The scattered pursuers had vanished without a trace. Strangely, an immense spiritual energy fluctuation persistently followed them from afar, impossible to shake off no matter how they tried to evade it.
Lei Xiuyuan suddenly halted. Chongyi Zhenren immediately shielded Su Wan and the others behind him. His eyes fixed on the two slender horns on Lei Xiuyuan’s temples, but he remained silent.
Lei Xiuyuan pointed westward and spoke softly, “Fly towards Qingqiu. When you see Li Fei, she’ll explain everything.”
Su Wan nervously asked, “Junior Brother Lei… what about you?”
Everyone could sense the massive spiritual energy fluctuation behind them. Was Lei Xiuyuan planning to stay behind and handle it? They couldn’t help but glance at the two slender horns on his temples. The pursuer must be a celestial from Wuyue Yan, and Lei Xiuyuan was a Yaksha, a legendary being known for its extreme violence. If he stayed behind, would he kill the Wuyue Yan celestial? Their gazes towards him inevitably turned peculiar.
Lei Xiuyuan sneered, “Slaughter all the celestials from the Central Plains. How about that?”
Everyone was startled. Su Wan angrily retorted, “That’s not funny at all! If you’re going to kill someone, why don’t you start with us?”
Seeing Lei Xiuyuan’s cold smile and silence, she was about to speak again when Chongyi Zhenren suddenly patted her shoulder and said gently, “Li Fei has always been unique since childhood. I could never figure out why, but seeing you today, it’s suddenly clear. You’re all from overseas, aren’t you?”
Lei Xiuyuan replied calmly, “That’s right. If you want to distance yourselves now, there’s still time.”
Chongyi Zhenren laughed his initial shock at seeing Lei Xiuyuan’s Yaksha form had completely vanished. He laughed while sighing, “I’ve watched that child grow up… I don’t believe she would do evil.”
Lei Xiuyuan turned back to gaze at everyone and slowly said, “You are her concerns, so I rescued you to prevent her from being constrained. Whether you accept her concern is not for me or her to decide. I promised her not to harm anyone. After the heavenly thunder and fire sea arrive, I’ll bid farewell to the Central Plains. You decide for yourselves which side to believe. I’ve said all I can.”
Seeing him leave abruptly in the direction they came from, Su Wan urgently called out, “Wait! What are you going to do? Ye Chanyue and the others haven’t been rescued yet! You…”
Before she finished speaking, Lei Xiuyuan had already flown out of sight. It was unclear if he had heard her words. Su Wan turned to follow, but Chongyi Zhenren held her back, “There’s no need to chase. If he wanted to kill, he would have done so already. Why wait until now?”
Zhao Min, who had been silent all along, finally spoke, “He’s a Yaksha…”
Deng Xiguang’s jaw was still dropped; he wondered if he was dreaming and slapped himself hard.
Honestly, the revelation of Lei Xiuyuan being a Yaksha was too sudden. He had so casually and openly revealed his true form to them, without any intention of hiding it, leaving them at a loss for words.
Chongyi Zhenren sighed, “We should go to Qingqiu and find Li Fei to ask about the specifics.”
Zhao Min’s voice grew lower, “Li Fei is also from overseas…” She couldn’t finish, shaking her head with a pale face.
Chongyi Zhenren smiled, “You’ve been close companions for six years. You should know that child’s nature very well. As a disciple of the Chongyi Sect, we shouldn’t judge people by their origins, but by their character.”
Zhao Min remained silent for a moment, then smiled bitterly, “Master, I just think… that child never said a word to us about this.”
“The things we care about most are often the ones we’re most anxious about. Let’s go first. We’ll talk more when we see her. Don’t let anyone catch up to us.”
Lei Xiuyuan flew back for a while, then saw a streak of golden light flickering in the far distance. Amidst the rolling clouds, a pair of enormous wings appeared intermittently. As the wings flapped, the golden light shimmered incessantly.
Seeming to sense his gaze, those golden wings suddenly flapped vigorously. From the mist and clouds, a Golden-Winged Dapeng burst through. Its long, golden feathers danced and fluttered, the light shifting unpredictably, exuding an indescribable nobility and pride.
Was this one of the four Sect Masters of Wuyue Yan, the divine beast Golden-Winged Dapeng? No wonder it could keep pursuing them. Legend had it that its vision extended for 90,000 li, and within that range, no demon, human, celestial, or beast, not even the smallest and on the ground, could escape its eyes.
Lei Xiuyuan opened his palm, conjuring a golden light sword. He hurled it like a meteor towards the Golden-Winged Dapeng’s chest. It screeched and flapped its wings to dodge, immediately fixing its enraged eyes on him and giving chase. Lei Xiuyuan turned, transforming into a streak of golden light, and flew swiftly towards Duantu in the State of Yue.
He had heard Su Wan’s words, but even he, knowing that Ji Tongzhou had revealed Li Fei’s secret, couldn’t help but hesitate for a moment.
To kill Ji Tongzhou or not? Unlike Li Fei, he didn’t have such delicate and sensitive emotions. His feelings towards these childhood friends had always been faint.
But feelings existed nonetheless.
Especially for Ji Tongzhou. Before regaining his memories, Ji Tongzhou had been a rival, a playmate, and a seemingly distant yet strangely close relationship. They had never truly engaged in a battle of magic… Thinking of this, Lei Xiuyuan couldn’t help but smile bitterly. Now, fighting Ji Tongzhou would be no different from bullying the weak. Even if his body was still too young, far from recovering to his peak, and without Li Fei by his side to amplify his power, dealing with a disciple in training would be no different from stepping on an ant.
This pleasure he had subtly longed for over six years could only come to a silent end.
