Chapter 3: Spectral Reflections, Purifying Heaven and Expelling Demons

  Zhao Yunfeng thought of this, and it was indeed strange that these masked men knew the names 'Jing Tian Qu Mo, Mo Zhou Xin Jing' and 'Fen Guang Cheng Ying She Jian'.

  It is precisely because of this that the Nanhai Sword Sect has had no leader for thirty years, and it will wither away to this day. Zhao Yin Feng himself did not want to compete with several masters in the door who refused to let go of each other, so he drifted on the rivers and lakes for nearly thirty years, precisely in order to find "Jing Tian Qu Mo, Mo Zhou Xin Jing" and Fen Guang Cheng Ying She Zhi Jian, practice "Jing Tian Qu Mo Zhou", and glorify the Nanhai Sect.

  Luozhi Han had only occasionally heard from his senior brother about the legendary "Jing Tian Qu Mo, Mo Zhou Xin Jing" and Fen Guang Cheng Ying She Jian, every time his senior brother mentioned it, he would be extremely excited, and heard that his master had been searching for nearly thirty years but couldn't find it.

  Although he himself was not clear about "Jing Tian Qu Mo, Mo Zhou Xin Jing" and Fen Guang Cheng Ying She Zhi Jian, his master had been searching for it tirelessly for so many years, naturally it was a must-have for their sect. Now seeing his master hesitating to speak, he said: "The sacred object of our sect, how can you evil people see it."

  Who would have thought that the other seven people burst out laughing after hearing Luo Zhihan's words.

  "Zhao Yangfeng, haha, if you have 'Jing Tian Qu Mo, Mo Zhou Xin Jing' and the Fen Guang Cheng Ying She Zhi Jian, we wouldn't dare to offend you even if you gave us ten chances." The leader of the masked men took another step forward, sneering.

  Jing Tian Qu Mo Zhou, is the Taoist supreme divine spell, Nanhai Jianpai's treasure of the sect. Once cultivated successfully, its power is astonishing. Fen Guang Cheng Ying She Zhi Jian, a famous strange sword in Jianghu, if Zhao Yangfeng possesses such a mysterious and divine sword, what fear do these masked men pose?

  "Killing is just a nod, but, sir, your behavior, disturbing people in the middle of the night and forcibly taking away our sect's important items, aren't you afraid of being ridiculed by the Jianghu community?" Zhao Yin Feng let out a loud shout, his voice full of energy, echoing far and wide, hoping that there were still some martial artists staying in this town who would come to see what was happening and lend a hand.

  That thin black-clad man suddenly said: "Zhao Yin Feng, even if you shout your throat hoarse, there is absolutely no one within a five-mile radius who can help you!"

  He finished speaking, followed by a cough, as if it was intentional.

  As expected, the leader of the masked men heard the cough and no longer hesitated. "Zhao Yunfeng, that's good," he said. "Hand over the sheepskin map, and we'll let you go today. Otherwise, next year on this day will be the anniversary of your deaths, you three."

  At this time, they already knew that Zhao Yunfeng absolutely did not have "Ji Tian Qu Mo, Mo Zhou Xin Jing" and the Fen Guang Cheng Ying She Zhi Jian. Otherwise, with the power of "Ji Tian Qu Mo", the cunning of Fen Guang Cheng Ying She Zhi Jian, how could their side be at a disadvantage?

  So the leader of the masked men felt fearless and spoke without courtesy, with a fierce intention.

  Zhao Yunfeng was shocked again, his shoulders shaking violently, almost stumbling: "......you, you...how did you know about the sheepskin map?"

  His eyes were filled with panic and distrust, knowing that he had hardly ever spoken to anyone about the sheepskin map in nearly twenty years. Only a handful of people knew about the sheepskin map, not even his eldest disciple Chen Xin was explicitly told, let alone his second disciple Luo Zhihan who had never been mentioned. How did these masked men find out?

  "No matter where we know it from..."

  "Just ask you one sentence. Are you going to hand it over?" The man in black took a step forward, his internal force surging up from his chest, his black clothes fluttering without wind, and he sneered threateningly as he asked.

  "The sheepskin map has long been destroyed, don't believe me if you don't want to. You can search my master and disciples' bodies and luggage as much as you want." Zhao Yinfeng already knew that the person had malicious intentions and a strong desire to kill, so he calmed down and thought about how he and his master and disciples could escape tonight, but his mouth said indifferently.

