.
A golden light flashed around his body as the Golden Roc True Body possessed him. Dazzling golden wings unfurled from his back, and with a single flap, he vanished.
He left only a few words lingering in the Pure Yang Ancestor's ears: "Ziling is fine; she's still in the Sword Mansion. I have urgent business and must rush back to the Carefree Sect. This woman is named Xue Yi, and she has no more ties to the Profound Celestial Sect..."
And that was all.
In truth, Yang Xiao had wanted to say more.
But time waits for no one.
In less than half an hour, tragedy would befall the Carefree Sect.
Yang Xiao had to stop it.
As for Xue Yi, the moment Yang Xiao came out, he had told her he had urgent matters and had to leave first, telling her to act cautiously on her own.
However, what he never expected was...
...that his neglect at this moment...
...would cause something to happen between the two he left behindā
something he would come to bitterly regret.
But if Yang Xiao were given another choice,
he probably would have done the same thing.
'Because Father, Yun'Er... they are the most important people to me in this life.'
"Your name is Xue Yi?"
After Yang Xiao left, the Pure Yang Ancestor was the first to speak, his gaze scrutinizing.
He had previously returned to the Pure Yang Sword Sect and used the Celestial Yang Sword to eliminate the troublemakers sent by the Profound Celestial Sect, only to discover that Xuan Tianxin hadn't come with them at all.
He instantly knew that he had been deceived by that fellow.
He had rushed to the Carefree Sect, only to find that Xuan Tianxin, the man who had fought him for so many years, had actually been trapped by a strange array from the Carefree Sect.
'Even I probably wouldn't be able to escape that array if I entered it.'
The Pure Yang Ancestor was instantly relieved.
His estimation of Yang Xiao rose, which was why he had been waiting for him outside the Northern Wilderness Forest.
But now, Yang Xiao had appeared.
His power also seemed to have grown even greater.
Yet he had only brought out Xue Yi.
Ziling was gone.
This made the Pure Yang Ancestor somewhat worried.
Even though Yang Xiao had left a message explaining things, he was still prejudiced against Xue Yi. After all, she had always been on the Profound Celestial Sect's side before.
Her aura also faintly carried a trace of evil.
But, to the Pure Yang Ancestor's surprise,
Xue Yi, facing his scrutinizing gaze, not only didn't flinch but actually chuckled softly. "That's right, my name is Xue Yi. Elder Pure Yang, there is something I wish to discuss with you in private. Would that be convenient?"
"What do you have to discuss with me?"
The Pure Yang Ancestor was taken aback for a moment.
But Xue Yi just smiled.
She didn't say a word.
The look in her eyes was inexplicably strange.
The Pure Yang Ancestor couldn't understand it at all.
However, he was, after all, the number one figure of the righteous path in the Celestial Cloud Region. What storms had he not weathered?
Faced with Xue Yi's invitation, he naturally wouldn't show any weakness.
"Since Miss Xue Yi has something to discuss, then please, Miss Xue Yi, grace our Pure Yang Sword Sect's encampment with your presence."
The Pure Yang Ancestor replied.
His eyes, however, continued to scrutinize Xue Yi.
"Alright."
But, what he hadn't expected was that Xue Yi merely offered another faint smile.
Although the smile seemed a bit cold,
it seemed to come from the heart.
For some reason, the Pure Yang Ancestor's impression of Xue Yi improved slightly.
He politely cupped his hands in a fist-and-palm salute.
And guided Xue Yi toward his Pure Yang Sword Sect's encampment.
After the last siege by the Profound Celestial Sect, the remaining members of the Pure Yang Sword Sect had been scared out of their wits. They insisted on following the Pure Yang Ancestor to the Northern Wilderness Forest, no matter what.
Thus, almost all the disciples of the Pure Yang Sword Sect were now gathered at the encampment in the Northern Wilderness Forest.
Although the Pure Yang Ancestor was very displeased with these people.
'Timid and cowardly.'
'And they had betrayed me before.'
But they were, in the end, his disciples and grand-disciples. Ever since he personally suppressed and killed his favorite disciple, Evil Sword, three hundred years ago,
his heart was no longer as hard as it once was.
Towards these people,
he couldn't bring himself to be ruthless.
He did not know, however,
that by leading Xue Yi to the encampment for this talk, he was bringing a disaster of annihilation upon the entire Pure Yang Sword Sect.
Even he himself...
...could not escape his doom.
This was something that Yang Xiao, upon learning of it later, would deeply regret.
But right now, Yang Xiao was unaware. If he had stayed just a little longer, he would have noticed something abnormal about Xue Yiāthat gentle smile.
It clearly...
...held a familiar quality.
It didn't belong to the normal Xue Yi, or rather, the Xue Yi that Yang Xiao knew.
Instead, it was a bit like...
the shadow of the Bloodthirsty Celestial Cyan Spirit.
'Faster, faster, even faster!'
But at this moment, Yang Xiao's mind was solely focused on rushing to the Carefree Sect and saving everyone.
He had no time to pay attention to such things.
Because right now, just thinking of the scene he had witnessed through the Thousand Mechanism Eye made his heart tremble.
He only wanted to rush over, to risk everything to get there.
And it proved that refining the Golden Roc True Body had been the absolute right decision.
Although Yang Xiao had the Void Shifting technique and the Profound Feather Divine Technique, the former was too mentally draining, and the latter was too slow.
It was only a Small Divine Technique, after all.
In comparison, using the Golden Roc True Body was not only as fast as Void Shifting, but its consumption was also minimalāalmost zero. This was because it was the innate talent of the Golden-winged Roc.
Just like a person walking or eating.
Soon.
Perhaps only a few minutes had passed.
Yang Xiao saw the Carefree Sect's encampment.
He saw Xuan Tianxin trapped in the array, his body faintly emitting a strange pulling force.
'So, it really was this bastard's doing!'
Yang Xiao's expression changed instantly.
It became extremely foul.
But the next moment, endless ecstasy appeared on his face.
Because he had suddenly thought of something.
'If the True God's descent is all because of Xuan Tianxin's summons, then if I kill him...'
With a thought, Yang Xiao's figure flickered, and he appeared inside the Eight Extremes Heaven-Burning Array.
He raised his hand and sent a palm strike flying toward Xuan Tianxin inside the array.
"Just die!"
BANG!
Xuan Tianxin, who had been full of hope, awaiting the arrival of a great figure to vindicate him, to slaughter his enemies, and to avenge his grievances, instantly exploded.
Blown to pieces by Yang Xiao's palm strike.
He died on the spot.
His spirit, his consciousness, was still stuck in that moment of elation.
His intact head, its eyes still flashing with excitement.
And cunning.
A pity.
He would not live to see it.
Because Yang Xiao was back.
'Is it over?'
Yang Xiao's heart relaxed slightly.
But at that very moment.
A terrifying aura descended.
The moment this aura appeared, every living being in the entire Carefree Sectāno, within a ten-thousand-mile radius of the Carefree Sectā
prostrated on the ground.
Unable to muster a single thought of resistance.
Only Yang Xiao remained standing ramrod straight.
But his face.
Was incomparably bitter.
He murmured in his heart, 'In the end, I still couldn't stop it? I couldn't hold it back?'