Shocking the Nine Heavens With My Sword

Qiyun Mountain is very far from Dayuan Academy, so far that it is located at the border governed by Dayuan Academy. This mountain marks the boundary between the territories of Dayuan Academy and Qingyang Academy, belonging to both academies jointly.

The academy is a relatively loose coalition of forces, which can be seen as a ruling layer composed of countless family groups. The difference lies in powerful families occupying positions of dean and vice-dean, while weaker families can only obtain roles like city lord or town head.

The power struggles within the entire academy hierarchy are intense. New rising families, such as the Pang Family where Pang Shaolong belongs, want a piece of the pie, while old aristocrats long to expand their territories and gain greater power.

Because of this, different academies are filled with undercurrents. If not for the strong suppression by the Great River Academy, the academies beneath might have waged war against each other several times already.

Qiyun Mountain is located at the junction of the two major academies, making it an extremely unsafe place due not only to the Demon Beasts inside the mountain but also because it's common to encounter people from the other academy, and a disagreement could lead to a fight.

If you're lucky, you might just get mocked or beaten up; if you're unlucky, you might lose your life!

This is not within the academy, where there are rules against private fights or killing. In the wilderness, it's survival of the fittest; if you don't want to die, you better not come!

Zhou Heng and his group of eight kept using the teleportation portal. Because they have the academy's Identity Token, the teleportation cost is greatly reduced, requiring only a nominal fee of a mere hundred Great River Coins.

This made Zhou Heng sigh at the academy's greed, knowing that he previously had to pay a thousand Great River Coins!

After experiencing a total of thirteen teleportations, they finally arrived at the most remote small town in the western region under the governance of Dayuan Academy — Freshwater Town.

This is indeed a small town, but because Qiyun Mountain is rich in resources, Martial Artists frequently enter the mountain for hunting and herb gathering, making this a bustling spot. Martial Artists can be seen everywhere on the streets.

Those with strong abilities have certainly entered the Stellar Realm, while weaker ones might only be at the Moonlight Realm or Sunshine Realm. These can only be considered beginner Martial Artists. They come here hoping to try their luck; as long as they pick a high-grade herb, they can transform and enter a higher level.

Even if they are not aggressive, improving their Realm can increase their lifespan. Who doesn't want to live longer?

Zhou Heng and his group of eight did not rush into the mountain but instead stayed at an inn in the small town for the night.

Qiyun Mountain is undoubtedly more dangerous at night, and some risks are not worth taking.

The night passed without incident, and the next morning they set off. However, Zhou Heng felt extremely uncomfortable, as if someone was watching him. But when he looked around, he found nothing.

A psychological effect?

No! Zhou Heng thought resolutely. How could his strong mind experience such a situation without reason!

It seems that his journey out this time has attracted some sinister figures!

Should he continue?

If someone was following him, the reason they hadn't acted was likely due to there being too many people, making it inconvenient. But after entering Qiyun Mountain, it would be much easier to kill and silence him!

Continuing meant facing danger! But as they were already here, by collecting Winter Star Grass, he could immediately refine the Bright King Pill and break through to the Stellar Realm in one fell swoop, perhaps even becoming a Star Sovereign directly!

——One thing he could be certain of was that even if Pang Shaolong, Jin Huancheng, or Niu Gang wanted revenge, they would only enlist a Star King!

Suppressing a Bright Immortal or Star King was insufficient?

Besides, could they even afford a Star Sovereign? Jin Huancheng's father is only a Star King, that's a given. The Pang Family has only risen for a few decades, and the chances of having a Star Sovereign are pathetically small, yet he had the audacity to challenge Qi Yuan!

The only one likely to summon a Star Sovereign might be Niu Gang; the Tauren is a big clan, and it's not surprising if they have a Milky Way King guarding them!

But Zhou Heng had a precise understanding of people. He had seen the greed in Niu Gang's eyes and knew the latter was envious of his mastery of the Cultivation Technique! Therefore, this guy would definitely cause trouble on his own after breaking through to the Star King, without troubling others.

This would ensure he could solely claim the Miraculous Skill!

Although it was just a moment, Zhou Heng had thought it over thoroughly several times, confirming that even being tailed would likely be by a Star King at most. He was determined to continue.

He now possessed eighty-nine Divine Aspects, able to repeatedly activate the Five Elements Rune thousands of times, and its power had improved to some degree. Although still not enough to counter a Star King, he was confident in barely protecting himself.

Moreover, he had a few trump cards!

As for Liu Hu and the others, they were relatively innocent and should be distanced from his matters to avoid implicating them.

This will be addressed after entering the deep mountains. Now, this area frequently has people coming in and out, making it unsuitable for killing.

With matters weighing on his mind, Zhou Heng was rather silent along the way. Liu Hu and the seven others were considerate, not speaking to him, and even reduced their conversations with each other, making the atmosphere quite chilly and even a bit tense.

