Chapter 165: The Opponent

The person who spoke was a man in his thirties with fair skin, bright eyes, and a short beard. His features were decent, but a malicious smile hung on his face.
Judging by his cultivation, he should be at the ninth layer of Qi Condensation.
The other three men were sturdy, each with distinct features, aged between thirty and forty, all of them experts at or above the eighth layer of Qi Condensation.
These four sudden arrivals had materialized twenty or thirty zhang away, blocking Yu Ye's path forward and cutting off his retreat.
Other than them, no one else was visible in the canyon.
Yu Ye looked around, front and back, left and right, and asked in confusion, "I have no acquaintance with any of you gentlemen. Why are you waiting here for me?"
"Heh!"
The leading man chuckled and said, "Someone identified you beforehand, and I assume we won't mistake our target. As for why we are waiting here..." A short sword appeared in his hand as he said matter-of-factly, "We take people's money to eliminate their disasters. Five hundred spiritual stones for your life!"
On both sides of the canyon were crevices and piles of boulders, more than enough to hide someone. Had these four men been waiting here for two days just to take his life in exchange for spiritual stones?
Yu Ye suddenly understood, yet asked incredulously, "Whose instructions are you following? Could it be Master Qi of the Myriad Beast Manor?"
The Myriad Beast Manor was far away in the State of Qi; to think they would hire assassins to sneak into the Kongtong Realm to kill him in revenge!
"Heh, since you know, you can die with your eyes open!"
The man had no intention of hiding it and said bluntly, "This is not the State of Qi, and you are a disciple of the Yunchuan Immortal Sect. The Myriad Beast Manor would not dare to act recklessly outside, so my four brothers took on this job. Who would have thought our luck would be quite good, coinciding with the opening of the Kongtong Realm? Within this mystic realm, no one cares whether you live or die!"
In his view, perhaps the person he was killing today was merely a low-level disciple of an immortal sect, which should be effortless.
Yu Ye did not panic and seized the opportunity to ask again, "Who pointed me out? Was it Ming Ye?"
"Who is Ming Ye?"
The man feigned ignorance and suddenly raised a hand to point.
While he was speaking, the other three men simultaneously unleashed their flying swords. Four streaks of sword light shot toward Yu Ye like bolts of lightning. In an instant, the leading man also cast several talismans, and fierce flames suddenly ignited all around, solely to prevent the target from escaping and to ensure his demise.
"Boom—"
Sword lights collided amidst flashing lightning and roaring thunder. The resulting spiritual power whipped up a violent gale on the flat ground.
Yet Yu Ye's figure was gone.
The leading man was slightly startled. Sensing something amiss, he tried to dodge, but his limbs were suddenly bound, making it difficult to struggle for a moment. Immediately afterward, two invisible sword qi struck. With a crisp "crack," they shattered his protective spiritual barrier, and with a "thud," they pierced straight through his Qi Sea dantian. His eyes widened abruptly, and he slowly fell backward.
Seeing their companion ambushed, the other three companions were utterly shocked and rushed over to save him, only to hear successive shouts echoing through the gale: "Bind, bind, bind—"
The three men—one raising a foot, one running wildly, one suspended in the air—all came to a sudden halt at the same time. Following that, sword qi whistled, protective barriers collapsed, blood splattered, and three lifeless corpses hit the ground with consecutive thuds: "Bang, bang, bang!"
At this moment, the surrounding flames had yet to be extinguished.
And the four cultivators who had joined forces in the siege had already fallen into the dust, their souls departing afar. Their respective flying swords also dropped to the ground with a clatter.
Simultaneously, the power of the Armor-Piercing Talisman was exhausted.
Yu Ye revealed his figure.
He picked up the four flying swords and four storage rings, casually tossed out two Departure Fire Talismans, and then stepped back a few paces to examine his harvest.
It had been a long time since he had killed someone with such exhilarating ease.
After advancing to the perfection of the fourth layer of Qi Condensation, fighting against experts had become somewhat easier. Even when facing four enemies alone, he handled it with ease. Having unleashed eight consecutive sword qi strikes, the spiritual power within his body remained abundant. All thanks to the might of the Armor-Piercing Talisman once again...
