"You have all been informed of the plan. Now go!"

"Yes!"

The sword cultivator jumped in the air and swung his sword towards the ceiling of the castle. A crescent wave of energy came out of the blade and caused a significant portion of the roof to collapse. The bright light of the sun shined down from above, creating a divide between Yin Hui and the three cultivators.

"This isn't good big brother Yin Hui. I can't travel through the shadows to get to their side anymore because of that split." Yu Zhuwa said.

Rumble~

A portion of the ceiling on Yin Hui and Yu Zhuwa's side of the castle began to fall apart. The cultivator wielding the fan was launching orbs of fire at the roofing above them, causing more light to shine down.

Yin Hui cursed under his breath. He understood what the enemies strategy was. By creating a divide between them and the rest of the castle, they effectively blocked their advance. Now they were destroying the roof in order to lure Yu Zhuwa out of hiding.

"I could just let out the seven leopards and end this right now. However, the entire fortress is on high alert so anything I do will be noticed."

"Our job doesn't necessarily require us to take these three out. In that case..."

Reaching into his bag of holding, Yin Hui took out the talismans Su Jia gave him. He had already used one on the main gate which left him with five more.

The bow cultivator's eyes widened when he saw the talismans in Yin Hui's hands.

"Explosive talismans! So that's how they caused so much damage to the main gate so quickly. If they manage to get deeper into the castle and ignite them, Lord Overseer will be furious!"

Reacting quickly, the bow cultivator shot out a swarm of arrows aimed at the talismans. However, none of them got through as Yin Hui formed a shield of rubble using Living Earth. Afterwards, in conjunction with the Wind Bullet, Yin Hui propelled a single talisman past the arrows and into the three cultivators.

The talisman detonated and a massive explosion blew up the hallway the three cultivators were in. The confusion didn't last long as the fan cultivator produced a large gust of wind that blew away the smoke and debris. Unfortunately for them, by the time the dust cleared, Yin Hui and Yu Zhuwa were already gone.

"Damn it!" The cultivator holding the fan gritted his teeth as he snapped the fan shut.

--------------------------------------

After escaping the three peak Spirit Waking cultivators, Yin Hui and Yu Zhuwa sped through the castle. Once they felt like they had entered a new section of the fortress, they would release an explosive talisman and cause severe damage to the infrastructure.

Over the span of two hours, three more explosions, each in different parts of the castle could be heard by every single cultivator stationed at the border.

Along the way, Yin Hui and Yu Zhuwa encountered another early Spirit Manifestation cultivator without an ethereal spirit. Believing he had generated enough chaos, Yin Hui released the seven leopards out of his bag of holding. The leopards quickly tore the Spirit Manifestation cultivator apart and began to rampage throughout the fortress.

Screams from hundreds of Spirit Waking and Impurity Cleansing cultivators could be heard as Yin Hui and the seven leopards painted the halls with blood. The leopards benefited greatly from the slaughter and each of them now had true Spirit Manifestation power. While they may not necessarily win against a mid-stage Spirit Manifestation cultivator, they would still be able to put up a decent fight.

Yin Hui himself also received great benefits from the massacre. Even after distributing the souls among the seven leopards, he had enough to boost his qi reserves from that of a first aspect Spirit Waking cultivator to what it should have been for his current level. Now he was a third aspect Spirit Waking cultivator in every respect, from qi control to actual qi reserves.

Back on the top floor of the castle, Tao Mu was fuming with rage. He walked over to a wooden table nearby and smashed his fist against it, splitting it in half.

"What is going on out there! Even without my spiritual sense, I can hear the sound of my castle being blown apart! Furthermore, I sense that these explosions aren't even being caused by the Virtue Seeking girl you spoke of!"

"The other two that came with her are unique as well father. Despite being in the Spirit Waking realm, they managed to take out three early Spirit Manifestation cultivators who had yet to form their ethereal spirits." Tao Kai remained in a kneeling position facing his father.

"Why is it that I sense the auras of seven beings with early Spirit Manifestation cultivation accompanying these two brats?! Not just that, but they are also growing stronger as our men are being slaughtered!"

"Seven beings with early Spirit Manifestation cultivation? This I was not aware of." Because Tao Kai was so focused in his battle with Su Jia, he did not pay attention to what happened to the patrols he came out with. He was suspicious to how Yin Hui managed to defeat three early Spirit Manifestation cultivators himself, but he never would've expected it to be due to having seven companions of the same level.

