Ye Chen hastily freed his right hand, leaving only his left hand to hold on, as his right immediately summoned an even more powerful energy.

As the Fire Dragon approached closer and closer, becoming weaker and weaker, it suddenly released, bursting forth like a monster, killing with the force of swallowing rainbows. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

By this time, the Fire Dragon had already expended more than half of its strength. Though it was still powerful, it had weakened compared to before. Ye Chen’s swift attack was completely beyond Gu Feng’s expectation. With a loud bang, an impact wave roared and howled like ghosts and wolves, forcing the opponent back to its original form.

Gu Feng fell down, his eyes fiery with disbelief. He hadn’t anticipated that Ye Chen’s martial arts were so formidable; he had truly underestimated him. This guy could actually withstand his killing move.

"Not bad, indeed a master," Gu Feng had to acknowledge, "but still too young." He would have to resort to his most adept move.

He moved like a shaman, stepping once with his left foot, then his right, as if dancing to some heavenly and earthy rhythm. His sword waved continuously, summoning evil spirits. In this dancing manner, black and red energies were continuously absorbed, dyeing him in red and black as if he were poisoned by a spell.

Ye Chen had never seen such a technique before, but it looked quite formidable.

Suddenly a voice intoned "Thousand Miles of Buddha," as though ten thousand souls flew in suddenly, the black and red energies forming a giant beast.

Boom, boom, boom...

Those energies struck the energy shield that Ye Chen had conjured.

Wave after wave struck, shaking the earth and mountains.

The annoyed Black Demonic Spirit exclaimed, "Kid, were you scared witless by Shao Hengjiang? Why are you being more and more conservative now? Break through his formation quickly! He’s not some little lady; what are you playing at? What’s there to play with?" Those lightning bolts and the red light were unbearable for the Black Demonic Spirit, but he knew that Ye Chen was by no means comparable to Shao Hengjiang.

Ye Chen closed his eyes, confirming that the protective shield was secure. He quickly concentrated an energy, swiftly breaking free with a roar, like ten thousand Buddhas worshiping, swallowing the black and red energy.

Though the monster was frightening, as long as there was enough energy, it could not block him. A volcanic eruption exploded like an impact wave, and the giant beast didn’t even have time to flee.

Gu Feng was shocked; he hadn’t expected this guy’s explosive power to be so strong. His ’Thousand Miles of Buddha’ was one of his ultimate moves, yet it had no effect at all. Who exactly was this guy? He was filled with doubt. He tried another summoning of the Blood God, taking advantage of the confusion while the other party hadn’t noticed.

But because of the setback from the first encounter, Ye Chen was prepared. He first used the Dodging Technique, leaping out, followed by a move called Dragon Battle in the Wild, and with a loud boom, directly split his opponent into the woods.

Noises of disarrayed footsteps came from that direction.

The Black Demonic Spirit said, "Do you still intend to entangle yourself here? They’re coming to rescue him."

Ye Chen, almost seeing red from the intense fight, immediately snapped out of it when he heard this. He was here only to rescue people, not to fight to the death with this guy. This fellow was exceptionally formidable; if an even stronger master appeared, there would likely be trouble. It was best to escape quickly.

Beast King Baili He found the injured Gu Feng in the wasteland, still somewhat astonished. Wasn’t it supposed to be a simple capture of the girl? How did it end up so wretched?

Gu Feng clumsily climbed out from the wasteland.

"Where’s the girl?"

Gu Feng, clutching his chest, said, "Out of nowhere, some ragtag kid appeared. His martial arts were extremely formidable, and he rescued the girl."

"Damn it," Baili He was infuriated.

Gu Feng retorted, "I didn’t want it to happen either."

Ye Chen rushed back to the inn, finding Li Mo and the girl.

Nangong Yan was furious; she still hadn’t learned about her father’s condition.

Ye Chen, parched, grabbed a teapot and drank directly from it. He asked, "Hey, this old geezer robbed me blind. Who have you provoked now?"

Nangong Yan slapped him, and Ye Chen did not dodge. The slap landed on his arm with a smack, and she exclaimed, "What are you babbling about? Who’s this old geezer?"

"The one we met on the ’Carefree Vessel’ last time. I ran into him again last night; he even asked about you."

Nangong Yan glared at him with disdain, exclaiming, "You’re full of nonsense."

"Is it Qiandu Xiang’s people?"

"Besides that guy, who else could it be?"

"It seems he has truly taken a liking to you. It looks like you don’t discriminate by age; you’re open to young and old alike."

Nangong Yan broke out in a cold sweat and said, "This guy wants to capture me to threaten my father, to stop my dad from helping Si Nanyu."

"Lucky for you that you met me. I saved your life again. How do you plan to repay me?"

"Do you want to offer your body in gratitude?"

Ye Chen said, "No need for that; I already have someone I like. But I wouldn’t mind trying a one-night stand; I’m not opposed to the idea."

"How did you end up on the street?"

"I just happened to see you there, with a middle-aged man on the street. Was that your father?"

