Chapter 361: Chapter 360 Join Forces to Deal With
Night fell. Since a large number of Divine Land Martial Artists had gathered, Ye Fan found a quiet place to rest for a while.
However, just then, a Divine Land Martial Artist approached him.
"Young brother!" the man said.
"What is it?" Ye Fan asked.
This martial artist was not very old, but he bore an air of world-weariness.
"I am ng Zongshan, the Sect Leader of the Yueshan Sect!"
"Young brother, I must ask you for a favor!" the man pleaded.
"What is it?" Ye Fan asked again.
"This journey is fraught with peril, and I may not return. Please, pass on a ssage for : give the position of Sect Leader to my son, ng Xuanyi!"
"Oh? You’re alive and well. Why do you believe you won’t return?" Ye Fan asked curiously.
ng Zongshan said sorrowfully, "To be honest, young brother, we all have our pride, but our very lives are in the hands of the Dongzheng Emperor! This expedition for the Millennium Ice Crystal is entirely his plot. He wants to use us as bait to lure out the Ice Qilin, then slay it and take the crystal!"
The reason ng Zongshan had sought out Ye Fan was because he had witnessed his impressive strength earlier that day. He had seen Ye Fan hold his own against the Dongzheng Emperor. Moreover, with his experience, ng Zongshan could see the noble spirit in Ye Fan’s eyes. This young man was surely not one to kill the innocent without cause.
"Are your lives in the hands of the Dongzheng Emperor of the Northern Bear Country because he poisoned you?" Ye Fan asked.
ng Zongshan sighed. "Our life force is controlled by his unique spell. It’s that scepter in his hand. He can kill us whenever he pleases! Otherwise, who would willingly serve soone from the Northern Bear Country? So, young brother, I’m entrusting this to you!"
After a mont of thought, Ye Fan said, "I can deliver your ssage, but I’ll need proof."
At this, ng Zongshan took out a jade pendant and handed it to Ye Fan. "This is the proof."
Ye Fan took the jade pendant and said, "The depths of greed often hide a deadly trap."
"Indeed. We were all wrong this ti. Young brother, be wary of the Dongzheng Emperor. He is a terrifying man. I can see you are his primary opponent, so he will definitely not let you have an easy ti!"
Ye Fan nodded.
Then, ng Zongshan slowly returned to the crowd.
So many thoughts ran through Ye Fan’s mind. So often, people were not in control of their own fate, just like this group of Divine Land Martial Artists before him. Once you start down a path, there is no turning back, and this is especially true on the path of martial arts.
「The next day」
A group of people was in a heated discussion. Ye Fan approached and discovered that ng Zongshan, the man he had spoken with the previous night, was dead. He had died a grueso death, his throat impaled by a scepter and his body frozen into an ice statue.
Ye Fan was furious. ng Zongshan had just been talking to him last night, yet he had t such a terrible end.
He bellowed, "Dongzheng Emperor, get out here!"
The crowd parted, as no one but Ye Fan would dare insult the Dongzheng Emperor so brazenly.
"I said, get out here! Do you dare?" Ye Fan shouted.
Just then, a group of Northern Bear Country Martial Artists moved to surround Ye Fan. Soon after, the Dongzheng Emperor arrived.
"You were looking for ?" the Emperor asked.
"Why did you kill him?" Ye Fan demanded.
The Dongzheng Emperor replied mockingly, "He broke my rules. Naturally, I had to kill him."
"Good. Very good!" Ye Fan said furiously.
CLANG!
Ye Fan drew Yuanhong and slashed. In an instant, more than a dozen nearby Northern Bear Country Martial Artists exploded.
The faces of the onlookers changed. These were the Dongzheng Emperor’s trusted aides, slain just like that. It seed there was going to be quite a show today.
The Dongzheng Emperor’s expression darkened. "You are testing my patience!"
"I didn’t like the look of them, so I killed them," Ye Fan retorted, pointing his sword at the Emperor. "If you want a fight, then bring it on!"
