Chapter 1124: Autumn Rain and the Parasol Tree
The fame of the Azure Sky Bow and the White Sun Arrow was simply too great. Even when shot in plain sight, very few could dodge them.
Moreover, the Azure Sky Crown Prince had fired this arrow with such surprise that it seemed perfectly reasonable for Zhang Ruochen to be shot down.
"Zhang Ruochen!"
Huang Yanchen's pupils dilated, surging with a chilling light. She immediately transformed into a blue shadowy phantom and flew out, trying to catch Zhang Ruochen as he fell from the sky.
"Whoosh——"
At that moment, two streams of blood energy flew out from underground, condensing into two Undying Blood Clan members. They were two experts of the Azure Sky Tribe: Flame Heart Princess and Ghost Mist.
They launched a sneak attack on Huang Yanchen from the left and right.
In addition, Murong Yue, White Li Princess, Sun Dadi, and Qing Mo were also ambushed by Undying Blood Clan experts.
Among them, Murong Yue, Sun Dadi, and White Li Princess were severely wounded, while Qing Mo and Huang Yanchen sustained minor injuries.
With the Undying Blood Clan joining the battle, the fight became completely one-sided.
"No... how could this be... impossible..."
Mu Lingxi's eyes widened as if struck by lightning. Staring at Zhang Ruochen falling from midair, she felt as though her heart had been torn apart.
Then, a pair of Ice Phoenix wings grew from her back. Losing all reason, she forcibly broke through the obstruction of Qi Feiyu and Lan Caisang, transforming into a streak of light and flying recklessly toward Dragon Summit Mountain.
Qi Feiyu mobilized her Saint Qi, wanting to chase her back.
"You can't stop her. Let her go!"
Ouyang Huan said indifferently, his face devoid of any emotional fluctuation.
A Le frowned deeply. Then, stepping in a mysterious footwork, he walked toward Dragon Summit Mountain. Though he appeared to move unhurriedly, each step covered a vast distance.
He refused to believe Zhang Ruochen was dead. How could someone like Zhang Ruochen die so easily?
Zhang Ruochen had faced such deadly situations several times before and never truly perished, let alone now when he was even more formidable.
Earlier, A Le had not acted because he had full confidence in Zhang Ruochen.
He even suspected that Zhang Ruochen had a deeper reason for doing this and could not truly have gone into cultivation deviation.
But now, this situation left A Le confused, yet he had no choice but to rush to Dragon Summit Mountain.
A blood-red cloud flew toward A Le.
Within the blood cloud were dozens of Undying Blood Clan experts. One of them, a cultivator who had stepped into the Saint King Realm, shouted, "Any human cultivator daring to charge Dragon Summit Mountain shall be killed without mercy."
A Le said nothing and continued forward.
The blood cloud radiated boundless killing intent and descended. Dozens of Undying Blood Clan experts landed on the ground, unleashing a series of attacks at A Le.
"Shash."
The iron sword left its sheath, and sword light burst forth.
The next moment, A Le walked out from the blood cloud, leaving behind dozens of Undying Blood Clan corpses on the ground, all killed with a single sword strike.
A Le caught up to Mu Lingxi and blocked her, saying in a stiff tone, "You go back."
Mu Lingxi's eyes were bloodshot, her heart filled with sorrow. She could not listen to anything and only wanted to rush to Dragon Summit Mountain immediately.
"If Zhang Ruochen is still alive, I will bring him out alive. If Zhang Ruochen is dead, I will carry his corpse out."
Having said this, A Le paid no more attention to Mu Lingxi and headed toward Dragon Summit Mountain, moving even faster.
Mu Lingxi did not turn back and continued toward Dragon Summit Mountain.
They were intercepted again by Undying Blood Clan forces. This time, three experts from the Hundred Clans Royal City stepped forward, all of them Quasi-Saints of the Undying Blood Clan.
One of them, ranked eighty-second among the Undying Blood Clan, had a pair of silver fleshy wings on his back. He snorted coldly, "We already warned you, yet you still dare to force your way into Dragon Summit Mountain. Do you want to follow Zhang Ruochen's fate?"
Those who could rank in the top hundred all had the strength to contend with lower-level Saints. Naturally, they spoke with great confidence and were not afraid of A Le or Mu Lingxi.
Without any unnecessary words, A Le drew his sword and struck at the three Undying Blood Clan Quasi-Saints.
With just the first sword strike, one of the Undying Blood Clan Quasi-Saints was slain by A Le, falling into a pool of blood, his body severed into nine sections.
After three strikes, the second Undying Blood Clan Quasi-Saint was killed, his body split in two by the iron sword.
The third Undying Blood Clan expert was quite powerful, exchanging over a dozen moves with A Le, but in the end, he could not escape death. His Saint Soul was shattered by the sword energy.
After this battle, no one present dared to underestimate A Le anymore.
One man, one sword, unstoppable.
By now, the heavy water at the foot of Dragon Summit Mountain had all receded, flowing into the distance, revealing the muddy ground washed by the waves.
A Le and Mu Lingxi reached the base of Dragon Summit Mountain, walking among the dense corpses, climbing the mountain at top speed.
"I thought that with the experts of the various barbarian tribes and the Undying Blood Clan here, the humans would retreat immediately. But unexpectedly, another human expert has come. Quite interesting."
The Kun Clan Prince's lips curled into a smile as he dove sharply from midair, locking onto A Le who was climbing the mountain, and struck down fiercely with his sharp long lance.
