Immortal Road.

"kill!!!"

The situation became unmanageable in an instant.

Upon hearing the order, the disciples of the Spring and Autumn Sword Sect had long disliked the Ancient Sect. How dare a mere native of Lu State challenge the Holy Land? Wasn't that courting death?
Anyway, now that the spiritual tide has ended and the conflict between the major factions has stopped, the Ghost Valley Holy Land may not still recognize the Ancient Sect as an ally. Even if it is bullied, it will not stand up for them. So let's just teach them a lesson and let them know who the real overlord of the continent is!
"etc."

Zhong Shenxiu sensed something was wrong. His original intention was to show off in front of his second brother and at most vent his anger, but he didn't expect things to get out of control and develop into a big mess.

He wanted to stop the fight, but no one around him listened to him!

These disciples of the Spring and Autumn Sword Sect truly respected Sunflower Fairy, a true prodigy from the sacred land, and considered Zhong Shenxiu to be nothing more than an outsider.

He just got lucky and climbed to the top by hooking up with a woman. I could have done it too!
So if something really happens, it's obvious who to listen to!
"Madam, quickly tell them to stop! Why go to such lengths? Why go to such lengths?"

Left with no other choice, Zhong Shenxiu turned to the Sunflower Fairy for help, but she wouldn't listen at all and instead revealed her true nature, shouting at him:

"What are you afraid of? You are now a Venerable of the Spring and Autumn Sword Sect. Even if you wipe out a mere Seeking Ancient Sect, who would dare to gossip about you?"

At this moment, Lin Shan withstood the combined attacks of the two powerful beings and stepped out unscathed. A faint voice came from the other side, carrying an inexplicable sigh:
"Third brother, you have really disappointed me."

"No, second brother, I didn't intend to have a full-scale war with you."

He was sweating profusely and wanted to explain to Lin Shan, but suddenly he felt something throbbing in his chest, as if it were something closely related to his cultivation level, lurking nearby.

Ok?
He looked down and saw that the two armies had already begun to fight. Tens of thousands of troops were crowded on this jade-shattered, icy pool, engaging in fierce attacks and defenses, with blood and flesh flying everywhere.

One of the fifth-tier spirit beasts, whose toad it was, actually used its webbed claws to hold a pen in reverse and wrote the demon race's characters in a flamboyant and elegant manner, fighting back and forth with the Nascent Soul stage cultivator from the Spring and Autumn Sword Sect!

"This isn't my natal magical artifact, the Golden Lacquer Wolf Hair Brush???"

He simply couldn't believe his eyes!
"Croak! How about my King Toad Gold-Forging Pen? That kid's gotta pay with his life~~~"

The old toad wielded the pen with incredible skill, effortlessly employing various spells. Relying on the power of his spiritual treasure, he completely outmaneuvered the Nascent Soul stage cultivator opposite him.

Coupled with his extraordinary tongue skills, he used his giant tongue to whip people like spinning tops, making him the star of the battle.

"Don't be so arrogant, you bastard! Let me teach you a lesson!"

Immediately, a Nascent Soul cultivator from the Spring and Autumn Sword Sect, disliking it, stepped forward to lend a helping hand, hoping to outnumber it.

The old toad pulled out a chain from somewhere, at the end of which was a mirage dragon with a misty white body. Enslaved, it let out a mournful dragon cry and flew over to fight.

"My destined spirit pet???"

Zhong Shenxiu was completely dumbfounded in the sky!

He even wondered if he was dreaming. How could the spirit treasures and spirit pets that he had entered the star vortex appear one after another? Was it because he had been thinking about it day and night that his dream came true?

Not only that, he then saw his own magical cauldron and even a spirit-communicating talisman!

Boom~~~
As the spiritual energy of heaven and earth gathered, the phantoms of the Ten Kings of Hell descended, and Wen Qiong Taibao descended from the underworld to wreak havoc within the Spring and Autumn Sword Sect.