"Tao Kai. There is a high possibility that this Spirit Waking cultivator is a demonic cultivator. The way these seven mysterious beings are getting stronger through the slaughter of our troops concerns me. I want you to go down there and kill them. Even though your cultivation has declined, it should still be enough." Tao Mu reached into the folds of his robes and pulled out a small green pill. He threw it to Tao Kai who swallowed it immediately. As the pill's contents dissolved within his body, all traces of his battle with Su Jia faded away. His exterior wounds were healed, but the damage to his cultivation and soul was still present.

Tao Kai stood up and clasped his hands.

"As you wish father. Once I finish dealing with them, I will return and aid you against that girl."

A few moments after his son left, Tao Mu let out a sigh. He straightened his robes and walked out of the room, taking with him a qiang with a jaded blade-head off the wall on the way out. Entering an empty foyer, Tao Mu stood at the center with the spear by his side.

"You've been watching me for quite a while now. Is this an optimal location for our battle? Show yourself!"

Tao Mu tapped his spear firmly on the ground and golden ripples began to appear. The ripples spread and Su Jia, who was hiding within a shadow cast by one of the support pillars was revealed.

"Your instincts are sharp old man. Can't say the same about the rest of your people here though." Su Jia said smugly.

"While we are enemies, I am grateful that you did not kill my son on his way out. I cannot say I would do the same."

"I don't need to deal with that weakling. I've given him a beating already. The one I'm here for is you old man."

Tao Mu chuckled.

"What about your friends? Do you not care about them? Those two Spirit Waking cultivators may be able to take out an early Spirit Manifestation cultivator, but they are still no match for my son even in his weakened state."

"Heh. Li Feng has always found ways to surprise me. No matter what I throw at him, he never fails to rise above it. I believe he will find some way to deal with your son. After all, I've already softened him up for him."

"What a treacherous friend. I wonder how you manage to even have friends judging by the way you act."

"Enough talk! It's time to fight!" Pulling out her short sword, Su Jia leapt towards Tao Mu, aiming for his head.

Grasping his qiang with both hands, Tao Mu clashed with Su Jia's sword using the tip of his spear. Sparks flared as transparent ripples formed on the ground at the point of contact between the two weapons.

Su Jia grunted as she tried to overpower Tao Mu. However, Tao Mu simply laughed as if he were having the time of his life.

"Aren't you a Virtue Seeking cultivator girl? Or have you just broken through and have yet to form one yet?"

Tao Mu disconnected from the clash and delivered a swift kick into Su Jia's abdomen. Su Jia was sent flying into a pillar nearby and crashed right through it.

"My dao is not like most others. Instead of cultivating a specific principle, I focus my efforts entirely on my skill with the spear. This is my dao! The Dao of the Spear!"

Twirling his spear at extreme speed, Tao Mu created a cyclone that swept Su Jia out of the castle and into the sky. Reorienting herself and just barely recovering from the earlier kick, Su Jia lifted her sword up just in time to block a devastating stab from Tao Mu.

Despite blocking the attack, the internal force of the stab pierced through Su Jia's defense and hit her hard in the chest.

"Agh!"

Below, the guards frantically moving about outside the castle suddenly stopped as they saw Tao Mu and Su Jia fight above them.

"It's Lord Overseer!"

"Lord Tao Mu is actually fighting?"

"Who is that girl! A girl as young as that is actually fighting with Lord Tao Mu?!"

Borrowing the force of the stab, Su Jia backed several meters away from Tao Mu. She wiped the blood dripping from the corner of her mouth and assumed an aggressive stance. Tao Mu smiled and adopted a neutral stance, as if he was giving Su Jia a break.

"It's been a while since I enjoyed myself like this. A decent opponent is hard to come by in the outskirts such as these."

"Isn't this the time of the battle where you ask me to surrender and join your side?"

"Hahaha! You are funny, girl. Unfortunately, I am not like my son. Even though you are a genius, you are simply too talented. Your talent rivals that of many of the Tang Clan's younger generation. From what I know of the Tang, they would most certainly not accept a talent greater than their own. Therefore, regrettably, you must die."

Tao Mu switched to a fighting stance and held his qiang in a stabbing position.

"While my dao is more physical then ethereal, it still follows the same path. As a show of respect, I will utilize the power of my virtues to send you off."

A slight pressure began to fill the area as Tao Mu's body began to glow a faint cyan. The glow spread to his spear and his movements became blurred. He paced around Su Jia as if he were walking on solid ground. With each step he took, a clone of himself was left behind until a ring of clones surrounded Su Jia.

"Behold, my first virtue. Speed!"