The Holy Land

A month passed in the blink of an eye since they parted after drinks.

It was early summer, and the weather gradually became a bit hot and dry. Only at night would there be a slight, cool breeze.

This should have been the best time for drinking and chatting into the night, but the black-clad young man never appeared again. Yi Feng also left his temporary residence at the Sage King Palace, participating in the selection as promised and setting off for the Snow Moon Holy Land.

Unsurprisingly.

He successfully became the Holy Son of this generation, thrilling the entire Nanli Kingdom.

From the higher-ups of the sects to the common people, everyone thought Yi Feng was about to soar into the heavens. They schemed to obtain opportunities through his protection, and the whole nation was immersed in the beautiful dream that when one man achieves the Dao, even his poultry and dogs rise to heaven.

However.

In the distant Snow Moon Holy Land, Yi Feng encountered an unprecedented, drastic change!

When he arrived at the Snow Moon Holy Land.

In front of the holy palace gates, a deacon elder sized him up a few times before suddenly lowering his eyes and sneering.

"This is the Holy Son Yi Feng offered by the Nanli Kingdom? It seems he has already broken through to the Divine Mansion Realm. He has some aptitude and is barely qualified to become a cauldron for His Excellency's cultivation."

As soon as the words fell, the people of the Holy Land who had accompanied Yi Feng also revealed ruthless expressions.

"The Elder is absolutely right. This person indeed has considerable talent. He can be called a once-in-a-century genius of the Nanli Kingdom. Even to the Holy Lord, he will be of some use!"

"Indeed, he is much stronger than the trash the Nanli Kingdom offered previously."

"The Elder is wise. Our journey this time was extremely arduous, and we went through great trouble to bring this boy back. We hope you will put in a good word for us in front of the Holy Lord."

The few of them wore fawning faces, secretly passing treasures to the old man in front of the holy palace, their eyes full of sycophancy.

Hearing their words clearly and seeing their expressions.

Yi Feng's eyes darkened, and he immediately felt that something was terribly wrong.

"Cauldron?!"

"Could it be that this is the real reason your Snow Moon Holy Palace recruits Holy Sons? The geniuses recommended by various countries over the generations have all been used by you!"

Hearing Yi Feng's angry questioning, the people of the Holy Palace burst into continuous laughter.

"Hahaha..."

"Genius? Do you cultivators from small countries even deserve such a reputation?"

"For you mediocrities to be qualified to become His Excellency's cauldrons is already a tremendous honor. Surrender without a fight!"

"It has been like this for hundreds of years. No one has ever been able to escape. This is your destiny!"

Looking at their disdainful, laughing appearances, Yi Feng's heart suddenly turned as cold as frost.

He had never thought of relying on the Snow Moon Holy Palace, nor did he care about the so-called status of a Holy Son. He only came here to broaden his horizons and reach a higher level.

To have come this far in his life, he relied solely on his own bitter cultivation!

But Yi Feng never expected that the legendary Holy Land would actually use the prodigies of various countries as cauldrons. Beneath their sanctimonious exterior, they hid the evil deed of devouring others' cultivation!

Truly, golden jade on the outside, but rotten cotton on the inside!

Holy Land?

This title was simply utterly ridiculous!

The so-called Snow Moon Holy Land was nothing but a den of filth, a dirty place with an empty reputation!

Yi Feng's anger surged, but he also knew he likely couldn't defeat them by force.

He immediately executed his movement technique and soared into the sky. The people present didn't expect him to be so bold and resolute. Someone subconsciously tried to stop him, only to be injured by a terrifying sword aura!

In just a few breaths of time.

Yi Feng had already fled with his sword, shocking the surroundings into continuous shouts.

The deacon elder of the Snow Moon Holy Land flew into a rage, roaring incessantly!

"Bastard!"

"This boy actually dares to flee on the spot. What nerve!"

Catching a glimpse of the ravine left by the sword aura in front of the Holy Palace gates, a look of apprehension appeared even in the elder's eyes.

"I didn't expect him to have such sword dao cultivation. A momentary lapse of attention and he actually escaped! If we let him escape back to the Nanli Kingdom and spout nonsense, it will definitely damage our Holy Land's reputation. If he continues to grow in the future, he will inevitably become a great disaster!"

"No matter what, this boy absolutely cannot be left alive!"

Following the elder's furious voice, the surrounding disciples of the Holy Land were about to give chase.

Just before they left.

The elder's eyes shifted, and he issued another order in a deep voice!

"Hurry and chase him down. This boy's attainments in the sword dao are extraordinary. You must not hold back in the slightest; you must attack with all your might!"

"Later, I will personally send a message to the various sects in the name of the Holy Land, saying that Yi Feng, as the Holy Son of our sect, did not think of repaying the sect, but actually dared to steal our Holy Land's treasures and abscond. This is truly a heinous crime!"

"This way, even if he is lucky enough to escape back to the Nanli Kingdom, he will have absolutely no place to stay. The major sects will inevitably send people to hunt him down, and he is destined to die!"

Hearing this, the surrounding people showed reverence in their eyes and bowed.

"The Elder is wise!"

