In the blink of an eye, the black-clad cultivators swooped down from the clouds on their swords like herons fighting for food and attacked the heavily injured group below.

     Mo Ran had already realized what was going on. As Emperor Taxian-Jun in his previous life, he could tell that these people were obviously being controlled by the Zhenlong Chess Formation. These chess pieces were exquisite, perfect, and powerful—completely different from the half-formed chess pieces made by Xu Shuanglin.

     They were definitely no match for these people.

     Mo Ran turned around in horror, shouting at the people who had never experienced the true power of the Zhenlong Chess Formation, “Run!!”

     He grabbed Chu Wanning’s wrist tightly and pulled Jiang Xi up, who was still kneeling on the ground. He pushed through the people in the crowd along the way, his pupils contracting rapidly.

     “Run! Get out of here! Get off of the Soul Summoning Platform! Don’t stay! Don’t fight! You can’t beat them!”

     There was no need for him to say it again. When the first chess piece landed on the ground and swung his sword, everyone was shocked by his terrifying strength and rushed towards the passageway.

     Running at the front was the timid Villa Master Ma. He was the first to reach the stone door at the exit of the passageway before he stopped.

     The people behind him stopped one after another, pushing against each other.

     Someone roared, “What’s wrong?! Why did you stop?!”

     Villa Master Ma’s voice was filled with tears of terror. It came from the front of the pitch-black passageway.

     “It’s… It’s closed…”

     “What’s closed?”

     “Hua Binan closed the stone door when he escaped…” Villa Master Ma said. His legs gave way, and he knelt to the ground in despair. His face was full of tears as his body shook. “This is the stone door of Mount Jiao. Once it’s closed, without the blood of the Nangong family, it will… be impossible to open.”

     Someone said anxiously, “Although Nangong Si is gone, there’s still Nangong Liu! Isn’t his father, who was made into a chess piece, still on the mountain? Where is he?”

     “He’s in the front hall. I thought he was useless, so I didn’t bring him here at all…”

     Despair filled the entire passageway, and a dark aura seeped into their very bones.

     “What should we do?”

     “Go out and fight head-on?”

     There were still people outside who didn’t know what was going on and were trying to squeeze in. There were even more people who couldn’t squeeze in, so they could only brace themselves behind the exit and fight with the mysterious chess pieces that came from the crack in the sky.

     In the darkness, Huang Xiaoyue suddenly shouted, “Let me pass! I can open this door!”

     He squeezed through the crowd with all his strength, like a menacing fish, and rushed all the way to the stone gate.

     Villa Master Ma raised his teary face and said with tears in his eyes, “Huang-daozhang?”

     “Get out of the way! Let me do it!”

     “But your surname is Huang, not Nangong…”

     Huang Xiaoyue ignored him and waved his sleeve as he charged over. Fortunately, he still had some of Nangong Si’s blood on him, which he had originally secretly saved to open the secret treasure chamber. He also specially cast a spell on the blood to prevent it from drying up immediately.

     However, this spell wouldn’t last long. At this moment, he couldn’t help but feel grateful as all these shocking changes happened in the blink of an eye. He hoped the blood would still be useful.

     Huang Xiaoyue forcefully pressed down on the broken stone with his withered old hand.

     Sure enough, the demonic dragon’s voice came from the passageway, “Who are you?”

     His heart pounded rapidly.

     “Rufeng Sect’s… seventh generation blood clan member, Nangong Si, pays his respects.”

     He paused for a moment.

     The evil dragon said hoarsely, “Wang Li… bids master… farewell…”

     Boom—

     When the stone gate lowered into the ground, Huang Xiaoyue was the first to come out of the passageway, followed by the disciples of Jiangdong Hall. Villa Master Ma quickly stood up and raised his hand in a panic. “Wait for me! I’m coming out. I’m coming out! I—”

     But a sword was pressed against his chest.

     Villa Master Ma’s face froze, and he looked up in shock. “Huang-daozhang, what are you doing?”

     Huang Xiaoyue sneered, “When I was hit by the heart-drilling bug, my side and yours were already opposite each other. If I let you out now, I’m afraid that when the battles subside in the future, the number of people who will want to settle accounts with me will be like ants. I am old, so I can’t afford that.”

     Villa Master Ma said in horror, “No, no, no! What are you going to do?! Don’t mess around! Let’s talk it over! Aiya, why are you looking for revenge? We’re all doing business here. Huang-daozhang, let us out quickly, and from now on, we’ll give you half price for all the goods at Taobao Villa—half price!”

     Huang Xiaoyue’s withered old face showed a trace of malevolence as he ridiculed, “Half price? After obtaining the treasures of Rufeng Sect from Mount Jiao, how can the world’s wealth still enter my eyes? It’s just Taobao Villa—what’s so good about it?”

