A Tale of Encounters with Immortals: A Peach Blossom Temple in the Martial World

She had just killed the archers lying in ambush outside, but unexpectedly, Hu Yunying was still careless. A sword aura pierced through her Grandmaster-level defense, cutting her arm, and she almost dropped her sword.

Currently, in the martial arts world, apart from Grandmasters and four or five people at the later stages of the Grandmaster realm, there are basically no others who can harm Hu Yunying.

Zhang Zhengdao looked outside, picked up a tree branch, walked to a spot not far from the entrance of the mountain god temple, and drew a line.

He clapped his hands and said to the outside, "Anyone who crosses the line shall die!"

Even if you don't cross the line, you can still die.

Zhang Zhengdao didn't say anything.

Look at the wound on Hu Yunying's arm; with a casual flick of her wrist, the wound healed completely.

Hu Yunying's heart was pounding.

The Taoist priest's gentleness, like the light touch on his arm just now, could heal all the wounds in the world. His gaze lingered on Zhang Zhengdao's face.

It's brushed!

Come back to your senses.

"Where is he?" Hu Yunying asked.

It's been quite a while, and the person who hurt me still hasn't shown up.

Based on her experience in the martial arts world, anyone who could injure a grandmaster like herself would definitely come out and walk around, then go to a mountain temple and act all high and mighty.

But there's been no movement at all.

Zhang Zhengdao also looked outside in surprise.

He just drew a line outside the temple gate with a twig, actually just to show off.

In the martial arts world, when strength has already crushed everything, showing off becomes a very satisfying thing. The main problem is an unstable moral compass; one can't resist the allure of worldly prestige.

"Did they run away?" Hu Yunying asked.

"Can't run away!"

Zhang Zhengdao read out the imperial decree, and the tree branch that had been marked with a line suddenly stood up, swayed, flew into the sky, and disappeared instantly.

The person who injured Hu Yunying was a middle-aged man, masked and dressed in black.

Normally, a master of his level in the late stage of the Grandmaster realm wouldn't need to wear a mask, because he could kill whoever he wanted, as long as he didn't encounter those few Grandmasters.

There's no point in wearing a mask when you encounter a grandmaster.

The world of martial arts is both vast and small.

Those few who reach the late stage of the Grandmaster level, judging solely by their martial arts style, are essentially naked in front of a Grandmaster, no matter how well they conceal their abilities. However, he still chose to cautiously wear a mask, prioritizing stability above all else.

The Lotus Sect's role in this martial arts competition was to ambush and kill.

Intercept and eliminate all talented up-and-coming masters from prestigious sects or those capable of achieving rankings. Then gather the masters among the wandering martial artists, and seize the majority of rankings in the Mount Hua martial arts competition.

The advantage of doing this is that it can quickly make most of the masters in the martial arts world famous and establish the Lotus Sect's position in the martial arts world, thus establishing its reputation as the leader of the righteous path.

Previously, they followed the official route of the imperial court, cultivating relationships with some court officials and local officials.

But those officials were greedy for money, ruthless, and far less refined than the江湖人 (jianghu people, people from the underworld).

Now, taking the path of江湖 (jianghu, the martial arts world) and consolidating power is the policy adjustment that the Lotus Sect has made after suddenly realizing its mistake.

Power comes from the sharpest blade.

The masked expert fought Hu Yunying for more than ten rounds before finding an opening and stabbing him with his sword.

He was very knowledgeable about the affairs of the martial arts world, and he knew even more about the masters of the martial arts world. There were not many people who had reached the Grandmaster level, but there was no one like Hu Yunying.

The Butterfly Fairy was previously only at the Innate Realm.

Now, this is... the mid-stage Grandmaster realm.

What level of skill is he at? At his level, one can tell the opponent's strength the moment he makes a move.

He even considered keeping Hu Yunying and having her join their sect so they could work together on their great cause.

Hu Yunying was stabbed by him and flew backwards to the mountain god temple.

Inside the mountain god's temple, there was a bonfire, and beside it sat a Taoist priest with a flowing beard and an innocent young girl. They didn't seem particularly concerned about what was happening outside.

The masked man could sense the girl's aura; she was at the innate level.

He's a rare young genius.