"This way, Yi Feng won't be able to escape even if he had wings, and our Holy Land's reputation will never be tarnished. This move of killing two birds with one stone is truly exquisite!"

The few of them continued to flatter him, and the elder was quite pleased, but thinking of Yi Feng's decisiveness and courage, he still didn't dare to be too careless.

In a flash, he waved his hand with a cold sneer and ordered.

"Go quickly! You absolutely cannot let this boy live!"

Dozens of Holy Land disciples responded with a bow and successively soared into the sky.

Before the sky was bright.

Yi Feng was being hunted and fleeing, while the name of a traitor spread throughout the major sects.

Sprinting thousands of miles overnight, he struggled to return to the Nanli Kingdom. The Holy Land's pursuers behind him were still in hot pursuit. Even if Yi Feng wasn't afraid of them, he knew he couldn't afford to be entangled in battle, so he could only flee all the way south.

That night, the major sects all received the transmission from the Snow Moon Holy Land, and a shockwave swept through the entire Nanli Kingdom. Yi Feng, who had been highly anticipated by the masses not long ago, turned into a traitor to the Holy Land in the blink of an eye. This huge disparity and sudden change left countless people staring in astonishment.

Although many people knew Yi Feng's temperament and secretly thought that a character who hid his merits and fame was absolutely not someone who would steal treasures and become a traitor—and there were even many cultivators who voiced their doubts to their sects—the higher-ups of the major sects were extremely shrewd. They had already secretly weighed the pros and cons in their hearts, calculating all the benefits and drawbacks clearly.

Between Yi Feng and the Holy Land, which was more important?

The answer was obvious.

Regardless of whether it was true or false, as long as it was a transmission from the Holy Land, they just needed to act according to the Holy Land's orders. Even if they killed Yi Feng by mistake, they absolutely could not afford to offend the Snow Moon Holy Land!

As long as they could capture Yi Feng and win a favor from the Holy Land, even if the many resources they had invested in the past went down the drain, it didn't matter.

There was never any absolute morality in this world; only benefits were the eternal truth!

This was the cold reality.

Almost at the same time, the major sects sent out their inner elites to search for and hunt down Yi Feng. Before the sky was completely bright, the entire Nanli Kingdom had been swept into a storm of blood and gore!

As the sky gradually brightened, various sects rushed over from all directions, and the hunting party grew larger and larger, as if they were not hunting just Yi Feng alone, but millions of evil demons!

At dawn.

Yi Feng had been forced to the edge of Soul-Severing Cliff. Behind him were nearly ten thousand cultivators, and in front of him was a bottomless abyss. Even the opposite cliff was crowded with familiar faces from various sects.

With one man and one sword, even though he had cultivation that reigned supreme in the current generation of the Nanli Kingdom, holding out until this moment was his limit. His entire body had long been dyed in blood, and he was panting heavily.

Fleeing all the way here, Yi Feng didn't know how many people fighting for their lives he had killed. There were outstanding talents from sects he had once sparred with, as well as peer sword cultivators he had met once.

He couldn't understand why these people, who had no grudges or enmity with him, insisted on fighting to the death?

In this desperate situation.

To survive, he had no time to overthink. Whether they were friends or strangers, a single clash left them as dead souls under his sword. He had long since gone mad with bloodlust!

Along the thousand-mile journey south, the path was painted in blood as far as the eye could see!

At this moment, even though Yi Feng's cultivation base was mostly depleted and he had lost his former effortless grace, his blood-soaked robes and the longsword held before him made his killing intent all the more chilling.

In an instant, despite the presence of nearly ten thousand cultivators, not a single one dared to step forward!

Everyone wore expressions of deep dread, their eyes fixed on the blood-clad figure by the cliff.

It was not until they saw beads of sweat forming on Yi Feng's forehead that someone finally mustered the courage to speak up in a deep voice.

"Fellow Daoists! Yi Feng is at the end of his rope! No matter how formidable he is, as long as we attack together, we can definitely take this villain's life!"

As soon as these words were spoken, they immediately drew a chorus of agreement.

"That is right! No matter how strong he is, how can he withstand so many of us!"

"Two fists cannot block four hands. Even if he sprouts wings, he cannot escape!"

"No matter how glorious he was in the past, he is now the enemy of the world. Fellow Daoists, there is no need to fear him!"

"Slay the traitor, today is the day!"

"Slay the traitor, today is the day!"

...

The crowd grew increasingly agitated, chanting their self-righteous slogans.

Even though he did not understand how he had incurred such public wrath, a few of those voices sounded painfully familiar to Yi Feng.

He quietly turned his gaze, only to see the shouters panic and immediately fall silent.

Seeing them clearly, Yi Feng froze on the spot.

"Junior Martial Brother? You guys?!"

He never expected this.

Driven to the brink of death, the ones screaming the loudest for his blood were actually his former sect brothers. He had not returned to the sect to visit for a long time, yet their reunion was as mortal enemies.

What absolute irony.

Filled with bitter sorrow and raging fury, Yi Feng stared at them and squeezed the words through his gritted teeth!

"Why!"

"Why are you hunting me down too?!"