With the advance of the team, the concentration of murky air gradually increased.

Over at Zhang City, only the sky is somewhat dark, but at least the ground hasn't been completely tainted by the murky air.

But here, the surroundings are all shrouded in mist.

The sky has been snowing continuously, with temperatures at least minus ten degrees.

Ever since the murky air blocked the sunlight, the snowy weather has persisted for who knows how long.

Lin Qianxuan caught a snowflake, which was also dark gray.

A wisp of murky air tried to enter his body through his skin, but Lin Qianxuan circulated his Divine Energy and quickly dispelled it.

For martial artists with a certain level of divine energy cultivation, as long as they don't directly absorb and ingest large amounts of murky air or live in high concentrations for extended periods, they won't easily become tainted.

Lin Qianxuan tightened his mask a bit.

Although Divine Energy can neutralize murky air, what if?

He certainly doesn't want to become a puppet of the murky god.

"We've arrived!"

As a massive dark purple mountain appeared before them, the team came to a halt.

"Have everyone check their breathing masks; replace damaged ones immediately, then gather your belongings as we prepare to ascend," Gongsun Ying ordered the three squad commanders and Lin Qianxuan.

Lin Qianxuan and the others quickly relayed the order.

The members of the Rebel Army began to disembark from the wolf carriage, taking everything down bit by bit and carrying it on their backs.

The Rebel Army all wore portable armor bodies.

They are certainly far inferior to the Divine Martial Armor Body but still provide some protection, and they assist in movement and exertion.

With everything ready, they set off along the mountain path.

Almost instantly upon entering the range of Purple Bamboo Mountain, Lin Qianxuan sensed something amiss.

This mountain... is it alive?

No, instead of saying the mountain is alive, it's more like the grass and vegetation here possess stronger animalistic and aggressive characteristics.

Lin Qianxuan felt their malice towards him at all times.

A desire to devour and destroy him.

Swish~!

By the foot of a purple bamboo as thick as a water barrel, a bamboo whip as thick as a human arm swung at a member of the Rebel Army.

Clang~!

That Rebel Army member drew his sword against it, producing a metallic clash, but the bamboo whip was only knocked to one side, and soon a dozen more bamboo whips whipped out from below.

Slash slash slash~!

Almost instantly, Gongsun Ying reacted, slashing continuously to sever them.

"These purple bamboos have been much more severely tainted; be careful and try to avoid their proximity," Gongsun Ying sheathed her sword, warning.

However, avoiding them completely is obviously not possible; the paths overflow with purple bamboo, and without warning, bamboo whips strike, greatly exhausting everyone's energy.

This is when Guan Hao's role becomes critical.

He wielded a giant scythe that is particularly effective against plants.

Clearing the path directly in front, whenever they encountered an unavoidable purple bamboo, he swung the scythe down, instantly splitting it into two and cutting off all of its vitality.

In this way, the group's progression quickened significantly.

Soon, amidst the murky air fog, pavilions and towers came into view.

On the mountain path, a somewhat dilapidated archway appeared, with the words [Purple Bamboo Sect] inscribed prominently.

Lin Qianxuan's gaze fell on the marks left by weapons on the archway.

There seem to be many stories here too.

"Ahead is the stronghold of the Purple Bamboo Sect, be cautious, there might still be hidden murky spirits inside," Gongsun Ying cautioned the group.

Then, they proceeded along the path into the sect's premises.

Upon entering, Lin Qianxuan's spirit easily sensed some rapidly approaching murky spirits.

With a raise of his hand, the falling snow turned into flowing water.

Crash crash crash~!

"Thud thud thud thud~!"

Before they could approach, through doors and windows, the water shot through the murky spirits' brains, killing them all.

Gongsun Ying's hand paused on her sword, exchanging a glance with Lin Qianxuan, before continuing to lead the group forward.

Progressing through the structures of the Purple Bamboo Sect, Lin Qianxuan occasionally dispatched a few murky spirits with water, and the group proceeded smoothly to the Purple Bamboo Hall.

In the game, this building seemed unremarkable, yet in reality, Lin Qianxuan couldn't help but feel somewhat awestruck.

Such a vast palace, with its carved beams and painted rafters, the floor adorned with artistic engravings, two statues of stone cranes poised to fly at the grand hall's entrance appeared lifelike, as if they could move; a shift in perspective would even change their pose, purposely sculpted to create a visual anomaly, making the White Crane seem to flap its wings gently.

The craftsmanship of the artisans who built this place was truly exceptional.

Lin Qianxuan sensed a very powerful aura within the Purple Bamboo Hall. It was hard to say how strong exactly, but it did not give him the feeling of immediate life-threatening danger.

Gongsun Ying raised her hand, halting the Rebel Army's advance.

Then, Gongsun Ying stepped forward alone, approaching the hall door.

Within the almost pristine hall, Lin Qianxuan's spiritual peeping picked up on the game character, a man in a purple robe holding a bamboo crane folding fan.

He simply sat quietly on the ground, his long hair flowing down his waist, his face handsome and carefree.

This appearance could even rival Bo Mu, the inheritor of the Carefree Pavilion.

"Intruder, you have come again. This time, I will not let you leave easily!" Prince of Purple Bamboo glared at Gongsun Ying.

"Prince of Purple Bamboo, we just wish to borrow the Purple Bamboo Sect's terrestrial track to ride the Divine Speed Chariot to the Celestial Craft Institute. We have no intention of opposing you."

Gongsun Ying attempted reasoning with the Prince of Purple Bamboo.