The Dongzheng Emperor said, "You will die after we kill the Ice Qilin. For now, I will spare your pathetic life."
For the Dongzheng Emperor, now was not the ti to waste True Qi fighting Ye Fan—at least, not before he obtained the Millennium Ice Crystal.
"I’ll be waiting," Ye Fan said coldly.
Everyone was shocked. It was over just like that? As expected, the strong did as they pleased. He killed the Dongzheng Emperor’s n, and the Emperor didn’t even make a move. The mbers of the Dongzheng Court glared fiercely at Ye Fan, but they were powerless against him and dared not provoke him recklessly. Hadn’t they just seen the Dongzheng Emperor himself swallow his pride? This scene truly tested their nerves.
At that mont, the center of the ice lake began to stir, and a large column of water erupted from its surface.
The Dongzheng Emperor shouted, "The Ice Qilin is erging! Everyone, prepare for battle!"
All the martial artists stood ready, while Ye Fan simply stood by and watched.
Then, the scepter in the Dongzheng Emperor’s hand began to glow. The light intensified, shining down on the churning water and causing the surface to heave more violently.
Finally, a colossal Ice Qilin burst from the water and leaped into the sky. It then dove toward the martial artists on the ground. The group scrambled to et the attack.
The Ice Qilin plowed across the ground, its claws crushing many people into a bloody pulp.
"Beast!" Ye Fan roared, slashing with his sword.
But the blow only managed to knock a few scales off the Ice Qilin. The creature, undeterred, charged at Ye Fan. Its massive head slamd into him, sending him flying backward to shatter a glacier behind him.
The Dongzheng Emperor took action himself, engaging the Ice Qilin in the air with his scepter. The light from his scepter seed to make the Ice Qilin wary. But just then, the beast spat a great torrent of water. The Dongzheng Emperor hastily dodged, but the Ice Qilin’s tail whipped around and sent him flying.
On the ground, the martial artists fought in terror. They were all elites from their respective Sects, but in that mont, they were rcilessly devoured by the Ice Qilin.
The Dongzheng Emperor ordered his subordinates to fire their arrows. Nurous Xuan Tie Chains, attached to the arrows, shot out and bound the Ice Qilin. The beast struggled fiercely. The martial artists’ strength was no match for it, and they were imdiately flung away.
The Dongzheng Emperor himself grabbed one of the Xuan Tie Chains. Ye Fan also sprang into action, seizing another, while many other martial artists grabbed three more.
Nevertheless, the Ice Qilin thrashed desperately. Ye Fan felt the flesh of his palms being torn away.
"Let go!" Ye Fan yelled, but no one listened.
The Ice Qilin plunged into the Ruishui River, dragging everyone with it. They swam desperately for the shore, but the weight and cold of the Ruishui River slowed their progress, making them even slower than ordinary people.
The Ice Qilin opened its blood-red maw and swallowed several of them whole.
Most of the martial artists were swept away. Fewer than ten survivors lay on the shore, crying out in pain and struggling. Their skin was red from the extre cold of the lake water. They had no choice but to circulate their inner energy to resist the terrible chill.
Ye Fan and the Dongzheng Emperor stood guard over the lake’s surface, but it had fallen silent. The Ice Qilin had vanished.
"It seems that beast won’t be coming out for a while," Ye Fan said.
The Dongzheng Emperor made a hand signal, and Ye Fan remained silent.
Just then, the Ice Qilin erupted from the water again, charging straight for the Dongzheng Emperor.
"Slash!"
Ye Fan moved like lightning, his sword striking down. The blow landed on the Ice Qilin but failed to cut through its body. Pained, the Ice Qilin turned on Ye Fan.
Ye Fan struck again, this ti severing one of the Ice Qilin’s claws. But the beast relentlessly crashed into him, leaving him gravely injured.
The Dongzheng Emperor, who had been about to attack, stopped.
Clearly, he wanted Ye Fan and the Ice Qilin to cripple each other so he could reap the rewards.
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