Chapter 222: Peaches Blossom Along the Way
Amidst the magnificent and grandiose colossal temple, the laughter of the old man resonated with wild abandon.
Such blatant provocation and merciless mockery instantly caused everyone present to change their expression.
The Great Sage of Fu Feng, dressed in scholarly robes, was even more furious and violent, unable to tolerate it any longer, and roared in anger.
"Roaring Goose Sword, annihilate!"
At the moment when the Great Sage of Fu Feng beckoned, a blazing red light shimmered from his hand and transformed into a tremendously fierce divine sword, which he immediately swung at the elderly person ahead of him.
Inside the sacred palace, a wild storm raged.
Above the high heaven, the pernicious qi swirled in reverse.
In an instant, the clear sky over the Extreme Hell Island was replaced with a shroud of dark clouds and a suffocating aura.
Merely the momentum of drawing the sword has altered the weather and influenced the spiritual energy of the land.
The terrifying scene of the Roaring Goose Sword being unsheathed has broadened the horizons of many South Sea cultivators who had only heard of it but never witnessed it with their own eyes.
With such a sword, there are few people present who could easily take it on…
All eyes turned towards the old man with a peach wood staff, curious to see how the rumored invincible hermit would respond.
Then…
Ta!
With a muffled sound, the elderly man lightly tapped his peach wood cane, causing the swirling peach blossom petals in the air to instantly stop and freeze as if completely captured in this moment.
Also frozen in time was the angry Great Sage of Fu Feng, with hair and beard bristling, and the ancient divine sword held in his hand… Both the man and the sword were frozen in the same pose as the moment the sword was drawn, motionless.
Even the split sword light has completely solidified and frozen, hovering in front of the old man.
The eerie scene made Yu Hailing, who was sitting on the throne, abruptly stand up.
"Peach blossoms passed through, yet not a single blade of grass grows? You must be Elder Tao!"
Yu Hailing exclaimed in shock as she uncovered the identity of the old man.
The elderly person chuckled and said, "To actually guess the identity of me…ha…indeed worthy of the ancient heritage, quite insightful."
After speaking, the old man lightly waved his sleeve, and a cold wind blew by, causing the countless peach blossoms which had previously frozen and stopped in mid-air to fall once again.
The Great Sage of Fu Feng, who was wielding the Roaring Goose Sword, let out a miserable cry as he was enveloped by the peach blossoms in the sky. He flew backwards heavily, and broke several pillars of the divine palace upon impact.
And the Roaring Goose Sword flew into the old man's hand.
He held onto this ancient divine sword, which struggled and emitted a fierce and violent aura, and exclaimed.
"Is this the so-called ancient divine sword… it does have a somewhat fierce air. But unfortunately, while the sword is excellent, the owner is not."
With a wave of his hand, the continuously trembling Roaring Goose Sword was thrown aside like a piece of junk. The old man said, "Little tiger demon, if you want to compete with me, go back and cultivate for a few thousand years. With your current level of cultivation… hehe…"
The elderly person didn't say anything further, but his disdainful and contemptuous attitude was evident.
The Great Sage of Fu Feng, with half of his body covered in blood, struggled to climb up. Upon hearing these words, his eyes turned bloodshot and he was about to engage in battle, but was intercepted by the brothers of the Wu family.
The silent Priest Li Po, who had not spoken much, slowly stood up now and faced the old man in the center of the temple, saying:
"Peach blossoms pass by, leaving no inch of grass behind. The wooden staff remains eternal, suppressing for ten thousand years…"
"Elder Tao, it has been almost three thousand years since you last appeared. Everyone thought that your lifespan had come to an end and you had passed away. But today, you suddenly intervene in this South Sea issue… Ah…"
Li Po said, "The result of the vote we cast was the opinion jointly given by the famous figures from all parts of the South Sea. You didn't show up or speak beforehand, but suddenly appeared afterwards and said you want to take Miss Huo Feng away… Even if you are indeed a senior with extraordinary abilities, you shouldn't be so overbearing, right?"
"If you have any objections to the outcome of how we handle things, please speak your mind. Out of respect for your seniority, we can always vote again… What do you think?"
Li Po gave his suggestion, but the old man dismissed it with a sneer and a contemptuous laugh.
"Are you the priest from the Hanhai Department? You come out now and pretend to be innocent? Who on the Extreme Hell Island doesn't know that you and that old wolf are birds of a feather? Now that old wolf is too scared to show his face, he has sent you to fool me, right?"
"My words, as an old demon, will be left here. Today, either hand over this demon woman, Huo Feng, to me for processing, or you shall execute her on the spot as a deterrent to others!"
"As for other proposals, I neither listen nor believe them! If there are objections, they may come and debate with me."
"Although I have been in seclusion for three thousand years, I am not a frail and feeble old creature to be bullied by others. Today, as the master of my disciple, I shall come forth to seek justice for him."
In the palace, as the old man finished his sentence, the atmosphere suddenly became somewhat tense.
Many famous figures in the South Sea looked at each other in confusion, and some even remembered the notorious Elder Tao under the guidance of Li Po and Yu Hailing.
Although he was a cultivator in the human realm, he followed a different path, comprehended profound and mysterious truths, called himself Elder Tao, and acted both positively and negatively.
With a wooden cane and a pair of straw sandals, he has traveled across the four seas and eight wildernesses, defeating numerous powerful cultivators and making a great name for himself.
But little did anyone expect that, at the height of his power, Elder Tao suddenly vanished without a trace, and since then there has been no sight of Elder Tao or his Peach Wood Staff.
People thought that he had exhausted his lifespan and had already died in an unknown corner, but they never imagined that he would reappear in the world again, now descending with the identity of the master of Su Lin of Youxiong Country.
Feeling the pressure, Yu Huaifeng couldn't help but whisper a message.
"My lord, are we not going to intervene? Elder Tao is incredibly powerful, no weaker than the ancient demons… If we don't act, he may defeat everyone and take Miss Huo Feng. The situation could quickly spiral out of control."
With the strength of Elder Tao, he indeed qualifies to disdain all the famous figures present in the South Sea.
If the Mermaid Kingdom doesn't take action, all the people present together cannot stop this old monster. After all, Luo Yujun only brought two Praetorian Guards with him, and Li Po only brought two brothers from the Wu family to accompany him…
Yu Hailing hummed lightly and said, "It's okay, let's watch him perform again. This old monster came to me pretending to be an elder and tried to take advantage of me… Does he really think the Mermaid Kingdom is a pushover? Let him go crazy for a while, and we'll prepare to deal with him slowly."
Yu Hailing's words left Yu Huaifeng speechless.
And within the divine palace, Elder Tao's excessively domineering declaration has already stirred up anger among the crowd.
However, Elder Tao seems to ignore everyone, wielding his peach wood staff to hook the glowing sphere that hangs in mid-air, completely indifferent to the opinions of others and intending to capture it without regard for anyone else.
At that very moment, a hoary voice sounded, interrupting Elder Tao's movement.
"Fellow Daoist, are you truly unwilling to sit down for a serious negotiation? It is not desirable to just forcefully snatch people without proper discussion."
As soon as the hoarse voice sounded, Elder Tao trembled and pointed his peach wood staff directly at the void, snorting coldly.
"What kind of demon are you? Playing tricks and acting like a god. Get out of here, before I cast you away!"
