Strong bows, sharp blades, blood staining the yellow sands.

When the battle ended, the dunes within Ten Thousand Blade Mountain piled high, and dried corpses littered the ground.

Lu Ran stood atop a cloud of black mist, with cold, piercing pupils gazing at the procession of slender souls drifting out from underground.

A total of more than forty!

This group of Evil Demons seemed to be an unusually strong bunch.

Is this the true face of Ten Thousand Blade Mountain?

"Buzz~"

Lu Ran raised the incessantly trembling Eight Desolate Blade, sensing its tendency to grow silent again, and laughed helplessly.

Eight Desolates, oh Eight Desolates.

I'm beginning to regret naming you this.

If I had chosen another path of cultivation, and coupled it with all my experiences since entering the mountain, this weapon would likely already have achieved mastery, wouldn't it?

As for the Cloud Sea Clear Blade, that remains an unattainable dream.

Though the Cloud Sea Clear Blade does occasionally quiver, it is evidently far, far from becoming a Divine Weapon...

"Ah!!"

A piercing scream grew closer and closer, stabbing into Lu Ran's eardrums.

Just a few meters away, a gaunt shriveled Dead Soul was shrieking hysterically in rage.

The corpse-like Sand River Doll was nauseating to begin with, but now it appeared even more monstrous!

As the Dead Soul advanced, its tiny hands clawed furiously, long and sharp nails poised as if to gouge out Lu Ran's eyeballs.

Such ugly little things—truly ferocious!

"Puff~ Puff~"

Within the yellow sands, dozens of dried corpses disintegrated sequentially into mist, vanishing without a trace.

Lu Ran descended from the cloud, simultaneously summoning the Divine Power Pearl to absorb energy while using the Pupil of the Dead World to draw in Dead Souls: "Jing Hong."

"Sect Leader?"

"Blow the horn, scout the situation."

"Understood!" Jing Hong gripped the Azure Dragon Crescent Blade in one hand and a translucent horn in the other.

"Ooo~~~"

A deep horn sound echoed far, far away.

In Jing Hong's mind, a faintly discernible map of the terrain quickly took shape.

War Horn Divine Technique·Echo Horn!

"Sect Leader!" Jing Hong stowed away the Echo Horn and turned to Lu Ran, who was absorbing the mist. "There seems to be a large gathering of creatures in the northwest!"

"Oh?" Lu Ran squeezed the Eight Desolate Blade.

Looks like our battle isn't over yet!

He immediately asked, "What kind of creatures?"

Jing Hong's face showed an apologetic expression: "Forgive me, Sect Leader, I..."

"Enough." Lu Ran interrupted her sentence.

The Echo Horn indeed had an extremely wide scouting range, but its shortcomings were glaring. The sonic feedback Jing Hong received was notably vague.

In fact, if the enemies were few, Jing Hong might not even detect them.

Therefore, when Jing Hong reported a large gathering... the enemy force's scale must be vast!

"Move!" Lu Ran tightened his grip on the blade's hilt. "We advance northwest, deeper into Ten Thousand Blade Mountain!"

"Understood!"

"Understood!" the members of Ran Sect responded promptly.

Lu Ran envisioned the large-scale army Jing Hong had detected as the Evil Dog Clan.

However, reality dealt him a crushing blow.

It wasn't the Evil Dog Clan!

It was the even deadlier, more devastatingly powerful Barbaric Female Demon Clan!

This time, Ran Sect truly found themselves in grave danger...

Even with three Yangyang Sea powerhouses in their ranks, Lu Ran dared not lead his team into direct confrontation. He could only fight while retreating.

Mid-battle, Lu Ran's head began to buzz again.

Within the God Demon Sculpture Garden, a Barbaric Female Demon Evil Sculpture began to quiver, steadily expanding in scope.

Lu Ran felt a mix of excitement and unease, directing his team to advance and retreat, weaving intricate maneuvers.

