If Tao Yishan successfully condensed a Golden Core , he would enter the sights of the Ten-Pace Courtyard and obtain more cultivation resources.
Unexpectedly, in just a few years, their wish had "come true." They had indeed entered the sights of the Ten-Pace Courtyard early, and both of the sect's few Foundation Establishment experts had appeared on the Ten-Pace Courtyard's radar—the conscription list.
With this, the small sect was plunged into a huge panic. They had exhausted their minds and walked on thin ice just to survive, yet they still couldn't escape the unwarranted disaster of their sect's destruction.
Tao Yishan aged rapidly almost overnight. He, who had originally looked like he was only forty, was nearly unrecognizable to his sect's disciples the day after receiving the conscription order. Wrinkles had appeared on his face, and he looked old and weary.
In the end, Tao Yishan gritted his teeth and presented the wealth that his sect had saved up for several generations to the conscription officer. Finally, the Supreme Ancestor , who was already approaching the end of his lifespan, was removed from the conscription list.
The Supreme Ancestor's original intention was to trade his life for Tao Yishan's . But he was truly very old. In his youth, he had fought to establish the sect and defend their small piece of territory, accumulating injuries and chronic ailments all over his body. He could perish at any moment.
Tao Yishan told the Supreme Ancestor that even if he went, with his condition, he would just become the next batch. It was better for him to stay behind. As long as he didn't consume too much Spirit Power , he could still hold on for some time and protect the sect.
But just a few days later, that conscription officer, for whom Tao Yishan had originally been filled with gratitude, became the most painful thorn in his heart.
After he joined the gathering of conscripted cultivators, he learned that the Four Great Sects had actually left some quotas for each sect to stay behind and guard the sect, to preserve their legacy.
But the Golden Core conscription officer in charge of his direction had not mentioned a single word of it. He had only worn an expression of impatience and coldness, relentlessly pressuring them to quickly settle their sect's affairs and depart.
In the end, it was only after Tao Yishan's desperate pleading, handing over almost all the resources his sect had painstakingly saved, that the cold and heartless conscription officer reluctantly agreed to let the Supreme Ancestor stay.
As a sect master, Tao Yishan had experienced much and seen through many things. But at that moment, the Sword Immortals of the Ten-Pace Courtyard , whom he had always regarded as supreme and noble, no longer seemed so pure.
During the subsequent journey, whether it was the teleportations at each gathering point or the ever-growing size of the troop on the road, none of it brought any emotional fluctuation to Tao Yishan .
He remained silent and taciturn. Only occasionally, when he looked at the figure at the very front, would a venomous hatred flash in the depths of his eyes.
When Li Yan flew forward just now, although he had hesitated, he was ultimately scared by the last sentence in Li Yan's speech. He dared not flee in the face of battle; his sect could not withstand even the slightest bit of anger from the Four Great Sects .
Compared to that, what was the humiliation he had suffered? Emotionally, Tao Yishan felt no hatred for this war. He felt that he was just like the South Sea cultivators from the news he had heard before—a mere puppet.
Therefore, he did not act proactively, but he hesitated because he feared his sect would be implicated. For a time, he himself did not know who he hated. Under the effect of these multiple conflicting emotions, he ended up in the middle of the charging crowd of Windy Cool Mountain cultivators.
Thus, when the large number of cultivators from both sides collided, he ended up facing four South Sea cultivators, all of whom charged at him with utter madness.
A bone-chilling cold filled Tao Yishan's heart. His mind finally cleared, and he hurriedly dodged.
He did his utmost, weaving through the crowd of cultivators, leading the four South Sea cultivators in a curved path.
Blood rushed to Tao Yishan's head. There was only one thought in his mind.
'I cannot die, I cannot die! I must see the great battle arrive! I must see that conscription officer on the battlefield, see him die at the hands of the enemy!'
At this moment, he couldn't distinguish who the enemy was in his heart—was it the person he hated on his own side, or the Demon Clan army?
But the people before him had to die. He had to live.
Under this extremely absurd and strange thought, Tao Yishan's Spirit Power erupted wildly. With his eyes bloodshot, he actually dragged the four enemies in a long, circuitous route, and those behind them never caught up.
Finally, while weaving through the crowd, the other three were intercepted by others.
After flying a short distance at a sharp angle, Tao Yishan suddenly turned around. A roar of an unknown pitch came from his throat, and he engaged the last pursuing cultivator in battle.
This was an extremely beautiful female cultivator with a curvaceous figure. As she flew forward at high speed, the strong wind pressed her dress tightly against her body. Tao Yishan could even see her firm and elastic bust.
It was an impulse that sparked the imagination, but her vacant eyes detracted from the standard of a beauty.
Tao Yishan , as a sect master who did his utmost every day for the survival of his sect, had experienced hundreds of duels, large and small. This was also the reason why his cultivation had progressed by leaps and bounds in recent years despite his limited cultivation time.
Every time he walked back from the brink of death, it was an enhancement of his understanding from the inside out. Although his cultivation method was considered average even by second-rate sects, under his constant tempering, he had long gained a different understanding.
Although his realm was too low to improve his own cultivation method, he could glimpse the leopard through a tube. His understanding of details that others easily overlooked became deeper and deeper, and his arts became more and more fluid.
The beautiful female cultivator held an ink-colored long whip and stood on a snow-white jade whale. With Tao Yishan's knowledge, he naturally did not know the name of this snow-white jade whale.
