After sitting cross-legged and refining for half a day in the ruins of Haoran Academy, Zhuang Zhentian finally absorbed all the energy that Ye Fan had fed back to him. His cultivation had reached the mid-stage of the Nascent Soul ninth layer, now just one step away from the late-stage. More importantly, after Ye Fan had devoured the Nascent Souls of Mr. Liu and Mr. Wang and fed back their soul energy, Zhuang Zhentian's own Nascent Soul had grown significantly, now almost comparable in size to that of an early Out-of-Body stage cultivator!
"Even though my cultivation is only at the mid-Nascent Soul ninth layer now..." Zhuang Zhentian pondered, "My combat abilities already far surpass those of a Nascent Soul Grandmaster. Although I have never encountered a true Out-of-Body stage cultivator in my life, based on my calculations, my combat power is probably close to, if not on par with, an early Out-of-Body stage cultivator!"
"Haha! This magic sword spirit treasure is truly remarkable! With it, why should I even bother ruling over Zhao Kingdom?"
"I might as well slaughter all the seven sects of Zhao Kingdom, then retreat into seclusion to cultivate and become the new Demon Lord. Afterward, I'll cross the Huerna Grasslands and head to the Central Plains of the Qiuxian Continent to seek even greater ambitions!"
"This tiny Zhao Kingdom in the southern part of the Qiuxian Continent can no longer satisfy my ambitions!"
"There are six more sects left in Zhao Kingdom."
"This time, I will wipe them all out!"
With this thought, Zhuang Zhentian stood up, gazed at the sky, and shot into the air.
After a long time, several survivors—mortal villagers and some Qi Refining and Foundation Establishment stage cultivators—slowly emerged from their hiding places within the ruins of Haoran Academy. Their faces pale, their expressions filled with lingering fear, they looked around at the carnage, relieved to have survived but haunted by what had transpired.
...
In the sky, Zhuang Zhentian was already flying towards one of the three major Daoist sects among the seven great sects, Zhengmiao Sect.
Meanwhile, Ye Fan was reviewing his system panel, lost in thought.
[Evolution Points]: 5,070,000 / 6,000,000
[Energy]: 1,290,000
"After Zhuang Zhentian finishes slaughtering the next sect, I should be able to evolve."
Sigh, Ye Fan thought to himself, Although aiding such evil is truly reprehensible, if I don't let someone like Zhuang Zhentian be my swordmaster, who knows how long it would take for me to ascend to the Immortal Realm.
"Moreover, when those two Saints from the Immortal Realm fought, countless worlds were shattered in an instant. Billions, perhaps even trillions of lives were lost!"
"When Saints clash, mortals suffer. If I want to seek revenge on that Saint who destroyed Earth, I will have to sacrifice a small number of people for the greater good."
"Once Zhuang Zhentian commits enough atrocities and becomes cursed, hunted down, and killed, my energy points should reach several million. By then, even if someone tries to destroy me, I will have enough energy to escape and find a new swordmaster!"
...
In the southern part of the Qiuxian Continent, in Zhao Kingdom.
Zhengmiao Sect!
This sect was located between two mountain cliffs along the upper reaches of the Hongjiang River, with a traditional Daoist temple exuding an ancient and mystical charm.
However, that atmosphere was abruptly shattered by a streak of light flying in from the distant sky.
Zhuang Zhentian hovered above Zhengmiao Sect, eyeing the grand Main Hall. Without hesitation, he drew his sword and slashed a sharp sword arc toward it.
The sword arc flashed through the air, heading straight for the Main Hall.
Boom!!!
Unlike Haoran Academy, which mainly focused on Confucian practices, Zhengmiao Sect was a Daoist temple protected by a formation. As such, Zhuang Zhentian's initial sword strike didn't destroy the Main Hall. Instead, the sword arc was blocked by a faint cyan spiritual shield that appeared out of thin air.
But Zhuang Zhentian didn't stop there!
He relentlessly slashed out sword arc after sword arc, one after another!
Zhengmiao Sect's cyan spiritual shield was strong enough to withstand attacks from any cultivator below the late Core Formation stage. It could even endure several strikes from early and mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivators.
Unfortunately…
Zhuang Zhentian, this infamous demon lord, was already the strongest in Zhao Kingdom. With Ye Fan's soul-devouring feedback amplifying his power, he was now comparable to an early-stage Out-of-Body cultivator.
So, after a few more sword arcs, Zhengmiao Sect's protective formation finally shattered!
Boom!!!
The Main Hall was reduced to rubble by the subsequent sword arcs.
At this moment, nine beams of light shot out from the ruins of the Main Hall.
The cultivators who emerged shouted angrily, "Who dares?!"
"How dare you destroy our sect's protective formation and the Main Hall! Do you not fear the might of Zhengmiao Sect?!"
"If our two elders find out, even as a Nascent Soul cultivator, you won't escape easily!"
However, before they could finish their threats, Zhuang Zhentian burst into wild laughter and charged toward them: "Escape?!"
"My entire life has been filled with madness! Now that the Demon Sect has been destroyed, I have nothing left to hold me back—why would I need to escape?"
"I came here today to wipe out your sect!"
"Prepare to die!"
With that, Zhuang Zhentian, moving at an unimaginable speed, reached the cultivator at the center of the nine beams of light and swung his sword.
That cultivator's head was immediately severed!
[Killed Zhengmiao Sect's Core Formation ninth-layer cultivator, gained 98,999 evolution points]
Zhuang Zhentian grabbed the man's hair, holding the blood-soaked head, and looked around at the others.
The remaining eight Daoist cultivators screamed in terror, "You…"
"You're the Demon Sect Leader?!"
"Haha! Looks like you're not completely ignorant!"
Zhuang Zhentian laughed maniacally, tossing the severed head toward one of the Daoists and said, "Catch it! Soon, it'll be your head rolling on the ground!"
"..."
The eight Daoist cultivators fell silent.
The one Zhuang Zhentian had killed was Qing Yuanzi, the current leader of Zhengmiao Sect, a late-stage Core Formation Daoist!
Among the remaining eight, three were Qing Yuanzi's junior brothers, and the other five were his direct disciples.
The three junior brothers were all at the mid to late stages of Core Formation, while four of the five disciples were still at the Foundation Establishment stage, with only one just entering Core Formation.
However…
If Qing Yuanzi, their sect master, could be killed in a single strike, what hope did they have?
Without hesitation, one of Qing Yuanzi's junior brothers immediately took out a transmission talisman from his storage bag and crushed it.
Within a hidden cave in the cliffs along the Hongjiang River, two Nascent Soul elders of Zhengmiao Sect, who had just recovered from their injuries and were meditating, received the urgent message from their junior: "The sect master has been killed! The Demon Sect leader is attacking! We are in grave danger!"
"Damn it!"
"Even though the Demon Sect has been destroyed, Zhuang Zhentian still dares to act so recklessly, even bringing his madness to our Zhengmiao Sect?!"
"Junior brother, let's go!"
The late-stage Nascent Soul elder called to his junior brother, both breaking out of their seclusion and flying swiftly toward the Main Hall!