But she clearly overestimated the Prince's current state.

"Purple Bamboo Mountain is a forbidden area; no one is allowed entry!"

Boom~!

The Prince of Purple Bamboo waved his folding fan forward, unleashing a fierce wind.

The gale blew directly, causing the Rebel Army's bodies to sway. Only those with a cultivation level above the mid Divine Manifestation could barely steady themselves and remain unmoved.

The strength displayed by the Purple Bamboo Young Master is exaggerated.

Gongsun Ying drew her sword, divine energy surging around her.

"Since you're going to stop me, there's nothing more to say."

"Bang~!"

The floor cracked, a scorching, dazzling red beam of light flashed, and Gongsun Ying instantly arrived beside the Purple Bamboo Young Master.

Swoosh~!

She slashed down, the concentrated sword qi falling directly toward the Purple Bamboo Young Master's face.

The Purple Bamboo Young Master folded his fan, using the tip to collide.

Clang~!

Metal clashed, divine energy dispersed, blowing the items inside the palace into disarray.

Immediately, the two exchanged swift moves, their silhouettes constantly shifting within the palace. In just a few seconds, they had clashed hundreds of times.

The palace was covered with traces of their duel.

Guan Hao and Bo Mu watched with solemn expressions.

Their strength was indeed not weak, but it was just not weak.

Compared to Gongsun Ying in non-Bursting Qi mode, they were on a similar level, but to compare themselves with Gongsun Ying in Bursting Qi mode or the corrupted Purple Bamboo Young Master, it was a whole different level.

This gap, for experts, was like two entirely different realms.

"Can you keep up?" Bo Mu asked Guan Hao.

"It's difficult." Guan Hao replied solemnly with a single word.

Even though Divine Wood Valley focused primarily on agriculture, combat was not neglected either.

After all, if you want to farm properly, you must first have enough combat power to defend your land.

He considered his own strength as the top disciple of Divine Wood Valley to be at a first-rate level in the world. Before the corruption calamity came, he was compared with those old monsters who had cultivated for centuries.

But facing these two monsters, he felt he was far off.

Bo Mu also shared the same feeling at this moment.

Lin Qianxuan was understandable, being from the Outer Realm, not even sure if he was human.

But what surprised him was that he couldn't even compare with Gongsun Ying or the Purple Bamboo Young Master.

Boom~!

While he was pondering, suddenly the two exchanged a fierce blow.

Divine energy instantly overturned the palace roof.

The Purple Bamboo Young Master's form descended from the sky, the folded fan in his hand pressing down upon the sword blade, making Gongsun Ying's knees slightly bend under the pressure.

"Crack, crack, crack, crack~!"

The ground below Gongsun Ying began to crack, clearly bearing the force it shouldn't have been able to withstand.

Bong~!

In this instant, Lin Qianxuan moved.

With radiant steps upon the sun, a light emanated at his feet, instantly closing the distance to the Purple Bamboo Young Master, then suddenly throwing a powerful punch.

Boom~!

Bang~! Thump thump thump!

Caught off guard, the Purple Bamboo Young Master was punched in the chest by Lin Qianxuan, his form flew back, consecutively breaking three pillars, and then landing on the metallic founder statue behind him, deforming it slightly, its benevolent face turning fierce and ugly.

Lin Qianxuan steadied himself, looking towards Gongsun Ying, "Miss Ying, are you alright?"

"I'm fine, be careful, he's not so easily killed."

Gongsun Ying nodded slightly, her gaze fixated on the Purple Bamboo Young Master lying beneath the founder's statue.

"Founder..."

The Purple Bamboo Young Master stared at the founder's statue, regaining a moment of clarity.

Under the corruption calamity, he had allowed too much corrupt energy to enter his body, driving him insane, and leading him to personally kill his master, elders, junior disciples, senior disciples, disciples...

He was hopelessly mad.

Painful, painful, escape!!

It wasn't me who killed them, it was the intruders!!!

Yes, all intruders...

The Purple Bamboo Young Master finally could not face the strong temperament of his tragic past; he chose to evade.

An enormous White Crane carrying bamboo, nearly eight or nine zhang tall, gradually appeared above him.

This was the Purple Bamboo Young Master's Primordial Spirit Dharma Form.

At this moment, a vast amount of corrupt energy crazily poured into his Primordial Spirit Dharma Form.

He actively chose complete corruption to escape everything from the past.

In reality, transformations into invincible frames definitely do not exist.

Thus, Lin Qianxuan promptly made a move.

"Splash~!"

The water current flushed, instantly shattering the Purple Bamboo Young Master's form.

However, the Purple Bamboo Young Master's Primordial Spirit Dharma Form spread its wings, soaring into the sky.

High above, his Primordial Spirit Dharma Form absorbed more corrupt energy, accompanied by some soul-like entities as well.

"Spirits of Purple Bamboo Mountain, lend me your power so we can drive out all these intruders together!!"

Purple bamboo whips burst through the ground into the air, wrapping around the Purple Bamboo Young Master's Primordial Spirit Dharma Form.

In just two or three breaths, a dense cluster of bamboo whips completely enveloped the Purple Bamboo Young Master, turning into a giant purple bamboo sphere.

Boom~!

The purple bamboo sphere dropped, hitting the center of the palace with a loud crash.

Immediately, within the corrupt energy, purple bamboo rapidly wove into flesh and bone, purple bamboo leaves flying, revealing a hundred-meter-tall figure composed entirely of purple bamboo, resembling a humanoid Purple Bamboo Young Master in front of the Rebel Army.

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