Chapter 116: On the Eve of the Temple's Opening, Someone Ventures Alone into the Gathering

Lingnan County, Six Doors.

Contrary to everyone's expectations, after initially slaughtering several villages, the Phantom Alliance's attacks were primarily directed at the imperial court. For ordinary people, they surprisingly refrained from carrying out a ruthless extermination.

Upon hearing this news, Shen Sanqian's lips curved into a slight smile.

"It seems these bastards are truly determined to overthrow us and claim this land as their own."

"I'm going to the Phantom Alliance. It's time to wake them up. The opening of the Temple tomorrow is entirely your responsibility. I hope that when I return, I won't find any mistakes," Shen Sanqian said.

"Yes, my lord!" Cold Eagle responded respectfully.

No one dared to advise against Shen Sanqian going alone to the Phantom Alliance; it was as if this was an unquestioned matter.

...

South of Lingnan County, a nondescript small town.

This town looked no different from any ordinary human settlement.

On this day, the town welcomed someone who should never have come.

He was the only person left in this town.

Step, step, step.

On the empty street, the sound of footsteps echoed.

A young man walked calmly down the main street, dressed in a deep black robe embroidered with gold. His face was handsome, his eyebrows sharp like swords, and a gentle smile always graced his features.

At first glance, he looked to be in his twenties, yet he exuded the unique charm of a mature man.

In the darkness, hundreds of burning gazes fixed upon him, as if they wanted to devour this man before them with eyes as dark and bloody as ink.

"Guest has arrived, won't you come out to meet him?" Shen Sanqian called out to the empty street with a smile.

His voice resonated through every corner of the town.

From the darkness, dozens of malevolent spirits roared and lunged at Shen Sanqian.

But before they could reach him, they turned to dust, scattered completely by a gentle breeze into nothingness.

Step.

Shen Sanqian suddenly stopped, staring at the mist that had suddenly risen before him.

As the black fog dispersed, over a dozen figures of various shapes appeared, blocking his path.

Among them was the founder of the Phantom Alliance, Elder Qi.

"Commander Shen, you come alone to this meeting, do you take the Phantom Alliance for fools?" Elder Qi asked.

Shen Sanqian's smile remained unchanged.

"Elder Qi, you exaggerate. I have always traveled alone. Even if tens of thousands stand in my way, even if dark clouds press upon the city, even if demons and spirits swarm the land, I proceed regardless."

His words exuded an undeniable aura, implying that he did not do this out of arrogance, but simply because, in his eyes, they were nothing but trash.

"Aren't you just waiting for me? Now that I've come, isn't this exactly what you wanted?"

Shen Sanqian glanced into the crowd and said, "Am I right, Xuan Mo?"

Before the words had fully left his mouth, Xuan Mo suddenly flashed forward from the crowd, a jet-black curved blade appearing in his hand. A ghostly glow shone on the blade, and in the next instant, the cold edge was pressed against Shen Sanqian’s throat.

The strike was unbelievably swift.

"Is that Wuyunran? I didn’t expect Elder Qi to have entrusted it to you. Seems he truly intends to hand over the Phantom Alliance he painstakingly built to you," Shen Sanqian said calmly.

"Youyoulong!"

Before the words could finish, a sharp dragon’s roar echoed, causing the ears of the surrounding ghosts to buzz. The overwhelming pressure unsettled some newly formed spirits, eliciting low growls.

Suddenly, a short sword less than two feet long appeared before Shen Sanqian. The blade shimmered with silver light, winding like a dragon. At the moment the curved blade was about to slice Shen Sanqian’s throat, this short sword intercepted it.

The speed of this counterattack was equally astonishing.

Among the strange crowd, except for a few like Elder Qi, no one even saw how Shen Sanqian struck.

"Wuyun blotting out the moon, darkness covers the world!"

In an instant, the dark curved blade in Xuan Mo’s hand transformed into swirling black clouds, sweeping toward Shen Sanqian.

Each cloud was a blade of light.

The black clouds soon enveloped Shen Sanqian completely.

But Xuan Mo’s face showed no hint of joy.

Boom!

Suddenly, a streak of lightning tore through the sky, striking down from the black clouds toward Xuan Mo.

Before it could reach him, it was obscured by even more black clouds.

This lightning was the sword light emitted from Shen Sanqian’s Youlong silver sword.

The blade was like a dark cloud; the sword like lightning.

Their moves created a spectacle akin to a celestial phenomenon.

Though only a brief moment passed, the two had exchanged countless strikes.

To ordinary onlookers, the scene was just dense black clouds and flashes of lightning, impossible to discern the details inside.

Elder Qi understood the risk of this battle; only Xuan Mo and Shen Sanqian themselves could fathom its true extent.

Their strikes were lightning-fast, each move countering the other.

Every blow was a deadly strike; falling behind by even half a step meant instant bloodshed.

A man in black standing beside Elder Qi could no longer hold back and asked, "Elder Qi, what is the current situation?"

Elder Qi’s gaze was fixed; after a moment, he slowly said, "Both Xuan Mo and Shen Sanqian are as fast as lightning. Though the dark clouds shift constantly, neither can withstand the relentless assault of the other's sword strikes. Thus, despite every move being lethal, neither can land a decisive blow."

"The two have reached a dangerous stalemate. Though Xuan Mo holds the offensive, prolonged attack risks his own defeat."

Hearing this, the man in black’s expression darkened. He asked, "Elder Qi, you said Xuan Mo and Shen Sanqian are at a dangerous balance. If external forces intervene now, could this balance be broken?"

Elder Qi looked at the battlefield and sighed, "That is easier said than done."

The battlefield was filled with sword lights and blade energies; no ordinary person could even approach, let alone disrupt the balance.

"How will we know unless we try? Shen Sanqian is too arrogant to come alone; that means he is prepared for us to attack him en masse."

No sooner had he spoken than the man in black’s form turned into a ghostly shadow and vanished.

"Black Feather, stop!"

Elder Qi sensed something was wrong and shouted, but he was too late.

Black Feather silently approached the edge of the battlefield, leapt into the air, and simultaneously launched a dozen ghostly arrows toward the swirling black clouds.

But before the arrows could reach their target, they were cleaved into countless fragments by the fierce sword energies.

Lightning crackled from the black clouds, striking directly at Black Feather.

Under the dazzling light, his face turned increasingly pale.