Chapter 3: One Sword Cuts the Golden Core

Xu Yang looked at Liu Zhen and said calmly.

Liu Zhen paused in his steps, and in an instant, a murderous aura shot up to the sky.

"Good, good, good! My son, how tragic you are! You died for the sect, and died honorably! As your father, I will bring the head of the thief to your case and offer it as your blood meal!"

"No matter how you disguise yourself, die now!"

Liu Zhen roared angrily, suddenly leaping into the air, and with a slap, a giant illusory hand appeared in mid-air, descending upon Xu Yang.

At the Golden Core stage, riding clouds and mist was a trivial matter.

Xu Yang's expression remained indifferent, and with a single hand, he supported the sky, shattering the illusory giant hand with a punch.

"If you won't come down, then I'll destroy your sect first!"

Xu Yang spoke and with a leap, he shot out from the space created by the shattered hand, directly killing his way into the crowd of Yunshan Sect disciples.

His movements were swift, like a bolt of lightning.

Because Xu Yang was only at the Qi Refining stage, the obvious flaw was that he couldn't fly, only capable of short bursts of levitation.

But if you refuse to descend, then I'll kill everyone in your sect first!

Liu Zhen's eyes nearly cracked with rage, roaring, "You impudent brat, dare you!"

He dove from the sky, chasing after Xu Yang.

At the same time, he was even more shocked—Xu Yang truly couldn't fly!

This person, could he really be at the Qi Refining stage? Or perhaps at most at the Foundation Establishment stage?

But why were the Yunshan Sect disciples, whether at the Qi Refining stage or Full Foundation Establishment, all no match for him in a single exchange?

Even he himself couldn't move this quickly!

This person must be killed!

Sensing Liu Zhen's attack from behind, Xu Yang gave a cold smile, slapping a Yunshan Sect disciple away. His feet moved in a quick maneuver, and as he turned, his hand extended like a claw, meeting Liu Zhen's hand with a powerful clash.

Xu Yang gripped Liu Zhen's palm, and a tremendous force exploded out, crack!

Liu Zhen's face changed drastically as he felt the overwhelming power in Xu Yang's hand, unable to resist. The force broke through his internal spiritual energy and surged through his body, crack!—his arm bone snapped.

"How is this possible?"

"What realm are you at?"

Liu Zhen was truly horrified. A person who couldn't fly, how could he possess such immense power?

Xu Yang didn't answer, merely giving Liu Zhen a light push, sending him flying backward, spewing blood.

"I can't defeat him!"

Liu Zhen was drenched in cold sweat, unable to believe what was happening.

"Yunshan Sect's 18th generation Sect Master, please, Elder Ancestor, come out of seclusion!"

Suddenly, Liu Zhen's voice, infused with spiritual energy, erupted in a shout, causing Yunshan to tremble.

"So there's a Golden Core after all. No wonder you're so confident in destroying my Tianlan Sect!" Xu Yang's lips curled into a faint smile.

Suddenly, he turned his head sharply. On the main hall in front of Yunshan Sect, an old man appeared.

The old man took a step forward and instantly appeared at the battlefield between Xu Yang and Liu Zhen.

"Nascent Soul? No, it's a Half-Step Nascent Soul!"

Xu Yang's expression became serious.

If the Qi Refining, Foundation Establishment, and Golden Core stages focused on refining the self, then after the Nascent Soul stage, one cultivates the Great Dao. A Half-Step Nascent Soul meant that the person had already touched upon the Great Dao, able to communicate with the heavens and earth to a certain extent.

Although Xu Yang was only at the Qi Refining stage, his understanding of the Great Dao was far beyond that of ordinary people.

After all, he had lived for a hundred thousand years—he had lived far too long. He could easily tell that the old man was a Half-Step Nascent Soul.

The elder smiled at Xu Yang and asked, "Young friend, what cultivation realm are you at?"

"Qi Refining Stage!" Xu Yang replied casually.

