Great Master Wanxiang had heard from the shop clerk earlier that this time, it was Elder Zhang from the sect who would be receiving him, as the Sect Master had other important matters. But why was Zhang Ming so confident?
"Great Master, the Sect Master is not here."
Li Yan also answered seriously.
"Then Little Friend Zhang, you should reconsider. This matter may not be that simple."
Great Master Wanxiang's latter sentence was already sent via voice transmission. Longhua Temple was located within the Sacred Demon City, so he was familiar with the situation of the various major and minor sects here.
And in front, Jiao Wuxing, seeing Su Yuan and the others immediately speak out to stop him after he had stated the time, snorted coldly in his heart and spoke again.
"It's rare for a human cultivator to be so decisive. Shall we meet at 'Continuous Pearl Peak' tomorrow at the Hour of the Rabbit?"
Li Yan had only asked him for the time just now and had not agreed. Jiao Wuxing, however, pretended that the other party had already agreed and immediately pressed for the time.
"Elder Zhang has not agreed to your duel tomorrow. You have plenty of time to prepare, we..."
Su Yuan, after swallowing a medicinal pill, the qi and blood in his body no longer churned, and he could speak normally.
He was afraid that Li Yan would agree directly without understanding, so he quickly chimed in from behind.
But before he could finish his words, Li Yan gently raised his hand, stopping his subsequent words.
"Tomorrow at the Hour of the Rabbit is fine, but I have a condition. If the condition is met, then there's no problem."
Li Yan had been observing the other party. After losing face, the other's unusual calmness was beyond his prediction.
'This person is very shrewd. He never mentions being injured by me just now. The more such a person is, the stronger their desire for revenge. But the venomous hatred in his eyes is not hidden at all. This point, on the contrary, easily makes people mistake him for someone who can't hide his thoughts, and they will be more inclined to believe every word he says now.'
Li Yan continuously speculated about the other intentions contained in the other party's words.
"Fellow Daoist Zhang, please speak!"
Jiao Wuxing said coldly, his hatred not abating in the slightest.
"Oh, that would depend on whether Great Master Wanxiang is willing?"
As Li Yan spoke, he looked at Great Master Wanxiang on the side. Jiao Wuxing was stunned, and Great Master Wanxiang, after a slight pause, immediately understood something. He put his palms together.
"Amitabha, Little Friend Zhang, this poor monk really has something to do..."
"Great Master, I don't believe in this Fellow Daoist Jiao's dueling promise. After there is a winner and a loser, what if everything is not counted? I am new here, and I am not familiar with the place or the people. So tomorrow, if Great Master Wanxiang can be an impartial observer, that would be enough. At least someone will know the true result afterwards. Of course, Fellow Daoist Jiao can also find other fellow daoists to go and watch the duel."
Li Yan's meaning was already very clear. He did not trust the other party and wanted someone to observe and bear witness. These people did not necessarily have to make a so-called judgment, but they could spread the result.
At that time, even if the "Ghost Flood Dragon Clan" wanted to deny it, they could not cover it up with a single word.
Great Master Wanxiang looked troubled. This Elder Zhang's request was actually not too excessive. He was not asking him to be a judge, but only to observe.
What's more, "Longhua Temple" was not afraid of the "Ghost Flood Dragon Clan." It was not a difficult request for him.
Jiao Wuxing, seeing Great Master Wanxiang's silence, immediately said loudly.
"Great Master Wanxiang, this Fellow Daoist Zhang is of the same human race as you. Since he does not believe my 'Ghost Flood Dragon Clan,' why doesn't the Great Master do him a favor?"
He did not care about this Zhang Ming's request. In his heart, the other party was already a dead man. What was the use of finding more people to go?
If other Golden Cores from "Falling Star Valley" could come along, that would be even better. Then he would kill them all. It was just that he had suffered such a great humiliation and did not want to wait any longer. The sooner he killed the other party, the better.
