Chapter 291: Rush to Reinforce

High above in the sky, the battle between the highest combatants of both sides was also raging fiercely.

The sword-bearing man stood tall in the void, his robes rustling loudly in the strong wind. Within a thousand zhang in front of him, sword qi crisscrossed, and countless sword lights of various colors converged, as if opening a pond of sword qi in the void.

In a stretch of void far opposite him, a layer of snow-white radiance spread out, within which light and shadow were hazy, and crystal-clear snow lotuses of different shapes and sizes bloomed, their fragrance wafting ten li with the wind.

Where the two met, sword qi surged, flower shadows swayed, wind and thunder roared, and clanging sounds continued without end.

Looking into the distance, it seemed as if countless flower scissors were constantly ravaging the sea of flowers, or like countless crystal flowers were wearing down the blades of the scissors.

This scene appeared calm and ordinary, but in reality, it was fraught with deadly dangers. If a cultivator weaker than them fell into it, they would inevitably be crushed to ashes.

Though the two of them were within the formation and seemed to make few movements, in truth, countless exchanges occurred every moment, and the consumption of immortal spiritual power within their bodies was enormous. If one side could not hold on, the sword formation or sea of flowers controlled by the other would immediately overwhelm them.

"Fellow Daoist, since you are not a member of the Sacred Puppet Sect, why risk your life like this? Whatever reward the Sacred Puppet Sect can give, we... I can give as well. As long as you stop now and do nothing, I will offer the reward myself," the sword-bearing man said slowly, holding his sword with one hand and driving the sword formation without any slack.

"This sword immortal is quite handsome, with a demeanor that makes my heart flutter. Forget about rewards; if you are willing to come into my snow lotus and have a good time with me, I might even turn around and deal with the Sacred Puppet Sect," said the woman with the cloud-gauze mask, which she had not removed but instead transformed into a charming, beautiful face, covering her mouth with a light giggle.

Though she put on such an act, her heart was not at ease. The strength of the man before her was on par with hers, and if this prolonged consumption continued, the outcome would be hard to predict.

"Since you refuse to appreciate my kindness, then let us fight to the death," the sword-bearing man said with a cold snort.

He raised his hand, formed a strange sword seal, and pointed it at the sword guard. The long sword in his hand immediately rang with a clang, sounding like a dragon's roar.

The pond of sword qi before him churned violently, and strands of sword qi of various colors coalesced into colorful sword qi dragons, which surged forward toward Yun Ni.

Yun Ni's hand seals had already changed. Within the vast snow lotus field before her, countless white petals fluttered up and gathered in midair into a torrent of flower sea, rushing toward the sword qi dragons.

In another stretch of sky, tens of thousands of li away, a scar-faced man in a black robe let out a strange "giggle," his sleeves fluttering. Yellow light surged continuously from within his sleeves, turning into yellow rings that smashed toward the area before him.

Where the rings landed, a puppet Daoist in a gray-white robe waved his whisk with one hand, and countless white crystal strands stood upright, spreading out in midair like countless crystal steel needles, blocking all the yellow rings.

With his other hand, he took down a silver gourd from his waist and tossed it into the air.

The silver gourd immediately spun and rose, rapidly expanding in midair to the size of a house. Its spiritual patterns shone brightly, and from within came the sound of muffled thunder.

Then, the gourd's mouth suddenly opened, and bolts of silver lightning struck toward the scar-faced man, lighting up half the sky brilliantly.

At the same time, blue light flashed behind the puppet Daoist, and Bai Fengyi's figure rushed out from the side. With a wave of her hands, two water sleeves flew out, transforming into two huge water-blue light screens that wrapped around from left and right, trapping the scar-faced man in the center.

The scar-faced man showed no sign of tension in his eyes. Calmly, he raised his hand, and a yellow orb flew up, shattering in midair with a bang. From it, specks of earthy yellow light scattered, enveloping an area of a hundred zhang around him.

The water-blue light screens and silver lightning arrived simultaneously but landed on the earthy yellow light, all blocked as if by a thick, high wall, unable to advance further.

Bai Fengyi's face was slightly pale. The strength of the scar-faced man before her far exceeded hers and the puppet's. Even with their combined efforts, they could only barely hold him back, unable to win.

Fortunately, the battle on the main island below was clearly in the Sacred Puppet Sect's favor. As long as she and her master could hold off the two Golden Immortals on the enemy side, once the outcome on the island was decided, this defensive battle would be a success.

"Hehe... If you think you can slowly gain victory with a delaying tactic, I'm afraid you'll be disappointed," the scar-faced man said from within the earthy yellow light, his expression relaxed and his tone mocking.

As he spoke, he flipped his palm, revealing a small, green-black linen bag the size of a palm, embroidered with a green ancient character for "fortune." It seemed utterly unremarkable.