"Do not!!!"

Before he could recover, suddenly his vision blurred and a beautiful figure crashed into his arms.

Sunflower Fairy couldn't withstand three moves from Lin Shan. She was beaten so badly that she coughed up blood, staining her clothes red, and collapsed into his arms, crying out in terror:
"How is that possible? My Sunflower Manual has always been superior to others of the same level, and I can wield my sword freely throughout the world. How could you break it so easily?"

Zhong Shenxiu was holding his young wife when he looked up!
A massive wind tunnel stretched for hundreds of feet, hanging in the underground space. Powerful wind pressure gathered at the entrance, and a flickering blue light twitched, like a gaping maw ready to devour someone.

The outer rings of undulating wind continuously increased the wind pressure, and the power of the supernatural ability continued to rise with each breath.

Meanwhile, his second brother didn't even glance down at the scene. He remained standing motionless, one hand behind his back, fighting with only one hand throughout.

"Sister-in-law is extremely rude. How could she disregard seniority and strike at her elder brother first? Third brother, you have not disciplined her properly. When you go back, you must urge her to behave properly as a woman. If she doesn't listen to you now, what will she do in the future?"

Sunflower Fairy looked at the broken spirit sword in her hand, her heart bleeding. This was the Ping family's heirloom spirit sword, and it had been destroyed by her own hands!
"Master of the Ancient Seeking Sect, I think you are the one who has defied the heavens! You dare to oppose my Spring and Autumn Sword Sect. Once the Holy Lord leads the army back, none of your men will survive. Aren't you afraid of your sect being destroyed and your entire sect wiped out?"

Lin Shan shook his head and smiled; he wasn't afraid at all.

Not long ago, I took the spirit beast ring from the main body, and distributed the massive resources obtained from the nine star vortexes to my subordinates to help them improve their cultivation and upgrade their equipment.

Now, almost every Nascent Soul cultivator in the Seeking Ancient Sect possesses a spiritual treasure, and they are all incredibly wealthy. They can even overpower those from the Holy Land, so they have no worries about the battlefield below.

At this moment, the Sunflower Fairy couldn't help but turn her head and scold Zhong Shenxiu:

"What are you still standing there for? Your wife is being bullied by outsiders, and you just stand by and watch? How come I never noticed how spineless you were before?"

Zhong Shenxiu had no choice but to step forward under the watchful eyes of everyone.

"Second brother, you even dared to be so ruthless to your sister-in-law. You really don't take me seriously. Even if you become a great supernatural being, you can't do whatever you want. You must give me an explanation today!"

His move, "The Pen Falls Through the Spring and Autumn Annals," was the only great supernatural skill he had learned so far. Ever since Lin Shan easily countered it, he knew he had exhausted all his tricks and had no other means to counter it.

Now, forced to stand up for his Daoist partner, he has no choice but to bring out this half-baked supernatural power again.

As a result, the literary energy in the sky had just gathered into thousands of rays of light when it was shattered by the ferocious and violent wind tunnel!

The disciples of the Spring and Autumn Sword Sect below glanced at the sky. The gorgeous brocade cloth was being roughly torn into strips, like a young woman being repeatedly ravaged by a strong man, with not even a last bit of clothing left to cover her!

"Third brother, you're too weak, far too weak! Why would there be such a weak powerful cultivator? Is this why the Spring and Autumn Sword Sect took a liking to you?"

There wasn't a trace of sarcasm in Lin Shan's tone, only endless disappointment, a helpless frustration that made him feel like he was saying, "Have you made enough of a scene?"

This only drove Zhong Shenxiu even crazier!

He refused to believe it and tried again and again, but no matter what he did, he couldn't do anything to the behemoth that was the wind tunnel!

"Is this all you know? Do you have any other tricks up your sleeve? Show them to your second brother and see how much you've improved over the years."

