Day and night alternated, and another deep night passed in the blink of an eye.
Snow Domain Heavenly Lake.
Lin Xingchu conjured a small water transport realm on the Heavenly Lake. Shang Xuli, Wu Zhi, and Yu Wanling were all inside, and the group looked towards Wuwang Mountain to the north. In the air, figures were stepping on flying artifacts; it was Leng Yan, Chen Xue, Shen Xingchen, Ding Chi, Mo Chenxue, and others. Hearing that Lin Zhao was about to come out of seclusion, quite a few people had arrived.
But not too many, to avoid alerting the enemy. With a few people appearing at the Snow Domain Heavenly Lake, the great demons on Wuwang Mountain might just think they were leveling up. But if there were too many, the side of Wuwang Mountain would surely become vigilant.
...
Leng Yan's beautiful eyes were like water as she quietly watched the direction of Wuwang Mountain. At the same time, she opened the system clock. As the clock ticked, her heart was in her throat.
"One minute left."
Shen Xingchen held her staff and said, "We can depart soon. Wuwang Mountain isn't that far, but it's not exactly close either."
"Yes, let's go!"
Leng Yan drew her long sword and said, "Target, Wuwang Mountain!"
Instantly, hundreds of people densely packed in the air, like hundreds of fireflies, streaked towards Wuwang Mountain in the night sky.
Meanwhile, Lin Xingchu frowned and said, "It's about time, we're leaving too!"
"Okay."
Yu Wanling stood up.
But at this moment, a sound like thunderclap erupted from the sky above Wuwang Mountain, with "crackling" noises. In an instant, two golden ripples of surging demonic energy spread through the air. Immediately after, two figures exuding immense demonic energy broke through the void and appeared above Wuwang Mountain.
One of them was a woman wearing a red and white dress, with an extremely beautiful face and a curvaceous figure. Although only at the twelfth realm, she was enveloped in an incredibly potent and transcendent demonic aura. She was the Nine-Tailed Fox, who was slain by Su Qingjiu's painting in the Shuzhou Lu Chen Bureau back then. Ten years have passed, and the Nine-Tailed Fox had been nurtured in the upper realm to the twelfth realm!
The other was a middle-aged man wearing a fiery red robe, with an ancient sword strapped to his back. He radiated the potent aura of the fourteenth realm. Although very strong, he had lost his left arm. Lingering sword Qi still pulsed from his left arm, constantly eroding his flesh.
This man was named Jian Chen, one of the powerful and favored generals of the Kunpeng Demon Ancestor on Wuwang Mountain. Unfortunately, in a recent battle in the upper realm, Jian Chen, hidden within the Heart Demon Legion, had struck out with his sword, killing a thirteenth-realm Daoist. After that, he was trapped by the combined efforts of Lie Yun and Wei Huarou, and then took a sword from the God of War Ding Muchen. This arm was severed by the Fu Su sword, and the sword Qi of the Fu Su sword still flowed from the wound, making it impossible to fully resolve in a short period.
With Jian Chen injured, his continued presence in the upper realm was no longer beneficial. Thus, the Kunpeng Demon Ancestor directly ordered him to return to the mortal realm with the twelfth-realm Nine-Tailed Fox. The Nine-Tailed Fox was skilled in schemes, and Jian Chen possessed formidable strength. With these two, the situation in the mortal realm might be stabilized.
...
"The demon race has reinforcements, and they are fourteenth realm!" Shang Xuli said, frowning as he held the Lake Monarch Divine Sword.
"It's fine."
Lin Xingchu smiled calmly and said, "I will tie down this fourteenth realm cultivator, and Shang Hujun will provide support. Yu Wanling, you are the strongest Rebirth realm cultivator in the mortal world, you will be the vanguard and hold the line for Xiao Zhao's emergence from seclusion."
"Yes!"
