A sudden silence fell upon the dilapidated garden.
As Yu Ci and his companions first set foot in the garden, their gazes met with another. Both parties were taken aback, the audacious voice of the stranger abruptly cut short.
On Yu Ci's side, excluding the perpetually concealed Master of the Sunken Sword Cave, seven pairs of eyes, belonging to six humans and a ghost, beheld the radiant reflection of sunlight from a set of sky-blue metallic armor. It was both splendid and ferocious, its visual impact unparalleled.
The figure opposite them, his pupils hidden behind an Ancient Bronze Face Armor, merely blinked twice before retreating wordlessly, stumbling back into the newly opened tower door, his presence quickly concealed.
Retreat was a sign of guilt, but who could be fooled by the change in aura?
"Heavy Weapon Sect!" Di She identified the stranger's affiliation without hesitation.
Yu Ci glanced over, listening to his words. It seemed he was familiar with the details of the sect, likely informed by Xiao Fuyun.
He vaguely remembered the style of the fleeing man's armor, especially the three blade-like decorations on his helmet. Based on his estimation, among the members of the Heavy Weapon Sect, this man held a mid-level position.
That was his assumption, but the others were focused on a different issue: "Why are there people here?"
Master of the Sunken Sword Cave remained silent since their entrance. Wen Shifei asked Tie Lan, but Tie Lan, surprisingly, also kept his lips sealed, perhaps rendered speechless by the unexpected turn of events. Wen Shifei snorted and turned to Di Tianluo, pointing towards the wooden tower:
"Shall we attack?"
Before Di Tianluo could respond, Tie Lan finally spoke: "Those who can enter this place must be proficient in the understanding of Talisman Technique, and possess profound swordsmanship..."
At this moment, Di Tianluo shook his head: "There are ten members of the Heavy Weapon Sect who have entered the garden, and the leading one is unfathomable..."
Even if Tie Lan stopped speaking, Di Tianluo had definitely received information from Xiao Fuyun. Wen Shifei uttered a surprised "Unfathomable?"
The two began to exchange information in hushed tones, but Yu Ci was not as leisurely. If his memory served him right, the Heavy Weapon Sect had at least nine Golden Elixir experts, and one whose capabilities were impossible to estimate. Even if they counted the Master of the Sunken Sword Cave, they might not necessarily have the upper hand...
As his gaze unconsciously swept over his surroundings, he noticed the Incense Slave on one side. Yu Ci suddenly realized that she had been tracking the Heavy Weapon Sect along with the three ill-fated disciples of the Pan Emperor Sect, and had managed to escape before danger struck. Did she know something?
Before he could figure it out, Tie Lan suddenly sounded an alarm. Everyone present was quick to react, looking up to see three thrown spears, each tracing a different arc, descending diagonally from above.
The Thrown Spear, though it didn't appear overly swift, was accelerating due to the force of its descent. Yet, under the sharp edge of the Thrown Spear, the faces of the few people here drastically changed.
They could see clearly that from the base of the Thrown Spear, the layers of Rune Patterns wrapped around it began to glow, like countless live snakes writhing on the spear shaft. Under the illumination of the True Solar Fire, it was indescribable in color, only feeling that an Aura resembling a net had descended, making it impossible to avoid. The other end of the net was always connected to the triggered Mechanism. As for what was behind the Mechanism, no one truly wanted to find out!
Yu Ci, who had witnessed the Thrown Spear's ability to transform into a Three-mile Poisonous Swamp, never expected that facing this spear tip would be so venomous! Dozens of thoughts flashed through his mind in an instant, but none were foolproof. Left with no choice, he took out his Talisman Plate, using his most familiar Nine Luminaries Dragon Abyss Sword Talisman. In an instant, he held the sword in his hand, setting up the "Flawless Sword Circle" to protect himself.
The others reacted similarly, even earlier than him. For a moment, strong currents overflowed, each protecting themselves. This also prematurely triggered the large Aura net that had descended. In an instant, the three Thrown Spears rang out in unison, and from an unknown spear, a Purple-Red Firelight burst forth, rolling up a radius of one mile in the blink of an eye. Not only Yu Ci, but also the Four Directions Pavilion and the surrounding gardens were all affected.
In the twisted firelight, the Four Directions Pavilion collapsed with a rumble. The fire that disrupted the Primordial Qi of heaven and earth and the loud explosion were the best cover, so much so that when the sharp energy was about to rush to a distance of ten feet in front of him, Yu Ci suddenly woke up:
"Why me?"
Yu Ci was startled and remembered that after the four cultivators had fled, apart from him, people like Wen Shifei were all at the Golden Elixir Upper Level, the gap in Cultivation Level was very obvious. The so-called Criticize Arrogance and Strike the Void were nothing more than this.
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Sword Energy collided with the formidable external force, and the Flawless Sword Circle emitted a humming tremor. The Sword Energy flowed spontaneously, weakening and dissolving the direct impact of the external force. However, the force was too strong to be dissolved at once, and Yu Ci was like a giant ball, hit by the external force and flew out with a bang.
However, this Flawless Sword Circle was indeed exquisite. Despite such a powerful impact, Yu Ci was not injured. Instead, his entire body's Meridian Channels vibrated, feeling as if someone was massaging him, extremely comfortable. When the signs of "a blow to the head, a hundred apertures ringing" appeared, Yu Ci knew that his Swordsmanship had finally entered the room.
This was due to his improved Swordsmanship, but more importantly, it was due to the True Talisman Seed in the Dantian Organ, naturally forming a sense of wholeness, so that the inside and outside could be as one, leaving no flaws.
While he was still suspended in mid-air, a roar pierced his eardrums:
"Kill!"
