This Sword Cultivator is Somewhat Dependable

As Black Jiao set out to sea, the Sword Master extended his sole arm, brushing gently over the water curtain in front of him, whereupon all the images instantly transformed into illusions and vanished from sight.

"Return to Jiaolong Island," the Sword Master said in a deep voice.

Upon receiving the command, the Taoist Tongzheng sent out several Spirit Stones from his hand, embedding them into the Formation under their feet.

Stimulated by the Spirit Stones, several patterns within the Formation began to emerge and connect, and two beams of Spiritual Light enveloped the figures of the Taoist Tongzheng and the Sword Master.

A flash of white light flickered, and after the Spiritual Light dissipated, the Taoist Tongzheng and the Sword Master had also vanished within the Formation.

In Jiaolong Island, within a hidden cave situated a hundred miles away from the Sea God Sect, white Spiritual Light appeared, and the Taoist Tongzheng and the Sword Master slowly materialized.

This was a small Teleportation Array that the Dragon Slaying Saber had already set up, connecting Jiaolong Island with the Hidden Reef Domain, aimed at gaining a brief advantage in time.

At this moment, within the cave, many Cultivators had already been waiting, including the Lianyun Trio that Lu Qingshan had once encountered. Besides them, there were seven Golden Core Cultivators, five of whom were at the Golden Core Early Stage, and two had reached the Golden Core Late Stage.

These were all the high-ranking Cultivators of the Dragon Slaying Saber, most of whom, like the Lianyun Trio, were the outstanding disciples earnestly protected by the Sect during its downfall, who had undergone two hundred years of arduous Cultivation, and under the spur of hatred, had reached their current levels of Cultivation.

"Sword Master!" Upon seeing the Sword Master and the Taoist Tongzheng appear, all the Cultivators showed their respect.

"Time is of the essence, Jiao Yan has already set off. With his speed, it will take less than half a day to travel from the Hidden Reef Domain to Jiaolong Island. We must fight swiftly and decisively, Tongzheng!"

"Present!" Taoist Tongzheng replied solemnly.

"Notify Han Jiu to get ready to make a move immediately. Today we will strike the Sea God Sect first to alleviate the pent-up anger in everyone’s hearts."

"Yes!" the Taoist Tongzheng responded.

All the Cultivators present, upon hearing the Sword Master speak, had a fiercely eager light flash in their eyes.

...

Sea God Sect.

In a cave dwelling situated above the Sect’s Spirit Vein, a skinny male Cultivator silently put away the Spirit Plaque in his hand that was flashing with blue light, his eyes displaying a hint of vengeful intent as he murmured to himself, "After lying low for so many years, the day has finally come."

He was a Golden Core Cultivator of the Sea God Sect, True Monarch Han Jiu, renowned for his proficiency in Arrays and also the chief in charge of the Sect’s Great Formation at the mountain gate.

Who would have thought that someone with such an esteemed status as his would be an inside agent for the Dragon Slaying Saber within the Sea God Sect, holding a grudge against the Sect.

True Monarch Han Jiu flashed out of the cave dwelling and headed straight for the central hub of the mountain gate’s Great Formation.

"Uncle-Master." When the disciples of the Sea God Sect guarding the central hub saw True Monarch Han Jiu, they all called out respectfully.

True Monarch Han Jiu’s expression was unchanged. As usual, he nodded slightly to the Sea God Sect disciples, acknowledging their greeting before entering the heart of the Formation.

Inside the hub, three Foundation Establishment Cultivators were responsible for maintaining the operation of the Formation and, through the alert capabilities of the Great Formation at the mountain gate, monitored for any intruders.

If any abnormality was detected, they would immediately inform the high-level Cultivators of the Sect.

"Is Uncle-Master Han Jiu here to inspect and maintain the Formation?" one of the Foundation Establishment Cultivators stepped forward and asked.

"Mhm," True Monarch Han Jiu replied calmly, forming Seal Gestures with his fingers and placing several Dharma Seals on the light screen in front of him, causing the light screen protecting the heart of the Formation to slowly unfold.

At the heart of the Formation, one could control the power of the Formation.

Stationed at the center of the Formation, True Monarch Han Jiu unleashed his Divine Sense, starting to inspect the Sect’s mountain gate Great Formation.

Everything seemed normal, but no one noticed that True Monarch Han Jiu had quietly obscured the Great Formation’s monitoring capability over a certain area, cutting off the flow of Spiritual Power to that corner and rerouting it elsewhere.

