A water race spirit who looked like an elderly Confucian scholar poked his head out from the surface of the river, only choosing to timidly swim over after hesitating for a long time. The spirit didn't dare to walk ashore and approach the two people, and he stood in the river and said in a quivering voice, "The Black River Great King has instructed me to deliver a message to the two esteemed immortals — you can feel free to take the treasures in the Sea Turning Primordial Lord's cave abode as long as you're willing to let her free. You can treat this as an act of goodwill and the cultivation of good karma." The woman in the huge crater lowered her head upon hearing this. "Your father truly isn't worried about your life or death," the scholar teased. "He's sent nothing but a mere lackey to deal with the two of us?" The Sea Turning Primordial Lord remained silent with her head lowered, with all of her anger and arrogance from before vanishing into thin air. "When two nations do battle, the envoys and messengers can't be killed," the spirit said as he shook in fear. "You should allow me to deliver your reply back to the Old Dragon Cave regardless of whether you accept the proposal or not." The scholar became even more amused, and he looked at Chen Ping'an and asked, "What do you say?" Chen Ping'an smiled and said to the spirit, "Then you can return now. Tell the Black River Great King that we accept his proposal." "But the Sea Turning Primordial Lord has to stay here first," the scholar added. "The Black River Great King said that I had to make sure to bring Milady back," the spirit wailed in grief. "Failing to complete your task means that you might die at the Black River Great King's hands. However, that's better than facing certain death at our hands, right?" Chen Ping'an replied. The spirit shrank back in apprehension before immediately turning around to flee through the river. "Should I go and forcefully attack the entrance of the cave abode now?" the scholar asked. Chen Ping'an pointed at the water goddess in the huge crater as he nodded and replied, "I'll stay on the surface and guard the stretch of the river near the cave abode. You can bring her with you, and she might even be willing to open the entrance herself if you manage to persuade her halfway. That will save you a great deal of trouble." Neither of them hesitated or dilly-dallied, and the scholar once again grabbed the sturdy woman by her neck and dragged her along the ground. Chen Ping'an followed them to the upstream region of the river. In the end, the scholar jumped into the river and disappeared without a trace. Meanwhile, Chen Ping'an remained standing on the bank of the Black River. Around fifteen minutes later... Chen Ping'an chuckled coldly in his mind. The old turtle was truly resolute and merciless, even going as far as to disregard his own daughter's life. The originally murky water of the Black River became ink-black at this moment, after which it started to rapidly freeze, beginning from the upstream region in the distance. By the looks of it, the Black River Great King had made up his mind about killing the scholar who had entered the Black River to look for treasures. Not only that, a solidly built man who was shrouded in a web of crackling lightning ferociously charged over from the distant horizon. He was none other than Accumulating Cloud Mountain's Imperial Thunder Divine General. Apart from him and the Black River Great King, however, it appeared like there were no other powerful demons participating in this conflict against him and the scholar. The other demons, including the Mountain-Moving Great Sage, were either hiding further away or staying still and observing the situation first. Chen Ping'an was slightly puzzled by this. Perhaps this demon from Accumulating Cloud Mountain had nowhere to vent his fury after discovering that someone had dug out his golden lightning whips, so he decided to ditch his other allies and charge over here and enter the battle by himself after receiving a message from the old turtle? The Black River Great King had used his innate mystical ability to freeze a fifty-kilometer stretch of the Black River, something that Chen Ping'an was completely powerless to stop even if he wanted to help. However, he at least needed to obstruct the Imperial Thunder Divine General from Accumulating Cloud Mountain. It looked like the demon who had given himself the title of Imperial Thunder Divine General was genuinely furious, with five tokens now circling his body compared to the two at Gushing Earth Mountain. These tokens were inscribed with thunder techniques, and they had most likely been refined and crafted