It was a chorus of at least three voices, shaking his Divine Soul. However, Yu Ci, imbued with the Qi of the Heavenly Dragon True Form, was unafraid of all but the leader of the Heavy Weapon Sect's "Ten Orientation Hell Ghost Shaking Technique".
His mind became even clearer, his divine intent subtly influencing the flow of the Flawless Sword Circle. His body, which had been knocked back, suddenly sprang up, avoiding the second wave of attack. The opponents evidently hadn't expected him to be so slippery, and their momentum faltered.
The surrounding Wen Shifei and others immediately sensed this, and with a series of explosive sounds, they gathered their strength from all directions, trapping the three attackers in a circle. In an instant, the roles of offense and defense were reversed.
All this happened amidst the rampaging Purple-Red Firelight. This firelight, of unknown origin, not only radiated intense heat but also obscured vision. Even with focused eyesight, one couldn't see more than five feet ahead. Wen Shifei and the others could only rely on their divine intent transformation to sense their targets.
"Got them!"
Almost everyone had this feeling. Unconsciously, they all combined their strength, forming a rapidly spinning vortex. Although their forces came from different sources, their combined power was even more violent. Even a Golden Elixir cultivator would be torn to shreds by this attack.
However, the next moment, a sharp Curse Sound erupted from the vortex. Just then, three Thrown Spears landed simultaneously. Wen Shifei and the others, all exceptional individuals, were taken aback. The hurricane-like attack hadn't affected the trajectory of the Thrown Spears at all.
A sizzling sound echoed, like a red-hot iron thrown into icy water.
Wen Shifei's face changed at the sound. Without a word, he shrank his body and used Earth Escape to burrow into the ground.
He was the quickest to react, while the others were a fraction of a second too late. Although they couldn't see, they could sense an even hotter force than the previous Purple-Red Firelight, radiating from one of the spears, sweeping across all directions.
One wave was not enough, but two, three, four... A total of seven waves of such high-temperature force were released, each forming a massive ring of destruction. Buildings, artificial mountains, trees, and the ground itself could not withstand a single blow. From multiple angles, this force sliced through the space.
Apart from Wen Shifei, who ran the fastest, the reaction speeds of the others were about the same. However, due to their varying distances, their experiences differed. Yu Ci was the luckiest, having been flung out early and thus avoiding the first horizontal slice of force. He then used a body technique to drop straight down. As each wave of force struck at different angles, he found himself in a surprisingly safe position after landing.
Both Di Tianluo and Di She used similar techniques, distorting the force by a small angle with their Polar Light Primordial Magnetism, narrowly avoiding danger. Incense Slave seemed to blur in and out of existence, mysteriously sidestepping the force. As for Tie Lan, he simply transformed into smoke, dispersing and reassembling to avoid the attack.
Xia Boyang was the most unfortunate, standing too close to the hurled spears. He had no time to react as the sharp wind of the weapon swept past him, cleaving him into two in an instant.
Although the others couldn't see the distant scene, they felt a chill in their hearts under the perception of their Divine Souls.
At this moment, the presence of the Armored Cultivator, who they had previously attacked together, had disappeared. Under the purple-red firelight that filled the sky, no one knew where they had gone.
After more than ten breaths, the fire gradually dimmed. People's vision slowly extended, only to see that the scene within their view had changed beyond recognition. All the buildings and trees had collapsed, flames connected into one piece, and deep trenches appeared on the ground, also filled with fire. A once quiet garden had turned into a blazing inferno in the blink of an eye.
"That was close, too close." Wen Shifei rose from the ground, looking still shaken, but then he cursed, "Clever boy!"
Everyone looked puzzled and turned to look. They saw Wen Shifei picking up a strange object from the ground, shaking it, and a dark red blood spurted out. This should have been where Xia Boyang's body lay, but now there was only this object.
Looking at the vaguely human-like figure, Di She slapped his palm, "Damn, it's a Substitute Sorcerer Puppet from the Thousand Mountain Sect!"
Di Tianluo nodded slightly, "As expected of Xia Boyang, this transformation technique is extraordinary."
Yu Ci looked at the so-called Substitute Sorcerer Puppet, a puppet pieced together with unknown flesh and blood. It was now broken into two pieces and burnt black, but the complex talisman residues on it made it clear that if Xia Boyang had truly met his end, this would have been his fate.
But now, Xia Boyang himself had flown far away like a goose.
"What a display of divine powers!" Yu Ci couldn't help but sigh. Now, another person had escaped the siege and flew away. This one was much smarter than the previous four cultivators. Not only did he escape, but he also ventured deeper into the Secret Domain, greatly increasing his chances of gaining something.
The remaining people were speechless for a moment. After a while, Wen Shifei glanced at Yu Ci and sneered, "Those people's cultivation levels are nothing more than that. They all rely on the power of their weapons. That armor and this thrown spear are rare treasures in this realm. They can be used at the Golden Elixir Stage, but their power is already far beyond. They are perfectly suited for this Sword Garden... What does the Cave Master think?"
If he hadn't brought it up, the cultivators would almost have forgotten that there was still a hidden big shot here.
The Master of the Sunken Sword Cave was truly baffling. He was arrogant outside, but once inside the Secret Domain, he shrank back and ignored everything, even Xia Boyang's escape, without any reaction.
After a while, just when people were suspecting that he had also run away, suddenly a "buzz" sound rang out. It came from the place where the three thrown spears had fallen. All the cultivators were startled and turned their heads, only to see two of the spears suddenly turn into ashes. The remaining one, with its light receding, was then pulled out of the ground by an invisible hand and thrown over, right in the direction of Yu Ci.
...