It was not bad for Zhang Ming to ask people to watch the battle. At that time, it would let others know the ruthlessness of the "Ghost Flood Dragon Clan" and intimidate all directions. From this point of view, he was even more willing.
At this time, the people around were already quite interested. Some of the observing Golden Core cultivators even started asking.
"I have nothing to do tomorrow. Can I go and watch the battle?"
"Old ghost Ning, what are you getting involved in? Didn't you say you were going to the 'Myriad Things Sect' auction tomorrow..."
"That's right, don't get involved randomly. I, Jiang, am really free these few days. Two fellow daoists, can I go and watch the battle tomorrow?"
"My reputation is not bad, and I am fair. You can ask around. Why not..."
While Great Master Wanxiang here was still considering, many people around had already expressed their willingness to watch. Their eyes were all shining.
To be able to watch a cultivator's duel was an excellent way to quickly improve one's comprehension. But such opportunities were rare. Even if one encountered them elsewhere, it was better to stay as far away as possible.
However, they also knew that they were not friends of either side. The chances of outsiders being allowed to watch such a thing were very small. They were just shouting along.
At this time, Li Yan also began to send a voice transmission to Great Master Wanxiang, explaining the reason for the conflict between "Falling Star Valley" and the "Ghost Flood Dragon Clan."
If this matter was not explained clearly, Wanxiang would not rashly intervene.
After hearing that the conflict between the two sects was over a transaction with the "Sacred Demon Palace," Great Master Wanxiang was first surprised. He had not expected "Falling Star Valley" to dare to pull a tooth from a tiger's mouth.
The "Ghost Flood Dragon Clan" was also notoriously difficult to deal with.
After a little consideration, Wanxiang finally spoke slowly.
"If that's the case, then this poor monk will go tomorrow. I hope the two benefactors will stop before it goes too far. Amitabha!"
He chanted a Buddhist phrase and bowed slightly to the two of them.
"Then it's settled, Fellow Daoist Zhang!"
Jiao Wuxing, seeing this, did not stay a moment longer. After a glance at Li Yan, he turned and left.
"Thank you, Great Master!"
Li Yan also returned a bow to Great Master Wanxiang.
"Tomorrow, this poor monk will invite a few more fellow daoists to go and watch the battle!"
Great Master Wanxiang once again switched to voice transmission. After saying this, he also walked away slowly.
"The Great Master is indeed kind to people!"
Li Yan thought to himself. The voice transmission from the other party as he left was to tell him that he would find a few more trustworthy cultivators to go and observe together as witnesses.
"Deacon Su, go back and recuperate. As for the rest, you don't need to say any more."
After a glance at the two deacons behind him who were about to speak, Li Yan walked straight through the shop towards the back, not wanting to say any more to them. Now, he already had the ability to disperse the sunlight that was blocked.
The next day, after the sky had brightened, three figures left the shop and headed west along the city.
After a night, and with Li Yan's permission to use high-quality medicinal pills, Su Yuan's injuries had already recovered by seventy to eighty percent.
One couldn't kill in the city. Jiao Wuxing had originally just wanted him to suffer some physical pain, so he had held back.
Li Yan brought these two with him. Su Yuan and Xie Tongyi had come over early in the morning, offering to lead the way for Li Yan.
Li Yan knew that they were still unwilling to wait anxiously for the result in the shop. After thinking about it, he agreed.
These two were not going to fight. With Great Master Wanxiang and the others present, even if the other party wanted to kill them, there was no way.
"Continuous Pearl Peak" was more than five hundred li west in the "Sacred Demon City." After they left the main city area, they were already able to fly there on their flying magical treasures.
A journey of more than five hundred li was not too far even for a Foundation Establishment cultivator.
When Li Yan and the other two set foot on the mountain peak, they saw that the huge mountaintop had long been flattened, turned into a huge platform more than ten li wide and twenty-odd li long.
The platform was empty, except for a three-hundred-zhang-sized open space left on the eastern edge. Behind the open space, a row of houses was built against the cliff.
