Volume 3 Chapter 61: Chaos Battle

After much commotion, the mountains behind Jiuhua finally returned to their usual serene and timeless peace.

Not far in front of Xu Qingfan, the sky was filled with roaring flames, casting flickering shadows on his face, matching the turmoil within his heart.

His thoughts drifted back to forty years ago, when Yue Qingru was still alive, Lu Huayan still lived, and Nangong Qingshan was still his junior apprentice. Those memories were vivid, yet now thinking back, they seemed like a life from another world.

In the flames, Nangong Qingshan’s cries of agony started off piercingly high, echoing through the mountains, but now they had gradually faded to a whisper, almost inaudible.

When Nangong Qingshan’s cries finally vanished completely, Xu Qingfan sighed softly. He didn’t glance back at the blazing flames but quickly turned and flew toward his cave dwelling.

Having dealt with Nangong Qingshan, he was now anxious to ensure Ting’er’s safety.

According to Nangong Qingshan, his master seemed inexplicably interested in Ting’er, which filled Xu Qingfan with a sense of crisis. Although he didn’t know who Nangong Qingshan’s master was, Xu Qingfan was certain he would strike again. With his strength and cunning, when he did, he’d be utterly confident of success.

As for Nangong Qingshan’s body, Xu Qingfan paid it no heed. It wasn’t because his hatred for Nangong Qingshan extended to harming his corpse; rather, after the Phoenix Spirit Fire, only a handful of ashes remained, which would disappear with the wind after the fire, just like the end of their enmity, never to be seen again.

Although there was no body left after death, no one missed him, no one resented him, and no one knew everything Nangong Qingshan did in his lifetime. Perhaps, for Nangong Qingshan, this was the best resting place.

Despite feeling emotional, Xu Qingfan’s flying speed did not slow down. In the span of several breaths, he returned to his chamber in the back mountain, pushed the door open, and saw Ting’er still lying peacefully on the bed, unharmed. He sighed with relief.

He was about to reach out to wake Ting’er, but his hand stopped halfway.

Xu Qingfan suddenly realized that although Ting’er was in a deep sleep, her face appeared peaceful and serene. Usually, when Ting’er was awake, she would wrap herself in a cold demeanor, hiding deep fatigue and unease within.

In Xu Qingfan’s memory, Ting’er was always standing there alone with a frown. Although she rarely frowned in reality, Xu Qingfan knew that she was always frowning in her heart.

Perhaps he should let her rest a bit longer? While I was away, Ting’er must have been diligently training day and night.

Xu Qingfan thought to himself.

Just as Xu Qingfan was hesitating, an overwhelming aura and pressure came from the direction of the front mountain, as if a deity had descended. Then, the originally chaotic flow of Spirit Qi vanished, seemingly weakened by this formidable presence.

While Xu Qingfan was captivated by this overwhelming aura, trying to guess its source, the front mountain suddenly descended into chaos again. Countless peculiar Spirit Qi fluctuations emerged, accompanied by sounds of battle and roars that could clearly be heard even at the back mountain.

Then, a series of urgent bell chimes began to ring continuously, a total of nine times. Although the sound was clear and far-reaching, its urgency and rapid succession revealed the bell ringer’s anxious state of mind.

These chimes were from the "Linghua Bell" used by Jiuhua Gate to summon its members. Ringing nine times indicated that an external enemy was invading, calling all Jiuhua disciples to unite and resist. Such bells wouldn’t sound unless Jiuhua Mountain faced immediate grave danger.

So when Xu Qingfan heard the "Linghua Bell," he was startled. He immediately thought of the big hole he and Zhang Hualing made in the "Nine Pole Array" when they entered the mountain. Now, with Jiuhua Mountain in chaos and Elder Hou’s fate unknown, that gap probably hadn’t been repaired.

Could it be that other factions on Zhantai were already attacking Jiuhua Mountain, influenced by Zhou Huahai’s double? That’s impossible. Zhou Huahai’s real body should still be in a decisive battle with Zhang Hualing and others. Bringing the sect leaders and elders would expose his deception.

Hearing the urgent bell, Xu Qingfan didn’t have time to think. He glanced at the sleeping Ting’er and hesitated briefly. Ultimately, he didn’t wake her, but stepped outside and created a barrier around her room. If anyone broke through it, Xu Qingfan would know immediately.

After thinking it over, Xu Qingfan decided not to wake Ting’er for now, letting her rest since she had been exhausted lately and needed the break.

Xu Qingfan’s secluded dwelling was well hidden. Unless someone like Nangong Qingshan with ulterior motives came, no one would notice. With Jiuhua Mountain in turmoil and danger everywhere, going to the front mountain had its risks. It might be safer for Ting’er to stay here alone, given her current strength.

After setting up the barrier, Xu Qingfan didn’t hesitate and swiftly flew toward Jiuhua’s front mountain on his "Nimbus Cloud."

Although the earlier battle with Nangong Qingshan had drained much of Xu Qingfan’s Spirit Qi and nearly crippled his right leg, his anxiety over the situation at the front mountain spurred him on. His "Nimbus Cloud" flew quickly, reaching the mountainside swiftly.

But when he arrived at the mountain’s front, the scene before him made him jump in surprise.

The once fairyland-like scenery of Jiuhua Mountain’s front was long gone, replaced by a barren hill leveled by powerful magical spells.