     As he spoke, he pushed Villa Master Ma away fiercely.

     Ma Yun fell to the ground, along with the rest of the crowd who was squeezed behind him.

     As they struggled to get up, the last scene they saw was Huang Xiaoyue and everyone from Jiangdong Hall standing outside. Huang Xiaoyue pulled the mechanism that dropped the sealing stone, his face flashing with greed, desire, and gloating.

     The people of Jiangdong Hall behind him were even more arrogant, and some of them even said bluntly, “Serves you right for looking down on us all this time.”

     “Our Huang-daozhang clearly did nothing wrong, yet we were scolded by you all along the way and suffered all kinds of injustice. Why should he help you with the blood he left behind at the risk of his life?”

     Boom!

     The stone door was sealed again.

     This time, the passageway fell into endless darkness and hesitation.

     It was dead silent.

     In the midst of despair, one female cultivator finally broke down and sobbed. Her grief was contagious, and very soon most people became discouraged, losing their will to fight. They were trapped, unable to move forward and also unwilling to leave.

     “Jiejie… I don’t want to die yet…”

     “Shifu…”

     “Father, let’s go out and fight to the death. It’s better than being trapped here.”

     There was a buzz of voices.

     At this moment, a voice that had been silent for a long time suddenly sounded, with a slight tremble but even more determination.

     He said, “I’ll do it.”

     The pale-faced Villa Master Ma trembled and turned his head. When he saw the beam of firelight, his eyes widened as he said with shock, “Mo-zongshi?”

     Mo Ran held a flame in his hand, his handsome face between light and dark as the flame flickered. He walked to the front of the sealing stone and stood still.

     “You, you also kept Nangong Si’s blood?”

     Mo Ran did not answer. He knew that although there were people resisting at the entrance of the passageway, they wouldn’t be able to hold on for long. Those chess pieces would soon kill their way in.

     Along the way up the mountain, when Nangong Si was in danger, he felt hot-blooded and wanted to do this many times, but in the end he didn’t.

     He had originally thought he was blessed by the heavens and that this time he would be able to escape from the public eye, escape fate. But now he knew he finally had no choice.

     There was no way out.

     “Mo-zongshi…?”

     He didn’t pay any attention to Villa Master Ma. He took out the silver short knife at his waist and fiercely slashed his palm.

     In an instant, blood flowed all over his palm.

     At this time, Xue Meng and Xue Zhengyong had arrived. Chu Wanning was also here. They stopped behind Mo Ran. Xue Zhengyong’s voice was full of confusion, “Ran-er, what are you doing? It’s useless. Mount Jiao will only obey the orders of the Nangong family. Your blood won’t help.”

     Mo Ran didn’t look back, his bleeding hand trembling slightly.

     In the end, he slapped his hand on the sealing stone.

     It was cold to the touch, piercing his flesh and bones.

     He closed his eyes.

     The demonic dragon’s distant voice once again echoed in the darkness.

     “Who are you?”

     His throat moved.

     Under the gaze of the crowd, Mo Ran slowly answered in a low voice amidst the oppressive silence.

     “Rufeng Sect’s… seventh generation of the blood clan…”

     Xue Meng’s expression suddenly changed. He staggered back a step and shook his head. “What…”

     Xue Zhengyong’s face was even more unsightly. His eyes were wide open as he stared at the tall silhouette and muttered, “How is this possible…?”

     Every word was like a sharp knife.

     Even though he knew he would bleed profusely, he had no other choice.

     He whispered the last half of the sentence, “Mo Ran, Mo Weiyu, pays his respects.”

     Xue Meng’s voice was hoarse as he shouted with bloodshot eyes, “Impossible!”

     However, the door finally opened.

     Wang Li’s ethereal voice was like a sharp bayonet that pierced his eardrums and heart.

     “Wang Li… bids master… farewell…”

     “Ran-er…”

     Xue Zhengyong was completely stunned and couldn’t speak.

     Chu Wanning’s mind was also a mess. He held Xue Zhengyong in time and looked ahead.

     The stone door rumbled—one inch, two inches—then sank into the ground again. The flames of the Dragon Soul Pool poured into the darkness. Mo Ran stood against the light, which polished his back until it was blurry and ethereal, almost illusory.

      “Mo Ran! Mo Ran! How can you open it? What seventh generation of Rufeng Sect? How is this possible?! How is this possible?!” Xue Meng seemed to panic and go crazy. “How can you be related to the Nangong family by blood? You’re clearly… clearly…”

     Mo Ran paused for a moment. In the end, he only whispered in the swaying lights and shadows, “Everyone, please go out first.”

     “Mo Ran!!”

     He shouted himself hoarse.

