CHAPTER 554: 552

「Green Cloud Mountain, rear mountain.」

Next to the wooden house, a figure in cyan robes stood at the edge of a cliff, gazing at the sea of clouds before him.

Suddenly, his body stirred, and he became like a gust of wind, swirling into the sea of clouds, or perhaps a cloud cluster, a part of the sea itself.

His path left no trace.

A moment later, the Cyan-robed Guest returned to his starting point.

His Light Skill had undoubtedly reached an inconceivable, supreme peak.

CLAP! CLAP! CLAP!

Suddenly, the sound of applause echoed. The Cyan-robed Guest looked towards the source and saw that, at some unknown point, a figure had appeared on the open ground.

So, the inevitable has arrived.

The Cyan-robed Guest seemed to have anticipated this, showing no surprise.

In his line of sight was a middle-aged swordsman in black robes, emanating a sharp aura unique to swordsmen. This man’s aura was in no way inferior to that of the Cyan-robed Guest.

"Long time no see," the Black-robed Swordsman said, a glint flashing in his eyes as if meeting an old friend. "Your martial arts have become even more exquisite."

"You’re looking for the wrong person," the Cyan-robed Guest stated indifferently.

"The wrong person?" The Black-robed Swordsman gave a cold smile. "Did you think changing your identity could deceive everyone? I must say, you’ve hidden yourself remarkably well. I was even convinced you were dead at one point."

"But I refused to believe it. How could the Ling Family’s most brilliant genius die in such a petty scheme? My perseverance paid off, and I finally found you. Truth be told, there are only a handful of top experts in the Cloud Outland. By process of elimination, finding you wasn’t difficult, no matter how deeply you hid."

"Tianyu, you defied destiny back then, forcibly undertaking an impossible task. You committed a grave sin that nearly implicated the entire Family. Return with me and accept your punishment." The Black-robed Swordsman narrowed his eyes, locking onto the Cyan-robed Guest like a predator focused on its prey.

"I have already retreated to this place. Why is the Family still pursuing this so aggressively?" the Cyan-robed Guest asked lightly.

"Hmph! When you fled, you brought disaster upon the Family. Not only that, but you also stole the Ling Tian Sword Scripture, our family’s unparalleled Cultivation Technique. With such grievous sins, how could the Family easily forgive you?" The Black-robed Swordsman’s voice was bone-chillingly cold. "I’ll give you three breaths to surrender. Otherwise, don’t blame me for disregarding our past relationship."

"If you want to capture me, you alone are far from enough." The Cyan-robed Guest tapped his foot and soared into the air, clearly intending to leave.

"Who said I was alone?" The Black-robed Swordsman’s eyes flickered. With a wave of his hand, five figures shot out from the surroundings. These five were all Top Sky Apex Strong, the weakest among them at the Fifth Level of Sky Apex Realm.

In other words, even the weakest in this group possessed strength comparable to Sect Master Sikong Yi of the Saint Witch Religion. And that’s not even considering the Black-robed Swordsman, whose strength was no less than the Cyan-robed Guest’s.

With such a lineup in the Cloud Outland, dominating the entire Martial World would be as easy as flipping a hand.

"Boundless Sword Formation!" The Black-robed Swordsman waved his hand, forming a seal. The five shifted positions, then almost simultaneously drew their swords and attacked. Five beams of incomparably sharp Sword Light condensed and shot out fiercely in the same instant.

However, as the five sharp beams of Sword Light reached within a meter of the Cyan-robed Guest, they seemed to plunge into a mire, stopping abruptly.

Space seemed to freeze. Though the Sword Light surrounded Ling Chen, it could not advance another inch, failing even to touch the True Qi shield protecting the Cyan-robed Guest.

Seeing this, the faces of the five Top Sky Apex Strong darkened. They suddenly amplified their power. A vast surge of True Qi erupted, causing the five beams of Sword Light to flare intensely and fiercely pierce the Cyan-robed Guest’s body.

PFFT! PFFT! PFFT! PFFT! PFFT!

Five sharp beams of Sword Light successively pierced the Cyan-robed Guest’s body, riddling it with holes as if by a machine gun. But no scene of gore followed; the Cyan-robed Guest’s figure immediately dispersed.

Witnessing this, the Black-robed Swordsman’s pupils constricted; it was as if tangible beams of light shot out from his eyes. Under his gaze, nothing in the vicinity could escape his notice; he saw through everything.

Suddenly, a blurry cyan figure appeared in his line of sight.

CLANG!

With a cold snort, the Black-robed Swordsman finally drew his sword. WHOOSH! His body seemed to teleport, instantly appearing before the cyan figure as he slashed down viciously.

CLANG!

The instant the Black-robed Swordsman’s sword descended, the Cyan-robed Guest’s sword also left its sheath. The two Treasure Swords met perfectly, sending sparks flying and cracking the ground beneath.

"Breaking Boundary Meteor!" The Black-robed Swordsman flicked his wrist, thrusting diagonally at the Cyan-robed Guest’s throat. The sword tip streaked through the air like a falling meteor, powerful enough to shatter the earth.

"Break!" A tangible glint flashed in his eyes. The Cyan-robed Guest simply thrust his sword. His technique, reducing the complex to the simple, unleashed a Sword Light that seemed to instantly pierce something, accompanied by the sound of a puncture. The Black-robed Swordsman’s Meteor Sword Light instantly exploded, vanishing into nothingness.

His first move thwarted, the Black-robed Swordsman didn’t pause. Instead, his assault intensified, Sword Light surging forth like a raging tempest.

Facing the Black-robed Swordsman’s furious onslaught, the Cyan-robed Guest gripped his Treasure Sword and began to spin it at high speed. The Sword Light multiplied—one became ten, ten became twenty—a dense, impenetrable defense.

At this moment, the other five Top Sky Apex Strong also attacked. Their sword qi manifested as five long serpents, swallowing clouds and exhaling mist as they lunged at the Cyan-robed Guest.

"Azure Dragon Transforming Void!"

Facing the six-man siege, the Cyan-robed Guest remained unfazed. Azure True Qi surged from his arm. Then, as he plunged his Azure Treasure Sword into the ground, a vast amount of sword qi transformed into six Blue Dragons, sweeping out in all directions.

The roar of dragons shook the heavens.

The Black-robed Swordsman and the other five Ling Family experts were all blasted back over ten meters, looking utterly disheveled. Their gazes, filled with shock, were fixed on the spot where the Cyan-robed Guest stood.

He truly is the Ling Family’s former peerless prodigy. Even with the combined might of six Late Stage of Sky Apex Realm experts, we still can’t take him down.

Just then, a burst of azure light erupted from where the Cyan-robed Guest was. A blurry figure shot upwards, riding a beam of Sword Light, and soared into the sky, breaking through their encirclement right under their noses!

"After him!" The Black-robed Swordsman’s expression turned grim. They had expended so much effort to find the Cyan-robed Guest’s whereabouts. If he escaped, wouldn’t all their previous efforts be for naught?

The six of them flashed into motion, employing their Light Skills to pursue in the direction the Cyan-robed Guest had fled.