from the golden lightning whips. Coming to a stop in mid-air, he bellowed in rage, "Pathetic thief, were you the one who stole my lightning pool?!" Chen Ping'an faltered for a brief moment before chuckling, "Could you and the other demons at Gushing Earth Mountain have survived if I were so profoundly talented?" The Imperial Thunder Divine General was so enraged that he was on the verge of losing his mind, and arcs of blinding lightning continued to explode around his body as he continued to roar, "You utterly despicable thief! You actually dared to ruin the foundation of my Great Dao?! I'll make sure to slice you into a million pieces and rip out your soul to have it bathe in lightning for hundreds upon thousands of years!" He charged toward the bank of the Black River, revealing half of his demonic true body as he ripped through the air. He had a golden eagle head and a human body that measured three meters in height. Three of his five tokens spread into the surroundings. At the same time, he unleashed a punch at Chen Ping'an. Chen Ping'an didn't draw his sword, choosing instead to reply with a punch of his own. It was no wonder that the demon tribe was widely renowned for their tough physiques, with the golden eagle demon striding forward as Chen Ping'an slid more than a dozen meters backward. Arcs of golden lightning linked the three tokens together, and bolts of lightning that were as thick as a person's arm continued to violently blast toward Chen Ping'an, with their paths being as chaotic as could be. The bolts of lightning didn't differentiate between friend and foe, but not only did they not obstruct the golden eagle demon as they smashed into his body, but they even coursed through his entire body before condensing together on his arm, allowing his fist to be enveloped in crackling golden light and his arm to be encircled by a dozen or so small golden snakes. Chen Ping'an wanted to engage in close-quarter combat, so not only did he refrain from using Sword Nurturing Gourd, but he even refrained from summoning First and Fifteenth from his Sword Nurturing Gourd. Chen Ping'an and the Imperial Thunder Divine General pummeled each other with their fists. The Imperial Thunder Divine General was filled with adrenaline as he fought, and a wicked smile spread across his face as he unleashed the power of thunder and lightning with each punch. The golden radiance around his body grew increasingly brilliant as the battle went on. When this young wanderer had fled from Gushing Earth Mountain in disarray, he had stumbled around and vomited blood after receiving just a single hammer strike from the Mountain Moving Great Sage, with his face becoming as white as a sheet. His body was clearly very fragile, yet he actually dared to challenge the mighty Imperial Thunder Divine General in close-quarter combat? That small mink was correct in his analysis. This young wanderer was a sword cultivator, but perhaps due to the lofty grade of the sword on his back, he was unable to fully control it and unleash its power. He would exhaust a huge amount of spiritual energy each time he wielded the sword, and he definitely wouldn't be able to replenish his expended spiritual energy in a short amount of time. It was no wonder that he only dared to pick on the Moon Hall and this small turtle demon! Of course, the Imperial Thunder Divine General wouldn't dare to act so arrogantly and engage in close-quarter combat if his opponent were that scholar with ever-changing immortal techniques. The demon with a golden eagle head unleashed both fists and howled, "Give me my thunder pool back!" Chen Ping'an used his palms to block the two punches, and his feet remained firmly planted on the ground this time. Amid the flashing lightning and the astral winds, the Imperial Thunder Divine General saw a different face on his opponent as well as a pair of eyes that should have been familiar but appeared unfamiliar instead. His heart jolted, and he surprisingly dashed back in hurried retreat. Chen Ping'an stomped the ground heavily and instantly arrived before the demon, following which he launched a seemingly light punch. The Imperial Thunder Divine General rapidly analyzed the situation before drawing on all of his power to unleash a punch. It was clear that he was aiming to exchange wounds with his opponent! Sure enough, the punch from his opponent didn't hurt at all, with its power roughly being equivalent to that of fifth tier martial artists from beyond Malicious Ghost Valley. On the other hand, his punch smashed his opponent squarely in the face. However, why wasn't his opponent's head moving at all? Something wasn't right! At this