Finally, after absorbing vast numbers of Dead Souls, he managed to escape the area of Ten Thousand Blade Mountain occupied by the Barbaric Female Demon Clan.

"Hah..."

Twenty kilometers outside Ten Thousand Blade Mountain, behind a sand dune, Lu Ran exhaled deeply, thankful for their escape.

The others beside him were equally shaken.

"It could only be us." Lu Ran sat heavily on the ground, leaning against the slanted sand dune.

"What?" Deng Yuxiang poked half her head out from atop the sand dune, surveying the distant Ten Thousand Blade Mountain.

Behind the group lay a vast, open desert.

Farther west and north, the mountain's terrain was still faintly visible.

"Anyone else would have met their end here," Lu Ran lifted his head, gazing at the woman's profile beside him. "If you and I had descended onto this land when entering the mountain back then..."

"We would survive," Deng Yuxiang responded softly.

She did not deny the brutal, inhospitable environment here, where each Ten Thousand Blade Mountain posed hidden threats and densely populated dangers, inspiring despair.

But she believed that she and he would surely find a way out.

And would undoubtedly find like-minded allies!

There exists a certain kind of person in this world whose spiritual will and determination cannot be quashed by their surroundings.

As long as the will doesn't break, the body will not easily perish.

Rising again is merely a matter of time.

"Boom rumble!!"

Clouds churned in the sky, accompanied by distant thunder.

Lu Ran paused, raising his eyes skyward.

Was this the thunderous noise of a God Demon battle—or real thunder?

Could it be... rain in the desert?

"Plop plop~"

Rain began to fall abruptly, without warning.

Within the stone pillars of Ten Thousand Blade Mountain, a woman in white robes lifted her elegant hand, allowing raindrops to gather on her palm.

Rain?

Jiang Ruyi looked up at the sky.

This was the first time she had sensed thunder and rain since entering the mountain.

Behind Jiang Ruyi, An Xian's delighted eyes widened as she drank the rainwater without hesitation.

The way she acted was akin to the cracked, lifeless earth beneath her feet—finally quenched by a long-awaited downpour.

"Pavilion Master!" A bald man hurried over with urgency etched on his ugly face.

"Speak," Jiang Ruyi said softly while rolling rain beads between her fingers.

"We've tracked signs of activity from creatures in the south; why not shift northward?" Xiong Xiong suggested.

Jiang Ruyi nodded slightly, continuing her westward journey, merely veering slightly to the north.

Centered around the Luoxian Pavilion Master, a circle of Shanwei believers within a hundred-meter radius shifted northward.

The two West Desolation disciples and three Jade Talisman believers who were clearing the path showed some reaction.

Only An Xian followed closely behind the Pavilion Master.

The Pavilion Master's tall and slender silhouette appeared immensely dignified and heroic in An Xian's eyes, providing her an unmatched sense of security!

After pacifying the members of the Split Mountain Gang, Jiang Ruyi had been leading her unit forward for several days now.

Under her prudent command, disciples from various factions executed their duties competently, advancing westward day by day.

They inevitably encountered obstacles along the way, but under Jiang Ruyi's leadership, Luoxian Pavilion navigated through with danger narrowly averted each time.

Particularly, the 12 Shanwei believers within the pavilion carried conflicting emotions of anxiety and thrill each time they set out.

If this steady pace persisted, Jiang Ruyi might truly lead them out of this Ten Thousand Blade Mountain, which had held many captives for years, even decades!

Not to mention the Shanwei believers who had long suffered here—even the two West Desolation disciples and four Jade Talisman disciples felt secretly elated.

Hope surged within their hearts!

The world beyond Ten Thousand Blade Mountain...

What might it be like?

Would there be birdsong and fragrant flowers, green woods, and flowing streams?

Surely, there would also be mighty sects and merciless, ruthless believers...

But those were matters for another time!

First, they had to emerge from these endless Ten Thousand Blade Mountains!