Yu Wanling nodded with a smile, feeling the weight of responsibility. She soared into the sky, enveloped in the surging aura of the Rebirth realm. Her War God's heart thrummed, and with a step, she broke through the void. Her small figure stood across the front of Wuwang Mountain's cross-section, tilting her chin up, her beautiful eyes staring directly at the great demons on Wuwang Mountain without a hint of fear.
"Tsk tsk!"
Jian Chen gritted his teeth, drew his long sword, and swung it towards Yu Wanling. However, the sword light was only halfway through when it was wrapped by a strand of water transport. Immediately after, Lin Xingchu stepped forward to the front of the mountain. Behind him, a golden cloak dragged the luck of the entire Sword Washing River, causing it to appear as if a rolling great river was surging behind Lin Xingchu, ready to flood Wuwang Mountain at any moment, which directly scared Jian Chen into retreating.
Shang Xuli, being the weakest in combat among the three, did not act carelessly. He dragged the vast water transport to another side, echoing Lin Xingchu from afar, ready to suppress the demon cultivators on the mountain with his sword at any time.
At this moment, Leng Yan, Chen Xue, Ding Chi, Shen Xingchen, Lu Han, Bu Su Li Ren, and others appeared in the air one by one, their teeth gritted, looking as if they were ready to fight Wuwang Mountain to the death. Some were even already shouting taunts, but despite their harsh words, none of them truly charged Wuwang Mountain to fight to the death. They knew where the line was.
"Time is almost up..."
Leng Yan's heart was filled with excitement. Her beautiful eyes stared at the clock, her heart almost stopping. The clock was ticking down, each chime seeming to strike a chord in everyone's heart—
"11:59:57!"
"11:59:58!"
"11:59:59!"
"12:00:00!"
...
Precisely at twelve o'clock, the entire Wuwang Mountain suddenly buzzed. In the next moment, a brilliant sword light "swished" out from the base of the mountain below the cross-section, as if intending to cleave Wuwang Mountain in two once again. Even Bai Xi and Qing Jian, both twelfth realm cultivators, could only evade its sharpness and retreat slightly.
Within the sword light, a figure ascended, holding a sword. He wore broken armor, his white cloak reduced to rags, but his physical body remained formidable. His muscles were clearly defined, his skin radiant, and he emanated a powerful sword intent and fist intent. His War God's heart thrummed, displaying his transcendent combat power.
At this moment, Lin Zhao, who had emerged from seclusion, was even stronger than before. He was a peak eleventh-realm sword cultivator and a peak Tianyuan realm martial artist!
He held the unsheathed Zhan Lu sword in one hand and the sheathed Zhan Long sword in the other. He moved with the wind, turned gracefully, and his eyes stared intently at the group of great demons on Wuwang Mountain. He did not act rashly, nor did he show any fear. It seemed that if they wanted to fight, he, Lin Zhao, would fight them to the end.
"..."
Ding Chi watched with extreme anxiety and said in the team chat, "Escape quickly after coming out of seclusion! What are you showing off to those fourteenth and thirteenth realm demons for? Damn it, you're making me anxious!"
Chen Xue couldn't help but chuckle, "He has his reasons, naturally."
Shen Xingchen's beautiful eyes shone with brilliance, and she smiled, "He's doing the right thing. We can't show weakness at this moment. We must make the demons think he can still draw the Zhan Long sword. That way, we can deter Jian Chen, Chen Feng, Liu Bai, and the others."
"Hmph!"
In the air, Lin Zhao frowned, his gaze sweeping over the faces of the great demons. He recognized most of them. Then, he turned gracefully and looked at Yu Wanling behind him, saying, "Let's go, we're going home."
"Mm!"
As Yu Wanling nodded, tears streamed down her face. For ten years, Yu Wanling had believed Lin Zhao was dead, but she never expected him to be alive. Everything was moving in a positive direction, and the decade of desolation in Yu Wanling's heart as a Rebirth realm cultivator seemed to be experiencing a resurgence of life.
