Yue Bingyun’s expression changed as she quickly flew over. Then, she helped up Xiao Chen, who had dropped to one knee.

“What happened?”

Xiao Chen’s expression looked somewhat unsightly. After he calmed himself, his complexion flushed, and he said with a frown, “There is a half-step Martial Emperor in closed-door cultivation at a Dragon Vein. It will probably be even harder now to obtain the Life and Death Art.”

The extreme western side of Black Water Island contained a majestic set of snowy mountains. A middle-aged man wearing thin hemp cloth and radiating sword intent sat cross-legged on the summit of the highest peak.

Bone-chilling winds blew endlessly, and a snowstorm raged without pause. Despite the abominable environment, the hemp-clad swordsman displayed a normal expression. The snow that fell on him did not melt, but neither did it accumulate. Instead, it flowed down like water. All this looked very mysterious.

This particular snowy mountain was the tallest peak in the entire Black Water Island. Its summit frequently had a temperature lower than negative one hundred degrees Celsius. Aside from some Spirit Beasts that thrived in frigid conditions, such as Snow Wolves, there was nothing here to attract anyone.

Under normal circumstances, no one would come and suffer here for no reason whatsoever. Of course, certain ice-attributed cultivators like this hemp-clad swordsman, who had secluded himself here for a hundred years already, were exceptions.

The hemp-clad swordsman looked into the distance. Then, a cold, cruel smile appeared on his lips. He said indifferently, “Pretty good reflexes. He managed to keep his eyes.”

This hemp-clad swordsman was the mysterious half-step Martial Emperor who injured Xiao Chen’s Heavenly Eye with just one glance.

“You should celebrate the fact that you saw me after I have cultivated here for a hundred years. One hundred years ago, I would not have let you off so simply if you wanted to peep at me cultivating.”

After snorting coldly, the hemp-clad swordsman closed his eyes once more, continuing his quiet cultivation at the summit, working on comprehending the peak ice sword soul.

However, this swordsman opened his eyes again not long after. This time, his eyes contained bloodthirsty killing intent. A glacial aura spread out from his body, triggering a snowstorm in its wake. His surroundings seemed to freeze.

“Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack!”

The instant the swordsman stood up, all the snowflakes covering the sky suddenly exploded, crushed into powder as a result of the boundless sword intent.

“This is really never-ending. Have the people of Black Water Island forgotten me, Bing Xuejian, after one hundred years?”

[TL Note: The name Bing Xuejian literally translates to ice blood sword.]

Bing Xuejian sensed many people flying around the mountain range. In addition, even more people continued to stream in, all of them quasi-Emperors.

The people who came were naturally Jin Liangqi and the other Consummation quasi-Emperors. The ones following behind were thousands of Great Perfection quasi-Emperors and Small Perfection quasi-Emperors trying to see if they could profit by picking through the leftovers or gain some benefits if there were any conflicts.

The Life and Death Art could condense the Heart of an Emperor in advance. This temptation alone gave all these quasi-Emperors the courage to gamble their lives on this endeavor.

Jin Liangqi and the others traveled over land and water before finally arriving at the foot of the tallest snowy mountain. Then, they looked at the mountain peak, which towered in the clouds. “This is the last Dragon Vein in the western part of Black Water Island. The cave of the Blood Sword Sovereign from fifty thousand years ago must be here!”

The Smiling Saber Demon, Shen Xiao, smiled and said, “What are we waiting for? Let’s move!”

“This is probably going to be difficult. One hundred years ago, a massacre took place here. A mysterious swordsman eliminated all the ice-attributed cultivators on the entire mountain range. I do not know if that swordsman is still here,” an extremely old man said.

This old man was known as Elder Iron. Due to his focus on tempering the body, making his physical body like an iron wall and harder to deal with, he gained the nickname of Elder Iron after advancing to Consummation quasi-Emperor.

“That’s right. Even now, I still remember that massacre. It was apparently done by Bing Xuejian, the first disciple of the Ice Sword Sovereign, who betrayed his sect,” another old man said.

Jin Liangqi thought for a while before saying, “One hundred years have passed without any news of this person. He probably left already. Even if he is still around, we have so many people here. There is no need to fear him.”

“That’s right, even if he is here, we will force him back. Does he think that he is the king of the snowy mountain here?!” the Smiling Saber Demon said ferociously.

The Life and Death Art held too great an attraction. After discussing with each other, the few Consummation quasi-Emperors decided to act. Upon receiving instructions, the five Geomasters immediately executed their Dragon Seeking Arts to uncover the Dragon Vein.

Ten kilometers away, Fei Lengyi, who was hiding in the snowstorm, sank into deep thought as he looked at the snowy mountain. He muttered, “To think that the Blood Sword Sovereign’s cave is here! It appears it will be impossible to monopolize that Secret Technique. However, this is fine as well. I will be more confident of dealing with this group of people by working with Bing Xuejian.

“After that, I will use the jadeite to deal with him. In the end, the Life and Death Art will belong to me alone.”

Fei Lengyi had been keeping track of the news about the Life and Death Art. After recuperating from his injuries and coming out of closed-door cultivation, he had been shadowing this group of people searching for it.

Having already failed his tribulation once, he would never advance to Martial Emperor without any special opportunities. The Blood Sword Sovereign’s Life and Death Art was his opportunity. His desire to obtain it was even stronger than anyone else’s.

After the Geomasters made their move, strands of Dragon Qi surged out from underground.

Everyone knew that this was already the last Dragon Vein in the entire western side of Black Water Island. As they looked at the Dragon Qi soaring up, all the quasi-Emperors around became nervous.