Despite Zhong Shenxiu's best efforts, he was still helpless. The enormous wind tunnel was right in front of him, enveloping the Xun Gu Sect camp, and he stood firm and undefeated.

The Spring and Autumn Sword Sect below is showing signs of decline and is retreating step by step.

The Sunflower Fairy's angry curses were right behind him, yet he acted like an incompetent husband!

There's nothing we can do; he's only just broken through and only knows one powerful technique.
Lin Shan had long been immersed in this realm, completely overwhelming him in every way. He could even tease him while standing still, just like an adult coaxing a child.

At this moment, some strange phantoms appeared in the two armies, weaving back and forth among the crowd. They were slippery and wandered around. Wherever they passed, the disciples of the Spring and Autumn Sword Sect all died of blood loss, their skin and bones scattered all over the ground.

"Be careful, they are fifth-order evil spirits, there are four of them in total, be on guard!" The disciples of the Spring and Autumn Sword Sect were horrified. How could they not know how terrifying evil spirits were? As rats in the sewers, they were hated by everyone. How dare the Ancient Seeking Sect raise such beasts without permission? Weren't they afraid of becoming the public enemy of the cultivation world?

In the crucial arena, there were not only evil spirits, but also malevolent spirits and vengeful spirits possessing people everywhere. They had all been cultivated to the Nascent Soul stage, and they were difficult to control as long as they were in the crowd. The elders of the Spring and Autumn Sword Sect were helpless and could only watch their disciples die tragically because they were afraid of harming the innocent.

"Stop! Leader of the Xun Gu Cult, you are raising evil spirits and disregarding the righteous path. Aren't you afraid of being punished by the entire world?"

Lin Shan remained unmoved and simply answered calmly.

"The fate of the world rests in my hands. I will act now, and who dares to disobey!"

"???"

Everyone was shocked. The Ancient Seeking Sect had always kept a low profile, quietly developing in the shadows. How could they suddenly become so arrogant after the spiritual tide ended?

Zhong Shenxiu hadn't yet recovered from his second brother's domineering attitude when he suddenly heard his beloved wife scream behind him:

"Ah~~~ those are my underwear, my bodice, my skirt, how did they end up on the evil spirit?"

He quickly looked down.

Okay!

These evil spirits, vengeful spirits, and malevolent spirits were extremely arrogant. Hearing that they had a master backing them up, they openly revealed their true forms, wearing colorful clothes that they had picked up from the star vortex. They posed and looked very pleased with themselves, which made the Sunflower Fairy so angry that she almost had menstrual cramps!

In particular, there was an ancient phantom tree in the group, which ran wildly through the crowd, swaying its branches. Hundreds of ancient treasures came crashing down at once, and even Nascent Soul cultivators would run away. In the midst of the melee, the Sunflower Fairy's underwear was still hanging from the end of its branches, making it quite the show-off!
"Wait, why are all the treasures we threw into the star vortex here?"

Zhong Shenxiu looked at the gold-lacquered wolf-hair brush in the old toad's hand, the Wenqiong Taibao talisman specially supplied to the underworld, and the white mist mirage dragon chained up and looking at him with a resentful expression, and suddenly thought of something.

Could that star vortex be...?

"That's right, I was the one who placed it."

Lin Shan approached step by step, as if in a dream, speaking in a booming voice, uttering words that sent chills down Lin Shan's spine.

"Third brother, the Star Vortex is just one of my divine abilities, called the Nine Abyss Star Vortex. There are nine of them in total, which you obtained in the Red Dust Star Sea and harvested the wealth of various holy lands."

"You give me resources, I'll give you cultivation levels—what a worthwhile deal! Nobody loses out!"

"So the reason you were able to become a great supernatural being is because I was always silently supporting you from behind, which helped you realize your dream of joining the Holy Land and marrying such a beautiful Daoist partner. You should be thanking me enough, how could you be so rude to your second brother?"