  Luozhi Han and his senior brother believed what their master said, because they had never seen any sheepskin map on their master's body.

  "He said: 'You villains, you really are too much, is there truly no justice or righteousness in the world?'"

  The masked man was taken aback for a moment, then burst out laughing: "Don't worry, don't worry! In the past thirty years, you've been searching all over the world, from the south to the north, following the map. Of course, the map is already in your heart! If I catch you and bring you back, it's equivalent to having the map! Haha! Even if you have two disciples, they must be very familiar with the terrain on the map!"

  He finished speaking and waved his hand. The six men behind him rushed forward, intending to take action together, using their numbers to bully the few, and their size to intimidate the small. It was truly despicable.

  "Hold on, I just want to understand one thing, who told you that I have a sheepskin map?" Zhao Yinfeng had not finished speaking, when a bright long sword was already thrusting towards his chest. From far away, he could feel the strong killing intent emanating from the sword, and it was precisely that agile masked man.

  It seems that this person's lightness skill is extremely high, and his swordsmanship and internal strength are also so strong, that he can't help but feel a sense of apprehension in his heart, and he withdraws his attention to focus on the fight, no longer having the leisure to pay attention to speaking.

  Another person rushed up with a knife, the force of the knife was quite fierce, but after two moves, it was clear that compared to the sword-wielding man and himself, his internal strength and techniques were still far inferior. At this moment, he didn't dare to be careless, sidestepped, avoided the sword's edge, retreated one step, let out a dragon roar, and drew his sword.

  Looking back, the other four had already surrounded two apprentices, while the leader of the masked man stood smiling in the empty space, seemingly confident. He couldn't help but think that something was off, knowing that his apprentices were no match for these black-clad men. Not wanting to waste any more time, he drew his sword and flashed past the black-clad men's swords, his own sword already in hand, emitting a cold glow. With a slanted stroke, he struck directly at the two men's wrists, using the exquisite "Great Wave Sweeping Heaven" technique from the Southern Ocean Sword School's "Lonely Goose Sword Method".

  The Nanhai Sword School, with Nanhai as its founder, has always been by the sea. Seagulls can be seen everywhere, and the fifth generation master, Gu Ruzi, often practices sword fighting by the sea. One day, while observing seagulls battling waves, he was suddenly inspired and spent ten years studying the techniques of seagulls fighting against waves. He finally created the "Gu Ruzi Sword Method", which is as agile as a seagull and as fierce as a giant wave.

  Few disciples of the South China Sea have come to the Central Plains. Zhao Yin Feng himself paid for tonight, no one can recognize this sword technique. This battle must be quickly launched, and his two apprentices absolutely cannot last long. After "Big Wave Rolls Heaven", a move follows closely with "Surging Waves Slapping Shore". The sword flower changes in an instant, flying and dancing in the sky, and the "Lonely Goose Sword Technique" is immediately displayed. Suddenly, the sword style becomes strong, and within one meter, it's all sword light, taking over the advantage.

  As expected, the sword-wielding masked man withdrew his sword's glow and switched to defense, but his feet didn't falter in the slightest. The other knife-wielding person, after two moves, immediately revealed...

  He couldn't hold on any longer, his sword moves becoming more and more disordered. Under Zhao Yunfeng's pressing sword attacks, he could only retreat step by step. The leader saw that the situation was not good for their side, so he laughed loudly and rushed forward, throwing a quick punch at Zhao Yunfeng's chest.

  Zhao Yunfeng was quite angry in his heart, to know that being able to charge into one's own sword light empty-handed is absolutely not an easy thing. He didn't expect this masked man to be so arrogant, and coldly snorted, saying: "Don't be reckless!"

  He drew his sword and stood guard at the gate, thinking of giving this masked man a hard time.

  But suddenly, the masked man's wrist turned halfway, and his body abruptly stopped and quickly turned to the right, not attacking Zhao Yunfeng. He sidestepped and threw a punch at Chen Xin's face, and the switch was extremely fast. Especially when he turned his whole body sideways, it was like a wild wolf catching prey, twisting in mid-air, really not simple. Zhao Yunfeng exclaimed, "Huh?" and felt that this person's movement was vaguely familiar, but couldn't think of it for a moment.