“Ka ca!”

However, just at this anxiety-filled moment, a scarlet sword light silently appeared amid the snowstorm. Before the five Geomasters could react, this sword light chopped off their heads.

“Who is it?!”

The expressions of Jin Liangqi and the others changed drastically. Everyone moved back and took up a defensive stance in an instant. They released their auras, looking very nervous.

This sword Qi was too strange. It came right from the front and actually silently killed the five Geomasters. Even if this newcomer was not a half-step Martial Emperor, he was someone stronger than them.

Such a scene sent a chill of fear down the backs of the many quasi-Emperors planning to benefit from leftovers and conflicts.

“You are aware of my name, yet you still dare to come and send yourself to death. How extraordinarily bold!”

A figure slowly appeared in the middle of the snowstorm. By the time the silhouette became clear and stepped forward, this person had already arrived before Jin Liangqi and the others.

“Bing Xuejian!”

Jin Liangqi and the others instantly felt their scalps go numb. Unexpectedly, something still happened in this final step—they had run into the last person they wanted to see.

The Smiling Saber Demon showed a nervous expression. Despite his earlier bravado, now that he was face to face with this Bing Xuejian, he did not feel confident at all.

With the five of them working together, their chances against Bing Xuejian were about even.

However, these five were not kindred spirits. They did not truly trust each other, which would make cooperation very hard. If they fought with Bing Xuejian, they would definitely flee at the first sign of any disadvantage, unwilling to risk their lives for the others.

Jin Liangqi appeared rather calm. He said in a sullen tone, “Senior is overstating the situation. If we knew that Senior was here, we would not have dared to barge in.”

“In that case, scram!” Bing Xuejian ordered coldly.

The five’s expressions turned unsightly. Jin Liangqi suppressed the rage in his heart and said, “We have credible proof that a Saber Emperor’s cave is hidden under this mountain range. The treasures in there might be of some use to us. However, those probably will not be of much help to a swordsman like Senior.”

“Hahaha! Jin Liangqi, do you not blush at all when you lie?”

Fei Lengyi arrived amid loud laughter while releasing a boundless aura, sending the snow whirling everywhere. He moved one kilometer with each step. In ten steps, he stood before the group.

“Bing Xuejian, the cave where the legendary Blood Sword Sovereign once cultivated is likely to be hidden under this mountain range. It is very possible that the Life and Death Art is in there. You are also someone who failed in the Great Tribulation of wind and fire. The Life and Death Art would be greatly beneficial to you.”

Fei Lengyi’s smile filled his face, appearing very cocky. No trace of the grief of that day remained in his demeanor. He had recovered his past arrogance and tyranny by now.

The moment Fei Lengyi spoke, he did not show any mercy at all, exposing Jin Liangqi and his group.

When Jin Liangqi’s group of people looked at Fei Lengyi, they gnashed their teeth. However, they could not do anything but curse Fei Lengyi in their hearts.

Fei Lengyi did not even bother looking at Jin Liangqi’s group of people. He continued, “How about it? Are you interested in exploring this Blood Sword Sovereign’s cave with me? The two of us share the same plight, and we can ascend to Emperor together.”

“Naturally, I am interested,” Bing Xuejian said halfheartedly.

Fei Lengyi laughed loudly, wildly releasing the aura of a half-step Martial Emperor. “Good. In that case, work with me to clear off this group of flies first!”

The moment he said that, he immediately sparked a huge uproar. Panic and fluster spread out.

Even though Fei Lengyi was here, these people would normally not be in such a panic. One half-step Martial Emperor could not kill everyone here. However, two half-step Martial Emperors would be more than sufficient to chase all of them away.

Jin Liangqi and the others felt dissatisfied. They clung to a last bit of hope as they looked at Bing Xuejian. Although chances were slim, they would still hope for an opportunity to turn things around.

Fei Lengyi was clearly very confident. He had interacted with Bing Xuejian before and knew what he was like. He knew that Bing Xuejian would definitely agree to his proposition.

However, unexpectedly, the hemp-clad swordsman smiled coldly and said, “Fei Lengyi, you seem to have gotten something wrong. I am certainly interested in the Blood Sword Sovereign’s cave. However, I do not have any interest in working with you. Do you think that I do not know what you are thinking?”

Fei Lengyi’s expression turned cold as he said, “Bing Xuejian, you are not thinking straight!”

Jin Liangqi heaved a sigh of relief. He took advantage of this opportunity to say with a smile, “Manor Lord, don’t overthink this. Who here does not know that you have the jadeite with you? Without us interfering, Senior Bing Xuejian will not be a match for you. In the end, you will still monopolize the Life and Death Art.”

The Smiling Saber Demon piped up, “That’s right. Given your overbearing nature, you definitely are not thinking of sharing the Life and Death Art. In your heart, you think that it is something that belongs to you.”

Bing Xuejian did not say anything. Clearly, he agreed with these people; hence, the situation turned around, spoiling Fei Lengyi’s plan.

“Manor Lord Fei, there is no need to monopolize it. Isn’t it better if everyone gets the Life and Death Art together and shares it? Furthermore, we do not know what dangers exist in the Blood Sword Sovereign’s cave. It is not good for us to fight among ourselves before we enter.”

The aged Elder Iron spoke about the situation and gave a piece of appropriate advice.

Indeed, the Blood Sword Sovereign was a mixed-blood of human and demon. He had been horrifyingly strong, called the most dazzling legendary Martial Emperor of the Black Sea. It was impossible for everything to go as one wished in his cave. There would no doubt be many unknown dangers.

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