Chapter 178: Felling Plum Blossom Snow – He Belongs to Me

“Hiss…”

Shen Wuxie jolted awake from his dream, only to find himself still inside the mountain cave—except now he was suspended in midair, as if someone had grabbed him by the collar and hoisted him up.

His eyes flew open. When he saw who it was, he finally let out a breath of relief.

“Gong Rumei, what the hell are you doing? Put me down!” Shen Wuxie began to struggle. “You’re hurting me!”

Gong Rumei’s face was like ice. His robes were covered in fallen leaves and dust, as if he’d just gotten up from the ground himself.

He tightened his grip on Shen Wuxie’s collar and said coldly, “Where’s Lian Mu?”

Only then did Shen Wuxie remember. He snapped, “She ran. That Lian Mu is too cunning. She pretended to hand the item over to me, but it was all a trick. I let my guard down for a moment, and she got away with it.”

“You’re a talisman cultivator. Even if you couldn’t beat her, couldn’t you at least dodge?” Gong Rumei demanded.

“How was I supposed to know she tampered with the Flying Swan Sword?” Shen Wuxie shouted back.

Gong Rumei: “?”

He looked down and saw the Flying Swan Sword in Shen Wuxie’s hand. His throat tightened. “You…”

Shen Wuxie said, “Still, it wasn’t a total loss. I got Ying You’s sword. Let’s see how arrogant the Azure Profound Sect can be now.”

Gong Rumei raised his hand and slammed him against the cave wall, leaving a gaping hole. “Idiot.”

He’d just been handed a hot potato and didn’t even realize it.

“Get rid of that sword. Now.”

No sooner had Gong Rumei spoken than a barrier surged into the cave entrance, sealing off all escape routes.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

Two white-clad figures descended from the sky, landing at the cave entrance—it was none other than Ying You and Jiang Yuechen of the Azure Profound Sect.

On the way, Jiang Yuechen had run into some disciples from other sects who’d just awakened, and played the part of a bandit, snatching up all their talisman papers. Now she used a barrier to block the exit and looked the two over from head to toe.

Gong Rumei said, “You… got here fast.”

Ying You stood at the entrance, his expression calm. He raised the sword sheath in his hand and called out, “Flying Swan, return.”

The Flying Swan Sword in Shen Wuxie’s hand suddenly trembled, broke free, and in the blink of an eye, flew back into its sheath.

Jiang Yuechen asked, “Where’s Fengyun Yi?”

Seeing that their escape route was cut off, Shen Wuxie gave up all pretense and snapped, “Lian Mu took him out. Ying You, you’re pathetic—can’t even protect your own sect’s Chief Alchemist.”

Gong Rumei: “…”

Without hesitation, Gong Rumei drew his sword. The one in his left hand pointed straight at Ying You. “Drop the barrier. Let us go.”

“I’ll let you go,” Ying You said without even lifting a hand. He looked at Shen Wuxie. “But he stays.”

Shen Wuxie barked, “Are you insane? I already told you—it was Lian Mu who took out Fengyun Yi. She’s the one who stole your sword and your sect’s stuff. Why the hell are you coming after me?”

Gong Rumei stepped in front of Shen Wuxie. “He’s from Clear Thought Sect. It’s not your place to judge him.”

“I only want his life. If you know what’s good for you, step aside. Azure Profound Sect is willing to leave a sliver of hope for Clear Thought Sect,” Ying You said coolly. “I have more important matters to attend to. I don’t have time to waste on you.”

Gong Rumei’s temper flared. “Ying You, you think I’m afraid of you?”

Even before the words finished leaving his mouth, he twisted his wrist, ready to charge forward with his sword. But just as his foot shifted, a gust of wind swept past his ear.

A strand of black hair floated to the ground.

Gong Rumei froze. He turned to look—there was a fresh slash across Shen Wuxie’s neck, and blood began to gush out.

Shen Wuxie’s eyes went wide. He hadn’t even seen what happened. All he felt was a sudden heat at his throat. He raised a hand—his fingers came away soaked in blood.

Ying You’s fingers moved slightly. The half-drawn Flying Swan Sword slid back into its sheath. The sword energy that had struck Shen Wuxie dissipated.

Ying You gave Gong Rumei a slight nod. “Excuse me.”

Then he turned and walked away.

Gong Rumei snapped back to his senses just in time to hear the sound of Shen Wuxie being ejected from the Illusion Realm: “…”

Watching Ying You’s retreating figure, a surge of frustration welled up in Gong Rumei’s chest.