"Aunt."
"Shang Hujun."
Lin Zhao looked at the two divine beings in the distance, smiling and nodding in greeting.
Lin Xingchu and Shang Xuli smiled, providing support and enveloping themselves in myriad water transport to protect Lin Zhao and Yu Wanling. As the group gracefully departed from Wuwang Mountain and arrived above Jiuzhangyuan, Lin Zhao finally breathed a sigh of relief. If the demons had been a bit more daring just now, it would have likely ended in a mutually destructive outcome.
But this was good. The demons, who had been so imposing earlier, had now lost the momentum.
...
Snow Domain Heavenly Lake.
As soon as they landed, a group of players surrounded Lin Zhao. Ding Chi, Zhang Jun, Lu Han, and others playfully patted him, laughing and asking if he had lost any parts during the decade he was suppressed under the mountain. Chen Xue, Shen Xingchen, and the others covered their mouths and smiled from the side.
Lin Xingchu, Shang Hujun, and Yu Wanling also watched the young people's playful banter with smiles, feeling that they were exceptionally different from the young people in the martial world.
"Sir."
Just then, a female Sword Immortal with empty sleeves approached, her face already covered in tears. It was Wu Zhi.
Over the past ten years, she had arguably gone through the most difficult journey.
Others had either died painlessly, sacrificed themselves for the realm, or retained their transcendent cultivation. Only Wu Zhi had not only survived but was also severely injured. After ten years, she was still at the Nascent Soul realm, with no signs of breaking through. Furthermore, she hadn't cultivated for the past decade, only plotting everything, trying to become the second Lin Shuai.
Lin Zhao did not speak. Just as when he first saw Wu Zhi after his reincarnation through Bing Jie, he stepped forward and embraced Wu Zhi, gently stroking her hair. At that moment, Wu Zhi cried even harder.
Leng Yan, Chen Xue, Shen Xingchen, Ding Chi, and the others watched, but they felt it was perfectly normal. After all, Lin Zhao had resided on the peak villa, and his feelings for Wu Zhi, Yu Wanling, and others were beyond what ordinary players could imagine. Moreover, their bond began in the beta testing era, so no one would mock them. Instead, everyone wished they had a confidante like Wu Zhi in the game and envied such a bond.
"Alright."
Lin Zhao released her and smiled, "Let's go. Our peak villa is dilapidated and not suitable for guests. Let's borrow the Hefeng Academy to entertain guests."
"Mm-hmm!"
Wu Zhi, tears still flowing, smiled and nodded, "The young scholars in the academy have prepared tea to welcome guests."
...
Lin Zhao led the group into Hefeng Academy.
Instantly, the eyes of the young scholars at Hefeng Academy widened. Back then, they had witnessed the Mountain Lord unleash a world-shattering sword strike and then be suppressed under Wuwang Mountain. No one had ever thought that Lin Zhao would return alive. Now, Lin Zhao's return was like a shot of confidence for the human race's dominion.
With this, the human race would prosper, and the demon and devil races would eventually head towards their demise.
Under the white tree, Wu Zhi prepared tea for the guests.
Lin Zhao, however, stood up and looked at the white tree, which was almost identical to the one planted by Mr. Qin a hundred years ago. At this moment, the white tree was filled with the aura of the human world's righteous path, the manifestation of that gentle and jade-like young scholar.
"Ling Yu."
Lin Zhao called out softly.
At once, the white tree, which had been dormant for ten years, burst into radiant light. Immediately after, a figure in white robes emerged from the white tree. It was Gu Lingyu. He was still as refined and elegant as ever, cupping his hands in greeting towards Lin Zhao and saying with a smile, "Little Martial Uncle, how have you been?"
Seeing Gu Lingyu's appearance, Lin Zhao's eyes welled up with tears. He simply said, "Ling Yu, you have suffered."