A Sword

The tavern.

Yi Feng saw Gui off, a hint of regret in his eyes.

Partings since ancient times have been tinged with sorrow, and who knows what year a reunion might be.

It was rare to meet a kindred spirit, a man of similar temperament. After just a few short days together, they were now to be separated by vast distances, which truly caused a small, lingering sadness.

But on second thought.

Now that he had sent his friend away, he could focus wholeheartedly on dealing with the coming experts from the Divine Palace. Perhaps this wasn't such a bad thing.

That Gui, he was far too loyal and righteous.

He had already mentioned wanting to help. What if he had actually followed? If anything happened to him, how could Yi Feng ever live with himself?

With no more worries on that front.

Yi Feng immediately summoned Manman, determined to take up long-term residence at the mine and wait for his enemies to come seeking vengeance!

"Let's go!"

As soon as his eager command rang out, Manman transformed into a streak of light.

When they came to a stop again.

Yi Feng, with his slicked-back hair, was dumbfounded.

Before him lay a scene of utter devastation. The familiar mine was gone, replaced by an endless expanse of desert wasteland. In the mere span of a single day, it had become completely unrecognizable!

Yi Feng thought Manman had taken the wrong route and was just about to ask for an explanation.

Glancing down instinctively, his eyes swept over numerous corpses and the familiar old man who used to sell mining rights, now lying on the ground, barely alive, reaching out a hand!

Oh no...

Yi Feng's heart sank. He instantly knew something terrible had happened!

He hurriedly jumped off Manman and sprinted towards the old man.

Holding the old man, he called out to him several times. The old man's mouth was full of blood, his body limp like boneless mud. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't form more than a few words!

"Be...fore..."

Yi Feng, growing frantic, quickly fished out some of his own elixir pills and stuffed several into the old man's mouth, continuously soothing him.

"Don't try to speak. Focus on regulating your breathing and healing. You'll be fine!"

When he looked around.

Only then did he realize many people had already been buried by the yellow sand, their bodies devoid of life. Clearly, they had been attacked by powerful experts!

He was too late...

He had arrived too late!

Suddenly.

An indescribable sense of regret and remorse surged from the depths of Yi Feng's heart, flooding his mind like a torrent, causing his whole body to tremble, while fury ignited in his eyes!

Yi Feng truly wanted to complete his death-seeking mission.

But, he had never intended to harm anyone!

Now.

Seeing so many people dead before his eyes, that inexplicable feeling of remorse poured out uncontrollably. Even if he succeeded in seeking death later and could resurrect these people, the self-blame in his heart would not easily fade.

Yi Feng solemnly surveyed all the corpses and also fed elixir pills to the few who still showed faint signs of life.

Yet, his entire being was enveloped in unprecedented rage!

Seeing the old man's complexion seemed to improve slightly, finally clinging to his last breath.

Yi Feng hurried back to his side and asked with grave seriousness.

"Was it done by someone from the Fallen Divine Palace?"

As soon as the words fell.

The old man, incredibly weak, managed a slight nod, struggling in vain to speak.

At that very moment.

A deep voice suddenly resonated through the air, sounding even more enraged than Yi Feng!

"You, are their reliance?"

"My son's current state is all thanks to you?!"

Yi Feng sharply looked up.

Only then did he notice several figures standing atop the cloud layers in the sky.

Apart from the disheveled young master and a few old men, there stood a middle-aged man in a long gown and a hunchbacked old man at the forefront.

Judging by their bearing, that middle-aged man was the true Divine Palace elder.

These dead and injured cultivators were all their handiwork!

Yi Feng rose angrily, his cold eyes fixed intently on them.

"Your son bullied and humiliated people first, killing many cultivators. I merely made him do some manual labor. And you actually killed so many people? Is this the so-called virtue of your Divine Palace?!"

Liu Changfeng's eyes flashed with malice as he looked down from above.

"Insignificant ants have no right to speak of virtue!"

"My son was born noble, possessing the potential to attain the Dao! You lowly commoners are not fit to be mentioned in the same breath!"

"You dare to reduce him to such a wretched state? Today, this venerable one will have you all buried with him! I will tear you, this ignorant ant, limb from limb! If I return later and find my son's Dao heart damaged, I will scour the entire Lan Star and exterminate all nine generations of your kin!"

His words dripped with superiority, his eyes seeing no one else.

Truly, like father, like son.

It seemed as if all living beings were less precious than their father-son pair in this man's eyes. In the view of such people, they themselves could never be wrong; the world was always at fault.

The more Yi Feng listened, the more his fury burned.

At this moment.

He suddenly didn't want to hold back or invite attacks anymore, because he hardly believed that such arrogant so-called "big shots" truly had much chance of killing him.

Taking a slow step forward.

Yi Feng drew the Primordial Greatsword. Its cold gleam reflected the blood staining the ground, and his voice suddenly turned icy, carrying a kind of undeniable deterrent force!

"When did I ever say I would let you leave?"

Advancing a few more steps, he exuded an indescribable pressure!

He looked, for a moment, genuinely like a peerless expert.

The figures in the sky were first stunned, then smiles appeared, followed by uproarious laughter, as if watching an ant throw a tantrum.

"Hahaha..."

"Truly an ant, fearless in its ignorance!"

"Brat, do you even know what Primordial Ancient Power is?"

"Hmph, His Excellency has half-stepped into the Primordial Realm. An ant like you could never hope to glimpse such heights in your entire life!"

Liu Changfeng's lips curled slightly, his eyes holding pity.

"The world is foolish, always thinking a grain of rice's glow can rival the brilliance of the full moon."

The mocking commentary continued.

But Yi Feng's footsteps halted.

At this very moment, his mind was perfectly clear. The noises of the world couldn't reach his ears; his eyes held only the figure of that big shot standing calmly in the sky.

With a light tap of his toes, gripping the Greatsword tightly, he soared into the air!

"Whoosh!"

"Crunch!"

In a flash of lightning, a single sword stroke split the sky!

No one saw how that sword was unleashed. By the time they regained their senses, Yi Feng had already passed by the group and stood quietly atop the clouds, sword in hand.

Liu Changfeng, who had been smiling confidently moments before, had been cleanly sliced in two!

All the visitors from the Divine Palace suddenly froze mid-air!

At this moment.

The entire scene fell into stunned silence, the very world holding its breath!