Chapter 78

"Quick, take cover—"

Kang Ci strained to shout as loudly as he could, but his voice was quickly drowned out by the ensuing roar.

Outside the protective array of Tongyou Peak, just as the last gap was about to close, a stream of green and gold light, resembling a writhing giant snake, appeared from the horizon and almost instantly squeezed through the gap in the array, then darted into the patrol riders who had not yet evacuated.

Boom—

A deafening roar echoed, and an entire patrol squad was engulfed by the burst of two-colored light, drowning out all surrounding sounds.

Dozens of red cloud beasts screeched and ran wildly, while Kang Ci struggled to control his mount, his gaze involuntarily drawn to the two-colored light slowly dissipating not far away.

However, all that remained there was a massive crater.

An entire patrol squad, including Li Zengyu, who had reached the Martial Realm, five people and five horses, had vanished without a trace!

"Quick, retreat, quick, retreat!"

As the sounds returned, Kang Ci's panicked shouts could already be heard.

In the Fourth Heaven, another Martial Spirit Realm practitioner had made a move!

A long laugh echoed from afar, and in a moment, it had already reached the nearly closed protective array.

"Please show yourself, the Fourth Heaven practitioner on Luohui Peak!"

A martial practitioner, who looked younger than Lang Xiaoyun but had a rather defiant expression, stood in the air before Luohui Peak with his hands behind his back.

"I am Lang Jingyun of Siling Mountain. Please enlighten me!"

From their names alone, one could tell the relationship between Lang Jingyun and Lang Xiaoyun.

Kang Ci, who was leading the patrol riders to retreat from the edge of the protective array, heard the Fourth Heaven practitioner's challenge and couldn't help but look at Luohui Peak.

"Manager Shang..."

Kang Ci's gaze carried a hint of "as expected."

To manipulate three severed iron chains with such ease, even with the help of the array's power, Kang Ci knew he couldn't do it, at least not so effortlessly.

After all, Kang Ci himself was a Third Layer Martial Realm practitioner, and his advancement was far earlier than Tang Yuan's. He was the top expert under Chief Manager Yun Jing of the World Affairs Department, and among all the practitioners below the Fourth Heaven in the entire Tongyou Academy, he was one of the best.

If even he couldn't do it, Kang Ci didn't believe anyone below the Fourth Heaven could.

Even when Kang Ci was still studying and cultivating at Tongyou Academy, Shang Bing had already been in charge of the Merit Department.

Strictly speaking, Shang Bing was a contemporary of Kou Chongxue and the four deputy mountain masters, and he should call him "teacher"!

This couldn't be explained by Shang Bing advancing to the Martial Realm twenty years earlier than Kang Ci. Unless this seemingly unassuming Merit Department manager had already reached the Fourth Heaven of Martial Dao, just like Dong Qianzui of the Scripture Hall!

"What, are you going to be a coward and hide?"

A hint of impatience appeared on Lang Jingyun's face as he shouted, "Do you think this barely closed array can withstand my attack?"

As he spoke, Lang Jingyun suddenly struck out, pressing his palm toward the invisible array from several dozen feet away.

A three-zhang-wide palm print suddenly appeared on the invisible array, and as Lang Jingyun continued to press, the palm print became increasingly indented, as if it could break through the array at any moment.

At that moment, the sound of iron chains clashing in the air came from above, and three iron chains swept in, striking the palm print in the air one after another.

Lang Jingyun's palm suddenly trembled, and the large palm print in the air disappeared, and the invisible array returned to its original state.

"Hehe, finally couldn't resist, huh?"

Lang Jingyun seemed unsurprised, even a bit delighted!

...

At the foot of Tongyou Peak, Kang Ci led the patrol riders, who were still shaken, back to a safe position. Looking back, he saw a figure stepping out from Luohui Peak, walking in the air. Who else could it be but the chief manager of the Scripture Hall, Shang Bing?

At the same time, Kang Ci felt a movement in his heart, and Shang Bing's voice echoed in his ear: "Go to Luohui Peak to take charge!"

Kang Ci's gaze swept over the few Martial Realm practitioners beside him, seeing them all looking at the figure outside Luohui Peak with astonishment. He then said in a deep voice, "I'm going to take charge at Luohui Peak. Leave this place to Wutinghai, the patrol officer!"

Wutinghai was already a patrol officer, and after Kang Ci left, he was the highest in cultivation and the most experienced.

No one was surprised or objected.

In fact, apart from Liu Qinglan's advancement to the Fourth Heaven, which truly delighted them, the sudden display of Fourth Heaven cultivation by Dong Qianzui and Shang Bing brought more surprise than joy.

Kang Ci, seeing this, didn't say much. He leaped off his red cloud beast, soaring like a large bird, and in a few glides, he had already climbed two to three hundred zhang up Tongyou Peak.

Although Third Heaven practitioners couldn't fly like Fourth Heaven practitioners, short-distance glides were not difficult.