time, Chen Ping'an's second punch had already arrived. It was far too quick. The Imperial Thunder Divine General gritted his teeth and continued to exchange punches with Chen Ping'an. Several punches later, the Imperial Thunder Divine General discovered with shock and astonishment that even trying to exchange wounds with his opponent was nothing more than a fanciful dream. Moreover, his opponent remained unmoving and unfazed regardless of whether he was struck by the punches from before or the lightning from his three bonded tokens. Was he perhaps a madman who wasn't afraid of pain at all? A dozen punches later... The Imperial Thunder Divine General's golden eagle head was obliterated by a punch. His headless body which measured three meters tall fell backward. Perhaps launching the final attack before death, the three bonded tokens shone with a magnificent golden light and unleashed lightning around Chen Ping'an, covering a radius of more than thirty meters. It was as if a manifestation of the small thunder pool in Accumulating Cloud Mountain had been summoned around Chen Ping'an. Chen Ping'an was suppressed by countless ropes of lightning, preventing him from breaking free straight away. A web of fractures appeared on his azure Dao robe. However, Chen Ping'an's gaze remained fixed on the headless corpse. Sure enough, the corpse on the ground rapidly dashed backward before standing up near one of the bonded tokens. After twisting its neck a few times, another golden eagle head quickly grew from the gaping wound. Forming a seal with one hand and quickly grabbing his bonded token with another hand, the Imperial Thunder Divine General said in a solemn voice, "Good one. So you were only pretending to be a pathetic weakling at Gushing Earth Mountain! As expected of the most detestable sword cultivators from the mountains. Even your physique is no inferior to that of martial artists." The sea of clouds around Accumulating Cloud Mountain churned violently before instantly becoming silent and still. The next moment, a bolt of lightning that was as thick as a well opening materialized above the manifestation of the thunder pool and thundered down at Chen Ping'an. Chen Ping'an unleashed another punch. The bolt of lightning was shattered, but the small arcs of lightning that were formed as a result dashed into the thunder pool and caused the lightning essence to become even more concentrated. The Imperial Thunder Divine General arrived at the second bonded token and grabbed it in his hand as he chuckled coldly, "As a sword cultivator, you've chosen to learn fist techniques instead of any other technique? Go on, continue to throw punches at me. Throw punches to your heart's content. Show me how long your physical body can last in my thunder pool!" Another bolt of thick and ferocious lightning crashed down toward Chen Ping'an. Just like before, the restricted Chen Ping'an threw another punch toward the sky. The shattered bolt of lightning once again surged furiously into the thunder pool. At almost exactly the same time, the Imperial Thunder Divine General arrived in front of his third bonded token. He summoned a third bolt of lightning from the sea of clouds surrounding Accumulating Cloud Mountain. After doing this, a lightning spear materialized in his hand. As Chen Ping'an unleashed another punch to block the bolt of divine lightning thundering down from the sky, the Imperial Thunder Divine General had already launched the lightning spear toward his opponent. The demon's heart shuddered. His opponent extended a palm and surprisingly blocked the tip of the lightning spear just like that. The lightning spear continued to surge forward, sending sparks of golden light into the surroundings as it was obliterated inch by inch. Meanwhile, the young sword cultivator's palm remained in the same place. In the end, Chen Ping'an clenched his hand into a fist and grabbed the last remaining section of the lightning spear. He casually tossed the remnant of the spear into the thunder pool and said with a faint smile, "Come again." "Old Turtle! Forget about that brat underwater and help me kill this sword cultivator first! We'll kill them one at a time!" the demon with the golden eagle head suddenly shouted. Over at the origin of the Black River where the water was completely frozen, an elder in black robes was hovering above the river and holding one palm vertically in front of his chest like a Buddhist monk. Meanwhile, two fingers on his other hand were bent and tapping at the air, yet this surprisingly made a sound similar to wooden fish in the temples.