Chapter 170: Dong Bingyun

Deep in the night.

Just east of Qingmu Town, before a perilous mountain valley, a large-scale battle broke out between hundreds of cultivators from two major clans. All sorts of magical treasures whistled through the night sky. With sharp clangs and resounding crashes, dazzling arcs of spiritual light and magical flames streaked across the sky and ground, blooming with firework-like colors upon impact.

For a moment, the brilliant stars and bright moon in the night sky were completely eclipsed.

Roar!

High up in the air, flying spiritual beasts even confronted each other with roars, fighting side by side with their masters.

Tonight's campaign involved nearly twenty Spirit Condensation masters from both sides, among whom cultivators at the seventh layer of Spirit Condensation and above could be seen. Amidst roaring explosions, powerful waves of flame and tempests surged in all directions, rendering the situation even more tragic and chaotic.

When Xu Xuan had just arrived, facing such a magnificent scene, his mind and soul trembled.

This was the largest-scale clash he had witnessed since joining the battles of Qingmu Town. Judging by the situation, both clans were continuously reinforcing their forces at Qingmu Town.

One must bear in mind that the total number of Spirit Condensation masters in the two clan factions of Huanglong City only amounted to one or two hundred each.

Yet the flames of war between the two clans had spread throughout Huanglong City, and at just a single sector of the Qingmu Town battle zone, this many powerful experts and troops had been deployed.

"My calculation methodology has reached its absolute limit, and everything has proceeded perfectly, but whether we succeed depends entirely on the time it takes to eat a meal."

Chu Dong took a deep breath and consulted with Xu Xuan to find the optimal timing.

At this moment, if the two of them rashly approached Qingmu Town, they would immediately be subjected to an overwhelming barrage of spells from the numerous cultivators of the Zhang clan.

In the northeastern corner of the chaotic battlefield, a dragon-head flying boat floated in the night sky, offering a panoramic view of the entire engagement between the two sides.

At this moment, the pavilions atop the dragon-head flying boat were brightly lit.

"That Chu Dong is, after all, a renowned genius of celestial calculation from the Fangtian Academy. Ever since he left Huanglong City, he has vanished completely, even managing to evade the inescapable net cast by my layers of deployment."

Master Hui said with a hint of dejection.

Beside him, the Patriarch of the Dongfang family maintained a constrained and respectful posture, not daring to sit in the primary seat.

Occupying the primary seat was a graceful woman in white. Her eyebrows were like crescent moons, her eyes like the stars of a cold winter night, and her flawless, snow-white oval face made her look to be only around twenty years of age. While her appearance was top-tier, her demeanor and actions exuded a chilling aura, and an aura of bone-chilling, blood-freezing frost lingered around her entire body.

At this moment, Dongfang Wei wore a look of awe, while Master Shuo wore a slightly worried and bitter expression.

"I came here not to listen to your nonsense."

The white-clad woman's cold voice caused Dongfang Wei and Master Shuo to tremble in their hearts.

"Guest Elder Dong, this oversight was our fault. The person we need to eliminate truly cannot be measured by conventional logic, but we believe they will certainly appear."

Dongfang Wei said with a bitter smile.

This white-clad woman with the surname Dong was named Dong Bingyun. She was a first-class guest elder and honorary elder of the Dongfang family.

Within the clan, second-class guest elders possessed the cultivation of the Spirit Condensation stage, while first-class guest elders were the highest tier. As for honorary elders, they were even rarer still.

Back then, in order to make Dong Bingyun a guest elder of their clan, the Dongfang family had bled profusely, paying a tremendous price, with even their Ancestor stepping forward personally.

It had been extremely difficult to invite her to take action this time.

"Guest Elder Dong, please wait another three days. As a genius celestial calculator, Chu Dong naturally will not take the conventional path. However, no matter how high his innate talent is, his cultivation is ultimately limited, and all calculations can only target living beings at the mortal-shedding tiers." Master Shuo said with a flattering smile.

"A mere celestial calculator, coupled with a declining body cultivator, has left you all completely helpless. If not for the sake of Dongfang Gui, why would I lower my status to take action against two junior youths?"

Dong Bingyun said with a displeased expression.

"Yes, indeed!"

