Gou Zai Fei Men made up myths

"You evil heretics! How dare you act so violently!" Shi Tie bit his tongue, the sharp pain bringing him back to his senses. His eyes flashed with ferocity as he pushed the movement technique of the Flowing Cloud Dao Body to its limit. Ignoring a bone spike coming from behind, he used his heavy iron rod like a collapsing mountain to unleash the "Mountain Shaking" move, smashing it with all his might at the ghost face in the air!

"Boom!"

The fierce energy of blood and qi collided violently with the sinister ghost face! The ghost face let out a shrill shriek and twisted violently, but it did not immediately dissipate. Instead, it opened its mouth wide, trying to devour Shi Tie's essence blood!

Just then, Su Xiao seized the opportunity and frantically poured his spiritual power into the green steel sword in his hand. The "Sharp Metal" array pattern that Zhao Qingyan had added shone brightly, and she shouted, "Flowing Clouds Break Evil!"

The sword tip trembled, and an extremely condensed sword aura, arriving before the ghost face, struck the most illusory point between its eyebrows!

"puff!"

Like a balloon being popped, the ghostly face shattered instantly! The backlash of Yin energy caused the five Xuan Yin Sect disciples to grunt in unison, staggering as the formation collapsed in an instant!

"A good opportunity!" Shi Tie would not miss it. Like a tiger entering a flock of sheep, he swept his staff across the battlefield, smashing two Xuan Yin Sect disciples who could not dodge in time, breaking their bones and causing them to fall to the ground!

Su Xiao's sword flashed repeatedly, forcing the other two to retreat.

Seeing the situation was dire, the leading disciple's face turned pale with shock. He hadn't expected this seemingly unremarkable trio to be so troublesome! He glared venomously at Shi Tie and Su Xiao, and shouted sharply, "Qingyun Sect! I've got this! Let's go!"

After saying that, he threw a black bead without hesitation, which hit the ground!

"Bang!" Black smoke billowed out, carrying a pungent, fishy stench, instantly engulfing the entire area!

"Watch out for the poisonous smoke!" Su Xiao retreated hastily, immediately holding her breath. Shi Tie also waved his iron rod to disperse the smoke.

When the black smoke dissipated, the leader of the Xuan Yin Sect and another disciple who was less seriously injured had already used the smoke to escape and disappeared without a trace, leaving only the corpses of their two accomplices and a mess on the ground.

"Pah! You ran fast!" Shi Tie spat, put away his iron rod, and checked himself. He had only been scratched by bone spurs and was otherwise unharmed.

Su Xiao also breathed a sigh of relief. The fierce battle just now, although short, was extremely dangerous. The Xuan Yin Sect's techniques were bizarre. If it weren't for her and Shi Tie's excellent teamwork and Wang Hu's support, the outcome would have been unpredictable.

At this moment, the three rescued rogue cultivators cautiously stepped forward. The burly man with a thick beard, who was in the lead, clasped his hands in a fist and bowed, his voice filled with gratitude and lingering fear: "Many thanks to the three fellow Daoists of the Qingyun Sect for saving our lives! I am Liu Mang, and these two are my brother Hou San and my younger sister Liu Qing. If it weren't for your righteous intervention, my siblings and I would surely be dead today!"

The tall, thin man named Hou San and Liu Qing also quickly bowed and thanked him, their eyes filled with awe and gratitude as they looked at Shi Tie and the other two.

"I was just doing my duty. The Xuan Yin Sect has committed numerous evils, and everyone has the right to kill them!" Shi Tie waved his hand, quite heartily.

Su Xiao nodded slightly, his gaze falling on a jade box that Liu Mang was clutching tightly: "Fellow Daoist Liu, I just heard that you were being hunted down because of this 'Yin Soul Grass'?"

Liu Mang's face stiffened. After hesitating for a moment, he still confessed, "I dare not hide it from you, fellow Daoist. It is true. My siblings and I were lucky enough to find this three-hundred-year-old Yin Soul Grass next to a yin cave. We originally intended to pick it to exchange for some spirit stones, but we did not expect to be targeted by the Xuan Yin Sect..."

His face showed a pained expression, but he still handed over the jade box, saying, "The three fellow Daoists saved our lives, and this item... is the proper thing to offer as a token of our gratitude!"

In the cultivation world, the strong prey on the weak, so it's already rare for the other party to offer such a precious spiritual herb.

