Perhaps that group had already taken advantage of the chaos to rush into Flying Snow City.

Grand Commander Liang was taken aback and shook his head:

"I haven’t seen them..."

"Then forget it."

Unconcerned, Fang Shuwen was about to continue on his way when something else occurred to him. He asked:

"Where is City Lord Wu?"

A look of grief immediately washed over Grand Commander Liang’s face:

"The City Lord... he... he..."

The woman in the group gritted her teeth and said:

"You have the nerve to ask? If it weren’t for that doctor you brought who assassinated the City Lord, how could he possibly have died?"

"Fei Yan, shut up!!"

Grand Commander Liang barked sharply.

Fang Shuwen raised an eyebrow, the corners of his mouth curling into a slight smirk:

"I see."

Lifting his gaze back to the swordsman, he said softly:

"Step aside."

The swordsman stood with his sword, his gaze chillingly cold:

"I have been entrusted by another. This gate will not open tonight.

"Those who try to leave without permission will be killed!

"Those who try to force their way in will die..."

The echo of his last word, "die," had yet to fade when Fang Shuwen had already taken a step forward. His right hand formed a seal, and he unleashed a thunderous Demon-Suppressing Seal.

’I already held a grudge from his earlier sword strike. Now he won’t even let me in? I’ll just kill him and be done with it.’ 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

Tonight, he had to get inside. No one was going to stop him.

The swordsman hadn’t expected that Fang Shuwen would dare to strike first.

While wary, his fury was even greater. But Fang Shuwen’s attack was too fast, too flagrant in its disregard for decorum.

More importantly, this palm strike was terrifying. Immensely powerful and heavy, it stirred the very wind and rain, gathering the qi from all directions. For an instant, the swordsman felt like a willow catkin caught in a gale, completely unable to control his own body.

He immediately circulated his Inner Breath, only then managing to stabilize his center of gravity.

But having lost the initiative, it would be difficult to counter with his sword. He opted to bring his sword horizontally across his chest, deciding to first block Fang Shuwen’s palm strike.

It all happened in a flash. The Demon-Suppressing Seal was already upon him.

There was a loud BANG!!

The divine weapon trembled. The swordsman’s calm expression changed in an instant. The force of this palm was far beyond his expectations.

His stance didn’t break, yet his body slid backward more than three feet.

"Hm?"

A soft sound of surprise escaped Fang Shuwen’s lips. He clearly hadn’t expected the swordsman to be able to withstand that palm strike.

This man was far more skilled than the likes of the Black Death Sect Leader.

Although the force of his palm hadn’t even been that strong, the number of people who could withstand a single blow from him since he first entered the Jianghu could be counted on one hand.

He didn’t want to leave a trail of severed limbs and splattered blood every time he attacked.

Therefore, he usually paid attention to the force he used, so as not to make the scene too gruesome.

The force of that last palm strike was enough to kill Feng Mantian, the Black Death Sect Leader.

And yet, it only managed to push this man back three feet?

"A true master!!"

Fang Shuwen nodded, his assessment complete.

The swordsman’s face, however, was ashen!

’What does he mean, "a true master"?’

He had always been proud and had a high opinion of himself. Apart from the Seven Sect Leaders of the Eastern Domain, only figures on the level of the "Three Immortals, Two Kings, and One City Madman" were worthy of his notice.

’Who did this upstart brat who crawled out of nowhere think he was, critiquing me like that after landing a single palm strike?’

For a moment, his anger was uncontrollable!

He immediately circulated his True Qi, his Sword Qi flaring to life. Just as he was about to unleash his sword, he felt another immense force rushing toward him.

Needless to say, having failed to kill him with the first palm, Fang Shuwen had simply thrown another.

With the Three Great Divine Techniques at his command, all his Inner Strength was now converted by the Muscle Strengthening Scripture. When he used the Great Black Heaven God Palm, it was a pure case of overwhelming power triumphing over all technique.

’No matter what fancy moves you have, I’ll just smash them with a single palm!’

An ordinary person unleashing such power couldn’t sustain it. But for Fang Shuwen, it was an endless supply; he had as much as he wanted.

The swordsman was helpless. His next sword strike could certainly injure Fang Shuwen, but Fang Shuwen’s palm would inevitably hit him as well. This kid’s Palm Power was immense. If he took a direct hit, he would be severely injured, if not dead.

He could only raise his sword horizontally again...

BOOM!!

As this palm landed, the swordsman’s eyes went wide. This time, he was pushed back a full six feet.

He opened his mouth to say something but felt a sweet taste in his throat as blood trickled from the corner of his lips.

His internal organs had all suffered varying degrees of damage.

"How is this possible!?"

The cry of disbelief, however, came from Fang Shuwen’s own mouth.

’Shouldn’t I be the one shouting that?’ The swordsman had half a mind to start cursing.

He looked up again, only to see Fang Shuwen bearing down on him once more...

Having grown up fighting on the streets, Fang Shuwen knew very well that seizing the initiative was the first step.

Once an opponent was on the defensive, you had to press the advantage relentlessly.

He would never give this swordsman a chance to regroup.

In reality, this had already far exceeded Fang Shuwen’s expectations.

The force of his second palm was much greater than the first, yet it had only made the man bleed from the corner of his mouth.

It had to be said, this was one of the two most skilled martial artists he had ever fought since entering the Jianghu.

The other was Cao Jiuyin.

So, he gathered his power for a third palm, once again a Demon-Suppressing Seal.

But as this palm strike came forward, the swordsman felt it was no longer just a raging gale before him. Behind Fang Shuwen, a ferocious Dharma Aspect was faintly materializing.

The Palm Power condensed into a single point. This time, the swordsman found it excruciatingly difficult even to perform the action of raising his sword to his chest.

In that moment, he was utterly terrified, his heart pounding in his chest. Gone was the confident and commanding air he had possessed just moments before.

He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but under the force of the rushing wind, he couldn’t utter a single word.

He could only use all his remaining strength to grip the hilt of his sword with both hands and hold it in front of his chest.