Not daring to disturb Dong Bingyun, Dongfang Wei and Master Shuo stepped forward to the bow of the dragon-head flying boat and gazed intently at the fiercely battling factions.

"Ah!"

Suddenly, a miserable scream came from the rear of the Dongfang family's formation.

"What intruder!"

The cultivators at the rear of the Dongfang family fell into utter chaos.

A pale red figure was seen weaving through the crowd and slaughtering, killing several cultivators in a single breath.

The cultivators at the front of the Dongfang family were engaged in fierce combat, and the sudden emergence of this single attacker triggered widespread chaos.

"It's him!"

Dongfang Wei on the distant dragon-head flying boat cried out in alarm, his gaze locking onto the youth, and his heart surged with great joy.

Not only that, many of the Dongfang family's Spirit Condensation masters also caught sight of that figure and were greatly shocked: "It's Xu Xuan of the Zhang family! How did he manage to slaughter his way in from the rear?"

"Quickly dispatch men to execute him—"

Several cultivators from the Dongfang family at the third and fourth layers of Spirit Condensation led dozens of fighters forward to intercept him.

"Xu Xuan has appeared, but where is Chu Dong?"

Master Shuo's gaze searched the vicinity until he finally spotted a calm youth clad in the law-enforcement robes of the Dongfang family, who, under Xu Xuan's cover, was approaching the direction of the Zhang family.

Hah!

Xu Xuan let out a great shout, a wave of flame light carrying a roar as terrifying as a dragon and lion surging in all directions. Cultivators within four or five zhang who were below the Spirit Condensation stage were almost instantly annihilated; bleeding from their seven orifices, their internal organs were shattered by the thermal sound waves, and their skin bore a layer of scorched marks.

Such a commotion naturally alerted the cultivators of the Zhang family.

"It's Xu Xuan, and Chu Dong as well! Go quickly and provide backup!"

Zhang Feng shouted in wild joy, leading numerous cultivators to charge over.

Xu Xuan was unstoppable. Following the blast of flame sound waves, the dark night cloak behind him rippled, accelerating his speed by another two or three tenths. Dragging Chu Dong, he flew toward the Zhang family like a cannonball.

Swish, swish, whoosh, whoosh!

Dozens of spiritual lights and magical treasures from the Dongfang family still assaulted from the rear, with the attackers even including two or three Spirit Condensation masters.

If this were an ordinary first-layer Spirit Condensation cultivator, it would have been enough to kill them instantly.

At this moment of crisis, the primordial energy within Xu Xuan's body erupted, pushing his speed to the absolute limit. Like a red afterimage, he charged forward fiercely and roared, "Catch him!"

Exerting a sudden burst of strength, he hurled Chu Dong over a hundred meters away toward the Zhang family's direction, where Spirit Condensation masters immediately stepped in to receive him.

Clang, clang, boom, boom...

More than a dozen spells and magical treasures still bombarded Xu Xuan's body. Red-bronze textures appeared on his skin, accompanied by a chorus of metallic clashing sounds and wisps of black smoke rising into the air.

Xu Xuan groaned softly. Enduring so much damage all at once caused his blood to churn violently, leaving him somewhat injured.

After dodging this first wave of attacks, he bounded forward a certain distance, where Zhang family clansmen met him, successfully pulling him out of danger.

On the other side, someone from the Zhang family had also caught Chu Dong and immediately provided layers of protection.

Xu Xuan was overjoyed. Although this return plan had been perilous, it had succeeded brilliantly and could be described as perfect.

"A mere body cultivator at the first layer of Spirit Condensation has actually mastered such power. Truly interesting... But today, you are destined to go no further."

A cold, unearthly female voice echoed from a hundred zhang away.

Xu Xuan's figure suddenly stiffened. He felt a crisis and killing intent that pierced straight to his soul; his blood nearly froze, and the Moonlight Secret Pearl within his body wavered and hummed, sounding rapid warnings.

Ever since he had opened the gates of cultivation, he had never faced such terrifying pressure directly.

What was even more terrifying was that the opponent was still a hundred zhang away. Merely through a voice and psychological pressure, she had made Xu Xuan nearly suffocate, rendering every movement excruciatingly difficult.