The elder did not object, smiling as he continued, "This mountain was once desolate, with no one interested. Then, a person came, a genius of extraordinary talent who shook the entire Qi Prefecture. He traveled far and wide and eventually reached the Yuan Ying realm. He brought along an old servant, and swore to establish the greatest sect in the world. He chose this mountain and founded the Yunshan Sect!"

"He had the old servant cultivate, then set out to find the true path of the Dao, leaving the old servant behind to guard the sect. He has not returned in five hundred years."

Xu Yang nodded and said, "So, you are that old servant? Or perhaps you want to tell me that behind this mountain gate, there is a Nascent Soul, or even a Cave Heaven expert?"

"Young friend, how about stopping here?" The elder smiled and continued, "Your Tianlan Sect is in decline, where the strong prey on the weak, yet you rise up and come to my mountain gate. My Yunshan Sect is not powerless to retaliate. If you stop now, my sect will offer compensation."

"Ancestor, no!" Liu Zhen's pupils contracted.

"Shut up! Since when has the Yunshan Sect become a place where the Liu family makes all the decisions?" the elder shouted.

"I disagree!" Xu Yang shook his head and said, "The law of the jungle is inevitable. If I had not broken through today, the Tianlan Sect would have perished, wiped off the face of the earth, and I would have had no choice but to take revenge. But since I have broken through today, it is to the death!"

"In that case!" The elder smiled lightly, his eyes suddenly turning cold. He produced a disk and threw it into the air. Instantly, ten colored lights flashed, and a phantom formation flew out from the disk.

Immediately, the entire Yunshan Sect was covered by a massive formation.

"Then you shall die!"

Liu Zhen froze for a moment, then rejoiced. Xu Yang's intrusion had been so sudden that the protective formation of the mountain had not been activated.

In fact, he was not fully in control of this formation, but he had not expected that the core formation disk would be in the elder's hands.

"Hahaha, you will die today without a doubt!" Liu Zhen exclaimed.

"Our Yunshan Sect's great formation is a top-tier Xuan-level formation, known as the Seven Kill Formation! Each kill is stronger than the last! Today, even if you are at the Nascent Soul stage, you will die here!"

Liu Zhen was extremely pleased. He finally understood the elder's strategy for speaking with Xu Yang.

The delay was for the purpose of activating the formation disk!

Now that the disk was activated, Xu Yang could not escape.

And Xu Yang, of course, understood the elder's scheme. However, he made no move to stop him.

Let the elder see the greatest hope, and then let him fall into despair within that hope.

To kill is to destroy the heart!

Xu Yang smiled lightly and touched his storage ring. A long sword immediately appeared in his hand.

"Old friend, today, I'll start by slaying a Golden Core!"

He drew his sword!

It felt as though the entire Yunshan Sect had become cold.

This sword was forged by his master just before ascending. When Xu Yang had been unable to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage, his master had used his own life to invoke the Ninth Heavenly Tribulation, gathering meteorite iron, countless rare species, and materials that may never be found again, to forge this sword.

It was named: the Life-Saving Sword! To protect Xu Yang's life!

"Seven Kill Formation, First Kill!"

The moment Xu Yang drew his sword, the elder sensed something was wrong. The chill rising in his heart made him shudder.

He immediately activated the formation disk, and the first kill descended.

Spiritual energy gathered in the air, and a blood-red "kill" character fell from the sky with a resounding crash.

Liu Zhen's pupils shrank. He did not expect Xu Yang to have a hidden trump card. Upon seeing the Life-Saving Sword, greed flashed in his eyes.

He must kill him!

"Qing Ming Seal!"

He shouted, and as the first kill descended, the clouds above suddenly turned dark blue, forming a massive seal.

This was Yunshan Sect's secret technique!

However, Xu Yang was unfazed. He merely looked up, and just as the first "kill" character was about to land, he raised his sword.

A white light cut through the blood-red character, shattering it!

The sword light did not stop there; the Qing Ming Seal was obliterated!

The sword struck and the Golden Core perished!