For such a young girl to have cultivated to the second rank is already considered a sign of talent and diligence. However, this girl is of innate talent, which makes his heart burn with passion. She can be the sect's most outstanding reserve force, and may even be promoted to the sect's saintess, becoming a successor leader.

The Taoist priest seemed to have no cultivation whatsoever.

He knew this Taoist priest, a Taoist priest from Peach Blossom Temple on Peach Blossom Mountain, who had gained some fame for his two extraordinary skills in presenting treasures on the mountain.

That's it.

But when the Taoist priest stood up and drew a line at the doorway, his whole body suddenly tensed up. It was as if he had been stared at by a prehistoric beast in the dark, and the hairs on his body stood on end.

His experience as a江湖人 (jianghu person, someone who had been involved in the martial arts world) led him to immediately disappear into the darkness.

The further away you can escape, the better.

"Huff"

"Huff"

……

The shadows of the trees behind him kept receding. In the darkness, he dared not use his light-footed skills to leap through the air, but instead ran wildly through the woods. Only with the cover of the trees could he feel a little safer.

Something is following us in the sky.

This was the masked man's first impression.

"Amitabha!"

"Senior brother, save me!"

"Whoosh whoosh"

"Master, save me!"

……

call--

Suddenly, a tree branch fell from the sky, lying straight across the air and blocking his way.

The masked man abruptly stopped.

Staring at the tree branch.

It was just an ordinary tree branch, but it was suspended in mid-air. It had just chased him halfway up the mountain, and now it was blocking his way in the air.

The masked man coughed lightly.

It’s ruined!

He clasped his hands in a respectful gesture.

"Fellow Daoist, I apologize for my rudeness. If I offended you just now, I am willing to apologize. If that's not enough, I can also make compensation..."

The moment the word "compensation" was uttered, the stick suddenly lashed out at the masked man.

The masked man was shocked, his inner energy surged, and he fought desperately.

Suddenly, a sword beam shot out from the tip of the sword he had swung out.

A flash of cold light struck the tip of the staff, instantly cleaving it in two. The masked man was overjoyed; with the staff broken, his courage surged.

Before the joy could even well up in his heart, the stick, split in two, extended its snake head in the air, and a long, giant python opened its blood-red mouth towards him.

The snake raised its head high, baring its two sharp fangs, and swallowed his head from top to bottom.

"Ten thousand swords return to the clan!"

The masked man was terrified.

He mustered all his strength and instinctively pulled out his most treasured life-saving move.

The swords returned to their source, their true light like ten thousand cold stars, striking the snake's head that was pouncing down from all directions.

The snake's head, amidst the myriad of cold stars, still swallowed him whole.

Then everything fell into darkness.

But then everything went black for a moment.

A giant snake, sharp teeth, a gaping maw...

Everything is gone.

It was as if the illusion had been shattered.

The masked man was covered in cold sweat, as if he had been pulled out of the water. He felt his head was numb and he had no sensation at all, as if the world had been cut off from him.

Numbly, I took a step forward.

"Pfft!"

He fell to the ground.

My feet can't move, my hands can't move, my whole body can't move.

Lying on his back, his eyes occasionally darted around, indicating that he was still alive.

He didn't know when, but his whole body was entangled in vines. His internal energy seemed to have gone into hibernation at this moment, quiet and unresponsive to his commands.

Lying in the darkness, I felt lonely, helpless, and weak...

"Senior brother..."

"Master..."

The masked man silently chanted to himself, only able to look at the sky, where a cloud had lifted the moonlight.

There were still many thoughts lingering in my mind. Suddenly, something lifted me up, and the shadows of the trees above my eyes flickered incessantly.

The body, bound like a giant rice dumpling, was no longer in control of its own destiny.

And what would it be like to be carried by something and fly through the woods?

The moonlight flickered, and the shadows of the trees swayed.

The night in the mountains.

A dilapidated mountain god temple.

A warm fire.

A Taoist priest was telling a story to a quiet young girl, holding a book.

A beautiful girl sat beside them, looking tenderly at the Taoist priest and the young woman.

It's as if it's been etched into a scroll, slowly unfolding the story of the Taoist priest...

In the mountains and forests, a few vines carried a man dressed in black as they ran wildly under the moonlight...