"Get out!"
Ye Gong stopped his movement, and with a backhand strike, he unleashed an even sharper sword energy. The moment it appeared, Xu Mu's source of Dao was torn open.
If Xu Mu were a great mountain blocking a river, then Ye Gong's sword strike was an axe capable of splitting the mountain.
Xu Mu's expression turned grave. He dodged to the side, choosing not to confront the attack head-on. After all, no matter how strong his physical body was, he couldn't constantly endure sword attacks.
If it hadn't been for him having accumulated enough source of Dao to protect himself beforehand, and for the augmentation of the Bagua Kun trigram, he would have suffered a serious injury from that punch.
At this moment, the only method Xu Mu could employ was lightning magic. However, using lightning magic would easily expose his identity, as there were very few young individuals in the world who could wield such a technique.
If Jin Dafu of the Gold and Silver Merchant Guild knew he was still alive, it wouldn't just be the Ye family hunting him. Therefore, Xu Mu couldn't use his most powerful means and had to temporarily avoid the brunt of the attack.
Meanwhile, Ye Gong had already rushed to Jiang Zheye's front and brought his sword down.
Clang!
Jiang Zheye held his dual blades against the attack. The sound of collision echoed, and as they struggled to maintain their stance, Ye Gong's sword intent continuously washed over Jiang Zheye's body, causing a gnawing pain like ants devouring a heart. The latter was forced to retreat.
Ye Gong let out a cold laugh and pursued relentlessly with his sword, enveloping Jiang Zheye within a curtain of sword energy. No one from the outside could help.
Jiang Taixu and Xu Mu exchanged a glance, then instantly moved to provide support, momentarily blocking Ye Gong along with others. Only then did Jiang Zheye successfully break free.
Crack!
Ye Gong's sword missed its target, and he did not pursue further. Instead, he shifted his aim to other enemies, relieving pressure on his subordinates.
Xu Mu and the others did the same. Soon, the two teams completely separated, with a wall of emptiness between them, creating a standoff.
"The Jiang family's most talented genius is nothing more than this," Ye Gong said provocatively, looking at Jiang Zheye.
If Xu Mu hadn't intervened earlier, Jiang Zheye might have already been slain by his sword.
"You are three years older than him and were almost killed. Now you speak such words. Do you have any shame?" Jiang Taixu retorted with mockery.
Jiang Zheye was only twenty years old this year and was already a peak second-stage ability user with terrifying combat prowess. At this rate, he was bound to enter the Huacai Realm within three years.
"Oh, I forgot. But you are about my age. Want to try?" Ye Gong looked at Jiang Taixu, raising his sword with a challenging glint in his eyes.
Upon hearing this, Jiang Taixu's expression immediately soured.
If it were before Ye Gong's breakthrough, he might have had a chance of winning. But now, engaging him meant he would only be on the receiving end of attacks. Unless he used his most desperate moves, he could only hold on for a little longer without changing the outcome.
The gap in cultivation was almost impossible to bridge.
Seeing Jiang Taixu's silence, Ye Gong turned his gaze to Xu Mu, narrowing his eyes and saying, "I'm very curious. What price did the Jiang family pay to invite a physical cultivator like you, a third-stage expert?"
Xu Mu, while bandaging his injured hand with a strip of cloth, calmly replied, "Does that have anything to do with you?"
Ye Gong nodded seriously, "Of course, it does."
"As long as you help me eliminate Jiang Taixu and Jiang Zheye, whatever price the Jiang family offers, my Ye family can offer double!"
Upon hearing this, everyone on the Jiang family's side simultaneously turned to look at Xu Mu, their expressions tense.
"I refuse," Xu Mu said.
Ye Gong did not give up and continued, "If you don't believe me, I can make a Heavenly Oath."
"Moreover, you should believe me. Following the Jiang family has no future. I am third-stage, and if you and I join forces, we will undoubtedly be unmatched even in the Ten Thousand Races Alliance. At that time, whatever you want, my Ye family can give it to you!"
Ye Gong spoke with a deep smile, as if he could already see himself and Xu Mu dominating the Ten Thousand Races Alliance.
"You've almost made me tempted," Xu Mu clicked his tongue and shook his head, "But I'll pass."
"What a pity." Seeing that his persuasion was futile, Ye Gong's expression naturally turned cold.
Jiang Taixu and the others also breathed a sigh of relief. They were genuinely afraid that Xu Mu would betray them.
Ye Gong, with his incredibly strong physical body, and Xu Mu, with his high killing power through the sword, their combined strength would be described as invincible. They could not resist them.
Only Qian Qian knew that Xu Mu would never agree, because Xu Mu had stated from the beginning that he had enemies in the Ye family!
"I've rested enough. Prepare for battle, let's finish them all at once!" Xu Mu turned and said, his blood qi surging out once again, pressing down on the entire area.
Seeing this, Ye Gong's followers immediately appeared flustered.
"Boss, we… we really can't hold on anymore," the thin man said with a mournful face, his tone innocent. Their condition had long been depleted to the extreme.
