Lu Wen didn't waste any time. He used the Emperor's Banner to capture Yu Cang Hai's soul and planned to refine him to obtain the Qingcheng Sect's inner martial arts manual.
Although the Qingcheng Sect's inner martial arts manual was only of first-rate quality, Lu Wen didn't disdain it as a material for synthesis.
The Qingcheng Sect disciples leaped onto the high ground, observing from the walls and rooftops, and discovered the presence of Lu Wen and his companions.
The Qingcheng Sect leader mustered his courage and questioned, "Young Master Lu, why did you attack our Qingcheng Sect leader?"
Lu Wen also heard Yu Cang Hai and the others loudly plotting about the Lin family's Píxié Sword Manual.
He replied, "I was entrusted by Chief Lin Zhen Nan to resolve the issue of Yu Cang Hai. The main culprit has been eliminated, you all should behave yourselves."
The Qingcheng Sect disciples, having witnessed the battle between Lu Wen and Yu Cang Hai shortly before, knew Lu Wen's strength and had no courage to speak loudly in front of him.
Moreover, they had coveted the Píxié Sword Manual first, and they had been discovered plotting. Most of the Qingcheng Sect disciples had no face to refute him.
But there were some exceptions.
"Father!" A mournful cry rang out.
Yu Ren Yan watched as Yu Cang Hai's head exploded, his mind overwhelmed with shock. It took him a while to regain his senses.
After his cry of grief, Yu Ren Yan finally realized what had happened.
He had exposed his relationship with Yu Cang Hai, and his face turned pale.
"Oh? There's still a fish that slipped through the net." Lu Wen heard Yu Ren Yan's lament.
A Qingcheng Sect elder felt ashamed, but still forced himself to speak with a submissive tone, "Lu Jian Xian, mercy should be shown where it is due. Do you intend to kill everyone?"
Upon hearing this, Lu Wen recalled a meme from the internet and observed Yu Ren Yan's expression.
He suddenly smiled and said, "Look at the hatred on Yu Ren Yan's face, he can't hide it, but he grits his teeth and remains silent. This kind of forbearance must be planning to seek revenge later. It's said that revenge begets revenge, when will it ever end? Since that's the case, it's better to nip it in the bud."
The Qingcheng Sect disciples were all dumbfounded.
Lu Wen's words sounded righteous and upright, but his actions were full of the ruthlessness of a demon path cultivator. It didn't feel right to call him either "righteous" or "demon."
Yu Ren Yan, after hearing this, looked at Lu Wen, who was smiling, with fear. His emotions were on the verge of breaking down, and he muttered, "You're not human, you're... a demon!"
Neither black nor white, neither righteous nor demon, but a deviant path, hunted by both the righteous and the demon paths.
Ancient people were relatively simple. With the mental state of many of today's internet trolls, in ancient times they would truly be considered deviant path mental patients.
Seeing Yu Ren Yan's terrified expression, Lu Wen reacted and sighed with a helpless smile. "Sigh... I was just messing around for fun, but I've been labeled as a deviant path figure. If this gets out, won't I be hunted by everyone in the martial arts world?"
Hearing Lu Wen's words, most of the Qingcheng Sect disciples didn't understand, but some of them were quick-witted and grasped the meaning of Lu Wen's words. They immediately felt a cold sweat drench their clothes.
How could they cover up what just happened?
Of course, they had to kill all the witnesses, only the dead could keep secrets.
In the blink of an eye, Lu Wen had already accumulated some energy.
With a thought, his long sword floated and unsheathed itself. Energy surged and shot out, instantly spanning tens of meters, accurately striking the already dazed Yu Ren Yan.
The flying sword pierced through Yu Ren Yan's brow at high speed, leaving no visible wounds as it exited through the back of his head.
With a deft turn, the sword returned to its sheath. Lu Wen turned and left with the women, leaving behind the pale-faced Qingcheng Sect members.
As the sword returned to its sheath, the Qingcheng Sect members finally realized what had happened and saw Yu Ren Yan standing there, frozen in shock.
Seeing Lu Wen and his companions leave, someone cautiously approached and tested, "Brother... he's dead."
The Qingcheng Sect disciples remained silent. No one dared to jump out and cry for revenge. They had just faced the threat of death from Lu Wen. Now, having barely escaped, the surviving disciples had no courage to confront Lu Wen again.
An elder sighed inwardly, thinking, "Sect Leader Yu Cang Hai is dead. We've lost a first-rate expert, which weakens the sect's strength considerably. This is a major blow to the Qingcheng Sect. Furthermore, the disciples have been demoralized by that Lu Jian Xian. It seems like we will have to recruit new disciples when we return to the sect."
If these Qingcheng Sect disciples couldn't recover from Lu Wen's blow, their spirits would be exhausted, their wills would weaken, and they would be useless.
Without daring to dwell on the matter further, the Qingcheng Sect elder quickly organized everyone to return to their sect's headquarters. For a period of time, they would have to shrink their activities and prepare to weather a difficult time.
Lu Wen didn't pay attention to the other Qingcheng Sect members, nor did he return to the Fuwei Escort Agency. He directly summoned the Flying Centipede and flew towards the direction of the Huashan Sect.
Along the way, he refined Yu Cang Hai and turned him into an Yinling agent to guide him in this ancient world.
He also inquired about the various martial arts manuals of the Qingcheng Sect and synthesized them all into his own knowledge.
While Lu Wen was traveling, news of what happened in Fuzhou City began to spread throughout the martial arts world.
But the speed of its spread was not as fast as Lu Wen's travel speed.
Guided by Yu Cang Hai, Lu Wen rode the Flying Centipede and descended onto the Huashan Sect's headquarters on Mount Huashan.
From the sky, the Huashan Sect headquarters looked vast and sprawling, with countless buildings. But as he descended, he could see that many of these buildings were in a dilapidated state, the courtyards overgrown with weeds, with no sign of human life.
Only a few dozen buildings in the center had people living in them.
In this era, the Huashan Sect had only a handful of members, in a state of decline, on the verge of extinction.
The Huashan Sect was facing both internal and external problems, relying entirely on Yue Buqun and his wife.
The eldest disciple, Linghu Chong, was talented but had a wayward personality and couldn't settle down to practice. In the eyes of Yue Buqun, who believed himself to be the head of the Huashan Qi Sect, Linghu Chong preferred to practice swordsmanship and was addicted to alcohol.
If he hadn't been raised by Yue Buqun since childhood, and if the Huashan Sect wasn't already in decline, they would have long ago stripped Linghu Chong of his martial arts and expelled him from the sect.
The eldest disciple was useless, the second disciple was a martial artist who had joined the sect after his master's death. Although he could help Yue Buqun manage the affairs of the Huashan Sect, Yue Buqun knew that Lau De Nuo was a spy from the Songshan Sect.
The other disciples, while not completely incompetent, were just average. They might grow into pillars of the sect in the future, but they lacked the ability to stand on their own.
The heir was useless, there was a spy lurking within, the sect's resources were scarce - these were all internal problems. And there were also plenty of external threats.
The Huashan Sect once had a great reputation in the martial arts world, but after the clash of sword energies, only Yue Buqun and his wife were left to uphold its image.
There were only so many benefits to be gained in the martial arts world. Seeing the weakness of the Huashan Sect, countless powerful figures from surrounding areas wanted to tear off a piece of its flesh.