Lei Xiuyuan rarely lost in memories, suddenly sensed another familiar spiritual energy fluctuation ahead. He immediately stopped and saw Guangwei Zhenren standing on his treasure sword, looking at him with shock and doubt. His gaze made Lei Xiuyuan feel a hint of reluctance to meet it, causing him to avoid it.
Guangwei Zhenren’s heart was in turmoil. The person before him had horns on his temples, surrounded by golden light—the legendary, extremely vicious Yaksha! Yet his face and attire were identical to his beloved disciple, Lei Xiuyuan!
Always quick-witted, he instantly understood why Cuixuan Xianren had been so obsessed and suspicious of Jiang Li Fei, and why Lei Xiuyuan had returned to Wuyue Yan alone. Yaksha?! They were truly foreign beings from overseas?! He had taken a Yaksha as his disciple, loving and teaching him wholeheartedly for six years.
Guangwei Zhenren felt as if thunder and lightning were raging inside him. Suddenly, he threw out the sword at his waist. The white-haired spirit of the sword condensed like smoke, gripping the sword and attacking with lightning speed. The spirit’s movements were fast, but Lei Xiuyuan was always faster, seemingly effortlessly dodging his attacks.
Seeing his form flicker in and out of sight, changing unpredictably, Guangwei Zhenren was even more shocked—no wonder the Yakshas could slaughter an entire celestial sect with just two people in the past. The sword spirit, not being human, could move so freely and nimbly, yet the Yaksha could be even swifter, even more unrestrained, so fast that even he couldn’t see clearly.
Guangwei Zhenren waved his long sleeve, and a vast thunder cloud enveloped a ten-li radius. The thundercloud was like a huge black snowball, enclosing this part of the world. Inside, thunder roared incessantly, deafening and earth-shaking. Dense, dazzling lightning fell from all directions, old and new shocks merging and intensifying. Whether human or demon trapped within the thundercloud, there would be no escape. This was his famous celestial technique, the Nine Heavens Mystic Thunder Great Method.
Lei Xiuyuan dodged around within the thundercloud. Seeing no more places to hide, his body suddenly flashed with golden light. He grabbed the relentlessly pursuing sword spirit, using it as a shield to break through the thundercloud. The poor spirit was struck by lightning until it was like a tattered rag, falling limply at Guangwei Zhenren’s feet. He was greatly shocked and hastily retreated.
Unexpectedly, Lei Xiuyuan suddenly appeared before him. Guangwei Zhenren, wielding a light sword, swung to stab him. To his surprise, Lei Xiuyuan neither dodged nor evaded, taking the sword head-on. The light sword pressed against his chest, barely penetrating, as if striking iron, unable to advance further.
As the thunder clouds gradually dispersed, the wind rose, and clouds flashed. The previously clamorous and intense atmosphere suddenly became quiet. The light sword in Guangwei Zhenren’s hand neither advanced nor retreated. He stared fixedly at Lei Xiuyuan.
The feeling was indescribable. An exceptionally talented and unyielding disciple, the most suitable he had ever taken in his lifetime. He had hoped to see him grow quickly, to achieve greatness, and had invested all his heart and soul. But suddenly, he had become a Yaksha, with horns on his head, surrounded by golden light, his gaze cold.
Why? How could he be a Yaksha? The one he had poured his heart into raising turned out to be the sworn enemy of the Central Plains celestials.
Guangwei Zhenren couldn’t say anything. He could only look at Lei Xiuyuan like this, even weakly praying in his heart that this was just a dream.
He watched as Lei Xiuyuan slowly cupped his hands, bowed deeply to him, and then slowly knelt. From his bosom, he took out the White Tiger Tail, holding it with both hands and presenting it before him.
“Too much rigidity leads to easy breakage; balancing firmness and flexibility is key,” Lei Xiuyuan’s voice was faint and low. “Thank you for your teachings, Master. Your disciple will never forget. Your disciple is unfilial, please take back your gift.”
Guangwei Zhenren suddenly burst into tears. Behind him, he sensed the spiritual energy fluctuation of the Golden-Winged Dapeng. It must be Sect Master Guiyuan bringing the divine beast in pursuit. Should he disregard everything and detain this disciple? Join forces with Sect Master Guiyuan to deal with him mercilessly as a great threat?
There was no time for careful consideration. Guangwei Zhenren forcefully took back the White Tiger Tail, retreated several zhang, and sternly said, “Go!”
This departure might be releasing a tiger back to the mountains, perhaps sowing the seeds of another nightmare for the Central Plains celestials. But at this moment, he couldn’t do it. He silently watched Lei Xiuyuan disappear beyond the horizon, his white beard and hair soaked by endless tears. Raising a tiger to invite calamity—he was shedding unstoppable tears for an extremely vicious being.
The clear and vast aura of the Golden-Winged Dapeng stopped behind him. Sect Master Guiyuan’s ethereal voice came from atop the great bird, “Guangwei, you let him go?”
Guangwei Zhenren turned and knelt, saying softly, “Guangwei is willing to accept punishment.”
Sect Master Guiyuan sighed lightly, “Let it be.”
After half a day of pursuit, he had more or less figured out the background of this Yaksha. For some reason, he seemed inferior to the two Yakshas from five hundred years ago. With his power combined with the Golden-Winged Dapeng, they should be able to capture him.
Sect Master Guiyuan gently waved the horsetail whisk in his hand, and several small black light balls shot out swiftly. His entire body, like a celestial crane, floated out lightly. His toes touched the black light balls, each step covering several li. After about a dozen steps, he saw Lei Xiuyuan’s golden figure flickering slightly in the clouds. Sect Master Guiyuan threw out his horsetail whisk, which immediately grew enormous. Thousands of soft hairs expanded like a flower, silently enveloping that golden figure.