How did a bastard like him become an immortal?

The jet-black longsword landed squarely in front of Li Muyun. He Qing's expression changed drastically as soon as he saw the sword, and he immediately put his arms in front of him and retreated rapidly.

Although the jet-black longsword merely stood on the ground, its terrifying sword intent swept towards He Qing in an overwhelming manner.

Everyone around scattered, fearing they would be tainted by karma and suffer undeserved disaster.

He Qing roared, and his true energy as a half-step Martial Core cultivator exploded. Only then did he collide with the sword intent and retreat ten steps before he could barely stabilize himself.

Li Muyun was also somewhat surprised, wondering who had come to his rescue.

He Qing looked at the black longsword with apprehension, scanned his surroundings warily, and said, "If I'm not mistaken, it's Sword Maniac from Sword Pavilion, isn't it?"

A black figure descended from the sky and said calmly, "You can get lost now."

His face darkened, and He Qing said, "Aren't you going too far? I am from the Wuji Sect—"

The black figure raised its head, revealing a pair of pitch-black eyes. In that instant, two sharp swords shot out. He Qing's face turned deathly pale, and he staggered back three steps, a trickle of blood spilling from the corner of his mouth.

Sword fanatic turned around and said indifferently, "Get lost."

Li Tianquan said unwillingly, "Teacher, if we miss this opportunity, it will be difficult to kill him next time!"

He Qing ignored Li Tianquan and simply cupped his hands in a resentful manner, saying, "I didn't expect that Sword Maniac has already reached the Nascent Soul Realm. I am no match for him. I'll take my leave."

After saying that, he grabbed Li Tianquan and hurriedly left, not daring to linger for even a moment longer.

Only then did Li Muyun get a clear look at the face of the person in front of him. This Nascent Soul expert named Sword Maniac looked like a pale-faced scholar, and it was hard to imagine that he had spoken those domineering words just now.

Li Muyun quickly knelt on one knee and bowed, "This humble one, Li Muyun, thanks the Sword Immortal for saving me!"

With a wave of his hand, the Sword Maniac lifted Li Muyun's body up by an invisible force, and asked calmly, "What is your relationship with the Drunken Sword Immortal?"

Li Muyun told him the truth, "We're friends, I guess."

A playful smile appeared on the sword fanatic's fair and handsome face. "Friends? She even gave you the Wine Immortal Sword, so it's probably not just a simple friendship."

Li Muyun coughed twice, "Ahem, well, it is indeed a bit better than that."

Sword Maniac smiled and said, "I am Sword Maniac, the chief disciple of Sword Pavilion. Li Xianjiu is my junior sister. Since you are the one she has chosen, I will naturally not stand idly by. You are only at the eighth level of Foundation Establishment. It is too risky for you to go deep into the Ten Thousand Demon Mountain Range without the protection of your elders. You should go back, lest you die and Xiao Jiu be heartbroken."

Li Muyun bowed respectfully and said, "I will remember your kindness today. However, I must go deep into the Ten Thousand Demon Mountains. My strength is weak, and this journey is to improve my abilities. If I unfortunately die in the Ten Thousand Demon Mountains, please tell Fairy Li that I cannot return the Wine Immortal Sword to her."

Sword Maniac raised his head and stared at Li Muyun quietly. After a long while, he nodded and said, "Handsome in appearance and with a firm Dao heart, if he can improve his strength, he will be worthy of our Xiao Jiu."

Just as Li Muyun was about to speak, the Sword Maniac stepped forward, snatched the Wine Immortal Sword, and drew a line in the air with his finger. The terrifying sword intent actually formed a small, pitch-black sword in the air. With a flick of his finger, the small black sword disappeared into the Wine Immortal Sword. The Wine Immortal Sword hummed and trembled violently before returning to calm.

"I have sealed a sword intent within this Wine Immortal Sword, which can save your life in a moment of crisis. Use it at your own discretion. If you still die, then Xiao Jiu can't blame me."

Sword Maniac smiled and returned the Wine Immortal Sword to Li Muyun, his eyes full of doting affection. Li Xianjiu was their youngest junior sister, and all of them had watched her grow up, so they doted on her exceptionally.

Li Muyun bowed again, took out a gourd from his storage ring, and presented it with both hands. "Senior, I have nothing of value. This is a fruit and flower wine that I brewed myself. Please accept it as a small token of my appreciation."

He opened the gourd and took a big gulp. Sword Maniac raised an eyebrow. "Good wine. A bottle of wine for a wisp of my sword intent, I'm not losing out. Good brother, you should have some of this good wine too, haha!"

After saying that, he gently sprinkled some wine on the blade of the black sword. The black sword seemed to be able to drink wine, and the wine quickly disappeared.

"Kid, don't die! See you again someday."

Sword Maniac left behind a sentence, then transformed into a streak of black light and disappeared into the sky.

Li Muyun bowed deeply in the direction where the Sword Maniac had left. He realized that without the Sword Maniac, He Qing's pursuit would have been difficult to resolve peacefully, and he might have even had to reveal his ultimate trump card, Rabbit Lord.

Sheathing the Wine Immortal Sword, Li Muyun murmured to himself, "I didn't expect that it would be Fairy Li who helped me again."

......

Inside the protective city.

Li Muyun found an inn and prepared to rest for the night.

Venturing deep into the Ten Thousand Demon Mountains is indeed extremely dangerous. If possible, he would be better off forming a team with other demon hunters and traveling together.

After meditating overnight, Li Muyun arrived at a two-story building called the Bounty Hall early the next morning.

The Bounty Hall is a mission posting venue jointly established by various sects within the Tang Dynasty. All martial artists, immortals, and disciples of major sects can accept missions here and exchange them for spirit stones, magic weapons, magic treasures, and so on.

Many sect disciples are supervised by their masters when they take on missions to train deep within the Ten Thousand Demon Mountains.

Early in the morning, the Bounty Hall was already crowded with people of all kinds, dressed in the uniforms of various sects, and they were clearly young disciples.

One of the women, dressed in a snow-white long dress, was particularly eye-catching. She had a beautiful face and a swaying figure, especially her waist, which was so slender that it could be encircled by a single hand. Coupled with her delicate and beautiful face, she attracted everyone's attention.

However, the girl's pretty face was extremely cold, and her eyes were full of disdain, as if she were a proud swan who looked down on everyone else.

The proud young woman accepted the mission and began searching for companions. Soon, a number of lustful men surrounded her, treating her as if traveling with her was the greatest honor, and each one was like a piece of merchandise for her to choose from.

Li Muyun shook his head speechlessly, "A bunch of idiots."

Of course, what Li Muyun didn't know was that this girl was Ling Shanshan, the daughter of the sect leader of Qingling Sect. Although Qingling Sect couldn't compare to the eight largest sects of the Tang Dynasty, it was still considered a first-class sect. It was rumored that Qingling Sect had a spirit stone mine, so Qingling Sect was very wealthy, which made many sects envious.

Ling Shanshan is the sect leader's only daughter. Marrying her would mean becoming the son-in-law of the Qingling Sect, and the future benefits would be obvious. These guys were just hoping to do missions with Ling Shanshan and maybe even win her heart as a hero.

Looking at this rabble, Ling Shanshan frowned and said coldly, "I'm going to the Blazing Forest this time, which is extremely dangerous. If you don't have the strength, you'd better disperse as soon as possible to avoid dying in vain!"

Li Muyun, who was about to leave, suddenly stopped in his tracks, not expecting that she was also heading to the Blazing Forest...