Chapter 45: Powerful Enemies Pressing In, Swords Drawn

The sun rose higher in the sky.

Outside the mountain gate of Bailian Villa, the atmosphere today was exceptionally solemn.

Twenty Disciples of the villa, dressed in tight-fitting martial attire, were lined up on both sides. They held Magical Artifacts, their expressions grave. Behind them stood four Elders with white hair and beards—Grand Elder Ouyang Zhen, Second Elder Ouyang Hong, Third Elder Ouyang Bo, and Fourth Elder Ouyang Shan, who was at the Middle Stage of the Golden Core Stage. Ouyang Shan usually spent his years in secluded cultivation, indifferent to worldly affairs, but had made an exception and emerged today.

Four Golden Core Stage Elders appearing together was a display of force rarely seen since the founding of Bailian Villa.

The villa's main gates were wide open, and Sect Master Ouyang Lie stood with his hands behind his back, his face as heavy as water. Behind him stood dozens of the villa's Core Disciples, everyone looking nervous, their eyes glancing toward the distant horizon from time to time.

In the guest courtyard, Lin Xuan slowly stood up.

Wang Mang and Li Dali followed behind him, both their faces carrying an unconcealable tension.

“Brother Lin, do you really not need us to follow?” Wang Mang scratched his head, his face full of worry.

Lin Xuan shook his head: “You two stay here. If an accident really happens, saving your lives is the priority.”

Li Dali hesitated to speak but eventually nodded.

Lin Xuan walked out of the guest courtyard alone, following the stone path through the bamboo forest toward the mountain gate.

His pace was steady, every step firm and powerful.

Twenty days of bitter cultivation, twenty days of waiting; today, the outcome would finally be decided.

...

Outside the mountain gate, the atmosphere was so heavy it felt as if it might drip like water.

Ouyang Lie looked up at the northern sky, his brow furrowed.

“They're here,” he said in a low voice.

Before his voice could fade, a streak of green light sped from the northern horizon at an astonishing speed. In the blink of an eye, the light reached a hundred yards outside the mountain gate and faded, revealing three figures.

The man in the lead had a lean face and sharp eyes, his green Daoist robes fluttering in the mountain wind. His aura was as heavy as a mountain; just by standing there quietly, he gave off an invisible sense of oppression—it was indeed Zhao Yuanzhen, a Golden Core Late Stage cultivator and half-step Nascent Soul.

Behind him followed two Disciples also dressed in Daoist robes, both at the Foundation Establishment Late Stage. Their eyes were like lightning as they swept over the people of Bailian Villa with a hint of condescending scrutiny.

“Zhao Yuanzhen of the Yunni Sect greets Sect Master Ouyang.” Zhao Yuanzhen cupped his hands in greeting, his tone indifferent, betraying no emotion.

Ouyang Lie also cupped his hands: “Elder Zhao has come from afar; please forgive my lack of a proper welcome. Please!”

He stepped aside and made a gesturing motion to invite them in.

Zhao Yuanzhen nodded slightly and led his two Disciples through the mountain gate with large strides.

Just as he stepped into the gate—

“Wait a moment.”

An aged voice rang out.

Everyone looked toward the sound and saw Ouyang Ye leaning on his pitch-black cane, his back hunched, slowly walking out from within the villa. He walked very slowly, as if every step used up all his strength, but in those cloudy old eyes, there flickered a heart-palpitating light.

Zhao Yuanzhen's gaze narrowed before returning to normal, and he cupped his hands: “Senior Ouyang, it has been many years since we last met. I trust you have been well.”

Ouyang Ye chuckled: “Well? These old bones of mine can only hold on for a few more years. But you, Zhao Yuanzhen, when I saw you twenty years ago, you were only at the Golden Core Middle Stage. Now, you're almost a half-step Nascent Soul. The Yunni Sect's resources certainly are nourishing.”

These words were spoken neither warmly nor coldly, yet they carried a faint hint of sarcasm.

Zhao Yuanzhen's expression remained unchanged: “Senior overpraises me. I have come this time for...”

“For that boy Lin Xuan, right?” Ouyang Ye interrupted him and waved a hand. “No need to say it, I know. Let's go, we'll talk inside. Standing at the gate like this, what kind of behavior is that?”

He turned around, leaning on his cane with his hunched back, and led the way into the villa.

Zhao Yuanzhen watched his back, a flash of gloominess in his eyes, before following.

...

Bailian Villa, Main Hall.

