Ling Tian Sword God

Following the Young Master of Myriad Dao and several dozen of Myriad Dao Sect’s True Disciples, Ling Chen, Liu Feiyue, and Duan Qingxu, along with the Clan Leaders and experts of the Four Great Hidden Clans, all arrived at the back mountain of the Myriad Dao Sect.

Xing Tian and Lu Youzhen, along with other high-ranking members of the Myriad Dao Sect, stayed behind to hold back Shentu Yan’s army, buying time for the Myriad Dao Sect’s True Disciples and for Ling Chen and the others to escape.

Beneath a cliff, the Young Master of Myriad Dao activated a mechanism, and suddenly, a stone door opened in the cliff face.

Upon the opening of the stone door, the Yin Family Patriarch couldn’t help but ask, ”Where does this secret passage lead?”

The Young Master of Myriad Dao shook his head. ”I’m not sure. This secret passage was built when the Myriad Dao Sect was established, and it has been perfected by several generations of Sect Leaders. However, the last time this secret passage was used was three hundred years ago. No one has used it since.”

The Family Head of the Night King Clan looked distressed and said, ”What? No one’s used it in three hundred years? What if the secret passage has collapsed midway? Aren’t we walking into a dead end then?”

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone else frowned. A secret passage unmaintained for three hundred years could very well have collapsed somewhere. If their fears were realized, they would be doomed.

At that point, this secret passage wouldn’t be their lifeline, but their deathtrap.

”When this secret passage was constructed, the most renowned craftsmen of that era were hired, so this passage is very stable. Moreover, its path was chosen with great care, so it shouldn’t collapse easily under normal conditions,” said the Young Master of Myriad Dao, frowning.

The Yin Family Patriarch looked grim, his eyes flickering with uncertainty. ”But that’s just under normal conditions. What if it has collapsed? So many lives are at stake! Who will take responsibility if there’s no way out? If Shentu Yan finds the entrance, we’ll all die without a proper burial!”

His words sent a chill down everyone’s spine, and they began to hesitate.

Ling Chen shook his head and was the first to enter the stone door. ”Entering the secret passage offers a glimmer of survival. Hesitation means certain death. Let me remind you all, given Shentu Yan’s current strength, Xing Tian and Master Lu won’t be able to hold them off for long. If you don’t leave now, you’ll regret it later.”

With that, he too stepped into the secret passage.

Liu Feiyue and Duan Qingxu followed without hesitation. Then came the Young Master of Myriad Dao and the other True Disciples of the Myriad Dao Sect, all streaming into the secret passage.

The one who spoke was Feng Chibai, the former Villa Owner of Chiyu Mountain Manor. ”Ling Chen is right. Staying here is tantamount to waiting for death. It’s better to take a gamble; there’s still a sliver of hope.” He glanced at the others and then darted inside.

The remaining people exchanged glances. Then, the Family Head of the Dragon Hidden Clan, the Family Head of the Night King Clan, and the Ye Family Great Elder also moved and followed them in.

An expert from the Yin Family whispered, ”Family Head, we...”

He was now terrified. Shentu Yan was known for his brutality; renowned experts in the Martial World had their cultivation drained by him. If they were captured by Shentu Yan, their fate would be utterly miserable.

Even though the Yin Family Patriarch profoundly mistrusted this secret passage, the thought of Shentu Yan behind them sent a shiver down his spine. ”Follow them!” he ordered, then led the Yin Family experts and quickly rushed into the secret passage.

「At this moment, in the Central Plaza of the Myriad Dao Sect, the fierce battle was nearing its end.」

The Myriad Dao Sect’s resistance had been completely crushed. Those experts of the Myriad Dao Sect who had resisted in groups were now dead, injured, or had surrendered. The high-ranking members of the Myriad Dao Sect had mostly perished. Only a few, including Lu Youzhen, were left resisting defiantly, clearly overwhelmed and helpless, fighting like trapped beasts.

