"What do we do next?"
"Since the Celestial Formation has already been dismantled, we can only rely on the Rumor Cage."
"What exactly is Lin Jianxing planning?"
"If he's hoping to wait for reinforcements from the Fang-punishing Alliance or the Western Desert's Righteous Path, he's made a miscalculation."
Wan Zihong, Phoenix Prince, Zhou Xiongxin, Red Heart Walker, and Nine-Spirit Fairy followed closely behind Lin Jianxing as he flew at top speed, quietly conferring among themselves.
Lin Jianxing's methods were remarkably clever, far beyond expectations, rendering the Five Immortals' plans entirely moot.
With just a single Sword Qi Metamorphosis killing move, he had deceived the Five Immortals for quite some time, leaving them all thoroughly humiliated.
Meanwhile, Lin Jianxing's true body had seized the opportunity to dismantle the Celestial Formation.
This made the immortals of Heaven Court realize that their tactical deployment had been flawed — they should have stationed someone to guard the Celestial Formation.
In truth, the Celestial Formation possessed certain defensive capabilities as well as teleportation functions. If it were tampered with, it would send a signal back. Even if the Five Immortals were inside the Rumor Cage, they would receive the alert.
The Rumor Cage battlefield cut off all external communication — not even Treasure Yellow Heaven could reach them.
However, this particular signal was directed straight at the Rumor Cage. It would cause subtle tremors within the cage, serving as a warning.
At that point, upon learning that someone was dismantling the Celestial Formation, the Five Immortals would assess the situation and teleport several members back to respond.
But Lin Jianxing's execution had been impeccably precise. From beginning to end, the Five Immortals received no warning whatsoever, and the entire grand formation was quietly torn apart.
Yet even so, facing the Five Immortals, Lin Jianxing publicly returned the Immortal Gu he had obtained.
Such magnanimity won the grudging admiration of even the Five Immortals themselves.
Under these circumstances, when Lin Jianxing proposed relocating the battlefield, the Five Immortals had no face left to stubbornly remain at the Lin family's public blessed land headquarters.
"This is the place." Ahead of them, Lin Jianxing slowly came to a halt, hovering in midair, and turned to face the Five Immortals head-on.
The Five Immortals swept their gazes across the surroundings. This wasteland was indeed as Lin Jianxing had described — utterly barren, completely devoid of life, perfect for a battlefield.
"Fellow Daoist Lin Jianxing, if you would surrender without resistance, I guarantee with my life and fortune that yours will be spared." Red Heart Walker sighed.
Lin Jianxing let out a derisive laugh. "Suppose you were quietly minding your own business at home when strangers suddenly burst in, framed you, and launched a full-scale attack against you. Then they turn around and say they'll spare your life. How would you feel about that?"
"Enough talk!" Just as Red Heart Walker was about to reply, Wan Zihong struck without warning.
She vanished in an instant once more, reappearing behind and above Lin Jianxing.
Her fingers had all sharpened to wicked points, every nail a deep purple-black, as she pierced through the air and raked downward at Lin Jianxing's back with savage force!
Wan Zihong was a Demonic Path Gu Immortal recruited by Heaven Court, harboring no shortage of ruthlessness along with a fierce streak of pride.
Lin Jianxing had toyed with her for so long using the Sword Qi Metamorphosis trick, and her frustration had been simmering for ages.
She struck again with her killing move, the Flower Thorn Finger, but this time at ten times its usual power!
"This time you're in a flesh-and-blood body — let's see how long you can hold out!" A fierce gleam erupted in Wan Zihong's eyes.
Yet in the very next instant, a thunderous boom erupted without warning.
By the time Wan Zihong reacted, she found herself hurtling far through the air. Lin Jianxing, who had been right before her eyes a moment ago, was now reduced to a distant silhouette — so far away it was the size of a palm.
What happened? What killing move was that? This thought had barely formed in her mind when intense agony struck.
*Pfft.*
She could not help but cough up a mouthful of blood, horrified to discover that her defensive technique had nearly shattered.
"What exactly was that move?!" The other Gu Immortals of Heaven Court were equally shaken with disbelief.
Lin Jianxing's attacks had been far too swift — none of the Five Immortals had been able to see clearly.
Zhou Xiongxin hastily retreated to create distance.
Meanwhile, Nine-Spirit Fairy transformed once more into a Primordial Desolate Beast and charged at Lin Jianxing.
In situations like these, a transformation-path Gu Immortal with thick skin and tough hide was the ideal candidate for probing the enemy's capabilities.
*BOOM!*
But in the very next instant, thunder roared again, and Nine-Spirit Fairy was sent flying backward.
At least three of her ribs shattered.
Only then could the other Heaven Court Gu Immortals barely make it out: this was a sword-path killing move composed entirely of sword qi, but its speed was so extreme that the naked eye could barely track it.
Even with detection techniques deployed, they could only catch a partial glimpse.
"This move is called Sword Qi Thunderclap. Please, do enjoy." Lin Jianxing let out a long, soaring laugh and counterattacked against the Five Immortals.
*Boom, boom, boom...*
Thunderclap after thunderclap rang out as the Five Immortals were driven into a hasty retreat, losing ground with every exchange.
Of course, Lin Jianxing did not rely solely on the Sword Qi Thunderclap. From time to time, he also deployed the Sword Qi Metamorphosis technique.
Sword Qi Metamorphosis was exquisite and wondrous, while Sword Qi Thunderclap was fast — impossibly fast!
So fast that the Five Immortals could barely perceive it, leaving them no choice but to rely on defensive techniques to hold their ground.
"Lin Jianxing actually has such techniques! Cover me." Zhou Xiongxin secretly transmitted.
Red Heart Walker immediately flew to his position and unleashed a torrential surge of crimson light.
The blood light formed a sphere, enveloping both Red Heart Walker and Zhou Xiongxin within it.
Zhou Xiongxin had only been channeling for a few breaths when Lin Jianxing detected it.
Lin Jianxing pointed repeatedly at the blood sphere. In an instant, at least three Sword Qi Thunderclap strikes hammered down, shattering the sphere almost immediately.
But Zhou Xiongxin burst into hearty laughter. "You've fallen for my trap."
He had actually completed his preparation long ago. He had merely been deliberately stalling to create the illusion that he needed extensive time to channel a powerful killing move.
After all, the longer a killing move took to prepare, the more powerful it generally was.
Zhou Xiongxin specialized in the Information Path. This particular technique possessed no offensive capability on its own. However, once an enemy launched a killing move and this technique intercepted it, the move's information would be captured, providing Zhou Xiongxin with an early warning.
With the early warning secured, Zhou Xiongxin quickly deployed another Information Path technique to share the intelligence with the other four Heaven Court immortals.