Today's Main Hall was even more solemn and dignified than usual.

Ouyang Lie sat in the seat of honor, with the four Elders lined up on either side. Zhao Yuanzhen sat in the primary guest seat, with his two Disciples standing behind him.

The atmosphere in the hall was heavy; no one spoke first.

Just then, a cold female voice came from outside the hall:

“Leng Ningshuang of Xuanbing Valley, accompanied by our Grand Elder, requests an audience with Sect Master Ouyang.”

Ouyang Lie's eyes flashed, and he said in a deep voice: “Please enter!”

Two figures walked in with measured steps.

The one in the lead was indeed Leng Ningshuang, still dressed in white, as pure as snow. Behind her followed a white-haired old woman with a kind face, but the occasional sharp light flashing in those seemingly cloudy eyes made one not dare to underestimate her—she was the Grand Elder of Xuanbing Valley, Fairy Lengyue, Golden Core Late Stage, the same rank as Zhao Yuanzhen.

Zhao Yuanzhen's gaze sharpened as he slowly stood up and cupped his hands: “Senior Lengyue, it has been many years.”

Fairy Lengyue smiled slightly: “Elder Zhao, I trust you have been well. This old woman was passing by this place and heard that Elder Zhao was coming, so I dropped in to join the excitement. Elder Zhao wouldn't mind, would you?”

Zhao Yuanzhen's expression remained unchanged: “Senior must be joking. It is Bailian Villa's honor that you are willing to come.”

Though he said this, the flash of gloom in his eyes was keenly caught by Leng Ningshuang.

A faint curve appeared at the corner of her mouth as she took a seat beside Fairy Lengyue.

...

Outside the hall, a figure slowly approached.

Lin Xuan.

He was still dressed in those coarse cloth short-sleeved clothes, looking out of place among the richly dressed crowd in the hall. But his steps were as steady as a mountain, and his gaze as calm as water, as if he were not about to face a powerful Golden Core Late Stage enemy, but merely an ordinary opponent.

The moment he stepped into the Main Hall, all eyes focused on him.

Zhao Yuanzhen's gaze fell on him like a physical weight, sizing him up from head to toe. In that gaze, there was scrutiny, curiosity, and also a hint of... greed.

Lin Xuan met his gaze, his expression unchanging.

“You are Lin Xuan?” Zhao Yuanzhen spoke, his voice not loud, yet carrying an invisible pressure.

Lin Xuan nodded slightly: “I am.”

Zhao Yuanzhen looked at him and suddenly smiled. The smile was very thin, yet it made people feel a bone-chilling coldness:

“Good. Very good. To be so calm before me, you indeed have some courage. Unfortunately...”

He paused, his tone turning cold: “Courage cannot save you.”

Before his voice finished, the aura around him exploded!

That aura was like a mountain, like an ocean, like an abyss, like a prison! It exceeded Wolf Seven's by more than tenfold! The temperature of the entire Main Hall seemed to drop by several degrees! Everyone present, except for the few Golden Core Stage experts, changed color!

This was a show of force!

A blatant show of force!

He wanted Lin Xuan to know that before him, so-called geniuses and so-called miracles were all just a joke!

Lin Xuan stood at the center of that aura, his robes fluttering wildly, but his figure was as steady as a rock!

In his eyes, there was not the slightest fear!

Only calmness, and beneath that calmness, a Battle Intent that was slowly burning!

“Elder Zhao,” Ouyang Lie spoke in a deep voice, “this is Bailian Villa, not the Yunni Sect. Let us speak reasonably; what is the need for this?”

Zhao Yuanzhen glanced at him, his gaze carrying a hint of faint disdain: “Sect Master Ouyang, I have come today for only one thing—to take Lin Xuan away. If the Sect Master makes it convenient, I will leave immediately and definitely won't disturb you. If the Sect Master insists on obstructing me...”

He paused, a cold smile curling on his lips: “Then I wouldn't mind letting this Bailian Villa change its master.”

As soon as these words were spoken, the entire hall was in an uproar!

“Presumptuous!” Ouyang Zhen stood up abruptly, glaring at him. “Zhao Yuanzhen, what kind of place do you think my Bailian Villa is?!”

Zhao Yuanzhen didn't even look at him, only staring at Ouyang Lie: “Sect Master Ouyang, what is your decision?”

Ouyang Lie's face was ashen, and for a moment, he actually couldn't find words.