With such manipulation, the overall flow of Spiritual Power would not change, making it extremely difficult for other Cultivators to notice.

...

Outside the mountain gate of the Sea God Sect.

Ten figures had already been waiting here for a long time.

Finally, in front of them, the tenacious shimmering light silently opened a narrow crack that slowly widened, eventually becoming an entrance large enough for a person to pass through.

"Go in!" The Sword Master led the way, flashing into the entrance, with the rest of the Dragon Slaying Saber Cultivators following suit.

"Han Jiu has informed us of the locations of the five remaining Golden Core cultivators of the Sea God Sect; those are their cave dwellings." As soon as all ten entered the formation, the Sword Master pointed to several locations within the Sea God Sect and instructed, "Follow the assignments we previously agreed upon, perform each of your duties.

You must overpower them with absolute strength instantly without causing too much of an uproar."

"Understood!" The Dragon Slaying Saber Cultivators replied quietly.

"Then let us begin!" The Sword Master waved his hand grandly, his figure swooped tendentiously, and he stealthily darted toward one of the cave dwellings.

That was the cave dwelling of the Sect Master of the Sea God Sect, Han Qiu!

The Sea God Sect had a total of eleven Golden Core cultivators. First, four were ambushed by Mo Yan, then the most powerful Great Elder was personally pursued and killed by the Sword Master. Now, within the Sea God Sect, only six Golden Core cultivators remained.

Among the six Golden Core cultivators, Han Jiu was an insider for the Dragon Slaying Saber, making it a scenario where ten Dragon Slaying Saber Cultivators were set against five Golden Core cultivators of the Sea God Sect. Not to mention, the cultivation of the ten Dragon Slaying Saber Cultivators far surpassed those of the Sea God Sect’s Golden Core cultivators.

It was almost a certainty!

The key was to act quickly and quietly.

...

Inside the cave dwelling, Han Qiu sat cross-legged, hands forming a seal gesture, circulating his cultivation technique to swallow and breathe out spiritual power, deeply engrossed in cultivation.

As the Sect Master of the Sea God Sect, his cave dwelling was located at the site where the spirit vein’s spiritual power was most abundant; cultivating in such an excellent spot doubled the speed of his cultivation progress.

That was also why he managed to reach the late stage of the Golden Core with his ordinary talents within two hundred years.

Boom!

Suddenly, a booming noise from the cave dwelling’s barrier jolted Han Qiu from his meditative state.

"What’s going on?" Han Qiu was startled, but before he had time to think further, there was a crackling sound, and the barrier he had set up shattered.

A seven-foot Full Moon Saber, glowing blood-red, shot into the cave from the outside, heading straight for his face with such force that chilled his spine.

What was happening?!

Han Qiu felt a chill surge in his heart and hastily brought out his protective magical artifact—a formation made up of five Spirit Banners.

"Water Ripple Realm!"

Han Qiu activated the Spirit Banners, which immediately shone brightly, emitting pale blue waves of spiritual light and forming a barrier in front of him.

Zi!

The Full Moon Saber collided fiercely with the barrier, causing all five Spirit Banners to tremble, while the Blood Qi on the Full Moon Saber grew even more intense.

The stand-off lasted only a moment before the Water Ripple Realm barrier, made from the banner formation, suddenly dissolved. The Full Moon Saber’s momentum undeterred, struck Han Qiu head-on.

Han Qiu spat out a mouthful of fresh blood; he was seriously injured from the attack.

Like adding fuel to the fire, the Sword Master’s figure followed closely behind the Full Moon Saber, bursting into the cave dwelling. On his sole arm was already condensed a blood-red Dharma Seal, which the Sword Master hurled toward Han Qiu, who hadn’t had the chance to recover from the blow.

At that moment, the small cave dwelling was filled with the oppressive Blood Qi emitted by the Sword Master, a dense and oppressing atmosphere that made the circulation of spiritual power within Han Qiu extremely difficult. n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Despair filled Han Qiu’s face as he murmured in disbelief, "Nascent Soul True Monarch..."

The Sea God Sect had dominated Jiaolong Island for over two hundred years, possessing the most cultivation resources, yet they had never produced a Nascent Soul cultivator.

He found it hard to believe that a Nascent Soul cultivator could exist on Jiaolong Island.

...