  The man with a hood over his face waited until he was about ten inches away from Chen Xin's face and shouted: "Take it!"

  He suddenly changed his fist again, and his two fingers stretched out menacingly, digging towards Chen Xin's eyeballs.

  Chen Xin was shocked to find that the most heavily guarded place on a person's body was their face, and yet he was currently locked in a fierce battle with two masked men wielding knives. Although these two masked men were clearly inferior to the leader and the agile swordsman in terms of martial arts skills, their knife techniques were vicious and powerful, leaving Chen Xin struggling to gain the upper hand despite using all his strength. Just as he was momentarily stunned, a pair of fingers suddenly darted towards his eyes, forcing him to instinctively curl his arm inward and defend himself with his sword.

  The masked man was waiting for this moment, and when he saw Chen Xin's arm exposed, his elbow bent and protruding without cover, haha laughed! He quickly added a finger with his left hand, just hitting the "Qu Chi" point on Chen Xin's elbow.

  "Qu Chi" is an important acupoint on the Hand Yangming Large Intestine Meridian. After being pressed, Chen Xin felt a numbness in his arm and let out a loud "Ah!", the sword fell from his hand, his neck felt cool, and he was caught under two shining sharp knives.

  Luo Zhihan was defending the gate, and at the same time fighting alone against two men in black. One of them had a vicious knife technique, frequently launching fierce attacks, but his moves lacked subtlety and his inner strength wasn't particularly strong. The other man with a sword had weak attacking power, seemingly wandering around the periphery, holding his sword as if just watching from the sidelines. As a result, although Luo Zhihan was at a disadvantage, he hadn't yet fallen into a desperate situation. Recently, he had often received guidance from his master and his understanding of swordsmanship had grown deeper. Just as he was about to launch a fierce counterattack, he suddenly heard his senior brother's loud shout, and couldn't help but divide his attention for an instant, calling out: "Senior Brother!"

  The black-clothed swordsman, who had been on the defensive all along, turned around to see that his three companions had already succeeded, and suddenly rushed into Luo Zhihan's sword circle. His right hand shot out as fast as lightning, grabbing Luo Zhihan's wrist where he held the "Gate of God". Luo Zhihan couldn't help but feel a surge of fear in his heart, and all he could say was: "You..."

  "He thought to himself: 'Even my own master might not be able to find an opening in my swordplay, let alone this person. His martial arts skills are truly impressive, and his mind is so sinister and ruthless, yet he has been hiding it all along, making one's heart turn cold.'"

  Luò Zhǐ Hán's hand was caught on the Shǎo Yīn Xīn Jīng, his hand went limp and the sword fell to the ground. A cold knife suddenly appeared at his neck, he couldn't move...

  Finished.

  Luo Zhi's eyes flickered, and he saw a long sword scar on the back of the hand of the person holding the sword, extending from the wrist to the tip of the index finger, like a blood-stained centipede, very frightening. The black-clothed man immediately retreated from the battlefield after gaining the upper hand, with his sword pointing downwards and standing still, seemingly without any air of a master swordsman, truly as agile as a rabbit and as calm as a young lady.

  Zhao Yunfeng's eyes scanned the surroundings, and he already knew that two of his disciples had been captured. He couldn't help but think about what kind of tragic torture and suffering he and his three disciples would face if they were also caught tonight. His anger surged, and with a loud shout, he yelled: "Kill!"

  He immediately used the strongest sword move in "Ku Ya Jian Fa", "Ku Ya Chong Tian". Countless sword lights filled the sky, and a fierce killing aura spread out. The name of "Yin Feng Jian" was not earned in vain.

  A loud, pained cry of "ah" was heard as the weaker of the two masked men with knives had his right arm deeply slashed by "Gu Du Chong Tian", flesh and blood exposed, fresh blood suddenly spurting out, hastily retreating from the battlefield.

  The black-clad swordsman with exceptional lightness skills stumbled backward with a loud "clang" after the two swords intersected, and although he managed to retreat with his entire body intact, he couldn't help but take a step back before stopping himself. He said, "The Nanhai Sword Sect is indeed not a reputation gained in vain!"

  Zhao Yunfeng saw his two disciples being captured and suddenly felt a surge of anger, but for the moment he didn't know what to do.