"Whoosh—"
While Yu Ye was still examining the rings in his hand, the sound of wind suddenly arose. He froze abruptly, turning around to trace the sound.
By now, the sky was growing late, and the canyon was somewhat dim. He saw the dim daylight slightly distorting, like ripples spreading across mid-air, followed by a cold point of light growing closer and closer, resembling a falling star, trailing a faint whistling of wind. An inexplicable murderous intent enveloped all directions, and an irresistible, violent storm arrived in an instant...
Yu Ye's heart skipped a beat, and his expression changed drastically.
"Boom—"

The cold star transformed into a sword glare that crashed down with a deafening roar. Debris scattered in all directions, dust filled the air, and a crater was blasted into the ground. Yu Ye, who had been sitting ducks, had already vanished without a trace.
Just at that moment, a figure descended from the cliff on one side of the canyon.
It was a middle-aged man dressed as a rogue cultivator, unremarkable in appearance with sparse beard and a dull expression. Before he even landed, he pointed a finger. The sword light, which was still hovering, pierced through the dust and shot directly towards a spot more than ten zhang away.
Sure enough, a figure popped up in the clearing over ten zhang away.
It was none other than Yu Ye, wearing a green Taoist robe with an iron badge hanging at his waist, looking dumbfounded and deeply shaken.
Having used an Avatar Technique to escape calamity, he had barely regained his footing when the sword light came whistling back once more. A powerful murderous intent enveloped his flanks, making it difficult for him to move freely. He hurriedly flicked his fingers repeatedly, but as his sword qi was unleashed, it shattered with a "bang," while the star-like sword light was already right before his face. He had no time to dodge, nor could he execute the Avatar Technique again. Gritting his teeth, a green dragon shadow surged over his body.
"Boom—"
Just as Yu Ye activated the Heavenly Dragon Shield, a loud crash rang out. The green dragon shadow dissipated, and a ferocious force struck him squarely. Horrified, he tried his utmost to dodge, but it felt like being struck heavily by a boulder as he was sent flying backward off his feet.
And the fierce sword light lunged at him again without pause.
Yu Ye reached out, slapped a talisman, and vanished into thin air. Who would have thought the sword light would follow him like a shadow, its fierce murderous intent already close enough to touch.
"Boom—"
Another deafening crash echoed.
Yet Yu Ye appeared a dozen zhang away, staggering, coughing up blood, looking thoroughly flustered. In merely the blink of an eye, the terrifying sword light had circled back, resembling a cold star on a winter night, bringing with it nothing but chilling slaughter and boundless intent to kill.
The Armor-Piercing Talisman was useless!
The Avatar Technique was useless!
Could it be that this calamity was inescapable, and he was destined to be buried here today?
In his panic, Yu Ye glanced back.
His opponent was not far away, still wearing that dull expression, uttering not a word. The indifferent look in those two eyes was even more terrifying.
Gritting his teeth in secret, Yu Ye grabbed a talisman in a desperate gamble and slammed it fiercely onto his body.
The star-like sword light arrived in an instant.
"Boom—"
Amidst the loud explosion, a wisp of faint black smoke vanished abruptly.
The middle-aged man's expression finally changed. Slightly startled, he put away his flying sword, flicked his body forward, and gave fierce chase...
"Bang—"
A dark shadow plummeted to the ground, scattering fallen leaves into the air.
"Ah—"
Yu Ye lay prone on the ground, groaning softly.
A moment later, he sat up with difficulty, clutching his shoulder with one hand while staring blankly around him. Before he could even make out his surroundings, he let out another miserable groan as a trickle of blood spilled from the corner of his mouth.
What was this place?
The sky had already grown dark, but he could see vines tangling, ancient trees towering, and mists rolling—a scene of gloomy unpredictability.
They were in the midst of a mountain forest.
Was there a cave entrance not far away?
Yu Ye crawled toward it with a struggle.
The cave entrance, a few feet high, was located beneath a massive boulder, concealed by overgrown weeds and emitting a foul, fishy stench.
Yu Ye crawled into the cave.