At this moment, ten members of the Demon Guard Army were standing in the open space with their halberds. They were the guards here, and also the ones who would activate the protective formation during the duel.
Beside the Demon Guard Army stood seven cultivators. Three of them were dressed in uniform black attire, and among them was Jiao Wuxing.
As Li Yan was descending, Su Yuan had already spoken quickly.
"Elder, Jiao Wuxing is indeed up to no good. The old man beside him, also dressed in the 'Ghost Flood Dragon Clan' attire, is their great elder—'Elder Longjiao.' He is a Pseudo-Nascent Soul realm expert, and it is said that he is about to reach the realm of a flood dragon transforming into a dragon. At that time, it will be the time of his great completion of the Nascent Soul. The woman beside 'Elder Longjiao' is an elder of the Ghost Flood Dragon Clan, 'Ghost-Faced Flying Swallow'—Xi Ye. She is at the late-stage of the Golden Core realm, and her cultivation is much stronger than Jiao Wuxing's. Of the remaining four, I only recognize two. One is the clan leader of the 'Jade Water Crocodile Clan,' at the late-stage of the Golden Core realm; the other is the third elder of the 'Four-Eared Macaque Clan,' at the mid-stage of the Golden Core realm."
Su Yuan at the same time also gestured to the other two people. One was a middle-aged man, dressed in a green robe, with an abnormally stout body and a long, horse-like face that looked very fierce.
The other was an old man, slightly stooped, with a goatee on his chin and a pair of small eyes that shot out sharp glints, looking like an old ape.
As for the last two, Li Yan just glanced at them. They were also Golden Core realm cultivators. At a glance, he could tell that they were also foreign cultivators. As for what their true forms were, he did not know.
To this, Li Yan had no interest at all. The people who came were nothing more than spectators. If they wanted to fight, he would have to agree first.
When Li Yan and the other two appeared, everyone, including the Demon Guard Army, fixed their gazes on them.
'Falling Star Valley really only sent him alone!'
This thought occurred to all of them at the same time. Before, they had been discussing in low voices who the other party would bring for support.
After hearing Jiao Wuxing recount yesterday's events again, they all basically thought that "Falling Star Valley" would at least send two Golden Cores. But reality was beyond everyone's expectations.
But none of them spoke. They just quietly watched the three of them land. To speak harshly as soon as one appeared was something only those with no confidence would do.
It was better to keep true anger in one's heart, and to strike a fatal blow.
The great elder of the "Ghost Flood Dragon Clan" had black patterns on his face, which easily reminded one of the patterns on a python.
He held a dragon-headed staff in his hand, and his lifeless eyes looked Li Yan up and down. After sweeping over Li Yan's cultivation, he actually closed his eyes directly and no longer looked at the other party.
At the same time, the voice of 'Elder Longjiao' sounded in Jiao Wuxing's mind.
"You were actually injured by such a human cultivator? I told you long ago not to go to the brothels in the city all day and neglect your cultivation!"
Jiao Wuxing's expression did not change upon hearing this, but a sharp glint flashed in his eyes a few times.
This great elder was terrifyingly strong, and he was arbitrary and malicious. He did not want to argue too much, lest he be beaten by the other party when he returned.
Once they fought in a while, everything would be clear.
"Oh? Wuxing, this is the person who injured you? You said he might be a body cultivator, but I see that his qi and blood can only be considered not bad. With such a small body, you could have just transformed into your true form and crushed him."
That Xi Ye, whom Su Yuan had called "Ghost-Faced Flying Swallow," had a pair of narrow, slanted eyes, a small, high, straight nose, and snow-white skin.
It was just that her face also had a few brown, thin lines. Paired with a tight-fitting black suit, she gave off a very demonic feeling.
She did not send a voice transmission to Jiao Wuxing, but turned her head and asked directly, her tone clearly tinged with some disdain.
If they were to transform into their true forms, they could turn even a giant mountain into dust with a single squeeze.