Out of breath, Nangong Yan nodded slightly.

"Should I take you back? Your father must think you’ve been captured by Qiandu Xiang’s men. If he makes that mistake, he’ll definitely go back and demand your return from Qiandu Xiang."

Hearing this, Nangong Yan instantly grew worried and stood up, saying, "Hmm, I need to find my father." But it was already dark outside, and there was no guarantee that the group of masked people from earlier wouldn’t be encountered again.

Ye Chen said, "Well, might as well see it through to the end, where is your father? I’ll escort you back.

Nangong Yan said, "Just take me to Peach Blossom Manor, my father was planning to send me there today."

Ye Chen stood up, glanced outside, and said, "Alright, let’s go."

Li Mo asked, "Should I follow you both?"

Ye Chen pushed him back with one hand and said, "Why would you come along on such a romantic night? Find someone else." He then left the room with Nangong Yan.

The two of them walked out of the Inn.

Her stomach started growling loudly,

Ye Chen said, "Let’s get something to eat first, my stomach is growling too."

Nangong Yan asked, "Where have you been these three days?" It turned out she had been looking for him in the area during that time.

Pointing at a beef noodle shop ahead, Ye Chen said, "Where else could I have gone? I was off getting my bones set."

"Your martial arts are so good, you should help us," Nangong Yan suggested.

"Heh, why should I, what’s in it for me to help you?"

"I can tell you’re not a bad person. Right now, the worst person is Qiandu Xiang. He’s after the Sacred Spirit Stone, and if he gets his hands on it, everything will be in danger. He’ll definitely use the Sacred Spirit Stone to control the huge monsters, like the Evil Spirit and the Moon Beast. If he commands these beasts and harnesses the power of the Sacred Spirit Stone, unifying the thirty-six islands, there will be untold suffering," Nangong Yan said with concern.

"What would I gain from it?"

"What do you want to gain from it?" Nangong Yan asked back.

"Of course, beauties, gold, silver," he responded.

"Can’t you be less mercenary? This is for the sake of the entire South Sea. If Qiandu Xiang gets the Sacred Spirit Stone, it’s all over."

Ye Chen called out, "Master, two bowls of beef noodles, and twenty skewers of mutton," then said to Nangong Yan, "Your father is so capable, he’s enough. We’re just small fry."

Nangong Yan knew his martial arts were excellent, and having his help would definitely be a big advantage. Although her father had many people at his disposal, there were few masters like Ye Chen, and even fewer of his caliber.

"Please help, I know you’re a good person."

"I’m not some good person. If you knew my secret, you might want to kill me sooner rather than later."

"Why would that be?" Nangong Yan reasoned that if he were with Qiandu Xiang’s people, he wouldn’t have helped her, let alone rescued her from those who had wanted to capture her this time.

"I’m like a leopard, used to being alone and not fitting in with others, so I can’t help you."

"Your martial arts are so good; you didn’t come to Sacred Spirit Island just for the Sacred Spirit Stone, did you?"

"Do you really want to know?"

"Yes, I want to know. Did you come for the Sacred Spirit Stone?"

"I came to borrow the Sacred Spirit Stone."

"Borrow the Sacred Spirit Stone?"

"I’ve got this strange disease; I could go insane any moment. I need the Sacred Spirit Stone to cure me."

"Nonsense, I’ve never heard of such a disease." Nangong Yan couldn’t possibly believe it.

"It doesn’t matter if you believe it or not, but following me is very dangerous, so it’s best not to follow me," Ye Chen continued to eat his beef noodles.

"Talking as if it’s so dangerous, not sure if it’s even true."

"Everything I’m saying is true. Hurry up and eat, young lady. Don’t always dream of being a hero. Being a hero isn’t easy; it comes with a price that not everyone can bear."

"You’re wasting your talent."

Ye Chen smiled faintly and said, "I’m not trying to scare you, but I ended up like this because I wanted to be a hero."

"Not sure if even a few of your words are true."

"What I’m telling you now is true. Always thinking about killing Shao Hengjiang, but it’s not something you should do. If things go wrong, they could really take you to become a concubine, imprison you for ten or eight years, and see what you’ll do then," Ye Chen handed her a skewer of meat.

It was only then that Nangong Yan said, "Actually, I’m worried about my father. He was originally with the Sacred Spirit Sect but later left to establish the Immortal Medicine Sect. This time, I knew we had met our match, and even though I’m not very capable, my father will definitely want to save Ouyang Yue. Ouyang Yue’s mother and my mother passed away young.

Now that her godfather is also gone, if we don’t help Si Nanyu, no one else will be able to help her, and she’ll be very pitiful."

"There are many pitiful people in the world, but not everyone can be helped," he said.

"That’s true, what you’re saying makes some sense, but aren’t we supposed to try our best? You saw today, those people wanted to capture me just to get at my father. Can they still be considered good people? Qiandu Xiang is a demon, and to achieve his goals, he is willing to kill Ouyang Yue."