Scattered fragments of bone and rotting fur could be seen everywhere.
Suddenly, a low roar echoed, followed instantly by a foul wind rushing toward his face.
Yu Ye reached out, grabbed his short sword, and barked, "Get lost—"
Empowered by spiritual energy, the short sword flickered with sword glare.
A dark shadow lunged close—a fierce beast, resembling both a tiger and a leopard, charging aggressively. However, intimidated by the murderous aura of the sword glare, it let out a low growl while glaring at the uninvited guest, before darting headlong out of the cave.
Yu Ye let out a breath of relief, put away his short sword, and continued crawling forward.
Not far ahead, the path came to an end.
The cave he was in should be the lair of some savage beast, spanning some three to five zhang across. Unfortunately, the air reeked foully, and the ground covered in the carcasses of birds and beasts was utterly unbearable.
Yet Yu Ye could not afford to care about such things. He grabbed four small flags and tossed them out, casually executing a hand incantation to shroud the surrounding area in a formation array. He then hurriedly fished out a handful of pills, tossed them into his mouth, and tore off a piece of his Taoist robe to bind the sword wound on his shoulder.
A large gash was torn open on his shoulder, his flesh split apart and dripping with blood—a truly ghastly sight.
How lucky!
Thanks to the protection of the Heavenly Dragon Shield and his desperate dodge at the very moment of crisis, what had been injured was not his shoulder joint, but rather avoiding a sword piercing straight through his chest that would have killed him on the spot! And thanks to the formidable power of the Ghost Escape Talisman, it had ultimately helped him escape the pursuit!
He had a great life!
Yet he could not escape the agony of the sword wound, which had also affected his internal organs, leaving his breathing constricted. He had no choice but to recuperate here for a few days.
Yu Ye took out his spiritual stones.
Even as he regulated his breathing to heal his wounds, lingering fear still gripped him!
Who was that person?
There is an old saying: the mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of theoriole behind. If he, Yu Ye, was the cicada, the four rogue cultivators were the mantis hunting it, and that middle-aged cultivator was naturally the oriole lurking in the shadows.
Without a doubt, that was a Foundation Establishment expert. His cultivation realm should be above Bu Yi and Nanshan, or perhaps comparable to Master Qi of the Myriad Beast Manor. And his insidious nature, composure, and ruthlessness far surpassed any opponent Yu Ye had ever encountered!
Regardless of who that person was, he was bound to be connected with the Myriad Beast Manor or the Xuanling Immortal Sect.
However, the Kongtong Realm had rules strictly forbidding Foundation Establishment cultivators from entering.
Could it be that in order to take revenge on him, Yu Ye, they were disregarding the ban and willing to offend the Yunchuan Immortal Sect? If that truly was the case, he had underestimated the Myriad Beast Manor and the Xuanling Immortal Sect for successively dispatching two batches of men solely to send him to his death.
The Kongtong Realm was truly this chaotic!
And the real perils did not stem merely from savage beasts...
Yu Ye reined in his stray thoughts, a new idea flashing through his mind.
In the darkness, four storage rings appeared before him. After their owners perished, the spiritual imprints left upon the rings had correspondingly weakened. Once he wiped away the restrictions, the items within were laid bare at a glance. Aside from a large number of talismans, jade slips, and pills, no immortal sect tokens were found, but there were hundreds of spiritual stones, offering a bit of comfort to his battered and wounded self.
The spiritual stones contained within the four storage rings numbered a full five to six hundred.
The man from earlier had not lied; he had indeed accepted benefits from the Myriad Beast Manor. Otherwise, a few rogue cultivators would hardly have been able to accumulate so many spiritual stones. Yet taking someone's money and ultimately trading one's life away—though bringing it upon themselves—was also rather sigh-worthy!
Yu Ye had no time to examine the other items and closed his eyes. His fatigued expression gradually grew calm.
He knew nothing of the power of the Ghost Escape Talisman, nor did he know where he was. His immediate priority was to heal his injuries, alleviate the pain, walk out of this place, and leave the Kongtong Realm. Only by doing so could he shake off that mysterious and formidable opponent...