On this barren hill, a chaotic battle unfolded before Xu Qingfan.

It was as if the ancient war where humans fought for the Shenzhou Continent was being reenacted, with countless demons and cultivators clashing. Watching these terrifyingly bizarre demons attacking Jiuhua Mountain’s disciples — whether with three heads and six arms, two horns and three eyes, or green-skinned with wings — describing Jiuhua Mountain’s scene as a "devil’s dance" would be no exaggeration.

Although Xu Qingfan prided himself on his knowledge, he had never heard of these demons’ appearances, leaving him greatly astonished.

What kind of races are these demons? How did they appear on Jiuhua Mountain? What exactly is happening on Jiuhua Mountain right now?

As Xu Qingfan was struck by the scene’s shock, two demons hunting for prey noticed him standing at the battlefield’s edge. His bewildered look seemed vulnerable, so they roared fiercely, eyes flashing bloodthirsty red, and charged at him.

These two demons had blue skin, wings on their backs, and a single horn on their heads reflecting a chilling gleam under the sun, making them look very frightening.

Seemingly stunned by the demons’ appearance, or perhaps oblivious to their attack, Xu Qingfan continued to stand at the battlefield’s edge, looking around as if contemplating Jiuhua Mountain’s situation, even as the two demons drew near.

Upon seeing Xu Qingfan’s reaction, the murderous intent in the eyes of the two monsters grew stronger, thinking Xu Qingfan was doomed to become their captive. But just as their claws were about to touch Xu Qingfan, the ground beneath them suddenly shattered. Two large and brightly colored Chompers appeared like lightning and rushed towards the monsters, opening their petals to swallow them and chew quickly. Streams of blue blood began to slowly flow from the gaps between the petals.

Xu Qingfan, however, was indifferent to the scene unfolding before him and continued to scan the battlefield. Through his observations, he realized that the two monsters that had attacked him were the weakest, with powers only at the late stage of the Inedia Stage. In contrast, the strongest monsters were approximately at the late stage of the Lingji Stage, comprising about one-third of the monster horde.

At this moment, the battlefield was divided into three parts.

The most striking part of the battlefield was in front of Linghua Hall, where Jin Qinghan and Lv Qingshang led a large number of Jiuhua disciples against the main force of the monsters. The ground was littered with hundreds of corpses of monsters and Jiuhua disciples, indicating that the monsters’ initial attack had caused substantial losses to the younger generation of Jiuhua.

However, as time passed, the Jiuhua disciples gradually became accustomed to the terrifying appearance of the monsters and began to handle the combat more skillfully. Although the monsters’ average strength exceeded that of the Jiuhua disciples, the disciples stood together, using their numbers to focus their efforts on defense and offense. With Jin Qinghan and Lv Qingshang’s assistance, they managed to hold their ground for the time being.

In fact, the Jiuhua Mountain disciples are the most experienced in actual combat among the six Holy Lands. Since Zhang Hualing became the sect leader, he allowed the Jiuhua disciples to fight privately, even if there were casualties. Past internal competitions often resulted in serious injuries or deaths. Amid such harsh conditions, although Jiuhua lost many outstanding disciples, this also gave most of the disciples valuable combat experience. Now, it seems as though Zhang Hualing, the old fox, had anticipated this day.

The part of the battlefield with the most activity was in front of the breach in the "Nine Pole Array." Most of the elders of Jiuhua Mountain were concentrated there, as there were vast numbers of monsters. The monsters in the front of the mountain were only part of the forces, with reinforcements attempting to enter Jiuhua Mountain through the breach, but the elders blocked them, leaving them trapped.

Although the elders had just endured a fierce battle, with their Condensed Core Stage powers, they wielded various powerful spells effortlessly. The position they occupied shimmered with dazzling five-colored lights, and the continuous booming sounds spoke of the terrifying nature of their spells.

However, the relentless wave of incoming monsters seemed endless. Despite the elders’ strong spells, they couldn’t completely annihilate the remaining monsters. Occasionally, monsters survived the attacks due to their companions’ sacrifices and managed to breach the elders’ defense, causing chaos. Nonetheless, this part of the battlefield was the most reassuring amongst the three.

The third part of the battlefield, which is the most brutal, consists of scattered skirmishes happening all over the front mountain. In the front mountain, many Jiuhua disciples didn’t manage to gather with the main group and were running around chaotically, becoming prey for the demons.

About ten elders were tirelessly rushing around the front mountain, attacking every demon they saw, and protecting all the Jiuhua disciples they could.

This was a story of cicadas, mantises, and sparrows. Jiuhua disciples were cruelly killed by demons while fleeing, yet in the blink of an eye, these demons were killed by an elder. The demons were extremely fierce, and some would explode themselves hoping to bring down a Jiuhua elder with them, causing the elders to be in a sorry state.

In short, Jiuhua Mountain was in chaos, with demons dancing wildly everywhere.

"It seems that the killing today is unavoidable." After observing the scene, Xu Qingfan sighed slightly but without hesitation prepared to drag his injured leg to attack the solitary demons alongside the elders. Among the three battlefields, this was the one he could intervene in most easily.

But just then, an unexpected change occurred in the part of the battlefield Xu Qingfan thought was the safest—the breach in the Nine Pole Array guarded by most Jiuhua elders.