Legend of Swordsman

“Alright, you two return to the Blood River Hall. Without my orders, you are not to leave!” The Blood River Patriarch suddenly commanded, ordering the two to head to Blood River Hall and stay there.

Wu Taidou and Qinglin immediately bowed and obeyed, leaving the area.

Not long after they departed, a powerful presence suddenly descended.

It was a fat man from the Twin-faced Divine Mountain.

Upon his arrival, he saw the Blood River Patriarch waiting for him.

The Blood River Patriarch’s expression changed when he saw the man. He hadn’t expected this person to come in person, so he immediately greeted him with respect. “Guardian Qifeng!”

“Blood River, what exactly happened here to alarm the Prefecture Lord?” The fat man, without wasting time, directly questioned.

As a Guardian who had already reached the Dao Lord level, and a powerful one at that, he naturally didn’t regard the Blood River Patriarch highly. From the start, he came with a stern interrogation.

This was partly because the other man was one of the top ten True Immortals in the Twin-faced Divine Prefecture, holding a somewhat special position.

Otherwise, the questioning wouldn’t have been so mild.

The Blood River Patriarch frowned but didn’t dare to show anger. With a slightly respectful tone, he replied, “I just arrived as well. Someone used a Dao Talisman here earlier, and then they vanished!”

“Hmph!” Guardian Qifeng snorted coldly, his voice filled with fury. “You oversee the Blood River, and a stranger appeared on your territory, and you say you don’t know? You don’t even know who it was, and you let them escape? Do you realize this is negligence on your part?”

Inwardly, Blood River cursed this man for making things difficult.

There was no helping it, as they weren’t from the same faction.

His relationship with the Four Guardians was mediocre at best, but the ten True Immortals stuck together like glue. Normally, even the Four Guardians wouldn’t dare to give them a hard time.

But now, seeing him alone, they wanted to intimidate him.

If it weren’t for the important matters at hand, he would have already called his brothers for backup.

Among the top ten True Immortals, there were those powerful enough to suppress even Dao Lords.

That’s why they didn’t fear the Four Guardians.

“I will give the Prefecture Lord an explanation for this!” Blood River suppressed the fury burning inside and answered stiffly.

Guardian Qifeng narrowed his eyes, feeling a bit surprised. He knew Blood River was famous for pulling strings, yet this time he hadn’t called his brothers for support, which was unusual.

Initially, he had planned to take the opportunity to humiliate Blood River, but now he was curious about what Blood River was holding back.

“An explanation alone won’t suffice. This incident alarmed the Prefecture Lord. I will need to stay here and investigate for a while. As for you… this negligence won’t go unpunished. You’ll be sent to Centipede Mountain to kill three Centipede Kings. Hand their corpses over to me afterward!” Guardian Qifeng’s tone softened.

In truth, this punishment wasn’t severe.

The Centipede Kings were merely at the Ninth Tribulation True Immortal level, but their combat abilities were weak. With Blood River Patriarch’s strength, slaying three Centipede Kings posed no threat to his life. It would only require some time, and he’d have to mobilize the Blood Demon Guards for assistance.

But at this moment, he had important matters to attend to and wasn’t willing to go to Centipede Mountain to hunt the Centipede Kings.

Since the punishment was determined by Guardian Qifeng, it could be changed.

The Blood River Patriarch took a deep breath and retrieved a mustard seed-sized object, smiling as he offered it. “Thank you, Guardian, for your leniency. It’s true I, Blood River, have failed in my duties this time. Not only did I alarm the Prefecture Lord, but I also caused you to personally come here. In this mustard seed, I’ve placed a small token of apology for you, Guardian.”

“Blood River, I’ve noticed you’ve become quite polite lately!” Guardian Qifeng casually accepted the mustard seed bag and, after probing it with his thought power, widened his eyes.

Inside were two peak-grade immortal weapons, almost comparable to a supreme-grade immortal weapon.

For a Ninth Tribulation True Immortal, this was no small fortune; these could be sold for millions of immortal crystals.

Although Dao Lords already possessed supreme treasures and had no need for immortal weapons, who would ever complain about having more treasures?

With a smile, Guardian Qifeng accepted the gift and said with a faint grin, “Since you’re showing such a good attitude in admitting your mistakes, I’ll let this punishment slide for now. But remember, the Blood River Domain doesn’t belong to you; it belongs to the Twin-Faced Divine Palace. The Twin-Faced Divine Palace is the Domain Master’s residence. You and I are merely servants of this place. Know your place and don’t disrupt the Domain Master’s household because of your cultivation!”

“Yes, yes, Guardian, you’re absolutely right!” Blood River Ancestor quickly nodded in agreement.

What he didn’t realize was that his strange behavior had already aroused Guardian Qifeng’s suspicion.

“Alright, you’re dismissed for now. Once I finish investigating, I’ll report back to the Domain Master!” Guardian Qifeng feigned indifference.

This, however, made Blood River Ancestor secretly delighted.

As long as he could get Guardian Qifeng out of the way, he could proceed with his own plans.

“Thank you for your hard work, Guardian!” After a few more flattering words, Blood River Ancestor eagerly left the Asura Field.

Guardian Qifeng, still watching Blood River Ancestor’s retreating figure, smirked coldly.

After scanning the area, Guardian Qifeng soon discovered the fallen body of a True Immortal of the Eighth Tribulation—none other than Immortal Ji Ye.

True Immortals of the Eighth Tribulation were rare in the Twin-Faced Divine Palace.

Moreover, Immortal Ji Ye was a formidable fighter with remarkable talent. Guardian Qifeng had once been envious of Blood River Ancestor for having such a skilled subordinate.

Blood River Ancestor often took Immortal Ji Ye with him to the Twin-Faced Divine Mountain, clearly grooming him as a trusted confidant.

Yet now, Immortal Ji Ye had fallen, and Blood River Ancestor hadn’t even mentioned it, seeming completely distracted. This only deepened Guardian Qifeng’s doubts.

“Tsk tsk, I’ll have to see what kind of tricks you’re up to!”

With a sneer, Guardian Qifeng left the Blood River Domain in a flash of light.

But his departure was a ruse—he stayed behind, hidden.

Blood River Ancestor, however, was too careless.

Believing that Guardian Qifeng had truly left, Blood River Ancestor returned to the Blood River Hall to begin his plan.

Seated on the main throne, Blood River Ancestor commanded, “Notify Blood Demon to come to the Blood River Hall to hold his position. The two of you, come with me to Yunhai Mountain!”

“Now?” Qinglin was visibly surprised.

After all, Immortal Ji Ye had just fallen. Wouldn’t they need to investigate the incident?

Blood River Ancestor, unwilling to explain, angrily rebuked, “Do I need to explain my actions to you?”

“I wouldn’t dare!” Qinglin quickly bowed and obeyed.

Meanwhile, Jian Wushuang and his companions were also heading toward Yunhai Mountain.

At this point, after fleeing for some time, Yunhai Mountain was within sight.

The group remained silent along the way, until Fairy Ziyu finally broke the silence. “Daoist Xueyang, where is the secret passage you mentioned?”

She wisely refrained from bringing up the battle that had just occurred, instead getting straight to the point.

“I’ll lead the way from here,” True Lord Xueyang said, without disclosing the exact location.

He feared that someone might leak the information.

Hearing his words, no one objected, and they followed True Lord Xueyang into Yunhai Mountain.

Unbeknownst to them, another group of three had also arrived at Yunhai Mountain.

It was none other than Blood River Ancestor and his companions.

Qinglin and Wutai followed behind, silently questioning why the Blood River Ancestor had chosen to come to Yunhai Mountain.