They had been enduring by sheer force of will before. Now that they had a brief respite, that will had faltered, and their strength had naturally vanished.
Ye Gong frowned in displeasure and cursed, "A bunch of good-for-nothings!"
"Cursing them is useless. The truly useless one is you," Qian Qian said, looking at Ye Gong. "As the captain, you are the core of the team. While the loss may seem unrelated to you, the current outcome is a direct result of your individual decisions."
"If you had brought more people to fight, if you hadn't been so greedy and kept the Three Great Ghost Kings by your side, perhaps you wouldn't have lost."
His words made Ye Gong's expression even more grim.
"How could I have known there would be so many monsters!" Ye Gong glanced at Xu Mu and Jiang Zheye, cursing inwardly. If even one of them was absent today, he would have been the victor. But now, they were gathered together, and his subordinates couldn't hold on any longer!
"People of the Ye clan, come to my side."
Ye Gong's face was as dark as if water could drip from it. After careful consideration, he spoke, gathering all the confidantes of the Ye clan around him. Then, he cast one last look at Xu Mu and the others.
"I have noted today's events, Ye Gong. Pray that you never encounter me again."
With that, Ye Gong unleashed a sword strike and instantly leaped off Sky Dome Peak with his dozen or so confidantes.
Xu Mu and the others were stunned, then immediately rushed to investigate. To their surprise, they discovered that Ye Gong and his group were standing on some kind of artifact that possessed levitation properties, allowing them to descend safely!
"They… ran away?"
Everyone was astonished. They hadn't expected Ye Gong to flee mid-battle. In front of so many people, wasn't he afraid of losing face?
And if he ran, what about the remaining five hundred people!
"Ye Gong, you bastard!!"
Those left behind on the summit of Sky Dome Peak cried out in despair. They had never imagined Ye Gong would abandon them and flee.
Now, they had lost their last means of victory and were at the mercy of Xu Mu's side.
"Hand over your points, and shatter your jade slips yourselves. Don't force us to act," Jiang Taixu said disdainfully, looking at the crowd.
Qian Qian glanced at Xu Mu, seemingly wondering if he would have a different opinion than Jiang Taixu, such as demanding only half the points and letting them go, as he had done before.
But this time, Xu Mu remained silent.
The reason was simple: during the previous battle, these people had fought with all their might and eliminated many members of their alliance. As the alliance leader, he had no reason to spare them on behalf of those who had been eliminated.
Not killing them was already an act of mercy.
"Hurry up, don't force us to act. Blades and swords have no eyes. If a real battle breaks out, it will be more than just elimination," Jiang Taixu continued to threaten.
The group laughed self-deprecatingly and then shattered their jade slips one after another, offering no further resistance.
"To think that we, among the top-ranked geniuses in this preliminary round, have been brought to this point due to following the wrong person. We are truly unwilling."
"But there's nothing we can do about our unwillingness. Ye Gong, we hate you!"
With several resentful roars, nearly five hundred people on the field were instantly sucked away by spatial rifts and disappeared.
Thus, only Xu Mu, Jiang Taixu, and less than a thousand others remained on the summit of Sky Dome Peak.
Jiang Taixu looked at his greatly increased points with a joyous expression, but immediately walked up to Xu Mu and divided the points equally with him.
"Half each, this is fair, right?" Jiang Taixu said to Xu Mu, his voice a little guilty.
This was, of course, unfair. Xu Mu's contribution in this battle had been far greater than his and Jiang Zheye's. Even giving Xu Mu seventy percent of the points would not have been excessive.
However, Xu Mu was not in the mood to quibble over such matters. He immediately transferred all these points to Qian Qian and walked to the edge of the cliff, saying,
"Help me distribute these points to our brothers. I'll be back soon."
Qian Qian was startled, then asked, "You're going down to hunt Ye Gong?"
Xu Mu shook his head, "No."
"In the alliance, there might be some who fell but haven't been eliminated yet. They must need me now, and I need to bring them up."
With that, Xu Mu leaped off the peak, riding the strong wind.
Jiang Taixu and the others exchanged glances, then fell silent.
In contrast, Xu Mu was worried about his struggling brothers, while they were immersed in the joy of victory.
However, there was nothing wrong with this. They had come together for mutual benefit, and once they left this secret realm, they might be enemies.
"Anyone who wishes to go down to find people is welcome. I will not stop you," Jiang Taixu said after some hesitation. But after looking at each other, none of them left.
Jiang Taixu nodded, said no more, and began to distribute the points he had obtained. He then sat down on the summit of Sky Dome Peak to rest, waiting for the competition to end.
The remaining time quickly passed. Another day later, a large spatial rift appeared before all participants in the Jingxu Secret Realm.
"This round of the competition has ended. All contestants, please return promptly. The secret realm will close in the time it takes for one stick of incense to burn."
An ancient voice echoed through the Jingxu Secret Realm. Hearing this, everyone did not hesitate and rushed to exit the secret realm.
Xu Mu did the same, stepping into the spatial rift.
When he opened his eyes again, he found himself back in the Great Green Mountain of the Peach Blossom Domain.