He was the Chief Sword Cultivator of Clear Thought Sect. By rights, Ying You should’ve challenged him first. But instead, he’d been completely ignored.

Ying You hadn’t even considered him a threat.

Gong Rumei shouted, “You’re going after Lian Mu? She’s my chosen opponent!”

“Your… opponent?” Ying You paused mid-step. The corners of his lips lifted in a gentle smile that somehow carried a trace of mockery.

He said nothing more, mounted his sword, and soared into the sky.

Gong Rumei gritted his teeth. The two swords in his hands merged into one, and he too leapt onto his sword and gave chase.

…

…

“Clear Thought Sect’s Chief Disciple and talisman cultivator Shen Wuxie has been eliminated. He has been ejected from the Pangu Illusion Realm.”

Lian Mu received the news while still inside the Penglai Sect grounds. She knew that meant the Azure Profound Sect’s chief team had found him.

However, since the Flying Swan Sword wasn’t in her possession, it would still take some time for the Azure Profound Sect’s Chief Disciple to track her down.

Lian Mu snapped out of her thoughts and looked at the Black Flood Dragon coiled around her fingertip. She tried to pull it off, but no matter how hard she tugged, it wouldn’t budge—it seemed to have fused with her hand.

Outside the Illusion Realm, a Venerable Elder was urging her to leave. But what was she supposed to do about this little thing?

As Lian Mu pondered, a new barrier began to rise at the edge of the Penglai Sect’s buildings in the distance. Everything within its bounds was vanishing from the ground up.

A sense of foreboding gripped her.

If she didn’t get out before the barrier fully enclosed the area, she might not be able to leave at all.

She immediately mounted her broom and soared into the sky, calculating the coverage area of the barrier.

There was no time to worry about the details. Lian Mu charged out with the Black Flood Dragon in tow.

It took considerable effort to break through the Penglai Sect’s barrier. As soon as they were out, the Black Flood Dragon at her fingertips caught the scent of the outside world, opened its golden eyes, and suddenly began to grow longer and thicker.

It slipped from Lian Mu’s hand and, in moments, transformed—its body now thicker than a tree trunk, with a ferocious, demonic head that howled skyward.

Lian Mu quickly grabbed onto one of its whiskers and was carried into the air.

It flew far faster than her broom. The scenery around her blurred into streaks of color, and the sea wind lashed her face so fiercely it felt like it might peel her skin off.

The dragon flew wildly in a single direction. Lian Mu clung to it for dear life, dangling in the sky like a kite.

She climbed up along its whisker and grabbed hold of one of its horns. Fortunately, it was the real deal—its horns were solid and sturdy. The Black Flood Dragon let out another roar, and this time, the entire island echoed with responses.

—It had stirred the other Spirit Beasts on the island.

Waves surged across the sea as water-type demonic beasts, sensing the Spirit Beast’s aura, grew restless and churned the waters in agitation.

If she didn’t subdue it soon, things would spiral out of control.

Amid the chaos, Lian Mu suddenly remembered how Xuan Che had subdued the Red Fire Green Phoenix. She quickly pulled out a few Talisman Papers, still hanging from the dragon’s horn to keep from falling.

When Xuan Che summoned the Red Fire Green Phoenix, he had used a Spirit Summoning Talisman. But before you can summon, you must first bind.

She had seen a Spirit Summoning Talisman before and vaguely remembered the runes on it—complex, and seemingly not written in cinnabar ink.

Lian Mu pricked her finger, pressed it to the Talisman Paper, and slapped it onto the dragon’s head. She drew the runes from memory and quickly replicated one.

But a Spirit Summoning Talisman couldn’t bind a Spirit Beast.

Lian Mu paused, then switched to a new Talisman Paper. This time, she reversed the runes before drawing them and slapped it onto the dragon’s head again.

The red lines on the Talisman Paper glowed. The Black Flood Dragon’s body began to turn to mist, but it didn’t dissipate.

Lian Mu realized she needed something to contain it. She pulled out the Jiao Pearl. As it neared the dragon, it emitted a white light that sucked in the mist surrounding the Black Flood Dragon.

She quickly grabbed her broom and landed steadily on the beach.

The Flood Dragon was sealed inside the pearl, which now looked like a glass bead with a black flower at its center.

Lian Mu let out a breath of relief. When she looked up, she saw a group of people lying in the flower bushes—and fell silent. “…”

She’d searched high and low with no luck, only to be brought straight here by the Black Flood Dragon by sheer accident.

Lian Mu looked over her unconscious sectmates—none of them were awake. Guan Huailin was frowning deeply, clearly in pain. The others weren’t doing much better. Even Xu Xianxing remained unconscious.