Eight people traveled swiftly, their toes lightly touching the treetops, moving quickly.

Swish, swish, swish, suddenly there was the sound of clothes fluttering behind them!

Suspicious of being followed, Zhou Heng immediately halted and turned around. He saw that a group of five people, four men, and one woman were also heading into the mountains a few hundred meters away.

One of the men looked to be in his forties. He appeared to be stepping on the treetops like the others, but Zhou Heng could clearly see he wasn't fully grounded!

In other words, he has actually been walking on air the whole time!

He's flying!

Having the ability to fly only indicates one thing: he is at least a Star King!

Besides him, the other four must be Bright Immortals. Their strength can't be considered weak; at least two of them have over fifty Divine Aspects. But no matter how powerful a Bright Immortal is, in Zhou Heng's eyes they are just trash.

Seeing Zhou Heng stop, Liu Hu and the others naturally stopped too. Swish, the group of five ahead of them quickly overtook them.

When Zhou Heng saw one leading four, he knew they couldn't possibly be here to deal with him; otherwise, the formation would be too strange.

"Senior Brother Zhou, what's wrong?" Liu Hu asked.

"It's nothing—" Zhou Heng had just said three words when his expression tightened, because the five people ahead had actually turned around.

What does this mean?

"Are you people from Dayuan Academy?" A young man said to Zhou Heng and the others, wearing a light green outfit with a long sword arrogantly slung across his back instead of stashed in a space artifact.

"Yes, we are disciples of Dayuan Academy. Who are you?" Liu Hu, as the team leader, naturally spoke up in this situation.

"Hahaha, we are from Qingyang Academy!" The young man in green laughed loudly, though it was unclear why he found it so funny. If the Black Donkey were here, it would surely call him a lunatic.

Qingyang Academy!

All seven of Liu Hu's group turned pale. They weren't like Zhou Heng, who had only just entered the Academy and was still a rookie in the Bright Realm; they knew much more.

Qingyang Academy and Dayuan Academy have always been at odds!

This kind of conflict is actually encouraged by the Great River Academy. They permit their subordinates to clash constantly, while the higher-ups mediate from the center, controlling the conflict within certain limits—a tactic of the rulers!

The Great River Academy isn't a dynasty, but essentially there isn't much difference, except the power is relatively more distributed.

Anyhow, under the intentional or unintentional encouragement of the Great River Academy, the conflicts between secondary Academies with adjoining territories are fierce, fierce enough that clashes occur when students from both sides encounter each other.

It seems it's going to be the same this time.

"What, you want to fight?" Liu Hu's group immediately stepped forward and shouted.

Under the Academy's indoctrination, everyone had a strong sense of Academy honor, and was easily provoked.

"Tch, don't say it so rudely. How could it be a fight? It's a duel!"

"Hahaha, it's basically asking for a beating!"

"Dayuan Academy produces nothing but trash; I can suppress them with one hand!"

The four young men in green laughed heartily, while the Stellar Realm middle-aged man remained expressionless at the back, feeling this level of conflict was just child's play, totally uninteresting.

"Beat your father!" Among Liu Hu's seven, a young man couldn't hold back and immediately wanted to rush forward and make a move. But just as his body stepped forward, Zhou Heng forcefully pulled him back, immobilizing him.

"Don't act rashly!" Zhou Heng said calmly.

"Let me go! Let me go!" The young man struggled repeatedly but failed to break free. He glared angrily at Zhou Heng, as if he hated him too now. "I can't believe you're such a coward!"

"I didn't expect someone to be sensible!" The young man in green feigned surprise and clapped his hands before saying, "Not fighting is fine, just kneel down, lick our shoes clean, and you can go!"

Such complete humiliation!

"Senior Brother Zhang is so clever, he even thought of such an idea!" The green-clad youth seemed to have quite the status. As soon as he finished speaking, the only woman there praised him and blew a couple of flirtatious glances his way.

"You've heard Senior Brother Zhang's words, hurry up and kneel down!" Another young person said, strutting like a bully under a false impression of power.

"Zhou Heng, are you really going to stop us?" Liu Hu no longer referred to Zhou Heng as Senior Brother, his face full of anger. Hot-blooded youths despise cowards.

"We cut ties with you now; from here on out, you're no longer part of our team!"

"Coward, no matter how strong you are, you're still a coward!"

Zhou Heng shook his head, smiled, and said, "Don't be so impulsive!" He looked at the young man in green and pointed a finger, saying, "A sparring match isn't impossible, but... does he have to participate?"

Seeing Zhou Heng point at him, the Stellar Realm middle-aged man was slightly stunned, but his eyes immediately flashed with brilliance, and his whole aura was no longer concealed, the Star King's presence roared forth.

All seven of Liu Hu's group were shocked; they finally understood why Zhou Heng had stopped them. Damn, how can Bright Immortals fight a Star King? (To be continued. If you like this work, please visit Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendation tickets and monthly tickets. Your support is my biggest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)