The day before yesterday, the Pavilion Master had announced that she had encountered a bottleneck in her cultivation.

She could transition from Jiang Realm·Fourth Rank to Jiang Realm Peak.

Yet the current environment did not allow her to break through.

Escape!

Search for a safe and secluded resting place, where the Pavilion Master could achieve a stable promotion.

Such a divine, ethereal figure—once she advanced to Jiang Realm·Fifth Rank, she might be able to ascend into the Sea Realm at any moment!

At that point, our Luoxian Pavilion will no longer be a trifling sidenote for others to manipulate.

With Pavilion Master Jiang at its helm, surely the vast Holy Spirit Mountain would contain some corner where we could survive...

"My Lady! My—Pavilion Master!" An ecstatic voice interrupted, reaching from afar.

Jiang Ruyi frowned slightly, gazing ahead.

Shanwei disciple Wang Xuyang came bounding over, a look of overt joy plastered across his face as he reported, "We're about to exit—about to exit this Ten Thousand Blade Mountain!"

As the group pressed forward, scattered Shanwei disciples began detecting changes in the terrain.

Excited murmurs drifted about.

"Silence!" Jiang Ruyi's icy words pierced the sheets of rain, traveling to everyone's ears.

Wang Xuyang froze, his face sinking, as he awkwardly lowered his head.

"Tighten formation." Jiang Ruyi commanded, jade talisman formations materializing around her as she levitated.

The 19-member team quickly regrouped, picking up speed as they neared the stone pillar forest's edge.

A wide expanse opened up once again—a barren wasteland of repetition.

Nonetheless, the sight was invigorating!

After scouting and preparations, Luoxian Pavilion disciples trickled out, hurriedly traversing the rain-streaked terrain.

Upon climbing an arid dune, Jiang Ruyi's brow rose slightly.

The distant terrain had changed!

The cracked, desiccated ground transmuted into desert?

Momentarily, Jiang Ruyi's focus wavered inwardly.

Had her team gone astray?

Her initial expectation was that moving eastward would bring increasing signs of life.

But from the distant east, where solid ground and hardy weeds had vanished, there remained nothing but endless yellow sands... Hm?

Jiang Ruyi's eyes sharpened.

"My lady, look over there!" An Xian urgently pointed northeast.

In the rain-swept haze, a dense cloud of sand churned?

"Pavilion Master, that's not natural sandstorm formation!" Xue Fengchen scrutinized carefully and reported swiftly. "It appears to be the West Desolate Divine Skill·Floating Sand!"

Gao Yunyan's expression darkened. "Judging by the scale of this Floating Sand, it's undoubtedly a Sea Grade Divine Skill!"

"There's a Sea Realm West Desolation believer battling there… Ah?"

"Hiss..." A collective intake of breath hissed through the group.

"That… That thing?"

"Such a terrifying scale? T-T-T..." Mutters and murmurs erupted.

The group certainly had reason to grow anxious!

For amidst the thick sand cloud, an unbelievably colossal sand hand had risen and hovered menacingly overhead.

The sheer enormity made the hand visible not only because of its size but also by how high it reached—appearing poised to hurl its target toward the heavens...

Song Yu spoke in a low voice: "A believer of the Drought Sea! Such an immense sand hand—it's likely a Sea Realm Great Power!"

Jiang Ruyi's expression grew grave.

Two Sea Realm Great Powers, locked in combat at this location?

One was a Second-class God·West Desolation believer, the other a Third-class God·Drought Sea believer.

Of course, it remained possible that they represented opposing factions embroiled in territorial skirmish.

"Pavilion Master, perhaps we should retreat to Ten Thousand Blade Mountain again? We mustn't let them notice us!"

"Indeed, my lady! A Sea Realm powerhouse could crush me with a single hand..."

...

Recently, my condition has slightly improved; tomorrow I should be capable of staying seated all day.

Three updates tomorrow!

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