What do you think, hmm?

"!!!"

Zhong Shenxiu opened his mouth wide, and his head suddenly felt like it was collapsing and the earth was splitting open.

He felt like his world had collapsed!
I originally thought that getting the Star Vortex was due to my good luck; becoming a great supernatural being was due to my hard work; joining the Spring and Autumn Sword Sect was due to my excellence; and marrying the Sunflower Fairy was... well, I was too unlucky.

But undeniably, he always believed that it was all fate. Who knew that behind the manipulation of fate, there was a mastermind, who turned out to be his own second brother, whom he had always wanted to surpass!

Am I just one of his pawns?

So all of this was just his manipulation, and my growth was entirely under his control.
"No, I don't believe it! I don't believe this was all arranged by you! You must be trying to fool me!"

Seeing his third brother shaking his head frantically, seemingly in a state of madness, Lin Shan showed a look of pity and sorrow.

"Silly brother, I'm doing this for your own good. If it weren't for me, how could you have married such a beautiful woman?"

"enough!!!"

You always bring up the most sensitive topics; when will you ever stop?

Zhong Shenxiu went completely insane. He felt his worldview had collapsed. All the pent-up anger he had been holding in hadn't been released; instead, it all became overwhelming, causing him to break down on the spot, clutching his head and crying out in despair.
"You're lying to me! You're fake! You're all fake! I don't believe you! I must still be in an illusion! This is the Mortal World Star Sea, and the spiritual tide hasn't ended yet!"

"Xiuer, what's wrong, Xiuer?"

Seeing that he was not in a good state, the Sunflower Fairy was so frightened that she rushed over to hug him, but Zhong Shenxiu rudely pushed her away and ran into the distance without looking back.

They even abandoned their Daoist partners, and tens of thousands of disciples of the Spring and Autumn Sword Sect ran away as if no one else was around!
He was running and shouting, waving his arms and legs wildly.
"I'm still in a dream world. You're all fake, you're all conspiring to deceive me. I don't believe it, it's all a trap."

Everyone in the audience was stunned, watching Zhong Shenxiu walk away, and for a moment they didn't know what to say.

Lin Shan stood quietly, watching his third brother's receding figure thoughtfully.

This kid.
Now that the Sunflower Fairy has lost her husband and learned the truth about the Star Vortex, seeing her personal clothing being dragged out and shamed by the evil tree demon, most people would have collapsed long ago!

But despite being a woman, she was surprisingly strong. At that moment, she took out the Star Vortex from her bosom and threw it hard at the other side.

Lin Shan remained unfazed, refusing to catch it, letting the object suddenly explode in mid-air!

"Sister-in-law."

"shut up!"

Sunflower Fairy rudely interrupted him, unable to contain her anger. Gritting her teeth, she waved her hand and actually ordered the entire Spring and Autumn Sword Sect army.

"withdraw!"

The men below had been waiting impatiently. Upon hearing the order, they all retreated like a surging tide, not daring to linger for even a moment. The wind tunnel in the sky was like a death warrant, completely extinguishing their fighting spirit.

Seeing their opponents retreat, Lü Xiuming and the others looked up.

"Master, should we pursue them?"

"No need."

Lin Shan withdrew his supernatural powers, becoming calm and composed.

"Let them be."

The Xun Gu Sect's headquarters was in a mess, but everyone was in high spirits, speculating and discussing how the sect leader had single-handedly forced back two powerful cultivators.

Doesn't this mean that the cult leader is at least a person with great supernatural powers?
Just as they were discussing this, another group suddenly came up from the lava sea below, passing by the Xun Gu Sect one after the other, at a considerable distance from the Spring and Autumn Sword Sect.

The honor guard marched at the front, issuing a stern command:
"The Venerable Huibing of the Ghost Valley Holy Land has descended! Why is the entire Xun Gu Sect not paying homage and paying respects?" (End of Chapter)