Su Xiao did not reach out to take it, but shook his head: "Fellow Daoist Liu, you are too kind. We did not offer this for our own gain. This herb was obtained with your lives, so please keep it safe."

Shi Tie grinned and said, "Exactly! We Qingyun Sect act with a clear conscience! Stealing from you, what difference would that make us any different from the Xuanyin Sect?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Mang and the other two were stunned, hardly believing their ears. A three-hundred-year-old Yin Soul Grass was incredibly valuable, and the other party didn't want it?

Hou San and Liu Qing exchanged bewildered glances, their gazes shifting from gratitude to deep admiration as they looked at Su Xiao and the other two.

"This...how can this be done..." Liu Mang's voice was choked with emotion.

Su Xiao said solemnly, "Fellow Daoist Liu, this place is dangerous, and your injuries are quite serious. It would be best to leave as soon as possible. This Yin Soul Grass is the root of all trouble. Possessing such a treasure is a crime; it's best to get rid of it as soon as possible."

Liu Mang nodded emphatically, tears of gratitude streaming down his face: "Fellow Daoist's golden words will be forever etched in my heart! The Qingyun Sect's righteousness and kindness today will never be forgotten! In the future, if there is anything I need, as long as it is within my power, I will never refuse!"

He carefully put away the jade box, then took out several pieces of good-quality Yin-attribute ore and a small bag of spirit stones from his storage bag, and insisted on giving them to Su Xiao, saying, "Please accept this small token of our appreciation! Otherwise, we will not be at peace with ourselves!"

Seeing that he couldn't refuse, Su Xiao accepted the few pieces of ore, but firmly returned the spirit stones: "I'll take the ore; it might be useful for refining weapons. But the spirit stones are unnecessary; your healing is the priority."

Liu Mang and the other two were deeply moved and expressed their gratitude many times before helping each other and hurriedly leaving the cave.

Watching the three figures disappear, Wang Hu couldn't help but say, "Senior Sister Su, Senior Brother Shi, you two are truly...so loyal!"

A sense of belonging and pride in his sect welled up within him.

Shi Tie chuckled: "That's right! Our Qingyun Sect must act with integrity and uprightness!"

Su Xiao gazed in the direction the Xuan Yin Sect disciples had fled, a hint of worry in his eyes: "The Xuan Yin Sect is known for its vengefulness. Making an enemy of them today could cause trouble in the future. However, what's done is done, so there's no need to dwell on it. Let's go; this place is not safe to stay any longer."

The three composed themselves and continued on their way.

Amidst the ruins, the traces of battle and struggle became increasingly horrifying. Almost every so often, one could see deep craters left from fights, charred remains, and the haphazardly disposed remains of cultivators. The stench of blood mingled with the stench of spiritual energy, creating a chilling atmosphere.

They even witnessed from afar a fierce conflict erupting between disciples of the Heavenly Sword Sect and a group of "Netherworld Valley" cultivators shrouded in black robes, vying for control of a side hall. Sword lights and ghostly energy crisscrossed the area, causing the hall to collapse. In the end, both sides suffered heavy losses and retreated.

The Black Wind Stronghold's forces, like hyenas, roamed the edge of the battlefield, waiting for an opportunity to plunder lone survivors or clean up the battlefield.

The area surrounding the core region has been transformed into a massive hunting ground, where the law of the jungle is vividly displayed.

The three members of Qingyun Sect kept in mind the principle of "proceeding cautiously and avoiding conflict." With Su Xiao's insight and Shi Tie's courage, they repeatedly avoided the whirlpool and ventured deeper along a relatively safe path.

Wang Hu grew rapidly through one dangerous situation after another, his eyes became more and more composed, and his swordsmanship became more and more fierce.

The three of them walked through a plaza made up of countless huge, jumbled rocks, as if the sky had collapsed and the earth had split open, and the view in front of them suddenly opened up.

The ruins of a colossal palace, hundreds of feet tall and entirely constructed of some kind of warm, white jade, lie like a sleeping beast at the edge of the horizon. Although the palace is in ruins, with most of its dome collapsed, the remaining foundation and parts of the walls still exude a breathtaking aura and a vast, profound Daoist charm.

In front of the palace was an extremely spacious white marble platform, at the end of which stood a relatively intact and magnificent palace gate! The gate was tightly closed, and its surface was carved with patterns of flowing clouds and cranes, shimmering with spiritual light, clearly protected by extremely powerful restrictions.

That place is the core area of ​​the Flowing Cloud Cave Mansion—the Flowing Cloud Palace!