     For a slight moment, Mo Ran tilted his head as if he wanted to turn around and say something, but in the end he didn’t say anything. He didn’t stop and no longer hesitated. He moved forward, the light and shadow moving with his tall figure, until he finally disappeared at the end of the passageway.

     Behind him, the people of the various sects began to scramble for escape. They appeared aggressive and unstoppable, and when they went out, they were like fish that had escaped the net.

     Mo Ran walked alone in this surging torrent, fleeing like a carp crossing a river.

     He didn’t turn around. He didn’t dare to.

     He saw Ye Wangxi in the main hall of the Dragon Soul Pool. He walked over, picked her up since she hadn’t yet woken, and took her away.

     In fact, the person who jumped into the Dragon Soul Pool and sacrificed his life didn’t have to be Nangong Si. It could have been him.

     Although at that time, Mo Ran didn’t know that doing so would ensure the safety of Mount Jiao, he actually didn’t have the confidence—

     What if he had known?

     Would he really die in place of Nangong Si?

     He had already lived two lifetimes, covered with sins but still able to survive. However, Nangong Si was only twenty years old. He hadn’t even lived half his life before he turned into dust and nothing was left.

     Rationally, he knew that Nangong Si was more worthy of staying in this world than him. But people still longed to live after all.

     Suddenly, he heard someone screaming behind him, “Those monsters—those monsters are chasing us!”

     “How is that possible?!”

     Mo Ran turned around suddenly.

     The broken stone had already fallen again when the last group of people came out of the passageway. It was impossible for those chess pieces to break open the rock, unless—

     His face paled.

     Unless, among those chess pieces, there was someone with the blood of the Nangong family.

     While thinking, he recalled the mysterious black crack in the sky he had seen just now and suddenly thought of the third forbidden technique—the Gate of Time, Space, Life, and Death.

     Mo Ran only felt a strong chill spreading from the soles of his feet and instantly wrapped around his whole body.

     Could it be that the person who came out was actually—?

     No, that’s impossible.

     Absolutely impossible.

     It was too absurd. Even in his previous life, no one could achieve such a thing… Who could do it?!

     Just then, Mei Hanxue retreated to his side. Mo Ran handed Ye Wangxi to him, and his eyes flashed with a frantic light as he hurriedly ran in the opposite direction of the crowd.

     “Mo Ran!”

     “Ran-er!”

     In the chaos, Xue Meng and Xue Zhengyong saw him. They both shouted at him, but Mo Ran ignored them. He really didn’t know how to face these two people now.

     Paper could not contain fire.

     Two lifetimes, it was the same.

     Suddenly, someone grabbed his arm. Mo Ran turned his head. “...Shizun?!”

     Chu Wanning said, “You can’t go. I’ll stop those people. Since you can open Mount Jiao’s boundary, you should stay with the others and get them out of here.”

     “...”

     “Go quickly!”

     While they spoke, the black-clad man in the lead had already walked calmly out of the passageway. Behind him, the black-clad cultivators appeared one by one.

     Chu Wanning said sternly, “Quick! Take them away!”

     There was no other choice.

     No matter how uncertain and unsettled Mo Ran was, he could only retreat with everyone. Xue Meng refused to leave and was forcefully dragged by Xue Zhengyong. In the end, only Chu Wanning was left in the Dragon Soul Pool hall.

     The magma of the Dragon Soul Pool was boiling, and the orange-gold light illuminated the cold stone walls.

     Chu Wanning stood alone, Tianwen’s spiritual energy flowing and reflecting his pair of phoenix eyes that were as sharp as a knife.

     He looked at the mysterious black-clad man in the lead.

     The man was also looking at him quietly through the heavy mask.

     The man stood there silently. Someone behind him couldn’t hold back his temper and wanted to be vanguard. He shouted, “You dare to block the path of so many people by yourself? How arrogant! Come, let me see what you’re capable of!”

     But before he could even move more than a foot away, the black-clad man suddenly raised his hand and caught him.

     That person exclaimed, “Your Majesty?!”

     The man ignored him and didn’t even turn his head. He was still staring at Chu Wanning’s face, but the veins on his hands bulged. With a crack, he twisted and broke the neck of the man who was fighting to be vanguard, then casually threw him on the ground.

     Chu Wanning’s expression changed slightly—

     This man even killed his own people?

     “Who do you think you are? Do you think you’re worthy of being taught by Chu-zongshi?” The man walked towards Chu Wanning slowly and casually.

     Behind him, no one dared to move.

     Chu Wanning crossed the sky and asked sternly, “Who are you?”

     The man stopped after hearing his words.

     He stood not far from Chu Wanning, with an indescribably strange emotion in his eyes. After a while, he chuckled softly and said, “After so many years, I didn’t expect that when we met again, the first words you would say to This Venerable One would be so simple.”

     “...When have I ever known you?”

