Just as the three of them rushed into the black fog, three more Sword Qi whizzed over from different directions. However, Phoenix Dawn's reaction was fast enough, and the three Sword Qi missed.
It was pitch black in front of them. Phoenix Dawn grabbed Su Chen's arm tightly and pulled him into the depths of the black fog. After a series of twists and turns, even Su Chen was disoriented. He had no idea where he was.
"Is it someone from Spirit Sword Peak?" Xue Honglian's voice sounded very serious.
Phoenix Dawn said, "I'm not sure, but it's possible. In fact, at first, I thought it would be you."
Su Chen frowned slightly. "What's going on?"
Only now did he realize that Phoenix Dawn had been protecting his safety. She'd long known that someone would come to assassinate Su Chen, so she'd maintained the highest vigilance along the way. That was why she'd been able to react as quickly as possible the moment they were attacked.
"Let's find a safe place first."
Phoenix Dawn walked through the black fog with ease and quickly led the two of them to a low-lying cave. She blocked the only entrance and exit of the cave, then dispelled the black fog and ignited a flame to restore visibility.
In the narrow cave, the three of them sat on the ground. Su Chen and Xue Honglian both looked at Phoenix Dawn, waiting for her explanation.
Phoenix Dawn knew she couldn't hide it anymore, so she sighed helplessly. She looked at Su Chen and said, "From the day you became a guest elder, I knew there would be people in the Soul Mountain Sect who wouldn't tolerate you. An assassination was a matter of time. The seven elders are all suspects. Those assassins just now seemed to be Spirit Sword Peak disciples, but you can't be deceived by appearances. Your hidden enemy now is not just Spirit Sword Peak, but the entire Soul Mountain Sect except for me and the Empress."
"What benefits can they get by killing me?"
"On the surface, killing you will free up the guest elder position, which will definitely bring them great benefits. However, this is just the surface. The actual core of the problem … Forget it, it's already like this, so there's nothing I can't say. In fact, assassinating you is only a secondary goal. The real goal is to test the Empress."
Hearing this, Su Chen and Xue Honglian's eyes widened.
"Who has the guts to test Lady Providence?"
"It's very complicated. This has a lot to do with the current structure of the Spiritual Mountain Sect. The seven elders have secretly formed an alliance, forming a check and balance against Lady Providence. To outsiders, Lady Providence is the sole leader of the Spiritual Mountain Sect, and her authority cannot be challenged. But in reality, the Spiritual Mountain Sect is under the control of the seven elders, and all the disciples belong to the seven elders' factions. Lady Providence didn't like to manage the affairs of the sect in her early years, leaving behind a seed of disaster.
Su Chen still didn't quite understand, but Xue Honglian seemed to have noticed something.
"So it was the Empress who sent you to protect Elder Su?
Does Your Highness already know that someone wants to harm Elder Su? "
Phoenix Dawn nodded in agreement.
"No wonder every time I call for you, you rush over eagerly. I thought you were infatuated with me. So it turns out you were under the orders of the Empress and didn't dare to disobey." Su Chen said with a wry smile.
Phoenix Dawn rolled her eyes at Su Chen. "You're still in the mood to joke at a time like this?"
Su Chen shrugged. "I'm just trying to liven up the atmosphere. Seeing that you're all more nervous than I am, I'm a little embarrassed."
As he spoke, Su Chen turned to Xue Honglian. "Since they're coming for me, Little Honglian, you should leave first. If you leave alone, they won't make things difficult for you. But it's too dangerous to stay by my side."
Xue Honglian immediately refused. "No, I won't leave. Since I've encountered this, I definitely can't sit idly by. No matter who wants to kill you, I'll stay behind to protect you. This is Xue Honglian's principle. I'll fight for justice, punish evil, and eliminate evil. I won't hesitate!"
What a chivalrous woman.
Phoenix Dawn said, "You can't leave even if you want to now. If they see you, they'll definitely kill you to silence you."
"That's even better. Now we're in the same boat. There's even less reason for me to leave alone." Xue Honglian was completely fearless.
As the youngest Heaven's Equal Realm cultivator in the Spiritual Mountain Sect, it was normal for her to have such courage.
Swoosh!
Just then, the sound of a sword whistled through the air.
Without another word, Phoenix Dawn pushed Su Chen away. At the same time, the Sword Qi that contained the intent to kill slashed through, leaving a deep cut on Phoenix Dawn's body. Immediately, blood splattered everywhere.
"There's poison!"
Xue Honglian was shocked. Phoenix Dawn's wound began to fester at a speed visible to the naked eye. In an instant, the poison attacked Phoenix Dawn's forehead. Once the poison entered her consciousness, she would definitely die.
Su Chen was quick to react. He immediately used a resurrection card and instantly restored Phoenix Dawn to her original state.
After returning from the gates of hell, Phoenix Dawn's face was pale. But before she could speak, the second Sword Qi whistled through the air.
"Thousand Revolution Shield!"
Xue Honglian decisively took action. She took out a strange-looking shield and blocked in front of Su Chen.
Boom!
The shield was directly hit by the Sword Qi. It let out a muffled sound and shattered on the spot. But it barely blocked the attack.
"What a strong Sword Qi. The opponent's cultivation is not inferior to mine. Moreover, there are many of them. We can't continue fighting. Let's quickly retreat to the third level of the Tower of Heaven."
"Okay!"
The opponent could easily find their hiding place in the black fog. It was clear that the concealment effect of the black fog had been broken. This way, the environment of the black fog was disadvantageous to them. They were in a state where the enemy was in the dark and they were exposed. If this continued, they would only be passively attacked.
Most importantly, it was disadvantageous for Su Chen to use Time Stop.
If he could not grasp the opponent's numbers and whereabouts, even if Su Chen used Time Stop, he would not be able to find the opponent and counterattack.
Carrying the frightened Phoenix Dawn, Su Chen and Xue Honglian quickly broke through the black fog. They ignored the attacks of the surrounding ferocious beasts and rushed up the mountain.
However, at this moment, a swordsman wearing a silver mask blocked their way. He was alone with his sword. He was like an army of thousands of men and horses. His Sword Qi was so strong that it even surpassed Ye Changshu's.
Once he attacked, Xue Honglian would not be able to block it.
Su Chen made a prompt decision and used Time Stop.
Under the rules of time, all living things were equal. That swordsman was instantly frozen.
Of course, Xue Honglian, who was beside Su Chen, could not move either.
Su Chen carried Xue Honglian and went straight to the swordsman. He wanted to lift the silver mask on his face to see his true face. However, his protective spiritual energy was too strong. It even contained Sword Qi. Su Chen was attacked by the Sword Qi when he got close. He could only give up.
Su Chen stomped his feet and quickly flew to the top of the mountain. He stepped on the stairs leading to the third level.
Entering the third level, there was a snowy field in front of him. It was white as far as the eye could see, and the cold was blowing in their faces.
Su Chen rushed into the snowstorm and disappeared under the cover of the wind and snow.