He slapped the linen bag and softly chanted a few incantations. The originally flat bag immediately swelled as if inflated, bulging with round little bumps like it was filled with beans.

Seeing this, Bai Fengyi's heart tightened, sensing great trouble. She quickly urged the water-sleeve light screens to intensify her attack on the scar-faced man.

A smile appeared in the latter's eyes, and he crisply uttered a single word:

"Go!"

The next moment, the mouth of the linen bag suddenly opened wide, and green beans shaped like peas rolled out continuously, falling like raindrops from the sky toward the main island of the Sacred Puppet Sect.

Each green bean, upon landing, rapidly expanded like a balloon. After a blur of light, it quickly transformed into a green-armored soldier.

Their height and shape were no different from ordinary humans, but their faces were uniform, as if stamped from the same mold—all expressionless and dull. Their bodies were covered with wood grain patterns, and green light flowed over them. They held various weapons such as swords, spears, halberds, and axes.

In less than a moment, green lights appeared all over the main island, and soon thousands of green-armored soldiers emerged, joining the fray with the Sacred Puppet Sect members.

These creatures moved swiftly, even more agile than ordinary puppets. They quickly adapted to both the mountains and rivers and threw themselves into battle.

The Sacred Puppet Sect members, caught off guard by the sudden appearance of so many enemies, panicked. Instead, they were pushed back step by step by the Ten Directions Tower cultivators and the green-armored soldiers.

The offensive and defensive situation on the entire main island was instantly reversed, and the Sacred Puppet Sect fell into a passive position.

Compared to the chaos on the main island, the peripheral formation islands were now idle and neglected.

After all, all the spirit stones and treasures were on the main island. Since the passage to the main island had been opened, naturally no one would continue attacking these formation islands.

"Unexpectedly, they even used Dao soldiers," Han Li said, his eyes flickering with blue light as he gazed toward the main island.

"It seems the Sacred Puppet Sect is truly doomed this time," Lin Jiu sighed.

As they spoke, the entrance of the round tower beside them flashed with light, and Qi Heng emerged with a stern expression. He cupped his hands and said, "Two seniors, there is no need to guard the formation island any longer. Please go to the main island to fight. We will follow shortly."

As he spoke, his gaze inadvertently swept over Han Li, a hint of strangeness flashing in the depths of his eyes.

Han Li did not notice this. He exchanged a glance with Lin Jiu and nodded.

Since the representative of the employer had made the request, they naturally had to comply—this was the rule of the Wuchang Alliance.

Then, with a flash of遁光, the two shot out and flew swiftly toward the main island.

They had just flown a few hundred li when they heard a loud rumbling behind them. They quickly turned to look.

They saw the warrior puppet on the formation island take a large step, crossing the island's boundary, and step into the seawater, stirring up huge waves. It was actually wading through the water toward the main island.

Similarly, the puppets on the other undestroyed formation islands were also moving their massive bodies and heading back toward the main island.

On the main island's square, the noise rose to the heavens.

Hundreds of green-armored soldiers and dozens of Ten Directions Tower cultivators had split dozens of Sacred Puppet Sect cultivators and nearly a hundred silver-armored puppets into more than ten battle groups. Wherever one looked, various spiritual lights rose and fell like blazing suns. Many buildings and the ground were already unrecognizable, and corpses and remains were everywhere, presenting a tragic scene.

Bai Suyuan, along with a Sacred Puppet Sect elder and over a dozen disciples, was surrounded in a corner of the square by over a hundred Ten Directions Tower cultivators.

This woman held a silver long sword in one hand and wore a white jade ring on the other. The life-saving talisman had been affixed to her wrist; in a critical moment, she could activate it instantly by injecting mana.

Her gaze frequently turned to the distant sky, her eyes full of worry. The white jade ring on her wrist transformed into a white halo that enveloped her body. Over her original clothes, she also wore a white gauze robe that emitted tiny silver-white specks of light.

Beneath the gauze robe, at her waist, hung a square green peach-wood talisman, densely covered with spiritual patterns, faintly glowing with light.

The first few treasures were gifts from her master, Yun Ni. As for the last one, it was given to her by her ancestor Bai Fengyi when they were reunited—a defensive treasure of extremely high quality, capable of withstanding a full-force strike from a True Immortal early-stage cultivator at a critical moment.

However, it could only withstand one strike; afterward, its power would greatly diminish or even become useless.

Unless absolutely necessary, she naturally did not want to use it.

"Hehe, this masked woman is covered in treasures. Capture her, and we'll all be rich," a tall Ten Directions Tower cultivator said, his eyes fixed on Bai Suyuan, laughing.

Hearing this, the surrounding Ten Directions Tower cultivators immediately had greedy glints in their eyes and gathered around.

"Kill!"

Suddenly, someone shouted, and the Ten Directions Tower cultivators charged forward like arrows from a bow.

The already chaotic square became even more tumultuous.