Chapter 37: The Protective Mountain Formation

A casually set-up formation could never withstand the attacks of over a dozen Golden Core cultivators.

If this protective formation were to break, and these Golden Core cultivators invaded Tianlan Sect, what would they do?

Within Tianlan Sect, Ling Qingshu was the only Golden Core cultivator. The rest were at the Foundation Establishment stage, and they wouldn't last even one round against a Golden Core cultivator.

"No, I absolutely cannot let them enter. I need to stop them," Ling Qingshu thought to herself, gritting her teeth. Grasping her Fang Tian Sword, she flew out of the protective formation with a whoosh.

"Stop!" Ling Qingshu shouted, using her spiritual sword to deflect the one aimed at the formation.

The group of Golden Core cultivators stopped upon seeing her.

A burly man stepped forward and said, "We don't mean any harm, but we've been waiting at the foot of the mountain for an hour, and your ancestor hasn't come out to receive us. Go call your ancestor; we need to speak with him."

Ling Qingshu glanced at the group of Golden Core cultivators, her face cautious. "Sorry, our ancestor is currently at a critical point in his cultivation and is in seclusion. He needs some time. Please wait a little longer."

She paused and added, "It shouldn't be too long."

With that, Ling Qingshu gave a polite bow.

For now, she had to stabilize these people. Once Elder Xu returned, everything would be fine.

"Hmph, if you want us to wait, then let go of this formation and let us in. Brew us some good tea and treat us well. Making us wait here—what kind of reception is that?" The burly man sneered coldly.

Ling Qingshu knew that making people wait at the foot of the mountain wasn't the proper way to entertain guests. But who knew if these Golden Core cultivators were enemies or guests?

If they were enemies, letting them into Tianlan Sect would be like inviting wolves into the house, putting the entire sect at risk.

So, they had no choice but to let them wait. Ling Qingshu silently prayed, hoping that Xu Yang would show up soon.

"Sorry, but because of your strength, seniors, we cannot let you in," Ling Qingshu said frankly.

"Hmph, you think that if you don't let us in, we won't be able to get in?" The man sneered and clenched his fist. A ball of spiritual energy formed in his hand and quickly hurled toward the protective formation.

With a loud boom, the formation was struck by the spiritual energy, and a layer of pure white energy covered it. The formation trembled violently, emitting continuous booming sounds, as if it were about to collapse at any moment.

"Stop!" Ling Qingshu's face changed, and she shouted.

But the burly man showed no sign of stopping. He ignored her completely, continuing to hurl wave after wave of spiritual energy at the formation.

"I told you to stop!" Ling Qingshu's expression darkened as she glanced at the formation, which was now on the verge of collapse. Suddenly, she charged toward the burly man.

"Extreme Fate Sword!" A surge of spiritual energy gathered at the tip of the Fang Tian Sword. With a booming sound, the world seemed to change color as Ling Qingshu's aura suddenly became unstoppable.

"Shit, what kind of woman is this?" The burly man exclaimed in surprise.

"Attack together, let's kill this woman first!" the burly man said.

Instantly, over a dozen Golden Core cultivators turned their attacks toward Ling Qingshu.

One of them swung a spiritual sword, sending a blood-red beam of light straight at Ling Qingshu.

Another cultivator took out a square seal and threw it into the air, where it instantly grew to the size of a house and fell directly toward Ling Qingshu's head. If it hit, she would surely be crushed into a pulp.

The other Golden Core cultivators also displayed their skills, launching various techniques toward Ling Qingshu.

In an instant, Ling Qingshu's situation became precarious.

Yu Sanniang's expression changed. When she saw the Golden Core cultivators attacking Ling Qingshu, she knew something was wrong.

If they killed Ling Qingshu, Xu Yang would never let them off.

"Stop! Don't attack!" Yu Sanniang shouted anxiously.

However, no matter how much Yu Sanniang shouted, the others showed no sign of stopping.

Ling Qingshu dodged the attacks coming from all directions, but she could only avoid two of them. When she tried to dodge the third, she was already too exhausted to move further.

The massive square seal was less than a centimeter from her head.

Ling Qingshu closed her eyes, resigned to her fate.

Ancestor, where are you...?

After waiting for what felt like an eternity, Ling Qingshu still hadn't met her death. Confused, she opened her eyes and saw a golden light swirling beside her.

The square seal, just a centimeter away from her head, had stopped moving—it could no longer advance.

"Ancestor, you're back!" Ling Qingshu exclaimed with joy.

At that moment, a meteor streaked across the sky from afar, raising a cloud of dust and stones as it roared through the air like a stampede of horses. The sound grew louder and closer until, with a whoosh, Xu Yang appeared before Ling Qingshu before she even had time to react.

"I'm here, don't be afraid," Xu Yang said.

Ling Qingshu let out a sigh of relief. Her ancestor was always able to appear at the most critical moments.

Xu Yang glanced at the protective formation, which was on the verge of collapse, then looked at Ling Qingshu and shook his head.

Why were there always so many people looking for death?

"Are you Xu Yang?" the burly man asked with suspicion.

Xu Yang certainly didn't look like someone who should be called an ancestor. From the burly man's understanding, an ancestor should be a white-haired elder, not someone who appeared younger than himself.

"You want to say your final words? Hurry up, you don't have much time left," Xu Yang said indifferently.

"I'm Yu Tianxiong. Here's an invitation from the Princess of Tianwu County. Take a look," Yu Tianxiong said, tossing a piece of paper to Xu Yang.

Xu Yang caught it and read it. It was from the Princess of Tianwu County, who had noticed Xu Yang's abilities and wanted him to serve under her. The tone was arrogant, as if it were an honor for Xu Yang to serve as her subordinate.

Xu Yang silently put away the invitation and raised an eyebrow. "Is there anything else?"

Yu Tianxiong arrogantly lifted his chin and said, "You've offended the Lingbao Auction House, and your life is short. However, if you choose to work for the Princess of Tianwu County, she can spare your life."

"This is your honor. You should kneel and thank her," he said, then took out a vial of poison from his robe and tossed it to Xu Yang.

Xu Yang caught the vial, and a foul smell wafted from it—it was poison.