[1] Waves of energy slowly expanded and rippled outward. Each tap of his fingers would release a ripple of energy and send a string of ink-black Buddhist scriptures floating into the frozen surface of the Black River. The moment that the Imperial Thunder Divine General shouted for help was coincidentally the moment that the Black River Great King finished reciting a Buddhist scripture. The elder in black hesitated for a moment, but he presumably thought that the Imperial Thunder Divine General's proposal was reasonable as he shook his shoulders and assumed his true form. Sure enough, he was an old turtle that was as large as a mountain. The Black River Great King charged toward Chen Ping'an, with the entire ground tremoring violently each time he took a step. Chen Ping'an smiled coldly and said, "Brother Mumao, the brotherly trust between us will be broken if you continue to spectate the battle without helping." There was a burst of deafening laughter. The scholar broke through the frozen river and soared high into the air, shaking off the countless shards of ice on his body and causing them to rain down like snow. He then tossed the hornless dragon copper seal toward the Black River Great King who had assumed his true form, with the small seal tearing through the air and landing with a crisp smack. However, there was an immense size difference between the gigantic black shell of the turtle demon and the small seal. For some reason, however, the Black River Great King howled in agony as if a huge mountain had suddenly been dropped on his back. The turtle demon was unable to withstand the weight of the seal, instantly collapsing down and crushing the surface of the frozen lake with his belly. The scholar clapped his hands and said, "That's one achievement for me, so it's your turn to shine now, Brother Haoren." Chen Ping'an drew Sword Immortal from his back with a clang, not caring in the least about the webs of flashing lightning as he slashed down like an immortal, directly slicing the Imperial Thunder Divine General into two from his head to his feet. A golden core that was as large as a fist and contained the full condensed soul of the Imperial Thunder Divine General flew out from one half of the body and rapidly fled into the distance. The three bonded tokens instantly vanished as well, transforming into three specks of golden light that fused together with the golden core. Chen Ping'an's flying sword, First, quickly caught up and stabbed the fleeing demon. There was a series of loud clangs. The soul in the golden core wailed in grief, with his anguished voice instantly reverberating through the entire length of the frozen Black River. However, his golden core didn't shatter due to Chen Ping'an's strike, and it only slowed down ever so slightly as it continued to flee. Meanwhile, First bounced backward after striking the golden core, but it quickly turned around and once again shot toward the golden core of the Imperial Thunder Divine General. The golden core had no option but to change its path, veering off to the side to dodge the furious white streak. Following these two exchanges, the golden core was able to create some distance between itself and the snow-white radiance of the flying sword. The Imperial Thunder Divine General was finally able to wrest back a sliver of a chance to flee with its life, catching a glimpse of the light at the end of the dark tunnel. A streak of dark green sword light shot straight down from the sky, directly piercing through the golden core. The scholar clapped and chuckled, "The cooperation between your two flying swords was absolutely flawless. How truly wonderful." The golden core was on the verge of crumbling apart, and the scholar had already tossed out a piece of silk paper before praising Chen Ping'an. Reaching forward and closing his hand, he grabbed both the silk paper as well as the golden core in his palm. Chen Ping'an took a deep breath and returned Sword Immortal to its scabbard on his back, appearing slightly reluctant and unsatisfied as he did so. It was as if he yearned for more. First and Fifteenth also returned to his Sword Nurturing Gourd one after another. Chen Ping'an retied the Sword Nurturing Gourd to his waist before leaping forward with a tap of his foot and approaching the old turtle who was lying completely still on the ground. The scholar also arrived at the bank of the river. Chen Ping'an stopped in his tracks. The scholar suddenly sighed and lamented, "So that's how it is, huh? A senior comes after we pummel the junior, and someone even more senior comes after we pummel the senior. What should we do, Brother Haoren? Things are truly getting a bit prickly now." 1. A wooden fish (木鱼) is a Buddhist percussion instrument. ☜