Of course, such glides covering hundreds of zhang would already be seen as flying by some, especially by ordinary people.

At that moment, the sound of clothes rustling came from behind him. Turning back, he saw Shang Xi following him, and he asked in surprise, "Young Miss Shang, why are you following me?"

Shang Xi said in a deep voice, "Kaiyuan Peak hasn't moved yet. I'll go check it out!"

Kang Ci opened his mouth to say something but then said, "It's good to check. But be ready to support those below!"

...

Outside Luohui Peak, Lang Jingyun looked at Shang Bing, who had appeared, and laughed, "I said it, that old man who used secret techniques to forcibly raise his cultivation to the Fourth Heaven, how could he have the ability to injure She Zhiqing? Indeed, if you secretly helped, and considering She's usual arrogance, it makes sense that he suffered such a great loss!"

Shang Bing looked at the person before him, ignoring his speculations, and said coldly, "You, a Fourth Heaven practitioner, attack lower-level practitioners. Aren't you afraid I'll go to Siling Mountain to kill people?"

Lang Jingyun laughed, "Nonsense! A Fourth Heaven practitioner like you, hiding on Luohui Peak, what for? If my guess is correct, the defeat and expulsion of our side's practitioners earlier must have been your doing, right?"

Shang Bing's eyelids twitched, and he said in a deep voice, "Talking more is pointless. Let's settle this today!"

"Agreed!"

Lang Jingyun clapped and laughed, "Too bad you're not Shang Bo. I was hoping to see his Shang family spear technique."

"Based on what?"

Shang Bing sneered, his voice filled with mockery, "Win me with your sword first!"

A long sword, seemingly made entirely of ice, appeared in Shang Bing's hand. As he swung it, the air around it froze.

The sword hadn't even risen, but the cold had already spread.

Lang Jingyun, losing his earlier disdain, retreated several dozen zhang in the air, avoiding the cold sword aura.

At the same time, Lang Jingyun pulled out a four-sided whip from his sleeve and struck it hard in front of him.

Crack—

A cracking sound echoed, and a strip of ice had extended in front of Lang Jingyun, but it was shattered by his four-sided whip.

At the same time, a green and a black aura emerged from two opposite sides of the whip, stirring the surrounding elemental energy and rapidly sweeping toward Shang Bing.

Shang Bing, seeing this, felt a chill. He swung his ice sword, releasing twelve sword beams, each forming an ice wall in the air.

Lang Jingyun's four-sided whip broke through ten of Shang Bing's ice walls in the air, and its momentum was only slightly halted by the eleventh wall. By the time the twelfth wall shattered, the swirling elemental energy finally dissipated.

Shang Bing held his ice sword horizontally in front of his chest, looking at Lang Jingyun several dozen zhang away, his expression becoming unusually serious: "Second Layer Martial Spirit Realm?"

Lang Jingyun smiled smugly, "Surprised, aren't you?"

As he spoke, a thunderous roar echoed: "The 'Mystic Light Ice Sword,' you must be Shang Lubing! You're still alive! Jingyun, kill him!"

Lang Jingyun was first taken aback, then chuckled, "Interesting! Mystic Light Ice Sword? Shang Lubing? It seems there's some history here I don't know about."

At that moment, another long laugh echoed, drowning out the thunderous roar: "Focus on the fight, Old Lang. Why are you shouting so loudly? Afraid others don't know you suffered a great loss under the 'Three Cold Ones of Youzhou'?"

"You're talking nonsense—"

Before he could finish, the same voice interrupted: "Manager Shang has been hiding his identity in the academy for twenty years, and we didn't know his true identity. We are truly blind!"

The first speaker was clearly Lang Xiaoyun, and the second was undoubtedly Ji Wenhong.

From the way Lang Xiaoyun's words were easily interrupted, it was clear that Ji Wenhong had the upper hand in their confrontation.

However, from Ji Wenhong's tone, it was not the joy of suddenly gaining a Fourth Heaven combatant, but rather a hint of suspicion and distance.

Shang Bing, or Shang Lubing, said in a deep voice, "This isn't the time to talk about it. After this is over, I will explain everything to everyone!"

"What explanation? I've heard Manager Shang talk about the 'Three Cold Ones of Youzhou.' Mountain Master Kou is the leader of the 'Three Cold Ones,' and Manager Shang is his sworn brother. If others didn't know, Mountain Master Kou couldn't have been unaware. This must be a strategic move by Mountain Master Kou!"

Liu Qinglan's voice was loud and her tone was ungracious, but her reasoning was weak, seemingly to counter Ji Wenhong but actually to boost the morale of their side.

Ji Wenhong didn't speak again, but Dong Qianzui's slightly沧桑 (weathered) voice followed, "Why so many words? Save your strength!"

But as he spoke, Ji Wenhong's voice, filled with shock and anger, suddenly echoed: "Old Dong, be careful!"