     “Oh, you don’t know me? Chu Wanning, you’re always so heartless.” The man moved forward, but this time he didn’t stop. Since Chu Wanning had always been fierce and stubborn, he couldn’t back down.

     So, the man walked straight up to him, the distance extremely dangerous and abrupt.

     Chu Wanning’s hand flashed with a cold light, and he raised his palm to strike.

     He had such great agility, as fast as lightning, but the man easily grabbed his wrist.

     “Actually, I have already experienced this move many times.” The man lowered his head and stared closely at Chu Wanning’s face. His gaze was almost greedy as he took in the details of his face and said, “But you seem to have forgotten.”

     Being stared at like this, Chu Wanning only felt his hair stand on end. He had never been a person who feared the strong, but the look in this man’s eyes were too complex and too sinister, as if he was hiding an earth-shattering truth and secret. “Who… are you?!”

     “Do you want This Venerable One to remind you?” the man said in a low voice. The strength of his hand was so great that Chu Wanning actually couldn’t break free.

     “The first time you used this move was when I was sixteen years old. You taught me how to fight in close quarters. You told me that although this move seemed simple, it was very difficult to learn. You told me to practice it well and not slack off.”

     Chu Wanning’s eyes suddenly widened, and he looked at him in disbelief.

     The man’s eyes held a smiling expression but also a treacherous light.

     “The second time you used this move was when you and I fought the decisive battle back then. I was caught off-guard and got struck by you, getting badly wounded.”

     He took Chu Wanning’s hand and pressed it to his heart, not allowing him to refuse.

     Chu Wanning suddenly realized that this man had no heartbeat.

     Like a corpse.

     “Who… are you?”

     “Don’t be impatient.” The man soaked every word between his lips and teeth before feeding it sweetly into his ear. This time, he was even closer, almost touching Chu Wanning’s face.

     He said in his ear, “The third time you used this move was on my bed.”

     “...”

     “I wanted to fuck you, but you said it was enough and wouldn’t agree.” He held onto Chu Wanning’s wrist tightly and forced his hand to slide down his chest until it reached an extremely private place.

     Chu Wanning looked as if he was stung by a scorpion or snake. His expression changed, and he wanted to fight with his life.

     However, the man seemed to be familiar with all of his movements and reactions, easily opposing them.

     Then he actually hugged his entire body in his arms and murmured intimately and ruthlessly, “What do you think we should do, Chu Wanning? This Venerable One originally came to kill you—to destroy you. But I didn’t expect that after so many years, you would have changed—and I’ve changed as well. But when I see you, when I smell your scent, I still get hard very quickly.”

     “You, let me go!!” Chu Wanning could have never imagined that things would turn out like this. His face turned white, then red, then white again. He looked like he was going to faint from anger, but he couldn’t break free from that person’s grip no matter how hard he tried.

     He was like an inescapable net, like a spider’s web, entangling him and embracing him.

     In full view of everyone present, he held him in his arms. It was forceful, overbearing, ferocious, and crazy.

     Narrow and sticky.

     “So hard that it hurts; so hard that it’s swollen.”

     “I’ll kill you!!”

     The man seemed to be amused. He smiled suddenly and let go of his hand. Chu Wanning’s killing intent instantly rose, his actions ruthless and forceful. He really wanted to kill him in one blow.

     With his cloak fluttering, the man retreated quickly, floating like a kite and landing steadily on the blue brick surface.

     But his mask wasn’t spared. It was split in half by Chu Wanning and fell to the ground, shattering into pieces.

     The man did not raise his head, his face hidden in the shadow of his hood.

     He stayed silent for a moment in the shadow, then sighed and said, “You can’t change your habit of shouting and yelling at every turn. It’s the same no matter where you go. But Chu Wanning, Chu-zongshi…”

     The black-clad man raised his hand, and a strong black force came from behind.

     He caught it firmly.

     Chu Wanning glanced at it. It was the holy weapon blade that had appeared at Xuanyuan Pavilion before. It was also one of the five fierce swords collected by Xu Shuanglin.

     The man rubbed Bu’gui, speaking slowly with an extremely vicious tone.

     “Are you really willing to kill me?”

     After he said this, he suddenly raised his head.

     His hood fell.

     Chu Wanning felt as if a basin of ice water had been poured over his head, chilling him to the bone. His mind buzzed, and he felt numb…

     In the cold and gloomy hall, the black-clad man had handsome features and a pale face, his smile containing an evil and lingering charm. He was both a demon and a monster. He grinned, revealing his eerie white teeth.

     “Emperor Taxian-Jun, Mo Ran, Mo Weiyu.”

     Bu’gui was unsheathed, its light illuminating his dark purple-tinted eyes.

     Taxian-Jun’s smile was like that of a demon, tiger, or wolf.

     “Shizun, please enlighten me.”