  The only thing that can be heard is the black-clothed man saying: "Zhao Yunfeng, we are not unable to defeat you, but we don't want to waste time. Your two disciples are already in our hands. If you know what's good for you, drop your sword and follow us. If you don't, first cut off the right hand of your eldest and second disciple, then the left hand, then the left leg, and finally the right leg. If you still refuse to speak, we can gouge out your eyes and cut off your nose. We have many ways to torture people, haha!"

  His words were truly cruel when he said this.

  The three men in black clothes behind them also followed with a fierce smile, the knife trembling on the necks of Luo Zhi and Han Shi brothers.

  The injured man swiftly cut off half of his shirt with a knife, spat mouthful after mouthful of saliva onto the wound, and roughly bandaged it. He let the fresh blood continue to drip down, treating himself with such cruelty, like a wild wolf.

  Those two black-robed men with swords, one tall and one short, stood motionless and silent on the side.

  "Look at you, several people with high martial arts skills, not unknown, yet bullying the weak with numbers, tonight the moon is in the middle of the sky, heaven can see, aren't you afraid of being ridiculed by Jianghu, isn't it against heavenly justice?" Zhao Yinfeng's heart ached for his two disciples, knowing that if they surrendered now, the consequences would be the three of them taking their own lives. In anger, he said.

  That injured black-clad man's heart was even more vicious, and he said fiercely: "I curse this desolate small town, let you cry out to the heavens without response, call out to the earth without echo, soon it will be a lonely soul in the wilderness, what do you still care about whether the heavens have eyes or not?"

  "Are you not afraid of the 'Slanting Sun Divine Sword' and the various seniors of Diancang when you are so close to the nineteen peaks?" Zhao Yin Feng suddenly shouted loudly, and as soon as this shout came out, everyone was shocked!

  That masked man also trembled with fear, he knew that this 'Slanting Sun God Sword' Lin Ruo Chi was the number one master of the southern sky...

  The leader of the Dian Cang sect, and the Dian Cang sect was not far to the west, where many masters emerged from the nineteen peaks of Dian Cang. Thinking of this, he couldn't help but shudder again!

  And the four masked men with knives also had a hint of terror in their eyes, they all looked at the two black-clothed men wielding swords, not saying another word, and implicitly, these two sword-wielding black-clothed men became the leaders.

  "No need to panic, 'Slanting Sun Divine Sword' Lin Ruochi is currently in seclusion and doesn't have the leisure to come down the mountain to bother with such trivial matters!" The thin black-clad man said lightly, seemingly having taken precautions before coming, having investigated beforehand.

  As soon as they heard this, Zhao Yunfeng and his three disciples' hearts sank!

  That thin black-clothed man said to the leader of the masked men, "In those days, the Southern Ocean Sword Sect was so prosperous, who would have thought that today it would be so vulnerable? If not for still being concerned about the Five-Colored Serpent 'Rate' guarding the 'Rebel Heaven Lonely Island' of the Southern Ocean, we would have already eliminated the Southern Ocean sect!"

  Zhao Yunfeng was shocked beyond measure and blurted out: "Is it true that the 'Reversal Heavenly Isolated Island' of our sect really has a Five-Colored Divine Snake named 'Ranran'?"

  He is a first-rate master of the South Sea Sword Sect, yet he asks with such surprise, what's on his mind must be true!

  "Ah, of course it exists. It's just that you two generations of Southern Sea disciples are a group of people with dull talents, so naturally you don't have the gift to see it!" The thin black-clothed man said with a pleased smile.

  Zhao Yunfeng exclaimed loudly: "I finally understand, you must obtain the Color-Changing Shadow-Snake Sword to enter the 'Reversal Heavenly Island', plot against our sect's legendary Five-Colored Divine Snake, and use evil methods to attempt to increase your cultivation. How despicable!"

  "Master, don't bother about us. No matter what, we won't bat an eyelid! You scoundrel, if you have the guts, kill me with one slash of your sword! I spit on you!" How could Chen Xin let Master be manipulated by these villains? Although he didn't know what the "Reversed Heaven Lonely Island"'s Five-Colored Divine Snake "Ran Jian" was, since it was said to be the guardian deity of the legendary South Sea Sword Sect, it must be a spiritual and extraordinary beast, extremely precious. How could Master be controlled by others?

  He risked his life, turned around and spat a mouthful of saliva at one of the masked men with knives behind him.