Just then, an aged voice slowly rang out:

“Little Zhao, those words of yours... they sound quite grating to this old man's ears.”

Everyone looked toward the sound and saw Ouyang Ye still sitting in the chair in the corner, his back hunched, looking like an old man with one foot in the grave. But at this moment, in those cloudy old eyes, there flickered a heart-palpitating light.

Zhao Yuanzhen's gaze narrowed, and he bowed slightly: “Senior, I didn't mean it that way...”

“Didn't mean it that way?” Ouyang Ye chuckled. “Then what way did you mean? Changing the master? I've lived for nearly three hundred years, and this is the first time someone has said to my face that they want to change the master of my Bailian Villa. Little Zhao, you have quite the nerve.”

He slowly stood up.

With this standing up, the atmosphere of the entire Main Hall instantly became eerie.

That hunched, aged aura seemed to vanish at this moment. It was replaced by a pressure that, though weak, was equally not to be underestimated—it was the aura belonging to Golden Core Perfection, which, though declined due to old age, still retained its majesty!

Zhao Yuanzhen's pupils shrank slightly.

He hadn't expected that this old fellow, who looked like he was about to die, still had such a foundation!

“Senior,” he took a deep breath and softened his tone, “I did not intend to offend. It's just that this Lin Xuan involves a secret of my Yunni Sect and must be taken away. If Senior insists on obstructing, then you will be making an enemy of my Yunni Sect.”

“Making an enemy of the Yunni Sect?” Ouyang Ye laughed. “I've lived for nearly three hundred years and have offended more Sects than I can count. The Yunni Sect? What does that even count for?”

Zhao Yuanzhen's expression changed.

Just then, the consistently silent Fairy Lengyue suddenly spoke:

“Elder Zhao, I have a suggestion, though I don't know if it's appropriate to say.”

Zhao Yuanzhen looked at her, his eyes flickering: “Please speak, Senior.”

Fairy Lengyue smiled slightly: “Since both sides want this Lin Xuan, why not... let him choose for himself?”

Zhao Yuanzhen's brow furrowed: “Choose for himself?”

“Correct.” Fairy Lengyue nodded. “Let him decide for himself whether to go with you or stay at Bailian Villa. If he goes with you voluntarily, then Senior Ouyang will have nothing to say. If he is unwilling, then for Elder Zhao to force the issue would be beneath your status.”

As soon as these words were spoken, the people in the hall had various expressions.

A cold light flashed in Zhao Yuanzhen's eyes. He naturally knew that Lin Xuan could never voluntarily go with him. Fairy Lengyue's suggestion seemed fair, but it was actually helping Lin Xuan stall for time, and even... forcing his hand to act!

But could he refuse?

In front of so many people, if he refused this 'fair' suggestion, he would be admitting he was in the wrong. If word got out later, it would be extremely detrimental to his reputation.

He looked at Lin Xuan, his gaze gloomy.

What would this kid say?

Lin Xuan met his gaze, and a faint curve suddenly appeared at the corner of his mouth.

The curve was very slight, but it caused Zhao Yuanzhen's heart to skip a beat for no reason.

“Elder Zhao,” Lin Xuan spoke slowly, his voice not loud, but clearly reaching everyone's ears, “I have one thing I don't understand and would like to ask the Elder.”

Zhao Yuanzhen said coldly: “Speak.”

Lin Xuan looked at him and said word by word:

“The Yunni Sect wants to capture me because I obtained a Legacy in the Black Wind Ridge ruins. That, I understand.”

“But what I want to ask is—”

He paused, his gaze becoming sharp as a knife:

“Why does your Yunni Sect want to capture Su Qingyue?”

As soon as these words were spoken, Zhao Yuanzhen's expression changed drastically!

(End of Volume 2, Chapter 45)

---

[Next Chapter Preview]: Powerful enemies press in, swords drawn! Zhao Yuanzhen uses the might of the Golden Core Late Stage to pressure the villa, only to be neutralized by the combined efforts of Ouyang Ye and Fairy Lengyue. In a desperate situation, Lin Xuan suddenly asks—why is Su Qingyue being held under house arrest? This question points directly to the Yunni Sect's greatest secret! Zhao Yuanzhen's face changes drastically, and the atmosphere in the hall instantly freezes! What kind of truth is hidden in the Ancient Mark within Su Qingyue's body? And what kind of consequences will Lin Xuan's question trigger? Next Chapter: A Single Remark Shocks All, The Dagger is Revealed!