Lian Mu: “…”

Who would’ve thought all her friends had such serious heart problems?

With no way to wake them, Lian Mu had no choice but to set up a temporary barrier to protect them.

Once everything was in place, she heard footsteps behind her—just one person. She guessed it might be Ying You coming to find her, which would be perfect for a private conversation.

But when she turned around, it was Gong Rumei’s face she saw.

Lian Mu was a bit surprised. “You got out that quickly? As expected of the cold and ruthless Third Young Master of the Gong family—nothing can hold you back.”

Gong Rumei held his sword and said, “You know who I am?”

“Of course. We’ve got a big mouth in our team who loves telling everyone’s backstory. Someone as famous as the Third Young Master of the Gong family? Naturally, I’ve heard of you.” Lian Mu smiled. “But I didn’t expect you to be the one to show up. Shen Wuxie was closer to you, yet he’s out of the game while you came for me first. I must be pretty important to you.”

At the mention of the big mouth, Gong Rumei instinctively glanced at Xu Xianxing, then gave a cold snort. “So you were hoping to see someone from Azure Profound Sect? Don’t worry—they’ll find you soon enough. But before that, you’ll have to fight me.”

Lian Mu replied, “Third Young Master Gong, I don’t recall ever offending you.”

Gong Rumei said bluntly, “I can’t stand people like you—using underhanded methods to trample on the hard work of other sword cultivators. You’re just a three-Spiritual Root cultivator who relies on pills to boost your strength. No different from a demon race cultivator using demonic energy.”

Lian Mu thought for a moment, then noticed the cut-off strand of hair near his ear and guessed, “Don’t tell me you ran into Ying You, got your ass handed to you, and came to me to save face?”

Shen Wuxie had the Flying Swan Sword. If Ying You had woken up, he would’ve gone to him first. Gong Rumei just happened to be nearby. The Crimson Sky Sect’s chief team had recently fallen, and the Returning Immortal Sect had no one left. The only one who could’ve injured Gong Rumei was the newly awakened Ying You.

At the mention of Ying You, Gong Rumei’s expression turned ugly. One look, and Lian Mu knew she’d hit the mark.

Her newly refined spirit replenishing pill was still working well, and her spiritual energy was circulating smoothly. Though the environment was limited and there were no demonic beasts around to summon her Flame Blade, she was eager to face Gong Rumei. She had never fought a dual-sword cultivator before.

Lian Mu glanced at the swords in his hands. They were said to be called “Plum Blossom Snow.” The Gong family had a rule—they never reused swords, even famed ones. They pursued uniqueness. Every Gong family member’s sword was custom-made to suit them.

True to its name, Plum Blossom Snow had a carving of red plum blossoms falling in the snow along the blade. When the two swords were joined, they formed a fully bloomed plum blossom at the center. The tips were slanted and appeared blunt, but in reality, the edges were lined with fine serrations. If struck, the wound would be jagged and difficult to heal.

Lian Mu smiled faintly. “Just a reminder—you couldn’t even beat Ying You, so you won’t be able to beat me either. Even without taking any pills, I can still defeat you.”

Gong Rumei raised an eyebrow. “‘Couldn’t even beat Ying You’? Lian Mu, you’ve got some nerve. You think just because you took down a Mirror Guardian Beast, you deserve the top spot on the Magnolia Ranking? Do you even know who he is?”

“Of course I do,” Lian Mu replied without hesitation. “He’s mine. I know exactly how strong he is.”

She was perfectly aware of the limits of her Longevity Sword. As his master, she knew it better than anyone.

What’s more, he bore a Sword Contract. Even though he had taken human form, he was still bound to her. As long as the Sword Contract remained intact, he could never raise a hand against her.

Gong Rumei froze for a second, not quite grasping her meaning. But Lian Mu gave him no time to think—she raised her sword and charged.

In the blink of an eye, Gong Rumei reacted. His left hand brought up the Plum Blossom Sword to block her strike, while his right hand thrust the Snow White Sword toward her abdomen.

“Is that it?” With a twist of her blade, Lian Mu deflected the Plum Blossom Sword in a burst of sparks. Instead of defending, she counterattacked—Wealth Bringer’s tip aimed straight at his shoulder.

She moved much faster than he did. In the time it took him to make one move, she had already made two.

Gong Rumei had no choice but to halt his Snow White Sword and retreat two steps to widen the gap between them.

His brows furrowed, and he gripped his swords tightly, clearly enraged. “You will fall to my blade today.”