Even Xing Tian, the Great Elder of the Myriad Dao Sect, had fallen. He was captured alive by Shentu Yan, but fortunately, as he was being seized, he shattered his own Dantian, crippling his entire cultivation. Otherwise, he would have become nourishment for Shentu Yan’s cultivation, drained of all his power, making Shentu Yan even stronger.

Shentu Yan gazed at the heavily injured Lu Youzhen, a Martial World magnate who had once been his peer, and said in an indifferent tone, ”Brother Lu, I respect you as a man. For the sake of our many years of acquaintance, surrender to me, and I will spare your life.”

He allowed Lu Youzhen the option to surrender, not out of sympathy, but because if Lu Youzhen yielded, Shentu Yan could use the latter’s reputation in the Thunder Country to easily take control of it. All the sects and powers would swiftly submit to his rule.

Only by quickly pacifying the Thunder Country and consolidating all the small and medium-sized sects could he rapidly assemble an army to attack Green Cloud Mountain and the Saint Witch Religion, thereby unifying the entire Martial World.

Lu Youzhen threw his head back and laughed heartily, his heroic spirit seeming to pierce the heavens. His eyes fixed forward as he declared loudly, ”Haha, surrender? Shentu Yan, we’ve known each other for many years. In your eyes, am I, Lu Youzhen, a vile person who clings to life and fears death?”

Shentu Yan’s eyes turned frigid. ”So you’re seeking death? Brother Lu, as long as you’re willing to surrender, you can still be a regional overlord under my command. Otherwise, the entire Myriad Dao Sect will be wiped off the map of the Five Kingdoms.”

”Do you think those fleeing disciples of yours can rebuild the Myriad Dao Sect? Heh, that’s impossible. They might escape for a while, but not forever. The remaining powers in the Martial World will sooner or later be trampled flat by me. For those who oppose me, there is only death!”

”Enough nonsense! Kill me if you’re going to!” Lu Youzhen sneered, utterly fearless.

Seeing this, Shentu Yan’s expression darkened. His eyes suddenly glinted, and a cruel smile touched the corners of his mouth, as if an idea had struck him.

He waved his hand. From nearby, escorted by dozens of Divine Intent Sect experts, over a dozen Myriad Dao Sect disciples were brought forward and forced to kneel before him.

”Brother Lu, think carefully. I’ll give you one more chance. A single word from you, and these Myriad Dao Sect disciples can live. Otherwise, their fate will be grim.”

As he spoke, Shentu Yan patted the Exotic Demon Beast beneath him. The beast let out a deafening roar, opening its blood-red, gaping maw—a mouth that looked as if it could swallow a small mountain. The sight caused the dozen or so Myriad Dao Sect disciples to turn deathly pale, their courage shattering.

”Sect Leader, save us!”

”We’re still young; we don’t want to die, Sect Leader!”

The dozen or so Myriad Dao Sect disciples looked at Lu Youzhen with pleading eyes, some even breaking into loud wails.

Lu Youzhen’s expression darkened momentarily at this scene but quickly returned to normal. ”You despicable wretch,” he said, his gaze shifting from the dozen or so disciples. He then declared loudly, ”Our Myriad Dao Sect has for generations been a Righteous Sect of the Martial World! How could we surrender to Evil Cultivators?”

”A true man meets death when it comes; what is there to fear! You are disciples of the Myriad Dao Sect. To die for the Righteous Martial World is to die a worthy, heroic death! What regrets could there be in such a life?!”

With these words, a sharp light glinted in Lu Youzhen’s eyes. He suddenly raised his palm and struck his own chest fiercely over his heart, severing his heart meridians.

Spitting out a mouthful of blood, Lu Youzhen’s body then fell.

Seeing Lu Youzhen choose suicide over surrender, Shentu Yan’s face contorted with rage. ”Pedantic fool!” he snarled. He abruptly gestured, and the bodies of the dozen or so Myriad Dao Sect disciples flew upwards uncontrollably. Then, with a clench of Shentu Yan’s hand, BANG! BANG! BANG! A series of explosions ripped through the air as their bodies burst apart, transforming into a bloody mist. A rain of gore and tattered flesh showered down from the sky.