“Who is she?”
“How did she appear just now?”
“I didn't detect any spatial fluctuations at all, yet she appeared out of nowhere.”
“What a terrifying pressure...”
The spectating cultivators in the distance paled.
Even before Yun Zhao had intentionally released her pressure, they were already finding it difficult to breathe.
That aura was far more terrifying than when Lu Xuanwei had revealed his mid-stage Void Refinement cultivation moments ago.
No.
They couldn't even be compared.
While Lu Xuanwei's pressure was formidable, one could still perceive the boundaries of his power.
Yet Yun Zhao merely stood there quietly, her aura like a bottomless ocean.
No one could gauge her true cultivation.
“At least peak Void Refinement.”
Staring at Yun Zhao, a Soul Transformation cultivator spoke, unable to conceal the shock in his voice.
Someone beside him immediately refuted in a low voice:
“More than that.”
“Peak Void Refinement could never make me unable to even muster a thought of resistance.”
“She might already be a Body Integration mighty figure.”
Body Integration.
The moment those words were uttered, everyone nearby collectively gasped.
Void Refinement cultivators were already the top powerhouses in the Eastern Region.
As for Body Integration mighty figures, only the top factions in the Central State possessed them, and they rarely made public appearances.
No one expected that a Body Integration powerhouse might actually be standing behind Yun Heng.
Standing among the crowd from the Xuanxiao Sect, Su Mingyuan froze in place once again.
After Lu Xuanwei revealed his mid-stage Void Refinement cultivation, she had originally put her mind at ease.
Although Yun Heng had brought ten Soul Transformation cultivators and two hundred Nascent Soul cultivators, the combined forces of the Xuanxiao Sect and the Taihua Sword Sect possessed just as many powerhouses.
Not to mention there was also Lu Xuanwei, a mid-stage Void Refinement cultivator.
As long as the fight continued, Yun Heng's side was bound to lose.
Su Mingyuan had even begun looking forward to what kind of tragic fate would await Yun Heng once she lost all her guards.
But what was this situation now?
The smugness and relief that had just welled up in Su Mingyuan's heart vanished completely the instant she saw Yun Zhao.
Not just her.
The disciples present who had personally witnessed the events at the Xuanxiao Sect's Heart-Interrogation Platform a year ago all recognized Yun Zhao as well.
“It’s her!”
“Isn't she the female cultivator who appeared on the Heart-Interrogation Platform?”
“I remember her too!”
“Back then, she only appeared as a phantom image.”
A year ago, when Yun Heng was brought up to the Heart-Interrogation Platform, it was the phantom image of this black-robed female cultivator that had suddenly appeared to block her punishment.
Back then, even as a mere phantom image, Yun Zhao's cultivation had been unfathomable to the elders of the Xuanxiao Sect.
Now, whether it was her appearance, her body, or the aura surrounding her, everything was unmistakably real.
This was no phantom image.
Her true body had arrived in person.
He Lansong and several Xuanxiao Sect elders suffered drastic changes in expression.
Others might not know how dangerous Yun Zhao was, but they knew better than anyone.
A year ago, when that phantom image appeared on the Heart-Interrogation Platform, they had suspected her true body possessed at least a Void Refinement Realm cultivation.
Now that they saw Yun Zhao in person, they realized they had still understated her back then.
The female cultivator's cultivation was simply beyond their ability to estimate.
Things were looking grim.
He Lansong's heart sank.
He had long disapproved of continuing to escalate matters for Su Mingyuan's sake.
However, Lu Xuanwei was the Sect Master of the Xuanxiao Sect.
Once the Sect Master made a decision, He Lansong, as the Grand Elder, could not publicly oppose him.
Now that the true powerhouse behind Yun Heng had revealed herself, the Xuanxiao Sect and the Taihua Sword Sect were bound to pay the price for their earlier choice.
Yun Zhao's gaze swept over the members of the Xuanxiao Sect and the Taihua Sword Sect.
In the next instant, a terrifying pressure abruptly erupted from her body.
This pressure descended with precision onto the elders and disciples of both sects who had just attacked Yun Heng's side.
“Boom!”
A muffled explosion echoed through the air.
Before the Nascent Soul cultivators closest to Yun Zhao could even react, they spat out mouthfuls of blood simultaneously.
The spiritual power within their bodies scattered in an instant, and they plummeted from midair.
Disciples with weaker cultivation lost consciousness the very second the pressure crashed down, collapsing onto the ground one after another.
“Thud! Thud! Thud!”
Figure after figure kept falling.
The Soul Transformation elders of both sects fared no better.
They attempted to circulate spiritual power to resist, but the moment defensive spiritual light flickered around them, it was shattered directly by Yun Zhao's pressure.
Several elders groaned in unison as the immense force pinned them back to the ground.
Some knelt on one knee, while others crashed straight into the rubble.
Every single one of them suffered non-negligible injuries.
Wei Quechen summoned his longsword to block in front of him, pouring all his peak Soul Transformation spiritual power into the blade.
Yet that sword light lasted for only a brief instant before shattering inch by inch under Yun Zhao's pressure.
Wei Quechen's body shuddered violently; he stumbled back several steps, blood leaking from the corners of his mouth.
Even Lu Xuanwei, who had broken through to mid-stage Void Refinement, underwent a drastic change in expression the moment the pressure descended.
Forming hand seals with both hands, he erected a spiritual power barrier in front of himself.
The barrier's surface vibrated violently as cracks rapidly spread across it.
“Crack!”
In just a few breaths, the spiritual power barrier crumbled with a crash.
Lu Xuanwei swayed, nearly falling from midair.
He forcibly circulated his spiritual power to stabilize his stance, but his complexion turned ghastly pale.
The Qi and blood within his body churned uncontrollably, and his meridians were injured by the invading force.
Lu Xuanwei raised a hand to press against his chest, a look of distinct pain surfacing on his face.
Although the distant spectating cultivators were not Yun Zhao's primary targets, some were still caught in the shockwaves of her power.
They retreated backward one after another, their faces pale.
Once the pressure dissipated, the previously fierce battlefield fell completely quiet.
The elders of the two sects, who had been dignified and majestic moments ago, were now mostly lying on the ground in disheveled states.
A single person had effortlessly suppressed all the powerhouses of two major sects.
In the eyes of the spectating crowd gazing at Yun Zhao, nothing remained except shock and awe.
Xuan Yi through Xuan Shi, along with the two hundred Golden Armored Guards, landed back on the ground from the air.
Several severely injured guards supported one another, yet still immediately returned behind Yun Heng.
After withdrawing her pressure, Yun Zhao flew down to stand before Yun Heng.
Paying no heed to the countless shocked gazes around her, she dropped straight to one knee.
“Young Lord.”
“Yun Zhao has arrived late.”
Yun Heng immediately reached out to help Yun Zhao up.
“Rise.”
“I owe today to you.”
If Yun Zhao hadn't appeared in time, all of them would likely have suffered a grim fate. She felt she had been too impulsive today, failing her duty as the Young Lord by leading everyone into danger.
Yun Heng felt a hint of self-reproach in her heart.
Yun Zhao rose with her support, her expression remaining respectful.
“Protecting the Young Lord is my duty to begin with.”
Yun Heng adjusted her breath and stepped toward Lu Xuanwei.
Yun Zhao asked no questions and followed right behind her.
With every step forward the two took, the expressions of the Xuanxiao Sect and Taihua Sword Sect members grew tenser.
Lu Xuanwei subconsciously tensed his body as well.
The injuries inside him were not light; at this moment, he lacked any capacity to strike again.
Even if he were uninjured, he might not necessarily be able to block Yun Zhao.
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