Lie Yangfeng

At this moment, Su Yueli's fist blade had pierced his body. She originally intended to twist it to completely crush this Second Realm male cultivator's heart.

Unbeknownst to her, the opponent erupted with a burst of ruthlessness at the critical juncture of life and death, violently slapping a jade talisman on his chest.

A burst of bloody light exploded with a bang, turning into a massive force that forced Su Yueli back several steps.

Using the recoil, the male cultivator instantly flew backward over a dozen yards, collapsing onto the ground while clutching his bleeding chest.

His eyes were filled with terror. Coughing up blood, he pulled a crimson transmission talisman from his robes and crushed it.

A red beam of light soared into the sky, tearing through the wind and sand of the wasteland.

“Tsk, must be nice to be a cultivator. They have an endless supply of life-saving magical treasures.”

Su Yueli stabilized herself, her willow-like brows furrowed. She felt quite annoyed.

Mortal martial artists relied entirely on their blood qi to fight to the death, but these cultivators could just throw magical treasures when they were losing. It was truly a headache.

Seeing that the opponent had called for reinforcements, Su Yueli grew worried. Stomping her foot, she prepared to force her way over and completely finish off the male cultivator.

“How dare you!”

The nearby Third Realm female cultivator finally reacted. Brandishing a flaming longsword, she conjured several violent waves of fire to block Su Yueli's path.

This mid stage Third Realm female cultivator was more than a level stronger than the late stage Second Realm male cultivator.

Because of her injured shoulder, Su Yueli was forced back repeatedly by the overwhelming waves of fire, unable to bypass her to make the kill.

The wind and sand on the wasteland grew fiercer, and the waves of fire collided continuously with the astral qi, producing deafening booms.

Su Yueli knew very well that the cultivators' reinforcements would arrive extremely quickly. If she dragged this out and got surrounded, she might very well lose her life here today.

Her gaze turned ruthless as the Ji Dao fist force within her body began to condense. She was prepared to unleash her ultimate move and go all out, regardless of the cost.

However, before she could make a move, a thunderous roar echoed from the distant sky:

“Which fellow Daoist dares to injure my Chiyang Sect disciples?!”

The soundwaves rolled, causing the surrounding rubble to buzz.

Immediately after, an extremely powerful streak of crimson light tore through the wind and sand, crashing down into the clearing with immense pressure.

Su Yueli gritted her teeth, cursing her bad luck.

She was still a step too late.

Near Black Wind Valley, fighting a one-versus-three battle left her with absolutely no chance of victory. Moreover, the newcomer's aura was steady and blazing, clearly indicating he was also a Third Realm cultivator whose strength was far superior to the female cultivator before her.

Su Yueli retreated rapidly, already planning her escape route in her mind.

However, when the crimson light dissipated to reveal the figure within, both Su Yueli and the newcomer froze.

Their eyes met.

Su Yueli's brows furrowed tightly, while the tall man opposite her was filled with shock. “You are... the girl from the cave the other day?”

The newcomer was none other than the first inner disciple of the Chiyang Sect, Lie Yangfeng.

In the brief moment they were both stunned, a venomous look flashed in the eyes of the Third Realm female cultivator who had been forced back by Su Yueli.

Seeing Su Yueli distracted and ignoring Lie Yangfeng's arrival, her figure transformed into a blurry streak of fire, closing in behind Su Yueli in the blink of an eye.

The longsword in her hand carried a blinding fiery glow as it thrust toward the center of Su Yueli's back, intending to kill her in a single strike!

“Oh no!”

Su Yueli's heart skipped a beat. Having been distracted by recognizing Lie Yangfeng, it was now too late to completely dodge.

At this critical juncture, Lie Yangfeng's expression suddenly darkened.

“Stop!”

He roared, raising his right hand and striking forward.

A violent surge of crimson spiritual energy transformed into a heavy wall of air, crashing into the female cultivator's flying sword.

The immense recoil sent the female cultivator flying backward. Propping herself up with her sword as she landed, her face was filled with disbelief. “Senior Brother Lie? Why... why did you strike me?! This woman injured Junior Brother and even stole our demon beast!”

Lie Yangfeng's expression was majestic and stern as he swept a cold gaze over her. “Shut up and step back!”

The female cultivator gritted her teeth. Though her heart was filled with resentment, she ultimately did not dare say anything more in the face of this highly prestigious senior brother from the inner sect. She could only resentfully sheathe her sword and step aside.

Lie Yangfeng turned around, pulled a healing elixir emitting a medicinal fragrance from his robes, and flicked his finger, sending it straight into the mouth of the severely injured male cultivator in the distance.

After taking the pill, the male cultivator's deathly pale face finally improved slightly. He struggled to sit up, glaring venomously at Su Yueli.

Having handled this, Lie Yangfeng finally turned back, his fiery eyes sizing up Su Yueli in astonishment.

He truly had not expected that this young girl, whom he had dismissed as a suicidal mortal in Black Wind Valley just a few days ago, would be able to survive unharmed in this perilous place until now.

He was even more shocked that she could fight one against two and severely injure his fellow disciples.

“Miss, what exactly happened here?”

Lie Yangfeng exhaled and asked in confusion.

His tone was actually quite polite.

Seeing that the other party didn't immediately attack, the tense string in Su Yueli's heart loosened slightly.

Brushing the scorched fabric on her shoulder, she recounted everything that had just transpired in detail.

From how she discovered and personally killed the scorpion, to how these two disciples ambushed and threatened her, and even intended to murder her for her treasure—she explained it all without any exaggeration.

After listening to Su Yueli's explanation, Lie Yangfeng's brows immediately furrowed.

He turned his head toward the Third Realm female cultivator and the severely injured male cultivator, asking in a deep voice, “Is there a single word of falsehood in what Miss Su has said?”

The female cultivator's eyes flickered slightly, and she raised her chin, shouting, “Senior Brother, don't listen to this mortal's lies! We were the ones who injured that scorpion first. Why should something belonging to the Chiyang Sect be taken by a mere mortal martial artist?”

“Besides, the weapon in her hand is absolutely a peerless treasure. Junior Brother was only doing it for the sect...”

“Impudent!”

Lie Yangfeng didn't even wait for her to finish before barking out in anger.

Hearing up to this point, how could he not understand what had happened?

It was clear that his two useless fellow disciples had grown greedy upon seeing her treasure, trying to bully a mortal martial artist with no background, only to kick an iron plate.

Lie Yangfeng stood in place, sinking into deep thought.

Meanwhile, Su Yueli, standing opposite him, remained completely tense.

The Ji Dao blood qi inside her body circulated quietly through her meridians, and her right hand tightly gripped Xiaohei hidden in her sleeve, ready to flee or fight to the death at any moment.

After all, Lie Yangfeng was also from the Chiyang Sect.

She had seen far too much of cultivators protecting their own.

The opponent was very powerful. If Lie Yangfeng truly intended to disregard right and wrong and forcefully take action to avenge his fellow disciples, then with her current injuries and condition, she really wouldn't have much of a chance of survival today.