A Le faced an unprecedented powerful enemy. He swung his rust-covered iron sword, clashing head-on with the radiant long lance.
"Boom."
The collision of sword and lance produced a deafening sound wave, shaking the seven orifices of some sixth-rank barbarian beasts nearby, causing blood to flow.
A Le's feet left the ground as he flew backward down the mountain.
The Kun Clan Prince's battle intent surged. He laughed loudly, spread his pair of crimson wings, and flew close to the ground, chasing after A Le.
"Boom boom."
The two continued to clash, cracking the ground and forming shocking ravines.
With each strike from the Kun Clan Prince, A Le retreated dozens of zhang, yet he also managed to neutralize its power effortlessly.
An unknown human swordsman being able to block the world-renowned ancient ferocious beast was already astonishing. Many human cultivators began inquiring about A Le's background, developing a strong interest in him.
Just then, from the mountainside of Dragon Summit Mountain, a piercing arrow sound rang out.
The White Sun Arrow shot down from midair, turning into a white light that pierced through Mu Lingxi's body. The arrow's momentum carried her body, sending it flying into the sky.
Mu Lingxi's robes were completely stained with blood. Her frail body, like a blood-red paper butterfly, fell toward the foot of the mountain.
She had almost reached the summit and would soon see Zhang Ruochen, but in the end, she was still one step short.
The life force within Mu Lingxi was rapidly fading. Her eyes remained fixed on Dragon Summit Mountain, but the distance between her and the mountain grew ever greater.
"Whoosh——"
The White Sun Arrow traced a beautiful arc, flying high into the sky and returning to the Azure Sky Crown Prince's hand.
The Azure Sky Crown Prince acted as if he had done something utterly ordinary, showing no great emotion. Then, he drew his bow and aimed at A Le, who was still locked in combat with the Kun Clan Prince.
However, at that moment, the corner of his eye caught sight of a figure stepping out from the void.
It was a young man dressed in neat yellow clothes, appearing to be just over twenty years old.
He walked leisurely through the void, reached out a hand, and grabbed Mu Lingxi's wrist, gently pulling her forward.
Once she entered within a hundred zhang of him, it was as if she had entered liquid water, suspended in midair.
The Azure Sky Crown Prince instinctively sensed that the yellow-clad man was a dangerous figure. His eyes narrowed, and he immediately adjusted his arrow, aiming at him, and asked, "Who are you?"
The yellow-clad man ignored the Azure Sky Crown Prince. Instead, he extended a long, fair hand and, with an extremely graceful motion, placed it above Mu Lingxi's delicate body.
From his palm, a pale yellow stream of energy surged out.
The pale yellow energy took the form of leaf-like shapes, flying into Mu Lingxi's body. Instantly, the wound pierced by the White Sun Arrow healed at a visible rate.
Mu Lingxi's life force, which had been nearly depleted, now seemed reborn, radiating an incredibly rich vitality.
All the creatures present were greatly shocked, staring at the yellow-clad man with astonishment.
Legend had it that anyone struck by the White Sun Arrow would have their life force drained in an extremely short time. That was why everyone believed Zhang Ruochen was doomed after being hit.
Yet, this scene was bizarre. Mu Lingxi had clearly been pierced by the White Sun Arrow, yet now she was full of vitality, even more vigorous than before.
Without a doubt, it was because of the yellow-clad man.
A chill appeared in the Azure Sky Crown Prince's eyes. He mobilized all his power, transferring it to his arms, and drew the Azure Sky Bow a bit further, causing the light radiating from the bow to become even brighter and more dazzling.
"Whoosh!"
The White Sun Arrow transformed into a streak of light, producing a series of explosive sounds, dragging a tail dozens of meters long as it shot toward the yellow-clad man.
The yellow-clad man remained calm and composed. One hand hovered above Mu Lingxi, his gaze focused intently on her, while his other hand slowly rose, directly catching the incoming White Sun Arrow.
"He... caught it..."
A wave of gasps spread across heaven and earth.
Including Vermilion Bird Fairy, Bi'an Heavenly King, Lidi Master, and Xue Wuye, no one could remain calm. They stared at the yellow-clad man with an expression of disbelief.
The yellow-clad man loosened his fingers and lightly tossed the White Sun Arrow, saying calmly, "You have only sanctified one hundred and thirty-two acupoints now. If you could sanctify one hundred and forty-two acupoints, then catching this arrow would not be so easy for me."
Sanctifying one hundred and forty-four acupoints meant achieving physical sainthood.
Sanctifying one hundred and forty-two acupoints meant being just a step away from physical sainthood, with physical strength already reaching an unimaginable level.
"Who exactly are you?" The Azure Sky Crown Prince felt a chill at his back, staring at the yellow-clad man with extreme wariness.
"Autumn Rain," said the yellow-clad man.
Just those two words caused all the creatures to erupt in excitement.
"He is the number one, Autumn Rain. I thought those two words were just casually written on the list by Shengshu Cainü, but I never expected such a person to actually exist."
On the Hundred Clans Royal City side, Lidi Master, Devouring Demon Dragon, Xue Wuye, and Vermilion Bird Fairy were all top-tier experts. If anyone else claimed to be number one, no one would accept it.
But after witnessing Autumn Rain's strength, no one dared to refuse.
The yellow-clad man named Autumn Rain said, "Everyone, please do not misunderstand. I am not human. I am just a parasol tree growing in the southern region."