From the corner of his eye, he barely managed to catch sight of an icy, beautiful woman stepping upon a blooming ice-crystal flower, her entire body radiating a magnificent white, glowing haze. The formidable coercion caused hundreds of cultivators present to tremble in their hearts and struggle for breath.

Wherever the woman passed, chilling mist lingered, affecting a radius of ten zhang, making her look like a fairy of ice and snow soaring through a realm of frost.

The sharp sound of breaking the air pierced rapidly toward them, accompanied by bone-chilling cold and ice-snow. A distance of a hundred zhang was perhaps only a matter of a few breaths to her; the naked eye could only see a blurred, snowy-white phantom streaking across the night sky, practically ignoring all obstacles.

Cultivators who stood in her path, whether Qi-refining adepts or Spirit Condensation masters, had their blood freeze in an instant, frost gathering over their bodies as they plummeted from mid-air.

This was starkly a difference between heaven and earth, like an almighty deity standing high above in the clouds, looking down upon countless ants.

"A Core Formation cultivator! Quickly think of a way to buy time!"

The anxious voice of the remnant soul from his past life echoed in his mind.

"Could that woman be the Core Formation expert of the Dongfang family, Dong Bingyun?"

The veteran Spirit Condensation masters among the clan's youth were struck with awe and terror.

"A Core Formation expert! Why would she suddenly make a move?"

Xu Xuan felt as though he had fallen into a bottomless ice cave. The primordial energy within his body was compressed to the utmost limit, and a layer of pale red, transparent flame light clung to his skin. At the same time, the Moonlight Secret Pearl suddenly radiated a soft lunar glow that extended outward from within his body.

Only by combining the power of his natal flame fire with the divine ability of the Moonlight Secret Pearl was he barely able to disperse that pressure and regain his freedom.

"Dong Bingyun, a first-class guest elder of the Dongfang family. To kill me and Xu Xuan, the Dongfang family actually managed to invite her to take action?"

Chu Dong's mind trembled. An expert at the third realm of the Dao of Elixirs already exceeded the limits of his calculations.

"Xu Xuan, strive to buy time!" Chu Dong shouted in shock and anger.

Xu Xuan's heart tightened. Chu Dong's words unexpectedly coincided with those of the remnant soul from his past life. Let alone a Core Formation expert, even an expert above the seventh layer of Spirit Condensation exceeded his limits to handle.

Escaping the pursuit or turning the tables to kill the opponent were both impossible scenarios.

Swish!

In the blink of an eye, Dong Bingyun flew in, a sheet of icy mist and biting cold scattering the cultivators in her path or freezing them to death instantly.

Xu Xuan took a deep breath, his figure retreating rapidly as he opened his mouth and spat. A resplendent glazed peacock lifted a tail feather burning with azure flames, rushing swiftly to meet Dong Bingyun.

"Insignificant tricks."

Dong Bingyun waved her jade hand, and a beam of glowing white qi struck the Seven-Feathered Bronze Peacock. The azure flames on the latter instantly dimmed, and amidst whimpering tremors, it shrank and retreated.

Oh?

Dong Bingyun showed a slight trace of surprise. That casual strike, which used only one or two tenths of her magical power, had actually been mostly neutralized by the opponent.

With a light dance of her jade sleeves, spinning ice-crystal particles formed a white cold mist seven or eight zhang wide, descending from the high sky.

"Ah!"

Screams echoed endlessly among the surrounding cultivators. Seven or eight cultivators were frozen into ice sculptures, dying instantly...

Seeing the Seven-Feathered Bronze Peacock retreat in defeat, Xu Xuan took a deep breath and spat out a ball of dark red flame fire, within which a dim, eerie green light flashed brilliantly.

He infused his natal true fire into the Seven-Feathered Bronze Peacock!

Hum!

In an instant, the Seven-Feathered Bronze Peacock expanded to seven or eight feet, radiating a dazzling and astonishing glow.

Crack! Crack!

The bronze peacock simultaneously unfolded two arm-thick tail feathers. In addition to the original azure tail feathers, a purple tail feather appeared. The interweaving of the azure and purple layers of glowing flames formed a soul-shaking dual-colored flame radiance, fiercely clashing against the white cold mist and the spinning ice-crystal particles...