Facing Tao Yishan's counterattack, the pursuing beautiful female cultivator flicked her ink-colored long whip. It transformed into an ink flood dragon, coiling its body and gathering momentum. A black shadow was already in front of Tao Yishan's face.
Tao Yishan had been pursued miserably by the four people just now and had long been suppressing a wave of anger. Especially before, he had thought he might perish here today, which scared him out of his wits and made his blood boil.
With an ashen face, Tao Yishan's cultivation erupted. A golden light instantly appeared in front of him. A pair of golden shears, two feet in size, opened its two sharp, giant blades and snipped at the ink flood dragon that had already arrived.
The golden shears moved like a thunderbolt, and the golden light on them flared up. It was Tao Yishan's attack fueled by anger. The ink flood dragon seemed to have sensed the power of the golden shears and was unwilling to take it head-on.
Its ferocious head, which had already reached Tao Yishan's face, suddenly swung aside, dodging the snipping attack.
Using the momentum of its body's swing, it was like an ink dragon turning over, churning the surrounding clouds. Its steel whip-like tail had already lashed out horizontally.
The movements of both sides were like lightning. With a crisp "pa" sound, the pitch-black tail had slapped the side of the golden shears. Black qi and golden light shot up more than twenty feet high.
Both Tao Yishan and the beautiful female cultivator swayed. Their Spirit Powers were evenly matched; the first exchange was a draw.
And just as the ink flood dragon turned to attack again, the fierce look in the beautiful female cultivator's eyes intensified. She stomped her foot hard on the head of the snow-white jade whale. The snow-white jade whale's fat body suddenly trembled, and it opened its mouth and spat a ball of white gas at Tao Yishan .
The white gas instantly filled the area for fifty to sixty zhang. Although Tao Yishan had been paying attention to that snow-white jade whale demonic beast, he didn't even know its name, let alone what kind of innate divine abilities it possessed.
The white gas came swiftly. He only had time to hold his breath and open his Spirit Power shield before he was completely enveloped in it.
Tao Yishan was greatly alarmed. A fear of the unknown assailed his heart. He hurriedly communicated with the golden shears in his mind, but found that the golden shears were entangled with that ink flood dragon, fighting in a flurry of "ping ping pong pong." It was impossible for it to break free and fly back for a while.
And the next moment, Tao Yishan discovered something that made his heart pound even faster. The ball of white gas around him was shrinking inwards at a speed visible to the naked eye.
What made his blood run cold was that inside the white gas, there were countless red and white sharp thorns, a sight that made one's scalp tingle.
The thorns were as dense as brambles, half red and half white. If someone were beside them at this moment, they would see a giant, white, mutated sea jellyfish wrapping its food in its mouth full of sharp teeth.
And this large mouth was rapidly closing in on the food inside. Tao Yishan felt the space around him rapidly tightening.
His Spirit Power shield was like a resilient bubble. At this moment, dense, deep dents were rapidly sinking inwards on the bubble.
No matter how wildly his Spirit Power surged, his Spirit Power shield could not resist the squeezing of the red and white sharp teeth and could only continuously contract.
In just two breaths, the Spirit Power shield, which had been extended several inches from his body, was already about to press against him.
A large amount of sweat had already beaded on Tao Yishan's forehead. He knew that his cultivation method's defense could not withstand this demonic beast's attack.
Moreover, the female cultivator's palm had already been raised, and she was likely about to launch some kind of auxiliary attack.
Although he and the opponent were both at the Pseudo-Core Realm , the opponent had both a person and a beast. He was not some core disciple from a major sect who possessed mid-level or higher cultivation methods or enviable magical treasures.
But he was, after all, the master of a sect, and he had a wealth of experience in fighting. Otherwise, how could he have defended his small territory and survived countless life-and-death situations until now? He also had his own trump cards.
Tao Yishan gritted his teeth. At this moment, how could he care about so much? There was still only that one thought in his mind.
'I cannot perish here! I must return to the sect! I must see the fate of that conscription officer! Even if he doesn't die, I will definitely kill him in the future!'
With a great shout in his heart, he communicated with his Storage Pouch . A mottled beast horn, the size of a forefinger, appeared in his Divine Sense . He let out a low shout.
"Go!"
A streak of grayish-brown light flew out from his body and drilled into a spot in the white mist like a bolt of lightning. With a light "chi" sound, Tao Yishan felt his vision brighten. The isolated sunlight first penetrated through a small hole.
Then, with a "kaka" sound, the white gas ball cracked open like a broken eggshell, with larger and wider cracks appearing rapidly, and more sunlight poured in.
At the same time, a painful, sharp beast cry came from outside.
Tao Yishan did not hesitate in the slightest. He shot out through the opening where the sunlight was pouring in. At the same time, the ruthless look in his eyes intensified. He formed a hand seal again and let out another low shout.
"Descend!"
In his Divine Sense , the grayish-brown light transformed into an almost invisible thin line and flashed into the distance.
After a "peng!" sound, by the time Tao Yishan had stabilized himself again, what fell into his sight was the battlefield from before.
But the scene was different now. The beautiful female cultivator was staring blankly at the arrow of blood that had erupted from one of her high, full breasts. At this moment, the vacant look in her eyes was slowly receding, replaced by a trace of clarity.
She looked at the large hole in her left chest, then slowly raised her head to look at the heavily panting Tao Yishan . There was no pain on her face, no venom, but an expression of relief.
She actually gave a light smile to Tao Yishan , then her body went limp, and she fell towards the earth...